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American (inc. Ethnic and other Interdisciplinary) Studies Fall 2015 Applicants


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Hi Red_Barron, congrats on your acceptance! I'm waiting to hear from BU too, but hearing you got a phone call a week ago is a bit disheartening. Do you know if they're staggering the acceptances or whether they made all their calls already? 

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I'm still waiting on NYU, too. I feel positive that they're going to reject me, so I just wish they'd do it and get the pain over with! Waiting and not getting rejected stirs false hope, which'll just make it hurt more. On the other hand, I guess it's flattering to know that they actually gave some thought to my application rather than immediately rejecting me? I was a good fit research-wise for them and I suppose my career goals might have intrigued them a little, but I still feel like my not having published anything yet will knock me out of the running.

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WhatIsHirability, how did Purdue get back to you?  I keep checking the website about 10 times per day, but I'm still "Under Review" and I haven't had any emails from them.  I guess I didn't intrigue/excite them as much as I had hoped -- I felt like even though Purdue wasn't my top choice, I actually wrote my best SOP for them (probably because it was the last one that I wrote, so my thoughts had time to get more polished).

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HistoryGypsy, Purdue sent a very kindly worded email, welp. That could mean your application is literally still being reviewed. Keep your hope up! What's your top choice, if I may ask?

 

Shablam, true, I just want to get it over with. D:

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Penn State's my top choice (absolute best fit, plus I got assigned the nicest advisor ever), and so since I got in there early on, it doesn't really matter about other programs.  I just like to have options, especially since the funding isn't definite yet.  (Plus it would flatter my self-esteem to have more than one program want me.)

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Hi Red_Barron, congrats on your acceptance! I'm waiting to hear from BU too, but hearing you got a phone call a week ago is a bit disheartening. Do you know if they're staggering the acceptances or whether they made all their calls already? 

 

Hi jpngrl - I'm sorry I'm just seeing your message now; I've been taking a break from GC for a few days. 

 

Thanks very much for the congratulations! Unfortunately I can't answer your question about whether BU is staggering their acceptances this year, but it never hurts to contact the department if you're still waiting to hear.

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Thanks Red_Barron. Can I ask, did you receive a phone call from the DGS or a potential advisor? I'm crossing my fingers--I called the program today and they told me that decisions had been officially approved today, so I should receive word in a few days. You're so lucky to have heard so early! 

Edited by jpngrl
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So, now that application season is basically over, what decisions are people trying to think through? I'm personally having a tough time choosing between my two programs...gahhh

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I applied only to English departments, but I suspect I'll be doing some interdisciplinary work with American Studies, too. Weighing offers from USC, UC Davis, and UC Riverside right now. Anybody here considering USC? I'm visiting this week. So excited and anxious!

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I applied only to English departments, but I suspect I'll be doing some interdisciplinary work with American Studies, too. Weighing offers from USC, UC Davis, and UC Riverside right now. Anybody here considering USC? I'm visiting this week. So excited and anxious!

 

Awesome! I'm going USC's ASE visitation days...but, it's over two weeks from today. 

 

Do you have a top choice, as of now?

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Hey there- if there are any AC people admitted to Michigan who have questions about the program, let me know. I know the website kinda sucks but my boss gave me a copy of the handbook from 2014-15 and it answered a ton of my questions lol. 

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Would you guys be willing to dispense some advice? I didn't get accepted to any of the programs I was interested in (technically still waiting on one more program, but I'm fairly certain it's a rejection).

 

First some background: I am currently finishing up my MA in a really great program. I was accepted to continue for my PhD, but I feel that maybe it's not quite the right fit for my long term goals. I'm kind of scared to let a good opportunity pass, especially when I don't have other offers, but I'm starting to feel more and more that a PhD is a huge committment and that I should only stay if I'm certain.

 

My main question is, do any of you have experience with being shut out out one application season, then having success the second time around? If I'm taking time off from grad school, I want to make sure I'm doing everything possible to make myself a stronger applicant.

 

I know this is probably too vague and open-ended of a question, and is entirely subjective to me as an individual. But if anyone has general advice to what they thought made them a better applicant the next time they applied (whether that be tips on networking, getting publications out, getting an internship/fellowship to boost your resume, etc.) that would be much appreciated!

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Would you guys be willing to dispense some advice? I didn't get accepted to any of the programs I was interested in (technically still waiting on one more program, but I'm fairly certain it's a rejection).

 

First some background: I am currently finishing up my MA in a really great program. I was accepted to continue for my PhD, but I feel that maybe it's not quite the right fit for my long term goals. I'm kind of scared to let a good opportunity pass, especially when I don't have other offers, but I'm starting to feel more and more that a PhD is a huge committment and that I should only stay if I'm certain.

 

My main question is, do any of you have experience with being shut out out one application season, then having success the second time around? If I'm taking time off from grad school, I want to make sure I'm doing everything possible to make myself a stronger applicant.

 

I know this is probably too vague and open-ended of a question, and is entirely subjective to me as an individual. But if anyone has general advice to what they thought made them a better applicant the next time they applied (whether that be tips on networking, getting publications out, getting an internship/fellowship to boost your resume, etc.) that would be much appreciated!

I can share three things:

 

1. One of my advisers said to me, don't worry about a perfect match with faculty interests because what you do is unique to you, and you will be the expert on your topic or context, not your PhD adviser.

 

2. Another told me that many who were rejected everywhere the first time did better the second time, but I don't have any advice that explains what they did to improve their lots. Perhaps apply to more schools?

 

3. I am sort of in your situation. I have two acceptances, but I am waitlisted for funding at both. Where do I go from here? (Back to 2 - apply to more schools next year)

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Hello Pawnee_IN

 

I am in a similar situation, I guess. 

I am still waiting on the possibility of getting into school off the Wait list, but I cant put too much hope into it because I gotta keep it real with myself ahah. 

I don't think I applied to enough programs (4) this time around, and I also applied to very competitive programs. For next year, these are a few things I would have to change. I was also severely lacking in terms of Networking, that is to say, I did not Network at all. I gotta be less shy, for sure. I will be retaking the GRE (my quantitative score was mediocre and my writing score could use improvement, in my opinion) and rewriting my Personal Statement as well as trying to get something published, although at the moment I'm in the dark about how to go about this (this application season, I was unpublished).

 

Those are the steps that I can think of that I will be taking to better suit myself to be a more competitive applicant next year. Really, I think getting published would show that I did something with the year that I was not in school. Also, although I am quite shy, having applied and been rejected from these universities allows me the  opportunity to inquire about my application and what I may improve upon or just generally to network. 

 

I hope this helps...

 

Lastly, Id like to cheesily say that we gotta keep our heads up! one year or the next, we can do this! 

 

Congratulations to this years Admitted applicants, and good luck in your graduate studies!

Edited by Shablam
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Thanks darklullaby and Shablam!

 

I know it's not uncommon to have to apply again a second time. I'm just worried that the stakes are high for making sure I spend my time productively this upcoming year- I don't want to put myself in a position where I don't get accepted again next year.

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Awesome! I'm going USC's ASE visitation days...but, it's over two weeks from today. 

 

Do you have a top choice, as of now?

 

I visited USC's literature program a few days ago, and it was fun! The campus is beautiful, LA is great, the faculty and incoming students are very impressive. I got to meet Karen Tongson, and she was super fun and awesome, and she made it sound like the big names (including Jack Halberstam) do actually teach and work with grad students, so that's cool. Let me know how you like it when you visit!

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