Phd in art history with a Ma (merit)

[dunnowhatdo]

Hallo,

I´m brand new in this forum and would like to ask a couple of questions about application for an art history phd program.

I´m 24 and just graduated in aesthetics and art theory ma at Crmep - Kingston University London with a commendation, the equivalent of a merit. I´m pretty disappointed in what should I do and a little bit negatively upset because of my marks, I´m in a certain sense scared that I won´t be able to take part in any phd program because of my transcript of records:

57, 66, 68, 71 and the dissertation was judged 73.

I did my bachelor in Venice at the Iuav University and it ended up with a first. (110/110 cum laude according to the italian grading system). For the fact that I wasn´t so sure about my ma marks I decided to enrol in the ma of art history at Humboldt University in Berlin which I´m attending now.

I´m on one hand happy because I´m studying in Germany and like a lot Berlin but don´t know if I should just apply for a phd with the marks I got from my Uk ma or keep studying here and hoping for the best/gettin better grades.

Any advice is really welcome, cheers!

[runaway]

Isn't a 73 very good-- the equivalent of an A in the US system? What PhD programs are you looking at/where are you hoping to get your degree?

[dunnowhatdo]

Hi, thansk for your answer. Yes 73 is like an A- according to the Uk grading system, but look at my other marks, they are not so high. I have to say I´m still looking around because I also still need to decide on which precise aspect of art history/aesthetics to focus. I have been interested in Aby Warburg and Renaissance Art but also Aby Warburg´s Mnemosyne Atlas in relation to Benjamin´s arcade project. I know these are topics that have been already widely researched that´s why I was thinking to shift to something more specific/new.

For what concerns the schools in which I´m interested I don´t know yet which have focus on my interest/future interest, I was looking at Brown, Yale, Harvard pages yesterday, just out of curiosity.

Also don´t know if I should finish the master I´m doing here in Berlin or concentrate on application for phds.

[runaway]

Your marks don't seem too terrible besides the 57. Doing another MA in such a related field does seem a bit desperate, though. If I were you I'd spend my time building my CV with job experience rather than a redundant degree, but if you're already in a program it's probably better to stick it out than ditch something you've already started.

[dunnowhatdo]

yes, now I'm here, I have been suffering of depression while I was doing my master and lived in a room of 2 square meter (the size of a bed) in a house of seven people, with no table at all neither in the kitchen, these two factors had a strong negative influence on my marks. now I'm in Berlin and don't know if I should study more in this ma or not.

On the one hand I think that it would be useful for my future to handle perfectly three languages (english,italian and german) and most of the phd deadlines already expired this yearm on the other I don't know if I'm ready to stand the stress of another master knowing that the reward would be a title which I already have. But when I look at my marks I'm afraid that nobody is going to admit me in any program..

[Atlantis]

I say, finish your MA in Berlin, network, schmooze with Bredekamp, etc. And apply for a PhD next year. The grades are not that important. The writing sample however is. As are your letters of recommendation. And speaking three languages is a HUGE advantage! If your application shows that you have perseverance, they will know that you won't flunk out after one semester. Do consider the University of Chicago as well. They have recently hired a very smart new Renaissance person, as well as a new professor (not to start till next year) in Ancient Roman art, whose theoretical and methodological approach you might like.   

[la sarar]

Hallo,

I´m brand new in this forum and would like to ask a couple of questions about application for an art history phd program.

I´m 24 and just graduated in aesthetics and art theory ma at Crmep - Kingston University London with a commendation, the equivalent of a merit. I´m pretty disappointed in what should I do and a little bit negatively upset because of my marks, I´m in a certain sense scared that I won´t be able to take part in any phd program because of my transcript of records:

57, 66, 68, 71 and the dissertation was judged 73.

I did my bachelor in Venice at the Iuav University and it ended up with a first. (110/110 cum laude according to the italian grading system). For the fact that I wasn´t so sure about my ma marks I decided to enrol in the ma of art history at Humboldt University in Berlin which I´m attending now.

I´m on one hand happy because I´m studying in Germany and like a lot Berlin but don´t know if I should just apply for a phd with the marks I got from my Uk ma or keep studying here and hoping for the best/gettin better grades.

Any advice is really welcome, cheers!

 

an irrelevant question: how much german do you need if you want to do a graduate degree in germany? I'm think of applying if all my US phd programs reject me, which, in my small field, is quite likely.