fall-11

That's interesting.

Here are a few I know of that have funded MA programs: Purdue Delaware Villanova U of Connecticut U of Maryland U of Maine U of Vermont Illinois at Urbana Champaign U of Washington When I was applying to MA programs a few years back, I know these are some places that offered funding at the MA level, but things can change from one year to another, so definitely double-check. Good luck!

Those are all the toughest places to get into. Would you be willing to diversify your portfolio a bit? As in, apply to some places that are top 50 but not top 20? Definitely go for 'fit' rather than the prestige of the institution (sometimes the two may coincide, but sometimes not), and try to demonstrate your fit with the program in your SOP and writing sample. As others have suggested, it might be a good idea to re-take the Lit GRE. I studied primarily using the Princeton Review book and the Vade Mecum and Hapax Legomena websites, and I ended up with a pretty high score despite not having an undergrad major in English, so it can definitely be done even if your focus has not been on the canon. And maybe start the whole process early so that if a LOR writer does go missing, at least you'll have time to replace them. Conference presentations also look really good on a CV, and conferences are not hard to get into -- you can just use the papers you've written for your classes and/or your thesis chapters for conferencing. Good luck!

Okay, so based on posts like the one above, I'm a bit intimidated and confused about finding an affordable studio apartment. I'll be attending BU in the fall, so I'm looking for a studio in one of the areas surrounding BU. I've been looking on Craigslist and bostonapartments.com, and there do seem to be studios in the 950-1050 range (that's my budget) around BU, particularly in Allston/Brighton as well as some in Kenmore/Brookline. Am I missing something? Do those places have some hidden defect that's not obvious to a novice? A related question -- I've narrowed down my search to the following realtors who seem to have studios that are in my price range (950-1050) and not too far from BU: Coppola Realty Management Preview Properties Comm Ave Associates Beacon Realty Trust Exit Boston Realty SCS Realty Boston's Best Realty Anyone have any positive or negative experiences with these folks? Or suggestions of other realtors that people have had good experiences with? I'd really appreciate any input. Thanks

Just to add a further note of encouragement to anyone who's still waiting -- when I applied to MA programs two years back, two of the schools I was waitlisted at eventually offered me funded spots -- one on May 1, the other on May 6. I had already accepted an offer by the April 15 deadline, so I didn't end up going to these other two schools, but I just mean that even if it's after April 15, you might still hear good news in the coming weeks as a result of other folks turning down offers or whatever. And even if anyone does end up having to reapply next year, it might seem discouraging right now, but it'll work out better in the long run. I myself had to do two rounds with my MA apps. I initially applied for Fall 2008, and got only unfunded offers, then reapplied for Fall 2009 with a stronger SOP and writing sample, and got three funded MA offers (as well as some unfunded ones). So if you didn't make it this round, and need to do it again, believe me, you'll have a *much* stronger application thanks to having been through the process once. Good luck, and stay strong!

Rhet Man, KRC, and anyone else still in limbo -- I'm keeping my fingers crossed for you. I know it's an awful feeling to be in limbo -- hang in there, and good luck! And of course, we're here if you need to talk or vent.

Just to chime in with Tybalt, lyoness, and others, this is a truly wonderful community. It's just such a relief to be able to share the agony of waiting, uncertainty, etc. with a community of people who understand. And it's true that ideally we should get application advice from our profs, but profs are busy people and it's often hard to get hold of them, and I feel bad bothering them with every tiny detail. So having the GC community for advice and support has been wonderful. Another 'real life' resource is current PhD students, but since I'm sort of introverted, I haven't really gotten to know a whole lot of PhD students at my MA school. So again, the GC is great for those of us who are sort of socially phobic. A funny thing is that when I visited a school where I was waitlisted, the first person I met was a Grad Cafe-er! She even opened the door for me when she saw me standing outside looking lost (Otherwise, I would have stood there nervously a little longer.) Eventually, I got in off the waitlist and will be going there in the fall (so will she, actually), but my first crossing of that threshold, and my first entry into the hallowed grounds of that department, was enabled by a fellow GC-er who graciously opened the door. So that's yet another reason why the Grad Cafe will remain close to my heart. I hope we don't lose touch with each other now that the application season is over! I'd really like us to remain part of this community -- help next year's applicants, meet up at conferences, maybe open doors for each other, literally and metaphorically. I love you all!

That's totally awesome I remember you posting a while back that you were hoping not to get screwed over by undergrad transcripts issues that you had no control over. It's good to know that good programs judge candidates for what they're really worth, and not for things that happened 10 years ago, or that they had no control over. Congratulations again! After going through all the blood and sweat and tears with everyone else on the board, it's so nice to be able to celebrate each other's successes. Yay! We rock!

Congratulations, Tybalt!! Woohoo!! Folkloredude: I'm an old lady myself (all of 30), and I feel a special kinship with all the oldies: you, Tybalt, Medievalmaniac, etc.

I survived February only thanks to the "doom/unrest/insanity" thread

That's easy -- just make up a name and an email address, and write to them under the assumed name

I'll be attending BU as well, for the PhD in English. Also combing through craigslist looking for housing, but really excited to be going there!

It's definitely not a good idea to go into debt, so I'd say wait and see if you end up getting a funded offer at either Buffalo or ASU. In case you don't end up getting a funded offer, I guess you'll have to decide whether or not to do an unfunded (or partially funded) MA. My own inclination would be to stay away from debt -- I'd rather wait a year and reapply to more programs and with a stronger set of materials than go into debt. Let's just hope either Buffalo or ASU ends up giving you a funded offer, and that'll solve the problem! I know it's nerve-wracking to be waitlisted, but definitely wait all the way till April 15 if necessary before making a decision. In the mean time, keep checking in with those programs and reminding them that you're very much interested in going there. Good luck!

Here's another suggestion. You might take a few undergrad English classes at a local university or online, in order to gain some background & a writing sample & LOR writers, and then apply to a MA program at a good university, which will then put you in a good position to apply to PhD programs. That's the route I took (I had a non-humanities BA), and it's worked out. Good luck

I also got in at UGA, although I'm waiting to hear from another school where I'm waitlisted before making a decision.

Awesome, woohoo!!

I emailed the DGS and he replied that they'll be done making decisions by the end of this week or beginning of next, and then send out notices. That pretty much means I didn't make it into the wait-list, right?

While browsing the web today, I came across a sample English SOP here: https://sdsuwriting.pbworks.com/f/01_sample_statements_purpose_PHD.doc . I have no idea whether it was a successful SOP (i.e. whether the person actually got in) but anyway, it's worth a look. Good luck!

Hi all, I was one of the 12 finalists, but I emailed the DGS today to let her know I'm not considering Loyola any more, so she can take me off the list. Hope that means good news for someone else!

The Phoenix type stuff is not what you want. Look for online/distance/continuing-ed courses at reputable universities (like the two I mentioned in my previous post). A few others that have similar offerings are UMass (http://www.umassonline.net/), U Georgia (http://www.georgiacenter.uga.edu/idl), U Illinois (http://www.online.uillinois.edu/). I took classes through U Washington Extension (http://www.pce.uw.edu/online-learning/) and UNC (http://www.fridaycenter.unc.edu/cp/index.htm) and had a good experience with both. Note that these programs offer mostly undergrad classes, not grad classes. However, if you took only 3 undergrad English classes in college (I myself took none), then upper level undergrad classes might be a good place to get started. And it's certainly a good way to get recommenders, etc. Good luck!

You might want to apply to MA programs, rather than PhD programs. That way, you can get your foot in the door, get experience with grad level English classes, and end up with a good writing sample and recommendation letters. Then you'll be in a much better position to apply to PhD programs. That's what I've done because I've been out of school for a few years, and also my undergrad was not in English. Also, if you apply after doing an MA, it will matter less that you've been out of school doing other stuff, because doing an MA will show your commitment to grad study. I second what others have said about enrolling at a nearby university as a non-degree student (or taking online/correspondence classes). I actually took a couple of online classes (from UNC Chapel Hill and U Washington), and those profs became my recommenders when I applied to MA programs. I did the online route since I'm an international student and wasn't here in the US, but it's even better if you can enroll as a non-degree student at a local university.

NYU might be another place to check out...

This is so depressing. I mean, we all know it's true (that there's a big pile of "definite rejects") but seeing it spelled out in so many words just makes the process seem so painful and dehumanizing... Good luck to everyone who's waiting.

Yeah, it's the last program I'm waiting to hear from as well, and even though I don't expect to get in, I'd like to get closure on it. I looked up their academic calendar and found that they're on spring break this week, which would explain why the DGA is away, but doesn't explain why the grad secretary was there when I called yesterday. Go figure. So basically, I think we probably won't hear anything until next Monday at the earliest, when they all come back from spring break. Hang in there!

Can you go on campus visits? That might be a good way to get a feel for the profs and see if you click with them. Also, that way you can email the profs and say you'll be visiting the campus and would like to make an appointment to meet them. Good luck!