Applying for Fall 2014

[kccur]

So Chicago half-rejected me by accepting me into MAPH.... though I will not be going, I'm curious to know if anyone's actually considered it.

 

Straight rejection from Chi for me. It's funny, because before application season I thought I'd have a better shot at Chicago than the other top school I was applying to, but I'm rejected from the former and first-in-line on the wait list for the latter. Somehow, the down-to-the-wire dramatic finish of my application season isn't turning me into as much of an anxious wreck as I thought it would.

[gr8pumpkin]

Congrats to tutu for being one of two musicologists accepted to Eastman--- though I was pretty sure their website said no acceptances would be forthcoming until March 15.  I guess musicology is ahead of the curve?

[eisler001]

I just received my rejection from NYU via email. Funny, I am presenting a paper there at the Music and the Moving Image conference in May. Hopefully there will be some better news coming along soon!!

[eisler001]

And better news came!! I received an acceptance letter from Florida State this afternoon. I am very relieved. How is everyone else coming along?

[musicbox]

And better news came!! I received an acceptance letter from Florida State this afternoon. I am very relieved. How is everyone else coming along?

 

Congrats! I saw that on the results board and thought it might be you!

[flamestalker]

Heard back from CSULB tonight, unfortunately it's a no. Back to the drawing board, I suppose.. need to spend some time to refine my skills

 

edit: it's good to know where I stand now.. I've been wondering whether how my composing skills compare to others. It's a very difficult thing to judge, so I feel it may be a blessing in disguise.

Edited March 6, 2014 by flamestalker

[tutupack4]

Way to go, Eisler! I'm curious, what are your research interests? Florida sounds lovely -- especially this time of year. Congrats!

[music]

Tutupack, great job on all the acceptances! Any ideas where you'll go?

 

Also, is anyone else going to the Chicago or Penn campus visit days?

[eisler001]

Way to go, Eisler! I'm curious, what are your research interests? Florida sounds lovely -- especially this time of year. Congrats!

Thanks! I am currently living in Florida, and the weather is very nice at the moment.

I'm interested in American music of the early twentieth century, exile studies, jazz, and cultures of the American South. My Master's thesis was on Hanns Eisler and the years he was in the United States. In the future I would like to look at Wallingford Riegger, music and the WPA, and the jazz history of Mobile, Alabama.

[tutupack4]

Thanks, music! At the moment, it seems to be between WashU and Eastman, though I certainly wouldn't mind a place off the wait list at Northwestern! You've done spectacularly -- do you know where you'll end up?

 

That sounds really interesting, Eisler! FSU sounds like a great place to study that -- they've got some wonderful American music scholars!

 

Good luck to everyone as things start wrapping up! It's refreshing to be in the homestretch after months of anxiously checking my email and this forum. (Though, granted, this comes with a new kind of stress and anxiety...)

[music]

On 3/6/2014 at 11:59 AM, tutupack4 said:

Thanks, music! At the moment, it seems to be between WashU and Eastman, though I certainly wouldn't mind a place off the wait list at Northwestern! You've done spectacularly -- do you know where you'll end up?

 

Both great options. Is there anything pushing you towards one or the other?

 

Me, I'm not decided yet but I am so thankful to be in this fortuitous position. I have to factor in whether I could support my partner if needs be, which is pushing me towards Chicago, who have the leading prof in my field, and away from NYU, which was initially my first choice. Penn don't have a specialist in my geographic area and I'm still waiting on their financial package, but they *are* awesome in every other way, and the weather would suck less than in Chi-town (yes, it matters). If Brown made an offer, I'd definitely consider them a contender too for their faculty, location, relatively low cost of living and interdisciplinary ethos.

I assumed I'd get 5/5 rejections, so I didn't even begin to think about my preferences til now, and also only applied to my top 5 schools where I knew I'd accept a place without a second thought. Can't really make a bad decision as a result, but also makes this process tough.

[Eclodemike]

Hi all! It's quieted down a bit, but I'm glad to see a lot of good things happening in this thread. Congratulations to everyone, ^music especially, you seem to be having a dream run of this! And kccur I concur, I'd be interested to hear back from a few more theory applicants.

 

This is my first time around as a junior in undergrad, just looking to put my name out there and see if anyone bites. So far not so much luck, but while my professor who did it in the early 2000s (Oberlin to Eastman) seemed confident in the direct to PhD prospect, some cursory perusing of thegradcafe has shown it to be quite rare, so my expectations are managed. 

 

I get the sense this mid-march period could be the defining moment for a lot of people, and I wish everyone the very best! 

 

-e

[Counterpointer]

Who has just posted the results for MM Classical Guitar performance program? Eventually, I want to do a theory PhD but I am not ready to apply to doctoral programs yet. I'd like to do a MM Guitar first then apply to PhD. If you're the one that posted results on MM Guitar, please share your financial package, if you don't mind. Congrats on your acceptances, and congrats to everyone who got accepted.

 

Coming straight from undergrad, I applied to schools for Fall 2013, only to be rejected by every school.

Well, I did get into 2 masters programs and I'm attending with a TAship. 

I doubt I will be ready to apply for Fall 2016, so I plan to finish 2 masters (theory, performance) before applying to PhD programs again for Fall 2018 : S

 

I will spend another four years as a masters student.. this is like undergrad all over again.

But I can't give up after my first try. Second try coming for Fall 2018. 

Everyone seen this '10 rejection letters sent to famous people'?

http://mentalfloss.com/article/55416/10-rejection-letters-sent-famous-people

 

Hey, this could be you, or me. Although, do music PhDs ever become famous to that degree? I just want to say that even if you get rejected by every school (just like me in 13), things happen for a reason, I think everything will turn out fine. A PhD is not a requirement for a great life. Anyway, yeah. Reply if you're the one who posted about Guitar acceptances. I'm applying to Guitar MM for fall 2016

[musicbox]

Counterpointer,

 

5 years of Master's work sounds like a lot. If you don't mind me asking, what would be the benefit of pursuing a second Master's in performance – especially if that is not the field which you intend to study for PhD? If you are in a three-year program now, don't you think that would be sufficient enough to prepare you for doctoral studies (this is generally speaking; of course, everyone is different)?

[airmusic]

I would agree with musicbox. I only got offers from terminal masters programs my first go around (Fall 2012), and this time, I have an offer at a PhD program, and had I applied to slightly less prestigious options, I would have probably had a few more options (I mostly wanted to stay at the institution I did my masters at, though, which is probably what I'm going to do!)

 

However, I do understand the desire to get back into performance. If you want to do some more performance stuff, I might look into PhD programs where you might have some elective space to make that possible. But if it's just about preparedness, you might be surprised at how much you've learned doing a masters in your field (I know I look back at my writing sample from my first time around and have a good chuckle sometimes!)

Edited March 14, 2014 by airmusic

[taylorbakken]

Hello! Finally found this forum, I knew there had to be something out there for music programs. I only applied to NYU MFA Composition... thought for sure I'd hear back by today. I saw one person heard back, anybody else? I just applied for the general concentration.

[Counterpointer]

Counterpointer,

 

5 years of Master's work sounds like a lot. If you don't mind me asking, what would be the benefit of pursuing a second Master's in performance – especially if that is not the field which you intend to study for PhD? If you are in a three-year program now, don't you think that would be sufficient enough to prepare you for doctoral studies (this is generally speaking; of course, everyone is different)?

 

I would agree with musicbox. I only got offers from terminal masters programs my first go around (Fall 2012), and this time, I have an offer at a PhD program, and had I applied to slightly less prestigious options, I would have probably had a few more options (I mostly wanted to stay at the institution I did my masters at, though, which is probably what I'm going to do!)

 

However, I do understand the desire to get back into performance. If you want to do some more performance stuff, I might look into PhD programs where you might have some elective space to make that possible. But if it's just about preparedness, you might be surprised at how much you've learned doing a masters in your field (I know I look back at my writing sample from my first time around and have a good chuckle sometimes!)

 

I'm planning on 4 years of masters, not 5. Actually, I don't have a degree in performance, my undergrad was composition. I suppose there isn't really a great benefit from doing second masters. I'm an international student studying in U.S., and I know I have a lot to improve on my writing, as well as speaking. Although I did my undergrad in US, I still feel like I'm not ready to move onto doctorate mainly for the language barrier. For my second masters in performance, I will only apply to schools with good research programs, such as Yale, Indiana, Eastman and FSU, and even if I get accepted, I will only consider attending if I'm offered a good financial package or TAship in theory or Guitar. 

 

My undergrad was at Indiana. Currently masters at Temple. If I do a second masters in performance at Yale, Eastman or FSU, and get to know academic faculties, I will have a variety of references from different schools and have an idea where I would like to do my PhD

[music]

My undergrad was at Indiana. Currently masters at Temple. If I do a second masters in performance at Yale, Eastman or FSU, and get to know academic faculties, I will have a variety of references from different schools and have an idea where I would like to do my PhD

 

Do you think that really matters much? All my references were from my (current) undergrad conservatory professors, only one of whom has a musicology PhD, and it doesn't appear to have been a problem for my application. If you want to study for its own sake and to continue working on your English/writing skills, I think that's great, especially if you can get funded and view it as a 'job'. But in and of itself, having more degrees and contacts is not going to get anyone into a PhD program...only the work you produce will do that.

[airmusic]

I'm planning on 4 years of masters, not 5. Actually, I don't have a degree in performance, my undergrad was composition. I suppose there isn't really a great benefit from doing second masters. I'm an international student studying in U.S., and I know I have a lot to improve on my writing, as well as speaking. Although I did my undergrad in US, I still feel like I'm not ready to move onto doctorate mainly for the language barrier. For my second masters in performance, I will only apply to schools with good research programs, such as Yale, Indiana, Eastman and FSU, and even if I get accepted, I will only consider attending if I'm offered a good financial package or TAship in theory or Guitar. 

 

My undergrad was at Indiana. Currently masters at Temple. If I do a second masters in performance at Yale, Eastman or FSU, and get to know academic faculties, I will have a variety of references from different schools and have an idea where I would like to do my PhD

 

You still might be more prepared than you think! Perfect english skills are not always required when students enter PhD programs; I have a number of colleagues who came to the United States for the first time when they entered PhD programs here, and their writing/speaking skills improved over the course of our program. Also, a lot of campuses have graduate writing centers, specifically designed to help graduate students with academic writing. However, you know your language skills best, as well as your advisor(s) now, so I defer to you/them! I just wanted to say that not everyone who enters a PhD program has really fantastic writing/oral skills (even those who have English as their first language... I know my writing could use a bit of work!)

 

Another consideration is that many performance programs do not encourage or focus on writing skills, so you may actually find that yours will not improve unless you put extra/spare time into writing outside of your studies (though I don't know a lot about the schools you're looking at; they may be more academically oriented in their performance departments).

Edited March 17, 2014 by airmusic

[musicbox]

I'm planning on 4 years of masters, not 5. Actually, I don't have a degree in performance, my undergrad was composition. I suppose there isn't really a great benefit from doing second masters. I'm an international student studying in U.S., and I know I have a lot to improve on my writing, as well as speaking. Although I did my undergrad in US, I still feel like I'm not ready to move onto doctorate mainly for the language barrier. For my second masters in performance, I will only apply to schools with good research programs, such as Yale, Indiana, Eastman and FSU, and even if I get accepted, I will only consider attending if I'm offered a good financial package or TAship in theory or Guitar. 

 

My undergrad was at Indiana. Currently masters at Temple. If I do a second masters in performance at Yale, Eastman or FSU, and get to know academic faculties, I will have a variety of references from different schools and have an idea where I would like to do my PhD

 

You said that you would be applying for doctoral programs for Fall '18. If you started your current master's in Fall '13, and you will apply to doctoral programs for Fall '18, that is a 5-year span (F13-S14, F14-S15, F15-S16, F16-S17, F17-S18, then F18). 

 

You have said yourself that you "suppose there isn't really a great benefit from doing a second master's," and I agree. I could understand pursuing a second master's because you changed your mind about what it is you want to study, but you're talking about completely changing fields temporarily (and I assume you have learned by now that graduate programs are much more field-oriented than undergraduate programs; please correct me if I am wrong) for the sake of improving your English and securing more letter-writers. Guitar performance is completely different from music theory, and I can't imagine applying to a program without the genuine intention to focus on that field afterword.

 

I also agree with music that you may be looking at references the wrong way, and unless you are performing poorly at your current program, you must be undervaluing the faculty. The quality of your scholarship is absolutely the most important aspect of your academic profile.

[kccur]

I think you might be underestimating your academic growth from your theory masters program. It's not uncommon for people to have far greater success applying after their masters than they did out of undergrad. Additionally, if it's language skills you're worried about and are totally set on getting a second masters before re-applying to theory PhD programs, maybe you should consider a more closely related research field instead of guitar performance? I imagine getting a second masters in something like historical musicology, focusing particularly on the composers you're interested in from a theory standpoint, could be far more helpful in both developing your language skills as well as broadening your intellectual mindset. 

[music]

I'm off to do campus visits this week, and then again in 2 weeks time. Still very much undecided between UPenn, NYU and UChicago.

 

It's kind of bizarre that, had I accepted a UK MA offer, I'd be looking at £25k of debt for a 1 year course, and instead I've got 3 schools flying me across the Atlantic just in case I happen to decide to take up their offer, and then paying me to study for 5+ years. Well done USA.

 

 

Anyone made any final decisions yet?

[gr8pumpkin]

Hell, I'm still waiting to hear from Top Choice!

[eisler001]

Received a rejection email from UCLA last night or this morning. I came home from work and had an email from Southern California. They have waitlisted me, but they seemed interested in my work and want to offer me a fellowship. The email said they were waiting to hear from other applicants. USC has a pretty and cozy campus, and I enjoyed the days I spent in Los Angeles while working on my thesis. 

 

I hope everyone is hearing good news this week.

[taylorbakken]

Anybody know how many people they let into the Music Composition masters at NYU? Last year I got my rejection email almost exactly 7 weeks after the deadline... which would be today.