klader

In my experience, not really. I didn't reach out to anyone for my MA and it was fine; I reached out to a few for my PhD and it was fine, too. 
I've found that reaching out to profs is more necessary in the sciences, where your funding is usually tied to a prof's research & a grant they may have to support their lab. In English, your funding is usually from the department and you usually teach or work in a writing center (or a combo of both). 
I'm sure it wouldn't hurt if you sent a quick "I'm applying and I'm really interested in x that you do" or to ask a question about something, but I wouldn't expect it to necessarily give you a distinct advantage. Someone may remember your name from it and may be on the committee, or they may not be. 

Hang in there! First few weeks are scary. My program had a really intense TA training that met every day for several hours, so I was completely drained during & after it. 
What I will say is that after finishing the intense training, everything felt easier. I had classes only a couple times a week and could spread out my reading; I taught only a couple times a week and had some space to leave an assignment description alone for a few days and think about how I wanted to write it. 
Once you get into an established routine during the regular semester, things will start to feel "normal." But it is absolutely overwhelming at first. I'm sure your cohort feels similarly, too, so I'd recommend reaching out to them, as you are all going through this together. 
Best of luck! 

Hey there! Re: GRE, I feel like this really depends by school, but I'll share my experience (even though I'm in comp/rhet and this might vary): scored like 150 on BOTH Q and V, along with a 5 on writing. Yiiiikes. Took it only one time the fall of my senior year of college before I applied to MA programs. I was 5/6 that cycle, with 4 funded offers. 
When I applied to PhD programs for Fall 2018, I didn't retake the GRE. I had agonized about it, but instead of studying that summer to take a standardized test, I worked on my SoP, researched programs, and drafted an article I eventually got published (and that I could put on my CV come December for apps). In the end, I got into all 6 PhD programs I applied to (4 pretty established programs, two less so) and also had 3 fellowship offers. 
I say this not to brag but to share that it IS possible to have application success with low GRE scores. At least in my experience with the 6 schools I applied to, my writing sample and SoP and letters of rec outweighed my scores. And my scores did not get me thrown out of the running. I was a good fit, and they recognized that. A friend of mine in literature had a similar experience. She didn't retake her GRE and also got into several programs and had fellowship offers. 
With that being said, though, if you can spare the time and money to retake it and if that'll help make you feel better, go ahead! I was dreading the retake, so I decided to forego it and just work on the rest of my materials. You have to do what's best for you. 
Good luck! 

Also, I want to add that after you start your Master's and explore your interests, you may not want to apply to a certain school, because your interests may change, there may a prof you  really want to work with somewhere else, etc. So, visiting now may not be as helpful. 
Just anecdotally, when I started my MA, I was like "YES I want to apply to schools x, y, and z next time" but then I found "My Thing" the fall of my second year that completely rocked my world. This Thing is different than my Previous Thing, so my list of schools changed significantly. I ended up staying where I did my MA because the profs there were doing My Thing in a way no one else in any other program is, but I wouldn't have been so keen to stay if I hadn't found this particular thing. 
So, if you want to get a head start visiting, maybe think about next summer, but for now, maybe ease up on the research and just focus on finding (or solidifying) Your Thing(s) that will become extremely important when you apply to programs but, perhaps more importantly, when you choose one. 

Yes, all good things to take into consideration! For sure. I just thought I'd chime in for future applicants who may stumble upon this thread. I think a really good thing to do is ask current students in programs you are considering about how long people have taken to graduate, and what the culture is like, as well placement rate as such. 

Hi - it shouldn't be a problem at all. I never stayed the full length of any of the 5 conferences I attended. 
Conferences are very much "get out what you put in," in that no one is taking attendance and you're not required to do anything but give your paper. 
Although, if there are panels that could be relevant to your work, it would behoove you to attend them (it's also nice to have an audience as a presenter - I've seen some morning panels with 1-2 people aside from the participants which can be a bit of a bummer.)
It is also nice to network if you're able (there's usually a big reception at the end or the beginning and smaller ones throughout that can be fun.)
That being said, it's fine to structure the conference around your time/financial constraints - I had to arrive and leave the same day for one conference, so I was only able to give my paper and then listen to one other talk, and no one cared. 

Hey there! Re: GRE, I feel like this really depends by school, but I'll share my experience (even though I'm in comp/rhet and this might vary): scored like 150 on BOTH Q and V, along with a 5 on writing. Yiiiikes. Took it only one time the fall of my senior year of college before I applied to MA programs. I was 5/6 that cycle, with 4 funded offers. 
When I applied to PhD programs for Fall 2018, I didn't retake the GRE. I had agonized about it, but instead of studying that summer to take a standardized test, I worked on my SoP, researched programs, and drafted an article I eventually got published (and that I could put on my CV come December for apps). In the end, I got into all 6 PhD programs I applied to (4 pretty established programs, two less so) and also had 3 fellowship offers. 
I say this not to brag but to share that it IS possible to have application success with low GRE scores. At least in my experience with the 6 schools I applied to, my writing sample and SoP and letters of rec outweighed my scores. And my scores did not get me thrown out of the running. I was a good fit, and they recognized that. A friend of mine in literature had a similar experience. She didn't retake her GRE and also got into several programs and had fellowship offers. 
With that being said, though, if you can spare the time and money to retake it and if that'll help make you feel better, go ahead! I was dreading the retake, so I decided to forego it and just work on the rest of my materials. You have to do what's best for you. 
Good luck! 

Hello and welcome! 
I'm not sure off-hand about set threads talking about R/C writing samples (hopefully others can dig some up), but I can speak briefly here to my own experiences. Even though I had plenty of R/C writing from my BA and MA in the field, I decided to write a brand new writing sample in December, from a seminar paper I was writing. So, not a lot of time, and even though everything worked out for me, I wish I'd have had more time to think through my ideas. It's smart you are thinking about this early. 
I asked my professor, and she supported the idea because the paper represented something I was really interested in and that (admittedly) was pushing a few theories and movements. Conventional wisdom says you should try to pair your WS with your personal statement/established research agenda and identity, but I don't know if that's necessarily what you HAVE to do. Some programs really just want to see you carry an argument and demonstrate knowledge in your field, even if that argument is not linked to what you want to study. No one will EVER (or should ever) hold you to what you write about in your WS and personal statement anyway, so I'm generally a fan of submitting what you think is your best work/most interesting work/etc. 
For my MA, I submitted something that demonstrated my knowledge of rhetoric; for the PhD, it was all comp/WPA. This definitely might depend on which program you are applying to (some places may need more of a specific sub-field than others, or you may have more competition in one sub-field than others), but I feel like your WS helps the adcomm "brand" you in that way, too. For one school, I was literally put in the "WPA pile" bc of what I had written about in my WS. Part of me wonders if I still would have gotten in if I had, say, gone all in with rhetorical history or something. You just never know. 
Just a few thoughts I have about it! Again, hopefully someone can dig up the wealth of threads that are likely already in existence. 

Exactly this! The mentors in my program told me to choose a PhD program based on faculty who are interested in my work and who can offer some expertise, though not necessarily know every single thing about it. For example, if you're in comp/rhet and you want to study writing program administration, it's good to have faculty in your program who have knowledge, experience, scholarship, etc. in that general area. They may not be experts in the exact WPA area you study (maybe they work on first-year writing administration and you want to focus on capstone courses or something), but they should be knowledgeable and helpful enough to guide your research. 
No one in my program does *exactly* what I want to do, but they do similar things that help me do my things, and that's perfect for me. Just enough guidance that I need to move forward. And they knew that when they admitted me from the way I wrote about it in my SoP. 

That's a different matter altogether and neither here nor there. As a graduate student, your aim needs to be to write articles that can get published in peer-reviewed journals, not to unsettle the assumption that only single-authored publications are the goal. As a graduate student, you have limited time and resources. You need to make the most of that time so you can put yourself in a good position for the job market.
 
Again, same idea applies. Edited book volumes are nice, but they do not carry the same weight as an article in a peer-reviewed journal when one is on the job market. 
 
But this is your institution. And again, we're not talking about the field in general but about what will help a particular graduate student maximize their time in graduate school, and it's still widely accepted in English that a graduate student should not "throw a publication away" on an edited collection or to try to co-author an article.
FTR, I *do* encourage attending conferences. If nothing else, they get you ready for a very crucial part of your career. They also prepare you for job talks. I just think that some of the information being thrown around here is not useful for a beginning-level English graduate student, and by "some" I mean just a small portion. 

Yes! I totally agree that people should generally resist and avoid adjuncting, as it's become a huge problem and is exploitative. We had a guest lecture talk to one of my classes about this very issue last year, and he said that the only way he thinks we can change the adjunct situation is if people flat-out refuse to do them, because then universities will be faced with a crisis and may have to consider offering more secure positions (perhaps that's an optimistic view; in my pessimistic view, I'm sure they'd find some other way to exploit labor). 
But, I digress... 
Discussions of adjuncting aside, I do think it's valuable to get more teaching experience not necessarily for the PhD application, but for also for job applications. If you have a few years of teaching under your belt before you start your PhD, then you have some solid experience, CV lines, and student evals. Then, when you get to the PhD, you can maybe branch out and do more administrative assistantships, research assistantships, etc. And be on fellowship and not have to worry as much about not gaining teaching experience. 
Part of me wishes I had taken a year or two (like some of my colleagues did) to teach for a while and gain more experience that way. I do a lot of administrative work now, and I fear I'll go on the market without enough teaching experience, as admin work at my university lightens your teaching load. 
Anyway, my advice is to teach (in a good situation/setup) if you want/if it's feasible for you, but perhaps don't view it as much as "getting into a PhD program" but gaining skills and experiences that can help you throughout your academic career.
Best of luck! 

Exactly this! The mentors in my program told me to choose a PhD program based on faculty who are interested in my work and who can offer some expertise, though not necessarily know every single thing about it. For example, if you're in comp/rhet and you want to study writing program administration, it's good to have faculty in your program who have knowledge, experience, scholarship, etc. in that general area. They may not be experts in the exact WPA area you study (maybe they work on first-year writing administration and you want to focus on capstone courses or something), but they should be knowledgeable and helpful enough to guide your research. 
No one in my program does *exactly* what I want to do, but they do similar things that help me do my things, and that's perfect for me. Just enough guidance that I need to move forward. And they knew that when they admitted me from the way I wrote about it in my SoP. 

It is a HUGE faux pas to ask to read them. Don't do it. Those letters are not meant for you to read and they were written with the expectation that you would never see them.
Unless they offer to show them to you, don't ever mention wanting to see them. 

Sure. But you might need to play the game to some extent if you want to make progress in academia. I don't think (graduate) conferences are the worst part of professionalization in our domain... 

Fwiw: I directly asked one of the PhD programs I was admitted to this year if my conferences helped me get in. The DGS told me that, sure, it looked good, but what REALLY got me in was the quality of my writing sample, letters of rec, and personal statement. 
So, from my experience at least, it's good to go to a few, but it does not necessarily make or break an application. I had fun going to conferences during my MA, and I met a lot of people through the PhD students who were also at the conferences, as well as my profs. I even ran into profs from the schools I was considering for the PhD during a major conference in March, which was kinda awk and nerve-wracking but generative nonetheless. 
But in my experience, I think you should really only go to a conference if you WANT to and if you have something you really want to present. My most stressful conference experiences were ones I applied to bc I felt like I HAD to go, and where I presented brand new papers I wrote specifically for them (and on top of everything else I was doing). The best conferences are ones where I'm really excited about attending and whose calls/themes/my presentation fits nicely with stuff I've already been working on. 
Just my $0.02!

Hi! I'm finishing my MA in comp/right this semester, and will be continuing on for the PhD at my school. I also have a BA in comp/rhet, so I can't really speak to anything capital-L since my education thus far has not dealt with it. But from my time in my MA program, here's my take:
I feel like an MA in comp/rhet is what you make it. Comp/rhet is an interdisciplinary field by nature, as it feels social sciencey as well something that belongs in the humanities. It straddles both. In my program, people typically continue onto the PhD/writing positions in education afterwards, and there's a big focus on pedagogy. Comp/rhet is often seen as a practical field where theories and research projects have a "so what" related back to teaching and our everyday practices. I've caught myself really entrenched in this, and expecting this of other disciplines. 
That said, you also can learn skills that will serve you well in a variety of situations, depending on your program. If it's digital-focused, for example, you can learn some cool web design or programming or other stuff. There was a digital comp grad seminar offered at my school this semester where students learned how to use different kinds of programs (yes-- also embedded in "here's how your students and your teaching could benefit from them" ) 
What is your end goal? Time in an MA program can help you figure that out, too. Like you, I worked at a writing center during undergrad, and I fell in love with helping writers work through their writing and achieve their goals. I felt fulfilled in a way I never had before, and when I taught my first class, I still liked it and realized that a PhD was the only path I wanted to take. Sounds so cheesy and romantic, but you just "know" sometimes. 
But I allowed myself time during the MA to feel it out. I knew by the end of my first year, and I faced some hurdles last semester and seriously questioned my decisions. But then it turned around this semester, and I'm again excited and eager to continue on. 
Best of luck! 

This is officially my favorite thread on this forum! I applied and got in!!!!!!!!!!!!! ?

I'm officially staying at Miami of Ohio to pursue my PhD in comp/rhet! ?
I am soooo excitedddd, and I feel such a weight lifted off me now that I've decided. I feel seriously so much less stressed. This process stretched out for quite a long time because I just didn't know what I wanted... Until I did, and until I realized I already had it all along (*insert cliché feels*).  
I'm ready to start PhDing!!!!! 

Your post ratio on this board so far: 
1 exceedingly long post asking an entirely ordinary question that's been answered on the board dozens of times
2 posts complaining about the tone of the (helpful!) responses you got, tone-policing others 
0 posts thanking posters who took the time to help you
0 posts updating us about how our advice worked out 
0 posts helping others in any way 
I'd personally aim to make a slightly different impression.

Thank you for everyone who weighed in here! I got a lot of great advice that helped me out while I was making my final decision. 
I have accepted my offer from the University of Kentucky and am now enrolled there. I'm looking forward to starting the program!
And I emailed Purdue to let them know I'm not coming. I felt terrible doing it--they were so nice--but I hope my doing so can help out someone else. And I had to do what was right for me. 
Thanks again, everyone! You were all lifesavers! 

I ended up committing to Syracuse!

I got in off the waitlist to my program!!!
I contacted CUNY first thing this morning to decline my offer, so I hope someone gets some good news today if not tomorrow!

Holy expletive. After four months of anxiety, I finally got my answer: Accepted at UConn off the waitlist (English Ph.D. with Rhet/Comp research specialization, full funding for six years). I'm completely overwhelmed. I got an email about fifteen minutes ago, followed by a phone call from the DGS (what a genuinely nice conversation that was). Now all that's left is to wait for my wife to get home so we can have the discussion we've been putting off because it hasn't been real until just now.
Thanks to everybody who's shared their experiences over the last four years that I've been a lurker/member. This group has made the entire process bearable.
Just FYI, if anybody's still waiting on UConn, the DGS said that they had an "crazy (unusually crazy) admissions cycle" with a lot of people not responding to their initial offers until the last second. He said my email was the first of three that would be going out. Best of luck to anybody still waiting.

Officially committed to Syracuse for an English MA! Very excited 

I'm officially staying at Miami of Ohio to pursue my PhD in comp/rhet! ?
I am soooo excitedddd, and I feel such a weight lifted off me now that I've decided. I feel seriously so much less stressed. This process stretched out for quite a long time because I just didn't know what I wanted... Until I did, and until I realized I already had it all along (*insert cliché feels*).  
I'm ready to start PhDing!!!!!