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Llosaesfloja

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Everything posted by Llosaesfloja

  1. Hello, I am applying to MA programs this fall, and I am just wondering how specific my SOP has to be in order to get into good programs. I know what I want to study (20th cent American), but I am not sure exactly what I want my thesis to be/what lens I want to study it through. Is this an issue? I keep seeing that PhD applicants have to be very specific on what their future studies will look like, and I am worried I just can't come up with anything like that on my SOP, and I wouldn't want to just make stuff up. This is a big reason I am applying to MA programs in the first place and not going straight to a PhD--I was hoping the MA process could make me a more specialized student/scholar. Also, and this is along the same lines, is it an issue that my WS doesn't match up that well with my intended area of study? My WS will most likely be my thesis essay from my senior capstone class, which dealt with Aestheticism and Decadence in Wilde's Dorian Gray which, of course, isn't in the same field as what I want to study. I have seen that this could be a big issue for PhD applicants, but does the same go for MA applicants? Or are they more lenient here? Thanks!
  2. Hello, I'm seeking some advice on applying to MA English programs for next year. I am in the midst of trying to research the best programs that could match up to what I want to study, but I am having a pretty difficult time. In a nutshell, my ultimate goal (as of now) is to continue on for a PhD in Comparative Literature. I am really interested in contemporary Latin American literature and contemporary literature from the US as well, and how they relate to each other. I am currently living in Colombia, where I have been taking Spanish classes and reading as much Spanish literature as possible (I work online so it is easy for me to work abroad) in an attempt to make myself a better candidate/student. I will just lay out my questions: I feel as though I am not ready to apply to a doctorate program yet for a multitude of reasons. One of them being (and this is my biggest question for sure) I am not sure exactly what I want to specialize in. Is this a problem while applying to MA English programs? In other words, I know what I want to study, but I am not sure as to what lens I want to study it through. In most of my research it seems like MA programs are okay with this, and that students usually pick a path as they go along, and by the time they get their MA they have a better idea of what they want to specialize in and then move on to their PhD. Is this wrong? Should I have a clear idea of everything I want to study by the time I start writing my SOP for an MA program? I am also having a really hard time finding ANY professors that specialize in this field. I would love to attend an MA program that has a strong collaboration with the Comparative field, but it is really hard to find a program like this, and when I do I can't really find any professors I feel as though I could work with. Columbia is a great example of the type of program I am looking for, but I am well aware how slim my chances are to get accepted here, even though my resume is pretty strong. Another good example is the University of Georgia, which has a "Literature of the Americas" specialization, but when I research the professors (and this is the case with the majority of my research) I can't find any professors I feel as though I could jive with at all. Like, none of them study or teach Spanish/Latin American Literature! Does anyone have any recommendations on how to go about finding the right professors? Am I just looking at the wrong programs? Also, in applying to MA English programs and saying that I haver a strong interest in Latin American literature, could this count against me? Would they just think that I should apply to a Latin American Lit program? I am really ultimately in the relationship between the two, and don't really want to attend an LA Lit program by itself. In applying to MA English programs, then, should I not even mention my interest in Latin American literature? I really only want to study the two fields together, and if I was to chose one it would definitely be contemporary US fiction.
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