Medievalmaniac
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Posts posted by Medievalmaniac
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No, I have been wondering the same thing. He mentioned that they would pay for everything and I thought the details would be in the letter. But they weren't and yeah, I don't know how to make travel plans. I was thinking of emailing him in a week or so.
Congratulations to the admits! Way to be!
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Your story is great! Thanks for sharing it! You are absolutely right: nay-sayers can be wrong, and they very often are
What a great outcome! Many congratulations to you. It definitely reminds us that there is still hope!
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Definitely don't put all your eggs in one basket. Would you feel awful if you turned down School B and then didn't get into School A after all? Hopefully that won't be the case, though! Best of luck to you!
Just want to add that you are a finalist for a doctoral position, but have not been extended an offer yet. Definitely at least do the "go-see" at School B. Traveling is always a good idea, especially on someone else's dime. Your concern for the department's finances is commendable, though, and speaks highly of your integrity. Either program will clearly be lucky to have you!
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golden eagle
Golden Globe
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Thank you all for your great advices,
i think i should just enjoy my time out of the country and relax..
Go, have fun, if you are rejected or accepted, the decision(s) will still be there when you return. It would be GREAT to have the chance to leave the country and go somewhere completely different right now, get out of my head a bit! Go immerse yourself in another culture and enjoy it!
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I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for your loss and thanks for sharing with us.
I am also very sorry for your loss.
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ubiquitous spirit
spirit world
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I've applied to school back East and I have not heard from ANY school yet. I think it's just the English departments that are sadistic and like to take their time.
I was going to say...we haven't seen results from anything "below the Mason-Dixon line" as it were, yet.
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Have you lived there? Can you tell me more? The City Guide section here doesn't have much on it. I'm coming from Madison WI which isn't huge, but I'm nervous about how small Blacksburg is. Warmer would be nice though...
Blacksburg is no New York City, but it is a good, mid-sized city with plenty to do, good local music scene, good arts presence. Very livable city.
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Hey, we just broke it AGAIN!!
I think that means we are all officially freaking out....! lol
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Hey, I just noticed that the record number of online users was broken just a while ago. Congratulations, are in order I guess!
I dunno if we should celebrate that, or if it should scare the bejeezus out of us!
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Apparently, the GRE is worth $185 + $23 per school you apply to + whatever value you place on months of your study and practice time (thousands of dollars?). Not taking into consideration the possible value of getting into a school and getting funded, whatever role the score plays in all of that. I'm sure ETS would like us to think that it's a large role.
Yup. I second this to the nth degree. It proves you have $185.00, or enough credit to put $185.00 on a card. Plus however much you end up spending on score reports.
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alike minds
dangerous minds
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fake story
fake boobs.
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AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!
Sorry....I just knew y'all would totally get it, and I'm losing it over here. NOTHING, from any of my programs. I submitted all of my applications December 1. GOD, this wait is killing me!!!!! And this is my second time around, too. Last year I had heard from three of five programs by now. This year is just - AHHHHHHHHHHHH!
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drunken confessions
true confessions
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Still haven't heard anything from any of my schools, about anything. Not even the "your application is under review" emails some are receiving from some programs. So if this is you as well - you're not alone.
- Pamphilia and apieceofroastbeef
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Also, Superpiepie, to counter your arguments about the legitimacy and importance of literary studies....
In Western Europe in the heavily-Christianized medieval era, any and all texts from the Classical world dealing with aspects of Classical (pagan) religions were considered unfit and destroyed. It wasn't until after the Crusades, and the sacking of major cities and libraries in the East, that manuscripts heavily encrusted with jewels and gold leaf were brought back to the Western world. They were stolen and brought to Europe for their physical worth, but scholars translating the texts into Latin and, ultimately, into English, realized that these were Arabic translations of ancient Greek texts by philosophers that had long since disappeared from the Western world - Aristotle, and Plato, chief among them.
Had it not been for these scholars and their translation and transmission efforts, we would not have our current Democratic government in America, because no one would have heard of the democratic principles espoused by the Greek writers.
Also, in the medieval period, anyone who wasn't trained in a University as a doctor was not allowed to practice medicine - this despite the fact that midwives and village wise men knew vast amounts of information about the medicinal properties of native plants. Women who practiced traditional folk remedies were labeled as witches. Yet, today, doctors trained at places such as those you have listed in your signature, themselves, tout the effectiveness of natural medicine and "alternative medical approaches" and they're working on legalizing Marijuana for medicinal use. Why? Because despite all our best efforts in technological advancements as regards pharmaceuticals, ultimately most of the medicines on the market are derived from the knowledge of plant properties. And that knowledge was begun, expanded, and passed down in books that were written in Latin, in Chinese, in languages other than English, hundreds of years ago, and translated to English by people working in literary studies and trying to preserve the rapidly-disappearing knowledge of earlier peoples as regards the health benefits of plants and minerals.
I reiterate: without the (usually English and Comp. Lit.) people who do this sort of work, advancements in other fields just don't happen.
- rising_star, saturation and Febronia
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Firstly, thank you for actually presenting an argument
There are more spots but there are also more of us. Our departments are massive yes, but the amount of people trying to get in is ridiculous as well. You have to realize some people in basic sciences and math are trying to get into the same engineering programs as well.
As for training people from other nations. Although graduate schools give citizens priority, qualified people from other countries are welcome. Many countries have very strong engineering and math because a lot of this is universal around the world. I know that in certain humanities it is not as diverse as far as international students. Many of the people trained from different countries like to stay here at work. My father is an example. The pay here is better and there are more opportunities. Furthermore, the research done by these qualified international students is beneficial to the school and department. The money is given to help those individuals who show a desire to pursue a degree in applied sciences. I don't see why we discriminate.
Dear SuperPiePie....I hope you won't mind, but I just need to...well, I need to help you out, here. I hope you won't mind. See below.
There are more spots but there are also more of us. Our departments are massive[,] yes, but the amount NUMBER of people trying to get in is ridiculous(,) as well. You have to realize [that] some people in basic sciences and m(M)ath are trying to get into the same engineering programs as well.
As for training people from other nations[This is a fragment; make certain your statements are phrased in complete sentences]. Although graduate schools give citizens [of what country? Ambiguous; consider revising for clarity] priority, qualified people from other countries are welcome. Many countries have very strong engineering and math because a lot of this is universal around the world[This statement negates your original premise; if many countries around the world have very strong engineering and Math programs then why is that a justification for U.S. graduate programs giving numerous spots to people from other countries? Also, "a lot of this is universal to the world" is a deeply general and ambiguous statement. Be specific - a lot of WHAT is universal, to whom, specifically?]. I know that in certain humanities[programs] it [ "it" here is an ambiguous modifier - do you mean the department, or the graduate student population within the department? Make certain your meaning is clear] is not as diverse as far as international students. Many of the people trained from different countries like to stay here at[to?] work.[consider using a semi-colon here to create a more unified statement; also, how is this statement relevant to your argument that humanities programs don't fund as many international students? You need to make certain your argument is organized logically.] My father is an example. The pay here is better and there are more opportunities. Furthermore, the research done by these qualified international students is beneficial to the school and department. The money is given to help those individuals who show a desire to pursue a degree in applied sciences. I don't see why we discriminate[against...? You need to make certain each statement is a finished one.].
Doggone it...where were your English teachers when you needed them? This statement could have been so much more persuasive than it currently is, if only you had known tha (and I am only going to enumerate the glaring errors, for want of time):
1. You use the word "number" rather than "amount" for anything that can be counted; amount is for things that can be measured but not individually counted.
2. Every statement in English needs to have a subject and predicate. In "As for training people from other nations" you need to have a subject clause; this could be remedied simply either by your phrasing it as a question - "As for training people from other nations?" or by inserting a subject clause into the statement - "As for YOUR COMMENT concerning training people from other nations..." although, "as to" would be better; but really this would be best handled by combining this statement with the statement following it with either a colon or a dash.
3. Math, as a discipline, is always capitalized; ditto for History, English, and so forth.
4. A good argument is logically and clearly organized, rather than doubling back on itself.
5. It is important to use specific modifying words and phrases in order to avoid ambiguity and fuzzy meaning in your statements. Expressions like "I know in many humanities it is not as diverse as far as international students" are weak because that "it" could be modifying either the department(s) or the students being named. A little sentence organization goes a long way towards clarifying and strengthening your argument.
- katerific, drumms9980, London-Tokyo and 11 others
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top coat
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Let's look on the bright side of things -- at least you got in!!! Think of how many applicants probably applied to the program and were rejected. At least you have been given the opportunity to futher your studies!
I know you need money to survive and all that, but seriously, take a moment to pat yourself on the back for getting in!!!
Yeeeeah...but even for a Master's degree, you're looking at double-digit thousands beginning with 20 or 30 and going up to 50 in student loan debt. It really is akin to a rejection in many respects.
I deeply regret doing a Master's degree on my dime, and will not have it paid off until 2025. I am NOT going to do a PhD in like vein...which meant that my unfunded acceptance last year might as well have been a rejection. Hoping for better this year - but I so understand where the first poster is coming from.
Hang in there, I really hope you can find a way to swing it!!
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I had to google BPAL! This is quite the ostentatious statement on their website: "we have mastered the art of encapsulating allegorical ideas into singular olfactory experiences."
That's awesome!
I dare you to order an Imp of Lyonesse and NOT feel like you have died and gone to Camelot....!
They're not kidding. It's freaking amazing. I'm definitely a fan! -
Thanks for the kind words of encouragement fall-11! I hope your thesis process is going as well as mine. Take care & good luck!
None of my schools has notified anyone about anything yet, either.
I have consoled myself by ordering more BPAL Imps. At least I can smell yummy while I'm wallowing in my anxiety...except, of course, that BPALs take so long to ship.
But ordering them was therapeutic, in and of itself. -
I have the mostly respect for people in all fields and think no less of one or the other. However, the "respect' is lower simply because of the applications of English pale in comparison to many other fields which have far larger impacts and address more pressing needs in the world. To most people, this is why English and many other Liberal Arts seem less "important".
Buuut...without English (in English-speaking countries), you wouldn't be able to read the textbooks and instructions on assignments for the disciplines you work in, to fill out the applications and to write the SOP that gets you into the programs you want to get into, to read the publications that lead you to your ideas for your groundbreaking research, to write the papers about your research that are published to let other people know about your important work, to avoid plagiarism that could end your career, or to write the acceptance speech for your Nobel prize. Let's face it - you can look down your nose at the English folks, but in the end, we're the ones on whose shoulders pretty much everybody else stands.
I'm OK with the fact that as English folks we are (generally) paid less, respected less, and more often than not dismissed as being the step-children of academia...but it would be nice to get some acknowledgement for our fundamental importance in getting everyone else where s/he wants to go.
We're kind of the Cinderellas of academia...without us, nothing gets done around the castle, but in the end, we don't get to go to the ball.
- Waffles, Clawsworth, repatriate and 6 others
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unrest/doom/insanity
in Literature, and Rhetoric and Composition
Posted
I'm still on the "I've heard nothing" bandwagon right along with you. Although, alas, I don't get to join in the menstrual club...at least, not this week.
Hang in there, all!