<p>How’s it going folks, long message here, apologies for any ignorance but could really do with the help. I’m currently on Erasmus year (similar to Junior Year Abroad) so am unable to ask my home department the following questions. Was planning on asking them when I get back but would appreciate some answers in the meantime.</p>
<p>Ever since I was a kid, I’ve always wanted to be a historian, my main area of interest being Irish emigration to the US.
I’m currently studying history and law at an Irish university, planning on doing an MA in Irish Studies when I graduate next year (mixture of Irish politics and Irish history, focussing on emigration modules)</p>
<p>After that, the ideal plan would be applying for a history PHD in the US. Preferably somewhere on the East Coast in order to access sources. My ideal PHD topic would be Irish emigrant involvement in crime or else Irish emigrant involvement in organised labour. Ideal college and supervisor would be Boston College with Kevin Kenny.</p>
<p>I have a few questions about the US system;
How important are the GREs for history? I’ve had a nose around on the net for them and found the English tests fine but I’m not the best at maths. Do they factor in heavily?</p>
<p>For personal statements, should only academic info be included? I’ve done a few years military service in Ireland as well as studying law (beneficial for a PHD involving emigration and criminality?) and involvement in Irish trade unions while working through college (beneficial for a PHD on organised labour?) Also recieved two academic awards from my university; History Prize for being the 2nd best at history in my year and a UNiversity Scholar award for high 1st year grades. Should these be mentioned?</p>
<p>Gradewise; I’m currently on a 1st class honours mark (GPA of roughly 3.8) when law is included; would my law grades be counted too or just my history marks? My grades for Irish subjects tend to be very good whereas I get dragged down by medieval history courses; would these all be counted or would they be more concerned with my marks in fields related to the PHD subject?</p>
<p>Academic references. I’ve had a couple visiting lecturers from US universities who were very impressed by my work for them and said they’d be happy to write a reference for me should I ever require it. However, these were for history courses not really related to my desired topic; should I include references from them alongside references from professors of related topics or just focus on Irish emigration related subjects?</p>
<p>Thanks for all the help. I’ve a fair bit of time before applying but want to get as much as possible done before the big moment.</p>
<p>Excellent user name. Now to your questions.</p>
<p>GREs will be important for History PhD admissions. Your verbal score will be most important, but the higher the quant score the better, since higher overall scores will boost your eligibility for university-wide fellowships.</p>
<p>In your case, I would advise BRIEFLY mentioning your law study and trade union experience. I don’t see your military experience as particularly relevant, but if it is, do mention it, also briefly. Do also mention your awards, but again, briefly.</p>
<p>Your overall marks as well as your marks in history classes will both be considered, although your history marks will be most important.</p>
<p>I would definitely counsel you to seek references from US scholars in history, even though those classes were outside of your specific area of interest. They can still testify to your suitability for graduate study in history, and being from the US, they will likely be more familiar with US letter-writing conventions. (Your Irish professors’ letters will also serve well – most US graduate admissions committees are cognizant of non-US recommendation styles.)</p>
<p>to add to professor x’s advice, i would say to get recommendations from professors that can attest to your ability to do research (i.e. they’ve advised you on a seminar or research paper or something). if one of your letters comes from someone outside of history, or someone outside of the irish regional focus, but they could write more strongly about your potential, then that’s fine. you will want at least one recommender from the history department, but beyond that, you’ll want to pull in the professors who know you the best and have the strongest reputations themselves.</p>
<p>also, regarding mentioning your union activism in your SOP… your SOP should, for the most part, read like a paper proposal. you want to outline a single, coherent research project you could work on, how that project fits with a certain professor at the school to which you are applying, and how your interests fit with the department’s strengths overall. that is the main focus. you are not held to that exact topic, but adcoms want to see that you can articulate a research plan. the extra-curriculars/other careers should (usually) only be mentioned as they apply to your research proposal, and as prof x stated, briefly.</p>
<p>however, some individual scholars are big on student activism and students’ involvements politically with whatever they’re studying, particularly in labour history. i would recommend that you (closer to the time of application) contact individual profs you would like to work with and mention your background in unions and the military and ask them if it would be helpful to include it in your SOP. the answer will vary by department and potential advisor, but you should be tailoring your SOP to each school individually anyway. for some places, your real world experience will be a huge bonus. for others, it will seem unnecessary.</p>
<p>applications also ask for your CV and offer a place to list awards and scholarships, so as long as you include your awards in one of those places (preferably both), then you shouldn’t need to mention it in your SOP unless it was a research grant to study irish migration or something similar.</p>
<p>Many thanks to both of you, clears things up a fair bit.</p>
<p>Couple more questions;
My two main choices would be Boston College and Notre Dame; would there be any advice you could give me on either of these?</p>
<p>The American professor who I think would be the best for a reccomendation is in the university of California; Berkely. His class was on Renaissance Europe and focussed a lot on research rather than textbooks (I got straight As for his course); would he be a good reference writer?
Are Irish universities well regarded?</p>
<p>Your Berkeley professor will be fine.</p>
<p>Yes, you will be fine with your Irish credentials. The adcoms will take that into account when evaluating your application.</p>
<p>Any professor for whom you did a good deal of research (and did it well) will be a fine recommender.</p>
<p>I would imagine that BC and ND would be excellent places for your subfield, given their current faculty. This bit of research must be done carefully, however, and only you can do this investigation, because only you know with which scholars you most desire to study.</p>
<p>Again, many thanks to both of you.</p>
<p>Just one final question; most of the professors I want to work with are in Holy Cross/Jesuit institutions. Should religion be mentioned in the application? (If I’m honest, going to a school with a strong Catholic ethos is a factor for me.)</p>
<p>It is your choice whether or not to mention religion in the application. It is certainly not necessary.</p>
<p>In my opinion, however, the space you are given for your personal statement would be used much more wisely by concentrating on your academic experience, research intentions, future plans, and why that department would be most suited for you – academically. A SoP should be very tightly focused on academics.</p>
<p>For example, if the university has or is located near important archives for your work, be sure to mention that. These sorts of things are much more important than your religious preference, or your military service.</p>