music Posted September 26, 2013 Posted September 26, 2013 I'm also on the fence about applying this year. I just have no idea what the standard is and wonder if I'm just completely kidding myself that I'll even get into an MA program. I'm very overwhelmed with my complete lack of knowledge about *anything* music-related right now, and at that cr@ppy stage where instead of studying making that better, it just seems to emphasise how much I don't know. Recurring thought process of September has been 'maybe if I take 2 years off to read then I'll be ready to apply' -> 'that's why you need to apply, so that someone will pay for you to survive while you do that reading'. (This might be the looming conference paper deadline talking, or the lack of sleep, or the fact that I just quit a well-paid job which was going to pay for applications to focus single-mindedly on my studies which leaves me unable to, ya know, pay for applications...) (Out of interest, how do people actually fund this stuff? You know, people who are in school full time and whose parents can't support a $1000 application process? Seems kind of elitist, almost.)
CP3 Posted September 27, 2013 Posted September 27, 2013 It can be elitist at times. It helps having a family with money and connections when it comes to applying to schools. I'm the first in my family to go to college, and they have no money. I barely managed to scrounge up the money last year to pay for the application fees. This is a highly competitive process, especially in music. I was an underdog last year, and sure enough, I got rejected everywhere. Life happened since last Fall, so I was not able to accomplish much in terms of making my application stronger. There is still a few months to go before deadlines, but I feel like I'm beating a dead horse right now. Probably will wait until next fall to apply again.
music Posted October 3, 2013 Posted October 3, 2013 Bleugh, well I decided to apply this time around, have got my letter writers on board, and am editing two kinda-sorta decentish writing samples. The SoP is just such a gross thing to write. It makes me cringe inside. I think I'm too self-depricatingly British to write it. I'm also going to have a go at Fulbright (lol) so my first deadline is November 14: 6 weeks today, and I'm out of the country at conferences for almost half of that time. Guess I'll be taking my application materials to some funky foreign lands with me! Anyone else getting further along with the process?
Kand Posted October 8, 2013 Posted October 8, 2013 I'm drafting my SoPs and hoping for some feedback on my writing samples from a faculty member quite soon. I plan on hitting it pretty hard during this month and then submitting everything during the first week of November. Any thoughts on the word count ceiling for a Diversity Statement? I was thinking 500-600 words (definitely doesn't need to be 1,000 like my SoPs right?).
music Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 (edited) Any thoughts on the word count ceiling for a Diversity Statement? I was thinking 500-600 words (definitely doesn't need to be 1,000 like my SoPs right?). Meh, I am perhaps not diverse enough but was thinking less. I doubt the music department care all that much, they're surely going to select on the basis of your ability first and foremost. I figured diversity statements are a nice way to pull in extra funding, but since everywhere I'm applying provides full tuition and a stipend, it makes little/no difference... I'm also really against the whole sob story thing, and would rather be assessed purely on the strength of my actual academic potential. That's just me though. So I awoke today to a very creepy email from Brandeis offering an application fee waiver based on my GRE scores, and they somehow know *exactly* my area of interdisciplinary interest. How???? Their music department is not strong in my area but they have another MA joint degree course which is, and would set me up very nicely for future PhD study elsewhere. Anyone got an opinion on Brandeis and/or applying for an MA outside of music? (ETA: my profile pic gives away my specialist area ) Edited October 9, 2013 by music
Kand Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 Actually music, one of my advisors had a great way of describing how to approach a diversity statement. The admissions committee wants to see if you play well with others! In that way, it might be in your best interest to provide a short and succinct statement. I am definitely not a diversity home run, but the city in which I have lived and performed my master's research is an extraordinarily diverse city with people from all over the world co-mingling and interacting, particularly at my university... so that is what my advisor suggested I write about. I bonked myself on the head because it was so obvious... always helps to have another perspective when you have issues or questions like that.
music Posted October 9, 2013 Posted October 9, 2013 Actually music, one of my advisors had a great way of describing how to approach a diversity statement. The admissions committee wants to see if you play well with others! In that way, it might be in your best interest to provide a short and succinct statement. I am, I suppose, *diverse* in terms of ethnicity, religion, nationality and educational background, I just don't see the need to explain or justify myself. I figure if it's relevant to my studies then it will be evident in my other application materials. I wouldn't have even thought about being a minority in those ways until just now, that's how little it impacts upon my studies and daily life, so I don't want to misrepresent myself. Besides, as an ethnomusicologist, diverse has a very different meaning than it might in straight-up musicology.
Haroun Posted November 4, 2013 Posted November 4, 2013 it's so quiet in here o_o I'm also re-applying. Good luck to everyone!
kccur Posted November 6, 2013 Posted November 6, 2013 Hope the theorists here all had a good time at SMT this last weekend awkwardly following around prospective faculty members, I know I did. Also hope your application processes are going well -- got a lot of work left to do, but I just cut Indiana from my list, so hey, no more December 1 deadlines! Voila, two more weeks to finish papers.
Haroun Posted November 6, 2013 Posted November 6, 2013 Hope the theorists here all had a good time at SMT this last weekend awkwardly following around prospective faculty members, I know I did. Also hope your application processes are going well -- got a lot of work left to do, but I just cut Indiana from my list, so hey, no more December 1 deadlines! Voila, two more weeks to finish papers. Don't you just hate it when out of several schools you are applying, only one school has Dec. 1 deadline... and all the other schools have their deadlines in late Dec-January? ... I do. But i figured I'd apply to one more Dec. 1 deadline school now that i already decided to apply to one anyway.
kccur Posted November 6, 2013 Posted November 6, 2013 Don't you just hate it when out of several schools you are applying, only one school has Dec. 1 deadline... and all the other schools have their deadlines in late Dec-January? ... I do. But i figured I'd apply to one more Dec. 1 deadline school now that i already decided to apply to one anyway. Definitely. It's honestly part of the reason that I decided to not apply to Indiana (the other reason being that while they have a good faculty and great rep, I don't actually think I'd leave my masters institution for IU, so why bother paying something like $100 to apply and potentially another several hundred flying to Bloomington to interview). Dec. 1 deadlines destroyed me when I was applying for masters programs. Definitely spent an all-nighter on that.
Kand Posted November 7, 2013 Posted November 7, 2013 Am I the only person that doesn't want to submit applications until all the recommendations have been completed? Several of my applications are totally ready to go, barring one final section-by-section check... am I totally crazy? Every school seems to be fine with recommendations coming in after the application is submitted... but I feel so paranoid that something weird will happen if I do that.
Haroun Posted November 7, 2013 Posted November 7, 2013 ^ I'd just submit. It would just calm me down.
music Posted November 7, 2013 Posted November 7, 2013 Am I the only person that doesn't want to submit applications until all the recommendations have been completed? Several of my applications are totally ready to go, barring one final section-by-section check... am I totally crazy? Every school seems to be fine with recommendations coming in after the application is submitted... but I feel so paranoid that something weird will happen if I do that. They won't even look at your apps til January IDK whether it works the same for schools, but Fulbright still lets you log in after you've submitted and access the recommender page. You just can't change anything else on the app. Nice job getting everything done ahead of time! I'm getting there. SoPs uploaded, 2/3 letters submitted, 1 writing sample uploaded, the other in its final edit, CV ready, GRE scores sent, and off to give my 2nd conference presentation this weekend. Even if I get 5/5 rejections, I learnt a *lot* from this process and would feel confident to do a 2nd round. Once the US apps are gone, I have 2 UK schools to deal with and then I'm taking a holiday!
Kand Posted November 10, 2013 Posted November 10, 2013 4/6 submitted... waiting for some revisions on a third writing sample and I can submit the final 2... now to just make sure my recommenders submit on time!
music Posted November 13, 2013 Posted November 13, 2013 Have done 5/7. Went to submit Brown and my card got declined due to lack of funds. I knew applying to grad school was expensive but still...
music Posted November 13, 2013 Posted November 13, 2013 Got an email with this as the preview: "This email is to notify you of a new message or decision regarding your application to the at King’s College London. " Choked on my dinner. Unnecessarily. And so it begins.
music Posted November 30, 2013 Posted November 30, 2013 First offer came through 4 days ago, before my second reference was uploaded. KCL baby Good to know I will be going *somewhere* next year, and Kings is right on my doorstep, so it's a great option! comp12 and Karajan 2
Karajan Posted November 30, 2013 Posted November 30, 2013 First offer came through 4 days ago, before my second reference was uploaded. KCL baby Good to know I will be going *somewhere* next year, and Kings is right on my doorstep, so it's a great option! Congratulations! music 1
music Posted December 2, 2013 Posted December 2, 2013 Congratulations! Thanks Karajan Cambridge are apparently contacting all applicants in the New Year, so I can stop checking the online portal every day and forget about applications altogether for at least a month. Who else is submitting this year? Seems very quiet...
music Posted December 15, 2013 Posted December 15, 2013 That feeling when your academia.edu webpage lists viewers from Providence...
eisler001 Posted January 11, 2014 Posted January 11, 2014 Hello all: I just wanted to leave a quick message and send greetings, and wish everyone the best of luck. I am currently waiting to hear from the seven schools I applied to. I am not in a nervous state yet, but I imagine I may be come mid to late February. All best!
CP3 Posted January 15, 2014 Posted January 15, 2014 Haven't been on this site for awhile, I'm re-applying next Fall. GOOD LUCK TO ALL OF YOU APPLYING!!!
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