driftlake
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Posts posted by driftlake
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No word from CMU either? Seems like a few programs are still keeping quiet...
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It's not the same situation as those posting above, I realize, but I figure I'll add my voice in support and to emphasize that those above are definitely not alone in experiencing such predicaments.
I have lived in a different part of the country than my boyfriend for the last six years due to school. We see each other for about eight weeks each year. We have been talking for years about finally living in, you know, the same state, but I'm planning currently planning to pursue my PhD, which means I'll spend another 4-5 years away from him--again. So I can sympathize with those who are torn, feel guilty, or just wish they could resolve things favorably for all involved.
I mean, it would be really wonderful to be two guys sharing a house rather than two guys separated by a half a country and a dodgy internet connection. Still, I've found that, despite some difficult times, a few years in a less-than-ideal situation isn't forever; we choose to change our lives when we enter a program, and we can choose to change them again when those programs end. All choices feel bigger, messier, and more intimidating when you're trying to make them. Pay attention to your feelings, have candid conversations, and try to not make big choices over the phone. At least use a video screen. It makes a difference when you can see the people with whom you're making the choice, I think.
I certainly can't give advice about making those choices, but I can say that I totally sympathize and I sincerely hope it works out in a way that helps your relationships prosper.
Seriously, my thoughts go out to anyone in this or a related situation.
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Interesting. I've heard only good things about both programs, which is why it's such a difficult choice. I'll do some exploring--thanks.
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Agreed--MSU really does provide an amazing range of options for its students, it seems. I finished my MA last year in an English department, and I agree--it has some limitations. The lack of rhet courses is agonizing...
EDITED to ask: Is there a resource out there/on this forum with aggregated info on various programs? I know there are some wikis and some surveys, but nothing I've found from the last few years...
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Hi all,
I thought it might be useful to have a thread in which people can pose comparative scenarios about the programs they're entertaining and/or have been accepted to. At least for me, it's helpful to think about programs against one another rather than each alone. I get the sense that we have a pretty diverse group of people with a great deal of knowledge, so it might be nice to gather some of that in one place.
However, If this exists somewhere and I missed it, please ignore.
I am currently considering two PhD programs in particular, Michigan State's Writing Rhetoric and American Cultures and the University of Minnesota's Rhetoric, Scientific, and Technical Communication. My advisor has suggested that WRAC emphasizes production and hands-on work whereas RSTC emphasizes a more theoretical rhetoric of a given field. She also suggested that RSTC would be a stronger program for technical writing, Michigan State (possibly) for digital rhetoric.
I'm interested in digital rhetoric more than technical communication, but I'm also more intrigued by the rhetoric of science and memory than the production side of things. Anyone have any advice? I'm curious to know what folks here think, either specifically or generally. What do folks think of these two programs?
Thanks for feedback, and please feel free to post your own quandaries or scenarios as well.
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Well, I'm probably not qualified to comment on getting into top programs, as I'm honestly not certain what constitutes a top program in digital rhetoric even at this point. But I do have a couple thoughts based on coaching writers with their personal statements for a number of years. Based on conversations with faculty and admissions committees, I think there are a couple things that we all can miss when writing our statements. These are things that ultimately promote that ephemeral thing called "fit." I'm not saying that you can just create fit from nothing--and, yeah, that's often something known only to the program--but you can certainly make a few moves to help show programs why you could be a genuinely good fit:
--As others have said, mention faculty you would like to work with, mention courses that interest you, mention groups or projects that you would love to be part of, and/or talk about what personal research projects you would like to do in the program. People are rarely as specific in their statements as they could be, and I include myself in that.
Also, folks stress out big time about how to mention faculty they want to work with. "Dr. X would fit my interests and be a great candidate for working with me" is never as good as "At X program, I would really like to work with Dr. X, whose work on raises questions that intrigue me." In other words, don't put faculty into your sentence in a way that makes them seem to fit you. This was a major paranoia for me as tone can be so hard to create and/or judge. Others will pick up on tonal things you never noticed, though, so pester them for help.
So, I don't know. I'm just going from what I've seen and the things I've heard. But as viviandarkbloom said, faculty will see ways you fit their program that you never will, so be candid and honest and show your enthusiasm, but do so genuinely. When you care and are honest, it shows.
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I can't recommend Firefly or (particularly) Breaking Bad enough, but I haven't seen Buffy or House of Cards. It seems like a long silence from programs at the moment. Guess I should start watching Netflix again, too...
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I'm glad that Professor Schneider gave you that information. It's almost worth posting elsewhere-- it demonstrates more of what people are talking about when they talk about fit and departmental need. It also goes to show how much chance there really is in this process; there are so many things that are out of your control.
So I'm not sure if I'm the best person to assess such things, driftlake, but I'll try. Part of the reason that we have less of a specific character is that we're the oldest PhD program in rhet/comp (depending, a bit-- Carnegie Mellon could also make that claim) and one of the largest. A lot of programs focus in more specific areas because they have a smaller faculty and smaller number of grad students, so they try to define their areas more narrowly. That isn't better or worse; it's just different. That said, I'm surprised that you don't think we have a strong digital focus-- Pat Sullivan came initially from computer science, Sam Blackmon does a lot of games and interface research and minority rhetorics, Nate Johnson does informatics and databases. But yeah-- we have a broad set of interests so people look at many different things. Rick Johnson-Sheehan does both classical rhetoric and science communication, Michael Salvo does digital rhet and professional/technical writing, Pat does feminism, the modern period, and research methodology, Jenny Bay does a lot of theory and feminism, Thomas Rickert is a big theory and philosophy guy, etc.
We do graduate a ton of WPAs who go on to work in that capacity; it's something of our bread and butter. Sadly, Linda Bergmann passed away this winter, but we're conducting a hire right now to fill her position in the Writing Lab, OWL, and in WPA theory. Many of our graduates go into technical communication and business writing. Actually, empirical might be traditionally an area we haven't done quite as much with, but that's changed a lot, and with Pat having written Opening Spaces, we have a good background there. I'm in quantitative research and computerized textual processing myself, which is rare both here and in the field generally.
As far as the Midwest phenomenon goes, I think that is more of a rhet/comp phenomenon than a Purdue specific thing. This is slowly changing, but the field is still dominantly found in the Midwest, with some exceptions. Part of the reason that we're focused more in the Midwest is because we put a lot of people in separate rhet/comp programs. At many schools, people are joining English departments to be the sole compositionist in the department. Finally, recognize that while there are lots of jobs in the East because of the huge number of colleges in the east, in terms of percentages, there's still far fewer rhet/comp jobs per college in the Northeast than there are in the Midwest. Many of the colleges back east are private schools with much more traditional, literature-focused English departments, and by and large they don't hire compositionists. Hope this makes sense.
Actually, my image of the program was that it did indeed have a strong digital focus, which is part of why I applied. I'd recently heard to the contrary, which is why I was hoping to hear a bit more, and I think you confirmed my initial impression. As always, thanks for the very enlightening commentary. Extremely helpful, and I hope my comment didn't seem to disparage Purdue--I reread it and it might have seemed critical when I merely meant to inquire.
BowTiesAreCool, that makes sense as well. There is certainly a link between engineering and writing even at my program, which is pretty small. All of the programs I'm looking at are Midwestern ones at this point, too...
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Last night, I was diligently adding to a massive spreadsheet of data about the schools to which I applied when I realized that of all the programs, Purdue is the one I just don't have a full grasp of. Perhaps because of their size and diverse offerings, I'm having a hard time pinning down their identity or its fit with my interests. Any insight on this front? I've heard from Purdue grads that they don't do much with digital work or science rhetoric, and if I had to pin down my work, I'd describe it as happening at the meeting point of digital rhetoric, science rhetoric, and remembrance rhetoric. Still, I've always thought of it as a very well-respected school, but it looks like many of their grads take jobs in the Midwest, South, or West, and I'm definitely looking on going East, East, East. Any thoughts? I really want to give the program a full consideration.
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I was waitlisted by Syracuse this morning, which is difficult news for me to handle as I'm currently visiting the program at MSU. These are my top two choices, and I echo the waitlist confusion that folks on this thread have mentioned. It's from my understanding that most people accept their admission offers at Syracuse, though I may be wrong about that.
Hey! I don't know if I'll come up in any context, but I'm the one weird guy who couldn't visit MSU this weekend and visited last weekend. Hope it's a good time and sorry I missed it!
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Remember that Purdue releases acceptances in batches over a period of time, including through March, so don't panic if you haven't heard anything yet.
Good to know. I don't want to cause mass panic.
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Heads up--I don't know if anyone has mentioned this, but Purdue is now making offers.
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Hey, dmariebelle. This is unlikely to make you feel better, but I received an emailed rejection from Syracuse today too. It's a small program, and they only admit one person per focus/area within rhetoric each year. I feel like it was a long shot for me, at least, especially since my focus and theirs are least aligned of the schools to which I applied.
Do you have other programs you're applying to?
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I reckon you're right. Which is unfortunate.
On a semi-related note, I'm struck by how much more URI offers than programs such as MSU or UMN. I'm sure cost of living is a factor, but still--MSU and UMN both offer less than what I received as an MA at a very small program.
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How soon did you get that after the initial decision? Was it snail mail?
February 28th? That's... a little unrealistic, given how many programs haven't sent out decisions yet.
It came by email six days after the first. And I was actually wrong--the email states that I need to let them know if I want a TAship by March 4th. For what that's worth. In which case, I guess URI might be out simply because I will still be visiting schools at that point.
Thanks for the info, ComeBackZinc. I talked to someone at URI who suggested that the digital side of things was just beginning to take shape there, which worries me a bit. However, everyone seems really lovely and I like the course listing. It's kind of my dream to live out in that region, preferably a little north of Boston, and my boyfriend lives out there, so it's tempting. But I have to consider sustainability and career goals first. Hm.
Thanks for the input, bhr. I can see this will (of course!) be an extremely hard choice. Exciting weeks ahead...
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Rhode Island just made me an offer for something around $18,000 renewable for four years, if that helps. They have a Feb. 28 deadline for the funding offer, though.
Anyone have a sense of URI's program against, say, Michigan State or Minnesota? Right now, I'm weighing a smaller program versus a larger one. My goal is to end up on the east coast doing digital rhetoric/humanities work, but beyond that...
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We applied to 3 of the same programs, and I've only heard from one of those three.
Hm, I've only heard from Rensselaer, Rhode Island, Minnesota, and Michigan. Are two of the three not among those?
To your question, Wendy, I believe I sent them a chunk of my thesis. I honestly don't expect to get into Syracuse--it's such a particular program, and they don't tend to take multiple people with the same interest or emphasis. But who knows?
EDITED to ask: seeing as I'm new around here, is there/will there be a "Help me choose! I don't know what I'm doing!" thread, some place where folks can post their final acceptances and seek advice from the collective about various programs? Just curious.
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Well - luck is nice.
I agree with warm and helpful making a difference. I had a very long correspondence with someone at Louisville and the program has since grown on me. Here is to hoping I hear good news from them by the end of next week. :-D
Wishing you luck.
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Woah - you're 4 for 4 right now?
Ha, yeah, but I don't expect that to continue. Not one bit. I'm pretty certain that it's a matter of timing and luck at this point.
I'm really waiting on Syracuse at this point, as that program's outreach and general approach to interacting with students has been warm and exceedingly helpful. Is it strange that that sort of thing makes such a difference to me? I want to go somewhere that will be academically rewarding and professionally savvy, but an unwelcoming program might make me consider other options even if it were a perfect fit on paper.
Hm. Who else is looking forward to this month ending, just to know more of the picture?
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Anybody heard sth from Syracuse CCR? Might be my last chance this year.
Nothing. I'm hoping we might start hearing back next week, but I don't think anything has gone out yet.
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Spouses and SOs are fine; just don't bring children to seminars or department tours or social functions. It may be un-PC to say this, but there's nothing worse than a screaming kid at a place designated for grown-ups.
Don't bring your parents, either.
I don't think there's anything wrong with bringing a parent along, especially because your choice to attend a given school is potentially life-altering. But I agree--don't bring them to functions. That does feel like a breach of decorum. I say this as someone who brought parents along to visit schools but forbade them from events and meetings. Hey, it's a twenty hour drive round trip--I'm bringin' whomever is ready and willing to help drive the car.
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I've noticed that with MSU, and it actually was a bit of a concern, since I want to focus more on the tech side. At least Danielle DeVoss tends to focus on that side of the field, and is apparently a fantastic advisor.
They've also had a few grads that have come out and jumped right into WPA roles, so that says something about the quality of work on that subject that is being produced.
I don't know. From what I've seen, there is a lot of tech stuff going on there. They're certainly one of the programs that is doing a lot with digital humanities, and Dean Rehberger, Liza Potts, and Bill Hart-Davidson are all tech-oriented people. See http://www2.matrix.msu.edu/ and http://msustatewide.msu.edu/Programs/Details/1456 for a couple examples. I applied there, in fact, because of a wide range of tech-focused opportunities for research and teaching, though I suppose it naturally depends on what tech you're interested in. Still, I would definitely investigate.
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Hey! Interesting question. I can't comment on Illinois, but I can maybe comment a bit on MSU, as I got accepted there and will likely attend in the fall.
From what I've gleaned and from speaking in depth with students and faculty there, there are a couple big takeaways:
- Folks from schools large and small seem to very much respect MSU.
- MSU has a humanistic vibe, even when it focuses closely on technology (which is definitely does, but not exclusively. What area are you interested in?)
- Its faculty members are often the sort of people who will talk to you on a first-name basis and very much as equals and partners in inquiry.
- The biggest problem with the program is a massive overload of possibilities for study, professional development, and enrichment. You really have to be prepared to choose something and ignore some of the other really tempting, cool stuff happening on the periphery.
- Teaching assignments seem pretty flexible--you do have a lot of say in what kind of classes you teach, should you want it.
- They will happily talk about job placements with you.
- Edited to add: it's a four year program although some people go five. Moreso than some schools, MSU emphasizes getting people through efficiently and with plenty of direction and support--which seems to be true from what I've observed as well as from what faculty have told me.
So, who knows? I guess my experience thus far has been a positive one, though.
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My heart almost stopped when I got a DGS email after the deadline saying they never got my GRE scores. I was able to send the screen shot of the confirmed order from ETS a few weeks before the deadline, and I uploaded a scan of my unofficial score report, so it was all right -- but what did I pay them for?
This happened to me too! Glad I'm not the only one, and I'm glad you got it resolved. I imagine it might sound to a graduate program a little like "the dog ate my homework," you know?
Rhetoric/Composition 2014 hopefuls
in Literature, and Rhetoric and Composition
Posted
This thread has grown so very quiet, comparatively! For what it's worth, I've turned down offers for Purdue and Michigan State, if anyone is waitlisted for the rhetoric PhD at either one.