I was here back when applying for my MS...now I'm back again, this time with my sights set on a PhD (or MA/PhD combined program...). I am applying next Jan for fall 2009.

Background:

BA - Art History/Classics; focus in Ancient Art
MS - Arts Administration, Fund Raising Management


Where I want to be:

(MA)/PhD Art History or Near Eastern Studies


Questions for you, my friends:

1. Anyone else in this field? Specifically, anyone at UC Berkeley?

2. I'll have almost five years of experience in non-profit development/fundraising by app time, some of it museum/arts related, some not. Ultimately, I want to become an academic. I want to teach at the University level. I went into this field for my masters and while it probably would have served me better to have gone for an art history program back then...I wouldn't trade the experience and all that I learned for the world. (besides, right now that degree keeps me employed and eating...)

Someone here must have a similar background where they veered a bit onto an academic tangent...please comment with your experience if this fits you. I really want to connect with folks who have obtained degrees that don't necessarily jive with what you really want to do in life. I suppose I'm having a quarter-life crisis. I know I'm not the only one. Help?

3. I KNOW this comes up all the time, but the search link for this community is down. How important are those GRE scores when it comes to a high level degree? Do you think it might compensate for deficiency in other areas (for example, I haven't had any TA experience since my master's program didn't offer that as an option)?

4. Speaking of having worked for a few years...can this be advantageous? Perhaps I come off as a more serious applicant? (haha...I might be dreaming)




Thanks in advance for any insight you can provide. You were great a few years ago.

And best of luck to all those currently in the application and waiting stages this year.

Is anyone else applying to Berkeley? Two things about their application that I'm confused about:
1) Do we have to calculate a major GPA AND a GPA from upper-division courses? I calculated the other night that I took 58 credits which could potentially count towards my major, (do pre-requisites for a major count?) but my major only required that I take 28 credits. I don't have a clue which ones technically "counted" towards my major.  My major was an interdisciplinary program, so there is no easy course coding I could use to calculate this.

2) Is the Personal History Statement supposed to be more narrative like than the SOP? This is what the prompt is:

In an essay, discuss how your personal background informs your decision to pursue a graduate degree. Please include any educational, familial, cultural, economic, or social experiences, challenges, or opportunities relevant to your academic journey; how you might contribute to social or cultural diversity within your chosen field; and/or how you might serve educationally underrepresented segments of society with your degree.

Is just supposed to be a really long diversity statement? Will it be counted towards my admission decision? I have been procrastinating on this forever because I don't at all know the correct tone for the statement. And why do they have such a long maximum (8,000 characters, about 1,600 words) for it? Should I try to hit something close to that ?

**edit: I called Berkeley and graduate admissions told me that usage of the personal history statement vareis from department to department. So I called the department I'm applying to, and they told me it's typically used for fellowship recommendations. It IS supposed to be more like a narrative.  And no, they don't expect it to be near 8,000 characters. Also, the major GPA and upper-level GPA don't have to be calculated, especially if your institution doesn't already do it for you.