Fall 2016 Applicants

[carriemarie25]

Ok. So if you want to be a balanced 50-50 research and teaching you're not really looking at liberal arts colleges.  You're looking at Research universities.  With that in mind you need to consider schools that have a proven record of solid placement in those type of institutions.  There's a report floating around on the forums that lists the schools by rank from a study a few years back.  Look at that list and then dig in and do some research on those schools that have the type of adviser you want to work with and in a place you can live in for the next 5-7 years.  Then start making contact.  

Great! Thank you. That helps so much. 

[carriemarie25]

I'm going to be real with you and say you should aim for the top 20, maybe even the top 10. A lot of the top tier programs place their grads at small liberal arts colleges, more so than programs lower ranked. I honestly wouldn't look at anything below 50. If you want to teach because you love it and don't care where you end up, then it doesn't matter as much--that's why I applied to a range of programs from 15-105, I simply want to teach at the college level.  

 

The less cynical side of me says to explore the placement records and placement locations of the programs you're currently looking at. If you can see yourself at any of the programs at which those departments are placing their students, then that's a good bet for you. You're going to have to do a lot of research--luckily historians are great at that!

I'll definitely continue looking at the placement records and looking into the top tiers. I'm worried about my competitiveness amongst those applicants, but I will start that research immediately. 

 

Thank you, you've been so helpful. 

[ultrafiche]

Hey everyone! I just started making my list of potential schools and figured I might as well introduce myself here. My background is in American Studies and Russian Studies, both with an emphasis on the 20th century. I'm still not quite sure what direction I want to take. I'm trying to find schools with solid Russian programs even though I'm likely going to focus on American history. I've only been looking at PhD programs, but I'm undecided if I want to teach or work in an archival/museum setting.. So right now I'm just casting a wide net and writing a short profile for pretty much every school I'm remotely interested in, then I'm going to take things from there. 

[Heimat Historian]

Would you do US/Russian relations in history? like foreign policy? 

[ultrafiche]

Would you do US/Russian relations in history? like foreign policy? 

 

I should have specified! I'm more interested in cultural relations, specifically cultural exchanges between Americans and Russians. Most of my work has focused on Americans in Russia and Russians in America, and placing their visits/experiences in the context of US/Russian relations. 

[NMD]

Here's what I'm thinking so far. My interest is primarily southern women's history, but I'm also interested in issues of southern masculinity after the Civil War and the formation of southern identities throughout the twentieth century. 

 

I'm a rising senior at a small liberal arts university in and will graduate with honors. However, due to some poor marks in General Education classes, my current GPA is cresting at a 3.6. 

 

The schools I'm currently interested in are: 

 

1. The University of Georgia

2. The University of Mississippi

3. The University of Alabama 

4. The University of South Carolina 

5. The University of Kentucky

 

I've cited POIs throughout my thesis. 

 

Are there some major programs I'm missing (that I could get into with funding)? 

 

Is anyone interested in similar topics? 

 

Hey there! My area of interest is also Southern Women (primarily through the Civil War), though I also dabble in religious history. All of those programs (with the exception of Kentucky) were on my list when I applied this round. Mississippi is of course fantastic because of the Center for Southern Studies, but that program only offers four funded slots. You might want to look at LSU. I just accepted my offer there (MA program), and both my future advisor and current grad students have been absolutely amazing.

 

As was already stated, MA funding is hard to get, though not impossible, especially if you look at sources beyond the history departments themselves.

Edited April 3, 2015 by NMD

[gsc]

Here's what I'm thinking so far. My interest is primarily southern women's history, but I'm also interested in issues of southern masculinity after the Civil War and the formation of southern identities throughout the twentieth century. 

 

I'm a rising senior at a small liberal arts university in and will graduate with honors. However, due to some poor marks in General Education classes, my current GPA is cresting at a 3.6. 

 

The schools I'm currently interested in are: 

 

1. The University of Georgia

2. The University of Mississippi

3. The University of Alabama 

4. The University of South Carolina 

5. The University of Kentucky

 

I've cited POIs throughout my thesis. 

 

Are there some major programs I'm missing (that I could get into with funding)? 

 

Is anyone interested in similar topics? 

 

You could try Rutgers; there might not be a historian of the U.S. south, per se, but they've got women's history in spades (and African-American history, too, which could be relevant for you).

[ashiepoo72]

Indiana is good in Russian history. You may wanna check them out. Isn't Penn, also? I know my program's Russianist almost went there for grad school because there were strong scholars in the field.

[ultrafiche]

Indiana is good in Russian history. You may wanna check them out. Isn't Penn, also? I know my program's Russianist almost went there for grad school because there were strong scholars in the field.

 

Indiana is really strong in Russian, but I can't see myself there geographically. Penn, however, is one of the schools I'm pretty seriously looking at. I'm not sure that they took in any Russian students this year though, so I'm not sure if that bodes well ahah. 

[navyblackmaroon]

Indiana is really strong in Russian, but I can't see myself there geographically. Penn, however, is one of the schools I'm pretty seriously looking at. I'm not sure that they took in any Russian students this year though, so I'm not sure if that bodes well ahah. 

 

Another possibility is UNC- Chapel Hill. I know they have a sizeable cohort of Russian/East European historians (I know because so many of them applied to a conference I organized). They all seem to work on post-1917 Russian topics (especially culture and even literary exchange). 

[carriemarie25]

Hey there! My area of interest is also Southern Women (primarily through the Civil War), though I also dabble in religious history. All of those programs (with the exception of Kentucky) were on my list when I applied this round. Mississippi is of course fantastic because of the Center for Southern Studies, but that program only offers four funded slots. You might want to look at LSU. I just accepted my offer there (MA program), and both my future advisor and current grad students have been absolutely amazing.

 

As was already stated, MA funding is hard to get, though not impossible, especially if you look at sources beyond the history departments themselves.

Congratulations! That's wonderful. Can I ask if you accepted into any of the other programs? Ole Miss and UGA are my ideal choices. I'll definitely add LSU! 

[NMD]

Congratulations! That's wonderful. Can I ask if you accepted into any of the other programs? Ole Miss and UGA are my ideal choices. I'll definitely add LSU!

I got into Ole Miss this cycle and last cycle, and Alabama and Auburn last cycle. (I decided to take a year off to travel and work before going to grad school. It was totally worth it.) I half wish I had accepted Alabama last cycle though, because my dream professor is now retiring there soon.

Edited April 4, 2015 by NMD

[carriemarie25]

I got into Ole Miss this cycle and last cycle, and Alabama and Auburn last cycle. (I decided to take a year off to travel and work before going to grad school. It was totally worth it.) I half wish I had accepted Alabama last cycle though, because my dream professor is now retiring there soon.

Is it George Rable? I'd love to work with him. 

[stillalivetui]

Indiana is really strong in Russian, but I can't see myself there geographically. Penn, however, is one of the schools I'm pretty seriously looking at. I'm not sure that they took in any Russian students this year though, so I'm not sure if that bodes well ahah. 

 

I would not limit yourself to geographical concerns. Of course, where you live plays a large part of your well-being, but you should not automatically cross a certain place of your list for that sole reason.

 

Overall, Indiana's history program is strong, especially for your field of study and languages. Grad school is all about fit, so that's something to keep in mind. I remember when I applied at IU, I stared at Google Maps one night and could not fathom living in what seemed to be the middle of nowhere in Indiana (I lived in Seattle at the time). Yet, here I am in Bloomington and loving it. 

[NMD]

Is it George Rable? I'd love to work with him.

It is. He's not taking any new students now. I don't know exactly how long he's git left at Bama, but Rothman has taken over his position as chair of the Summersell Center.

[missmend]

@ultrafiche - I third (or fourth) Indiana - their Russian program is excellent, especially for language offerings and acquisition. I'm not sure how their history department fares for modern Americanists, but, after speaking with some students there, I hear there's a funding preference towards American and Asian history. I personally am a little wary of Penn because of extreme funding cuts with regard to Russian history, and their Slavic department is extremely tilted towards lit/lang. U Chicago has Eleanor Gilbund, who works on cultural history and exchange in modern Russia, so I would give a look. Yale also has really strong faculty in US Cold War and cultural history (Matthew Jacobson, John Gaddis).

[Chianti]

Here's what I'm thinking so far. My interest is primarily southern women's history, but I'm also interested in issues of southern masculinity after the Civil War and the formation of southern identities throughout the twentieth century. 

 

I'm a rising senior at a small liberal arts university in and will graduate with honors. However, due to some poor marks in General Education classes, my current GPA is cresting at a 3.6. 

 

The schools I'm currently interested in are: 

 

1. The University of Georgia

2. The University of Mississippi

3. The University of Alabama 

4. The University of South Carolina 

5. The University of Kentucky

 

I've cited POIs throughout my thesis. 

 

Are there some major programs I'm missing (that I could get into with funding)? 

 

Is anyone interested in similar topics? 

 

You should strongly consider UVA and UNC given your research interests. They're reaches for sure, but fantastic programs!

[carriemarie25]

You should strongly consider UVA and UNC given your research interests. They're reaches for sure, but fantastic programs!

Thank you! I definitely will. 

[carriemarie25]

CarrieMarie, what are your post-grad school plans?  That matters as to the type of programs you apply to. 

I'd like to teach at a small liberal arts university. 

[jhsting32]

Hi Folks, I will be participating in this round of History PhD application season.  My area of focus is specifically the activism of Black women during the Civil Rights Movement and generally Modern US and African American History.  I am geographically focused on the US South.  I am currently working on a MA in African American Studies from Ohio State.  

[Savannah-in-the-world]

Hello everyone! Excited to meet everyone (in a matter of speaking).

 

I am looking to continue my focus on public history through a MA. I am interested in local history and heritage sites, but would also like to study public memory and the overall field of public history as it continues to grow.

 

I have some back ups, but my top programs are American University, North Carolina State University, University of Houston and UC Riverside.

[BlackBear50]

A mix of MA and Ph. D programs for me:

Unversity of Pennsylvania

William and Mary

Boston College

Memorial University

Dalhousie University

University of Pittsburg

University of Maine (just MA, my current school)

I'm interested in the early modern period from a Marxist/class perspective- think Gary Nash or Marcus Rediker (

[wacyeah]

Hello everyone! Excited to meet everyone (in a matter of speaking).

 

I am looking to continue my focus on public history through a MA. I am interested in local history and heritage sites, but would also like to study public memory and the overall field of public history as it continues to grow.

 

I have some back ups, but my top programs are American University, North Carolina State University, University of Houston and UC Riverside.

what about U. Wisconsin at Madison or UCSC? They also have good public history programs

[IvanBezdomnii]

Whoops wrong thread sorry.

Edited April 11, 2015 by IvanBezdomnii

[JTE]

After an unsuccessful 2015 season (one acceptance without funding and a waitlisting that was ultimately not picked up out of eight applications) I'm back for the 2016 season. Good luck to everyone.