klader

We will figure this out, everyone! Hopefully @lit_nerd checks back in soon
So far we've introduced ourselves, talked about our application goals, talked about our research, and keep each other updated on what  we've been accomplishing. I've been setting weekly/monthly goals and check in whenever I'm feeling good/need some extra encouragement. 
It's been helpful for me so far. Accountability is huge, and we can help each other cross the finish line! 

@urbanfarmer Thanks for the advice! If any critical approach gets mentioned, it will likely be ecocriticism. As I have said elsewhere (maybe in this thread?), I use feminist and queer theory in my writing sample, so that may be enough to convince a committee that I have some grasp of contemporary lit theory.
p.s. If you're ever near Alabama and you like beer, you should try Good People's Urban Farmer saison, if for no other reason that because has the same name as your GC account (and also because it is a great drink made by great people).

We will figure this out, everyone! Hopefully @lit_nerd checks back in soon
So far we've introduced ourselves, talked about our application goals, talked about our research, and keep each other updated on what  we've been accomplishing. I've been setting weekly/monthly goals and check in whenever I'm feeling good/need some extra encouragement. 
It's been helpful for me so far. Accountability is huge, and we can help each other cross the finish line! 

Not to make things more difficult @Keri but I'd like to join as well @lit_nerd 

I think @lit_nerd has to add them since he started the chat! I've tried everything and I have no option to add others. Sorry @klader, @punctilious and @a_sort_of_fractious_angel! I'll keep looking.

Yes! My school is in rural Ohio. There's literally nothing around for at least 20 miles, so you can spend up to $900/month getting a place in town (or get a place about an hour away, pay normal prices, and drive a ton). 
My department does give generous funding, though, with the PhD students making a bit more than 20k with opportunities for summer work. Food and gas is cheap in Ohio, but cost of living can be high if you're trying to live in town. 

·       
A few weeks ago, I was asked to talk to first-year M.A. students about the Ph.D. application process. I prepared a list of what I figure to be key elements, and I figure it might be useful to many on GC who are preparing to go down this path as well. I'm quite certain that some of these points are purely subjective and open to discussion / debate, but having gone through the process a couple of times now, these items ring true based on my experiences and observations.

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Others have surely told you about the state of the industry, so I’m just going to assume that you already know the “there are no jobs” spiel.
·        Others have also surely told you about how relatively difficult it is to get into a Ph.D. program—I have yet to hear of a program that admits over 10% of applicants.
o   Because of this, if you are committed to applying to Ph.D. programs, I strongly recommend considering applying to at least ten. Even though merit is a critical part of determining who gets in, there is a very real element of “luck of the draw” which pure numbers will help to mitigate.
·        With that in mind, NOW is a good time to get started on your program research
·        Your first consideration when entering the process should be to determine what era you would like to study, and ideally a general sense of methodologies you want to employ. These elements will be reflected in the two most important components of your application: the Statement of Purpose (or SoP), and your Writing Sample (WS).
·        Some basics:
 
o   The SoP and WS should ideally work together
o   When thinking about potential areas of study, avoid proposing transatlantic or transhistorical concepts: admissions committees are still very much set up by period, and your application should be easily sorted into a field group (i.e. you’re clearly a Romanticist, or you’re clearly a 20th century Americanist).
o   GRE scores, GPA, and other elements are important, but remember that the things you can control the most at this stage are the WS and SoP.
o   Given the importance of these two documents, you will want to get as many eyes on them as possible as soon as possible.
§  My SoP and WS were read and commented on by at least five professors and several fellow students, and ultimately went through at least six rounds of revision each—several of them top-to-bottom revisions.
·        There are multiple factors to consider when looking at programs. Some of the most important include:
 
o   Are there multiple professors actively working in your chosen field
§  By “active” I mean that you should be able to find publication credits from within the past five years—they need to be in touch with current scholarship.
o   What level of financial support do they offer—not just the annual funding, but whether they fund in summer, and how many years of funding are guaranteed
o   What courses have they offered in the past? What courses are they offering in the fall?
o   What is the teaching load like, and how do they prepare you for that load?
o   So-called rankings matter to a certain extent, but remember that those rankings are almost completely arbitrary. USNews rankings are helpful as a list of all programs offering Ph.D.s in English…and a very, very general sense of the strong programs vs. the less strong. But FIT with your interests trumps all.
§  (E.g. the Strode program at U of A is highly regarded, even though U of A itself is somewhat less so)
o   Location and cost of living. A 20k stipend will get you a lot further in Lincoln, Nebraska than in New York. And elements like small town vs. large city, cold vs. warm climate etc. are all perfectly valid factors when looking at programs. You’ll have to live in this place for 4-6 years, after all!
·        A few quick and random tips:
 
o   It can be helpful to contact professors ahead of time to determine research fit etc., but it can also be quite valuable to contact current grad students to get a sense of the program and the environment.
o   Remember that an important part of professionalization in a Ph.D. program is publication. More than anything, this means that before you go down the road toward application, give some serious thought to whether or not your writing and research inclinations have that kind of potential. And whether or not that’s something you really want to deal with at all.
o  Also remember that teaching is a huge part of your job, and always will be. If you don’t enjoy teaching (or the prospect of teaching), you’d better really love the other components of your position, because there’s not going to be any getting away from it for many, many years.
o   It might go without saying, but be very courteous in all of your communications with professors and other graduate students. And that courtesy should be sincere!
o   Consider the total cost of applications: application fees average about $75, sending GRE scores is $27 (more if you need the subject test), and if you have multiple transcripts, that can tack on another $10. In other words, each application will likely be upward of $100. Given that I recommend applying to at least ten programs, you’re looking at a commitment of over $1000. There ARE fee waivers you can find, however.
o   Forums like GradCafe are a good way to socialize with fellow applicants, and commiserate with people in the same situation. Just remember to take all advice you see on those forums with a grain of salt.
o   Finally, there are NO SAFETY SCHOOLS. Just to reiterate, rankings are arbitrary, and almost every program gets ten times as many applicants as they can admit (let alone fund). As a result, you want to look at the best overall fit for you.
 
 

Yes! My school is in rural Ohio. There's literally nothing around for at least 20 miles, so you can spend up to $900/month getting a place in town (or get a place about an hour away, pay normal prices, and drive a ton). 
My department does give generous funding, though, with the PhD students making a bit more than 20k with opportunities for summer work. Food and gas is cheap in Ohio, but cost of living can be high if you're trying to live in town. 

Hi, everyone! 
Just wanted to check back in and say that I finally found my thesis topic/what I want to study more closely. 
For those who may be reading this and who also may be lost on what they want to study in grad school, it happened like this:
I was driving back to school at the end of my spring break. I had gone to the 4 Cs conference the weekend before and listened to a ton of great talks about a myriad of things -- listened to people who actually figured out what they were doing with their lives. I'd finally secured a thesis chair who was helping me parse through ideas, and as I crossed state lines, it finally HIT me. 
I don't know how or why, but I realized what, exactly, I wanted to research, and why I care so much about it. In a lot of ways, I'd always been interested in the general idea. I'd often think about it and read other people discuss it. I just didn't know it could be an actual research topic. I'd read about related things in a course the semester before, and when I got back to school and met with my chair, we agreed my ideas were doable. A few weeks later, I was filling out IRB forms. And now I'm doing my background reading so I can start the primary research in the fall. 
You all were right. It just happens, and you know when it happens. 
Thanks again. 

I unfortunately don't know how to add people to chats, so could @lit_nerd, @Keri, @verjus, or @mk-8 please add @clinamen and @a_sort_of_fractious_angel to the chat? 

Hi everyone! Hope you're all having a great weekend! 
I applied to all of my schools today! I can't believe it! Now I just have to wait for my recommenders to send in their letters and wait around until I hear some (hopefully good) news!
 

Small town rents can be more expensive because of simple supply and demand--there's fewer available options, which means people can charge more for the things that are available. It's definitely not uncommon, though it is annoying.

Hey, @mk-8! You've got this ? I don't feel like I've gotten a ton accomplished either, but I'm gonna try and start fresh and prioritize my time. I'm trying to look at it not so much of what I haven't accomplished in my working part-time/being lazy but the opportunity I have to turn it around.
My goal was to do a bunch of thesis stuff this summer, but now I'm starting to realize that my conference presentations and PhD apps come sooner, so I may need to reorient myself. I haven't done nearly enough reading, but that's okay. My chair just has very lofty goals for me and will have to understand what else I have going on. 
And @verjus, accountability is truly key and very important! 
I'm wondering if anyone wants to set up a pm chat where we can share our plans/goals and report back to each other every so often? I'd totally be down for that

I'm not necessarily disagreeing with anyone's advice here, but I've had a few professors caution me that it's far safer to go under the page limit than over. In other words, you can submit a 20-page paper to a program asking for 20-25 pages, but NOT to a program that asks for 10-15 (there aren't many of those...but there are some). Some programs ask for 15-20. I opted to submit an 18-page paper to every program, just to strike the happy medium for all.

Hey, @mk-8! You've got this ? I don't feel like I've gotten a ton accomplished either, but I'm gonna try and start fresh and prioritize my time. I'm trying to look at it not so much of what I haven't accomplished in my working part-time/being lazy but the opportunity I have to turn it around.
My goal was to do a bunch of thesis stuff this summer, but now I'm starting to realize that my conference presentations and PhD apps come sooner, so I may need to reorient myself. I haven't done nearly enough reading, but that's okay. My chair just has very lofty goals for me and will have to understand what else I have going on. 
And @verjus, accountability is truly key and very important! 
I'm wondering if anyone wants to set up a pm chat where we can share our plans/goals and report back to each other every so often? I'd totally be down for that

Hey, @mk-8! You've got this ? I don't feel like I've gotten a ton accomplished either, but I'm gonna try and start fresh and prioritize my time. I'm trying to look at it not so much of what I haven't accomplished in my working part-time/being lazy but the opportunity I have to turn it around.
My goal was to do a bunch of thesis stuff this summer, but now I'm starting to realize that my conference presentations and PhD apps come sooner, so I may need to reorient myself. I haven't done nearly enough reading, but that's okay. My chair just has very lofty goals for me and will have to understand what else I have going on. 
And @verjus, accountability is truly key and very important! 
I'm wondering if anyone wants to set up a pm chat where we can share our plans/goals and report back to each other every so often? I'd totally be down for that

Reading the posts in this thread have made me feel incredibly behind. I've done a little bit of studying for GRE round 2, reading for my thesis, and looking up some information on programs. My list of programs is massive right now, and I'm having a hard time narrowing it down because there are tons of programs I certain aspects of, but not really others. Thesis research is also just not going anywhere because I'm not entirely sure what I want to do for that. So I'm just kind of out here floating in "IDK" land (while working part time at a summer camp), so any words of encouragement are appreciated.

@klader
You're not alone! I had a hellish end to my spring semester, and as a result I've been braindead for the past 2-3 weeks. But, realizing how much I want/need to do, I'm trying to get myself into gear by breaking things up and making myself accountable to others. I'm drafting a schedule with realistic minimum weekly targets for applications, thesis research, paper submissions, and GRE studying to make everything a bit more digestible. (I get an inordinate amount of pleasure just writing a plan down, building in tolerances, and then assessing my progress. The delight of checking things off is almost NSFW )  Also, a few of the people in my MA class are getting together for a workshop in a few weeks to read/give feedback on each other's work and ideas. Can you set up a similar group in your cohort? Otherwise, I'd be happy to participate in something online. Also, I'd also suggest returning to your plan and making sure your goals are specific, achievable, and time-bound. Sorry to sound all management-robot-like, but's just how I've learned to cope in my life as an over-anxious person.

Hey, everyone! I hope you're having a happy first part of summer ?
I've gotten really off track ? I had this marvelous plan where I'd be reading for my thesis, working on my SoP and WS, and working on two conference presentations I'm giving in the fall. However, since I got out in May, my progress has been  abysmal -- read maybe 30 pages of ONE book (I checked out like 15), have a draft of only one SoP for one school, and have a few slides/thoughts for one presentation. I've also been working at a part-time job, too, but I stopped so I can have more time for this. 
How can I better manage my time for the remainder of summer so that I make some solid progress on my apps and everything else? How are you all managing your time and getting stuff done? 

Good luck on the GRE everyone! I took mine in May. It was tough, but I felt so much relief when I got a decent score after all the studying. You can do it!

Hi y'all! I'm applying for PhD programs as an 18th-centuryist, so shout out to others in that oft-ignored period! I'm also halfway through a 2-year MA program (there are so many of us here!) This summer is drafting my PS and editing my WS - and beginning work on my thesis of course. 

I'm biased, but Miami of Ohio is great because we have an endowed writing center worth millions and Elizabeth Wardle. Good and big things happen with Liz. Plus she's simply an amazing human being and professor. There's also a business writing center that offers some great WAC/WID opportunities, and there are assistant director of comp positions, too. 
I can offer a lot more specific info over pm, if you'd be interested! 
ETA: U Delaware is great, too. Melissa Ianetta is awesome and gets. shit. done. Very thorough, and funny too! I'm possibly applying there myself, although the program seems to be more lit-focused than I'm looking for. 

I'm biased, but Miami of Ohio is great because we have an endowed writing center worth millions and Elizabeth Wardle. Good and big things happen with Liz. Plus she's simply an amazing human being and professor. There's also a business writing center that offers some great WAC/WID opportunities, and there are assistant director of comp positions, too. 
I can offer a lot more specific info over pm, if you'd be interested! 
ETA: U Delaware is great, too. Melissa Ianetta is awesome and gets. shit. done. Very thorough, and funny too! I'm possibly applying there myself, although the program seems to be more lit-focused than I'm looking for. 

Hey, all!! I just finished the first year of my MA and will be applying for comp/rhet PhD programs this fall. 
I've been MIA on this forum lately due to adjusting to grad school, but I found my groove and am ready to participate here again this application season. It really helped me out last year applying to MA programs.
So far my tentative list is Miami of Ohio, Ohio State, Bowling Green, Syracuse, Purdue, Michigan State, and East Carolina. I'm still looking more closely at these programs, though, and will probably change and expand my list as I go. 
I'm also trying to get ahead on my thesis this summer, so this should be fun. 
Next year I'll have an administrative assistantship and won't be teaching in the fall, so that might help with apps? I will be very busy still, though. Just a different kind of busy. 

I love university gyms and their group fitness classes!! The school I did my master's at also had wonderful PE classes open to all students. I'd take four PE classes every term (about two hours a day, four days a week total).
I had been overweight since elementary school. I had never even been able to jog a single mile nonstop, and exercise of any kind made me feeling sick in ten minutes and would leave me winded and unable to function for the entire day. But by the end of my master's, I was deemed petite and muscular. I was able to run 10K races no problem and take military conditioning as a class (training with the cadets). I found a love for kickboxing and eventually found that even after an hour or two of intense exercise, I'd still be fully functional again within five minutes, as if nothing had happened, save the occasional bit of muscle fatigue.
I kinda stopped exercising again after moving to France, but I fully intend to get back into it when I start school again. Fortunately I didn't gain too much weight this year, from what I tell. My new school unfortunately won't have PE classes to take, but I will take advantage of gym membership and use it to participate in group exercise classes. I've never had a passion for exercise, so those classes really help with motivation.