CarolineNC

At UNC it's a 1/1. At KU, where I got my masters, it's a 2/2. I taught straight out of my BA at KU, and it was fine. They know nothing. They'll believe everything you say.

I have friends in my current program (UNC CH) who have MAs from both Purdue and Alabama. I don't really think MA rank matters as much as what you do during your MA. I got my MA from Kansas, which isn't a particularly prestigious program, but I did OK. Also, one of my closest friends here is the one who got her MA at Purdue, and I just want to emphasize how much she hated it there and how much she said the area sucked. I've driven through West Lafayette and can't say I was exactly charmed either. This isn't to say that Purdue isn't a great school and that lots of people don't enjoy its environs, but I thought it was worth mentioning anyway. Hope this doesn't piss any Purdue people off! Oh, and also, I know 2 people who have worked with Trudier Harris and they're crazy about her. She has helped them out a lot, apparently, and is just wonderful in general.

I'm trying not to be too bummed that UNC-CH has fallen from 15 to 18. I'm not doing a great job fighting it off. I was hoping we'd climb. I know these rankings are somewhat flawed, but they still affect job market prospects.

UC Davis jumped up quite a bit!

I'm pretty sure they haven't notified yet Good luck, everybody! I was in this boat 2 years ago and the waiting was unfun.

I bombed the subject test when I took it back in 2012 when I was applying to MA programs. I still got into a funded program. I didn't retake it when I applied to PhDs and I had a lot of success with those applications. I don't think it's necessary to retake it. I think most faculty realize that it's a useless test, and I think it'd be smarter to put your effort into your writing sample and SOP. (The year I took it, it was nothing but Milton and Shakespeare! Ugh! I didn't know any of it!!)

You're not spouting reality here, though. You're just wrong.

I'd pick BU and make my absolute mission during that year to produce a writing sample. I'd work on it for as many classes as the professors would let me. UIC sounds like it's not the right place for you. You want faculty there who can help you with the writing sample AND who are reputable in your field for recommendation letters.

It's really too late for me to consider this because I'm already in a PhD program, but here's what I considered when I made my decision. 1. Placement Rate 2. Ranking 3. Congeniality of program 4. Funding offer 5. Departmental Support 6. Research fit 7. Summer Funding 8. Weather 9. Cost of Living I put research fit low because I'm not too attached to my research area to switch if need be. In fact, I switched from 19th-C American to Contemporary American last semester. Couldn't be happier about it.

If you do decide you want to pursue a graduate degree, I'd worry less about grades and more about a sophisticated, relevant writing sample (try to show off as much as you can here. Show you can use theory, historicize and/or contextualize, close read, etc.) and a detailed statement of purpose that states *specific* plans for future research. I wish I had spent more time worrying about my writing sample and less time worrying about my grades and individual classes when I was in undergrad.

If I were you, person who sounds very much like youngcharlie, I'd just take some graduate classes elsewhere, boost my reputation, and get some letters from some new professors.

(Hiya christakins ) Uh, so yeah, Chapel hill/Carrboro is expensive. I live in a one bedroom and I pay almost $1000 a month, which is killing me. I have been looking hard for next year. Thus far my best option is a tiny little cottage the size of a garden shed with no kitchen (but a hot plate, dorm fridge, and microwave!) for $550/month. That said, things can be MUCH cheaper with a roommate. I need to cave and get a roommate. If you have a roommate you can find some really awesome houses in wooded areas that seem almost like you're living in the mountains. I also had better paying options, but it came down to rank for me. I narrowed it down to two schools that were similarly ranked. The other school offered me a good bit more money (including summer money) and a fellowship year for dissertation writing but I had to pick UNC CH because of how awesome our placement rates are. People who graduate from here usually do very well.

Fantastic!!! I bet your are on top of the world! Congratulations!!

I was on the waitlist last year, as were I'd say most of the people who ended up here in my cohort. I'd recommend emailing them every time you get an acceptance just to let them know you're competitive. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!!

Anyone on the boards been admitted to UNC Chapel Hill? It's a great place to be! If anyone has any questions, feel free to PM me.

I'm not offering advice here, but I'm just going to share my own personal anecdote because sometimes I feel like the "take the funded MA or don't take an MA at all" tack didn't pay off all that well for me. When I applied to MA programs in 2012, I had three funded options: Kansas, Nebraska, and South Carolina (where I did my undergrad). I had one unfunded offer, Georgetown. I ended up going with one of the funded offers because they offered me the most money. However, I sort of regret going there. I'm happy I ended up in a good PhD program, but honestly I think it was because of my obsession with getting into a good program and not because the MA program I chose does a particularly good job of getting people into great programs. I mean, they don't really have a great record of getting people into top programs. Plus, I had to spend three years in a sucky area and couldn't soak up the opportunities of living in DC. I can't help but wonder whether, if I had gone to Georgetown, a much more prestigious school, I'd have gotten into a better (and better funded) PhD program. I know other MA programs certainly have a better track record than the one I chose. On the other hand: I don't know WTF I was thinking with the MA programs I applied to! If I wasn't going to go to a hotshot school for my MA like UVA or Georgetown or Northwestern or something, which I wasn't, I don't know why the hell I didn't apply to regional schools in desirable locations. So many programs offer MAs and those students get into PhD programs just as often as people from schools like Nebraska, Kansas, etc.. Like, why didn't I apply to Appalachian State or Villanova or Wake Forest, etc. etc.? Anyway, really I have no advice, but I think what I am trying to say is that "follow the money" and "follow the prestige" don't have to be hard and fast rules. You gotta do what you think is best for yourself and not listen to the supposedly infallible grad cafe wisdom. It's important to move somewhere you'll enjoy living and it's important to pick a school that will help you best achieve your goals. Taking out loans sucks, but sometimes it's necessary.

Wait, but neither of these programs are for English, right? Or are these just your foci within the English dept.? If not, are there separate rankings for Gender Studies and Ethnic Studies? The rankings of English programs might be a moot point in this case. Which could be a good thing for you, because then it'd be reasonable to consider both equally.

I'd say visit the schools but make your decisions as quickly as you can afterward. Ask yourself how likely it is you're going to choose one of your options over another. Last year when I applied, I quickly turned down programs (within like two days of being accepted) since I knew I had 3 top options and definitely wouldn't be attending the others. The programs seemed very appreciative to get such a quick reply, and of course I highlighted how honored I was to be accepted, emphasized that now the next lucky applicant could get some good news, etc. etc. so as not to be insulting. I narrowed it down to 2 programs and visited both and I had AGONIZED over which school to pick for months. They were pretty evenly matched. So, before I even flew back from visiting the second school, I said, well fuck it. I'm going to make my decision now instead of going back and forth until the deadline and I did, and I notified my choice that I would be accepting before I had even left the other school's visit. It really made me feel more peaceful. Did I make the right choice? I have no idea. I'll never know. But I did lessen the agonizing and that paid off, and I lessened the anxiety of people on waitlists, so that was a good thing IMO.

I don't actually care whether I'm allowed to continue my own research. In fact, I'd prefer not to. I'd like to have a tt job at some regional school where I teach and don't have to constantly publish. Ideally, I'll work at a small school in the mountains of North Carolina. Ahh... I can dream, right?

1. When did you start preparing for the GRE Literature Subject Score? Did you study with a friend or professor? I didn't study for it and I took it, I dunno, about six months before I applied to MA programs. Then when applying for PhD programs, I decided not to retake it because I don't think it weighs particularly heavily. (My score sucked, btw. I am currently in the PhD program at UNC Chapel Hill.) 2. If you needed to retake the GRE to make your scores competitive, did you prep during the summer? Again, my GRE scores were nothing to write home about. 3. How did you manage to work on your applications (i.e. writing samples and SOP) during a busy schedule? Or did you submit your applications after finishing your MA? I submitted during my MA. I worked on my writing sample for a year before applying. I can't imagine leaving that till the last minute. I wrote my SOP during the fall of my last year of my MA and I didn't feel particularly rushed. Granted, I had an easy semester. 4. Is it okay to ask a professor you work closely with to look at your writing samples, maybe even do a mock interview? Absolutely for the writing sample. I don't know about the interview. No schools I was accepted to asked for an interview.

Daaaaang.

Yay!! Congrats!!

YAYAYAYAYAYAY! Let's be friends!!

Not sure. If I were you, I'd contact Wayne Lesser and cc Amy Stewart. Amy's email is amy.d.stewart@austin.utexas.edu. CCing Amy was the only way I could get Professor Lesser to answer my emails. Not that he's not super nice and warm - I think he's just not great at email.

Holy shit congrats everyone!!!!!!!!!