ecritdansleau

I received this too--awesome....it almost feels too good to be true, considering how many things I have to do in the next few days. I wish/hope they put something about it on the website, maybe (?) just because I'm paranoid, but I don't expect them to do so. I guess I can e-mail or call if I feel the need to confirm. I mean, obviously, it has been sent from the same address as all the other e-mails about my application.

A TA for a class? That sounds like just the kind of experience they're looking for, which I think is especially impressive considering you only have a BA. Going about it from the angle rawera suggests is a great idea, I think. Are you familiar with Gregory Semenza's "Graduate Study for the 21st Century"? Somewhere in there, it includes a chapter on teaching, which includes a sample statement of teaching philosophy, which could give you a sense of the kind of tone they might expect of you. And it goes without saying, I would really avoid typos. I'm sure you'll be fine!

I feel a similar unease--partly because..I feel as if the greatest hardships/most diverse identities I have/things I've experienced are precisely the ones that I'm hesitant to include in a professional application. Why? It's hard to explain. The strange thing about it is, basically, many of the things we "overcome" or the identities we carry around with us that can negatively impact our intellectual/academic careers are just the things we might not feel like emphasizing in our application presentations because of the potential negative associations with those identities. Even though obviously I understand that the last intention of the diversity statements is to discriminate, I feel like there end up being these grey areas. Take for instance, someone coming from an economically disadvantaged background. If this were a major aspect of my life/education, warranting me writing about it in a personal history statement...then how do I reconcile that with the other application I came across which said "If you do not require financial aid, this increases your chances of admission". Pair that with the infamous Chronicle article by Benton in which he suggests that choosing graduate school is (basically) a stupider choice for those who are NOT "independently wealthy." Or the reality that, if someone has to pay student loans back, money might be tighter during their PhD studies, which makes them less likely to finish in a shorter time, if at all. I guess basically my point is that, the attitude of the personal history is "tell us everything; we understand and won't judge" but, *laugh* I've been through enough adversity to realize that certain people DO judge. It almost feels like there is a trick question to it, like in interviews when the interviewer intentionally acts unprofessional to test out how the interviewee reacts in that situation. I think the main aspect of the original poster's feeling that I really agree with is the sense of privacy invaded...The reality is, one is an applicant--not an admitted student yet, so it feels invasive for them to ask about precisely the things that relate to one's sense of intellectual insecurity (not actual intellectual inferiority, but carrying an aspect of identity that is perceived that way by others). Ideally, diversity statements are something that will have a positive impact on admissions as a whole, but I part of me worries that certain adcoms don't personally have the same outlook on "diversity" as their institution does. I mean, I hope they do--but I worry. I'm paranoid. Obviously, there are going to be a decent number of applications in which the diversity statement will make a student stand out in a way that they rightly deserve. They should have the opportunity to make this part of their application--but perhaps it shouldn't be required for everyone.

Yes--this. And like poeteer, I have a hard time letting go of the app by submitting it: it feels too important not to give it all I have by...thinking about it and changing it till the last possible day?? It doesn't make sense because I worry about typos and the like, but I want the application to be as fully developed as it can be before I submit it. I am already kind of mourning for my retrospectively "sloppy" first two applications in early December and how I *think* I've NOW improved my SOP/WS. Hopefully I am just my worst critic.

Not for Brown--but for another school that uses Embark--the application would not submit when I first clicked it, giving me a message that it was incomplete (even though the automatic checklist told me everything was complete). I totally freaked out and thought that maybe it was too late or something, or that there were problems with the website. Then I tried submitting again, (without "completing" or changing anything on the application) and it worked fine. Weird, but I was relieved.

Ah, thanks, perhaps I'll be alright then! That's a relief.

Bleh, I'm actually really annoyed, because now I'm confused about how they want test scores. "The City University of New York Graduate Center application process is self-managed. Responsibility for gathering required documents such as official transcripts and letters of recommendation rests with the applicant. The applicant (this includes students who are attending or have attended a college of the City University) then must submit these supporting items as a package to the Office of Admissions, including official documents in their original sealed envelopes." So if we officially directed our GRE scores to them, we should have ordered them ourselves, kept them sealed and sent them in with our big package? If responsibility rests with the applicant, then what is the $125 fee for? All the processing and sorting the graduate school avoids having to do?

Based on this very limited description, I feel like (especially if your focus is very historical) the third option with "original and impressive manuscript research" sounds the most promising. You say there are "fewer literary sources" but this seems to suggest the focus is not entirely removed from literary concerns. Also, part of practicing historical research in literature is using your unique literary analytic skills to bring out new readings of nonliterary texts. Ultimately you have to go with your gut on what best represents you, but based on what I know of early modern scholarship (admittedly, this is not my area; but I've taken courses in it and like it quite a bit) the third option sounds very appropriate, and probably most impressive and exciting for adcoms/POIs to read. Also, it likely showcases that your personal initiative, that you really make something of the opportunities you get/and make for yourself, by going out of your way to get access to this manuscript. I think it sounds great. Also, you can probably mention in your statement that the other chapters focused on current scholarship, and poetry reading, in order to give them a more balanced sense of your research interests. Try to put yourself in the place of the adcom: of the three chapters, which would you like to read the most/get the most out of as a scholar of early modern scholarship?

Yes--while usually application guidelines are described in helpful detail on the department webpage, the CUNY's barely gives any information whatsoever. Considering the exorbitant application fee, it's kind of annoying that the information given is relatively opaque about the simplest facts of applying there (part of the app is online, part is in the mail, etc). Up until more recently, the links they gave to the graduate school website were broken (did anyone else notice this in Sept/Oct?)--so annoying, when they basically say "go here for more information" and it didn't work.

Sometimes programs lose things though---especially if you send, say, an SOP in the mail--so deleting things is probably a temptation we should avoid. I have been keeping things on my desktop, and then once the application for a particular school is submitted I put it all into one folder, for that school, and then move the folder AWAY off the desktop so I don't look at it anymore, but also so that if something gets lost, I don't have to rewrite my fit paragraph and whatnot. It actually does feel pretty good to archive it away!

I think what's difficult/controversial about the original question is that ultimately, you are walking a tight-rope whenever you mention a professor's work: if you name drop without explaining, it may seem like a superficial connection; on the other hand, if you try to sum up an aspect of their research, you risk misrepresenting it/sound presumptuous, depending on how familiar you are with it. (I'm not suggesting that most applicants will misrepresent the a rock star scholar's research, but if you describe in a way that seems "off"--and the adcom is the judge of this--there is the risk that this will detract from your application rather than add to it.) But if you do it well, it is a spectacular way to make your app stand out. Probably the best thing to do in this situation is write it out, and ask one of your own professors if it sounds alright, if it's not too late. Or, only mention professors when you are profoundly familiar with the range of their work, especially recent research.

Unless they say otherwise, you might as well include it if you think it strengthens your application. You worked for it, right?! There's usually a statement on the admissions guideline page which will reveal their attitude toward the test. Chicago, for instance, states "The department does not require the GRE subject exam, and scores for this exam are not considered in the admissions process. Do not submit GRE subject exam scores in your online application." As with Columbia, you clearly shouldn't bother: in fact, if you did send them to these departments, it might make it appear as if you had not read their guidelines carefully. But indeed, some of the departments that do not require it seem to do so more out of inclusiveness rather than a disregard for the test (UPenn for instance).

For the purposes of applying, I think it's safe to say you should not suggest your intention to work with emeritus profs on your application, just because you can't really know the situation until you get there. But if it's just out of your own curiousity, there are some retired professors who do work with grad students (especially at schools like my undergrad which was offering special incentives for tenured professors to retire early.) At my school, I witnessed a bunch of relatively young (presumably in their 50s but intellectually in their A game) professors retire, some with their next book manuscripts in the works. Ahh, what a nice thought: to imagine retirement as a very long sabbatical, haha. If there is a professor who falls into this grey area, it might be something to inquire about if you're admitted and deciding between schools.

AAhh, update. From the Chronicle: "Judith Butler, a distinguished figure in feminist theory and literary criticism, will be a visiting professor in Columbia University’s department of English and comparative literature. Ms. Butler, who is currently a professor of rhetoric and comparative literature at the University of California at Berkeley, will be at the the department in a visiting capacity in the spring 2012 and the spring of 2013." BUT THEN, if you scroll down, a commenter seems to suggest that the Chair of the English Department sent out an e-mail confirming that Butler will be a permanent faculty member after those first two years: From the Supposed Email: "I am thrilled to announce that Judith Butler will be joining our department as a regular faculty member. For each of the next two years she will be a full-time visitor in the spring terms. After that she will be here on a permanent year-round basis." All this information is from here: http://chronicle.com/blogs/ticker/judith-butler-plans-to-move-from-berkeley-to-columbia-u/28217

Perhaps someone might have a better update on this, but I believe Butler's status at Columbia is that of a 2 year visiting professor (so she's technically not a permanent member of the department yet, but I imagine if she wants to stay they'd be happy to have her?). I can't speak to whether you should name drop or not, but you probably don't want to make it sound like all your eggs are in the Spivak/Butler basket (that is, mention other professors too, if you do mention Spivak an Butler). I think? I think MedievalManiac hits on a key point: don't just name names, explain why/how their work relates to your own in a show (don't just tell) manner.

There's also: my mom said if I don't get in anywhere, we can get a puppy, lol. I have to say, I like her solutions.

It's funny, but one of the questions on one of my applications was "Do you require financial aid? Because if you do not this can increase your chances of admission, since the department is limited by its own budget" and I was just like...hmmm. That definitely sounds fair. *cough* I guess I prefer the less direct ways they could ask this question, i.e. "How much do you have in savings? Amount=___ How much do you have in your current bank/checking account? Amount=____". Haha, the funny thing about it is how much less money I'll have from the beginning of December to the end, just paying all these app fees. So funny. *cough*

Ahhh, parents' roundabout support, indeed. My mom was like, "I hope you don't make it into any schools but School A" (school A=about 40 minutes from my family. All my other schools are actually more than 500 miles away). And then I try to explain how I will be lucky to make it into any of my schools!

I totally agree. Remember, you're going to be asking your letter writers and whatnot for their advice (and they'll need your materials) just around the same time as the October and November tests are offered. I ended up sending them very preliminary SOPs at that time because I was too wrapped up in studying for the GRE--definitely not my best case scenario. If you're trying to do too many things at once, it can make it difficult to prioritize. If you're anything like me, you'll never really seriously study for the test until you're registered (which you have to basically do 3-4 months in advance anyway, which I think is a perfect amount of time).

Ahh lucky! at my testing center they wouldn't let us bring anything in the test room. We even had to show them we didn't have any papers in our bag other than the test registration form. And then we had to sit there, in our seats, ready to go, with NOTHING to do from about 8:25 until 9:00. It was awful.

If they app is asking how much money you want/need, could it be for extenuating circumstances? Some financial aid forms will ask questions like, do you have a dependent, do you need extra money for medical treatment, etcetera (things that they wouldn't know). But the idea of them just asking "how much do you want" as a total free for-all is not something I'm familiar with. Even with federal funding (for graduate students, this basically=loans because there are no pell grants for graduate students), there is an official/agreed upon amount for tuition+estimated living expenses and personal expenditures for different schools in order to determine eligibility for different amounts. If it's confusing to the point where you can't really answer the questions, I would definitely contact either the graduate school or the department to clarify exactly what they want to know. It doesn't sound like this is the common way applications handle this. Some of the apps I've filled out haven't asked for any financial information at all.

Ahh, I know! I have six apps due all on one day this coming week so it's a lot of money to be putting up all at once. $530 in application fees alone for Dec 15th. I actually really appreciate the programs that aren't accept scanned transcripts, because everything really adds up.

I've gotten advice to do exactly what you're saying, to actually make it like a project proposal--which seems to contradict the advice wellspring received to make it like a "statement" and not a dissertation proposal. At the same time, one has to balance that by not coming off as rigid and inflexible. But they know that you'll still be doing coursework for awhile, and I think it's more important to show your ability to outline a larger project, even if it's ultimately hypothetical. Based on the advice I've received, I have the general sense that far more applicants are not specific enough rather than them being too specific. Then again, what is the consensus on "specific"? I was told to name names, pose questions, mention texts, outline a potential larger project. All this being said, though, I can't help but think that the writing sample is more important than the sop, even if the sop is important--a faculty member can be won over by a writing sample in a way they just wouldn't be won over by a statement. At the same time, problems with the statement could detract from the larger cohesiveness of the application as a whole.

Question: Should I stop wasting my time doing this and polish my writing sample instead? Answer: Absolutely! Question: Should I really? Answer: Outlook not so good. The certainty of yes or no answers is so tempting and satisfying in times of doubt and contingency, regardless of reliability or truth.

As long as you have writers who will are familiar with your thesis (and who discuss it in recommendations), I wouldn't overthink it. I think the key aspect of "research/program advisor" is that you get a letter from someone who knows your work and how it/you progress over time. It seems as if, in your case, the best letter writers for this purpose didn't happen to be the chair.