woolfie

Yes, definitely, I would, too. I understand why people might be wondering, we're all grasping for meaning in every single little detail we can get our hands on. Just trying to reassure people; it's not over til it's over!

No, I do not have a master's and I applied for MA/PhD and I did indeed recieve the email. It is probably just some bureuacratic reason, like they are doing the first half of the alphabet (my last name starts with a "B" )or just something random like that. I don't see any rhyme or reason from the applicant's perspective.

I have never heard of this program. But I'm from Indiana so I don't know much about northeast schools. I'm also wondering the same thing about University of Vermont and schools that are good for undergraduate but are unranked because they only have an MA program. I wonder whether, just as far as ranking goes not taking fit into consideration, if it would be better to go to a prestigious undergrad school than a lower ranked school that has a phd program. Sorry, I don't know the answer to your question, I'm wondering the same thing.

Guys, I had a really weird dream about a badger last night. I think that my brain is officially obsessed.

You have to click on grad application status and then click Enter to enter the student center. Did you do that?

If it was because of a bureaucratic requirement, that's one thing. And the person of contact could have said as much. But the way s/he said it the way you have quoted, that is just over the top rude. Any decent human being could say it nicer, explain the graduate requirement, instead of putting it that way. It seems so spiteful.

It's not that that's harsh, it's more so that that's crazy. I mean, how could her GPA be so bad that her 4.0 at the master's doesn't make up for it? I mean was it a 1.5 or something? That seems petty. I'd love to know what school this was.

Wow, it seems like a lot of people are applying with MAs already in hand. Is Madison one of those programs that lets you in at advanced standing? I know some programs don't do that. If so, do you think those without MAs are competing for the same spots?

Also, where are the undergraduate neighborhoods? I would like to avoid them. I want to live within walking distance of campus (I will walk far, 30-40 min walk is ok) but not in a party neighborhood. Is that possible? I'll be in Memorial hall if that helps.

Yes, I'm expecting to see a few UW acceptances on the results page in the coming week and then have my heart sink with disappointment. Expected disappointment though. I'm wondering, since they have so many applicants, what are some of the specialties of people applying to UW's lit program? Do many of you have MAs or straight out of undergrad? Me, I only have a BA and I put early American/narrative theory as my specialties for my UW app.

I wonder if it would be easier or harder for a Brit (I'm assuming you're British, forgive me if I'm wrong) to get a teaching job in the US. I mean, if you were doing American lit, I'd think you would not have an advantage. But my guess, based on absolutely nothing, is that if you are doing British literature, it might be easier for you. Maybe it's different in different regions of the US, but I think there is a kind of reverence or respect especially in regards to literature towards the 'mother country.' That's just what I see in terms of attitudes around here, not saying it's right or wrong. On second thought, it might only be on the level of student respect- you would be seen as more authoritative I think. But it might not matter on the level of hiring committees. Thoughts?

As someone pointed out to me in another thread, the Comp program is entirely separate from the Lit one. Perhaps you're waiting to hear from the comp program, but I'm holding my breath for the lit one. I was told we'd hear before the 14th and UW is my top choice. I've been going crazy wondering all weekend... I've been trying not to get my hopes up for schools like UW, Michigan, UT, etc. These programs seem to get even more apps than Ivies, 400+, and then accept 10 people or so. So I'm trying to have low expectations .

Do the comp/rhet programs' adcomms differ from the literature ones? I applied to both Minnesota and Syracuse and I see they've notified comp/rhet applicants so I'm wondering if that means literature admits have been notified?

I don't know about Arlington specifically, but I'm a little bit familiar with the area of Falls Church and Fairfax county in general. 19K is doable but housing is very very expensive out there. So you should try and find a good deal on housing and you'll be fine. From what I understand, the closer to the metro, and the less stops away from Washington, the more expensive it gets. For instance, Rosslyn is pretty yuppie-ish and expensive but Vienna isn't as much. You will FOR SURE need a car and be prepared to spend all day and night inside of it being annoyed at other drivers and sitting in a million lane streets. That's what I don't like about the area, it's a suburban wasteland that you will never walk anywhere in. So maybe I'd suggest living in on campus housing if that's possible. Transportation and housing are going to be your biggest costs.

I know this wasn't your question, but on the topic of relationships and graduate schools... I think that if significant others are unwilling to make sacrifices for each other (equally, it must be balanced) then you should choose school over your SO. It shouldn't have to come down to that. For instance, I met my SO in undergrad. Upon graduating he applied to MFA programs and we moved to another state while I got a job for the three years he did his degree. Now he's graduating and it's my turn- I'm going to go to an MA program in the fall and he'll move with me and take two years off. Then we'll either apply for PhD programs together, or jobs together. It's tough, but we're making compromises for each other. If only one person were making compromises, that would be trouble.

I continually keep my Gmail in another tab. When I see (1) on the tab, I have a mini-heart attack. And it's always just spam or something not important. My deadlines were all Dec 1, 15 or Jan 1 15. I had two that are Feb, so I expect to hear from them late. From what I understand though, Dec. or Jan. deadline does not make anything go faster. No matter the deadline, profs don't look at applications until after winter break. I think that a place like UT Austin, which has a deadline of December 1st, wants earlier applications because they are a giant school, and they need time to match up test scores and transcripts with applications, bureaucratic stuff. Meanwhile, Delaware's deadline was Jan 1st and I heard from them on Feb. 1st, so really there's no way to tell from deadlines. I think the bigger the program, the longer the wait.

Tangentially related... I just saw on Syracuse's website that they plan to notify all admits, MA PhD and MFA, by the end of April. That seems far too late. Most people have to finalize their decision by April 15th. I don't understand how this could be true...

I am in the same boat. I feel like responses from last year came out around this time for a lot of places, and they simply aren't this year. Who knows what is going on. All I know is that I am freaking out on the daily.

I was just accepted to UDel and am visiting soon. Any suggestions for things to check out? I am from a small town in the midwest and I'm excited to get back to a small college town, though I have never lived or really visited the east coast besides DC. I'm expecting to have mild culture shock because of this. Some questions. Is there off campus housing that is affordable and within walking distance of the campus? I'm be in the English dept if that makes a difference. It's really important for me to walk places, though I'm going to be living quite frugally on my stipend. Is this going to be difficult for me? My partner is going to be moving with me too. Does anyone have info on the job situation? Is it possible to commute to Wilmington or Philly? His background is in editorial work. Any info or suggestions is much appreciated.

I felt the same way- I was at work and I was just speechless because I wasn't expecting it. I was embarassed when I hung up the phone but hopefully they understand. What is your area of interest? I'm early american/colonial lit. I also noticed you got a summer research grant. I didn't get one of those! At least not that I know of...

Thanks guys! I'm excited, they were one of my top choices for MA programs. Also, this really takes the edge off waiting, I could get rejected from everyone else and still be happy.

I posted one of the MA acceptances. I think that MAs are notified separately than PhDs. I remember hearing something about that, but I apologize that I can't recall exactly.

This same thing happened to me. It had been TWO months of nothing changing on my site, so I emailed and they said they had everything.

As someone who matches test scores to applications in an admissions office, I see this all the time. This is on the school. You should call the school and tell them, and they should be able to find it. It probably just didn't show up on a report, and if you tell them, they should be able to find it. If the school says they don't have it, they need to look harder. They do.

Do you think that they notify MAs and PhDs at different times? What do other schools do in regards to that? My guess would be that they make PhD offers first, and then the MA offers. But I don't know what I'm talking about.