caught_between

OMG, Congrats!!!! So they DID start notifying today! Now I am a zillion times more nervous, auughh. Can I ask, did your email come directly from Grad Division, or from the English Dept? Also, has your status on the Gradsis Login page changed, as well? So many questions, sorry! Just want to know what I might expect!

::Gasp!:: I see an acceptance from UC Riverside on the results search! Commence heart stopping & terrified worrying in 3, 2, 1 . . .

Uggghhhhh! Throughout the months of February & March?! God in heaven, why does it keep changing? And why the hell is it so vague? I don't even know what to think anymore. When I checked the UCR results over the past few years, all of them starting coming in sometime during Feb, so I am still hoping it will be by the end of this month (like she told me this morning).

This is true, however I am currently an M.A. student in the CSU system, and because Prop 30 passed, they did not have to move forward with raising tuition again. In fact, they refunded us a portion of our Fall '12 tuition (which was based on the proposed increase). Not to mention, our English department received additional funding this semester to reinstate 4 TA positions for large lecture Intro to Lit classes as well as added 10% more classes to the Spring schedule. Definitely much more than any of us anticipated, especially so soon. So, in lieu of all of that, it seemed reasonable to me that similar budget increases would be occuring in the UC system. Sebastiansteddy and Patientagony: your guess is as good as mine as to why we have to wait TWO MORE WEEKS to hear a decision that's already been made!! After she told me that, I think she could hear the disappointment in my voice, and added something to the extent of "there were 100 applicants, remember, so there's a lot to get organized." Based on this comment, it sounds like a staffing issue--like they don't have enough admin staff to update and send everything through?? I have no idea . . . !!! But, she did say "BY the end of the month," so that still could mean responses can go out anytime. Just that we won't have to suffer longer than the end of the month, I guess. Auuuugghh.

For those of you waiting on UC Riverside: I called Tina this morning and she told me all decisions have been made. Applicants will hear responses by the end of the month. I specifically asked if that was also the case for rejections & waitlisted applicants, and she told me yes, everyone will hear a decision, regardless. [This was good info for me, because like The Whistler mentioned, I detest being in purgatory -- just f*#&@*$ tell us if we're rejected / waitlisted already]. She also mentioned that they received 105 applications and only had 12 positions available. I was a bit surprised there were only 12, since Prop 30 passed and everyone is celebrating their long-awaited budget increases. As such, I figured there would be more like 15 positions available. A negligible difference, yes, but a difference all the same . . . sigh.

Well, that is definitely positive--that he offered up the info without you asking. I'm pretty sure he was referring to the fact that they will be informing applicants (not making final decisions). I failed to clarify in my post that Tina also said that decisions had already been made, and that applicants would hear a response within 3 weeks.

Hmm. A friend of mine called UCR last Friday (2/8), and Tina told her that decisions would go out within the next 3 weeks (!!!). I certainly hope your grad student connection is right; I honestly cannot focus on ANYTHING anymore, as UCR is my top choice and I simply need to know. NOW.

Question about commuting: I live in San Diego, and don't plan on moving (husband has well-paying and advancing career here - something pretty precious in today's economy, and we also just bought a home). I am considering attending UCR for an English PhD. Has anyone commuted regularly from SD to Riverside, or vice versa? How was it? Keep in mind I will not be commuting during rush hour, and I will only be doing it three times a week at most. I'd appreciate any insight. Thanks! ~S.

Thanks Star! Great idea about trying to acquire a TA position...I will certainly attempt to do that. I live in San Diego which is not as expensive as NYC or SF, but my half of the rent is $950/month. My fiance and I rent a house for $1,900/month which is a very good deal here. We are also looking to buy in the next year, and with housing prices so low, there are plenty of options in our price range. I don't anticipate our mortgage (even everything included - tax, insurance, PMI) to total more than our current monthly rent. I also have a car payment, gas, utilities & groceries in addition to that which brings my total bills to about $1,500/month. Then I factored in about $500 for free spending. However, this is solely if I go by "my half" of things. Next year when my fiance and I get married, we will combine our money, and since he has a job that pays pretty well, I likely won't have to spend $2,000 a month of my inheritance. I was just trying to throw out the maximum spending situation. I realize that PhD stipends are around $1,200/month after taxes, and so I anticipte that contribution should be fine as long as he and I are combining our money. At least I would still be contributing half the mortgage and bills. Thanks again for the TA advice!

Thanks for the advice, but I really, really do not want to work and go for my M.A. I have dragged out my B.A. for years and years doing the work/school thing. And, as I mentioned above, I never seem to be able to fully commit to school because I have to work. I know $50,000 may sound like a lot for an M.A., but I am factoring in living expenses for two years. It's really not that extraordinary, all things considered. Tuition is $6,500/year for the state school I have in mind: $13,000 (2 years). Then, living expenses for 9 months per year for two years at $2,000/month (includes rent, bills, and spending) = $36,000. Investing half the money and taking out loans for the other half may be an option, as the previous poster stated. I should probably talk to a financial advisor. But the bottom line is that I am going to try anything not to work while doing my M.A. I have largely been unsuccessful at the work/school thing, as I always have to have a job with tons of responsibility if I intend to make more than $10/hr (and for working to even be worth it financially, for that matter).

Presumably in the next year sometime, I will be receiving an inheritance from my grandfather for +/- $50,000 (it's taking a while to wrap up his estate). I would like to use this for grad school, presumably for my M.A., since it looks like my chances of being accepted directly into a Ph.D. program are pretty slim. It has always been my dream to do my graduate work full-time while not working, so that I can (for once!!!) really throw myself into the program. In the past, for financial reasons, I've always had to have a job, and it's constantly hindered me from performing my best scholastically. I'd like to emphasize that my level of performance in this M.A. program will be of the utmost importance, specifically because I will be relying upon that to eventually get me into a decent Ph.D. program. This $50,000 will (just barely) cover the cost of tuition and me not working for 2 years. Should I do it? The obvious answer seems like yes, but that is $50,000 (well, more like $35,000, if I were to use it to pay only tuition, and then work) I could be putting in the bank. I am not well-off and neither is my family, so $50,000 is a huge sum of money to me. It makes me cringe to think none will be leftover after my degree. I will already have about $40,000 in undergrad gov't loans when I graduate with my B.A. in May, by the way.

rising_star, thank you for your input! This gives me even better perspective.

tlsaborido, thanks so much for posting this. Like charles mingus, I am also in a nearly identical situation as you. I'm not an English major (minor only), my undergrad institution is also of laughable quality, and my grades are not exceptional, merely average; I'll have a 3.7-3.8 average in my English courses when I graduate with my BA in May. However, it was a great help to read everyone's answers here. I would definitely prefer to enroll directly in the Ph.D. program, mostly because of cost (I already have enough undergrad loans as it is) but also because I feel like the M.A.-before-Ph.D. can work against you, as I've read on this forum. But perhaps in our situation, it would help "ready" us for a Ph.D. program. I am admittedly quite worried about my writing sample and my SoP. The longest paper I've ever written in my undergrad career is 15 pages, and even though I earned an A with a good deal of praise, I, like you, take that with a grain of salt coming from the quality of my undergrad institution. I am wondering exactly what it takes for one to produce a mind-blowing SoP if it's been suggested that one need enter an M.A. program to gain the skills to do so (if they have little formal experience, like you or me)?? Same with the writing sample. I am at a total loss as to what either of those should encompass! :/

Thank you all for your information - I do really appreciate you taking the time to answer me and offer your advice and/or share your experience. It sounds to me like perhaps it would be best if I pursue my M.A. before applying to the Ph.D. programs. After all, this would give me a chance to really stand out amongst fellow applicants as well as work on my graduate-level foreign language requirement. My intention was to apply to both SDSU's M.A. program and UCSD's Ph.D. program in 2010 for Fall 2011 admission and see what happens. I'm quite settled in San Diego at the moment, and so that is why I'm applying for admission only at San Diego schools. I have a good feeling that I will at the very least be accepted to SDSU's M.A. program, so not too worried about that. I realize, however, that in the future I will likely have to branch out. I'm just not ready yet to relocate as of yet, especially since my fiance and I are currently in the process of buying a house! ~S.

Thanks for the head's up. The deepest I can dig into the site regarding the language requirement is the FAQ section, which states the following: I do not speak a foreign language. Can I start studying one once I get into the Program? Once you are in the program, it is very difficult to start learning a language. Learning a language requires many hours of study, and you run the risk of getting behind in the program. What is the language requirement for the PhD program? Students entering UCSD's Ph.D. program are expected to demonstrate a graduate-level working knowledge of a language other than that of their specialization. For French, German, Spanish and Italian, this is generally construed to mean at least two years of undergraduate study; for Latin and Greek, at least three years; for Chinese, at least four years. Ph.D. students are required to take at least two seminars in a language other than that of their intended specialization. (The Comparative Literature section requires seminars or the equivalent in two foreign languages). Competence in reading, understanding, and interpreting both literary and critical texts in a second language, and --when appropriate--ability to follow seminar discussions or lectures in a second or third language must be demonstrated by the end of the sixth quarter of study. These guidelines did not seem particulary stringent or selective to me. I'm not saying that they aren't, I'm just saying I didn't interpret it to be so. As I said, I am already average in Spanish, and in 1.5 years time (from the time I finish my bachelor's to the time I would begin the program), I'm sure I could become fluent and familiar with the literature, if I apply myself. I do not intend to major in Comparative Lit; I intend to major in English Lit. Thus, fluency would be required in only one other language, which would be Spanish. Another FAQ that caused me to be dubious about their selectivity is the following: Do I need a BA in Literature to apply to the Graduate Program?

 You do not need a BA in Literature, but most of our students have a strong background in Literature, Theory, and/or Cultural Studies. It would be to your advantage to take classes in Literature before you apply. Perhaps they are simply being "nice", but saying something to the effect of "it would be to your advantage" to have taken one or two Literature classes in the past didn't seem like particularly harsh admission requirements. Also, they don't require the GRE Lit Analytical, which I don't understand. Wouldn't a highly selective school at least require that? I have admitted I am a newbie to this entire process, so I don't mean to offend or come off with an attitude, I am simply asking because I am unfamiliar with the process. ~Sarah