DGrayson Posted January 16, 2016 Posted January 16, 2016 Yale usually sends out interview requests this week. Anyone else feeling nervous?
betwixt&between Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 On 1/15/2016 at 1:17 PM, mvlchicago said: So, y'know, try very hard not to stress about it. I think we both know how that goes. My last semester begins next week, hopefully that will keep me distracted until notifications are sent.
Neist Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 2 hours ago, DGrayson said: Yale usually sends out interview requests this week. Anyone else feeling nervous? Not at all. Mostly because I didn't apply to Yale, but... In all seriousness, I hope the best for all those who applied. Hopefully all of us here can be placed into an environment in which we can grow and excel. DGrayson 1
DGrayson Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 25 minutes ago, Neist said: Not at all. Mostly because I didn't apply to Yale, but... In all seriousness, I hope the best for all those who applied. Hopefully all of us here can be placed into an environment in which we can grow and excel. I'm sure there are other schools we can both freak out over!
Neist Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 3 minutes ago, DGrayson said: I'm sure there are other schools we can both freak out over! Indeed! I'm nervously rubbing my hands together waiting for Cornell's STS results. I probably have another month, at least.
nevermind Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 28 minutes ago, Neist said: Not at all. Mostly because I didn't apply to Yale, but... In all seriousness, I hope the best for all those who applied. Hopefully all of us here can be placed into an environment in which we can grow and excel. Does anyone know if they interview for HoS? I got the impression that it was a separate admissions process (HoS applicants didn't have to submit a book review)...even though the departments overlap significantly.
DGrayson Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 (edited) 7 minutes ago, nevermind said: Does anyone know if they interview for HoS? I got the impression that it was a separate admissions process (HoS applicants didn't have to submit a book review)...even though the departments overlap significantly. I believe that it is a requirement for every program in the School of Arts and Sciences, but I'm not 100% sure this policy is still in effect. http://yaledailynews.com/blog/2012/01/11/grad-school-divided-over-interviews/ Edited January 17, 2016 by DGrayson nevermind 1
Neist Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 Just now, nevermind said: Does anyone know if they interview for HoS? I got the impression that it was a separate admissions process (HoS applicants didn't have to submit a book review)...even though the departments overlap significantly. I'm not sure if HoS does interviews (I'm assuming we're talking about Yale), to be honest. Even as a whole, across the entire discipline. Acceptance pools aren't very large in HoS, but applicant pools aren't terribly large either. Maybe committees feel it's unnecessary to further cull the pool via a secondary layer. As far as I understand, it's rare for a higher-ranked HoS departments to get more than 20-40 applicants, and many programs only accept 3-5. I think the University of Oklahoma gets around 20? If memory serves, they accept a fair number of them, but only a minority gets awarded funding. Consequently, the pool of those who matriculate is pretty small. The department I'm in now doesn't do interviews, but I believe they do fly in acceptances before April 15 to feel out the program. I wouldn't be surprised if some of the ivies do the same. Then again, I'm applying mostly to STS programs, even though my focus has up to now been primarily historical. My interests fit better into STS programs. I have very little clue how STS programs work. Maybe they interview? DGrayson 1
Neist Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 Congrats to whomever got the interview at Yale! Popped up today on the results.
DGrayson Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 1 hour ago, Neist said: Congrats to whomever got the interview at Yale! Popped up today on the results. I saw that! I was wondering what their focus is, as each field handles their own applications.
KLZ Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 I'm the Yale interviewee I couldn't be more excited or nervous! I study 20th century US-foreign relations. My geographical focus outside of the United States is Africa, especially South Africa. I'm doing all I can to review my application materials/MA thesis and refreshing my memory on my POIs research, but other than that I am at a loss of how I should prepare for my interview! Does anyone know of a good (history PhD) thread on this forum that might help me get an idea of what questions they could ask me and what questions I should ask my interviewers? I am open to all suggestions. Best of luck to everyone going through the admissions process. The wait is killing me and its only mid-January. AfricanusCrowther 1
DGrayson Posted January 17, 2016 Posted January 17, 2016 56 minutes ago, KLZ said: I'm the Yale interviewee I couldn't be more excited or nervous! I study 20th century US-foreign relations. My geographical focus outside of the United States is Africa, especially South Africa. I'm doing all I can to review my application materials/MA thesis and refreshing my memory on my POIs research, but other than that I am at a loss of how I should prepare for my interview! Does anyone know of a good (history PhD) thread on this forum that might help me get an idea of what questions they could ask me and what questions I should ask my interviewers? I am open to all suggestions. Best of luck to everyone going through the admissions process. The wait is killing me and its only mid-January. Congrats! I'm Early Modern Europe so hopefully those interview requests haven't gone out yet! I have the same secondary geographical focus as you do! As far as the interview prep goes, I would look at some of the posts in the general forums like here: Best of luck to you! Hopefully we'll both see each other at Yale! KLZ 1
prculus Posted January 18, 2016 Posted January 18, 2016 On 1/14/2016 at 5:13 PM, Quickmick said: Hello all! this looks like a great place in general and a spot for my first post. I--like most of you--am beginning the cycle. I am looking at Environmental History programs and like looking at the interaction between man and the land and what land use decisions have meant for both. I am cut from a bit of a different cloth from a CV standpoint, and while some may see it as a weakness I am hoping that some see it as an asset. Undergrad I studied liberal arts with minors in History and Philosophy. I am currently in a MSc Environmental Science program (luckily with funding). My V is good (94%) and quant not no much (48%) ugrad 3.88 grad 4.0. I am hoping that someone at a top notch program will see the value the MS brings to historical analysis. I also have worked in the Environmental Science realm in a socio-economic context. I have TA'd and am a research assistant at a research institute. Professionally I might have a different experience as I was a floor trader in Chicago for a decade then an advisor before going back to school. For those considering Environmental History there are some good resources here: www.aseh.net That is were I started my list of possibles which include Brown, Yale, Harvard, Northwestern, Oregon, GTown, UC Boulder, UC davis/berk. Also on the list are U Chicago and Princeton for other reasons. This list will get cut down to probably 4-7 apps. I have a number one choice (for now) and have reached out to a few professors. I am in a position where I can probably continue on with my current institution in a favorable position, and I will be happy however this all shakes out as I would be happy to continue here if that is the upshot of all this. However that would keep me more in the sciences. That is part of the reason why I plan to limit my number of apps, as something is going to have to be pretty compelling for me to go. Also I am a little weary of the process having both gone though the MS admissions and Law School Apps (had some success and partial funding but I didn't want to borrow the diff)only a year and a half ago. In any case, I look forward to reading more from you all and thank you in advance for your help! Anyone who has suggestions regarding professors I might want to research at these (or other) institutions I would love to hear it. This thread has already given me ideas (i.e. Michael McCormick) so thank you. Regards, QM What temporal and spatial units are you looking at?
nevermind Posted January 18, 2016 Posted January 18, 2016 On 1/14/2016 at 4:13 PM, Quickmick said: Hello all! this looks like a great place in general and a spot for my first post. I--like most of you--am beginning the cycle. I am looking at Environmental History programs and like looking at the interaction between man and the land and what land use decisions have meant for both. I am cut from a bit of a different cloth from a CV standpoint, and while some may see it as a weakness I am hoping that some see it as an asset. Undergrad I studied liberal arts with minors in History and Philosophy. I am currently in a MSc Environmental Science program (luckily with funding). My V is good (94%) and quant not no much (48%) ugrad 3.88 grad 4.0. I am hoping that someone at a top notch program will see the value the MS brings to historical analysis. I also have worked in the Environmental Science realm in a socio-economic context. I have TA'd and am a research assistant at a research institute. I don't know how I missed this, but it looks like we're pretty much background twins, research interest twins, and GRE twins! I'm looking at Environmental History (but the history of water technology)...and have a background in Near Eastern Studies (was a TA for 2 classes) and Science (TA for a Environmental Engineering class)...with a Master's degree (mostly applied research projects) on Agriculture and Development. Where'd you end up applying to? Mine are mostly a mix of History of Science programs and human geography programs. Good luck!
TMP Posted January 18, 2016 Posted January 18, 2016 There was a good thread on this History forum about a year ago-- just look for it. It's probably relating to contacting POIs and interviewing.... In short, relax. Be conversational and yourself (professionally of course). It's okay to be awkward at the beginning. They're just interested in hearing your ideas for what you'd like to do while you're there and what you want to study. They'll ask questions like, what kind of questions do you want to explore? Why? If you're at loss for the "Do you have questions for me?" question, repeat some of the questions they already asked you. You're also interviewing them for advisor and program fit! I did it-- which helped so much to determine adviser fit and break the tie between two POIs/programs. When I do think about it, I'm really happy that I did ask fit questions because now when I look back on it and what I am doing now, I feel extremely fortunate to be at a place and with an adviser that can actually support me, my goals, and my proposed dissertation project. Good luck with all the interviews! KLZ 1
prculus Posted January 19, 2016 Posted January 19, 2016 (edited) On 1/15/2016 at 11:55 AM, betwixt&between said: Glad to be of assistance! Let me ask you a practical question. How long did you have to wait to receive notification from Brown? The grad school website said 4-8 weeks from application deadline. I'm at week six, and haven't heard a peep! I'm in the same boat really; not so much as even a hit on academia.edu from stalking adcom members (except one from a school/town after I uploaded final grades). Also, it's occurred to me that interviews might actually be a cause for concern. It seems that if an adcom is on the fence about you, then they'd need an interview to sway opinion one way or another (pretty obvious point, but it might mean that you're not a slam-dunk fit). Maybe I'm overthinking it though. Edited January 19, 2016 by prculus
stillalivetui Posted January 19, 2016 Posted January 19, 2016 Nahhhh, interviews (only a few departments do it) are a cause of celebration. It means they are interested in you, and wish to get to know you better beyond your application materials. ashiepoo72, L13, SunshineLolipops and 1 other 4
mvlchicago Posted January 19, 2016 Posted January 19, 2016 ^^^^ No one is a slam dunk fit off the basis of a transcript and writing sample. You're hiring someone to work with you for five years, you want all the information you can get before committing those resources. VAZ 1
alain Posted January 19, 2016 Posted January 19, 2016 22 hours ago, TMP said: There was a good thread on this History forum about a year ago-- just look for it. It's probably relating to contacting POIs and interviewing.... If it isn't too much of a bother, could you link that thread? I went back some pages and even googled it but couldn't find it. Thanks!
betwixt&between Posted January 20, 2016 Posted January 20, 2016 22 hours ago, prculus said: I'm in the same boat really; not so much as even a hit on academia.edu from stalking adcom members Oh man, I've had so many hits on my academia.edu page, but from literally all over the country and world. Part of me is thrilled, but I could never directly correlate it, so the other part of me is just...reticent to accept that it could mean anything. The past six weeks, my internal dialogue has rivaled Gollum. 22 hours ago, prculus said: SunshineLolipops 1
fencergirl Posted January 20, 2016 Posted January 20, 2016 Well on the results page someone posted an interview with Columbia and one with Northwestern... Wondering if not hearing anything yet more or less means a rejection? Would be pretty bummed if it turned out that way, Northwestern was my top choice. Part of me hopes I'll be contacted imminently but I know those programs are super-competitive so I'm not holding out too much hope.
ashiepoo72 Posted January 20, 2016 Posted January 20, 2016 From what I know, Northwestern doesn't have formal interviews. It's probably POIs reaching out to potential advisees to get more info before making a final decision. Don't fret, it's not over yet!
navyblackmaroon Posted January 20, 2016 Posted January 20, 2016 1 hour ago, ashiepoo72 said: From what I know, Northwestern doesn't have formal interviews. It's probably POIs reaching out to potential advisees to get more info before making a final decision. Don't fret, it's not over yet! You are totally right. Last year NU sent me the admission e-mail before my POI contacted me. My impression is that each sub-field/cluster within the department operates somewhat differently when it comes to that.
fencergirl Posted January 20, 2016 Posted January 20, 2016 Oh thank you! Hope lives on! I think I need to stop checking the results page for a while haha. I was pretty calm when I thought I wouldn't be hearing anything for a few more weeks yet, which is probably still the case.
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