Graduate student parents juggle many hats. What happens when they conflict?  What is a graduate student parent to do when a child gets sick and must stay home from school? Or when a babysitter is unexpectedly unavailable? Should you bring your child to class? In the Chronicle of Higher Education, Ann Hassenpflug  offers a vehement "No!" She offers some valid reasons, but many would disagree. Do you?

It happens pretty frequently. A student who you've had in class once or twice emails or stops by your office to ask for a recommendation letter for graduate school. "I've done research with Dr. So-and-so and have done an internship with Dr. Other but I need three recommendation letters for grad school. Can you help me out?" Finding that third letter is often really hard for students. Like most instructors you'll likely feel torn by the desire to help but the knowledge that that a recommendation letter that is simply positive without offering details or information beyond that found in the transcript is not helpful to graduate applications. So what do you do? Should you agree to write the third (likely weak) recommendation letter? As a student, should you request it?

Graduate admissions committees have a tough job. They must split hairs - draw distinctions among many high caliber applicants. As you scramble to complete your applications, keep in mind the admission committee's job and you might be more likely to make it through the early rounds of the application to the interview stage (or to acceptance in programs that do not interview). How do admissions committees evaluate applications?

Are you considering a master's or doctoral degree in History? The decision to pursue graduate study is complex one that is part emotional and part rational. The emotional side of the equation is powerful. The pride of becoming the first in your family to earn a graduate degree, being called "Doctor," and living a life of the mind are all tempting rewards. However the decision of whether to apply to graduate programs in History also entails pragmatic considerations, including funding and career options.  In a difficult economic climate, the question becomes even more perplexing.