Preparations for Further Study - namely getting in

[Archibald]

I was wondering if someone could give me some advice about getting into (and preparing for) postgraduate university programmes. I'm a history student, and I'd eventually like to do a PhD at an American university, but the history department doesn't really have much to say about preparing for further study. What kind of qualifications will I need to be accepted, and to get funding, at some of the well-recognised American unis? What is the application process like, how soon should I begin deciding between universities and applying, what marks will I need, and, lastly I think, how much do extracurricular activities matter? One more: some universities require basic or intermediate knowledge of certain languages (generally Latin) before commencement of the course - how much preparation should I make in that regard?

Obviously the criteria and details will vary a lot between universities and subjects, but if anyone can help answer any of these questions, I'd really appreciate it.

[Tex]

I don't mean to be rude, I think it is a great idea to go for a PhD and there are some great programmes at US universities. However, for goodness sake, this is the Sinner not the history department of a US university. The way to find out about the requirements for these departments is to email/ phone/ write to the department, to a potential supervisor or an admissions secretary. They will tell you what you need to know- they are trying to recruit students!

[Archibald]

Obviously, but I'd like to hear something from people who have taken a similar path before calling these departments and coming off sounding like an idiot. It's still pretty early in the game anyways, just want to make sure I'm on the right track since the history department here doesn't have anything to say about this.

[jollytiddlywink]

I'm surprised you think the history department here doesn't know anything about this. Certainly the modern history department has several people who are well-aware of post-grad study options, in the UK and the US. I'm not so sure about the medieval and ancient departments (I assume its one of these because you mentioned Latin), but they all have post-grad courses. Look up the department website here and find who the M.Litt coordinators are in your department, and go to talk to them. If you want to do post-grad in the US, I believe it is possible to go straight from your first degree to a PhD, but in the UK you need to have a Masters first.

[cruella_deville]

Ok, perhaps I can answer this.

1. Do your research! Narrow down the schools that you're interested in, and check out their websites.
2. Request brochures/application materials from the schools. Read them carefully.
3. The schools that you're interested in will all have different criteria for admission, so make sure that you're up to speed with which school wants what.
4. I'm pretty sure you'll have to take the GRE - it's a test that you have to take to get into grad school in America. MOST schools require it. It's like the SAT or ACT, but for entrance into grad school. Again, certain schools look for certain scores on the GRE, so you need to AIM for those scores.
5. Once you've taken the GRE (if you've had to), narrowed down the schools you want to attend, and gotten at least TWO letters of recommendation from professors, next you need to apply, and EARLY. Try to get your application in by February/March THE LATEST for early decision! If you want to wait til June, that's your business, but it'll be harder to get in as most spots will already be taken. Unlike schools in the UK, American universities have application fees, so get ready to dish out the dollars. Fees are on average $50-$65 per application (could be looking at more).
6. You'll also need to get your funding in order. As a foreign student, you won't be eligible for financial assistance (or even scholarships) by the US government, so you'll either have to pay out of pocket, or figure something out...
7. If possible, try to visit the schools you're interested in or at least make contact with someone within the department. If you establish a rapport with a professor (either by phone, email, or from a visit), it might work in your favor when it comes time to reviewing your application.
8. As far as I know, no history programs in the States have any language requirements.
9. The States has a different grading system than you do here, so I'd say aim for at least a 3.5 GPA, or a 2.1 and you should be fine.
10. Extracurricular activities help, but they're not everything, so don't stress yourself out on trying to squeeze everything in your last year. If further study was your goal all along, then you should have been planning for extracurricular stuff and should have some under your belt already.
11. I know I've written a lot, but what I'm trying to make you see is that you haven't really planned well. You should already know where you want to go and be in the process of writing you application and personal statement NOW, in the hopes of sending everything out after the new year. In other words, you need to get your ass into gear! Unless you're not in your final year, then disregard this.
12. If you need any more advice, PM and I'll see how I can help.

[Edinburgh Boy]

Another issue to consider is how long you want to be a PhD student for. Many US PhD programmes are more than just the writing of the doctoral thesis, and actually require other forms of academic progress such as contributing directly to the work of the faculty in teaching etc... In Britain you can still go away to the archives for three years, write your thesis, get examined and be done and dusted in less than four years. Some even manage the whole thing in three, unless they require you to do an additional masters, although a St Andrews MA may enable you to circumvent this.

[Archibald]

Thanks for the replies. I am in my third year right now, so my situation is not so terribly urgent. I just thought I'd look for some advice now, while I have the opportunity to fix anything I may be doing wrong. I am specifically interested in US universities (I am American and want to go back home after finishing here), but finding professors who share my topic of interest is pretty challenging! I'm aiming for a first (first semester essays and sub-honours results would indicate this) but obviously a 2:1 is a very strong possibility since I haven't even taken a single honours exam yet! This uncertainty, coupled with the fact that translating the 20 point system into the American GPA system is difficult and often arbitrary, is making it hard for me to determine what my chances are at particularly prestigious universities.

The situation is confusing because all I know about admissions at US unis applies to undergraduate programs. I'm not sure how much postgraduate admissions weighs on things like work experience, volunteering, involvement in societies, and sub-honours results outside my major. These would be huge factors for undergraduate admissions, but as they are completely unrelated to my desired field of study I'm not sure if they will be taken into account at all.

Does anyone have any experience with taking the GRE's? Obviously I will have to take them but I just wonder what they are like, and what kind of preparation is recommended for taking them. Also, will I have to go to London to do that?

Lastly, does anyone have any experience with the Careers centre in this matter? I know they offer advice for postgraduate applications but I'm not sure how much experience they'd have with US unis, and who in particular I should talk to.

Thanks again for replying.

[RandomMusings]

Lastly, does anyone have any experience with the Careers centre in this matter? I know they offer advice for postgraduate applications but I'm not sure how much experience they'd have with US unis, and who in particular I should talk to.

People are often surprised by the amount of stuff the Careers Centre can help out with. Don't forget, they have hundreds of people going through their door every year and so I'm sure they'll have dealt with something resembling your query in the not-too-distant past. Just drop in and explain the information you want to either Jenny or Linda on the reception desks and they can tell you the right person to talk to.

All the best with it!
Phil

[chocolatefairy]

Does anyone have any experience with taking the GRE's? Obviously I will have to take them but I just wonder what they are like, and what kind of preparation is recommended for taking them. Also, will I have to go to London to do that?

I took the GRE this time last year, it costs about $140, and I think you do have to sit it in London, certainly if you're planning on doing the computer based version, otherwise you can probably do it in Leeds. The benefit of the computer based one is that you get the majority of your results at the end of the test.

The careers centre have some excellent books with tonnes of practice questions and hints on to layout the longer written answers, so would definately recommend you go there. The GRE itself is a lot about exam technique, and learning pages of (mostly) useless words, and remembering high school maths. I wouldn't say it's particularly difficult, but some amout of prepartion is necessary especially to familiarise yourself with the format and what the examiner is expecting. You'll probably read online that people start preparing up to a year in advance - this is crazy - i would say maybe a month, but it depends on how you like to study!

I think the scores you get last for a number of years after you've sat it, so take it early, and then if you don't get the scores you need you can re-sit.

Good luck with the GRE, it's not as scary as some people make it out to be, and feel free to ask any other questions you have about it.
And here's the website: http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.fab2360b1645a1de9b3a0779f1751509/?vgnextoid=b195e3b5f64f4010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD