Beginning the Conversation on Holistic Graduate Admissions

Determining which qualities ensure graduate student success requires first reflecting on the purpose of graduate training in the humanities as well as the place of equity in the admissions process.

The following resources might be helpful starting points for faculty discussion.

• Kent, J. D., & McCarthy, M. T. (2016). Holistic Review in Graduate Admissions: A Report from the Council of Graduate Schools. Council of Graduate Schools. https://www.k-state.edu/grad/faculty-resources/resources/CGS_HolisticReview_final_web.pdf
• Test your own implicit biases at Project Implicit:  https://implicit.harvard.edu/implicit/
• University of California Diversity Statement:  https://regents.universityofcalifornia.edu/governance/policies/4400.html
• Mathur, A., Cano, A., Dickson, M. W., Matherly, L. H., Maun, C., & Neale, A. V. (2019). Portfolio Review of Graduate Admissions: Outcomes of a Pilot Program. Strategic Enrollment Management Quarterly, 7(1), 7-24. https://www.utsa.edu/strategicplan/initiatives/academic/graduate-success/documents/SEMQ-0701-Portfolio-Review.pdf
• Posselt, Julie R. “Toward Inclusive Excellence in Graduate Education: Constructing Merit and Diversity in PhD Admissions.” American Journal of Education, vol. 120, no. 4, 2014, pp. 481–514. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/676910#metadata_info_tab_contents

In May 2022, as part of the AMIGA initiative, the UCLA Humanities hosted a workshop, ” Graduate Education for the 21st Century” where three current UCLA faculty discussed the skills needed for the Ph.D and beyond. Please view the recording here: https://ucla.app.box.com/file/962977984709