<p>Yeah...I'm applying to PhD programs in English literature with a concentration on contemporary speculative fiction. I want to look at works of fantasy/sci-fi that commingle literary theory with political theory and question humanity's fundamental need for hierarchical governmental structures.....interesting, I know. I'm seriously worried about getting in to the programs I've applied to for reasons many have already mentioned. On my shortlist are:</p>
<p>Duke (yeah....right)
Vanderbilt (it seems so nice)
UDel (I live in dover so its as close to home as i could get)
UPenn ( used to live in philly and I love the campus)
UChicago (possibly my favorite city though the students are about as friendly as the weather there.)
UWisconsin (the department is great and it allows you to have a PhD minor)
UMinnesota (major sci-fi/fantasy literature conferences are held there and some faulty are particularly keen on that type of research)
UPittsburgh (good, solid school)
UFlorida (because its in florida....and the stuff that the department is putting out there is revolutionary...whether that's a good or bad thing has yet to be determined)
URochester (Because its a good school and there's a particular guy there who's doing almost exactly what I want to do) </p>
<p>and last but not least,
Northwestern (yeah....another Duke scenario)</p>
<p>My list is almost suicidal. I know. I just happen to be an academic masochist.</p>
<p>UDel (I live in dover so its as close to home as i could get)
UPenn ( used to live in philly and I love the campus)</p>
<p>Me too! Well, I live 15 min from Philly and Wilmington/Newark (smack in the middle). I also applied to UDel and Penn, although for Romance Languages <a href="I%20actually%20interned%20at%20Penn%20last%20summer...still%20a%20bit%20of%20a%20longshot%20with%20it%20being%20Ivy%20but,%20I%20can't%20say%20that%20I%20didn't%20try">Spanish & French</a>. Good luck!</p>
<p>Thanks, and the same to you :) My folks just moved down here a few months ago and it's a completely different world. We actually have a lawn AND a back yard. Can you imagine? We used to live in the Penn area, right along 48th and hazel.They sold the house because the market value was getting ridiculous and Penn was expanding. Now I'm missing "university city". Sadness.</p>
<p>I can imagine. I miss interning at the University Museum, it was a really great experience and really got me interested in the programs at Penn. Although I must say I'd be just as happy at Delaware as I would be at Penn.</p>
<p>Does anybody know where I can compare the percentage of students enrolled in a particular (humanities) program receiving some sort of financial support from the university (grant, assistantship...)? I don't qualify for loans (international student), so some sort of tuition aid is a must. I've looked at some of the department websites, but most of them don't give precise numbers... </p>
<p>Also, if anyone knows of any particularly generous departments, the information would be greatly appreciated. I'm interested in European Studies and modern languages (French/Spanish/English/Italian). I know many of you are in the Ivy League "field", but I'm really not shooting that high... I get good (not amazing) grades, will probably get a very strong verbal GRE score (along with a crappy math one), and will probably have to beg some teacher that doesn't know me to write me a half-decent rec letter....Hopefully, they'll take me somewhere?</p>
<p>corymz - I doubt you'll find that information anywhere. Finances for departments and programs change every year and in many cases aid for any given student comes from multiple sources. I.e. a university wide fellowship for years 1 and 5, TA/RA through one or more departments for years 2-4, department funds for research, plus external awards. How would you publish that in a way that makes sense and is comparable across programs, departments, and schools? And what about people who come in with external fellowships large or small?</p>
<p>Your best bet is probably what you've already done: find the programs you're "most interested in/likely to be admitted to" and study their websites. Most will have a phrase like "all admitted students are supported through fellowships and teaching assistantships for 5 years" or something very similar. Avoid places that say things like "the university cannot guarantee support to all admitted students". </p>
<p>You will also want to look at the corresponding graduate school websites where you will find links to university wide fellowships and other aid. Be aware that in some cases university wide fellowships are awarded based on GRE scores - so study up for that math section.</p>
<p>Then, when you've found a bunch of interesting programs that also say they support their students contact them after this admission season is over and explain your situation in detail and ask specific questions like:</p>
<p>1) Do you fund internationals?
2) In addition to tuition and fees what does it cost to live in your city?
3) Is summer funding available?
4) Can you provide an financial aid and academic profile of your 2008 class?
5) Do you have any other advice for internationals?</p>
<p>Oh - and aim high. The job market in the humanities in general is bad and in the MLA fields it is ridiculously bad. Have a plan for life after grad school that does not include earning a living wage in academia.</p>
<p>I'm really glad to see humanities thread too :) Though I put history in social sciences because that's how I pretty much analyze the world around me :p</p>
<p>Being a nit-picky person I am and learning from my transfer experience how important fit and happiness are, my list is basically limited to schools that I'm VERY sure that I want to be there for 5+ years. My professors were a little surprised but after a little while they were persuaded that these programs are very good fit for me (though they are VERY competitive, ugh). I just couldn't find any 'safety' schools for my field.</p>
<p>Jewish/American history PhD
NYU
Penn
Michigan</p>
<p>:eek: I'm hoping for the best. I know that I worked my a** off in the last 3 years and I have a hard time imagining them saying no to my CV, LORs, and SOP. :D</p>
<p>Is this waiting period bothering me? Actually no because I've found ways to stay in touch with grad schools at different times for different reasons so I don't feel totally left out of the process (as with many people until late Feb). And most of them have given me a fairly good idea of when they're reviewing applications and making decisions.</p>
<p>All these talk about lack of job market after grad school in the humanities and social sciences is really demoralizing..............I'm wondering how this applies to international graduates in the US with possibly 'other' specialities...</p>
<p>Taking myself for example, I'm doing a PhD program at UCLA in Applied Linguistics. However, I also have a focus on Chinese Linguistics because I speak native Mandarin (I'm Chinese Singaporean) as well as native English (I grew up using both languages concurrently).</p>
<p>I know it's also about the amount of publication I have after I graduate, but at this moment, with this background, is getting a tenured position in the US or elsewhere still a long shot?</p>
<p>Though getting a job as a TT (or an adjunct for that matter) might be unrealistic immediately out of grad school, I bet you could easily get a job translating (whether through freelancing or government/corporate sectors). I've already sort of bowed down to the idea that it will be difficult to get a job teaching what I want to right out of grad school (my field is Romance Languages, particularly Spanish and French), so I've been really looking into translating and the bottom line is that they are in high demand - in every sector but especially in the government (with Mandarin, considered a critical language by the FBI/CIA, I bet you could find a pretty well-paying job, even though it might not be your first choice [not sure what the citizenship reqs would be tho for an institution like those I just listed]) and corporate firms all over the world.</p>
<p>I don't consider my outlook defeatist, as I definitely want to get a good teaching job at a college/university (whether here in USA or abroad), but I think I'm being quite realistic and in actuality would enjoy getting some professional experience outside of academia.</p>
<p>ticklemepink - I also applied to NYU [MA in Madrid] and Penn [PhD in Romance Languages - Spanish/French]. In all reality though I think I really want to start with the MA, so that I can later pursue a PhD in Medieval Studies - not that I wouldn't love to go to Penn, and I'm sure that if I were to magically be accepted I would find it a hard offer to refuse (full funding + generous 5yr stipend), but I'd like to get some work with the MA first. I originally was going to apply straight to History/Medieval Studies PhDs, but I felt that to make myself a more marketable [potential] candidate for an eventual TT job, plus give myself a little more leeway in terms of potential careers after the degree [so that if I am not able to secure a teaching position from the get-go], I should apply to a lot of MA language programs [because I'm equally as passionate about them as I am with the umbrella that is Medieval Studies] anyway.</p>
<p>I mentioned earlier that I had a prof who went through 2 MAs (1 in Art History, the other a 1yr program in Latin at UToronto), and then the PhD in Medieval Studies, in the end just making her an uber-qualified/marketable prof. I'm not saying that formula always works, it just seems that it makes sense in the long run, plus I'm a bit quirky as I am equally as interested in the Language, and Art of the Middle Ages.</p>
<p>(I apologize for the terrible run-ons and such above, it's late and I just got lazy haha, good luck to everybody!)</p>
<p>Try to publish (and present at national conferences) <em>before</em> you finish your PhD. That will help you in the job market. Your international status should have absolutely no bearing whatsoever.</p>
<p>I'm hoping to study toward my PhD in Religion. I'm attending the University of Chicago Divinity school and find the school to be wonderful. I had heard horror stories about the students being unfriendly, competitive, etc. I will say that the work is extraordinarily difficult and time consuming but I have loved most of my almost 2 years here. As a matter of fact, UChicago-Div is the only school I've applied to for my PhD - only because I didn't have the time to pull everything together and keep up with my class work.</p>
<p>waiting for news from
UCSC (history of consciousness)
U of Florida (English)</p>
<p>Didn't have the time (or too much spare cash) to apply to more, unfortunately, as much as I'll like to have done so.</p>
<p>Someone on this thread has applied to U of Florida (any news??)</p>
<p>Still waiting for the snail mail with financial aid information to reach me<br>
<em>drums fingers</em></p>
<p>oh yeah, I'm one of those who's going back to grad school as a fulltimer after spending more than four years working full-time. Would had love to take some philosophy and languages classes at some of the universities or colleges back home but unlike in the States, affordable and good continuous education program is not too available in this third world country. However, managed to take some French in the evenings from the Alliance Francaise.</p>
<p>I am interested to hear if any international students in the humanities are on a Fulbright or equivalent awards here? And for them, do you have to deal with a lot of visa issues assuming you decide to stay on in the States to continue your career upon graduation?</p>
<p>And how's everyone spending their last months before grad school? I'm still working but am trying to put up a personal study program for myself prior just to get back to student mode (among all the other issues that I have to sort out prior to moving abroad).</p>