Ohio State - Columbus

[cicada123]

As one of the fellowship nominees, I'll make sure to post what I hear from the department on the 18th. (I'm sure Gwendolyn will do the same, which should lead to a clearer picture of funds, etc.)

Thank you so much! And yes, as sebastiansteddy said, good luck!

[kikalique87]

Hi everyone,

 

First of all, congrats to everyone who has been nominated for a fellowship. For those of you who are still waiting to hear back, I also wish you the best of luck. I just wanted to offer myself as a resource for those of you who are trying to decide on OSU. I'm a first year PhD student on fellowship in the rhet/comp/digital media program. I'm happy to provide my perspective on the department (basically: it's an amazing and huge!), OSU as a whole, Columbus, etc. etc. Feel free to message me.

[Pranayama]

At risk of sounding extremely naive (which I'll admit, I am), what percentage of attendees usually have fellowships? And practically speaking, how does that affect your experience at the university? More time to do research because you can TA less, correct? Are you regarding as a "second class" student if you aren't on fellowship? And does it vary from program to program? Thanks in advance for any explanations.

[cicada123]

On that same note, I was under the assumption that all admits are fully funded. So, are we talking fellowship offers on top of the full funding? Or are we talking full funding only for some students? (I don't know if that makes sense....).

 

For the two schools I've already been accepted to I have been nominated for extra fellowships, more money on top of the full funding already provided to all admits. Is this the same at OSU?

 

Also, for those of you who would certainly know this, does OSU have a waiting list or just a second pool of candidates? And if I haven't heard by now, is it likely that I'm going to be wait-listed or am in that second pool?

Edited February 11, 2013 by cicada123

[Gwendolyn]

The program only makes offers to those they can fully fund (asked when I visited last fall). As far as the funding packages go, I think it depends on the student as far as fellowship outlooks (it does seem that there's a basic package the department offers in the absence of fellowships). 

Edited February 11, 2013 by Gwendolyn

[cicada123]

Thank you, Gwendolyn! 

You really don't have to answer this, but I was wondering how you know you've been rejected by Michigan already??? I haven't seen any results on the board about Michigan's English PhD....

[cicada123]

Oh, wait, never mind-- I see that you applied to "American Culture" there. So, scratch that. Congratulations on Ohio State, Indiana, and Wisconsin!

[kikalique87]

I was told this year there were 18 admits and fellowship nominees. They may admit more students, but it's really contingent on who accepts the offer. I believe most of the people in my cohort were on fellowship this year. There are different types of fellowships available through the university, but most of us have one year fellowships. This means that we don't teach or TA our first year, but instead we take an extra class (4 classes total, 1 of those classes is pass/fail). This provides extra time to focus on research, coursework (as a 1st PhD student I finished my coursework in 1 year on fellowship), etc. The fellowship is also useful because it basically guarantees you extra time in the program (I believe you are guaranteed 3 years of funding as an incoming PhD student and 5 as a MA/PhD student, but because you were on fellowship your first year you are very likely to receive an additional year if you are making good progress on your degree). After your fellowship, you'll become a TA and have funding through that.

 

Two things to note about the fellowship that I wish I knew last year: you can't hold any other jobs or appointments while on fellowship (fellowships last 12 months, they pay you through the summer as well), and because you are taking additional classes and not teaching (therefore not in the pre-semester teaching workshop and various other professional development things) it can be difficult to meet people or feel connected to the department. This definitely varies from person to person, but I've personally experienced this, and so have many people I know. Regardless, a fellowship is a wonderful opportunity, and OSU is an amazing program. Every day I'm in awe of the brilliant professors and graduate students.

 

I hope that's helpful. Let me know if you have more questions about the program or moving to/living in Columbus!

[Gwendolyn]

I was told this year there were 18 admits and fellowship nominees. They may admit more students, but it's really contingent on who accepts the offer. I believe most of the people in my cohort were on fellowship this year. There are different types of fellowships available through the university, but most of us have one year fellowships. This means that we don't teach or TA our first year, but instead we take an extra class (4 classes total, 1 of those classes is pass/fail). This provides extra time to focus on research, coursework (as a 1st PhD student I finished my coursework in 1 year on fellowship), etc. The fellowship is also useful because it basically guarantees you extra time in the program (I believe you are guaranteed 3 years of funding as an incoming PhD student and 5 as a MA/PhD student, but because you were on fellowship your first year you are very likely to receive an additional year if you are making good progress on your degree). After your fellowship, you'll become a TA and have funding through that.

 

Two things to note about the fellowship that I wish I knew last year: you can't hold any other jobs or appointments while on fellowship (fellowships last 12 months, they pay you through the summer as well), and because you are taking additional classes and not teaching (therefore not in the pre-semester teaching workshop and various other professional development things) it can be difficult to meet people or feel connected to the department. This definitely varies from person to person, but I've personally experienced this, and so have many people I know. Regardless, a fellowship is a wonderful opportunity, and OSU is an amazing program. Every day I'm in awe of the brilliant professors and graduate students.

 

I hope that's helpful. Let me know if you have more questions about the program or moving to/living in Columbus!

Is the stipend generally dispersed on a monthly basis or once per semester? I've heard it differs from school to school. 

[kikalique87]

Is the stipend generally dispersed on a monthly basis or once per semester? I've heard it differs from school to school. 

 

At OSU it's monthly. It starts in September (this is for TA funding as well) and runs through the following August. The only downside is that OSU doesn't take taxes out of the paycheck, so at some point you end up paying the IRS some money.

[Gwendolyn]

At OSU it's monthly. It starts in September (this is for TA funding as well) and runs through the following August. The only downside is that OSU doesn't take taxes out of the paycheck, so at some point you end up paying the IRS some money.

Thanks 

[sebastiansteddy]

If I hadn't received an encouraging e-mail from OSU I'd be going sooo crazy right now. They are the only school that has acknowledged my existence so far. I am anxiously awaiting the 18th... and dreading that they won't notify the next round of admits until the day after or something. 

Edited February 14, 2013 by sebastiansteddy

[abc_123]

Hi everyone,

 

First of all, congrats to everyone who has been nominated for a fellowship. For those of you who are still waiting to hear back, I also wish you the best of luck. I just wanted to offer myself as a resource for those of you who are trying to decide on OSU. I'm a first year PhD student on fellowship in the rhet/comp/digital media program. I'm happy to provide my perspective on the department (basically: it's an amazing and huge!), OSU as a whole, Columbus, etc. etc. Feel free to message me.

 

How do you like the program? How about the professors in that area of study?

[kikalique87]

How do you like the program? How about the professors in that area of study?

 

I love the rhet/comp and digital media programs here. It's very close knit, smaller community in the huge department. Because of this, I feel like I really have gotten to know most of the professors pretty well in the one semester I've been here. There are tons of opportunities for students to be involved in professional activities outside of classes (right now I'm working as part of a team to create one of the first writing MOOCs). The professors are at the top of their fields, but their classes feel more like informal conversations (yet still demanding), and they really treat graduate students more like colleagues than students. It's a very exciting atmosphere to be in because all of the professors and grad students have such a variety of interests, and it's a very collaborative, supporting environment. To be fair, I wish they had more rhet/comp courses offered every semester (there are always at least 2-3), but I think in the future they are going to try to offer more. Ultimately, I'm very happy with the grad school decision I made.

[Gwendolyn]

I love the rhet/comp and digital media programs here. It's very close knit, smaller community in the huge department. Because of this, I feel like I really have gotten to know most of the professors pretty well in the one semester I've been here. There are tons of opportunities for students to be involved in professional activities outside of classes (right now I'm working as part of a team to create one of the first writing MOOCs). The professors are at the top of their fields, but their classes feel more like informal conversations (yet still demanding), and they really treat graduate students more like colleagues than students. It's a very exciting atmosphere to be in because all of the professors and grad students have such a variety of interests, and it's a very collaborative, supporting environment. To be fair, I wish they had more rhet/comp courses offered every semester (there are always at least 2-3), but I think in the future they are going to try to offer more. Ultimately, I'm very happy with the grad school decision I made.

This is extremely exciting to hear. I've only heard positive things from students I've spoken to and when I visited last year everyone seemed genuinely happy within the department. 

[abc_123]

I love the rhet/comp and digital media programs here. It's very close knit, smaller community in the huge department. Because of this, I feel like I really have gotten to know most of the professors pretty well in the one semester I've been here. There are tons of opportunities for students to be involved in professional activities outside of classes (right now I'm working as part of a team to create one of the first writing MOOCs). The professors are at the top of their fields, but their classes feel more like informal conversations (yet still demanding), and they really treat graduate students more like colleagues than students. It's a very exciting atmosphere to be in because all of the professors and grad students have such a variety of interests, and it's a very collaborative, supporting environment. To be fair, I wish they had more rhet/comp courses offered every semester (there are always at least 2-3), but I think in the future they are going to try to offer more. Ultimately, I'm very happy with the grad school decision I made.

 

I saw on the department website that a new professor is being hired in rhetoric and technical communication. Maybe that will lead to more courses being offered? Any idea what her or his specialty will be?

[kikalique87]

They are hiring a new technical communication professor. The interviews just finished this week, so hopefully we'll hear something in the next few weeks. I went to some of the job talks, and the content from the four candidates included producing culturally relevant construction site safety material to examining computer user manuals/programming code for value systems, and the rhetoric/communication of cancer treatments. All very exciting. I think more coursers will be offered based on some administrative changes (OSU has just switched from quarters to semesters this year, and there has been positive restructuring in the graduate program, so they are figuring these things out). 

[sebastiansteddy]

Not much of an update, but I just received an e-mail that the adcomm is holding it's final meeting today, and that all decisions will be made early next week. This pretty much corresponds to the magical date of the 18th we were given before. To those waiting on fellowship notices, good luck! To those of us in limbo, good luck! 

[Pranayama]

Not much of an update, but I just received an e-mail that the adcomm is holding it's final meeting today, and that all decisions will be made early next week. This pretty much corresponds to the magical date of the 18th we were given before. To those waiting on fellowship notices, good luck! To those of us in limbo, good luck! 

 

Thanks for the update.

 

I feel slightly ill....

[HHEoS]

Not much of an update, but I just received an e-mail that the adcomm is holding it's final meeting today, and that all decisions will be made early next week. This pretty much corresponds to the magical date of the 18th we were given before. To those waiting on fellowship notices, good luck! To those of us in limbo, good luck! 

 

Thanks for the update sebastian! I really hope that, if I am to be rejected outright, they just let me know today. If they don't and I wait out the weekend only to be rejected next week, I may actually literally cry. 

[cicada123]

Not much of an update, but I just received an e-mail that the adcomm is holding it's final meeting today, and that all decisions will be made early next week. This pretty much corresponds to the magical date of the 18th we were given before. To those waiting on fellowship notices, good luck! To those of us in limbo, good luck! 

This is a very helpful update! Thank you so much! Still waiting, of course.

[sebastiansteddy]

No problem. Good luck everyone!

[sebastiansteddy]

JUST GOT A CALL!!! I'M IN!!!!!!

[asleepawake]

JUST GOT A CALL!!! I'M IN!!!!!!

 

 

YAYYYYY! Way to go!

Edited February 16, 2013 by asleepawake

[dazedandbemused]

JUST GOT A CALL!!! I'M IN!!!!!!

 

Wow, sebastianteddy, when it rains it pours, huh? Congratulations!