Fall 2017 Applicants

[so_it_goes]

10 hours ago, day_manderly said:

For some reason I thought you meant 5-10 in one university. Do you think reaching out to one Pl per university is enough? That is what I am busy doing.

I mean, it would be great if you could find a university that had 5-10 faculty members you want to work with, it's just likely impossible. At this point, one PI per university is enough, since you are mainly trying to gauge fit and learn additional information. Down the road, when deciding where you ultimately want to go, it is helpful to have more than one professor you would like to work with, though, depending on the tenure status of your primary PI, but that should not be a central concern before you apply.

[ClassicalEducator]

On April 5, 2016 at 1:26 PM, Heather1011 said:

I didn't realize Johns Hopkins required an MA.  Do they mostly attract PhD/EdD candidates then?  I wonder why they do that.

I was equally confused when I was applying to TC, because they have an MA or M.Ed option, and they consider the M.Ed the "advanced masters" (so it was 30 credits vs 60 credits, or something like that).  You needed to have an existing MA in order to apply straight into the M.Ed option, I think.  But I couldn't figure out why I would want a "fancier" masters (unless I knew I was going for the PhD after) so even though I already have an MSEd, I applied just to TC's MA option.  I figured it was cheaper and still got me a degree in the field I wanted.  

Hi Heather,

I thought I responded to this awhile ago, so apologies for my late reply. Unless I am mistaken, I believe that JHU wanted to create an incredibly competitive school and mostly focus on research. I know that my list of 20-30+ schools has been whittled down significantly due to factors like requiring MAs, location, etc. 

Personally, I prefer MAs because those tend to emphasize thesis papers and research. Those are two areas where I excel and I intend to go straight through to earn my Ph.D if at all possible. Incidentally, would it be possible for me to speak to you about your experiences visiting and applying to the schools you chose? I know you are in a different than I but your perspective would be appreciated. 

[Snuffleupagus]

Hi Everyone, 

I am a frequent lurker and old user of the boards.  After doing a Fulbright, I declined my offer to do my PhD at UMD in SLA (2014) because I realized I wasn't really thrilled about the program, etc.  I've spent the last two years doing Education Management in Morocco and am currently on an English Language Fellows grant here.  

My research interests are focused on North Africa (Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia) and how language policy here affects education and literacy in a multilingual/multicultural society.  In particular, I am interested in higher education policy/university reforms and how this has produced a class of English speakers in a French environment.  I am also interested in teacher training and evulation practices in the region.  

I am planning on applying to: UPenn (2 programs: Educational Linguistics & Ed Policy), University of Minnesota, NYU, Teacher's College, Stanford, UCLA, Indiana & University of Wisconsin, Madison.  If any of you have other programs I should look at, or think any of these programs isn't a good fit, let me know

 

[lapril]

Greetings fellow scholars!

 

I'm debating between pursuing the minority and urban education PhD at UMaryland (which is my dream program), and the Ed.D at Johns Hopkins. The issue is that I currently work for the university of Maryland, and tuition would be free, however, they only offer a Ph.D and I feel like an Ed.D would be more appropriate for my goals. I'd like to continue working as a curriculum specialist and program developer and incorporate this job into my doctoral studies. I love love love my current job and quitting is not an option for me. I'm not a huge fan of the program at Johns Hopkins (not sure why it's ranked so highly), but it does offer the more appropriate and flexible Ed.D that would allow me to continue working throughout the program. Help!

[Levon3]

@lapril, an Ed.D. does sound better for your goals, especially since it would allow you to continue working throughout. Have you asked whether you could work during the PhD program at UMaryland? I know that some programs allow you to do so. What is it about the Ed.D. at Johns Hopkins that you dislike? Another consideration is the cost. If tuition would be free at UMaryland, that's hard to turn down. Do you have an estimate of the costs for the Ed.D.? 

Also, what are your ultimate career goals? Could the PhD serve equally well in accomplishing them? 

[lapril]

Hi @Levon3, 

 

For Johns Hopkins, cost is a huge issue. The Ed.D. is $4,000 per course. Hubby already has $250k from med school, so we can't do that again. In addition, I don't like the idea of a completely "online" program either. The reputation of Ed.D's are still up in the air, and adding the online component doesn't seem to help too much. I don't think the program is horrible, but in comparison to UMD, it's the lesser for me. 

What I love about UMD is the emphasis on diverse populations of students. The faculty is very well rounded in their research topics and it's clear that a huge value is placed on research regarding minorities and how they learn. I just love that there is a very clear focus on this subject. I want to qualify this statement by saying that I haven't called either of the schools yet. This is only based on my first impression of their respective websites.

My ultimate goal is to work with professional schools (law, medicine, nursing, engineering, pharmacy, etc) to create pipeline programs to careers for children in urban school districts. I already work for a similar program at UMD, so they would have better insight than JHU on my goals. 

[Levon3]

@lapril, It doesn't sound like there's much of a comparison then. Based on the pros and cons you've listed, the PhD at UMD is the better fit in almost every way. It seems that the only question is whether they'll let you continue to work at your current job while working toward your PhD. I hope they do allow this, as it sounds like you're doing great work. Your goal sounds awesome, btw!

[frissoli]

I'm curious to know if anyone has any insight into how important it is to have a Master's degree before applying to a Ph.D programs. I'm looking at programs like CIS at Harvard, DAPS at Stanford (but am still looking into what my options are). I'm concerned that having only a Bachelor's will disadvantage me. I have relevant work experience but don't know if it's significant enough to "justify" going straight into a Ph.D. Any insight is much appreciated! 

[ZeChocMoose]

4 hours ago, frissoli said:

I'm curious to know if anyone has any insight into how important it is to have a Master's degree before applying to a Ph.D programs. I'm looking at programs like CIS at Harvard, DAPS at Stanford (but am still looking into what my options are). I'm concerned that having only a Bachelor's will disadvantage me. I have relevant work experience but don't know if it's significant enough to "justify" going straight into a Ph.D. Any insight is much appreciated! 

The general advice is yes, the more competitive education PhD programs expect to see a master's degree and several years of experience to be competitive.  Of course, there are always exceptions and people can get in without master's degrees (unless it's an admission requirement which it is for some programs). For a reference point, my top 10 program has 3 PhD students out of about 60 that only have bachelor's degrees.  They all had several years of higher education research experience during undergrad though so that put them on a level playing field with others.

If you're not competitive for the PhD program, departments tend to refer you to the master's admission pool and might accept you into the master's program instead.  I know this happens a lot in my program. 

[midmarsh]

Hi guys!

I'm looking at programs related to international educational development/policy. I'm really interested in the IEDP program at Penn, especially since it offers a Coverdell Fellowship for returned Peace Corps volunteers, which I will be by Fall 2017.

I scored well on the GREs (161 V/164 Q) though my essay score, which I can't remember right now, was not good, because I didn't really prepare for that section as well.

I'm concerned about my GPA. I went to major public research institution and I double majored in mathematics ("pure" math) and international studies. My math courses brought down my overall GPA (3.2) but my major GPA in IS wasn't that much better (3.5). They (UW-Madison) actually has a really strong ed pol program but I can't apply for it since my GPA isn't high enough (3.7 minimum).

But I'm hoping my experience makes up for it! I'm an education volunteer in the Peace Corps in the Caucasus, worked with high school students at pre-college pipeline program for students of color and low-income students for two years, and a literacy nonprofit in the DC area. I also did research for a year with a journalism professor and spent another year doing research for a professor in biostatistics.

I should have some strong recommendation letters but I'm worried I may be shooting too high? I'm looking at other education policy programs too (and if anyone has any recommendations, let me know!) but this program seems to marry all my interests and needs really well. 

[username111]

Hey! I've been trolling these forums for a while and thought I'd finally post. My question is, what are some good quant-focused education policy or social policy PhD programs aside from Vanderbilt, Penn, Wisconsin, and Northwestern? I ask because while I'm good at stats, I doubt I'll be competitive based on my current GRE quant score. (I was in the 51st percentile and will retake the GRE in the fall.) My verbal was in the 98th percentile and my writing was in the 85th percentile. 

I think my overall record is decent, but I'm not sure how much weight admissions committees place on quant scores, especially for someone who wants to do quantitative economics of education research. In my undergrad, I triple majored in political science, history, and German, with a 3.66 GPA. For grad school, I attended the top US News ranked public affairs school (if that's actually meaningful, considering their methodology) and concentrated in policy analysis, with a 3.8 GPA. After grad school, I worked as a consultant on stats-heavy education evaluation projects for a year, then was a lobbyist for a short time, and am now the data/research manager at a nonprofit. I'll have one journal article in review, five non-peer reviewed publications and a "book" written by the time applications are due. I really like my organization a lot and am mostly applying just to see if I am admitted to a competitive program. No safety schools for me this year!

Any suggestions on how I can get into a top school, considering my weak quant GRE scores? Or am I being overly pessimistic? If anyone wants to swap SOP, I'd be down! 

 

[username111]

8 hours ago, midmarsh said:

I'm concerned about my GPA. I went to major public research institution and I double majored in mathematics ("pure" math) and international studies. My math courses brought down my overall GPA (3.2) but my major GPA in IS wasn't that much better (3.5). They (UW-Madison) actually has a really strong ed pol program but I can't apply for it since my GPA isn't high enough (3.7 minimum).

Hey midmarsh! I'm also looking at Wisconsin (ELPA). Their website (http://elpa.education.wisc.edu/elpa/admissions/admission-requirements) says you need to provide supporting documentation if your undergrad GPA is below 3.25. "No GPA renders an applicant automatically admissible or inadmissible. However, applicants who have a UGPA below 3.25 or a GGPA below 3.5 must submit a supporting document (see supporting documents)."

You're just barely below that cutoff, so you should definitely apply if it's a program you're interested in! 

Edited July 29, 2016 by username111

[ClassicalEducator]

10 hours ago, midmarsh said:

Hi guys!

I'm looking at programs related to international educational development/policy. I'm really interested in the IEDP program at Penn, especially since it offers a Coverdell Fellowship for returned Peace Corps volunteers, which I will be by Fall 2017.

I scored well on the GREs (161 V/164 Q) though my essay score, which I can't remember right now, was not good, because I didn't really prepare for that section as well.

I'm concerned about my GPA. I went to major public research institution and I double majored in mathematics ("pure" math) and international studies. My math courses brought down my overall GPA (3.2) but my major GPA in IS wasn't that much better (3.5). They (UW-Madison) actually has a really strong ed pol program but I can't apply for it since my GPA isn't high enough (3.7 minimum).

But I'm hoping my experience makes up for it! I'm an education volunteer in the Peace Corps in the Caucasus, worked with high school students at pre-college pipeline program for students of color and low-income students for two years, and a literacy nonprofit in the DC area. I also did research for a year with a journalism professor and spent another year doing research for a professor in biostatistics.

I should have some strong recommendation letters but I'm worried I may be shooting too high? I'm looking at other education policy programs too (and if anyone has any recommendations, let me know!) but this program seems to marry all my interests and needs really well. 

Have you spoken to anyone from the program? I've found that in general, reaching out to program organizers is incredibly helpful - they're usually eager to help out prospective students in any way that they can and they also point you in the direction of current students, blogs, and other possible avenues for help. I spoke to a few professors at UW-Madison and they were incredibly nice actually. (Not that they were in your dept though, my interests are more along the lines of minority education). But it was very reassuring. In my case, they did mention that they prefer for students to have a Master's before applying to their Ph.D program - not sure if this is what you mentioned though.

 

Again, I am in a separate field, but I do recall seeing information about Harvard and Columbia as other schools with solid international ed programs. I also think I saw something about a program down in the D.C. area, but I can't recall which school. Maybe browse last year's boards because that seems to be a common thread and potential avenue of concentration. Hopefully this was somewhat helpful to you!

[midmarsh]

4 hours ago, ClassicalEducator said:

Have you spoken to anyone from the program? I've found that in general, reaching out to program organizers is incredibly helpful - they're usually eager to help out prospective students in any way that they can and they also point you in the direction of current students, blogs, and other possible avenues for help. I spoke to a few professors at UW-Madison and they were incredibly nice actually. (Not that they were in your dept though, my interests are more along the lines of minority education). But it was very reassuring. In my case, they did mention that they prefer for students to have a Master's before applying to their Ph.D program - not sure if this is what you mentioned though.

 

Again, I am in a separate field, but I do recall seeing information about Harvard and Columbia as other schools with solid international ed programs. I also think I saw something about a program down in the D.C. area, but I can't recall which school. Maybe browse last year's boards because that seems to be a common thread and potential avenue of concentration. Hopefully this was somewhat helpful to you!

Yeah, actually one of the professors that I'm going to reach out to soon for a recommendation is in the Ed Pol department. I'm going to email her soon and ask her advice on programs in general but just haven't gotten around to it yet.

[Vulpix]

On 7/28/2016 at 0:35 PM, midmarsh said:

Hi guys!

I'm looking at programs related to international educational development/policy. I'm really interested in the IEDP program at Penn, especially since it offers a Coverdell Fellowship for returned Peace Corps volunteers, which I will be by Fall 2017.

I scored well on the GREs (161 V/164 Q) though my essay score, which I can't remember right now, was not good, because I didn't really prepare for that section as well.

I'm concerned about my GPA. I went to major public research institution and I double majored in mathematics ("pure" math) and international studies. My math courses brought down my overall GPA (3.2) but my major GPA in IS wasn't that much better (3.5). They (UW-Madison) actually has a really strong ed pol program but I can't apply for it since my GPA isn't high enough (3.7 minimum).

But I'm hoping my experience makes up for it! I'm an education volunteer in the Peace Corps in the Caucasus, worked with high school students at pre-college pipeline program for students of color and low-income students for two years, and a literacy nonprofit in the DC area. I also did research for a year with a journalism professor and spent another year doing research for a professor in biostatistics.

I should have some strong recommendation letters but I'm worried I may be shooting too high? I'm looking at other education policy programs too (and if anyone has any recommendations, let me know!) but this program seems to marry all my interests and needs really well. 

You're not shooting too high at all, you are shooting for where you know you can be if they look past the GPA.  Your GRE can make up for that, as can a really clear SOP. 

IEDP is pretty awesome.  I was totally torn between that and HGSE (which is very obvious if you get bored and read the old threads from this past year).  You should definitely apply (and Penn's application is free, so there's no excuse!).

That's pretty crazy that UW has a 3.7 minimum GPA.  I had a 3.69 in college.  My school doesn't round it, so I wonder if that would've counted .

[midmarsh]

On 7/30/2016 at 5:40 AM, Heather1011 said:

You're not shooting too high at all, you are shooting for where you know you can be if they look past the GPA.  Your GRE can make up for that, as can a really clear SOP. 

IEDP is pretty awesome.  I was totally torn between that and HGSE (which is very obvious if you get bored and read the old threads from this past year).  You should definitely apply (and Penn's application is free, so there's no excuse!).

That's pretty crazy that UW has a 3.7 minimum GPA.  I had a 3.69 in college.  My school doesn't round it, so I wonder if that would've counted .

I'm going back and looking at their website and I can't find the 3.7 minimum GPA anywhere. Maybe they got rid of it or it was for a specific program that I now can't find.

[fbuggey93]

Hi

So I'll be applying to a few Higher Education programs in the next couple of months (as it seems most people in this thread are). I was wondering if those who are applying to Higher Ed programs have any plans of also looking for a job in the related field while they plan on attending? I'm worried that I'll be in a program and then there'll be no chance for me to get the experience needed for post-graduation. Does anyone have experience with this self-doubt? 

Thanks a bunch 

[travelgirl125]

8 hours ago, fbuggey93 said:

Hi

So I'll be applying to a few Higher Education programs in the next couple of months (as it seems most people in this thread are). I was wondering if those who are applying to Higher Ed programs have any plans of also looking for a job in the related field while they plan on attending? I'm worried that I'll be in a program and then there'll be no chance for me to get the experience needed for post-graduation. Does anyone have experience with this self-doubt? 

Thanks a bunch 

Hi!  I will be starting a Higher Ed program in just a few weeks.  I am one year out of undergrad and pretty much all of my experience is in high school teaching.  While I was very involved as an undergraduate student, I have no experience working in the field of higher ed.

When I was looking for programs, I made it a point to find one that offered/required a graduate assistantship (and most of them do).  I will be working as a GA in an office on-campus 20 hours/week for the year, so I'm hoping that will give me enough experience to get my foot in the door after I graduate  I also was applying for full-time positions and was not even getting interviews; that's when I realized I needed to go for the masters degree.

Hope that helps!

[iyou23]

Hi everyone!

So I'm planning on applying to ed schools either this year or the next, and I was wondering if anyone's ever applied to two different programs in one university? My interest lies in developmental neuroscience and education, and I find the Human Development & Psychology and Mind, Brain, Education program in HGSE to be equally interesting! I'd really like to apply to both, but are there any downsides to it?

Thanks guys

 

[Vulpix]

1 hour ago, iyou23 said:

Hi everyone!

So I'm planning on applying to ed schools either this year or the next, and I was wondering if anyone's ever applied to two different programs in one university? My interest lies in developmental neuroscience and education, and I find the Human Development & Psychology and Mind, Brain, Education program in HGSE to be equally interesting! I'd really like to apply to both, but are there any downsides to it?

Thanks guys

 

I don't think they let you apply to both?  I could be wrong, but I think they want to see you pick a focus.  If I were you, I'd apply to the program that allows you to take more electives to guarantee that you can take as many courses as fit your interests.  

Edited August 27, 2016 by Vulpix

[iyou23]

On 8/27/2016 at 3:10 AM, Vulpix said:

I don't think they let you apply to both?  I could be wrong, but I think they want to see you pick a focus.  If I were you, I'd apply to the program that allows you to take more electives to guarantee that you can take as many courses as fit your interests.  

 

Thanks so much, that's really good advice! I've looked through the courses and I think HDP allows me to take a lot of MBE courses but not the other way around. 

 

[Vulpix]

1 hour ago, iyou23 said:

Thanks so much, that's really good advice! I've looked through the courses and I think HDP allows me to take a lot of MBE courses but not the other way around. 

 

I also learned today that there are people who come here and switch programs.  It's not common, and I don't know how difficult it is, but it does happen.  I met someone today who entered as HDP but just switched to Language & Literacy.  But I think if HDP lets you more fully study the types of things you'd be interested in for MBE, but MBE doesn't let you study as much as HDP, you're better off with HDP!

Then there's a whole nother conversation about which program is "easier to get into"... I have no idea.  You could compare the size.

[iyou23]

36 minutes ago, Vulpix said:

I also learned today that there are people who come here and switch programs.  It's not common, and I don't know how difficult it is, but it does happen.  I met someone today who entered as HDP but just switched to Language & Literacy.  But I think if HDP lets you more fully study the types of things you'd be interested in for MBE, but MBE doesn't let you study as much as HDP, you're better off with HDP!

Then there's a whole nother conversation about which program is "easier to get into"... I have no idea.  You could compare the size.

 

Ahh right, I will try to talk to a student ambassador to see whether HDP does have a bigger pool of courses to choose from than MBE. Also, how do you find out about the size of the different programs? Looking at gradcafe, I haven't seen a lot of people who applied for HDP or MBE, but of course I could be completely wrong!

[Vulpix]

22 minutes ago, iyou23 said:

Ahh right, I will try to talk to a student ambassador to see whether HDP does have a bigger pool of courses to choose from than MBE. Also, how do you find out about the size of the different programs? Looking at gradcafe, I haven't seen a lot of people who applied for HDP or MBE, but of course I could be completely wrong!

I'm not sure if it's public, but I can see that information.

There are about 75 in HDP this year and 45 in MBE.  I don't really know what that information tells you (Could just be that MBE is less popular, OR that it's more selective... or both... or neither )

Edited August 29, 2016 by Vulpix

[rockrmoose]

Wondering what everyone's amount of work experience is that are applying to MA programs. I graduated in 2015, so by the time I would enter an MA program in 2017, that will have been 2 years of work experience. Do you guys think that's too little?