JennyFieldsOriginal

perhaps somebody else will have better advice than this, but when i had a kind of sticky question like that one i called ets. they were surprisingly helpful and will probably be able to give you an answer in 5 minutes.

mine's not up either! i took it in the u.s., just fyi. thanks for the tip though, i didn't have anything to check obsessively and this will give me good practice for university admission decision webpages

powerprep 1: 770V 600M powerprep 2: 780V 620M actual score was 800V and 630M. so, for me it was pretty insanely accurate. i also think it's worth it to note that the kaplan and princeton review practice exams were giving me verbal scores that didn't even break a 700. in my experience, the powerprep was the real deal and the test prep companies gave me nothing more than indigestion, sweaty palms, and night terrors.

i'm going through something similar right now and if you are closer with any of your other letter writers, i'd suggest mentioning something to them if the person went MIA out of nowhere. you have to be really really really careful you don't come off as talking about one of their colleagues behind their backs, but if you handle the situation very delicately and make sure that you put it back on yourself (er...maybe i'm typing the email address in wrong?...maybe he broke his leg in 16 places?...maybe i've accidentally been writing all my correspondence in wingdings and it's unreadable?). often another recommender can badger their colleague in ways you've only dreamed of. though definitely take my advice with a grain of salt because i'm sitting here praying that my application fees and all the money i spent getting gre scores sent isn't going to waste because "omgz i'm totally too busy to write this letter you've been asking for for over two years SORRY whats your name you are insignificant to my fancy life as an intellectual BYE" (clearly this scenario has no relationship to the way my letter writer has treated me in the past, but it's my insane hellish fantasy) in the end, what i'm trying to keep in mind is that all my professors have treated me wonderfully in the past, they've agreed to write the letters, they are good, kind people and i should be grateful to be getting any help at all. i'm crossing all my fingers and toes for you and i hope your LOR writers come through! i have faith that it will all wind up okay in the end but try your best not to stress and i'll be sending any extra good luck vibes the way of anyone who is having trouble of this kind

how intense is everyone getting with their fit paragraphs? i honestly feel a little silly tacking these on when the people who are reading my statement know probably better than i do who i'd be suited to working with. i totally understand the need to demonstrate that i've done research on the program and that i'm not just picking random schools and hitting the "send" button 12 times on applications...but on the other hand writing these paragraphs feels like a ridiculous fiction. everybody knows we are slapping on these paragraphs at the end of multiple applications. i almost wish there was a separate box to write a "fit" statement so that it didn't feel quite so goofy to me. it's like i'm whispering to each school "no really YOU'RE my favorite...i seriously love YOU the most...don't tell the others". but that's not the point, just a minor rant. i've been doing a little research on each program, finding out who is doing what and where and making up a few sentences. i've been mostly gearing it toward specific faculty, but i'm wondering if others are getting more general. ("to whom it may concern: the huntington library is really cool" or "there sure are a lot of americanists at this school. and famous ones too!") please all refrain from stealing my eloquent phrasing on those. i know it will be difficult, but try to resist the temptation. at this point i'm just blabbing, but thoughts?

you should 100% still apply and don't let this get you down! hardly anyone is going to have a completely perfect application and if you're going to have any little tiny weak spot the GRE subject would be the one you would want to have. the rest of your application sounds great, and this is small-ish potatoes. plus you scored above a 500 so it's not like you started filling in bubbles blindly. think of it this way: scoring above half of the people who are taking this exam (pretty much all of whom want to pursue graduate study in english) is no small feat. worst worst worst case scenario is you retake next year and reapply. but that is just playing out the bad outcome to it's catastrophic conclusion. i don't think this is going to keep you out of programs. i'm sure you're going to get into lots of great schools and this is all going to seem silly. so definitely chin up and keep on working on those apps!

clearly i am obsessed with the internet today because i'm pooped/wired as a result of the silly lit GRE... yup, i think you do put it on there. all the CVs i've seen (for phd programs) have included the overall GPA as well as the person's major GPA. i'm planning on including it on mine in the section that lists my major and minor and undergrad institution.

personally, and others have said this as well, i think they're making a big move toward grammar and theory. it puts us in a bit of a pickle because the change seems fairly recent. i got WAY more specific theory questions than any review book would have had me believe, and much more grammar too. here's relevant info about the scoring: "each new test edition is equated to an existing test edition. in the equating process, statistical methods are used to assess the difficulty of the new test. the scores are adjusted so that the examinees who took a difficult edition of the test are not penalized, and examinees who took an easier edition of the test do not have an advantage." (from the practice book ets sends in the mail) basically, i took this to mean that they use a fancy statistical method as opposed to the traditional "curve" any of us would be accustomed to. it seems to me that it doesn't have anything to do with who took the test on your particular test day, but is based on their giant pool of crazy questions, how a bazillion people answered them, and the resultant difficulty rating. i've been obsessing like i'm insane all day about the questions i got wrong. made a list of 20 answers i'm questioning, 10 of which i know for sure are wrong. i'm also trying to figure out how difficult my test was compared to the practice exams i took and the scores i got on those. then i proceeded to create different score scenarios based on possible questions wrong and omitted. so i should be really pleasant for the next three weeks. if you look at the possible ways you can earn a particular score, you'll see that you can get a TON of questions wrong and omit a bunch and still wind up with a decent score. for instance, you can get a 500 by getting 120 correct, 49 wrong, and leaving 61 blank. hope that makes you feel better, because it's what i'm consoling myself with! i'm also hoping there were different editions out there today because zeugma was nowhere to be found on mine!

anyone else feel like his or her brain was stomped on repeatedly, then put in a food processor, and fed to some kind of animal? I DO. but seriously...general impressions? i didn't think the questions were anything wildly difficult, but i got really screwed on timing. i was furiously bubbling in answers up to the last second, and didn't get a chance to check anything over. i haven't a clue how many i left blank. to add insult to injury, pretty much all the ones i looked up because i was unsure were wrong answers. i've heard this is how most people feel, but i'm curious to know what other november literature subject test takers thought.

One of my professors told me that it's a good idea to talk a bit about someone who is very established in your field of interest, and also to talk about someone who is up and coming. That way, you cover your bases by mentioning the big shots (so it doesn't seem like you don't know who they are) and also point out that you could work with some newer people who will likely be doing the bulk of the new research at your school. That way when the committee is doing the selecting, you've thrown a bone (food and metaphors and cliches, oh my!) to everyone. Of course, it seems like you know a lot about these particular departments you're referencing, so as long as your reasoning for mentioning people comes across (i.e. not dropping names like they're hot) you should be completely fine. From your post it appears you've put thought into this and you have solid cause for naming names, so I wouldn't get too worried about exactly how many people you mention. Don't know if that helps, but hope your SOP writing goes well!

Just a quick note to everyone preparing for the Literature GRE -- In the back of the Norton Anthologies of English Literature there is a really good glossary of literary terms and poetic devices that encompasses all the material in the test prep books (and then some). It's a decent sized chunk of information without being overwhelming and I suspect that's all you'd need to know for the test. I know this seems really obvious and unnecessary to post about, but I totally missed this section of stuff because it's behind teeny tiny print notes that I didn't look at. Just looking it over I picked up some points on practice exams, so I hope somebody else can do the same. Best of luck!

For a PhD program, I'd retake. Honestly, I got the huge Barron's list off the internet and studied all the words on them (about 3000) and that was what I credit with doing so well on the verbal. In my experience it was all about knowing the vocabulary...if you can answer those questions quick you can afford to spend a ton more time on the reading comprehension, etc. Another bonus is that taking vocab flashcards with you everywhere is really easy and you can assimilate a lot of words quickly. I think with the experience of taking the test under your belt once you'll know what to expect and might be less nervous. And if you luck out a little more on what words you get or go slower at the beginning of the exam you could easily break 600 and be in a better spot. It seems silly that this test is so important because it's all a game of chance, but I think you could see huge gains if your score went up just a bit. Try not to stress and GREs are not the most important part of your app so don't be discouraged!

I actually spoke with the director of the graduate program at my undergrad university about just such an issue and he said that if you're a little over don't worry about it. He said even with a writing sample that if the limit is 20 pages and you have 23 spectacular pages don't cut out things that work because you're nervous about going over. So if your statement would really suffer as a result of cramming it into a word limit, don't give it too much thought. Or at least that was the advice of this person. I feel personally really antsy about going over limits because I hate to not follow the rules on something as important as this, so definitely use your own judgment. Hope your apps go well!

I'd say that's definitely good enough. I'm in English but I've been told that this holds for comp lit as well: they literally could care less about your math scores. The admissions committee doesn't even really look at them. The only way they could help you is in university wide fellowship competitions, but that score seems to cut the mustard from what I know. A professor of mine said if you have a low GRE score (which you don't) they look at the combined and if they see that math pulled it down they ignore it. Just like if your GPA is on lower than it could be, but that's because you failed Calculus your freshman year or something silly. Honestly, I wouldn't really sweat it too much. Your math score is also well above 500, so you're not raising any major red flags.

From what I've been told, sometimes specific departments at state schools can get more funding from the university if they take people who went to the institution for undergraduate work, or are residents of the state. That said, my professors have told me in no uncertain terms that there's no way an under-qualified applicant from in-state is going to be admitted to at the expense of a candidate from outside the state who is a great fit for the program. Hope that helps!

I've been on the UPenn website for the English lit PhD program and I've noticed that they have a program where you can take classes and even go to other universities to study for a semester or a year. I looked at their recent dissertations as well and noticed that they've been advised by people at Harvard, UCLA, and Rutgers, and not just Penn faculty. I think this is awesome and really exciting and is majorly enticing me to apply to Penn. I'm just wondering if this is extraordinarily unusual, because I'm looking at other programs and I see nothing like this (even in the programs that participate in the exchange with Penn). I'm delighted simply because I have a very specific research interest in common with a professor at a university near Penn, as well as overlapping interests with Penn faculty. Basically, this appears to be a gift from heaven and I'm wondering if anybody around here knows about this/is aware of some kind of catch.

So, I'm preparing for the GRE literature exam in November. Here's what I've done: So far I've gone through both volumes of the Norton English Literature and taken extensive notes on all the author and period introductions, as well as skimming major works and reading major poems. What I'm planning to do in the final month: skim important works of non-British lit in the Nortons (World, American) make index cards from the REA and Princeton Review Lit exam prep books take all the practice exams in both review books, and the one from ETS I also plan on making index cards from a website put up by someone who very kindly wrote summaries of major works online to help people prepare for the GRE lit exam other than that: review, review, review. Here's my dilemma: I also have access to the Spark Notes books on Literature, Short Stories, Shakespeare, and Poems. I don't know if I should try to look these over too. I also don't know if my study strategy seems to be any good. If anyone who took the exam has any thoughts on this I'd appreciate it. Best of luck to everyone else who is studying for this beast! Personally, I'm feeling a little screwed

I'm just going to echo what's been said because I think it will make you feel a bit better: I was recently at a function where the graduate chair of my undergrad university (a top 20 PhD program) said that if you have a bad grade in math he could care less. He also said that what they're looking for on the transcript is something totally ridiculous (i.e. you repeatedly fail English courses), or that you took the absolute minimum English classes, etc. I wouldn't worry about it one bit. Best of luck on your applications!

the earlier you go the less competition you have to deal with. as others have said, it's a pretty terrible idea to pick a specialty on the basis of what you think will get you in programs, but it's still something to keep in mind. i'm in early american and from what i heard from my professors around 10 other people are going to be fighting me for spots in programs. engaging with material that's perceived as difficult will get you far and is also often the most rewarding. that said, a lot of people i know who are smarter and more talented than i am work in 20th century, so who knows. i don't know what aspects you wanted to deal with in each of the time periods you selected, but i've been advised that working in religion is an excellent idea that improves your job prospects and (in my opinion) makes you a well informed critic. best of luck picking a specialty it's a tough choice but you have a great list to select from.

i think you should look into rutgers. in terms of close reading, old school methodology, and general awesome-ness myra jehlen is second to none. all the professors i've been in contact with at this university foster and encourage a traditional, close reading approach. specifically, a lot of the early american scholars and 18 cen brit lit folks are on this wagon. even the younger professors who are making their names are wedded to the kinds of old school approaches that it sounds like you favor.

so, per my professor's request i sent her a copy of a writing sample i'm planning on including with my applications for lit phd programs. she is very kind about taking time for students, crafting great letters of rec etc. but she is also a rising star in the field and a very busy woman. so i sent this as an attachment and waited a solid week and didn't hear back. of course this is totally fine i didn't expect her to be refreshing her inbox a million times till i sent it then drooling over it or anything like that. i know she's got seriously important things to do. yesterday i sent an email that said "hey, i sent you an attachment of my sample last week but i know it was a pretty long paper and that kind of thing is annoying to read on a computer and if you're doing me a favor you shouldn't have to waste time/ink printing it out. i'm gonna be on campus next week if you want i'll just give you a hard copy". it was more formal than that, but you can get the basic idea i mentioned that i did that to somebody else and her reaction sort of led me to believe i'd done something rude. the LAST thing i want to do is be rude to this woman, and i was careful to write in a way i though was courteous and respectful. i kind of thought you have to be simultaneously diplomatic and pushy with professors because they have a lot on their plates and you want to stay in their faces in the least annoying way possible. was this rude and awful as my friend's reaction suggests? i know i'm over-thinking but i don't want to be a pain in the butt. i know people here have been through similar things and if anybody has suggestions about etiquette like this i'd really appreciate it.

I think you should definitely apply anyway! For what it's worth, I've been encouraged to apply to top tier programs without any knowledge of a foreign language. I'm planning on cramming in winter, spring, and summer sessions at a community college and I intend to include that as a little blurb in my statement of purpose but that's about it. There's a reason there are so many ways to fulfill the language requirement. When my grandfather was completing a PhD he picked up 2 languages all by himself before the days when so many classes and helpful options were around for students trying to get past requirement. It's do-able for sure. There are not many candidates with perfect GPAs, perfect tests scores, stellar SOPs, brilliant writing samples, who are also fluent in 2 languages. Even out of a pool of 700+ applicants, if everything else is in order you have a fighting chance. I'm applying for Fall 2010 and when I was chatting with professors about my stats, they were only interested in my GPA and GRE scores. One (perhaps silly) reason for that is these types of figures contribute to the department's stats, while language proficiency doesn't. So go for it! Best of luck to you...though I probably shouldn't wish you too much luck because I'm applying to Columbia as well

I'm trying to decide where to apply for literature PhD programs for Fall 2010. I'll be applying in the subfield of Early American lit, with an emphasis on Puritan religious culture, especially Jonathan Edwards (I could go on but I'll spare everyone the agony). I'm not rigid about finding people whose interests match mine exactly, but there seem to be comparatively few professors at each school whose interests seem to be a good fit. My question is this: Is applying to schools where only one or two professors work in your area a mistake? I'm going to find it extremely difficult NOT to do this, simply because the majority of English departments aren't packed with professors who work on this subject. Through my undergraduate career, I've been advised by professors who don't share my specific interests but work in the time period. These people have been incredibly knowledgeable, supportive, and helpful with my projects...yet I would never have known this simply by researching their publications, etc. I was just wondering if anyone else had this experience applying in a particular subfield, and if you think it's going to be a huge handicap if I don't have a big laundry list of faculty I'd want to work with right out of the gate.