Anxieties / questions from a first time socio-cultural applicant

[her_black_tights]

Hi! I'm a recent college graduate who's applying to sociocultural anthropology PhD programs for the first time and is kind of scared shitless/would love some advice about the best way to go about this process! I graduated from a mid-tier liberal arts college and I double majored in both Anthropology and English. I know at least two out of my three rec letters are going to be really solid (they're both from my academic advisors who I spent a lot of time with) and am still trying to figure out who my third is going to be. I graduated with a 3.52 which isn't like the best but I ended up getting honors on my senior thesis (which was a qualitative, ethnographic research project of my own design). 

I guess my main problem/anxiety is that most of the programs I've been looking at/that my anthro academic advisor has been telling me to look at are all like pretty intense/prestigious universities (my main picks right now are John Hopkins, Princeton, Cornell, U-Wash Seattle, and UPenn), because those are the places where my research interests are (mostly medical anthropology, Israel/Palestine, and postcolonialism). Whenever I tell people where I'm applying, they're always like "oh wow, that's a really good school" which kind of really freaks me out and makes me doubt everything b/c I wasn't like THE MOST AMAZING student in school or anything like that. So, I guess, I have these questions:

1) Am I aiming too high by applying to places like John Hopkins, Princeton, etc? I know the whole safety school thing doesn't really exist b/c it's all about finding someplace where your interests are but I'm worried that w/my GPA, I might not make the first cut. Basically, how big of a deal is GPA? 

2) Should I be looking into MA programs due to to the fact I'm fresh out of college? I'm positive that anthropology is what I want to do with my life but I have also read things that say that anthro programs sometimes are hesitant about accepting 22 and 23 year olds.

3) Is not having been to the area that I'm interested in doing research in a big problem/no-no? I have chosen Israel/Palestine because I have a lot of experience with Israelis, grew up speaking Hebrew, and have a lot of interest in the political/cultural situation there. Can doing enough research make up for practical experience? 

Thanks for any help/insight that you may be able to provide! I would also love to meet more people who're applying this year because I don't know anyone in my immediate social circle who's making the jump!

[lovekilledinos]

Honestly, the admission cycle is always a crapshoot. If there's anything I've learned after applying this season and reading other people's experience, it's that you can do the best at everything and still get denied for whatever reason you can imagine. I say that so that I can also say not to freak out over your GPA/Credentials. They are what they are. The worse thing that can happen when you apply is you can get rejected, which while might feel heart crushing, is a part of life we're all familiar with. It's okay! Apply to the schools, see what happens. And anyway their individual departmental websites should tell you about expectations (gpa, gre scores, etc.) that could alleviate some of your concerns. Check them out. 

I'd also look at MAs as a backup if you really, really want to go to grad school and are okay with delaying two years before you continue to PhD. Again, admissions is a crapshoot based upon a bunch of different factors. Your age may or may not have to do with anything, there's no way to tell. Just think about what you want to do vs. what you think you should.

As for 3, no. You don't need to have practical experience beforehand. Would it be nice? Sure. But it's not required. Tailor your relevant experiences and interests to what you want to research and to each department to which you're applying. That's really what the application is about. 

You've got this. And if you don't, there's always the next year.