Hartley

Anybody else thinking about buying a home? My wife and I are moving together, to South Bend (she got a job working in student affairs at Notre Dame), and are finding it much more affordable and longterm economically smart to buy a home near campus. I know Indiana is much cheaper than many places y'all are going, but I thought I'd throw it out there. Depending on your situation a modest home could be better than six years of rent in price inflated areas.

So, that letter was written by the Director of the Graduate School. I'm thinking Yale had 10,000+ applications to varying graduate schools, including English.

Just so y'all know. Decisions from Yale are hiding in the portal, just below your basic application info. Looks like they just uploaded a bunch of them today. A no for me. And with that, I'm off to Notre Dame!! Couldn't be more excited.

So are we all under the same assumption that Yale is done, and has been for a while, but just hasn't sent out mass rejections?

So, I'm wondering what y'all think about the reliability of implied rejections from Yale, Brown, and U. Michigan. They are the only three I'm waiting for official responses from, and I'm starting to feel like I want to make a final decision. I haven't combed through the results page at length, but it seems like these schools have already sent out acceptances. Am I jumping the gun? These schools would obviously be contenders if I had offers from them, but it seems like those offers aren't going to come. Is it really just wise to wait and get the official responses? Or can I finally commit and start getting pumped about the program I'll attend? I sort of feel like I want to express to the school I'm currently leaning toward that I am eager and excited to join.

I actually find the PhDs.org rankings much more reliable. They are much more forthcoming about their data sets, and exclude certain methods of ranking which only continue to benefit the "top" programs. http://www.phds.org/rankings/english

So, I'm preparing to enter a PhD program this fall, from my BA. There is a language requirement, stating that by my second year I must have demonstrated fluency in two languages. I have Latin down, and I think my undergraduate coursework there should suffice to demonstrate fluency in one language. But, I'm wondering about the second. How do/did you all go about fulfilling this? Was it hard, or taxing? I think, of all the coming requirements, successfully fulfilling this requirement is what I am most anxious about. Will there be exams? What does the exam look like, generally? What are different ways of demonstrating proficiency? I enjoyed Latin but struggled at times, and I'm not getting any younger. This language thing gets more difficult with age, it seems.

So is there any stigma attached to going straight from one's BA to a program where they receive their MA en route to the PhD? This would mean the MA and PhD would be from the same institution.

I wouldn't worry. South Bend is a far cry from Irish. I think you'd find it all, suitably Mid-western American. That aside, I am in 19th century transatlantic literature, as well as literature of the mind and literature of the environment. So we have more than a little in common. I was impressed by the faculty at ND, and I think, other than the obvious fact that Boston, MA is superior to South Bend, Indiana, you have a hell of a decision ahead. ... Feel free to PM if you'd like. At the moment I'm leaning heavily toward ND and if we both decide to attend it'd be great to get to know you.

@Caien & @Sunsy What do you think about Notre Dame? I'm weighing an offer from them, but I'm unsure if I'm leaning toward them due to the fun of being wined and dined at interview weekend. Sunsy, I'm sure working with Stephen Fallon would be awesome. And Caien, how does BC compare to ND in Irish Lit.? It must be nice to have so many options.

Long time lurker, first time poster. So, I'm trying to weigh two very different offers. I have an offer to get my PhD, funded in full, at a very reputable program—top 20. I also have an offer to get an MA from a tippy-top program. Regarding fit with research interests, they are pretty even. So, am I crazy? I take the PhD offer, right? Thanks for any advice.

How do we know to infer decisions from UMichigan, Brown, and UPenn? I haven't seen anything from any of them yet.