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englishgrad

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Everything posted by englishgrad

  1. Thank you so much for your feedback! I like the part about turning in a polished draft. I am going to be meticulous about the type of drafts I will show my advisor. Since he is allergic to certain line spacing, I will also fix that. It is good to hear that you and your partner were able to complete your projects (sorry to hear that it was without help from an advisor). I feel more confident now - I will also consider "picking" other professor's brains in regards to my topic. Perhaps that will give me a direction to go in. Otherwise, I will have to forge my own path, but perhaps I will learn more this way as you suggest.
  2. Hi, Is it possible to get good letters of recommendation from teachers who I took in a continuing education class at a local college? I am interested in taking two creative writing classes this summer in order to help prepare my writing sample for grad school and to possible get additional letter writers. The courses I will take are non-credit/continuing ed, but they are for several hours each week for about 10 weeks. Do you think it will be possible to convince these teachers to write letters on my behalf? they may not be professors. Thanks!
  3. I think it's a great thing to "remember" your letter writers. In the past, I have always written a thank-you card with a sincere and brief message about how they have helped me and my plans. I would also give them a giftcard about 20-25$ to a general place - like a Starbucks /coffee card or Barnes and Noble / bookstore. I love the idea of fruit baskets, but what if the professor has food allergies? What if you want to give them a food/dessert gift and they are Kosher, etc? It is much easier to give a giftcard - esp, Barnes and Noble b/c most profs like to read and if they want, they can also buy movies or music there.
  4. I need some help with my Thesis and upcoming application season!

  5. Hi, I am starting my thesis project for my Master's in English Lit. I have a list of sources I plan to use, but I am confused about every little thing. My advisor is not helpful and he brushes off my questions with a sweeping statement, "You are a beginner!" (true, but not helping). Is there anyone out there that has completed a master's thesis? Did you write one long research paper? Or was it several "chapters" or separate, but related essays? Did you use 1 or 2 inch margins? footnotes? a Works Cited page at the end? outlines as you wrote? How do you get your writing to sound "academic" and not as shaky as I feel? I feel like I can't create a strong thesis - nothing is good/specific enough. Also, are there any books that can help me with preparing the thesis? I wouldn't mind reading some sample theses or getting tips from experts. And, if you have been through this writing process, how did you attack the work? Did you have a schedule (2 pages a day?) Did you sit in a library all day? Did you make friends with librarians that were helpful? Also, did you have any friends to read your work? My big problem is that I have no one to read my work and give feedback, and my mentor/thesis advisor seems disappointed with everything I do show him. Once again, I really need some advice. I am soooo lost. I want to give up each day.
  6. Hi everyone, I am new to gradcafe and am so grateful to read about our shared experiences as grad students. I am currently in a MA program in English Literature. So far I have successfully completed all my coursework, comp exam, and foreign language exam as well as working as an adjunct. However, I am having *issues* with my Master's thesis. I am interested in Medieval Lit - especially the environment of evil that seems to be part of works such as Beowulf, etc. I have written approx. 15-20 pages during the spring term - writing is going very slowly (probably because of the adjunct workload and also the fact that I have a lot of anxiety about this project). The last time I met my advisor, he asked to see my draft - I handed it over, only to see him write all over it in black ink pen -- his head was down, shaking with disapproval, and all he did was make line by line comments on grammar. (By the way, it is a DRAFT and secondly, I don't need grammar advice from my thesis mentor - I took 5 classes with him and got As, so it's not my grammar that is the problem.) He also "hated" the line spacing in my document - although it is a draft, far from finished. He did not let me speak - when I did, he ignored me. He did say, "It is obvious you have NO IDEA what you are doing" - a comment which stung. So now, I am at the point where I am terrified to meet him. I also have no idea if he will be available to work with me this summer. He had hinted that he does not work in the summer. Since I don't see his personality improving anytime soon (he seems MAD at me without reason), how can I complete this thesis project of at least 60 pages, placate him and get my Master's?? Any tips? Any similar stories? Thank you for your advice.
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