unicornsarereal

Thanks I will! I've been waiting to meet with a professor from my undergrad who recommended I apply to more schools, so now I'm looking at 12 (13 if I add Maryland). I'm also starting from scratch on my statement based on her suggestion, which is a little stressful! My MA program was outside the states, so the advice I was getting from there was not at all tailored to US schools.

Thanks, I'll give them a call if they don't respond this week.

Different answers from different schools. And in some cases, no answers at all....

Update for others with the same question: I'm getting different answers!

Interesting, why are you thinking of removing those ones? What's your field? I'm feeling unsure of my school number but I'm very adamant about staying on the east coast and I have a very particular interest (early 18th century fiction). I'm doing NYU, Yale, Penn, Columbia, Princeton, Brown. What're your thoughts on Oxbridge for a DPhil? I've thought a lot about applying but have decided against it.

Stressing about not doing enough! I need to edit my PS and piece together my writing sample a bit more. Amazingly 2/3 of my recommenders already have their recommendations in. No one has really looked over my stuff though, so that's my one concern... 15 schools—wow!

Great, thank you!

Hey, I've seen some threads on bibliographies and writing samples. Most of my schools do not specify the inclusion of a bilblio. Literally one mentions it in the form of "20-25 double-spaced pages, including any bibliography or notes." My question is, for shorter writing samples what's the deal?? I have a school with a 12-15 page limit and my biblio is 5 pages. With the 20 page samples, I feel okay doing my full biblio, but not with this one. Any suggestions/similar concerns?

Oh god, I haven't sent anything along yet for edits, let alone gotten a full draft of my SOP!

Hey guys—looking to jump into this forum because I am seriously lacking in accountability at the moment. I was studying like crazy for the GREs but since they ended have done very little and need to get cracking! I've only started brainstorming my personal statement and haven't finished narrowing down schools—still trying to meet with one more professor. Haven't really touched my writing sample either. I'm super daunted by cutting my dissertation (from my MA) and writing the abstracts, even though it's surely quite simple. At the point of doing more concrete research on programs. Curious—how much time are you guys working on apps per day/week versus other stuff?

perfect advice, thanks!

So, I have the perfect recommender. I'm applying for an english ma in 18th century lit and have a rec secured from one professor. I took three classes in 18th century literature area, two with another professor and i want to study that same material in my program. unfortunately, i've emailed her, called her, emailed her again. she says she's willing to help and talk with me, but she just disappears off the planet every time i say okay, let's set up a time! I think it may be best to move on, but here's the dilemma: do i ask a professor whose class i got a b+ in, whose subject is tangential to mine (19th century), and who i felt like didn't really like me, or a professor who is sort of known in his field -- history -- but taught me in a required english class, i got an a in it, he really really liked me. any suggestions?? i don't want this situation to hold me back!

Obviously I'm feeling overwhelmed because I'm applying to grad school (English MA) period, but I'm feeling a bit like a fish out of water with UK apps. I'm only applying to UK schools and it just feels different. Aside from some of the wording (programme -- why??) the apps are confusing me enough to make me panic at every turn! It's likely largely because I'm going at this alone and haven't seen an app since applying to college via the common app. So, basically I want to vent and not feel so alone in this process! And see if anyone else is constantly second-guessing themselves with what are probably very simple steps. Anyway, sorry for my useless venting and best of luck with your apps!

Whew, amazing to hear. Thanks all!

By this I mean -- I didn't do an undergrad thesis but am strongly considering applying to MAs in the fall. I'm assuming this means I'm out of the running for lots of places. If I have other samples in my field of interest, does it matter that much?

Okay, so here's the deal: I want to go back to school to study English (specifically a MA and a focus on 18th century women's fiction) but am totally unsure about where to target my search. I have a bunch of factors I'm thinking about. 1. I graduated cum laude from an Ivy but didn't write a thesis. 2. I can think of 2 people to get recs from. The third would be a TA who really liked me. 3. I'm not sure I can wait to go back to school for another year and I really want to live abroad, so I'm strongly considering studying at a UK school like King's College London, Exeter, Durham and doing a taught MA. Of course a consideration for next fall. 4. I'm also interested in a broader and longer MA program like at NYU or UVA. 5. The MA is a prep for a PhD since I don't currently feel qualified and I want to spend as much time studying literature as possible. 6. Ideally I can spin all this into a teaching job, high school or university level. Any input on the US/UK debate, schools I should consider, and the app process would be amazing.