ReJoyce

Yes, I have a pretty good idea of what went wrong. I applied as a modernist (yes, ReJoyce refers to Joyce) and they are not looking for modernists. In fact, at this moment, departments are so overwhelemed by modernists which they cannot place, that they're not willing - apparently - to take any more. Also, I was competing against people with MAs, people who are much older than me and with that 'life experience' that all grad committees cite as an important factor. Also I think I didn't apply to enough 'across the board' programs, by which I mean programs that are solid but not extraordinary. The program is a standard 5 yr package of 18k, though that doesn't go very far in a big city. Completely understandable though, since it's a state school (part of the reason people might be rolling their eyes is precisely this - you wouldn't believe how much they look down upon non-ivys, which is plain stupid). Placement record is indeed abysmal, though I've seen one or two profs from there on the faculty list at Yale and Brown. There is also a positive factor in that this program really wanted me. The director called a couple of times to ask if I had any questions or wanted more info and they seemed super-pleased that I was considering. I was thinking of perhaps giving it a shot and transfering or opting out after the MA if it proves to be a bad deal. I don't know.

So I went to a prestigious undergrad R1 university where I am currently finishing up a BA degree. As everyone knows, the economy was terrible this year, programs cut back admissions, the number of applicants increased dramatically. As far as I know, I did everything right. Published articles in two prestigious journals, interned with publishing hourses, did major translation work with a prominent academic press, had a great GPA. And behold I was waitlisted then rejected from all but 1 school I applied to... which as you may guess from the title, is ranked significantly lower than my undergrad institution. I don't have a problem with the ranking per say. But every time someone asks me where I'm going and I tell them, I get the eye-roll! Every time! My thesis adviser said I must be joking and that I should just reapply next year with a different sub-specialty in mind. I'm afraid though that if I wait another year things are going to get even worse. Then again, the program I'm considering doesn't have good placement records and they're known for assigning impossible teaching loads. What do you guys think? Do I wait another year? I'm just afraid I won't be able to find any sort of job coming from this grad program

I'm going for Comp. Lit. Have you visited? I've gone, it's pretty nice. Though I find the absence of undergraduates somewhat odd.

Hi, I'm going to the CUNY Grad Center. I turned down UChicago's MAPH, a Columbia MA, and an NYU MA. If anyone is waiting to hear from those programs, I hope this helps. (Oh, and an edit - the MAs are for English programs, not Comp. Lit.)