crutch

Hey, Crae Congrats! Would you mind telling us your field and which professor contacted you? I also applied to UCD, and I am very anxious now that people are starting to receive calls...

Haha, well thanks for the reply. I suppose I should've checked the school out a bit more before spending the application money, postage money, etc. Oh well, I considered them a "safety" school from the start, so, if what you say is true, I hope to have many other options on the table (Lord knows I may not have any options on the table in a few months!).

A professor once told me that part of his job was to write reference letters and that I shouldn't worry about inconveniencing him or other professors by asking for letters. So, I've never worried about asking for references, and this year my referees each submitted 12 letters. Most were submitted online, but 4 were mailed physically. None of them seemed to mind being asked to do so much because, as the above poster stated, uploading a letter takes two minutes tops. Each professor also took the time to read over my writing sample, my purpose statement, and my CV. Two of them actually took the time to send back comments on the sample and SoP, which I used to edit both pieces of writing. I also agree that you should choose the professor that is most familiar with your work. However, if a well-known professor that isn't very familiar with your work currently - you've only had them for one class or something - is willing to look over your statement and writing sample, you could still go with them, since they would then be familiar with your work as well.

Does anyone know anything about McMaster? I applied there because they have a professor in my field. I've enjoyed the articles she has written, so thought it was worth it to apply. However, I'd like a little more information about the school. Is it reputable?

I applied to 13 schools this year. All my applications were for PhD programs. Virginia UT Austin U Toronto McMaster UCLA UCSC WUSTL Boston Uni Uni of Rochester Arizona State Chicago Cambridge Oxford (where I did my Master's) My general field is early modern studies, with a focus on 18th-century and restoration British lit. I'm particularly interested in the Scribblerians.

As someone who has just been rejected across the board (I assume, but this is with the Illinois result pending), I have to say - I fully agree with you. Next year I will be casting a much wider net. I will probably aim for 20 or so schools that fit my research interests well. About 5-10 of those schools will be top tier, about 5-10 will be mid tier, and about 5 will be lower tier, if you will. However, I will NOT apply to a school that doesn't give me a decent chance of finding a intellectually satisfying job afterward. It just doesn't make sense. I have several family members who keep probing me, trying to figure out why I won't just do a PhD at my undergrad institution starting this fall. I've tried to explain that their placement record is extremely poor and that I don't believe I will find the program rewarding, but, alas, many fail to understand the level of competition that exists within the humanities at present.

Does anyone have any clue why there are so few entries in the results database for UIUC? I don't just mean this year, I mean every year. Their website states that in a normal year they accept approximately 40 M.A. students and 5-10 PhD students. This makes me wonder why are there only 2-3 M.A. entries per year on the database. Other programs that have much smaller entering classes seem to have more results posted than UIUC. Anyone have any thoughts? By the way, it is my impression that they are cutting their grad class in half this year, so I assume (if their website is factual) that they are admitting about 15-20 M.A. students this year and 5-8 PhD students. This is just an estimate, of course.

Thanks for the info. I sort of assumed the PhD results were direct-to-PhD applicants, but I am a bit concerned about the acceptance that says it is for the MA/PhD program...it appears to have come way too early.

I'm not sure why, but this information just gave me a sinking feeling in my stomach. My guess is that my final rejection is making its way through the USPS as we speak...

Has anyone heard anything regarding the time frame for decisions? I know a few PhD acceptances have been posted, but I applied to the MA program with the intention of moving on to the PhD afterward (as they claim on their website that most of their PhD students did their MA there). I have heard conflicting reports, so I just wanted to see what everyone else knew.

Honestly, I feel like loads of crap right now. I'll get over it, but, like many others here, this application round has been hell for me. And to think, when I applied for a master's program two years ago I went 1 for 1. My application was much worse than this one, I had no clue how admissions worked, and I wasn't stressed out at all! I didn't even think of applying to more than one program. What a lucky application round that one was!

I emailed Bev with a query, she informed me I should email Jennifer Fleissner to ease any anxiety I might have. Ease my anxiety it did. And not in a good way. Hello rejection 13.

I did my Master's at Oxford. I didn't graduate with Distinction, although the average score on all my marks was well above that needed for Distinction (my thesis just barely missed receiving a distinction, so I couldn't be awarded distinction on the overall course, despite my average). My undergraduate GPA was a 3.95, 4.0 in my major. My GRE scores are average to just above average. My statement of purpose follows the same basic format as the one I used when applying to Oxford, and my writing sample is one of the papers that received a distinction during my Master's. Just look at my signature to see how much weight that has carried for me.

Well, today is the end of the week, so I guess we'll hear something either today or early next week. As this is one of my two remaining schools, I am extra-nervous about the results.

Congrats, w2010, on the acceptance and the fellowship!

My hopes are higher than they should be as well. 0/12, but every time a new school starts handing out acceptances, I start checking my phone and email repeatedly. I should probably just give it all up now, but I refuse. Never say never, I suppose.

Hey, wait for me! I would like to take up a spot as well, please.

I would also concur with the opinion, expressed above, that it is not an easier field to get into just because fewer 18th-century scholars apply. I'm focusing on 18th century and I have gone 0/12 so far on my applications, with what I would consider a fairly solid application package. I'm obviously getting rejected because of my application package, but I also think it is due, in part, to a lack of departmental faculty depth in 18th-century studies. The benefits of smaller applicant pools could be offset by smaller faculty pools, as departments can't accept students if they have no one to supervise them. Thus, only those 18th-century applicants that are in the very upper echelon can be granted acceptance. Of course, I could be way off base here, but it seems to make sense.

Hearing nothing is much better than hearing a lot and starting off 0/12. I really didn't expect this... I've got a great GPA, a Master's from one of the top universities in the world, and average GRE scores (90th percentile in V). I was definitely expecting a lot of rejections, but was also expecting 2-3 acceptances... my writing sample and SoP must be much worse than I thought. *sigh* Treasure those nothings while you have them! Seriously, though, good luck to all of you who have yet to hear.

Thank you for taking the time to post this, despite the fact that you already have an acceptance there. The fact that you are willing to take time out of your day (even if it is minimal) to help ease the concerns of those of us still waiting speaks to the quality of your character, in my humblest of opinions. Not that I know you, of course, but the gesture is sincerely appreciated!

Congrats! Since my area is also Restoration and 18th Century, this can't bode well for me.

Midnight's Children is great, but I found myself enjoying The Satanic Verses quite a bit more. If you have a chance, check it out.

I have indeed read The Sound and the Fury. While it's not one of my all-time favorite books, I did enjoy it thoroughly. My favorite section was Quentin's (the neurotic one, not the rebellious one) and I found Benjy's enjoyable as well. I sort of felt it all dropped off in Jason's section, however, but that's probably just me! On a side note, I read Albert Camus' The Stranger a few days ago and really, really enjoyed it.