2018 Applications Thread

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

I'm down to waiting on rec letters for 4 programs, but the next one isn't due until Dec 31st. 

@mintless I think I'd be happy to attend any of the programs I'm applying to. Part of me would really like Davis as it's near all my family and I could be around for my niece (just born in August), but another part of me realizes I've never lived outside of California and now might be the time to do it. I had really good conversations with faculty at 5 of the schools I applied to, so any of them (with decent stipend and whatnot) would be amazing (but none of them are in California).  

@phdthoughts Congrats on getting them done! Now comes the debate: which sucks more? Filling out the apps or the wait to hear back? haha

[phdthoughts]

2 minutes ago, GreenEyedTrombonist said:

I'm down to waiting on rec letters for 4 programs, but the next one isn't due until Dec 31st. 

@mintless I think I'd be happy to attend any of the programs I'm applying to. Part of me would really like Davis as it's near all my family and I could be around for my niece (just born in August), but another part of me realizes I've never lived outside of California and now might be the time to do it. I had really good conversations with faculty at 5 of the schools I applied to, so any of them (with decent stipend and whatnot) would be amazing (but none of them are in California).  

@phdthoughts Congrats on getting them done! Now comes the debate: which sucks more? Filling out the apps or the wait to hear back? haha

Filling them out...actually obsessing over the personal statement. That's the worst. Now although I'm waiting, I feel like I have my weekends back. Heading to the beach this weekend for the first time in a while.  

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

@phdthoughtsI'll ask you again in a month and see if you say the same, haha.  

 

That's awesome to be heading to the beach. I have enough time to go to the doctor tomorrow (first time in almost 2 years) so that's a thing...

[phdthoughts]

17 minutes ago, GreenEyedTrombonist said:

@phdthoughtsI'll ask you again in a month and see if you say the same, haha.  

 

That's awesome to be heading to the beach. I have enough time to go to the doctor tomorrow (first time in almost 2 years) so that's a thing...

Ha yes, come Jan 20ish I'll be in a different mental state probably. Luckily work keeps me busy otherwise I'd be going crazy. Good luck at the drs!

Edited December 15, 2017 by phdthoughts

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

Guys! OMG I got into Uconn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

After all rejects last year, starting with an acceptance makes me so happy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (Also just getting accepted, ah!)

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

Thanks so much @Hao Hongtao ! Apparently, UConn moved up their deadline this year and also moved up their entire process as a result. I was so surprised (and ecstatic) to get the acceptance. I might have printed it out and made other people read it to make sure I wasn't hallucinating, haha.

As for the job searching, I have a phone interview tomorrow for one job and a final round interview for another in January. Hoping something comes out of one of them.  

[mintless]

CONGRATS @GreenEyedTrombonist!!!!!!!!! Well done!

[Padma011]

Congratulations @GreenEyedTrombonist! Feel so happy for you. 

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

Thanks guys! Compared to last year (all rejections) I almost feel like I'm floating.

I'm pulling for all of you! We got this!

[bezzza08]

Hello All!

I study communication at the intersection of interpersonal and health, and am currently completing my MA at a highly-ranked research university. 

I've applied to the following communication PhD programs (and have yet to hear back from any of them):

1. University of South Florida
2. University of California-Santa Barbara
3. Michigan State University
4. Purdue University
5. University of Nebraska-Lincoln

For my MA, I applied to the following six universities. I was rejected from four and accepted to two. Since entering my MA, I have a much better grasp on what it means to be a graduate student and how to tell if a school or researcher would be a good fit for me. Thus, my chances of getting into PhD programs is much higher than the chances I had as an aspiring masters student. The institutions I applied to for my MA were:

1. Ohio State University
2. Purdue University
3. University of Michigan
4. Penn State
5. University of Texas at Austin
6. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

I have been lurking on this website, so I figured that I'd make an account and make use of my time rather than checking my email inbox another 40,000 times. Thanks for your candid insight and commentary.

Good luck to all of you, and happy holidays!

Edited December 24, 2017 by bezzza08

[mintless]

Welcome @bezzza08!

Got one more app wrapped up yesterday, to Colorado State, a new/young program, but the faculty look great!

Waiting on letters for my last six, and then I'll be done. Seventeeen applications. I'm a madman.

[mintless]

@Hao Hongtao It was honestly grueling! Hopefully it means I'll at least get in somewhere. Where all have you applied??

[bezzza08]

@Hao Hongtao 

Thanks for your reply! I have no idea how to reply to people or insert quotes. 

You asked "Why didn't you apply for Penn State (Dept. of Communication Arts & Sciences) for your PhD? Some professors are working in the area of interpersonal and health communication, for example, Prof. James P. Dillard, Erina MacGeorge, Lilian Shen, and Rachel A. Smith. Also, you might check out the Iowa, Kentucky and Maryland College-Park, I think."

Great question.

Penn State is undoubtedly a fantastic interpersonal health comm program. Erina MacGeorge and Denise Solomon, for example, are two powerhouses in the field and the individuals I would have applied to work with. I did seriously consider applying and have researched the department extensively. However, after speaking with others who have insider knowledge about how those individuals work, I realized that they would not likely be a good fit for me. Thus, I did not apply. 

I looked at the University of Kentucky's program, but the funding situation isn't particularly great and there weren't any faculty that I was keen on working with. Same with The Ohio State University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Georgia.

The University of Maryland College Park doesn't have anything specifically interpersonal or health comm, which is why I didn't apply there.

Last, the University of Iowa. I honestly didn't even look at this program, but I do see that there are individuals who study things close to what I study. The meta-theoretical perspective seems to be primarily post-positivist, but I do see that some more interpretive courses are offered. I used the NCA's Doctoral Program guide to find programs that had both Interpersonal Comm and Health Comm emphases, so that is likely why Iowa wasn't on my initial list. Regardless, the interests of the faculty (while some are well-known) don't make me exceptionally excited about working with them, and the location is not something I'm interested in either. Thus, I did not apply.

Hope this helps! All of the programs you asked about are great, but I want to make sure that the programs I apply to are the best possible fit for me. If anyone is interested, I can list all of the programs I was considering and explain why I chose to apply or not apply to them.

Cheers!

[bezzza08]

@mintless

Wow, that's a LOT of programs. Any particular reason you chose to apply to so many? Do you have a hierarchy of preference for the seventeen schools you've selected?

Good luck, and do report your results back if you are willing.

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

oh wow @mintless, 17 is such a crazy amount of apps to need to do and keep straight. How are you managing?

Anyone else nervous that January's right around the corner?

[bezzza08]

@Hao Hongtao Thank you!

Regarding the University of South Florida, Patrice Buzzanell is now the department head, and Steve Wilson will be starting there in the fall. They are both incredibly well known in their respective subfields (Patrice in Org Comm and Steve in Interpersonal) adding more quantitative methodology to the program to make the focus of the program mixed methods. Also, Art Bochner and Carolyn Ellis are retiring in the fall, I'm told. They are a large portion of the reason that USF gained notoriety for its qualitative prowess.

I think that the program there is up and coming. Rumor has it that they'll be starting an online program within the next few years or so, so graduate stipends will be increasing dramatically after that gets going. With the new additions of Steve and Patrice, along with the new hires they'll be adding, I think that the program's reputation will improve in the coming years. And yes, Marleah's work is fascinating. Not to mention Tampa is incredibly inexpensive (less expensive than the small midwestern town I live in right now) and beautiful, and there are actually things to do there. You're 45 minutes from the best beaches in the country, 30 minutes from a downtown area with approx. 3 million people. The people at USF seem genuinely nice and open, unlike some Big 10 universities I've had experiences with. 

Which programs have you applied to? What is your primary area of interest?

Thanks for the nice chat. It's always great to get some more perspective.

[mintless]

@bezzza08 @GreenEyedTrombonist

It was so many! It was originally only 13, but the tax bill scared me into applying to some Canadian programs as well. The tuition-waiver taxing isn't in the final draft of the bill, but I didn't want to take any chances. At any rate, I've already paid now, and I ended up finding some really exciting looking places! Definitely had some near-breakdowns a few times, but I went through one year where I only applied to four programs. Two rejects, one interview that turned into a rejection, and one wait list placement that didn't pan out. I was not going to let that happen again. I also wanted to be sure to apply to top-tier, prestige programs because of the you never know factor, but also safer schools. A few years ago I only applied to top programs, which was a mistake. I think (hope!) I'll have better luck this time around, not only because of the sheer volume of applications, but also because I have put a lot of work in over the past few years to be a stronger candidate.

Edited December 26, 2017 by mintless

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

@mintless well best of luck to you! And also cheers to you for keeping it all straight. 

 

Also, we only have one school in common for our apps, haha.

[mintless]

@GreenEyedTrombonist are applying to the SJMC or Comm Arts at Madison? I'm Comma arts, in the media & cultural studies area.

 

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

@mintless Comm Arts in the rhetoric, politics, and culture area for me.

[Phoebeeeeee]

Hello All!!!

I am currently a master student at Communication Unviersity of China and applying for PHD program of 2018 Fall round. I am interested in studying the effects and implications of social media usage on metal health. I have applied for 6 programs: Ohis state, IUB, Stanford (definitely, I will be rejected), Cornell, Wisconsin-madison, Temple. And I am going to apply for another 3 programs. Do anybody have suggestions about the phd programs which fit with my research interests?

Thanks for any reply in advance!

[Phoebeeeeee]

1 hour ago, Hao Hongtao said:

Welcome to the forum. @Phoebe Zhao.Most programs have closed their application. Based on your interests, I think you can check out the following programs whose deadlines are set on January or February: Michigan State (Feb. 1), UC Davis (Jan. 5), Univ. of Florida (Jan. 15, it requires two sets of transcripts to be delivered there before the deadline), UGA (Grady College, Jan. 1), UCSB (Jan. 1) Maryland (Jan. 7), Washington State Univ. (Dec. 31), Penn State (Comm. Arts & Sciences, 10 Jan.), Rutgers (Jan. 5), Arizona State Univ. (Jan. 5), Alabama (Feb. 1), Univ. of Kentucky (Jan. 5), Univ. of Arizona (Jan. 5, pay attention to Prof. Chris Segrin), Ohio Univ. (Jan. 15), Univ. of Iowa (Jan. 1). You have to read the professors' profiles by yourself to decide whether they are well suited for your interests. I am not sure whether you can complete your application before the deadlines of UGA, UCSB, Washington State. Iowa, since they are so close. BTW, Iowa is very famous for its programs of Social Psychology (ranked among TPO three in the country). When you get into the Comm. Program, you can take advantage of courses of Social Psychology.If you think it fits you very well, do contact the personnel and ask whether they can permit extension.

I also applied for Ohio State University, but it requires international applicants to have a TOEFL Speaking score of over 28 (I only got 26). I also applied to Wisconsin-Madison, but it has tightened their budget. So even if it admits us, chances are it will not provide enough funding. 

Hope you find the message helpful. 

Thanks for your information! It is amazing that you know the application deadlines for such many universities! The information is very important for me. Actually, I read the information about some programs that you mentioned. I think I have a good fit with Michigan state. But I have applied too many programs with high ranking, so I want to apply for some programs with relatively low ranking and I decide to give up Michigan state. Also, I do not have a good fit with Univ. of Florida, Univ. of Kentucky, Maryland, Penn state and Arizona state. Therefore, my temporary decision is to apply for Rutgers and Alabama. In addition, I will have a close look at UC Davis, Univ. of Arizona, Ohio Univ., especially Univ. of Iowa.

Also, I didn't fullfill the Toefl speaking requirement for internatioanl applicants. Yet I really think I have a good fit with OSU, so I take a risk for it. And I don't know Wiscnosin-madison has tightened their budget. It is really a bad news.

Again, your information is very helpful for me. Thanks a lot!!!

[Phoebeeeeee]

38 minutes ago, Hao Hongtao said:

Hi, @Phoebe Zhao, happy that you find the message useful. As for OSU, it is not "risk"; they will definitely, 100% reject us. They need a score of over 28 to show that your English is good enough to be a TA. If you do not meet the requirement, they will not give you any funding, even if you are admitted. I will take another TOEFL next month, hopefully I can reach 28 this time. In fact, I really think OSU should not set the bar so high; even UPenn and Stanford did not require such a high score in the Speaking Section. As for Chinese applicants, it is not that Chinese cannot score that high in speaking; it is just that Chinese who got 28 in Speaking will ignore OSU and apply for much better programs like UPenn and Stanford. After all, 28 in Speaking means an overall score of at least 115. 

BTW, UC Davis require a speaking score of over 26. As for other schools, please do check their specific requirements. I do not know your background, but I am certain that it is very difficult (possible, though) for international applicants who obtained their MA outside of US  to be admitted to Cornell, Stanford, and OSU. No matter how strong your background is, it is always safer to have some backup options. I mainly applied for doctoral programs, but I did apply for one MA program in case that I got rejected by all Ph.D. programs or that the programs that accept me are not ideal. Hope you find some other programs that fit you. Best wishes. 

Thanks for your information. OMG!! I really don't know that a score of 28 in speaking is a necessary requirement for funding. If I know it, I must not waste an opportunity to apply for this program. I had a bad performance on my speaking of Toefl. And I do not prepare to have another Toefl exam since I know I cannot get that high score.

I believe it is hard for Chinese students who obtained their MA in China to be successful for the first-class phd programs, such as Stanford and Cornell. Applying for the MA programs as backup is a wise decision. However, the MA program in US is unaffordable for me as almost no funding. So, though I want study in US MA program, I cannot take it into my consideration.

[Phoebeeeeee]

@Hao HongtaoWow!!! The information you provided is amazing!!! It is really useful for me. I will scrutinize the application information about these universities. Thank you very much!!! I really appreciate your help.

By the way, have you get your MA in the USA? Because I think you know the programs in the USA very well !

[sriracha18]

Hey friends! I've been lurking but I'm late to actually posting. Huge congrats to @GreenEyedTrombonist for the acceptance at UConn! Hope the season treats all of you well. 

I thought I'd jump in and let y'all know where I am. I'm a senior at women's college double-majoring in Spanish Language & Lit and communication. I'm applying straight from undergrad to rhetoric programs. My list consists of: 3 MA programs (UGA, Madison, IU Bloomington), 2 PhD programs (UMD, UM Twin Cities), & one combined MA/PhD (Northwestern). I've sent all apps in except UMD & Bloomington, but I'm essentially done with those other than a few finishing touches. 

My main research focus in undergrad is the rhetoric & discourse of gender, race, and sexuality in traditional media (specifically, student newspapers) during the civil rights movement. As someone attending a "single-sex" institution, I'm interested in studying the different ways students report (and do not report) different issues at their universities based upon demographics. I've worked at a local paper & was EIC of my collegiate newspaper. 

I have a really good GPA, decent verbal and writing scores but a pretty bad quant score. (I have a diagnosed mathematics learning disability that basically just makes me process problems slowly. I'm hoping that won't hurt me too terribly much as someone interested in rhetoric & qualitative methods over quantitative ones, but I am aware that PhD programs require stats courses.) 

I'm new to this so sorry if this is too stat-focused or something. I'm excited to join the thread. 

Edited December 27, 2017 by sriracha18