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Middle Eastern Studies/NELC Masters/PhD


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30 minutes ago, Frontline said:

Thanks a lot - I appreciate it! I am also glad to hear that despite being located in rural New York, you would recommend it as a place for study. How would you explain the low student intake (1-2 people)? Do you think it's due to certain constrains (funding) or because few applicants accept offers at NES, or?

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I think they purposely keep the admit pool small (I think they admit maybe a couple people more than that, but the yield rate is always small) so that they can really focus on giving the most attention to their students. I think they are interested in (1) fully funding everyone and (2) making sure they aren't just churning out students, but really develop them professionally. Cornell, as an institution, is a great place to be. Rural upstate New York...has it's pros and cons (pros: Wegman's, cons: cold).

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4 hours ago, nevermind said:

I think they purposely keep the admit pool small (I think they admit maybe a couple people more than that, but the yield rate is always small) so that they can really focus on giving the most attention to their students. I think they are interested in (1) fully funding everyone and (2) making sure they aren't just churning out students, but really develop them professionally. Cornell, as an institution, is a great place to be. Rural upstate New York...has it's pros and cons (pros: Wegman's, cons: cold).

Thanks a lot! I became very excited again about Cornell. Do you have any clue when decisions are made?

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39 minutes ago, Frontline said:

Thanks a lot! I became very excited again about Cornell. Do you have any clue when decisions are made?

I want to say they are usually made around now. It shows on the result page that somebody was already rejected from the program this year, so who knows? 

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Hi all - long time lurker finally making my first post. I've applied to NES master's programs around NYC mainly. Not sure for exactly what NES admissions committees look for in a candidate, so hoping someone may enlighten me. I have a decent GPA but relatively low GRE. Also applied to Sociology Master's too if anyone's interested. 

Good luck everyone! It's a nervous next couple of weeks.

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7 hours ago, Tea3A said:

Hi all - long time lurker finally making my first post. I've applied to NES master's programs around NYC mainly. Not sure for exactly what NES admissions committees look for in a candidate, so hoping someone may enlighten me. I have a decent GPA but relatively low GRE. Also applied to Sociology Master's too if anyone's interested. 

Good luck everyone! It's a nervous next couple of weeks.

 

In general, I'd say they look for:

-proficiency in your area language(s) - (the more the better...)

-time spent in the country you propose to study (if modern) 

-evidence of high scholarship (if not publications/presentations, then university and thesis honors/study abroad/good letters of recommendation)

-high GPA/GRE (think 165+ verbal, I'm not entirely sure the math is relevant, but the higher the better)

-a really solid writing sample

-a strong departmental fit

--

Every candidate I know who was admitted to a top program had most, if not all, of these. :)

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1 hour ago, nevermind said:

In general, I'd say they look for:

-proficiency in your area language(s) - (the more the better...)

-time spent in the country you propose to study (if modern) 

-evidence of high scholarship (if not publications/presentations, then university and thesis honors/study abroad/good letters of recommendation)

-high GPA/GRE (think 165+ verbal, I'm not entirely sure the math is relevant, but the higher the better)

-a really solid writing sample

-a strong departmental fit

--

Every candidate I know who was admitted to a top program had most, if not all, of these. :)

 

Thanks for the reply. Are those standards for the PhD level or MA level? I'm asking because I've researched some current MA student profiles on google and linkedin and it just seems like it's all over the board in terms of their language skills, GPA/GRE, undergrad reputation, and just general background. Maybe I'm just thinking too hard - I'll find out over the next several weeks anyhow :)

Edited by Tea3A
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11 hours ago, Tea3A said:

 

Thanks for the reply. Are those standards for the PhD level or MA level? I'm asking because I've researched some current MA student profiles on google and linkedin and it just seems like it's all over the board in terms of their language skills, GPA/GRE, undergrad reputation, and just general background. Maybe I'm just thinking too hard - I'll find out over the next several weeks anyhow :)

 

This is for both, but more for Ph.D.  Some people do MA's (unfunded), to help with the language preparation and to do them at more elite programs with better letters of recommendation. I hope you land where you want to go. :)

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@Tea3A I applied to Masters programs only and my profile does not meet all the conditions @nevermind laid out. I have already been admitted to one. I think that they want to see that you are a high achieving student who will do well in graduate studies with a demonstrated interest in the area, realizing that there are restrictions based on available opportunities (for example my undergrad did not offer Arabic).... at least that is what I am telling myself! 

In any case we will have our answers in a few weeks. Best of luck and do let us know! I applied to the NYU and Columbia programs, did you?

Edited by _sawyer_
typo
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1 hour ago, _sawyer_ said:

@Tea3A I applied to Masters programs only and my profile does not meet all the conditions @nevermind laid out. I have already been admitted to one. I think that they want to see that you are a high achieving student who will do well in graduate studies with a demonstrated interest in the area, realizing that there are restrictions based on available opportunities (for example my undergrad did not offer Arabic).... at least that is what I am telling myself! 

In any case we will have our answers in a few weeks. Best of luck and do let us know! I applied to the NYU and Columbia programs, did you?

Nice to know! Yes, I did. Although for Columbia I sent in my apps around....last week. They say they have 'rolling admissions,' so I hope they don't count that against me! These programs are annoyingly secretive with hard stats. Although, Duke's graduate admissions page was pretty helpful, so I did kinda gauge what I needed from that? 

https://gradschool.duke.edu/about/statistics/humanities-master-s-admissions-and-enrollment-statistics

^For 'humanities,' but still....

 

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18 hours ago, Tea3A said:

Nice to know! Yes, I did. Although for Columbia I sent in my apps around....last week. They say they have 'rolling admissions,' so I hope they don't count that against me! These programs are annoyingly secretive with hard stats. Although, Duke's graduate admissions page was pretty helpful, so I did kinda gauge what I needed from that? 

https://gradschool.duke.edu/about/statistics/humanities-master-s-admissions-and-enrollment-statistics

^For 'humanities,' but still....

 

Out of Curiosity, which Columbia program did you apply to? I applied to the Islamic Studies MA and would LOVE to find out they have 'rolling admissions' as I thought I wasn't going to hear for YEARS.

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5 hours ago, BeeKayCee said:

Out of Curiosity, which Columbia program did you apply to? I applied to the Islamic Studies MA and would LOVE to find out they have 'rolling admissions' as I thought I wasn't going to hear for YEARS.

Not the IS MA. I applied to MESAAS 

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I just received the MA offer from UChicago too; does anyone know when the visit that they mentioned is?

Edited by Alan.N
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3 hours ago, Alan.N said:

I just received the MA offer from UChicago too; does anyone know when the visit that they mentioned is?

There was no reference to a visit in my letter. So I dunno. 

Congrats! 

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@BeeKayCee and @Alan.N

Congrats on CMES! I'm a second year in CMES now, graduating this year and accepted to start a PhD in the Fall. CMES director Paul Walker should send you a separate e-mail soon with details of the accepted student visit. Feel free to contact me with questions about the program in the meantime!

 

 

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9 hours ago, tt_ said:

@BeeKayCee and @Alan.N

Congrats on CMES! I'm a second year in CMES now, graduating this year and accepted to start a PhD in the Fall. CMES director Paul Walker should send you a separate e-mail soon with details of the accepted student visit. Feel free to contact me with questions about the program in the meantime!

 

 

Thanks! I actually had a question about language study and travel abroad, basically, what's available, how many people do it. Should I PM you? 

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@tt_  For Chicago CMES what percentage of students in that program go on to PhD's vs out into the professional world? Would you say that the program is more directed towards one or the other?

 

Also I just heard from NYU so those decisions are going out! 

Edited by _sawyer_
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2 hours ago, _sawyer_ said:

@tt_  For Chicago CMES what percentage of students in that program go on to PhD's vs out into the professional world? Would you say that the program is more directed towards one or the other?

 

Also I just heard from NYU so those decisions are going out! 

CONGRATS Sawyer! I didn't get an email so biting my nails at the moment...did they say anything about funding?

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