Fall 2017 applicants

[voprosi]

Are any of you feeling as anxious and nervous as I am? I'm trying to convince myself to stay positive, but that's still hard! I guess I'm a little lucky that I'm  working a full-time job at the moment, so that does keep me distracted for eight hours a day. How are you all passing the time? Does anyone have book/movie recommendations for passing the time? I've resigned myself to the fact that I'm not going to be productive in the upcoming weeks! 

[ericthebrave]

Hi there. Feel a bit in limbo about something which i briefly posted on the results page. 

• I was contacted by one POI (my future advisor) at University of Chicago History Dep't. expressing his desire to recruit me. POI wanted me to answer several questions to make case stronger before the admissions committee. Part of the email "questionnaire" was probably to gauge my seriousness and see if Chicago was 1st choice or not. I got that impression when he basically said that money would not be an issue once I was accepted by the ad commitee. Contacted by 2nd POI saying that there was broad enthusiasm among specialities for my candidacy. Said: nothing is guaranteed while saying at the same time that he was looking forward to working with me next year (??). Not sure how to take that. 1st POI responded later in the day after I had answered his questions basically saying Chicago is my 1st  choice. POI said my answers had helped and he had gotten past the first obstacle (??) and chances are high I will get a generous offer but that nothing is guaranteed as competition is hard so we will wait and see until decisions are made at the end of the month. What in your opinion does this say about my chances/about the admissions process at Chicago?

[wjd]

4 minutes ago, ericthebrave said:

Hi there. Feel a bit in limbo about something which i briefly posted on the results page. 

• I was contacted by one POI (my future advisor) at University of Chicago History Dep't. expressing his desire to recruit me. POI wanted me to answer several questions to make case stronger before the admissions committee. Part of the email "questionnaire" was probably to gauge my seriousness and see if Chicago was 1st choice or not. I got that impression when he basically said that money would not be an issue once I was accepted by the ad commitee. Contacted by 2nd POI saying that there was broad enthusiasm among specialities for my candidacy. Said: nothing is guaranteed while saying at the same time that he was looking forward to working with me next year (??). Not sure how to take that. 1st POI responded later in the day after I had answered his questions basically saying Chicago is my 1st  choice. POI said my answers had helped and he had gotten past the first obstacle (??) and chances are high I will get a generous offer but that nothing is guaranteed as competition is hard so we will wait and see until decisions are made at the end of the month. What in your opinion does this say about my chances/about the admissions process at Chicago?

looks like you've got some folks fighting for you. I'd say that's good

[ericthebrave]

Asian History. It almost seems like the specialty has to battle other specialties for their nominee's spot. Good thing my project is transnational, as the POI said that Europeanists and Latin Americanists had shown interest in the topic and have actively supported my candidacy. In the grad school of the university where i am attending undergrad, it seems like a much less competitive/cutthroat process. Though paradoxically here there's much less funding around. Perhaps they're trying to make it seem even more competitive so to make me want to go there and not look as hard at other schools. Give off the image perhaps that there's a fight and that if I come out of it with an offer I should take it without question.

Edited January 19, 2017 by ericthebrave

[wjd]

Hi all,

I've been lurking around the site for some time, but I figured I'd jump in to the discussion now. I am a 3rd year undergrad at a highly regarded school who is graduating in the spring with two majors. I also played football, so I've been pretty busy for the past 3 years.

As for my research, I'm fascinated by American memory of World War II -- I've got an article forthcoming where I argue that high school textbooks have contributed to the staying power of the "Good War" myth, and I want to do an even broader exploration (perhaps as a dissertation) of why the hell the American populace has this idea that WWII was a heroic backpacking trip across Europe and not the hellish time of moral ambiguity that it truly was.

I applied to 11 schools this cycle, and my mentors encouraged me to go for broke considering the peculiarities of my application, so I went for Stanford, Harvard (American Studies), Columbia, Brown, NYU, UChicago, Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, Indiana, UC-Santa Barbara, and Emory.

Today I heard from a POI at UNC, and he (unofficially, officially) informed me that I am accepted and nominated for a university-wide top-up fellowship, so you could say it's been a good day.

Good luck to everyone!

Edited January 19, 2017 by wjd

[voprosi]

Congrats! UNC is such a good program. I'm sure it feels nice to already have an acceptance this early! 

[SarahBethSortino]

3 hours ago, ziggysunshine said:

I really hope that's it! I didn't contact all of my programs directly when I applied, so part of me just worries that I won't know when decisions go out/have been made. Guess that's why I'm checking this website/the results forum so frequently LOL.

I at least had some contact with almost every school except HArvard. I drove up to Brown and back in one day for a meeting with my POI from brown (I live in NJ). Another in person meeting with POI from Clark and email contact with everyone else. When I asked to speak with THREE different faculty members at Harvard the response was basically, nah bra, if we care about you once we see your application, we'll contact you. I have literally no chance of getting  in there but it won't destroy me. Brown is my top choice and that might just kill me.

[SarahBethSortino]

34 minutes ago, wjd said:

Hi all,

I've been lurking around the site for some time, but I figured I'd jump in to the discussion now. I am a 3rd year undergrad at a highly regarded school who is graduating in the spring with two majors. I also played football, so I've been pretty busy for the past 3 years.

As for my research, I'm fascinated by American memory of World War II -- I've got an article forthcoming where I argue that high school textbooks have contributed to the staying power of the "Good War" myth, and I want to do an even broader exploration (perhaps as a dissertation) of why the hell the American populace has this idea that WWII was a heroic backpacking trip across Europe and not the hellish time of moral ambiguity that it truly was.

I applied to 11 schools this cycle, and my mentors encouraged me to go for broke considering the peculiarities of my application, so I went for Stanford, Harvard (American Studies), Columbia, Brown, NYU, UChicago, Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, Indiana, UC-Santa Barbara, and Emory.

Today I heard from a POI at UNC, and he (unofficially, officially) informed me that I am accepted and nominated for a university-wide top-up fellowship, so you could say it's been a good day.

Good luck to everyone!

Nice to see my direct competition on here, at least for Brown and Harvard Haha. Good luck!

[angesradieux]

54 minutes ago, wjd said:

Hi all,

I've been lurking around the site for some time, but I figured I'd jump in to the discussion now. I am a 3rd year undergrad at a highly regarded school who is graduating in the spring with two majors. I also played football, so I've been pretty busy for the past 3 years.

As for my research, I'm fascinated by American memory of World War II -- I've got an article forthcoming where I argue that high school textbooks have contributed to the staying power of the "Good War" myth, and I want to do an even broader exploration (perhaps as a dissertation) of why the hell the American populace has this idea that WWII was a heroic backpacking trip across Europe and not the hellish time of moral ambiguity that it truly was.

I applied to 11 schools this cycle, and my mentors encouraged me to go for broke considering the peculiarities of my application, so I went for Stanford, Harvard (American Studies), Columbia, Brown, NYU, UChicago, Duke, UNC-Chapel Hill, Indiana, UC-Santa Barbara, and Emory.

Today I heard from a POI at UNC, and he (unofficially, officially) informed me that I am accepted and nominated for a university-wide top-up fellowship, so you could say it's been a good day.

Good luck to everyone!

 Congrats. I heard the same kind of thing from UNC. The optimism feels good. I'll be happier when I have the official letter, though. Verbal reassurance is nice, but the I'm anxious for it to be made official. Last I heard, the first rounds of letters go out mid February/early March. But depending on how haggling goes because everything is decided by committee, I guess it could be later. Fingers crossed that we officially hear back sooner rather than later!

[realmarcelproust]

Hello, everyone! I'm yet another lurker coming out of the woodwork. I graduated from UChicago in June, and my subfield is modern European intellectual history (and historical theory). Within that, I plan to specialize on nineteenth and twentieth-century France, with an emphasis on the role of concepts of time and temporality in the development of historical thought of the early Annales School historians. Generally, I'm interested in investigating the history of concepts of time and temporality more broadly (i.e. transnationally), but my first love has always been France. I only applied to six programs this time around at the suggestion of my recommenders, so hopefully Yale, Princeton, Penn, Cornell, NYU (joint PhD in history & French studies), or Rutgers will give me some good news! 

 

Speaking of schools, I saw that a Penn acceptance was posted earlier today on the results board, and I was wondering if anyone here (or lurking here) knows anymore about that? Penn is one of my top choices, so, if acceptances have already gone out, and like to get my disappointment out of the way as soon as possible. It seems a little early though, doesn't it? 

[ziggysunshine]

30 minutes ago, realmarcelproust said:

Hello, everyone! I'm yet another lurker coming out of the woodwork. I graduated from UChicago in June, and my subfield is modern European intellectual history (and historical theory). Within that, I plan to specialize on nineteenth and twentieth-century France, with an emphasis on the role of concepts of time and temporality in the development of historical thought of the early Annales School historians. Generally, I'm interested in investigating the history of concepts of time and temporality more broadly (i.e. transnationally), but my first love has always been France. I only applied to six programs this time around at the suggestion of my recommenders, so hopefully Yale, Princeton, Penn, Cornell, NYU (joint PhD in history & French studies), or Rutgers will give me some good news! 

 

Speaking of schools, I saw that a Penn acceptance was posted earlier today on the results board, and I was wondering if anyone here (or lurking here) knows anymore about that? Penn is one of my top choices, so, if acceptances have already gone out, and like to get my disappointment out of the way as soon as possible. It seems a little early though, doesn't it? 

Yay, another modern European intellectual historian! I'm (sort of) one as well, and I applied to half of the schools on your list (Princeton, NYU, and Rutgers). Can't say anything about the Penn acceptance because I didn't apply, but I did hear back from NYU and get an interview. I hope someone will contact you from there soon! Who is it you'd be working with?

[ziggysunshine]

1 hour ago, SarahBethSortino said:

I at least had some contact with almost every school except HArvard. I drove up to Brown and back in one day for a meeting with my POI from brown (I live in NJ). Another in person meeting with POI from Clark and email contact with everyone else. When I asked to speak with THREE different faculty members at Harvard the response was basically, nah bra, if we care about you once we see your application, we'll contact you. I have literally no chance of getting  in there but it won't destroy me. Brown is my top choice and that might just kill me.

Mm, well I really do wish you luck! Being in the east coast/driving around to visit people is a great idea. I wish I could have done that this application season, but I've been abroad since September.

But I totally feel you too- If my top pick (also my alma mater) rejects me, I'll probably wither away into a sad puddle of tears.

[ziggysunshine]

1 hour ago, ericthebrave said:

Asian History. It almost seems like the specialty has to battle other specialties for their nominee's spot. Good thing my project is transnational, as the POI said that Europeanists and Latin Americanists had shown interest in the topic and have actively supported my candidacy. In the grad school of the university where i am attending undergrad, it seems like a much less competitive/cutthroat process. Though paradoxically here there's much less funding around. Perhaps they're trying to make it seem even more competitive so to make me want to go there and not look as hard at other schools. Give off the image perhaps that there's a fight and that if I come out of it with an offer I should take it without question.

Hey Ericthebrave, thanks for commenting here about UChicago! I was wondering, when you spoke to the POI, did they say they'd already sent out the questionnaire/contacted all of the candidates they were considering? I'm not from your subfield but I'm getting kind of worried, seeing as someone else other than yourself also posted about a UChicago interview on the results page.

[ericthebrave]

Hey ziggysunshine, I have no idea how many others received these questions. I think it's obviously on an individual basis and perhaps different pertaining to the other specialities. I don't know what the procedure is concerning other situations. Perhaps historians of Asia have to fight to get their nominees in, perhaps it's different for americanists where the Americanist historians fight among themselves for a candidate who is the nominee. Perhaps some don't even tell the proposed candidate that they're being "pulled for" because the competition is that intense. I don't want to worry you or anyone else, but I think it's realistic to expect that among very good grad programs the process of choosing those who will fill next year's spots is extremely competitive and sometimes advisors don't want to trouble prospective candidates with the political infighting or whatever there may be. some candidates may notify at the expense of an unfortunate "in the end" rejection which would really not be great, while others say "we won't say anything until we know for sure." Just my two cents at this point. If anyone knows more about the process at Chicago and other similar schools feel free to say what they think

Edited January 20, 2017 by ericthebrave

[Quickmick]

@ericthebrave all good points and along these lines, there is something else at play (again, that we have no control over). Part of how many your sub-field takes is contingent on how "full" they are. If they gave out 6 admits last year, expecting 3 to attend--and they all came--there may just be a glut of people. In this case you might be the best xyzist prof poi has ever seen, but she is still full from last year. A TT prof told me at a conference that when he applied to Hopkins they took zero in his field...two years in a row.... just tough sledding.

Edited January 20, 2017 by Quickmick

[SarahBethSortino]

1 hour ago, ziggysunshine said:

Mm, well I really do wish you luck! Being in the east coast/driving around to visit people is a great idea. I wish I could have done that this application season, but I've been abroad since September.

But I totally feel you too- If my top pick (also my alma mater) rejects me, I'll probably wither away into a sad puddle of tears.

It was quite a hassle trying to balance a job and a kid and figure out how to drive all over hell to visit POIs but I made it work and hopefully in the end it will help.

[Neist]

17 hours ago, ziggysunshine said:

I really hope that's it! I didn't contact all of my programs directly when I applied, so part of me just worries that I won't know when decisions go out/have been made. Guess that's why I'm checking this website/the results forum so frequently LOL.

 

I contacted very few POIs, and I only contacted programs when I needed to know something. Generally, this was to ask for a copy of the graduate student handbook (amazing what you can learn from those...). I think you'll be fine!

15 hours ago, voprosi said:

Does anyone have book/movie recommendations for passing the time? I've resigned myself to the fact that I'm not going to be productive in the upcoming weeks! 

 

I'm currently reading White Trash: The 400-Year Untold History of Class in America by Nancy Isenberg, and it's pretty good, but it's very much big history. I only have a middling tolerance for big history, but I've enjoyed several of the chapters thus far.

15 hours ago, ericthebrave said:

In the grad school of the university where I am attending undergrad, it seems like a much less competitive/cut-throat process. Though paradoxically here there's much less funding around. Perhaps they're trying to make it seem even more competitive so to make me want to go there and not look as hard at other schools. Give off the image perhaps that there's a fight and that if I come out of it with an offer I should take it without question.

 

It was the same in the program I'm currently attending. It was my alma mater. The acceptance rate is somewhat high, but the matriculation rate is quite low because funding is rather competitive. Only one or two students get funding any given year, and I think that's pretty common in a lot of programs. Honestly, any person who gets accepted into any program should probably be thankful because getting funding can be difficult. Either programs fund everyone and are highly selective, or they accept everyone and selectively fund.

15 hours ago, wjd said:

As for my research, I'm fascinated by American memory of World War II -- I've got an article forthcoming where I argue that high school textbooks have contributed to the staying power of the "Good War" myth, and I want to do an even broader exploration (perhaps as a dissertation) of why the hell the American populace has this idea that WWII was a heroic backpacking trip across Europe and not the hellish time of moral ambiguity that it truly was.

 

I'm really interested in the history of reading, and your research sounds fascinating!  I'm interested in similar issues, only from a science perspective.

[angesradieux]

Judging from digging through the last two years' results, January 20/21 is right around when my top choice started sending out decisions. This is killing me.

 

Realmarcelproust, just out of curiosity, is Judith Surkis your POI? I did my undergrad at Rutgers and France has always been near and dear to my heart, so I made sure to work with the French historians while I was there.

Edited January 20, 2017 by angesradieux

[Quickmick]

20 minutes ago, angesradieux said:

Judging from digging through the last two years' results, January 20/21 is right around when my top choice started sending out decisions. This is killing me.

 

yup... I might hear from two in the next week, two in the following and the remaining 3 within a couple of weeks after that. Thank goodness for this place--even with it I think my wife is jamming cotton balls in her ears.

[angesradieux]

16 minutes ago, Quickmick said:

yup... I might hear from two in the next week, two in the following and the remaining 3 within a couple of weeks after that. Thank goodness for this place--even with it I think my wife is jamming cotton balls in her ears.

I think I might be calmer without this forum. xD Before I started combing through the results board I had no idea when Hopkins typically sends out acceptances. Now I'm like wait, last year people were getting notifications right about now. Where's mine?! *refreshes e-mail five hundred times* I'm hoping to hear from another school in a few weeks, but basically where I'm at now, if I get an offer from Hopkins, the decision's made, that's where I'm going. If not, then it's kind of a toss-up. Vanderbilt was my second choice, but after talking to professors at other schools, it turns out I have more in common with professors at other schools than I originally thought, so there's not a big difference in terms of fit. In terms of location, on the other hand... I'm really not sold on Nashville. Not to say I wouldn't go there if it were my only choice, but I'm put off by it enough for that to be a factor if I'm deciding between two programs. After realizing that the fit at Vanderbilt really isn't a whole lot better than the other places I applied, I don't have a clear second choice anymore, and without a firm second pick, I guess I've become even more anxious about my first choice. If that makes sense.

I don't know. Maybe it's all nonsense and I've just been driven insane by the waiting. I'm a control freak. I don't deal with the whole "It's out of my hands and time to just sit back and see what happens" thing.

[nevermind]

1 hour ago, angesradieux said:

After realizing that the fit at Vanderbilt really isn't a whole lot better than the other places I applied, I don't have a clear second choice anymore, and without a firm second pick, I guess I've become even more anxious about my first choice. If that makes sense.

 

 

I think this is a pretty common feeling (having a clear first choice, and then flip-flopping on the others). I had my first "choice" (which I did not gain admissions to) and then all the other programs alternated between my second choices, on any given day. Honestly, I ended up at the best school for me and my research interests. My department(s)--I'm in one major department and one interdisciplinary field group--are collaborative and supportive, and it was *the* only school with 3+ people doing the work that I do (despite my first choice having *the* leading scholar doing the work that I do). Just take a deep breath and relax. I was *really* disappointed about being rejected from one certain program (my dream *school* but not my dream department), but come to find out later that the person I chose to study under...apparently, nobody likes and he's a really difficult person to work with. 

All this to say, there are a lot of variables in this process. Other things help your decision too (admit days are decent in getting a feel for the departments/asking tough questions/negotiating financial aid offers), so you don't need to only rely on a website or second-hand info to make these important decisions. 

 

Edited January 20, 2017 by nevermind

[History Fanatic]

Any details on the Purdue acceptance today?  Email from DGS/POI?  Anxious to hear about this school. 

[TMP]

let me jump in the fray and put things in perspective.....after four years out.

1) Stay chill.  Netflix, netflix, anything to get your mind off the process.  If you're in a somewhat mindless full-time job, then I sympathize with you.  I actually tried to do extra work to get my mind off and my boss was happy to help  

2) Admissions process vary from one school to another.  It may be possible that a prof is "glutted" with PhDs, but also remember that the prof may be in a position to have his/her pick (ranking, stature in the field, part of retention package) if s/he gets her way, particularly if you're a strong applicant.  If you're hearing of specialists outside of your area looking at your application, it's a strategy on the professors' part to get you admitted.  This is particularly important when PhD programs are looking to cut and need to figure out how to maintain graduate seminars (Registrars tend to cap them around 5 students).  So the more varied interests you have, all the better for a program looking to downsize.  Being thematic/transnational helps quite a lot.  Your POI also doesn't want to be your *sole* adviser; it takes a village to raise a graduate student and s/he wants to be sure that there are other faculty membres interested in working with you.

3) While it is nice to have a "top choice" school to accept you, remember, all it takes is ONE funded acceptance to go.  This is a very good experience for when you apply for grants/fellowships and the eventual job market (academia or not).  You'll have to learn how to deal with disappointment and manage your ego so rejections don't destruct you and you dignity and ego.  I was nearly destroyed by depression and anxiety and had to go into therapy in my first year of my PhD program to help me pick up the pieces (after 3 PhD application cycles!).  Now I am much stronger and can handle rejections from grants/fellowships.  While I'have my share of preferred funding institutions, I've learned to accept whatever comes along my way because money is money and I'm moving forward with my work.

4) Start finding a back-up plan if you don't have one.  Have something in hand that you can be excited about if nothing pans out this year.  It will soften the blow and give you something to keep looking forward to and feel productive.  (Even if it's a job you hate.  It still give some dignity, no?)

Realism aside, I wish you all the very best of luck from the Buckeye state!

[ArthurianaNerd]

Hey Guys,

I applied to Yale and Notre Dame for Medieval Studies (History Track). I haven't heard anything from Yale yet, but I've got an invitation for a campus visit soon. I've met with several faculty there in person, and the DGS has been very encouraging. Anybody else here know anything about the campus visits and what to expect?

Thanks

[angesradieux]

Anyone heard anything from Hopkins yet? Last year it looks like they started sending stuff out January 21st, and it looks like January 20th the previous year. So now I've worked myself up into a nice panic.