Applying for Fall 2018!

[TheLeoLinguist]

Hi! I'm a linguistics student, planning on applying to the M.A. linguistics program at CSULB. In the future, I'd love to get my doctorate from UC Berkeley, but since my undergraduate school offers little research opportunities for undergraduate students I think an M.A. would be a good stepping stone. I *know* I would succeed in a Ph.D program, I just have to work on proving it!

 

School: IUPUI (My degree is from Indiana University)

Majors: Linguistics & Creative Writing

Minor: Literature

Cum. GPA: 3.7

Linguistics GPA: 3.9

GRE: Though I've been studying for the GRE, CSULB doesn't ask you to take it

Conference Presentations: 4

Other Stuff: Liberal Arts Ambassador, Service Scholar, Dean's List, Portfolio for the Literary Arts Scholarship

Experience: Writing consultant (conducted staff meetings and conference presentations on language diversity/preservation) & Editorial intern at Indianapolis Monthly

[ides-of-july]

I was thinking the other day about starting one of these threads, but I got busy with pre-flight for the GRE (took it yesterday) and in the meantime you beat me to it.  Cheers!

I'm basically going the MA route in this cycle as well, but not sure if I would try to go on to the PhD later, or not.  I'm zeroing in on computational linguistics, and the idea I had was to find a linguistics MA program that would help me fill in both my linguistics gaps and my computer science gaps before trying (in the next round) for a program like the University of Washington's CL master's.  The goal there would be to end up working in industry somehow.

That being said, I always wanted to finish a PhD--I got all the way to the ABD level in cultural anthropology during a previous life--so if there was a way to still finish a PhD (albeit a different one) en passant, that would be awesome.

I'm 53 and work at Microsoft (but not as a developer), and have no idea whether what I'm trying to do is incredibly brave or incredibly foolish.  Probably both.  Either way, I'm not seeing a lot of similar demographics to compare myself to, so if anyone wants to offer advice or feedback, feel free.  (Just be gentle. )

Oh, and, to top off the complications--for various personal reasons, I'm trying to center my application process on programs near where my folks are / where I grew up.  So far I am planning to apply to the University of Kentucky (I was an undergrad there) and Northern Illinois University (does a lot of Southeast Asian studies and that was my focus in anthro, plus I think I can loop in a lot of computer science there), and I'm thinking Ohio State because (a) geography, (b) good, (c) good for CL as far as I can tell, (d) why not.  Here again, if anyone has advice on places I should add to the list (Indiana? the remaining pieces of UNC's program?), feel free.

Looking forward to hearing what all the rest of you are up to.  I envy you your youth and achievements--may you all succeed!

 

[TheLeoLinguist]

On 8/30/2017 at 6:15 PM, ides-of-july said:

I was thinking the other day about starting one of these threads, but I got busy with pre-flight for the GRE (took it yesterday) and in the meantime you beat me to it.  Cheers!

I'm basically going the MA route in this cycle as well, but not sure if I would try to go on to the PhD later, or not.  I'm zeroing in on computational linguistics, and the idea I had was to find a linguistics MA program that would help me fill in both my linguistics gaps and my computer science gaps before trying (in the next round) for a program like the University of Washington's CL master's.  The goal there would be to end up working in industry somehow.

That being said, I always wanted to finish a PhD--I got all the way to the ABD level in cultural anthropology during a previous life--so if there was a way to still finish a PhD (albeit a different one) en passant, that would be awesome.

I'm 53 and work at Microsoft (but not as a developer), and have no idea whether what I'm trying to do is incredibly brave or incredibly foolish.  Probably both.  Either way, I'm not seeing a lot of similar demographics to compare myself to, so if anyone wants to offer advice or feedback, feel free.  (Just be gentle. )

Oh, and, to top off the complications--for various personal reasons, I'm trying to center my application process on programs near where my folks are / where I grew up.  So far I am planning to apply to the University of Kentucky (I was an undergrad there) and Northern Illinois University (does a lot of Southeast Asian studies and that was my focus in anthro, plus I think I can loop in a lot of computer science there), and I'm thinking Ohio State because (a) geography, (b) good, (c) good for CL as far as I can tell, (d) why not.  Here again, if anyone has advice on places I should add to the list (Indiana? the remaining pieces of UNC's program?), feel free.

Looking forward to hearing what all the rest of you are up to.  I envy you your youth and achievements--may you all succeed!

 

 

I am over here cheering you on! 

[TheLeoLinguist]

I don't know whether the lack of activity in the linguistics section is good or bad news. 

Bad news because there's less advice. Good news because maybe the program I'm applying to will be less competitive..

[TheLeoLinguist]

Also I'm potentially getting an internship at The Language Conservancy which I think would look really good on an application  especially because the concentration im applying for is language&culture and my goal is to eventually work in aid of language preservation

[spreadglottis]

Thought I'd join in as well!

I am a Canadian applicant so I am applying mostly to Canadian MA programs in Linguistics and Spanish Linguistics but a few reach PhD programs in the States (and McGill). I would prefer to go straight into my PhD because that's the plan but I don't mind getting a MA first. 

Majors: Linguistics and Spanish
Cumm. GPA: 3.9
Ling GPA: 3.9
Spanish GPA: 4.0
GRE: not taking the GRE because no Canadian programs require it and I just selected American programs that don't either
Subfield: phonology
Schools: UofT, UBC, Western, SFU, McGill + UCLA and UMass Amherst as my ultimate reach schools lol

I don't have very much research experience (roughly 7 months each on two separate projects) but I'm the lead author on both and hopefully will be accepted to a couple conferences before applications go through. And the prof I'm working on one with thinks we will be accepted to a reputable journal but obviously I can't put "maybe" on a grad app haha.

Good luck to everyone! I've just started on my SOP so I have a looooong way to go in my apps and I'm guessing everyone else does as well.

[historicallinguist]

But I think UMASS amherst requires GRE, if I remember it correctly. @spreadglottis

[spreadglottis]

13 hours ago, historicallinguist said:

But I think UMASS amherst requires GRE, if I remember it correctly. @spreadglottis

I thought that too (I had it written down in my spreadsheet) but I recently checked here and it says there are no standardized tests required. I will email the department to double check!

[stakekake]

 

On 9/22/2017 at 10:30 PM, historicallinguist said:

But I think UMASS amherst requires GRE, if I remember it correctly. @spreadglottis

On 9/23/2017 at 12:17 PM, spreadglottis said:

I thought that too (I had it written down in my spreadsheet) but I recently checked here and it says there are no standardized tests required. I will email the department to double check!

UMass doesn't require them. At least, I didn't send one, and I'm now a UMass student, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[historicallinguist]

16 hours ago, stakekake said:

UMass doesn't require them. At least, I didn't send one, and I'm now a UMass student, so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Then, they must have changed the requirement in the past 1 or 2 years. Anyways, thanks because it is good to know the updated information.

[WatchfulWombat]

Hi!

I'm an international student applying for PhD programs in linguistics. I'm expecting to be roundly rejected, and pretty much all of my schools are reach schools, but I'm prepared to try again next year and complete a one-year masters in my home country in the mean time.

Here's my info:

Schools: Boston University, Purdue, UPenn, UCSC, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Ohio State, University of Oregon, University of Michigan

Degree: European MA in Literature & Linguistics

GPA: no idea, but definitely on the mediocre side

GRE: V 167, Q 156, AW 4.0

No conference presentations or publications

Other Stuff: Eight years of experience as a language teacher, including in college and at a US university.

Good luck, fellow applicants!

 

I'd made a spreadsheet containing important info on all of my schools, and somehow listed the wrong deadline for my Purdue application. Sooo I applied two weeks late and no, I didn't contact the department or graduate school about it. Haha! I'm too dumb for grad school.

[historicallinguist]

5 hours ago, Charlotte V said:

Hi!

I'm an international student applying for PhD programs in linguistics. I'm expecting to be roundly rejected, and pretty much all of my schools are reach schools, but I'm prepared to try again next year and complete a one-year masters in my home country in the mean time.

Here's my info:

Schools: Boston University, Purdue, UPenn, UCSC, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Ohio State, University of Oregon, University of Michigan

Degree: European MA in Literature & Linguistics

GPA: no idea, but definitely on the mediocre side

GRE: V 167, Q 156, AW 4.0

No conference presentations or publications

Other Stuff: Eight years of experience as a language teacher, including in college and at a US university.

Good luck, fellow applicants!

 

I'd made a spreadsheet containing important info on all of my schools, and somehow listed the wrong deadline for my Purdue application. Sooo I applied two weeks late and no, I didn't contact the department or graduate school about it. Haha! I'm too dumb for grad school.

To be honest, it is really HARD TO BE REJECTED by UW Madison, because the program is really in bad shape right now there and they even have a rolling admission for their phd program. So, I think you will get at least into this school.

[spreadglottis]

Well, 3 hours before the deadline and I've decided that MIT isn't for me. Which means I'm officially done my applications!!

[WatchfulWombat]

On 2-1-2018 at 11:32 PM, historicallinguist said:

To be honest, it is really HARD TO BE REJECTED by UW Madison, because the program is really in bad shape right now there and they even have a rolling admission for their phd program. So, I think you will get at least into this school.

Well, this makes me feel a lot more anxious. 

[historicallinguist]

9 hours ago, Charlotte V said:

Well, this makes me feel a lot more anxious. 

Why?

[Lena_Regina]

OMG this thread is such a relief to find! I got accepted to all the MA programs I applied to (they're all in the UK), but I'm waiting on PhD programs and I have a feeling I won't be getting into any of them this round.

But my ultimate goal is also to go into language preservation!

I went to a small liberal arts school so I didn't really have any opportunities for research and we didn't even have a full linguistics department. 

Major: Spanish and Russian 
Minors: Linguistics and Computer Science
GPA: 3.46 
GRE: V 164, Q 154, AW 3.0 (yikes )
Schools: UT Austin, U of A, UCSB & UCSD ( reaches obvi), Manchester (accepted), Kent (accepted), University of London SOAS (accepted)

I've been working for almost two years now in an unrelated field so we'll see what ends up happening! Good luck to everyone and hopefully the wait doesn't drive any of us too crazy.

[WatchfulWombat]

12 hours ago, Lena_Regina said:

OMG this thread is such a relief to find! I got accepted to all the MA programs I applied to (they're all in the UK), but I'm waiting on PhD programs and I have a feeling I won't be getting into any of them this round.

But my ultimate goal is also to go into language preservation!

I went to a small liberal arts school so I didn't really have any opportunities for research and we didn't even have a full linguistics department. 

Major: Spanish and Russian 
Minors: Linguistics and Computer Science
GPA: 3.46 
GRE: V 164, Q 154, AW 3.0 (yikes )
Schools: UT Austin, U of A, UCSB & UCSD ( reaches obvi), Manchester (accepted), Kent (accepted), University of London SOAS (accepted)

I've been working for almost two years now in an unrelated field so we'll see what ends up happening! Good luck to everyone and hopefully the wait doesn't drive any of us too crazy.

Hey, welcome! Congratulations on getting accepted to all the MA programs! Are you getting any funding? Just curious, because I'm starting to think about what I will do if I don't get accepted anywhere. 

I'm probably going to do an additional master's at my alma mater (not funded, but super cheap tuition and no application necessary), and then reapply.. but maybe I should also consider MA programs in the UK.

[Lena_Regina]

SOAS  and Kent both have a few funding opportunities, Manchester (my top choice) doesn't have as many (of course ).  Most of the deadlines for scholarships and such have passed, but in general even with the international tuition it's much more affordable. 

UK Master's programs are only a year long and around 20k in tuition plus, if you want it, you're guaranteed student housing at most of them. The applications were pretty easy just the statement of purpose and 2 letters or rec and no  GREs!  Plus they all do rolling admission so the longest I waited to hear back was about 2 weeks. 

Even if you're on the fence I'd recommend looking at some programs and applying since there's no application fee for most of the schools. 

I chose Manchester because you take 2 courses entirely dedicated to research methods and writing for linguistics before writing your MA dissertation which will hopefully make up for my lack of undergrad research

Edited January 10, 2018 by Lena_Regina
adding more info!

[vonham]

On 1/9/2018 at 4:02 PM, Lena_Regina said:

OMG this thread is such a relief to find! I got accepted to all the MA programs I applied to (they're all in the UK), but I'm waiting on PhD programs and I have a feeling I won't be getting into any of them this round.

But my ultimate goal is also to go into language preservation!

I went to a small liberal arts school so I didn't really have any opportunities for research and we didn't even have a full linguistics department. 

Major: Spanish and Russian 
Minors: Linguistics and Computer Science
GPA: 3.46 
GRE: V 164, Q 154, AW 3.0 (yikes )
Schools: UT Austin, U of A, UCSB & UCSD ( reaches obvi), Manchester (accepted), Kent (accepted), University of London SOAS (accepted)

I've been working for almost two years now in an unrelated field so we'll see what ends up happening! Good luck to everyone and hopefully the wait doesn't drive any of us too crazy.

Let me know if you have any questions about U of A! I'm a grad student there currently. And for everyone else: good luck on your applications! 

[Tugce]

Hi all! I've been anxiously waiting for an email from the schools, but no news yet. How is everyone doing? There has been some activity on the results page since last week, so I just wanted to say good luck to everyone who applied for Fall18 season  

[Linguistics]

10 hours ago, Tugce said:

Hi all! I've been anxiously waiting for an email from the schools, but no news yet. How is everyone doing? There has been some activity on the results page since last week, so I just wanted to say good luck to everyone who applied for Fall18 season  

 

Hello there! I'm just as anxious as you are:) Where did you apply? 

[Tugce]

2 hours ago, Linguistics said:

Hello there! I'm just as anxious as you are:) Where did you apply? 

Oh hey! I only applied to 3 programs on the east coast. NYU, CUNY, and Georgetown all in sociolinguistics track. What about you? 

[madhumi]

Anyone know anything about the Harvard interview? I'm surprised they're sending out invitations this early! 

[semling]

Hello All!

Just checking in ... I have an MA in Arabic (Linguistics) from Georgetown, and have applied to the Linguistics PhD program at Yale, in addition to three Arabic PhD programs (Georgetown, NYU, Cornell). I had an interview with Yale a couple weeks ago, and am driving myself nuts waiting to hear back....

[linguistic]

2 hours ago, madhumi said:

Anyone know anything about the Harvard interview? I'm surprised they're sending out invitations this early! 

I was wondering, too! I haven't seen/heard anything yet.