swarthmawr

Feel free to PM me if you wanna talk through the SoP structure (from my understanding, but it seemed to work alright for me, so happy to help)

Yes! I did this but I’m happy with my choice— don’t forget to consider cost of living, too. Buffalo is WAY cheaper than Amherst, from what I’ve heard. So that extra $4k might not make much of a difference. Plus, it’s way worth it to go somewhere you fit and are excited about.

Some of the folks at CUNY are doing what you’re interested in. Do you have your methods/project for your SoP planned out yet?

Got into UT Austin last minute... very likely to decline, will let you all know when so others on the waitlist get a chance

I forgot to post when I declined Brandeis last week— best of luck to those waitlisted!

See you next year 😎

In addition to the comments from people above, I wanted to pass on what several DGSs have mentioned to me this cycle: a year off is definitely not a year lost. In my case, I’ve had nearly 3. And I thought I would be “rusty” going back into academia, but many of the DGS I’ve spoken to have said that having some work experience is an asset, too, because you’re able to do the less interesting “job-like” parts of the PhD that you might not have the skills for in undergrad. That of course depends on your previous work experience and how you approach tasks, but having a full time job might help folks learn how to balance their workload and be more efficient. At least that’s what some profs I’ve spoken to at visits said. It certainly did help me, I think, but of course this depends entirely on your working style.

I am! Pursuing a PhD in English!

Turned down UC Boulder and CUNY for English! Good luck to those waitlisted!

Headed to Rutgers!

Yeah, just want to second this, when I visited they were discussing the upcoming strike and it seems like it’s a really vocal and supportive community— I think all faculty, staff, etc across all of their campuses are included in the union. @inkbee1 any decisions yet?

Other than money and questions about department politics, what is off limits? Anything that isn’t obviously off limits but still good to avoid?

I thought it was just me, but after speaking with a number of other prospecive students during open houses, it’s clear that the much anticipated Visit can be an awkward animal at times. I’ve been to 3 so far, and they’ve all been vastly different, from hyper-structured (and thus physically exhausting) to incredibly free-form (and thus socially exhausting). I can’t seem to nail NOT feeling weird during these things, though, so I’m wondering if anyone has any advice to have the smoothest possible visit. Is it helpful to have written questions when meeting with prospective advisors? How have you transitioned from asking questions that an applicant would ask to asking questions that a *prospective student* would ask? And, if you happen to be one of those people blessed with the small talk gene, how do you do it so effortlessly? Maybe I’m the only hopelessly awkward one at these things.

What is NYU’s placement rate? I know Rutgers is around 87%. They’re both great top 20 programs so it comes down to the little things. But don’t forget they’re in a consortium, too!

There are also some programs that are open to less “traditional” literary projects, where your PhD can absolutely be paired with CW if you wish it to; like I believe USC and Denver have some element of creative writing in their programs (I think USC’s is a PhD in creative writing but it essentially entails what you’ve mentioned).