How does graduate admissions work? Who does the system work for; and who falls through its cracks? More people than ever seek graduate degrees; but little has been written about who gets in and why. Drawing on firsthand observations of admission committees and interviews with faculty in 10 top-ranked doctoral programs in the humanities; social sciences; and natural sciences; education professor Julie Posselt pulls back the curtain on a process usually conducted in secret.Inside Graduate Admissions presents admissions from decision makers’ point of view; including thought-provoking episodes of committees debating the process; interviewing applicants; and grappling with borderline cases. Who ultimately makes the admit list reveals as much about how professors see themselves―and each other―as it does about how they view students. Professors in these programs say that they admit on merit; but they act on different meanings of the term. Disciplinary norms shape what counts as merit; as do professors’ ideas about intelligence and their aversions to risk; conflict; ambiguity; and change. Professors also say that they seek diversity; but Posselt shows that their good intentions don’t translate into results. In fact; faculty weigh diversity in only a small fraction of admissions decisions. Often; they rely upon criteria that keep longstanding inequalities in place.More equitable outcomes occur when admissions committees are themselves diverse and when members take a fresh look at inherited assumptions that affect their judgment. To help academic departments promote transparency and accountability; Posselt closes with concrete strategies to improve admissions review.
#357578 in Books Stephanie McCurry 2012-05-07 2012-04-09Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.24 x 1.15 x 6.41l; 1.43 #File Name: 0674064216456 pagespower and politics in the Civil War SouthConfederacy politics
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Five StarsBy CW ReaderOK15 of 18 people found the following review helpful. Difficult to Reckon WithBy Abby BledsoeConfederate Reckoning provides a refreshing new take on the well-established historiography of the Confederate South. McCurry shows how the dream of a white man’s republic that propelled the South into secession was undermined by those typically deemed powerless. Although white men expected to use white women and slaves as instruments of war; they proved instead to be parties with which the “powerful†had to reckon.McCurry argues that though they have been largely left out of the conversation; women and slaves were influential in the political landscape of the Confederate South. She provides convincing evidence for this argument through a variety of primary sources including letters; political documents and first-person narratives. Unfortunately; her tendency to draw from historical and theoretical literature rooted in different time periods distracts the reader from her argument.Lack of organization is also an issue in this book; which attempts to merge two stories—that of white women and slaves—into a single historical narrative. McCurry begins with the women’s story and then with no real warning moves on to that of the slaves; leaving the reader confused when approaching the epilogue as to which party she is referring. Her writing style is also problematic. It reads a bit like stream of consciousness; and is often repetitive and sometimes shallow. Many of her points lack development; even though they are reiterated on numerous occasions.5 of 7 people found the following review helpful. I really enjoyed the premise of this bookBy KDelphiIt seems to me that; it was a book just waiting to be written. The author covers topics very rarely considered in any detail in other books on the Civil War. She helps cut through some of the romantic mysticism and points out reasons why; as we all suspected; that most of the South (especially the poor) were very much victims of the Confederacy. She also explains in greater detail the way of thinking of the Planter class of the Old South; which still exists today--you can even hear it in the speech of the elites of the Deep South today.The problem I had with this book; is that the author repeats herself. Some here have said that they don't understand why people are saying that. Let me paraphrase just a couple examples of what I mean. She says ; in one paragraph; that "soldiers wives started to become a political constituency for the first time" and explains how. A paragraph later; she ends the paragraph with "becoming a political entity was something new for poor white soldiers' wives". On the next page it says "for poor soldiers' wives; the Civil War was a huge burden; and they came into their own politically". In three pages she might say; "the term soldiers' wives' began to take on political meaning for the first time". Now; that is not repeating yourself with the same words; exactly. But it is repeating concepts that are not that hard to grasp. The book could have been much shorter and; IMHO; much better. I am not sure why the author feels the need to repeat certain points over and over.Another concept "done to death" was how the Planter class had not considered that a full 1/3 of their population would not only not be soldiers; but also would ; in all likelihood; be opposed to them. Now; this would seem obvious to us now; so it is important that she point it out. But once is enough. I hope I am explaining the "repetition problem" a little better here....the topic and concepts were great. Repeating concepts over and over made for; in some places; a very long read.
