Chances for Top Medieval History Ph.D. programs

Graduate School
1

<p>Hi Everyone,</p>

<p>Like most people on this site, I'm a huge worrier, and would appreciate thoughts on my chances at Harvard, Yale, Princeton and Notre Dame. </p>

<p>The Numbers:
Senior History/Classics Double Major
GPA 3.8 (4.0 Fall Semester 2006)
GRE 740V 520Q (ouch) 5 A
Seven semesters of Latin (important for medieval history) 3 of French A average in both</p>

<p>Honors + Awards:</p>

<p>Phi Beta Kappa
Phi Alpha Theta
Dean's List
A couple of departmental fellowships/scholarships</p>

<p>Academic Membership:</p>

<p>The Medieval Academy of America (membership is available to anyone with an interest in the Middle Ages, but I think that my membership might show a level of commitment?) </p>

<p>Service:</p>

<p>Senior Editor of the undergraduate history journal </p>

<p>References, SOP</p>

<p>References are from the two medievalists in the History department and the Chair of the Classics department, all of whom I've worked with closely. My writers are well known by the professors at Y/P/H/ND, and I expect strong letters. SOP is strong and tailored toward each department. Broadly my interests are medieval mysticism/unconventional spirituality and esoteric disciplines like astrology/alchemy. I also managed to meet with profs. at Y/P/H and the meetings went well.</p>

<p>What worries me:</p>

<p>Low Quant. score.</p>

<p>Analytical Writing Score (though this might be offset by my SOP/Writing Sample).</p>

<p>Writing sample is a research paper from a few years back. I've spruced it up quite a bit (and I think it's very good), but I don't start writing an honors thesis until next semester. Therefore, my sample (15 pages) isn't as long as people sending in chapters from honors/MA theses</p>

<p>Major GPA (3.74) is lower than cumulative. Partly this is because I came in with 24 history credits (through AP) that don't count toward GPA. I also had a bad semester where I got a 3.2 overall and a B+ and B- in history courses. My one consolation is that these grades are concentrated in one semester (during sophomore year) so hopefully they'll view them as aberrations and not hold them against me too much.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

2

<p>I'm a medievalist, too, and this is what I've found:</p>

<p>1) Don't worry about your quant score. They really don't care, as long as it's in the 500s.</p>

<p>2) As long as you have at least a 5 on your AW, you should be fine.</p>

<p>3) Your French and Latin look good, but you need German, as well. From what I have seen from their websites and heard from advisors, they tend to want those languages done before you begin your studies. For example, at Harvard, you'll need to take a reading seminar in each of your 4 areas. In the medieval history seminar, there are quite a few readings in German and French. While you could probably avoid them (most reading days have a choice between 2 languages), you might be at a disadvantage there.</p>

<p>4) While your membership is nice, you're not really showing commitment unless you attend conferences. If you have done so, make sure you point that out on your app. If there is any way for you to present at a conference, this would look even better.</p>

<p>I don't know where you're doing your undergrad, but there are lots of regional medieval associations, too. Look into joining one and attending one of those conferences, as well. Often the regional ones have more opportunities for students to present. Either way, you'll be networking among professors from programs you want to attend, and that's always a good thing.</p>

<p>5) your writing sample and GPA will be fine.</p>

<p>As far as getting into a PhD program, your research interests and how they match to faculty are far more important than numerical stats. What are your interests within medieval history? Early medieval or late? Ecclesiastical, political, social, etc.? What regions of Europe interest you the most?</p>

<p>If you can fill in those blanks a bit, I can help you more. I'm also curious as to why you chose those particular programs. Finally, contacting faculty to find out if they are taking grad students next year is often a good thing. History profs seems to be more receptive to that than, say, many engineering and science profs. If you are in a position to visit the school, asking if you can sit in on a class or two is great, too. You can speak to them afterward and really stick out in their minds.</p>

3

<p>Hi Deepseek,</p>

<p>Thanks for the info! It's nice to know that numbers aren't everything.</p>

<p>Sorry, I should have been clearer with my research interests: Over the last year, they have shifted from high medieval political history (specifically the history of Occitania and France) to high medieval religious history, especially the history of mysticism and esoteric disciplines like alchemy. Originally, I thought I wanted to study the Albigensian Crusade (the subject of my upcoming honors thesis), but I gradually realized that the crusade is highly trodden scholarly territory and, therefore, harder to reconceptualize in an innovative way. Still, I'm not going the religious route because I think it's easier. On the contrary, I'm genuinely fascinated by mysticism and esotericism, and think there's an abundance of interesting work to be done in the area. </p>

<p>I originally chose the programs at H/Y/P because the research interests of their high medieval professors intersected - some more closely than others - with my interest in the history of medieval southern France. Even with my change in focus, research wise, I still think they're good 'fit' schools (though Harvard is a stretch). When I talked with Paul Freedman at Yale, for example, he mentioned his recent work on spices, and how much of their appeal arose from people believing they possessed 'magical' attributes (hello alchemy?). Then there's Jordan and Brown at Princeton (the doctoral advisors of my profs, incidentally), and though I was unable to meet with John Van Engen, I think my research interests may appeal to him as well. </p>

<p>Also, I plan to continue with Latin and French, and to take an accelerated German course during the summer. Hopefully I can have Latin and French down pat by fall and pick up the German as I go along.</p>

4

<p>You might want to stretch out your apps a bit to add some highly regarded but not HYP schools. UVirginia comes to mind, as they have several profs who research ecclesiastical medieval (I do ecclesiastical medieval, too, but early, not late). Berkeley has a great medieval dept; Michigan has some great medievalists, too. Just a thought. The accelerated German course is good - just make sure you mention it in your app somewhere. Good luck with your apps!</p>

5

<p>Bulthad, It seems like you have a great chance for HYP! You're clearly interested and passionate. However, I agree that you should look at UVA and Michigan too (Never hurts to have a large choice come March 2008!). Also, if your interest in southern France continues, I would suggest you consider Northwestern. William Paden is one of the few scholars in the US who actually knows Old Occitan well. On that note, have you thought about trying to learn Old Occitan or taking a course in Old French? Paden has written a good introductory book on the former. There are tons on the latter. They shouldn't be too hard for you to pick up with your experience in Latin. Good luck!</p>