posted
So, professional student that I am, I have finished my M.A. in English and have applied to nine--count 'em--nine different Ph.D. programs. Most of the programs are in English Lit. As the title would lead you believe, this thread will provide a place for you to examine the day-to-day reality of application-waiting-acceptance-rejection-choice.
I'm hoping that those of you who have been through this whole thing will get a little teary-eyed at the nostalgia the thread will undoubtedly provoke, and maybe those of you who are looking forward to this process can get some valuable insights.
First up--the waiting. I finished my nine applications and submitted them by January 1. As of today, still bupkus. Gah, the waiting will kill you. Am I good enough? Am I smart enough? Did I say the right things in my personal statement? My standardized test scores were good, but my GPA could've been better. <wrings hands nervously>
My top two choices, Notre Dame's Ph.D. in Literature and Yale's joint Ph.D. in English and Renaissance Studies, will also be the hardest to get into. <hums tunelessly> Anyway, feel free to chime in with any questions, comments, thoughts, positive feedback, etc.
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posted
I'm a high school senior and got all my applications in months ago, and now get to sit here and fret until I find out whether I'm in or not. I already found out that I got into Georgia Tech (my third choice), but I have no idea why they've told me already. I heard from them at the end of January (apps weren't even due until Jan 15) and they weren't supposed to send out notifications until March 15....
*Sits back and twiddles thumbs nervously until April*
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posted
Dante - you sound like the right person to ask my question.
Do you (or anyone else) have an example of a "application for graduate school" letter? My son (a university junior) has an assignment to write such a thing (some type of introductory or self-promoting letter than is asking a graduate school to consider him).
At this time, he has no plans to actually attend graduate school. But he just has no idea what these sort of letters look like, or what kind of information is included, etc. when applying to a graduate school.
posted
Weird I didn't have to write such a letter at all. Most grad schools have application materials that they request. Or, at least they do for my field. So you have to write stuff like personal/research statements. But never a letter of introduction that says dear so and so please consider me for admission.
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posted
MidnightBlue, if you go to Georgia Tech, my former politics tutor Eddie Keene teaches the introduction to US Politics class and he's an absolute star. Which reminds me... I should email him really.
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quote: Weird I didn't have to write such a letter at all
Hmm... well, it may just be that this particular undergraduate instructor thinks this is a good idea - or she is curious about the students' future plans.
But she gave no idea of how this letter should be formatted or what exactly it should cover...
quote:First up--the waiting. I finished my nine applications and submitted them by January 1. As of today, still bupkus. Gah, the waiting will kill you. Am I good enough? Am I smart enough? Did I say the right things in my personal statement? My standardized test scores were good, but my GPA could've been better. <wrings hands nervously>
I applied to five graduate programs (three direct-to-Ph.D, two terminal M.A.s [then going on elsewhere]) and have been rejected from the three Ph.D. programs. I'm only hoping I can get into one of the Masters' programs, otherwise I need to start coming up with alternatives. But the waiting is torture, especially after a few resounding "No" letters. Was my personal statement actually good? Are my scores stacking up correctly? Do I have enough languages to high enough levels?
I hate it and it's depressing me. And I won't find out anything else for sure until late next month.
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Trust me, you're smart enough, said the hollow voices echoing from the misty hills of Academia. We, the administration, salute you. If you're still skeptical, here's a quick at home test to administer:
1) Have I opened a book in the last 40-50 years? 2) Have I read the contents of said book or books? 3) Recently? (Add 5 points.)
Good academics are just like good professionals anywhere. It's not always about the smart.
posted
Oh -- that's what it is! (I just asked him) It is a "personal statement". That's what he has to do. What the heck is a "personal statement" for grad school?
posted
Oh I have one of those. The idea of a personal statement is basically where you talk about what you've done in ugrad. Your general research interests. Any research/grad schooly like stuff you've done. Explain away any bad grades ect.
Umm I guess they're sorta like the personal essays you write for some ugrad schools.
I can send you mine if you like.
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posted
Farmgirl- They vary some from school to school (and program to program). When I was applying (in chemistry) they mostly wanted questions such as: Why do I want to attend grad school? What are your research interests? What are your professional goals? The best way might be to look up some prompts that are used by various schools.
Here's the prompt from Cornell:
quote:A detailed (equivalent of one to two typed pages or 300 - 600 words) statement of purpose is an essential part of the application. The statement should include your purpose in undertaking graduate work, and an exploration of your study and research interests and their relation to your undergraduate study and professional goals. If you have difficulty pasting a word processed document into this form, you may type your statement directly into the box below.
I heard back from most of the schools I applied to with about two weeks of the application deadline. But again I suspect that the difference between an English and a chemistry program, in application materials alone, is enough to explain that difference.
posted
Well, that gives me a barebones idea to share with him -- yeah, sarah - if you don't mind, you can send an example to my e-mail address in my profile.
So you have to kind of "sell yourself" in this statement -- what you've accomplished and why you should be accepted?
posted
Farmgirl--yeah, each university will give different instructions on what kind of thing they want. There are lots of different names: statement of intent, letter or intent, personal statement, etc. Sometimes they will give you a sentence of direction, and sometimes they will give you paragraphs of specific instruction on what they want you to talk about. I basically wrote about 200 words of "universal" stuff and then tailored that to each individual school's requirements.
Thanks, HollowEarth.
Also, I feel uniquely privileged that Amira deigned to post in my thread after I twice--TWICE--messed up seeing her in London.
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I looked hard at both Berkeley and Stanford, both schools that I like. Ultimately, I decided not to apply, though I don't remember the precise reasons...probably because I had already reached my quota of "long shot" schools. So no, no West Coast schools, though I did apply to Hawai'i--not the best program, but I needed some fall-back schools, and I figure if I can't get into a great program, hey, why not live in Hawai'i for a few years?
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posted
I salute you, Dante. I slacked, applied to three schools at the deadline, and was lucky enough to get into the one I wanted.
None of this plan-ahead, nine-school, I-tailored-my-admissions-essay, stuff for me.
On the other hand, the only response I got by February was a rejection. My two acceptances came in March. So I say the longer the better.
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posted
Good news today! The director of the program at Notre Dame called and said they had just voted to give me a fellowship. I don't have the details yet, but it should be a pretty good monetary offer, and the program is great. They're flying me out there in a few weeks to check out the school, meet the faculty and students, and generally wine and dine me (or at least Coke and Wendy's me).
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posted
Nothing's sweeter than not only getting in to one of your top choices, but also getting money to go there.
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posted
Thanks, guys. Phew, it takes off a good deal of the pressure when the first school you hear back from is one of your top choices and offers you decent money.
I'm interested in hearing from the other schools, of course, but right now I think only Yale could seriously challenge ND. Well, maybe Cornell--that's a joint Ph.D./M.F.A. program. Or UPenn. Hmm. We'll see.
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quote:Good news today! The director of the program at Notre Dame called and said they had just voted to give me a fellowship. I don't have the details yet, but it should be a pretty good monetary offer, and the program is great
I've heard that the funding in Notre Dame's English program is excellent -- easily a living wage.
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And while getting pats on the back was, of course, the main reason I started this thread, it's not the only one. A few of you have mentioned similar experiences; is anyone else going through the process right now? Either for grad school or undergrad? Feel free to congregate and share your experiences.
Destineer, I actually applied not to the English program but to the relatively new Ph.D. in Literature program (where I'll do English, American, Italian and possibly Latin, Greek, and Byzantine lit.), but yeah, the same thing applies. The director wasn't sure yet how much the fellowship would be worth, but she said it would be at least $15,000/year for five years, guaranteed. That's hardly a life of luxury, but it's defintely doable; at Penn State, I was getting a few thousand less and still doing all right.
Money is a big deal in choosing any school, graduate or undergrad, and when you're getting an advanced degree in a humanities discipline, it's especially important. I can't finish up school with any debt, because I'm not going to go on to a particularly lucrative career (unless you all start buying my books). Fortunately, most schools understand this, and I think nearly all of the programs I applied to only accept as many Ph.D. candidates as they can fund.
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posted
Well, I've applied to the four year school I want to go to, I'm in a 2 year junior college right now.
I'm waiting to hear back on their evaluation of my college credits. I'm hoping they'll be done by March 12, they are having a preview day that day and if they're finished with the credit evaluation I can pre-register that day.
IF they're not, I have to wait until open registration.
So I'm busy mailbox watching too. Though, mine is not so big a deal as some others, I'm pretty sure I'll be accepted,it's just a matter of being able to register early or not.
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posted
Congrats Dante, it a good feeling isn't it?
I'm debating between Cornell and Syracuse right now. Unless Cornell is really off putting when I visit, thats where I'll go, but we'll see I could change my mind.
The irony is that I recieved fellowships above just the teaching assistantships at two of the schools I'm not really interested in attending.
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posted
So, Notre Dame is going to fly me out to visit the weekend after next. I think it will be fun, though I get the feeling they don't fly in a lot of people from Utah. I will be leaving SLC at 12:30 in the morning, spending three quality hours at the Cincinnati airport, and arriving at South Bend around 10:00 a.m. But, since it's on their dime, I can't really complain about the schedule, I guess. Ah, God bless all you rich Catholics out there.
Still haven't heard from any other schools. Gosh, I'm still a little nervous as it is; I can't imagine what it would be like if I hadn't heard from ND.
Any other news? HollowEarth, I'm curious about your Cornell visit, as it's one of the schools on my list; let me know how it goes.
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posted
A rejection from Cornell today and an e-mail from Colorado-Boulder saying that they will mail out their letters next week.
On the plus side, I got an e-mail from ND telling me I'd received a Presidential Fellowship, about a third more money than I'd anticipated.
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Are you planning on teaching after you get the PhD? (I know I know it's not a polite question to ask a grad student but I'm curious.)
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I haven't done graduate school here, but I've been an undergraduate and a staffmember, and I'd definitely say that Cornell as an institution is a mixed-bag. Great little town, though.
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posted
Actually, I didn't know that, Theca. Very cool. I'll definitely let you know if I have any questions.
Sarah, I am planning to teach and write after my Ph.D. For that matter, I'm planning to teach and write during my Ph.D.
Zeugma, what I liked about Cornell was the joint Ph.D./M.F.A. program. Didn't get in, though, so it's kindova moot point.
In other news, I didn't get into Yale--not a huge surprise, as I'm just a middle-class, non-connected WASM--and, for some unknown reason, didn't get into Ohio State! I actually find that more funny than sad, considering I wouldn't pick OSU over ND anyway.
So, yup, right now it's looking like Notre Dame. They've offered me a (relative) boat-load of money and stuff, and I like the idea of a program in general literature, where I can concentrate on British or Italian or Roman or whatever.
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posted
Hey, Theca, since I'm going to be in South Bend this weekend, it would be cool to hear a little about it, pro and con.
I've been there once; on a cross-country I-80 drive a few years ago, my buddy and I stopped for the night in South Bend and then went to the College Football Hall of Fame the next morning, but that's about it.
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posted
I like South Bend. Truthfully I've been too busy to take advantage of the place. I have more I'd like to share with you but I'd prefer to some of it off hatrack, maybe by email. Why don't you email me, my addy is in my profile, and I'll talk more. Or we can exchange phone numbers via email and talk on the phone too. If you wanted to meet with me this weekend that'd be fine too!
I can't offer you a place to stay at night--usually I could, I never have company, so that would be fun, but right now I just can't do it. But I am positive they are putting you up in a hotel or have some arrangement made for you already.
posted
Theca, sorry about the delay. I didn't have a chance to e-mail you before the trip, but I just did now.
Notre Dame is cool. I like the size, the architecture, the general feel of the school. I love the money available, not just in my fellowship but with travel grants, etc. The library is very impressive, and the students of the Lit. program are extremely tight-knit and fun. The combination of all that leads me to think that it's very likely that I'll be in South Bend in the fall.
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posted
I'm not sure why, when I started this thread, I assumed I'd have the time and inclination to post regularly. Sorry.
But for those of you who need closure to their anecdotes...I'll be attending Notre Dame in the fall: This program, to be precise. They flew me out there a while back, and I was impressed with the students, the faculty, the university, and the program in general. Combine that with the fact that I got a generous Presidential Fellowship, and I just couldn't say no.
How about the rest of all youse? Any exciting school or job plans?
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posted
Its looking more and more like after graduation I'll be going into the informatics PhD program here in social and organizational informatics; I just really, really like the subject, and in the sorts of jobs I'd like to have in the long term (not so much teaching or pure academic research, actually) a doctorate level degree is pretty much required.
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posted
Dante, ciao bellissimo bambino mio! Couldn't stay away from the Catholics huh? I know how it is, I work for one now. I guess you will be too, in a way. We need to get toghether for Indian food again soon. I don't think I'm going to be in South Bend anytime soon, however. Communque, auguri e buon studi.
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fugu - what types of jobs, specifically? That sounds very interesting. I briefly looked at bioinformatics, but decided it wouldn't be my cup of tea.
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posted
I'd be going into something policy related; my undergraduate (and likely graduate) area of specialty is political informatics. One of the nice bonuses of going into that particular subfield is I'm one of the first people focusing on it, ever, (particularly in a systematic way) meaning I get to help define the field.
Informatics consists of several aspects:
It is always practiced in a field context (hence why you hear about bioinformatics, or medical informatics, or political informatics, instead of just informatics).
It is always practiced in a human context. This separates it out from, for instance, much of computer science, which tends to consider things in an abstract concept before it considers them in a human concept (if at all in the latter). Simply put, all the stakeholders matter.
It focuses on formal problem-solving techniques. Some particular things that are emphasized (being egregiously violated nowadays) are avoiding solution-based thinking (that is, starting from the hammer and seeing nails everywhere) and using measurable success metrics.
It focuses on the meaningful use of information. This is closely related to the previous aspect, but also relates to general motivating principles (an informatics person will tend to prefer a system that encodes meaning better over one that doesn't, even if there isn't any clear way of measuring the benefit right now, on the principle that meaning can be leveraged in the future).
Within Informatics there is one major subdivision, between Social Informatics and all the other kinds of (more technical) Informatics, which don't have a good collective name. Right now the most developed division is the technical one, as it is most closely related to existing practices. Bioinformatics is a technical subfield of informatics, focusing on ways of thinking about enhancing biological research with technology. For instance, there is a professor here on a huge grant from Lilly working on ways to annotate DNA.
While I enjoy many technical aspects of things, my focus is in Social Informatics, which is a social science (social sciences use lots of technologies nowadays too, though, so its not that big a distinction). Social Informatics focuses on the human side of things, mostly. What impacts do/will various technologies have, in our society? How do we think morally about technology? How do we formulate technology policy (on an organizational or governmental level, for instance)? How can individuals incorporate technology into their lives in a beneficial manner? All sorts of questions, we're still discovering them all the time (its one of the exciting things, being in a field that's very much in the question-asking stage).
Specific jobs I'm interested in: various international organizations, particularly aid related, governmental, NGO, and commercial (primarily the first two). For instance, I'd love to do a stint at the World Bank or IMF, or one of several UN sub-organizations. Also, I hope to at some point work in university administration. I find the European Union particularly fascinating, and there are a number of routes, likely through an NGO or commercial interest, to serving on one of the various committees under the Commission.
Practically any major company out there could really use the help of a social informatics person. They all keep rolling out these IT projects and systems that fail because the human, the social, the important part of the solution was ignored. Even when studies are conducted in some human area, they often fail to ask the bigger questions, such as "what is the real problem here?", "why I am I choosing this particular system?", "Is there an incentive for employees to utilize this system?", and "How can I make using this system make employees happier?"
Questions such as this last one are particularly important, as far too many businesses are turning to Taylorism as they turn to technology. Dehumanizing of workforces has resulted in the massive turnover rates and general incompetence in low level technical support, for instance.
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posted
Oh, and bioinformatics people are being scooped up by public and private sector labs and institutions all over the place. The "target education" for a bioinformatics person is usually a masters in bioinformatics, with the equivalent biology knowledge of someone with an undergraduate biology-related degree (biology, biomechanical engineering, chemistry, et cetera) or better.
This makes them able to converse on very technical subjects with biology people, shows they are adept at learning new and complex subject areas (informatics is all about the regular acquisition of new knowledge, as current thought on technology will always be part of the context problems are solved in), and trains them to implement complex information technology systems. Throw them in a lab and they'll be able to talk with the researchers, find out what will help those researchers be better able to do their research (not necessarily some big new system, but maybe some smaller system that automates a small step that keeps cropping up), or take on new research that's desirable but currently impossible, and then implement it.
For instance, informaticians are trained in data mining. Measuring the entropy of various combinations of genes over a population (a form of data mining) is yielding all sorts of new information, and that's a relatively trivial application of informatics thought.
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posted
Munch, sei tu? Che bello! When you do get out to South Bend, I promise, Star of India is on me.
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