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[zhenzhen]

I was wondering if anyone who applies to grad school applies to more than one program. I'm interested in enrolling in both a Library Studies program and a program in the Humanities (that's my major right now) just in case I don't get into any universities for one of the programs. Does this look bad when I ask a professor for recommendation letters? Would a professor ask me why I'm applying to two?

[tinyzombie]

I was wondering if anyone who applies to grad school applies to more than one program. I'm interested in enrolling in both a Library Studies program and a program in the Humanities (that's my major right now) just in case I don't get into any universities for one of the programs. Does this look bad when I ask a professor for recommendation letters? Would a professor ask me why I'm applying to two?

Most people apply to several.

If you do a search of this board or talk to people who have applied, you'll see that.

Good luck.

[zhenzhen]

Do people usually apply to more than one department though? For some reason, I was under the impression that people would choose one field they're interested in and apply only to one department but the same department in different universities.

[tinyzombie]

Do people usually apply to more than one department though? For some reason, I was under the impression that people would choose one field they're interested in and apply only to one department but the same department in different universities.

That you might not be allowed to do. At my university, you may only apply to one program at a time. YMMV.

[new99]

I think there's some confusion of terminology here. If I'm reading right, I think what zhenzhen might mean by "department" and "program" is field/discipline, i.e. you apply to the program at the "library science department" at several universities.

If that's it, you're right that it's most common for people to apply to graduate programs at several universities but in only one field/subject/discipline. It's not that unusual, though, to apply to programs in different disciplines; given someone's interests they might apply to, say, some English departments and some comparative literature departments.

You would probably want your professor to tailor her/his letters specifically for each type of program (i.e. each different subject/discipline), though.

(Or, are you asking if you can enroll in two different graduate programs simultaneously? Some universities allow that, but you'd probably have to arrange that with the university, and you might have to start in one then enroll in the other later.)

[zhenzhen]

I think there's some confusion of terminology here. If I'm reading right, I think what zhenzhen might mean by "department" and "program" is field/discipline, i.e. you apply to the program at the "library science department" at several universities.

If that's it, you're right that it's most common for people to apply to graduate programs at several universities but in only one field/subject/discipline. It's not that unusual, though, to apply to programs in different disciplines; given someone's interests they might apply to, say, some English departments and some comparative literature departments.

That's what I meant. Thanks for clarifying.

[imawakenow]

Well, theoretically your letter writers will know you and know your academic interests and goals, so they should be able to see the connection between English and comparative literature (to use new99's example).

I'm not exactly sure I see the connection between library science and the humanities, but that' not my field. If it's not immediately obvious, then be prepared to talk to your letter writers about your interests in the two fields if they are very different.

I assume this is for an M.A. I would still use the general guideline for Ph.D. and apply to 7-10 programs of varying selectivity that fit your interests.