Fall 2017 Applicants

[day_manderly]

6 hours ago, vaporeon said:

@day_manderly Is the program you're applying to quant-related? Either way I think the 2nd score will be better, but if you'll be using qualitative methodologies, there's no question in my mind.

Oh, I didn't think about that! It's definitely not quant-related! Now I'm more confident in my decision to send 2nd, thanks!

[day_manderly]

Have just submitted my 2nd app! So excited, even though still have 2 to go for the December 1 deadline! How are you guys doing?

[glitterunicorn]

@day_manderly nice!  i'm making some last tweaks to my statements. i'm a bit worried about my professors not being able to send in the letters of rec on time though. :<

[day_manderly]

5 hours ago, glitterunicorn said:

@day_manderly nice!  i'm making some last tweaks to my statements. i'm a bit worried about my professors not being able to send in the letters of rec on time though. :<

I think most schools are ok with letters coming after you've submitted - like, 2 weeks after. You should check though. I made my profs send theirs like a week ago, just in case (all schools I'm applying to have the option of inviting recommenders prior to submission - I think if you apps don't have that option, then the letters can come later).

[Snuffleupagus]

On 10/14/2016 at 5:56 AM, marature said:

Hey everyone, for those who are interested in International Education Policy/Development type programs, like those offered by Penn IEDP, HGSE IEP, TC IED, AU ITEP, Vanderbilt IEPM, NYU IE etc... just wanted to put in a plug for the place I ended up in, which was UMass Amherst. I got into other places as well, but UMass, although not so prestigious, is very practitioner-focused and offers the possibility of a great funding package (if you get an assistantship, it covers tuition, and includes a stipend as well as health coverage and benefits), so if you're a mid-career professional and you'd like a program where the faculty are actively involved in development projects, do check it out!

I actually stumbled across the program through one of these forums, so just giving back

Info about the Master's degree here: https://www.umass.edu/education/departments/epra/intl-education

The Center for International Education Web site here (for info about classes, faculty, projects, etc): http://www.umass.edu/cie/ - it's a very small program but a lot of experience both among the faculty and the students.

Specifically to Snuffleupagus (I love the original Mr Snuffleupagus, btw!), your interests sound really fascinating. I would point out that UMass Amherst seems to have strong Higher Ed and Educational Assessment programs as well as Intl Ed, so do take a look (you can cross-take classes obviously), though it's probably not as strong in multilingual ed and language policy specifically as somewhere like Penn with Nancy Hornberger or other more cosmopolitan settings. If you happen to be considering UK programs as well, the University of Sussex has a really interesting international education and development program with some big names in the field. Also, are you really not looking at HGSE? Their International Ed Policy (IEP) program seems really awesome (except it's very short), and you would have access to all the great resources of Harvard. Also American University has an International Ed program which is not so policy-focused, but it's Washington DC and you could probably take classes at their School of International Service, which is international development and policy-focused (tho' not specifically education), as well. I don't know who are the relevant experts for North Africa specifically, but these larger universities (HGSE, AU) probably have some... Also you could look for faculty who study sociolinguistics in north africa - another field which investigates things like language policy and multilingualism

 

 

Thanks for your advice! I actually just decided to apply to Upenn for this year and will look into UMass for next year if other things don't quite pan out.  I decided against UMass this year because of the funding issues - from what I had read it was iffy and I am paying off my loans so not having more is very much a top priority.  UPenn (Hornberger) is indeed my top choice in terms of research fit.  

The IEP prgram is at the MA level.  I have 2 MAs and am only looking at straight PhD programs (3-4 years) because I am an old

Thanks for the advice, friend! 

[glitterunicorn]

On 11/28/2016 at 10:16 PM, day_manderly said:

I think most schools are ok with letters coming after you've submitted - like, 2 weeks after. You should check though. I made my profs send theirs like a week ago, just in case (all schools I'm applying to have the option of inviting recommenders prior to submission - I think if you apps don't have that option, then the letters can come later).

thank you for this <3 soothed my nerves!

[ugggggh]

I have all 8 of my apps in (and complete) for this year, and all of my recommenders have submitted their letters.  This is earlier than I managed to get it done last year so I'm able to start worrying and obsessing earlier! 

[day_manderly]

4 hours ago, ugggggh said:

I have all 8 of my apps in (and complete) for this year, and all of my recommenders have submitted their letters.  This is earlier than I managed to get it done last year so I'm able to start worrying and obsessing earlier! 

Yaaaay for obsessing! I still have 1 app to go... Can't wait to commence going nuts myself.

[istanbulnotconstantinople]

I have been reading this thread for a little while, but decided to hang back on posting until after applying since I didn't want to overstress about my applications. I hope its ok to join in now that we're all in for a long wait together.

I am applying for PhD's in the field of education policy (plus a backup in international education).  I am from the UK but currently working in Istanbul, I have been a teacher for 7 years and have an undergrad in English Literature and a masters in Comparative Education (both from two of the top ranked universities in the UK/world). I have been at a real loss sometimes trying to work out how my academic records translates into the US since we don't get GPA's and no-one EVER does any research at undergrad in the humanities fields (though obviously my undergrad had me reading reams of academic journals, I have done multiple extended essay projects, and completed a thesis project in my masters). But eventually I decided to just go for it and apply for a PhD in the states hoping my background was enough. Taking the GRE was the biggest challenge I had, since I have never taken a multiple choice test in my life except for my driving test theory exam and I had to learn that 'quick-trick-mathematics' is a thing - in the UK most of your marks come from showing your working out so this baffled me at first. But I got through it in the end.

I am relieved to have got in all my applications on time. Now I just have to wait and see.

Thank you though for the useful advice you have been posting - good luck to you all.

Edited December 2, 2016 by mjl89

[marature]

On 30/11/2016 at 8:52 AM, Snuffleupagus said:

Thanks for your advice! I actually just decided to apply to Upenn for this year and will look into UMass for next year if other things don't quite pan out.  I decided against UMass this year because of the funding issues - from what I had read it was iffy and I am paying off my loans so not having more is very much a top priority.  UPenn (Hornberger) is indeed my top choice in terms of research fit.  

The IEP prgram is at the MA level.  I have 2 MAs and am only looking at straight PhD programs (3-4 years) because I am an old

Thanks for the advice, friend! 

Ok great! Wow, are you in Turkmenistan? There's a student here who worked there as well... Yes, UMass is good for Master's students because it offers more funding than other Master's programs, but not so much for doctoral students, as it doesn't offer full funding for the PhD - so definitely go for programs that offer full PhD funding! I would go with UPenn too in that case All the best!

[I_Love_STEMed]

Hi all, I'm a first-year student in the SESAME program at UC Berkeley, focused on science education, and happy to answer any questions for those people who might be interested in applying. 

https://gse.berkeley.edu/what-we-do

[Snuffleupagus]

12 hours ago, marature said:

Ok great! Wow, are you in Turkmenistan? There's a student here who worked there as well... Yes, UMass is good for Master's students because it offers more funding than other Master's programs, but not so much for doctoral students, as it doesn't offer full funding for the PhD - so definitely go for programs that offer full PhD funding! I would go with UPenn too in that case All the best!

Yes I'm on a fellowship here for a year.

[Espeon]

So how is everyone planning to pass the time until admissions decisions come out? I know we all have a while, but I'm excited! 

[jlt646]

Hi everyone! I'm super late to this party- old poster, current doctoral student (thanks in part to folks here!). I came back to see if anyone in this particular group is applying to my program, and read a lot of posts about international ed interests. Quick plug- Penn State (#11 for Ed. Policy- 2016 US News) has a dual Ed. Policy/ Comparative International program, and it's amazing. I'm not doing it, my research interests are primarily US-based, but a large number of people in my program are. Folks don't tend to think about PSU for CIED, but the program gets a lot of research published, and the professors are extremely active. Also, the deadline is later than most- January 1st.

Sorry if this isn't okay! Good luck to all of you. You're almost to the other side. (: And happy to answer any questions, if you have them. 

Edited December 6, 2016 by jlt646

[hopefulPhD2017]

On 12/5/2016 at 11:11 AM, Espeon said:

So how is everyone planning to pass the time until admissions decisions come out? I know we all have a while, but I'm excited! 

Um staying up until 2 am reading the 2016 HGSE thread seems to be passing the time...

[Hernandez22]

Hello. I just applied for the P.h.D in Education at Rutgers and I'm not sure if what I got is enough.

I recently took the GRE and scored Verbal 159, Quantitative 145 and Writing 3. At the TOEFL, since Im not from the USA, I scored 101. I'm in my last semester at college, B.A in History, and I've also done an internship in the last 18 months as an Assistant Teacher in a High School. Do you guys think it is enough?

[hopefulPhD2017]

On 12/9/2016 at 10:44 PM, Hernandez22 said:

Hello. I just applied for the P.h.D in Education at Rutgers and I'm not sure if what I got is enough.

I recently took the GRE and scored Verbal 159, Quantitative 145 and Writing 3. At the TOEFL, since Im not from the USA, I scored 101. I'm in my last semester at college, B.A in History, and I've also done an internship in the last 18 months as an Assistant Teacher in a High School. Do you guys think it is enough?

I don't know. I know I worry about my test scores too! Have you reached out to Rutgers? You might ask them if they publish scores of their current doctoral students. Some do, some don't, some require a bit of digging around. I did see somewhere that a few places look for a writing score of 4 or above, but I don't know about Rutgers.

Good luck, let us know what you find out! Did you apply to only one program? What part of Brazil do you live in? I was an exchange student in Caxias do Sul many moons ago...

[Hernandez22]

3 hours ago, hopefulPhD2017 said:

I don't know. I know I worry about my test scores too! Have you reached out to Rutgers? You might ask them if they publish scores of their current doctoral students. Some do, some don't, some require a bit of digging around. I did see somewhere that a few places look for a writing score of 4 or above, but I don't know about Rutgers.

Good luck, let us know what you find out! Did you apply to only one program? What part of Brazil do you live in? I was an exchange student in Caxias do Sul many moons ago...

I live in São Paulo, but I was born in Rio Grande do Sul, state which you visited haha. At Rutgers website I found this link http://gse.rutgers.edu/faq?tid=60 where they answer "GRE scores for current students average a few points under 500 (verbal) and just under 600 (math)." Converting to the new scale is Verbal = 152 and Quantitative = 148. They also Ask for 82 on TOEFL and I got 101. 

Edited December 11, 2016 by Hernandez22

[forgetful26]

So, I realised I made a silly mistake in one of my apps. I wrote the name of one of the professors I would love to work with wrong, after writing it right in a previous sentence. My word processor corrected it endless times, so this was a mistake it went. Do you think that's a straight rejection? 

also, my stats: 

 

Program: Education PhD
GRE Score: 159V/153Q/5.5 AWA
GPA undergrad: 3.5

Work Experience: 4 years: Ministry of Education-medium level position. 
Undergrad Institution (Public, Private, Ivy, etc.): Private college
What Other Schools Are You Applying To: ---

 

thanks!

[day_manderly]

27 minutes ago, forgetful26 said:

So, I realised I made a silly mistake in one of my apps. I wrote the name of one of the professors I would love to work with wrong, after writing it right in a previous sentence. My word processor corrected it endless times, so this was a mistake it went. Do you think that's a straight rejection? 

also, my stats: 

 

Program: Education PhD
GRE Score: 159V/153Q/5.5 AWA
GPA undergrad: 3.5

Work Experience: 4 years: Ministry of Education-medium level position. 
Undergrad Institution (Public, Private, Ivy, etc.): Private college
What Other Schools Are You Applying To: ---

 

thanks!

Just how wrong? Like, completely, absolutely wrong? Perhaps, dropping a professor a very-very short and very-very polite e-mail? Just saying 'I have applied to [their school], and I would love to work with you. My word processor ... I am just writing because I do not want you to get offended and assure you that this was not a mistake due to ignorance'.

I'm not sure about this advice, it's just something I myself would consider doing.

Edited December 12, 2016 by day_manderly

[ugggggh]

8 hours ago, day_manderly said:

Just how wrong? Like, completely, absolutely wrong? Perhaps, dropping a professor a very-very short and very-very polite e-mail? Just saying 'I have applied to [their school], and I would love to work with you. My word processor ... I am just writing because I do not want you to get offended and assure you that this was not a mistake due to ignorance'.

I'm not sure about this advice, it's just something I myself would consider doing.

You can also call the admissions office and explain it to the person who answers the phone.  Ask if you can email an identical letter but with the correct professor name.  It's worth a shot, and that would get the correct spelling into  everyone's hands.  Even if you can clear it up with Dr. X, Drs. Y and Z will still read the statement and probably be critical of it.

[syazanazura]

Hi everyone.

This is a little late, but oh well, what better way to spend the long weeks waiting to hear back.

My stats:

Current institution: Big Ten school in the Midwest.
Program applying for: Higher Education (specifically for Student Affairs) - Master's programs
Universities applied to: University of Rochester (October 15th deadline), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Colorado State University and Michigan State University. Also applied to Anglia Ruskin University in the UK.
GPA undergrad: 3.265 (currently in a business major and unable to change due to agreement with scholarship, barely hanging in this major)
Profile: International female applicant, will be completing my 4 years undergrad in the U.S.
GRE: not taken since was not a requirement.

Other than the Higher Ed/Student Affairs Masters programs at those universities, also applying to the new Human Ecology Master's at UW-Madison (was supposed to take the GRE, but they said my application was completed even without the GRE so ended up not taking it).

My recommenders: One Ed Psych professor at my university (took her class once sophomore year, loved it, she ended up helping me via email for the past 1.5 year in navigating grad school thoughts and internships and all that), one International Student Services advisor (who is also my supervisor now since I started working there this semester / volunteer coordinator for the past 3.5 years), and my internship director from the summer (interned at an American commission in my hometown with the Fulbright/EducationUSA offices. They were all awesome at getting their recommendation letters in wayyyy before the deadline (I think my internship director submitted his end of September, the others were mid-October ish). 

Got my application to Rochester in a day before the October 15th deadline, was invited for interview on 10/19, had my interview in person 10/28 (took a long train crossing the Midwest to get to Rochester), was admitted with a 30% tuition scholarship 11/11 with an early response deadline of 12/2. Emailed the office, they gave me an extension to accept/deny the offer by January/February (no exact date though). And while Rochester's program is one of my top choices, wanted to actually wait and hear back from others before making a final decision.

Also heard back from UW-Madison yesterday from their Ed Leadership and Policy Analysis (ELPA) faculty (I applied to the Student Affairs Administration track) - they recommended me for admission to the graduate school. So now have to actually wait for an official decision from the admissions office of the graduate school (they may need more info like financial statements and stuff since I'm an international student).

[Hernandez22]

Hello!

 I applied to the P.h.D in Education program and the Rutgers Graduate of Education request my university to send official transcripts for the application process. The thing is, I was born and I live and Brazil and here universities do not send transcripts. They (my university) gave me a official transcript which I took to a certified translator and then, I uploaded through the "supporting materials" page. Do you think they might decline me because of my transcripts situation? Are they so "stricted" about it?

 

Thank you very much!

[emilb34]

3 hours ago, Hernandez22 said:

Hello!

 I applied to the P.h.D in Education program and the Rutgers Graduate of Education request my university to send official transcripts for the application process. The thing is, I was born and I live and Brazil and here universities do not send transcripts. They (my university) gave me a official transcript which I took to a certified translator and then, I uploaded through the "supporting materials" page. Do you think they might decline me because of my transcripts situation? Are they so "stricted" about it?

 

Thank you very much!

No, if it's an issue with the transcript, they'll reach out to you to resubmit. 

[Hernandez22]

On 18/12/2016 at 1:26 AM, emilb34 said:

No, if it's an issue with the transcript, they'll reach out to you to resubmit. 

Thank you!