Oxford graduate applicants 2009/2010

I took the advice posted here & emailed the history dept directly asking if I was still being considered or if my app had been overlooked. They replied yesterday apologizing for my having not heard & said my unconditional offer for a place was in the mail.

I took the advice posted here & emailed the history dept directly asking if I was still being considered or if my app had been overlooked. They replied yesterday apologizing for my having not heard & said my unconditional offer for a place was in the mail.

Congrats

When did you apply out of interest?

Thanks!
I applied for the November 21 deadline (submitted 11/14/08) for MSt in Medieval Studies.

I took the advice posted here & emailed the history dept directly asking if I was still being considered or if my app had been overlooked. They replied yesterday apologizing for my having not heard & said my unconditional offer for a place was in the mail.

As for the benefits of an early application, the main benefit is probably that if you apply in January, you'll still be able to try for AHRC funding. If you apply in March, it'll be too late for that. The number of places isn't completely fixed, though, and some people do turn down their offers, so I don't think the department would turn down a brilliant medievalist just because he applied after the January deadline. They'd make an extra offer and hope the numbers would even themselves out.

Thanks hobnob & xara. Well I'm from Canada so I'm not eligible for AHRC funding. I have already applied for the MPhil (medieval) before the January gathered field. However, now I'm thinking that I should apply for the MSt in medieval lit as well. The reasons are:
1. The MSt is one year, the MPhil, two. At international fees rates that's a huge difference.
2. I want to apply to US PhD programs after, and am questioning the necessity of having a 2-year Master's degree when many US schools will need me to essentially re-do coursework in some sort of Master's framework. Some might give me accreditation for my 2-yr MPhil, some might not. (Many US schools have a "Graduate program" rather than discrete MPhil/MA/AM and PhD degrees).
3. The US PhD is about 5 years (conservative estimate). Given this, I really would prefer to speed my Master's along.

Right now I think I would most likely apply for the MSt. I guess my only concern is that the deadline is so late (March) and that I've missed the January gathered field, when I presume most students would've already applied. I feel my application is strong, but I am concerned about having missed the boat. Advice?

Well, I suppose you could just apply for the MSt now and see what happens. Alternatively, you could try contacting the faculty first thing tomorrow and ask them whether you could be considered for the MSt instead. The deadline was only about a week ago, so with a bit of luck you might still be able to change your application.

I would also see and wait - if they take you on, they may be quite willing to discuss with you via email or phone a change of course to an M.Phil - you're from overseas so you paying two years rather than one should be enough of an argument for them. Besides, I have had people on my course changing over to an M.Phil or the other way around in the first weeks of term. I think Oxford is quite flexible here, just talk to the people who make the decisions and you should be alright.

She has applied for an MPhil and wants to change to an MSt, though, not the other way around, so that wouldn't realy be an argument to convince the faculty to let her change...

Cheers, sounds like I won't be hearing until the end of March then. Ho hum, I hate waiting around.

Sorry, it seems I got that wrong, but in any case this happened, too, in my department and it was no big issue at all, so I don't think it will create great problems.

Well, I suppose you could just apply for the MSt now and see what happens. Alternatively, you could try contacting the faculty first thing tomorrow and ask them whether you could be considered for the MSt instead. The deadline was only about a week ago, so with a bit of luck you might still be able to change your application.

Yep I will ask if this is an option. A further complication is that the Clarendon award deadline (fairly lucrative scholarships - something I was banking on) was Jan. 23. Of course my MPhil application went in before that but *if* I now submit an application for the MSt it probably won't be eligible for Clarendon funds. I wonder if any funding that may be awarded towards my MPhil application can then be transferred over? Might be highly unlikely, but I'm holding onto hope. I thought I was done this wretched process!

Phew! Finally my apps are done! I'm applying to MSc. in Economic and Social History, anyone applying for that as well?

Hey, emailed Oxford about my application and they said:
'I am sorry that you have not yet heard from us; this is partly due to computer problems. The situation is that we have decided that we need to re-evaluate your application with our next batch of applications. Our decisions about these should be available around 20th March. A letter will be with you shortly to explain this in more detail.'

It is partly due to computer problems? I wonder what the other part is.

Make sure you ask them about that too, then - although I'd assume even in a worst-case scenario a one-year MSt without a Clarendon award would still cost you considerably less than a two-year MPhil with one. Unless I'm seriously underestimating the generosity of the Clarendon award, that is.

Thank the heavens! They will let me switch my application to an MSt. Hurray!