havemybloodchild

Holy shit I am drinking deep of these "hard working white men" tears rn.  Good riddance to this dude.

One thing I'll share is that some programs really do not want to hear about your passion for teaching, and some really do, so definitely consider that when tweaking SoPs for specific programs. 

One thing I'll share is that some programs really do not want to hear about your passion for teaching, and some really do, so definitely consider that when tweaking SoPs for specific programs. 

I'm not familiar with UChicago but as others have said here in the past, the prestige of their other departments does not necessarily (and many have argued it in fact does not at all) translate to the MAPH program. The main thing I did want to say is to not be fooled by offers of partial scholarships. 1.5k is just a small percentage of what you'll be paying, so ultimately it's just like a store offering you a tiny discount (if you buy this $3000 couch we'll waive delivery). It sounds like a ploy more than anything else (consider that even NYU's maligned cash-grab MA offers "awards" up to 60% of tuition, but of course, you're still paying 40% which translates to thousands and thousands of dollars).

Is it crucial that you enroll in a Master's program for the upcoming year? There might be alternatives that enhance your application which would make it get into funded Master's programs after this cycle. I'd like to stress that prestige at the Master's level really does not exist. It might sound impressive to the general public but ultimately the general public isn't the one making decisions on admissions.

If you must enroll in one of them, look at their classes and what their requirements are. See if there's one which you find more appealing in that manner. Consider location as well. Consider how much you'll pay for rent, transportation and how easily accessible things like restaurants, parks, and grocery stores might be. Also consider that it's highly likely that you'll be unable to make much of a dent in payments if you decide to apply to PHD programs.
Otherwise, consider where you'd like to live for 2 years. Find universities in those locations; there's a good chance that places without a PHD program fund their students. Not having to stress about loans or working a second job will probably help you develop a stronger writing sample.

For lit studies programs, your proficiency in language is not a factor in applications (an exception might be if you are planning on studying medieval literature but even then, I don't think coming in with no Latin/Old French knowledge is necessarily a dealbreaker). If you are trying to bolster your lit studies applications, your time would be better spent improving your statement of purpose and writing sample.  
For comp lit, it most definitely is necessary to have proficiency in another language, so it really just depends on what programs you will be applying for. 
I see you've noted that listening/speaking is where you have difficulty with German/French and again, for lit studies programs, I wouldn't worry about that at all. You won't be evaluated on your speaking skills — most likely to pass a language requirement all you'll need to do is translate a short passage and you'll be allowed a dictionary. 

Under neoliberalism, nothing related to the humanities at the university is going to get "better." That's just the endpoint for me.

I don’t know about “better,” but I forsee a shift in the admissions process that will probably remain permanent. I think admissions will continue limited admissions but will begin prioritizing academy trends rather than pure potential. And by trends, I mean that committees are going to want hyper specific things from potential scholars. 
Its just that the academy has known for a long time that they are producing more phds than their are jobs. And for years, there has been a moral debate on whether or not accepting students is the right thing to do. Universities have been very afraid of over saturation. And before the pandemic, there was huge discussion on limiting admissions. But there’s no nice or non embarrasing way to announce a drastic change in student admissions.
BUT I think Covid forced them to actually put those abstract thoughts of limitation into action. Before, we could only speculate would limited admissions would look like. Now the academy has experience on limited admissions. And even more so, they have begun considering how limitations can achieve a broader academy goal. Just look at U. Chicago, they have chosen rather experimental forms of assessment this year. And they have done so in a way that will directly sway the future of research. They will only accept black phds this year! Now I’m not saying that other schools will go that route. But just watching how this plays out and seeing academy reactions, I see universities embracing  very finite binaries. “This year we want scholars for victorian queerness”  “This year we only want Shakespeareans who are interested in our digital studies department.” Like they are going to both limit the number of entry for scholars but they will use that limitation to directly sway their own self interests. Specialty is one thing but committees are probably going to want something more specific than even that. 
 
I’m rambling but my point is that I don’t think admissions will go “back to normal” next year or even after the pandemic. Yale will stay at 3 admissions for some time. Other schools will decrease admissions or prioritize certain applicants. Either way, I think we are looking at a shift in admissions and instead of it being “better” next year, we may just be playing an entirely new game. Heck, we were playing an entirely new game THIS year.
——
So like, back to the admissions I mentioned, I think committee’s are going to look for different things when it comes to accepting applicants:
- Will this student sway the job market and research trends in ways that we, collectively as a department, have deemed important and necessary? How?
- Does this student have a solid idea of what their specific kind scholarship looks like? And do they have a scholarly identity that is, in our opinion, distinct enough for future employment?
- Does this student know what they are getting into beyond academics (poverty, job scarcity, etc) How does their background let us know?
So to sum all my garbage rant into a final point: Admissions committee have a different stance on admissions now. They will prioritize a very limited number and from that limited number, they will choose students based on a desired outcome rather than potential. Applicants have a different set of expectations....or they will have next year or in years’ future.
———-
Another thing I want to note is that a good majority of applicants are not ready for a phd. The number of applicants may be huge, but in all honesty, there’s far fewer who are actually “ready.” Like yea, a lot are ready for scholarship and research but don’t prove that they are also ready for the reality of external factors out of their control.
I’m not being cruel. If I am, I apologize. I think potential and skill is there for most applicants. There are so many amazing scholars out there. And in a perfect world, that’s all you’d need. But with the job market and humanities the way it is, its not enough to be a “good scholar.” You have to also be a firmly convicted one. And that has to be proven by proving that you have a very solid, and very unique idea, of what kind of scholar you are or are going to be. So yea, the number of applicants seem scary but not many meet this unspoken requirement. You also have to be good at teaching, the landscape of higher education is prioritizing instruction so students also need to understand that.

A lot of excellent points in this thread, that I hope newly-admitted PhD students are taking to heart.  One I will add:
Take advantage of the resources at your school, not just the resources of your program.  Odds are, the people in your program won't know a thing about preparing for a non-academic job.  The vast majority of English faculty at PhD granting institutions have never held/applied for one.  But your school will have tons of resources, and quite probably a whole office, for job placement/development.  Don't dismiss those resources just because they are intended for the undergrads.  Develop a resume alongside your CV and keep both updated accordingly.  Do an internship during your program.  If you make a point of contributing just one thing to each world (ac and alt-ac) in every semester and every summer, then by the time you finish your program, you'll be ready to put your best foot forward regardless of the path you decide to walk (and you'll be better prepared to pivot if you start down a path and realize that it's not what you'd hoped).

As the article states:

A fourth-year doctoral candidate at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) may face deportation after being dismissed from his studies due to noncompliance with COVID-19 testing.
Yidong Chen, who goes by the nickname Ivor, lived with his mother in Champaign-Urbana while working remotely as a teaching assistant in the fall semester of 2020.
Because his mother has greater chances than he does of contracting COVID-19, Chen barely left their home until the start of the spring semester of 2021.
Chen opted out of his university’s policy on COVID-19 testing, which changed multiple times throughout the past few months. 

After a few minutes, the panel issued the following as a result of noncompliance:
Dismissal from the University for one year, effective immediately Two 1,000-word reflective essays A trespass notification that prohibits Ivor from setting foot on University property, subject to enforcement by the University Police Department A petition letter for University re-entry after one year 80 hours of community service Evidence of successful academic or work history during his one-year dismissal

The full story can be found here: https://nextshark.com/university-of-illinois-phd-student-dismissed-covid/

Sadly, this isn't uncommon. The Union has fought for students many times but the administration has continued to pull stunts like this many times.

If you haven't made your mind up yet, please consider these things when applying/accepting offers.
 

Just when I’d convinced myself of an inevitable shutout this cycle, I got an email from UVA saying I’m at the top of the waitlist—fingers crossed for some last minute good news ?

I have decided on Howard University. I made the difficult decision to reject my offers from UConn and University of Delaware. I hope this helps someone on the waiting list! 

I JUST GOT ACCEPTED TO BOSTON COLLEGE! I'm crying so hard. I'm so thankful and in disbelief, I've been shaking since I got the email. I'll be emailing shortly to take myself off of the UConn waitlist and I hope this helps someone else out. Thank you all so much for your kind words and support through this whole process. It's especially wonderful because yesterday marked one year since my dad passed away, and I can't help but feel he's looking out for me.

Something else to think about is whether or not those papers would help to produce a really coherent idea of the scholar you will be upon exiting your PhD experience. One of the professors I spoke to during my interview process at the PhD program I’ll be attending this fall really discouraged the idea of publishing simply to publish (not saying that’s what you would be doing, but I definitely understand the desire to publish as much as possible without maybe fully knowing how those publications will speak to your interests/marketability later on), and spoke to some folks’ early publications as actually being detrimental to them when they entered the job market, because they muddied the waters as far as what that person ended up wanting to research and teach upon graduation. His comments really opened my eyes as to the purpose of publishing as a future job seeker within academia, not sure it’d they're helpful to you, but thought I’d share just in case! Good luck!

Personally I would only do that if I were wealthy and not worried about finances or employment at all. Both are difficult areas currently to find employment and unless you get a great scholarship law school is very expensive. But you may be in a situation where that is not a concern.

It might be theoretically possible, but it would take a very long post to explain all the ways it's a bad idea. If you want to do law, leave your PhD program and go to law school. You certainly wouldn't be the first to make that decision. But don't do both, at least not at the same time.

Happy new year! Hopefully by not obsessing over results like the last time I applied. I have a FULL course load this semester, so I hope that will keep my mind off it, at least a little bit. I've also been getting back into crafting and journaling. I was lucky enough to pretty much secure a job offer that would start in July if I'm not accepted into any programs, so that's something I've been reminding myself whenever I feel nervous or anxious about waiting for results!

Wishing everyone a happy new year! Hope things go well in 2021!

Cleared. Abuse is NOT tolerated here nor is it tolerated on the Results page.  Application season is stressful; there is no reason to make it more stressful for anyone.

Hi! Been lurking since last year when I applied to four PhD programs in English where I got completely shut out (my lone acceptance was creative writing). This year, I've applied to five UC schools: Berkeley, Santa Barbara, Riverside, Irvine, and San Diego. Finally created an account to express solidarity with everyone applying in such unpredictable times and say thank you in advance for making this process feel less lonely. ? ?

i just stopped shuddering when i see/hear the phrase "statement of purpose" and now it's almost time to start the dance again!
(also, hi @Bopie5! hope villanova is treating you well!)

Accepted off the Michigan waitlist! Beyond thrilled.

Officially signed my SIR for UC Irvine, and I'm super excited!!! 

Though many here have or have applied to MFAs, you should know there is also a writing subforum for people applying to those types of programs where you might find more specific assistance (but please don't interpret this is as me saying you should go elsewhere, I'm sure you'll find a lot of help in this subforum as well since there's so much overlap between these programs and their applicants).

I recommend that you break column B into at least one additional column for degree. Maybe also for department and for program.
I would add columns after "Funding" for analysis of a school's financial health, another for public/private, and maybe another for the number of major sports programs a school has. (Because the revenue generated by hosting major sporting events is a big unknown.) I would also add columns for if a school is in a red state or a blue state as the "culture wars" are likely to heat up over the next couple of years as the bills for the CARES Act come due.
If you want to get into the details over the "current climate of the world" you might add one or more columns for likelihood of four categories of catastrophic events (war, pandemic, natural disasters, economic ruin) so you can figure where you want to be in the SHTF moment.