Dr. Old Bill

The simple answer is that it totally depends on the school. Four or five of the programs I am applying to require the GRE Subject test, while the rest do not. Some programs don't require the test, but prefer it, and some will "look at your scores" if you submit them, but don't overtly state that they want them. It's part of the research process, unfortunately. You'll just have to visit every admissions page of each program that appeals to you. Depending on where you're planning on applying, you may or may not need to take it.

I agree with Mikers86. I'm not on the Comp/rhet track, but I understand that there aren't a lot of programs in that field just yet, while there are a lot of applicants. Reports over the past few years have shown that going the comp/rhet route leads to a higher level of employment, but the problem is that it has caused a lot more prospective grad students to look in that direction as a result, making it a lot more competitive. Thus, most programs will have a lot of applicants. From your post, I'm guessing you have (or are getting) your BA, rather than an MA. This is 100% my opinion, but it might be to your advantage to think of MA programs as "safety" possibilities, since there is generally (not always, but often) a higher acceptance rate for those. It also provides you with another year to learn, gain experience, and strengthen your general academic chops for a reapplication next year if you happen to be shut out of Ph.D. programs.

I agree with Roquentin. I, too, was a little surprised at the idea that there is a lack of integration of drama in literary studies. That certainly hasn't been my experience. Even when I got an associate's degree at a community college, there was dramatic literature blended with fiction and poetry. Incidentally, I was just talking about this with my wife, who got her BA in Theatre Arts a number of years ago, and she also asserted that she took several courses on dramatic literature that were cross-listed with English courses, and often taught by English faculty. I guess the takeaway of this is that you might want to take a close look at a bunch of programs and their course offerings before you start forming fixed plans in this area. If your supposition rings a bit false to a couple of us here on Grad Cafe, it may well ring false to adcomms. I should point out that I'm not saying you're wrong, but that your own experiences might have given you the wrong impression of the broader landscape. That said, if you feel you can make an airtight case that this separation exists, then go for it! Just be sure to have enough compelling examples to override any initial adcomm bias.

Wow, that's a very interesting article, Unraed. I hadn't come across it before...probably because I haven't looked at OSU. But I suspect it must be similar at other institutions as well. I just can't imagine the same group reading 100-300 15+ page writing samples plus the same number of SOPs. It stands to reason that many adcomms partition them out by stated interest. I'm really glad you posted that...and am glad OSU's DGS wrote it. It's quite helpful.

Cloudofunknowing is right (as he usually is). It's also supported by a lot of what I've read...both on Grad Cafe and elsewhere. It might not be a bad idea to find a few hours to read through a full year's worth of GC posts. It was immensely helpful to me. Even though you'll need to be judicious about what advice works best for you, and what doesn't, it generally covers a lot of the little nuances and answers a lot of the seemingly vague questions that invariably pop up throughout this process.

Yup, Cloudofunknowing is likely spot on. Funnily enough, I don't find the prospect of learning a new language nearly as daunting as I did even three months ago. So long as it can be applied, I have no problem with it. When I had to learn language just to fulfill a degree requirement, it irked me a slight bit. But given my own possible / probable path, I anticipate learning Italian and possibly Latin to complement my interests. I don't think any reasonable study of sonnets could be done without at least Italian, given that the form originated in Italy... Kind of a no-brainer, really.

Ah, great catch there, Petros. Thanks!

Bearing in mind that my list contains only the schools I am most interested in (i.e., it's not comprehensive), I can tell you that Yale just requires a couple of courses to fulfill their language requirement (ENGL 500 and ENGL 501 -- Old English and Beowulf respectively). Very reasonable, in my opinion. Cornell is a bit ambiguous, as reading knowledge of one or two languages is required, depending on what path you go down. Brown is similar in that regard. In fact, I get the sense from a few institutions that despite what is stated on their admissions page, there's a bit of give-and-take. If you are focusing exclusively on a subset of contemporary American literature, you might be able to get away with only having reading knowledge of Spanish. Northwestern requires one "advanced" language. Vanderbilt seems to require just one, and it is tested via a two-hour exam with dictionary...and there are unlimited retakes. So it's fairly forgiving. UMD College Park and Penn State seem to require reading knowledge just one language. Bear in mind that there's always the possibility that my info could be off. Most of this is based on research I did back in March. As for SUNY Buffalo funding, their admissions site makes it appear as though it's NOT guaranteed. I've read in another Grad Cafe thread that funding is granted to those with a cumulative GRE general score of 313, but I have to imagine there's a little bit of wiggle room there. I may reach out to a grad student there in the not-too-distant future, and if that info comes up, I'll pass it along. EDIT: Okay, a BIG caveat here. I didn't see that your focus is on Creative Writing programs. All of the parameters I mentioned are for Ph.D. English programs, so I really don't know how much crossover there is.

Rice University and SUNY Buffalo have no stated language requirements. U of Chicago has one...but it can be achieved by taking an applied "Language for Research Purposes" course. They also have some other unique options for fulfilling the requirement. WashU requires a basic reading knowledge of ONE language, as opposed to the usual two depending on the subfield. I have a column on my master grad school spreadsheet for this, as languages have always been a weak spot of mine as well. I somehow managed to get straight As through four semesters of beginner and intermediate Spanish, but I certainly can't claim to have even reading knowledge of the language. Indeed, it took a couple of English professors to convince me that not having strong foreign language skills shouldn't be a deterrent to pursuing graduate study... Hope this helps!

Well, the higher the better, of course. But from all I've read on Grad Cafe, as well as through emails and PMs from current and soon-to-be graduate students, one can still get into a top tier school with a low GRE subject score. I've read / heard that some schools just view various aspects of the application as "checklist completion" items -- in other words, it doesn't matter how well or how poorly you do...it just matters that you do it. And frankly, this reflects reality. Some people just plain suck at standardized tests, while others are able to memorize a lot of superficial details without having the ability to utilize those details in a real-world setting. All of this is a circuitous way of saying that you probably shouldn't worry yourself too much about getting a 590, so long as the rest of your application (especially the WS and SOP) is strong. If there are cutoffs, they're certainly not published or widely known, and it's all but impossible to know which schools / programs employs a tacit cutoff policy. And finally, while this is sort of a "you can't fire me...I quit!" consolation, you probably wouldn't want to get into a program where they valued a standardized test so highly, would you? (That line of thinking is a bit specious, but it's a little comforting nonetheless...).

Ah, my apologies. I didn't know you were already an English major. In that case, you can disregard a lot of what I said above. (But sadly, you can't disregard the part about the dismal prospects of the post-graduate job market...).

Welcome, Pavelboca! Surefire has a bunch of excellent advice for you there, and it is pretty comprehensive. As a result, here are just a few random thoughts of my own in addition... -In about fifteen minutes of reading through old threads on this forum, you'll see a few common themes emerge. One of those is that these are tough times for would-be English Ph.D. graduates. Tenure track jobs are disappearing, and general academia slots are hard to come by. Even teaching at a community college is far from a sure bet (as having a Ph.D. is currently becoming a standard requirement of the position...and in six years, it will probably be that much more integral). Oh, and the wages aren't great compared to other industries. You could probably make a hell of a lot more right out of law school than you could as a tenure track professor. Research jobs are also hard to come by, and while an English degree lends itself to a wider range of career possibilities than some other degrees, it is still a fairly limited and specific field. This is not doom and gloom so much as the stark reality. However, if you can read all of that, consider it, read it again, consider it some more, and still think "Hey, I can deal with all that," then you may be able to realistically consider graduate-level English (from a purely practical standpoint, that is). -Having a 3.9x GPA is definitely helpful. However, from what I understand, the major GPA is even more vital to the process. Have you taken several undergraduate English courses? Can you still take some in your Senior year? Not having any undergraduate English courses under your belt (particularly at least a couple of survey courses) might be a big red flag to admissions committees (adcomms). While it's great that you have a talent for writing academic papers, adcomms are going to look for academic papers on a topic that interests you...but is also firmly rooted in the English spectrum. And generally speaking, such a paper should dovetail with your statement of purpose (SOP) so that the two work together to paint a picture of who you will be as a future English scholar. It could be a pointed analysis of Marlowe's use of language, a cross-cultural take on World War I poetry, a perspective on gender repression in 18th century French literature...but it has to be related to the field of English, somehow, and should point to potential future study. -While having papers published can be a benefit, it's certainly not an expectation among adcomms. So if you are truly considering going down this path, you can breathe a sigh of relief about that, at least. -This is 100% my opinion, and others might disagree (even vehemently), but if you don't have a burning desire to enter the field (as opposed to thinking "hey, that might be nice" or "I think I could do that..."), graduate study in English can be prohibitive. On the surface, it might sound like you get to do a lot of reading and writing -- and you do -- but it's an incredibly insular field that requires a lot of research on things that very few people, other than a few fellow academics, are going to care about. For instance, I'm hoping to spend the bulk of my five years focusing on the evolution of both form and trope in sonnets. And that's probably way too broad. (I have firm ideas about more specifics, but they're not worth mentioning here). Five pages of my writing sample discuss possible meanings of two sets of blank parentheses. In other words, you've probably got to be really interested in English, and furthermore have a pointed interest in something about English to make an application worthwhile. -Finally, with regard to your New York / Pennsylvania thoughts...well, all three schools you mentioned are "top tier." Naturally that means that they accept fewer than ten percent of the applicants. Even if you discount applicants who either screw up on their applications or are otherwise unqualified, you're still looking at long odds to make it in. I used to consider myself a very strong candidate until I joined Grad Cafe and saw what other members have done in comparison. I still think I'm a good candidate for several schools -- good enough to not deter me from applying -- but there's a reason why I'm applying to at least twelve institutions this fall. The percentages just don't work in anyone's favor...and "fit" is a very real phenomenon. So should you consider pursuing doctoral study in English? Yes, you should consider it -- you should really consider it. Think long and hard. There are more cons than pros, but depending on your focus, the pros may still outweigh the cons. Either way, good luck...and welcome again to Grad Cafe!

Welcome, LadyC! I have it on good authority that Yale is shifting fairly rapidly toward interdisciplinary focuses. In fact, while I can't substantiate this with any sources, I've been told by a few people -- people who would know -- that there is a general shift among many of the top tier programs toward interdisciplinary studies in English. Personally I think that's a very positive development...and it should certainly help you in your search as well. Good luck!

Thanks for this, Sacklunch. That's one of the great things about GradCafe: one might get a bevy of different opinions on an issue, but they usually distill down to one significant point. In this instance, that point is simply to not make age an issue in one's SOP or elsewhere. And over the past six weeks or so, I have learned the wisdom of not making a SOP personal. Both of these are very valuable considerations.

The main things I asked were about fit, the nature of the academic environment (i.e.: cooperative vs. competitive peers, faculty engagement level etc.), and more details about certain research interests of professors. Additionally, I asked about departmental orientation being more toward literary theory or close reading. Things like these are hard to infer from program websites, and getting what is essentially an "inside look" at a program can be very helpful. All of the grad students I reached out to also went beyond my questions and made other comments and suggestions that might be useful (for instance that a certain professor might be leaving etc.). In other words, you can get all of the basics from the program / departmental websites, but some of the helpful nuances can only come from methods such as this. Hope that helps.

Will do. Once I get around to taking a practice test I'll know whether or not I'll want / need them...and if I do, then I'll let you know how they work out! And you can call me WT, Wyatt, Wyatt's Torch, Shaun, or anything else that comes to mind, so long as I know you're talking to me!

From what I've read (and as usual, the local experts can confirm or deny this), it's a bit of a death knell to talk about why you love English, UNLESS it has specific and direct relevance to your course of study. For instance, if you are saying you love English because a close encounter with a dictionary cured dyslexia or something, then it's probably worthwhile. But if you're just saying that you love English because it allows you to escape into new worlds, or better relate to society or something along those lines, then it will likely be seen as trite and hackneyed. I sent a first pass of my SOP to a couple of folks and they both suggested that I cut down the personal backstory, even though the backstory was "only" about 300-400 words as you mention. So I'm guessing 200 should be the max. Also, it's worth noting that some institutions expressly prefer personal information to be greatly minimized. Harvard, for example, makes a point of it, saying outright that "the Statement of Purpose is not a personal statement and should not be heavily weighted down with autobiographical anecdotes." I'm assuming that this doesn't mean you can't talk about how you came to a certain research interest...but I think it's fairly clear that they don't want to read musings on how and why a particular applicant loves English. Hope this helps!

Ah, I feel your pain...and I have the summer OFF, for the most part! I'm trying not to think of everything all at once and break the various aspects into their constituent parts...but that's wishful thinking. I'm getting a little paralyzed by trying to finish a second draft of my SOP, practice for a second sitting of the GRE general next week, figuring out what to do with my WS (whether I should take two essays, expand upon each, and fuse them into a larger essay OR write something from scratch OR cobble three similar essays together OR...), not to mention reading and studying for the GRE subject test which takes place in a mere 2.5 months! Starting my final year of undergrad next month doesn't help matters either. Incidentally, I'm glad you asked about flashcards. I found a pre-made set for sale on Amazon...but they're $40. I can't find them cheaper anywhere else. I know (as Lyonessrampant has mentioned) Vade Mecum and Hapax Legomena have some great resources, but I'm still tempted to buy those flashcards for some reason. If nothing else, it will give my wife hours of entertainment I'm sure!

Yes, one of my big gaps at the moment is literary theory, though I'll be starting an undergrad survey course on it next month, which I hope will give me enough of an overview over four weeks to fill in that gap. Over the past week, I've watched some BBC miniseries (which are generally quite true to the books, as opposed to movie versions) on some of the key 19th century classics, like the two big Austen works, Great Expectations, Jane Eyre, and have Tom Jones and Middlemarch lined up for the near future. I feel it's a little sacrilegious to do this rather than read the books proper, but for the sake of the GRE alone, it's probably a more prudent use of my time than doing the reading. I certainly intend to go through the "knowable" stuff as quickly as I can, though I'm typically not really a "fast" person when it comes to reading and writing, unfortunately. I also recall reading that it's better not to answer anything you don't know (or have a strong hunch about), as you don't get points deducted from what you don't answer, but DO get 1/4 point deducted for each wrong answer. That's important to keep in mind.

Welcome, Hunterjumper! I must admit that I'm a bit curious about who cautioned you about the field of African American lit, and why. In my experience, the opposite is often true...and that is borne out by going through the list of graduate students at various institutions. From what I can tell, a fairly large number of non-African-American students have a research interest in African American literature. Academically speaking, that makes perfect sense, even though I suspect there are some slightly outmoded views about it not being PC. I don't claim to know any more or less about the process than anyone else in the 2015 application boat, but from what I've read across countless sources (including but not limited to Grad Cafe) AdComms are more interested in your scholarship than anything else. If you make the case that you have a strong interest in African American literature and can demonstrate that case with a strong writing sample, I suspect that in most instances your race won't get in your way. For what it's worth, "The White House" by Claude McKay is among my favorite sonnets. Were it not for a more compelling interest in two other areas of literature, I could easily see myself going down the same path you are on...and I'm a white Canadian male! Edited to add: Come to think of it, this would be the perfect time to reach out to current grad students, like I mentioned in a recent thread topic. Race is a very sensitive issue in this country, but a well-framed email to a grad student or two in a program you are interested should help you to figure out if it's uncommon to have a non-African-American in an African-American lit course. I strongly suspect that it's not, but again, the best authorities on that are folks currently in those programs.

I suppose that's as good a guess as any...

I completely agree with the above two posters...but I understand your trepidation as well. For what it's worth, I have the same issue. One of my writing samples cites (two or three times, no less) a major professor at one of the places I'm applying to. The citation was in there before I even started seriously looking at grad schools, and I really wouldn't want to remove the citation in any circumstance. I don't think it's going to hurt or help my application, really. The professor is a leading scholar in her field, has several books about a topic I'm interested in, and is frankly an academic who should be frequently cited. I'm guessing the same will be true of your writing sample. In other words, you're probably overthinking it, as ComeBackZinc suggests. But hey, 'tis the season for overthinking things...and it's probably better to overthink it and ask the question than underthink it and make a damaging error...

What a great post, Unræd! That really resonates with me, in fact. When I first started seriously looking at grad schools (as opposed to the general overview I did several months ago), I was very worried that I wouldn't hone in on a specialization. I love a wide swathe of literature and poetry, spanning from the English Renaissance to the mid-20th century, with only a few blips I don't care for in that range (like Joycian modernism). It was actually my wife who pointed out my poetry background and reminded me that my favorite course has been a research seminar on Shakespeare's Sonnets... So that allowed me to focus on grad schools that have specialists in traditional poetics and historical prosody etc. It is a fairly narrow field these days, but there are some high-level profs with similar interests at at least half a dozen great programs. So there's half of my application cycle right there. It's really just a case of doing like Unræd suggests and looking at all your papers and past coursework to see what tickled you the most. It's easy to overthink things. Once you start drafting your SOP you'll realize quite quickly whether or not your specific interest is right for you. After a first draft (which I sent out to a couple wonderful Grad Cafe members for a look-see), I was reminded that AdComms are looking for indications of your scholarship, as well as your general interests. And that's very good advice. If you can't talk at length about why a subject has interested you, then it might be worth reconsidering your potential specialization! As for the other comment about feeling like an imposter here... don't! Because you're not! I get little shivers sometimes (good ones!) when I think about the possibility of being essentially paid to go to grad school to learn the material I love. But I don't think I'm not worthy, per se. It's still early in the process, but recognizing that you are a solid candidate is one of those lovely moments that will shape your application season. Of course, it might also raise your hopes a little too high, but I figure that's a decent enough trade-off.

Welcome, PizzaFox...and good luck to you over the next eight months of preparation-application-rejection-acceptance-jubilation! It sounds like you have some interesting and diverse interests there. That's probably a good thing though! I'll be making two, if not three different kinds of applications. One of them will be focused primarily on transhistoric formalist poetry and poetics, another will be on late 19th - mid 20th century transatlantic literature, and I may put out one or two in the English Renaissance / Shakespeare direction. But honestly, I've been on GradCafe for a mere month and have already altered my potential focus a few times (but I'm certain about the poetics path now!) My only "advice" in this regard is to simply do as much research as you can to find the best fitting schools of each discipline. I've narrowed down poetics programs to five or so institutions where I believe I'd be a great fit (and vice versa). I'm still figuring out the best fit for the other two areas, but will get there eventually. I'll be writing distinct SOPs (statements of purpose in Grad Cafe lingo) and will have two distinct WS (writing samples) to use. It's a bit more work, of course, but considering that grad school is most likely the last educational step before a long career in the industry, it's almost certainly worth a few more days / weeks of toil at this stage. Either way, best of fortunes to you as you start your prep! I found going through the last thirty pages or so of Grad Cafe was time well spent...lots of great advice here. Welcome again! Shaun / Wyatt's Torch