worrying

[bedlamsbard]

I'm trying to decide whether or not to apply to the 4+1 accelerated master's of arts program in Classics at Tulane, which is a decision I have to make pretty quickly, as the application is due either February 1 or February 15, I'm not entirely sure from the website. (Standard School of Liberal Arts application deadline is February 1, but Classics says that they'll accept applications up till February 15 for consideration for financial aid for fall admission (which I think is what I'd want), but that they have rolling applications if one does not want financial aid.)

I -- am not sure it's entirely worth applying, because I don't have the language prep Classics wants. The website says, "We normally expect applicants to have had, at a minimum, the equivalent of three college-level years of one ancient language (Greek or Latin) and one college-level year of the other. We will consider applicants who have advanced preparation in one language but none in the second. However, we do not consider applicants who have no preparation in either ancient language." If I apply now, I'll have 1/2 to 1 year of Latin and no Greek; in theory, by the time I actually entered the program as a senior in the fall, I'd have a year each of Latin and Greek (if I take intensive Greek over the summer, which is the plan). I could barely come out of the program in 2013 with three years of both languages, let alone the ability to take and pass a reading exam in German, French, or Italian. And I feel like a year isn't really enough time to get a MA -- like, I know it's a 4+1 program, but I kind of expect my senior year to be taken up with my honors thesis (which, yes, is classics related, but I think it's more primarily a MEMS/English lit thing). So I guess my worries are two-fold:

1) I'm not qualified to get into the program in the first place.
2) Even if I got in, I'm not sure it would accomplish what it set out to do. I feel like a more traditional graduate program (MA straight into PhD, or a two year MA followed by a PhD at a different school) might be more helpful for me.

And I guess there's a (3) that builds off both of those: even if I got into the program I wouldn't be able to accomplish the requirements to get the MA degree in the first place.

Maybe I should e-mail my classics major advisor and ask her what she thinks. (I don't want to get a Classics PhD, either, I want to get a History PhD, so otherwise my plan is to apply to the UW's graduate program in History and maybe that of a couple other schools. Ohio's one I'm looking at for classics; I like one of the professors.)

Comments

[starlady]

For what it's worth, I'm in a Ph.D. program in history, and while a previous M.A. certainly helps--my friends who have them have a leg up in the "relevant books read" department--everyone who starts in the Ph.D. program is going to get an M.A. from our institution as well, so they're by no means necessary.

[bedlamsbard]

The main reason I've been considering 4+1 is that it would cut out at least a year from the grad school process, so it would cut down on costs.

[snacky]

I think checking with your advisor is the best first step. She'll probably know if it's worth applying with your language background.

Also, an MA never hurts you; and, the PhD program I used to work for accepted students with MAs and BAs, and it was one of the top-ranked PhD programs in the world in the field.

[bedlamsbard]

She was the one who originally suggested I apply to the program because it would help me get the extra language prep, but the chair of the Classics department here, when I talked to her, seemed pretty doubtful about it. In contrast, the graduate advisor said that it would probably be all right. So -- there's a reason I'm a bit confused on my ability or lack thereof to get in. (The other thing is that I'm ready to leave New Orleans after I get my BA, so the incentive for sticking around at Tulane pretty much depends on this.)

Well, I'd end up getting a MA anyway, no matter what I do, but I'm not sure getting it here is the best idea.

[starlady]

Costs as in tuition? Any program worth attending will be giving you a stipend on top of paying your tuition, I'd think--which isn't true of M.A. students, generally speaking; those departments that do take M.A.-only students (as opposed to dropping people from the program with only an M.A., which is what my department does if deemed necessary) are baldly funding the Ph.D. students with the M.A. students' tuition. When I was applying to grad schools, the most funding the M.A. programs offered me (and I didn't apply to any M.A. programs, my Ph.D. app was shunted to them) was a half-scholarship for tuition.

Though, by way of a disclaimer, I don't know anything about your situation beyond what I've read on your DW over the past month, and have a particular institutional perspective (I go to UCBerkeley).

[snacky]

That is a lot of confusing and conflicting advice! Hmm, if it were me, I'd apply just to see what would happen.

You have mentioned that you're feeling pretty done with New Orleans, and want to be closer to home, so I imagine it's a big factor in the decision. I think one additional year for the MA would be worth it monetarily, but if you're unhappy there, it might not be worth it for other reasons.

[aella_irene]

Yes, this. For heaven's sake, do not stay in a place where you are unhappy.

(And e-mail your graduate advisor. Lay out the reasons that you are doubtful.)

[bedlamsbard]

I talked to my dad this morning -- I think I might not apply, because it seems like it would be a bad decision for me, academically and mentally/emotionally. I'd have to come out with reading comprehension in a modern foreign language as well as reading comp in Greek and Latin, and that's a lot of languages to stuff into my head in two years, on top of me writing my honors thesis + my senior year courseload + the master's courseload + the master's thesis. And if I couldn't get funding from the Classics department at Tulane for the +1 year -- well, my scholarship's only for four years of undergrad, and Tulane is really, really expensive. Like, $50,000 a year expensive. (Maybe less for grad, but still.) I don't handle stress all that well, and I think that trying to do 4+1 might make me crazy.

Also, my parents seem like they'd really like me to come live closer to home, which, hey, I would also like to be closer to home.

[bedlamsbard]

I'm not -- I don't think I'm actively unhappy; I'm getting seriously sick of traveling cross-country several times a year (it's more or less a full-day in transit, depending on stopovers and whether or not the Pass is closed; sometimes it's hard to convince people of the fact that no really I love on the other side of a mountain range from the airport). New Orleans is lovely, but, well...

[bedlamsbard]

That's true. And I'm actually worried, now that I think about it, that even if I did get into 4+1, I wouldn't get any funding from Tulane for that extra year, which isn't covered by my undergrad scholarship. And Tulane is expensive.

Heh, I don't think there's anything special about my situation, except that I'm seriously lacking in language prep.