Am I Competitive--PhD?

[victoriana]

Hi all,

 

I'm a newcomer to this forum-- hope you guys don't mind me jumping right in and posting a little monologue about my grad school anxieties!

 

I only began seriously considering grad school in history this semester, ever since I started working on my Honors undergrad thesis and realized that this (Modern British and in particular Victorian social & cultural history) is what I want to do and that grad school should be my next move.  The problem is that it did take me most of my undergrad career-- I'm a junior now-- to reach this conclusion.  In addition to my history major, I'm also all but finished with a second major in English and a secondary education minor.  I will have to student teach next year, and so that's why I'm writing my "Senior" honors thesis in my junior year.  Given that my interests have been all over the place, I'm not sure that my undergrad career in history will be strong enough to be competitive for a PhD program come next fall.  I would be willing (though reluctant) to pursue my M.A before going on to a PhD program due to the lack of funding, but first I would like to get a clearer sense of whether I stand a chance of getting into a decent, funded PhD program.

 

Here's what I'm looking at so far:

 

I'm a junior History and English major with a secondary education minor at a state university of middling but quickly growing reputation.  I have a 3.91 GPA, a 4.0 GPA in history, and I'm active in our Phi Alpha Theta chapter.  The research for my honors thesis is coming along very well, and I plan to present at a couple of undergrad conferences and at my school's regional graduate conference.  However, I don't have a long list of conferences or major research projects to add to my CV.  I also have taken really diverse courses rather than focusing on my specific interests in British, cultural, and gender history.  I have a couple of advisers in the history department who I think would write really positive recommendations, so that is not among my most pressing worries... I have not taken the GRE, but generally do well on standardized tests.  I have had the opportunity to study abroad in the UK yet, either.  

 

 

My biggest concern is whether admissions committees will look unfavorably at my double major and in particular my concentration in secondary education.  Does these varied interests make me look too wishy-washy to be taken seriously as a history doctoral candidate?  Since my interests lie mainly in cultural and social history, I think I can make something of a good case for my English major, but there's no doubt that my credit hours have been spread more thinly than those of students who may be more competitive for having focused mainly on history and languages.    

 

Speaking of languages, I have fairly good speaking skills in French and a somewhat better reading knowledge.  While I know languages are not quite as essential for British and US specialists, do you all have any more recommendations about language study or anything else I can do to make myself more competitive for next year?  

 

Although, again, I am not confident that I am competitive enough to apply seriously to PhD programs before doing a MA, I have been looking mainly at Indiana University--Bloomington (my #1 choice so far based on POIs and its strengths in British and cultural history), John Hopkins, UNC Chapel Hill, Duke, and University of Chicago.   As far as MA programs, I have considered doing the terminal MA at my current school and applying to Phd programs in two years, but the lack of funding for most all MAs I have looked at is not reassuring.  

 

What do you guys think: should I shoot for PhD programs while still applying to a few MAs, or do I have a lot more to do in order to become competitive?  Any program recommendations?  Any hope for me??

[Sigaba]

V--

Welcome to the Grad Cafe.

Do all you can to develop relationships with additional professors while working closely with the ones you think will write strong LoRs. Relationships with professors can go south, people get new jobs, people die.

Consider the University of Texas at Austin as a possible program for you.

Worry less about how admissions committees might see you. Spend more time focusing on framing the narrative that shows precisely how your academic career makes you a viable candidate for admission to a doctoral program.

[victoriana]

Thanks, Sigaba, for your advice and especially for recommending University of Texas at Austin.  Looks like they are really strong in British and imperial history, so I will definitely give them a closer look.

Edited November 1, 2014 by victoriana

[TMP]

I say this for every single person thinking of going to grad school.  Make sure you have had time off from school whether before starting undergrad or between undergrad and grad school.  You will arrive in the program more settled and ready to work, not spending weekends getting trashed.  Spending time outside of academia also makes you a more interesting person especially that your professors are very.... cosmopolitan.

 

Another thing I always say, have a "Plan B" in place before you submit those applications.  Admissions is very competitive-- it's partially dumb luck.  What are you going to do if you don't get in that year?  What if you student teach next year and realize that you don't really like it?  Would it be because of the student body (K-12)?  College students are hardly different from high school, especially freshmen and sophomores and you'll be dealing with them as a teaching assistant (TA).  What if you just don't like to teach- would you be okay pursuing the PhD for the love of it and get whatever job that fits you afterward?

 

As Sigaba,suggested, spend more time cultivating relationships with your professors and exploring your interests than worrying about admissions.  Such tasks will actually help strengthen your application- you'll see as you put it together when the time comes.  Don't worry about your double major- your English background clearly informed your interests in social and cultural aspects of the Victorian Age via literature.

 

You wrote that you're interested in "imperial history"- what would be your interested in the British Empire during Victorian Age?

 

As regular forumites know.... I'm bluntly honest about graduate school.  My $.02.

[maelia8]

I want to second TMP about taking some time off between undergrad and grad school. Almost everyone in my program took at least a year off, either to work at a non-academic job, to travel, to do research, or to participate in an international scholarship exchange or teaching program, such as Fulbright or Peace Corps(that's what I did). I highly recommend taking this break because it will give you time to refine your interests, reassess why studying history at the grad level matters for you, give you life and professional experience outside of your undergrad institution (allowing you to diversify), and also give you a breather. I do think it's good that you're considering all of this early (I hadn't really thought of grad school except in passing until more than a year out of undergrad), but don't get hung up on the necessity of getting into grad school straight out of undergrad and trying to be the perfect candidate for admission right now. You seem to be a hard worker, have a great GPA, and varied interests, which is wonderful, so just keep on the way you're going and guide yourself by asking, "what can I do to make myself diverse and interesting as a candidate?" Since you specialize in British history, try applying for a program that will get you over there during a potential gap year to research or teach or work, just to give you a feel for what resources are available. Best of luck to you!

[victoriana]

Another thing I always say, have a "Plan B" in place before you submit those applications.  Admissions is very competitive-- it's partially dumb luck.  What are you going to do if you don't get in that year?  What if you student teach next year and realize that you don't really like it?  Would it be because of the student body (K-12)?  College students are hardly different from high school, especially freshmen and sophomores and you'll be dealing with them as a teaching assistant (TA).  What if you just don't like to teach- would you be okay pursuing the PhD for the love of it and get whatever job that fits you afterward?

 

 

I initially started at my current uni with the intention of becoming a teacher (9-12) and would not mind teaching for a few years as a "Plan B" if I don't get into any PhD programs next year.  I come from a family of secondary teachers and always looked forward to teaching until I caught the research "bug" working on my honors thesis and started looking into grad school, talking to my professors, etc.  I have heard conflicting arguments about whether it's best to take time off before grad school, but I see your point, TMP.  Many professors and grad students seem to have taken time out of the "ivory tower" to do interesting things.  Where do you stand on whether or not I should look at MA programs?

 

You wrote that you're interested in "imperial history"- what would be your interested in the British Empire during Victorian Age?

 

 

One of my (pretty broad, at this point) interests is in how the cultures of Britain's various imperial "acquisitions", particularly India, influenced the mainland culture.  For example, Orientalism and Victorian material culture.  U of Texas at Austin seems to have quite a few people who focus on the British Empire, so Sigaba was spot-on.  Thanks to both of you for your advice.  

[victoriana]

Maelia, where did you go in the Peace Corps?  I love to hear people's Peace Corps stories-- so fascinating and what a great thing to do for your gap year.  One of the things you mentioned also struck a chord:

 

 Since you specialize in British history, try applying for a program that will get you over there during a potential gap year to research or teach or work, just to give you a feel for what resources are available.

 

 

My adviser who does British history seems to spend half his time in the UK and has encouraged me to try to get across the Atlantic, and this does seem kind of important for someone interested in British history.     What kind of programs are out there to fund gap year research?  I don't much about Fulbright other than that it is very competitive(?)  Teaching in the UK (as someone who will hopefully graduate with a license to teach in the US) and developing my research interests while there is something I hadn't even considered and an entirely different possibility to look into.  I have generally seen on this forum that most people don't recommend doing MA history programs in the UK for US students.  Do you guys second this?  

Edited November 1, 2014 by victoriana

[Josh J.]

Victoriana,

Your undergraduate degree does not need to be particularly focused, so don't worry about that. Also, the double major, especially in English, should be nothing but a help. Also, I see no issues with the secondary-Ed emphasis. Having some student teaching experience might provide you with a slight edge in your TA work, even, however, it won't make an admissions difference either way,

You've got an excellent GPA. Take the GRE and focus on the verbal, then writing, and then the quantitative reasoning in that order. Most applicants wont have any publications or conference appearances, so good on you for presenting.

Get the best recommenders you can who will write a glowing review of your work. Other than that, work very hard on your SOP, and find the best fit between your interests and good departments in your field. Other than that, aim high as you can... Graduating from a top program will help your job prospects in this age of PhD overproduction.

[tspier2]

My biggest concern is whether admissions committees will look unfavorably at my double major and in particular my concentration in secondary education.  Does these varied interests make me look too wishy-washy to be taken seriously as a history doctoral candidate?  Since my interests lie mainly in cultural and social history, I think I can make something of a good case for my English major, but there's no doubt that my credit hours have been spread more thinly than those of students who may be more competitive for having focused mainly on history and languages. 

 

If it makes you feel any better, my undergraduate degree was bipartite by form -- English and Secondary Education -- and led to my state certification. I applied to and was accepted at my current institution for a doctoral program in linguistics, which is certainly a different beast from what you're looking at, but I still had to tailor my background to the program. You'll find the right fit for you.

[maelia8]

@Victoriana I didn't join the Peace Corps, I got a Fulbright to teach ESL in Germany for a year - my comma choice made that ambiguous, sorry I loved my years overseas (I managed to extend my program for a second year) and was able to get an internship in a museum while I was there that helped my grad school application a lot! Fulbright is a great option (obviously not in English teaching if you're going to the UK, but in research), and it is competitive but still possible to get one during a gap year if you show that you already have the affiliation and the experience necessary to carry out the research that interests you.