Fall 2017 applicants

[a.n.d]

I got accepted to Tennessee! Wait listed on funding though.

[mementomoria]

On 2/26/2017 at 9:01 AM, krystasonrisa said:

@mementomoria, have you heard any news yet? After one of my offers came with an early deadline for accepting funding, I broke down and emailed the DGS, and I got a really great, detailed reply. He responded very kindly, but also honestly, and I found out I'm basically on a waiting list, but not super high up on it. His exact words were "in the Top Cohort, but sufficiently removed from the top 10 that an offer may not be coming." He also said he didn't want me to lose hope because sometimes they have offered ppl at my ranking, but I wouldn't know until late march/early April. 

 

I hope you've heard better news! I'm happy it's not a flat reject yet! 

 

As an update: I emailed the DGS as well and got a letter back (today, March 3) saying basically the same thing--in the top cohort, but not in the top ten, consider the terminal masters if nothing else comes up, etc. It's nice to have made it into the pool of people given more consideration, at least, but I'm not going to pin my hopes on IU rushing in with an offer on April 1st or somesuch.

In the meantime, I'll work on the assumption that I'll be joining up with the program I have been offered clear admission to (Michigan State) and begin investigating future plans accordingly. I'm attending their recruitment event later on this month, and I'm guessing that what I'll find out then will dictate how early I'll make a final statement on where I'll be attending. Weirdly enough, the two things that were most appealing to me at IU weren't technically in the history department itself: I liked the easy accessibility to the wide range of Eastern European language programs there, and I had a good experience with someone at the law school who was willing to help me dig in on the legal theory side of my project. Language acquisition is mostly a matter of personal motivation (at least, it is in my case, and MSU's language options isn't half bad either...that and Indiana is still, uh, directly south), so I can make up that half of the equation on my own/with summer study. I think that while I'm at MSU for the recruitment event, I'll see if I can work in a few meetings with con. law professors at the law school to see if anyone there has any interest in my project--if there is someone there who does, then MSU would probably actually end up becoming the better of the two options. I got the impression from speaking with people in IU's history department that they're trying to move away from nationalism stuff, and nationalism is honestly still something I still really want to address in my work.

< /self-pep talk >

I hope you're doing well/continuing to hear back good things!

 

 

[Sigaba]

1 hour ago, mementomoria said:

 

In the meantime, I'll work on the assumption that I'll be joining up with the program I have been offered clear admission to (Michigan State) and begin investigating future plans accordingly. I'm attending their recruitment event later on this month, and I'm guessing that what I'll find out then will dictate how early I'll make a final statement on where I'll be attending. Weirdly enough, the two things that were most appealing to me at IU weren't technically in the history department itself: I liked the easy accessibility to the wide range of Eastern European language programs there, and I had a good experience with someone at the law school who was willing to help me dig in on the legal theory side of my project. Language acquisition is mostly a matter of personal motivation (at least, it is in my case, and MSU's language options isn't half bad either...that and Indiana is still, uh, directly south), so I can make up that half of the equation on my own/with summer study. I think that while I'm at MSU for the recruitment event, I'll see if I can work in a few meetings with con. law professors at the law school to see if anyone there has any interest in my project--if there is someone there who does, then MSU would probably actually end up becoming the better of the two options. I got the impression from speaking with people in IU's history department that they're trying to move away from nationalism stuff, and nationalism is honestly still something I still really want to address in my work.

< /self-pep talk >

I hope you're doing well/continuing to hear back good things!

 

 

The above is among the best posts in this thread. You don't have to receive a definitive answer before acting like a historian with confidence.

Does @mementomoria 's confidence and sense of purpose come from having earned already a MA and a JD? Maybe, but I don't think so. 

[krystasonrisa]

3 hours ago, mementomoria said:

 

< /self-pep talk >

I hope you're doing well/continuing to hear back good things!

 

 

I'm glad to hear you've got a clear plan.  

I do not, and I think IU might be my top choice right now so I am really hoping I can pull off an acceptance. 

I'm happy to have options and time to think about it still. 

[grubyczarnykot]

Hi! I am new to this thread so I'm sorry to crash it (I've been over in interdisciplinary studies because I'm STS/History of Science/Medicine), but I was just weirdly waitlisted at University of Toronto's Institute for the History and Philosophy of Science and Medicine for a fully funded MA. I say weirdly because it's contingent upon someone else's external scholarship (and not whether or not people accept their offers), which would free up the funding to admit me to the program. It's my dream program at this moment in my life as I'm transitioning to this field from English/Cultural Studies (I already have an MA in English from another university), so I am trying to send out good vibes to the universe (or whatever) that this other person gets their funding!!! I'm a nervous wreck though, so I thought I'd come here to commiserate. 

[viridian]

hi @grubyczarnykot! there are quite a few STS/HoS people here too, so you're not crashing at all

I saw your post in the Interdisciplinary section, too. I'm sorry to hear you're in such a weird spot. Good luck, I really mean it. Hang in there. That's all I can contribute but maybe the more advanced/experienced students on here can give more specific insight to help you feel calmer while you wait.

[luz.colorada]

I am wondering if anyone has any knowledge of U of Chicago's MA program through CLAS (Center for Latin American Studies). I was, unsurprisingly, rejected from their history program but referred to, and accepted by, their MA in Latin American studies. They have also offered me a pretty decent funding package so any information on the program would be much appreciated! I have found more about the MAPPS program but can't seem to find much on this one. 

[grubyczarnykot]

7 hours ago, viridian said:

hi @grubyczarnykot! there are quite a few STS/HoS people here too, so you're not crashing at all

I saw your post in the Interdisciplinary section, too. I'm sorry to hear you're in such a weird spot. Good luck, I really mean it. Hang in there. That's all I can contribute but maybe the more advanced/experienced students on here can give more specific insight to help you feel calmer while you wait.

Thank you so much! Yeah, I think all I can do at this point is wait and hope that the other student gets their scholarship so that everybody is happy. I'm still waiting on York's STS MA too so we'll see. 

[dr. t]

On 3/2/2017 at 5:32 PM, Sigaba said:

Old East Slavic

Surely you mean Old Church Slavonic.

[grubyczarnykot]

40 minutes ago, telkanuru said:

Surely you mean Old Church Slavonic.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_East_Slavic

[Neist]

4 hours ago, grubyczarnykot said:

Thank you so much! Yeah, I think all I can do at this point is wait and hope that the other student gets their scholarship so that everybody is happy. I'm still waiting on York's STS MA too so we'll see. 

 

I managed to get off the waitlist for funding. I probably wouldn't be at this program if I hadn't been. 

Waitlist dreams do happen.  

[grubyczarnykot]

1 hour ago, Neist said:

I managed to get off the waitlist for funding. I probably wouldn't be at this program if I hadn't been. 

Waitlist dreams do happen.  

Ah! Thank you for the encouragement.

[navyblackmaroon]

7 hours ago, luz.colorada said:

I am wondering if anyone has any knowledge of U of Chicago's MA program through CLAS (Center for Latin American Studies). I was, unsurprisingly, rejected from their history program but referred to, and accepted by, their MA in Latin American studies. They have also offered me a pretty decent funding package so any information on the program would be much appreciated! I have found more about the MAPPS program but can't seem to find much on this one. 

 

I have met quite a few MLAS students. The MA students tend to take courses with the PhD students. Some of them even take the seminar course that all 1st and 2nd year Latin Americanist PhDs have to take. The MA students are also encouraged to attend the Latin American History Workshop or the Latin America and the Caribbean Workshop. Overall, my impression is that it is a rather intense program. Unsurprisingly, by the end of it some of the students decide to ditch academia and do something else (consulting, etc).

[psstein]

Still haven't heard back from Chicago's HoS program, but I can't imagine it's good news at this point. Interviewed at Hopkins HoS last Wednesday (3/1), was told that I'd be informed of their decision in the next week.

Question for the board: would you interpret the dept. chair telling you the amount of the stipend as a positive sign?

I'm going out to Wisconsin on 3/11. Maybe I'll see some of you guys at the recruitment weekend.

 

[dr. t]

4 hours ago, grubyczarnykot said:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_East_Slavic

[MikeTheFronterizo]

Hi everyone!

I am looking for a bit of advice! I am currently debating between two options and have no idea what to pick. It is really coming down between excellent fit with decent funding or decent fit with excellent funding. 

Option#1- Great POI and more than 3 potential scholars that can push my research. School is not even in top 100 but the entire program focuses on my area of study. . Funding requires me to be a TA for four years and pay tuition. Stipend will be $14,500 after tuition no guaranteed funding for fifth year but most candidates received some monies. I am also recieving $5,000 recruitment award to be used for research, travel, or any potential needs of a PhD student. 

Option#2-Decent POI and other faculty that can help my research. Better known school for my sub-field but not my main field and not as focused as option#1. Funding is ridiculously excellent. I was offered a fellowship guaranteed for five years- full remission of tuition and fees and a $20k stipend each year. Terms also stipulate that during my fourth and fifth years a candidate will develop and teach a few courses as a requirement to the fellowship. In addition, the GSA offers guaranteed travel funds each year for conferences. Research centers on campus also offer travel grants though they are very competitive. 

It really comes down to whether I want financial security and time to conduct my studies without having TA duties (option#2) or having a great fit with the possibility of pushing my research even further.

[gsc]

@MikeTheFronterizo option two. I wouldn't pass up tuition remission unless there was a really, really good reason for it, and quite frankly, you don't have one. 

you won't be able to "push your research" very far when you're working as a TA every year. TAing eats up research time. five years fellowship gives you the time to focus on your work. and the option to design your own course & act as sole instructor is considerably better job market prep than TAing US History 101 for five semesters. 

additionally, option two seems to have a lot more institutional support for graduate students (GSA, research centers)— option one isn't even in the top 100, which tells me they don't have a particularly strong graduate school overall. you want a school where graduate students are an important part of the university, not a school where they're an afterthought. not to mention the fact that in academia, you ignore prestige at your peril.

[Sigaba]

57 minutes ago, MikeTheFronterizo said:

Hi everyone!

I am looking for a bit of advice! 

Option#1- Great POI and more than 3 potential scholars that can push my research. School is not even in top 100 but the entire program focuses on my area of study. . 

Option#2-Decent POI and other faculty that can help my research. Better known school for my sub-field but not my main field and not as focused as option#1. 

 

@MikeTheFronterizo congratulations on your successful application season.

I think that you should find different ways to describe established historians than "great" and "decent." I also think that you should rethink how you phrase your relationships to others in your field, or, at the very least, how you phrase those relationships publicly. Confidence is important, communicating that confidence appropriately is more important.

IRT your options, understand that "fit" is also about personalities. If Professor Best Thing Since Sliced Bread doesn't like you in particular or graduate students in general or is simply an asshole, it may not matter that you're potentially Professor Better than the Best Thing Since Sliced Bread.

Were I in your situation, I would look at each school's library systems, proximity to archival sources you'd want to use for your dissertation, and opportunities to work with scholars in other departments and at other schools. I would look very carefully at the weather in Dallas because it is hot there, very hot, almost all the time.

 

[psstein]

1 hour ago, MikeTheFronterizo said:

Hi everyone!

I am looking for a bit of advice! I am currently debating between two options and have no idea what to pick. It is really coming down between excellent fit with decent funding or decent fit with excellent funding. 

Option#1- Great POI and more than 3 potential scholars that can push my research. School is not even in top 100 but the entire program focuses on my area of study. . Funding requires me to be a TA for four years and pay tuition. Stipend will be $14,500 after tuition no guaranteed funding for fifth year but most candidates received some monies. I am also recieving $5,000 recruitment award to be used for research, travel, or any potential needs of a PhD student. 

Option#2-Decent POI and other faculty that can help my research. Better known school for my sub-field but not my main field and not as focused as option#1. Funding is ridiculously excellent. I was offered a fellowship guaranteed for five years- full remission of tuition and fees and a $20k stipend each year. Terms also stipulate that during my fourth and fifth years a candidate will develop and teach a few courses as a requirement to the fellowship. In addition, the GSA offers guaranteed travel funds each year for conferences. Research centers on campus also offer travel grants though they are very competitive. 

It really comes down to whether I want financial security and time to conduct my studies without having TA duties (option#2) or having a great fit with the possibility of pushing my research even further.

To be blunt, go with the money. The academic job market is pretty bad right now and you ought to avoid debt as best you can. Five years of fellowship is excellent. Top programs in my field aren't nearly as good about that. Remember too that your interests will change. Two years ago, if someone told me I would do HoS in graduate school, I would've told him he was crazy.

[MsClio]

4 hours ago, MikeTheFronterizo said:

Hi everyone!

I am looking for a bit of advice! I am currently debating between two options and have no idea what to pick. It is really coming down between excellent fit with decent funding or decent fit with excellent funding. 

Option#1- Great POI and more than 3 potential scholars that can push my research. School is not even in top 100 but the entire program focuses on my area of study. . Funding requires me to be a TA for four years and pay tuition. Stipend will be $14,500 after tuition no guaranteed funding for fifth year but most candidates received some monies. I am also recieving $5,000 recruitment award to be used for research, travel, or any potential needs of a PhD student. 

Option#2-Decent POI and other faculty that can help my research. Better known school for my sub-field but not my main field and not as focused as option#1. Funding is ridiculously excellent. I was offered a fellowship guaranteed for five years- full remission of tuition and fees and a $20k stipend each year. Terms also stipulate that during my fourth and fifth years a candidate will develop and teach a few courses as a requirement to the fellowship. In addition, the GSA offers guaranteed travel funds each year for conferences. Research centers on campus also offer travel grants though they are very competitive. 

It really comes down to whether I want financial security and time to conduct my studies without having TA duties (option#2) or having a great fit with the possibility of pushing my research even further.

The first time I applied to grad school, my advisor crossed half the schools off my list, telling me that a.) I'd have a harder time finding a job unless I went to a better known program and b.) it was better for me to look for flexibility rather than focus, given that grad school might very well alter my research interests. 

I was skeptical at the time, being a callow undergrad, and listened rather begrudgingly, but it really is solid advice, well worth pondering. 

Edited March 5, 2017 by MsClio

[MikeTheFronterizo]

3 hours ago, Sigaba said:

@MikeTheFronterizo congratulations on your successful application season.

I think that you should find different ways to describe established historians than "great" and "decent." I also think that you should rethink how you phrase your relationships to others in your field, or, at the very least, how you phrase those relationships publicly. Confidence is important, communicating that confidence appropriately is more important.

 

 

Thanks for the advice. I definitely did not mean to undermine any established historians. I was really referring to the how they fit along with my research. I will be more cautious next time. 

Edited March 5, 2017 by MikeTheFronterizo

[MikeTheFronterizo]

3 hours ago, Sigaba said:

@MikeTheFronterizo

IRT your options, understand that "fit" is also about personalities. If Professor Best Thing Since Sliced Bread doesn't like you in particular or graduate students in general or is simply an asshole, it may not matter that you're potentially Professor Better than the Best Thing Since Sliced Bread.

 

Well said. I have contacted both POI's and they seem ready to work with me. Other grad students also mention that they are great. This is definitely something to think about.

 

3 hours ago, Sigaba said:

@MikeTheFronterizo

Were I in your situation, I would look at each school's library systems, proximity to archival sources you'd want to use for your dissertation, and opportunities to work with scholars in other departments and at other schools. I would look very carefully at the weather in Dallas because it is hot there, very hot, almost all the time.

 

Option#2 definitely has a a way better archival holding as well as library. However, it's farther away from my geographic area of study though still accessible. 

Edited March 5, 2017 by MikeTheFronterizo
Typos. Hate replying via phone!

[Sigaba]

14 minutes ago, MikeTheFronterizo said:

Option#2 definitely has a a way better archival holding as well as library. However, it's farther away from my geographic area of study though still accessible. 

There's something to be said about pragmatism. What do for your dissertation doesn't have to be what you do for ever. And, as @psstein points out, interests change.

(The only reason I'm not urging you to go to SMU is because of the heat.)

[TMP]

@MikeTheFronterizo  Option #2.  I agree with all the above feedback.  So what if you're a bit further away from that geographic region.  If  Option #2 is at least close to a major airport, it's just a plane hop away.  My work is in Europe and I'm middle of the country so.. I just get on the plane and head over as needed.  This is why @Sigaba's question about archives is important-- unless you're planning to do a lot of oral history interviews-- you need to be able to access the materials that will make up your dissertation.  People often ask me if I need to go to Asia to get the materials, I say no because all the materials that I need are actually not in Asia.

Your interests will change, especially if you are coming straight from undergraduate.  Even with a MA coming into the program, I never thought I'd end up having a field in gender or be really interested in the early modern period, but there you go.  

Another thing to consider-- do you need more language training?  If so, what can each school offer?  Look at the classes and resources.  For example, not all schools would offer advanced Polish but students can enroll online through a consortium to take it at another university.

Still, go with #2.

[sovietviolinist]

Admitted to UC Riverside! I'm thrilled as there is a faculty member there, who has a fantastic mongraph on the topic on which I will also write. 

For anyone waiting from them, they said that the graduate college is being a little slow processing things this year. Patience...