Profile of those who were accepted

[SA_BS]

Hi. I'm applying this year for PhDs in Biblical Studies and I'm curious about the general profile of those who were accepted in previous years (I hope they still visit this forum   ). GRE scores, how many hours of ancient languages, modern languages, etc. Please give your advice to those who are on this side of the academic life.  

[Enki Knows]

Hi Samuau.  Are you interested in Hebrew Bible or New Testament?  I am a first year PhD student at a top-tier school in HB/ANE.  I can tell you that the most important aspects of your application are going to be your statement of purpose, your writing sample, and letters of rec.  GRE's are probably the least important - you just basically don't want them to raise any red flags.  In my opinion, for a humanities person, this means breaking 163 on Verbal (that gets you in the 90s percentile-wise), 150 on Math, and a 5 on the essay.  I'm basing those numbers simply on conversations with people and my own experience, so don't take them by any means as hard and fast rules - I just think they are probably decent guidelines.  As far as languages are concerned, after the SOP, writing sample, and recs, I would say that demonstrating strength in your primary language of study is the next most important aspect of your application - so for HB this would be Hebrew, and for NT, Greek.  As far as other ancient languages, this would depend on what your focus is.  Given my focus, it was helpful that I had one year of Akkadian already upon entering my PhD program.  Your modern language requirements will also vary depending upon your program, but most will want you to pass exams in French and German at some point.  Having prior experience with these languages is certainly a plus, but more because it will make your life easier - if you have a strong application, I highly doubt any school would reject you on the basis of lack of experience with French or German.  If you do HB, some schools will also want you to pass an exam in Modern Hebrew, but again, you are not expected to enter having this knowledge already.  Hope this information is helpful.  Let me know if you have any further questions.    

Edited October 19, 2015 by Enki Knows

[Averroes MD]

That was a super helpful post. Thanks!

[SA_BS]

Thank you, Enki for your reply. I really appreciate you taking the time to reply. 

My interest is NT. I have taken many courses in Greek, but only 2 (maybe 3) in Hebrew. That's my main concern now, Hebrew. 

May I ask you one more question? What do you think schools look for in a writing sample?

[Enki Knows]

Hi Samuau,

No problem.  I think the important aspects of a writing sample are 1) that it's well written (style, grammar, no typos, etc.) - that may seem obvious but you'd be surprised, 2) that it makes a clear and cogent argument for something (admissions committees are not looking for something that sounds nice - they want you to demonstrate your reasoning ability), and 3) that it relates to the interests you elucidate in your statement of purpose.  For instance, if you're interested in the politics of early Christian communities, don't turn in a writing sample about Paul's theology in Galations, unless you see a distinct relationship there (sorry if my examples are poor - I really don't know anything about NT  ).

Hope that helps!

 

[Epaphroditus]

2 hours ago, Enki Knows said:

Hi Samuau,

No problem.  I think the important aspects of a writing sample are 1) that it's well written (style, grammar, no typos, etc.) - that may seem obvious but you'd be surprised, 2) that it makes a clear and cogent argument for something (admissions committees are not looking for something that sounds nice - they want you to demonstrate your reasoning ability), and 3) that it relates to the interests you elucidate in your statement of purpose.  For instance, if you're interested in the politics of early Christian communities, don't turn in a writing sample about Paul's theology in Galations, unless you see a distinct relationship there (sorry if my examples are poor - I really don't know anything about NT  ).

Hope that helps!

 

How important is #3? I always assumed the main thing they were looking for was your research/writing ability. I never really thought the writing sample had to be related to the research interest stated in your SOP. Have most people here who've gotten accepted submitted a writing sample related to the research interest in your SOP? Or is that what most of you are planning to do?

[sacklunch]

I'm currently at a top 5 doctoral program in a biblical/ancient area. When I applied I think I had 4-5 yrs Greek (classical, koine, patristic), 2-3 yrs Latin (classical, ecclesiastical), 3 yrs Hebrew (biblical), 2-3 yrs Aramaic/Syriac, 2 yrs German, 1 yr (modern Hebrew). GRE verbal in the low 90s, writing 5 (don't remember my math score!), good recs (all with grad profs), a pretty good writing sample (but in hindsight it was way too philological), and a really solid SOP (I spend at least a hundred hours on that bastard). I have an undergrad in religion/classical languages and two M* (I had 4 yrs of grad courses before beginning the PhD). 

Most crucial is your language training. This is what every prof will tell you--and they are right. You can play catch-up on most any deficiency, but language training is too time consuming. Admittedly, I think I went a bit overkill on my language preparation, especially since my program is not language focused such as some ANE programs are. I will say I am skeptical of Enki's recommendation that you should (need to?) study modern Hebrew. I have about 3 yrs of modern Hebrew now, and while I am not in HB, it hasn't helped me much (spend the most time on German). Years ago I was about to start French (I already had German) and realized there was perhaps another language that might set me apart from other applicants (in my experience outside of the Jewish academic world, it is fairly rare to find doctoral students studying modern Hebrew). I have really enjoyed studying the language, but I think French might have been more beneficial. In any case, I will need to pick up some reading knowledge of the language if I am to engage with scholarship in my field more fruitfully (I do reception of the HB). 

cheers