Fall 2014 applicant

[mcb27]

Hello all,

I'm new to the forum, and relatively young by the looks of it. The threads here have been very helpful, though. Anyways, I'm only in the fall semester of my junior year and just wanted some advice on things I can do to prepare best for the applcation process that I'll go through next fall.

Just some info, I go to a small but strong liberal arts school. The history faculty is only comprised of five professors. It's a very good faculty, though. No superstars but all have PhDs from strong schools and I have the advantage of knowing my professors really well. I have a 3.4 overall, 3.74 in history classes. Due to scheduling, though, I've only had five history classes. The bulk of my major will be completed over the next four semesters. If I were to choose a focus now, it would have to be something surrounding 20th century American social and political history, especially the issue of nationalism and freedom of speech, dissent during times of conflict, etc.

I guess my main concern is GPA. I would like to get into a top program. My overall GPA should improve over these next two years as I get further into history classes. I think I can get a 3.6-3.8 over the next two years. But even thinking about applying to an Ivy is so intimidating to me, coming from a family that has no history in academia, big business, etc. Has anyone else faced this? What is the cutoff in your opinion in terms of ranking? Is it worth going into a PhD program that is below Top 25 level? Also, foreign language is a weak spot for me. I've finished my undergrad requirement, and I know American domestic history will likely only require one language at the grad level. Does anyone have tips on individual studying of languages, or even effective learning of a totally new language at a late age like mine? I love the subject which I mentioned but the history of the US in the Middle East is also fascinating to me, but the idea of knowing multiple languages is intimidating. Anyways, I hope this starts some discussion. Just reading these threads has been great and the community seems first class. Thanks!

[futurePhD]

You should be far more concerned with your writing sample, statement of purpose, and reccommendation letters. These are the things that get you admitted to a top-notch doctoral program. Nearly everyone applying will have a high GPA (a 3.7 in history will not keep you out, IMO). It is mostly used to weed people out.

I would not worry about foreign language all that much. Some on this board will shoot me for saying so, but it is a tremendous waste of time for a lot of Americanists. There are exceptions of course, like the US-Middle East angle you mentioned, or if you wanted to study Louisiana in the 18-19th centuries, etc. . . But honestly, if you want to study 20th Century US political or social history (which is the most overcrowded field in an already horrendous job market), you would be much better served working on a fantastic primary source paper than cramming to learn Spanish or French. For this reason, my program actually eliminated the foreign language requirement for US History, and I believe more programs are starting to lean in this direction.

Anyway, best of luck. Of course, the Professors at your institution are the best source of knowledge, so pick their brains about all of these questions. Finally, I cannot resist saying, make sure this is what you really want to do. You say you are young, so if you haven't done so yet, go visit the Chronicle of Higher Education Forums and see what they say about getting a PhD in the humanities. They are over the top gloom and doom, but it is good to be aware of the realities of this profession.

[Riotbeard]

I would not limit your self to the top 25 programs, but certainly aim for those and attend the best program you can get into, but plenty of schools outside the top 25 have decent placement records (like where I attend for example). I would also not worry too much about a language unless you are doing work on immigrant communities. Start thinking about papers as possible writing samples, and while it will probably not be decisive, try and strengthen you GPA a bit. I also went to undergrad at a smaller liberal arts college, and certainly some people are able to transition from there to the ivies. The worst thing that could happen is the school says no, and plenty of them will (by this, I mean that everybody has gotten a rejection letter, and constantly applying for stuff that you might not get is just a part of the field, so you will have to get used to it.

[Simple Twist of Fate]

I don't want to discourage you from following your interests, but it sounds like you're still deciding exactly what you want to study.

My suggestion is that you try doing some research on America before the 20th century. You don't necessarily have to fall in love with it, and if you decide you aren't interested in doing research on that period, then at least you have narrowed down your interests by that much. For me, as an undergrad Junior, I expected to study 19th century US. However after a particularly significant research project, I decided I wanted to work on an earlier period, which certainly determined where I applied and where I currently am.

Admittedly, I probably wouldn't be telling you this if you hadn't said 20th century US social and political history. As futurePhD points out, that field is crazily overcrowded - so allowing yourself to explore other possibilities now might help you to get into a good program and might someday improve your job market prospects.

Keep in mind, also, that rankings are largely a reflection of perceptions. It's very possible that when you apply in a couple of years, you'll have a choice between a higher-ranked school and a school that's a better fit for you (whether because of advisor, funding, placement, departmental and university-wide strengths or whatever). So, yes it absolutely can be worth going to a school outside of the top 25. In fact, in my field, there are some top 25 schools with pretty rotten reputations for placement while others are doing pretty well.

As for language - I would say don't necessarily sweat it until you figure out what you want to do with your research. It doesn't make sense to learn French now if you do end up wanting to do Middle East-US relations. However, that does mean that you should spend this semester really focused on deciding what you want to do in graduate school, so that you'll have some time to learn a language if you need it.

[thedig13]

I agree with most of the above advice, but in particular, this one:

As for language - I would say don't necessarily sweat it until you figure out what you want to do with your research. It doesn't make sense to learn French now if you do end up wanting to do Middle East-US relations. However, that does mean that you should spend this semester really focused on deciding what you want to do in graduate school, so that you'll have some time to learn a language if you need it.

Foreign language training is important, but only because it allows you to do research in certain fields (i.e.: US-Middle-East relations, for instance). But if your interests don't require it, you may not need it quite yet. It makes sense for a Latin-Americanist to learn Spanish and/or Portuguese because duh, but unless you're going into Mexican-American immigration history, picking up an extra language may not be necessary for an Americanist.

Of course, the first foreign-language is a must-have.

[TMP]

Be open to having a Plan B. I have to be upfront about this because rejections will happen. I'm just starting my first weeks of the PhD program and already know at least 3 people who have been rejected across the board (plus me) in their first (and second) cycles. I'm actually hardly envious of people came straight through from their undergraduate (though taking time off was certainly not by choice- I lived in a limbo for 2 years) has been a tremendous asset to helping me prepare for the PhD.

But it's not say that you can't think about a PhD in History now. I did. I started thinking about in the fall of my junior year. I will confess that my research interests now (6 years later!) have changed significantly because of more coursework and informal exposure through campus lectures and travels. So be open. Programs don't need another person doing 20th century American history these days. My cohort only has ONE this year and he's doing gender and political. Our Latin Americanist had wanted to apply to be a mod US historian but her professors told her to go for Latin America because she had Spanish and she ended up getting offers while her peer, a mod US historian, got nothing.

That said, consider themes that you're interested in. Is it possible that you can explore those themes in another geographical context? You could gain a broader view of these themes.

Don't worry about your GPA- it's fine. Your writing sample and ability to conduct archival research and write well matter much more.

Consider your aspiration to enter in academia to be a marathon. The PhD application process itself is only the first mile out of 26.2 miles that you have to run to be a tenure-track professor (if these positions are available years from now). And doing your undergraduate coursework is only the first 1/2 mile. I'll stop here.

[mcb27]

Thanks for the advice everyone!

I'm certainly not set on anything in terms of research areas. My interests seem to change quite often! Two of my professors are Americanists, the one I've talked to so far is an American foreign policy professor, though. Luckily the university hired a prof this Fall whose specialty is 19th century US, gender, etc and she just finished grad school. I have a seminar with her so she'll be a huge help when I get the chance to talk to her one on one. I certainly have other options in mind, like archive work, library science, public history, etc. I think I have a pretty good appreciation for the academic process and a sense of appreciating graduate school for what it is, not just what it can gain me. That being said, I'd like to be practical about it so I'll definitely keep an open mind.

Edited September 13, 2012 by mcb27