readwriterun

Bit late to post, but I've decided to attend Penn State's doctoral program in rhetoric and composition! So psyched! Now to figure out moving:)

@eadwacer I agree! I'm at the point now where I'm just taking myself off of waitlists immediately. I can't complain too much because at least I have a few acceptances, but I'm mentally/emotionally done with this process. On that note, I just removed myself from the WSU waitlist, so hope that narrows the pool a little for someone! And yeah, I'm with you @Courtney Whited. In r/c many programs require an MA as a prerequisite for applying. I've learned so much in these two years (and got some great teaching experience under my belt), so I think the MA was definitely worth it. Plus I think many of the direct admission PhD programs still end up taking as long or almost as long as doing an MA and PhD.

Hey, congrats! PM me if you have any questions about the program:) It's a great place to be.

Thanks y'all! This was very helpful:)

Hey @FeetInTheSky! I was in your shoes with UNL's MA two years ago. I asked them politely if they could give me another week until I had finished campus visits, and they were really nice about it. I think their early deadline stems from wanting to not leave people on the waitlist hanging for too long:) They're a great program...you've got some exciting possibilities!

Hi y'all! I was wondering who here is pursuing a PhD in rhetoric and composition. It seems like most of the lovely people here are in literature. How do you decide on programs? Does ranking influence your decision the way it does those of you studying literature? What specific factors did you look for when you chose a program? For context: I'm an r/c applicant currently accepted to four programs, waitlisted at two, and waiting to hear back from two more. I'm trying to decide which factors should matter most in the decision-making process. Obviously fit and funding are huge, but what else should I be considering? All of my programs are relatively well-known in the field, but I don't know how to evaluate which ones are stronger. Placement seems relatively uniform from program to program with around 80-90% students graduating with full-time tenure-track jobs. One of my wait-listed schools is the only obviously more highly ranked program, but I have no idea how to gauge the others. Each one has scholars that I would like to work with, alumni who have landed cool jobs and are publishing interesting things, and relatively low costs of living. I've been offered a pretty sweet fellowship at one program that would give me two years of support without teaching and two years with teaching, so I'm leaning there; but I don't know if it'd be better to hold out for an ostensibly higher-ranked school. Any insight would be appreciated!