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  1. As you can probably imagine, this is a pretty stressful time, so I'll try my best to articulate my question clearly, but it may reflect my messy mental state. I'm currently in my fourth year of a PhD program in English Lang and Lit. I arrived to the program wide-eyed and idealistic, believing deeply in the university's ability to advance knowledge and wisdom. I believed that by joining the ranks of the professoriate, I'd be evading the trappings of corporate/professional life and devoting myself to the life of the mind. The COVID-19 pandemic and various other institutional factors have revealed that this is not at all the case, that the idealism I had been chasing is not present at elite universities, and that professors are often the same uncurious careerists that dominate other lines of work. Additionally, as a creative writer of erudite kind, I had imagined that pursuing scholarship would have a direct carry-over to my creative endeavors. As it turns out (and I admit that it was probably naive of me not to realize this earlier), scholarship is a profession with very specific professional imperatives--being interested in ideas (even complicated theoretical ideas that are at home in the academy) is not itself constitutive of pursuing scholarship. In my course work, I excelled because I loved discussing ideas. My prelims exam also went extraordinarily well. But since taking the exam, I have realized that I have no "intervention" to make in the scholarship. I don't care about the obscure details of some scholarly debate, defending or challenging someone's "intervention," offering my own. This has nothing to do with what initially drew me to literature and thought. During my time in the PhD, I have been able to teach my own composition courses. This has been the most rewarding part of the job. I adore my students and love teaching. On the one hand, procuring this PhD (for which my only remaining task would be writing and defending my dissertation) will help me get a teaching job. On the other hand, embroiling myself in scholarly debates that I don't care about in order to compete on a hostile job market for a job where there will be professional imperatives to embroil myself further in such debates seems like a nightmare. And such a job might not even exist anyway! I have two years of fellowship, such that I won't be teaching for the rest of my time here. Ultimately, my question is this--if my hope is to leave the scholarly profession, but pursue teaching and my own creative work, does it make sense for me to leave this PhD? I hold an MFA in creative writing as well as a scholarly MA (which I earned en route to this PhD). I could try to teach at community colleges or at other types of higher ed jobs that don't demand PhDs. A part of me suspects that it's too late to leave, that my best course of action would be to squeeze out this dissertation in whatever way I can and then move on, potentially leveraging it to get the sort of job I actually want. But then again, devoting another 1 - 2 years of my life to downright pointless scholarly myopia seems like not the best way to achieve my teaching and writing ambitions. My committee as well as other faculty in my department think it would be a mistake for me to leave, that my talents in our field would be wasted if I did so. However, I suspect that these folks have rose-colored glass on with respect to the job market. They are mostly older people who have had tenured professorships for decades. Their situation is not mine. Even in the last 2 years alone, the professional landscape for humanities PhDs has changed dramatically. Writing the dissertation has me paralyzed. It is my first time struggling in this program. I found course work and exams far easier than many of my peers found them, but nevertheless, I'm now completely immobilized. What do you think I should do? Thank you for reading!
  2. I thought I had made my mind up, but I keep second guessing myself. Here is some objective information about the two programs (they are English Language and Literature doctoral programs, in case that's relevant): School 1: There is a faculty member here whose work I really admire (and admired before I even knew I wanted to go to graduate school). His area of interest and approach both reflect the kind of work I hope to do. I have corresponded with him and he has been beyond generous with his time and advice, and is very excited about the prospect of me enrolling. That said, there is only one other faculty member there who interests me at all. I also feel that the program could have the potential to track me too narrowly and not facilitate the kinds of interdisciplinary work I'd like to do (particularly, bringing in Philosophy and French language and literature). The program is not as highly ranked as the alternative, but they have offered me a special fellowship that they give to one student each admission cycle, which gives me six years of guaranteed funding and a huge stipend. School 2: There are quite a few faculty members who I'm interested in, but none so passionately as the person from school 1. The program here will allow me much more latitude in terms of building my own course of study. It will also facilitate my exploration of other areas, with an ethos that encourages cross-disciplinarity. The program is much better ranked and has a better job placement record. Everyone whom I've met from here has been kind and generous. The school is in a much smaller city than school 1, and cost of living is higher, but the stipend is still very generous (more than the base stipend at school 1, but not quite as much with the fellowship) and I'm guaranteed funding for 6 years. I thought I had settled on school 2, but now I'm second guessing myself--based on my descriptions, where does it seem I should go? Are there any important factors I'm neglecting? Thanks!
  3. After a grueling application process, waiting period, and decision making process, I am very happy that I have come to a decision about which of the two programs that accepted me I'll be attending. The only thing I'm worried about is that, as I think is ordinary, I contacted faculty at both programs during this process and have had very meaningful, helpful, valuable conversations with one of them, and he is a faculty member at the place where I plan to decline the offer. My concern: I don't want my declining admission there to damage a potentially valuable professional relationship with someone who does great work in my field. What's the etiquette here? What is the way to decline most politely? Is there a way for me to maintain this relationship--I don't want to seem like I was brown-nosing a potential adviser in my emails, but rather that my remarks were genuine. Maybe I'm just being excessively anxious for no reason, but I'm pretty worried about this. What's the protocol?
  4. Brief follow up. I took the advice here, narrowed my search to two programs, then reached out to the remaining program--I received this as a response: At the present time the program has not finalized a decision on your application; please follow up with the program directly. Should I send a follow up email to the department? And, if so, does anyone know who I ought to contact? I had thought that I was contacting the program directly, but evidently I was wrong. Thanks so much for your responses!
  5. I have heard back from many programs and am now considering my options of where I'll attend. There is, however, one program from which I have not yet heard anything. On the results board on this site, I have seen acceptances and rejections already posted from this program and the application guidelines indicate that I was to expect to hear back by late February. So my question is: Would it be uncouth of me at all to reach out and ask about my application status? Since they've already sent out at least some acceptances and rejections, I am worried that there is some mistake or something (ex. they've already rejected me and forgot to update my application status on the site, etc.). At this point, I just want to know so that I can decide between the offers I actually do have. Thanks so much for reading!
  6. Also, sorry for the typo in the title. I would change it if I had any idea how to use this website.
  7. Hello: I am applying to PhD programs in Literary Studies and I am curious about how my GRE score suggest I will fare. Obviously, GRE scores are one of the least important parts of an application. I am aware of this. And yet, I fear that my scores might be bad enough that, if scores are used as a sort of initial litmus test for entrance, I will be rejected on those grounds. On the verbal reasoning, I scored in the 94th percentile. On the analytic writing, I scored in the 98th percentile. On the quantitative reasoning, I scored in the 40th percentile. So, clearly the math score is abysmal and the writing score is pretty good. My question is, since the programs to which I am applying are not math centered, is it likely that my terrible math score will be a problem? Also, is the 94th percentile on the verbal reasoning good enough? Obviously it's a lot better than average, but in terms of people who are likely to be applying to literature PhD programs, I fear that it isn't good enough. Thank you for reading this and I appreciate any advice you can offer!
  8. Is it possible to go to an Ivy League graduate school (or even a prestigious one that is not Ivy Leage) if you attended an undergraduate institution that is not prestigious at all? I am interested in pursuing a Joint MFA/PHD degree in Creative Writing and Literary Studies (I have my eye on Cornell University). I am worried, however, that because of my undergraduate institution, I might not be able to get in. I did very well as an undergraduate (graduated summa cum laude, a commonwealth honors scholar, member of Lambda Iota Tau the literature honors society), but I fear that because I go to a very small and developing state school, I might not be taken seriously as an applicant to a prestigious university like Cornell. So my main question is: How much does where you received your undergraduate degree impact your potential acceptance into graduate school? Do I have a chance? I know the writing sample is the most important part of the application, but is applying at all an exercise in futility? Thanks for any advice!
  9. Hi! I'm new to this forum, so I wasn't sure where to post this question, but any advice anyone can give me, I very much appreciate! I am 19 years old, I am a junior in college. I am a dual-major in English and Philosophy, with concentrations in Literature and Creative Writing. My GPA is a 3.8. I've taken many high level literature classes, am being inducted into Lamda Iota Tau (the literature honors society) and have taken many creative writing classes, including several independent studies. I write fiction constantly, and am completely self-motivated with it (I produce work even when I'm not required to for a class). I have won awards for my fiction and my work in literary studies, and have been published in a few smaller literary journals. My reasons for wanting the MFA degree: First and foremost, I want to improve my writing. Two years of focusing on the craft of writing and being able to read as much as possible sounds amazing. Also, I really want to work with talented writers. I could list fifty of my favorite living authors who teach at MFA programs, and if I am lucky enough to get into one of the programs where these people teach, I would be thrilled to be able to get their critical feedback on my writing (I have a thick skin, so it's okay if they're harsh) and learn from their talent. I also want to be able to start networking in the writing community, although this goal is secondary to the other goals. Finally, I want to teach at a university in the future, and hope to pursue a scholarly PHD in literature after I get my MFA. (If I am lucky enough to get into one of the joint programs, I will do that, but as this is not likely at all, I will probably get the MFA first and then attempt a PHD after). So my questions are: Does it sound like an MFA is the right choice for me? I know I am young, but I am advanced (junior in college at age 19) Should I take time off between undergraduate and the MFA? (I really do not want to do this, but if you think I should, let me know why) How can I improve my chances of getting into one of the better programs out there? Thank you anyone who wants to offer advice!
  10. I am so non-pragmatic that the job market is the last thing on my mind. I will manage after I complete whatever graduate program I enter. The reason that I want to pursue graduate work is because I am passionate about literature and writing. I want to expand my mind with the best writers and readers that there are. The joint program seems to me to be the best place to do that. Additionally, I am extremely passionate about education and academia, and I seriously want to pursue that as a career in addition to writing. My professors all seem to think I have strong chances of getting in when I apply in three years, especially since many people wait until several years after they graduate while programs are looking for writers who are fresh out of undergraduate programs. I understand that there is no way for me to ensure acceptance. I am just looking for as many ways as possible to give myself an edge over the competition. Thank you for your response!
  11. Hi, there! I am only an undergraduate freshman, so obviously I have a lot of time before applying to graduate school. However, I am eager to start preparing now. My fiction has been published in Tin House magazine, and I have several stories pending publication elsewhere (only one piece actually published so far, but hopefully more will come soon). I have taken one of the practice GRE tests in Literature and ended up with a mediocre score on it, but I have been reading extensively from the recommended reading list that is on the site (and enjoying every minute of it). Obviously, I am a voracious reader. In my first year in undergraduate, which is coming to a close now, I have recieved two official English department awards for Excellence in Writing Fiction and Excellent Work in Literary Studies. My GPA is a 3.2 (I am aware this is low. I recieved a fairly low score in a science class that through everything off, but I get As in all non-math/science courses). My majors are English (with concentrations in both literature and creative writing) and philosophy. My question is, as it stands now, does it seem that I have a chance to get into Cornell's joint MFA/PHD program in creative writing? I plan to apply immediately after I graduate from the small state college which I currently attend. Are my chances high? What can I do to improve them? Any advice at all would be wonderful. Thank you in advance!
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