HappyCat

I bombed my freshman year of college (basically failed out), transferred, got a fresh start, and pulled my GPA up. However, my old transcript has to be sent to the schools (huzzah). My freshman year was 2004, got my MA with honors, presented at many conferences since then, taught college composition, etc. I, too, did not mention my grades. Now I'm a bit worried. :-\

I was seriously considering Comp/Rhet after being strongly pressured by faculty and administrators. I have a lot of experience in the Comp/Rhet field--I've worked for the Writing Center at my school for years, became a supervisor, helped pilot writing proficiency exams, presented at CCCC a couple times, etc. I love rhetoric, I love teaching composition, but frankly, it's not what I want to STUDY. But that's neither here nor there That being said, in my research and such, I learned a few things. (1) Look at what department the Comp/Rhet program is housed. A Comp/Rhet program in English will be different than one in communications. (2) Consider the degree type. Some give EdDs, others give PhDs. (3) Ask yourself where you align as a Comp/Rhet student. Just like you focus on different periods in literature, there are different areas to focus in Comp/Rhet. Do you believe in the use of technology for composition? Gaming pedagogies? Or are you more "old-school"? It's important to try to cater your beliefs with the staff. Imagine if you wanted to write your dissertation on how video games affect composition and your department had only really old guys who never played a video game. ;-) (4) When you think of jobs--are you looking more for a faculty or administrative position? Generally, it seems you don't get to work in both equally (from my experience anyway). As far as the job market, yes, Comp/Rhet seems strong. However, I have been concerned about one thing: Comp/Rhet programs are strong now, but how will they be in the 5-6 yrs before you get out of a PhD program? If everyone thinks it's going to be a great job, there will be far fewer positions. Hope this helps!

I don't know if you called yet, but you can't use the confirmation number for this exam because it just confirms you will be taking it--the scores aren't ever connected to that number. Instead, you need to use the registration code, and--if you threw it out like I did--you can call costumer service at: 609 771 7670 or 866 473 4373 (Toll-free) Hope that helps and that you get a refund for the earlier score!

Am I the only one whose scores cannot be located? Tried confirmation number, SS#, everything. It's getting to the point where I'm questioning my existence and my own date of birth!

Hi all! CUNY NYU Rutgers WashU--St. Louis UMass--Amherst IU--Bloomington Purdue 18C British Literature (particularly satire)/Composition/Rhetoric Good luck to all (and hopefully myself)!

I actually threw my hands up when I saw the editor question. How absurd. The theorists also threw me off a little bit because of how closely some of the passages were related. There were also more grammatically oriented questions than I had anticipated, including things like "Adding which word to lines 8-9 will not change the author's meaning?" I'm pretty sure the poet would be pissed if we just stick in adverbial conjunctions and the like. Or, also, "The passage relies (or functions, something like that) on what?" And it lists intransitives, passive, etc. etc. I'm glad I know grammar well enough that I feel those helped me a lot. There was also a set of three questions on a rather obscure part of Greek myth without any reading passage, which I found strange. I'm thinking I should have left more blank than I did (only 6), because I was running out of time and then rushing. Also, the clock didn't work in my test room, which is always quite lovely.

I'm sorry; I mislead you. The reason I vocalize it so vehemently is because this has been a discussion that has come up over, and over, and over again. I feel he/she doesn't quite understand my perspective and desires and is rather trying to push me into his/her field. I've discussed this already with a mentor and my thesis adviser (both 18th century specialists), and they both suggested I do not make a web-based thesis. Mind you, this professor who suggested it is not in any way my adviser, he/she has opted to take me under his/her wing. You're right in that I should have reframed it--I'm just becoming very frustrated and disheartened in the situation. It's a bit like being between a rock and a hard place.

Hi all! I'm applying for Ph.D. programs this fall and was wondering about specializing. There's a long story involved (well, long-ish) just to warn you. I'm currently working on an MA because I had a rough start in my undergrad due to some personal issues. This extra time pursuing the MA has helped me really establish myself, but I feel I'm being torn in two completely different directions (partially due to professors pressuring me). I have a lot of experience in the Comp. and Rhet. field: I worked at my college's Writing Center as a tutor for a few years and am now a supervisor, I grade ESL placement exams, I presented on authoritative blogging at 2010's CCCC, and I will be teaching College Composition this fall. I've submitted proposals for CCCC again (as part of a gaming and writing workshop) and AWP (discussing using creative non-fiction content to engage students in writing based courses). When I thought of applying for Comp. and Rhet., I always thought I could focus more on rhetoric--rhetorical theory, history, etc. As such, my MA thesis will be on the rhetorical styling of Jonathan Swift, and I'm absolutely thrilled with my topic. However, a professor who has taken me under his/her wing mentioned that my topic may not be appropriate for a Comp. and Rhet. focus. He/She suggested I write about technology and writing pedagogy. I stuck to my guns, though, and am not changing my topic. Now, I'm also a bit of a techie (hence why he/she suggested a tech focus in my thesis). I have a lot of--renown, I guess I'll call it--on my campus due to a website I made which gives writing/grammar advice. As such, this professor, again, decided that he/she should suggest that I make my thesis into a website, etc. etc. to really emphasize my technological background because it will make my application tighter. Again, I'm sticking to my guns: I'm not making my thesis web-based. I'm incredibly torn now--perhaps I was mistaken about the possibility of studying rhetorical theory and history. When I imagine my future, I don't want to study theories of writing pedagogy forever (Elbow, Selfe, etc.). I appreciate everything they do immensely because I feel I can apply their theories to my classroom. Yet when I imagine my studies, I always picture literature, predominantly the Scriblerians. And it's not as simple as having multiple literary interests (I also love medieval, and oddly enough, I find most medievalists enjoy the long 18th and vice versa), since these are two entirely different programs in many cases. I have been thinking about applying to some Comp. and Rhet. programs and some "literature" programs. But this causes a couple issues--(1) I'll have to decide whether to go Comp./Rhet or English for some programs (such as CUNY Grad Center), (2) It may become difficult for the professors who will be writing my LoR. Is it impossible to study 18th century literature in a rhetorical light? Should I be applying for literature programs instead? Will my strong background in composition reflect poorly on my literature applications? Unfortunately, I missed the deadlines for the conferences covering the long Eighteenth, so I can't build more of an 18th century focus at this point.

I started working at my college's Writing Center while in undergrad and continue to work there through my MA. Oddly enough, I work with diehtc0ke's MFA friend