anonacademic

It's hard to say. The best thing would be to be proactive. It's unusual that departments hire internally (that is the word on the street, anyway) - I suppose the theory runs something like, "Why pay for the milk when we can have the cow for free?" CC jobs are focused around students and teaching; they don't care so much about research. Hopefully you have a solid teaching portfolio. Again, I'd recommend going to the Chronicle of Higher Education. There are many posts there that will help you chart your next move.

I do want to clarify - although I do not think I suggested otherwise - my post in light of this observation. I do terribly enjoy teaching at CCs for precisely this initial reason. It's incredibly rewarding work. I teach a lot of remedial courses, so I certainly have first-hand experience here. The only reason why it might become purgatory is if you're an adjunct - and I would extend that to liberal arts colleges and research universities as well. There simply isn't an escape. Maybe this isn't the case elsewhere, but it certainly is in my area, even with a plethora of local colleges (CCs, "tech institutes," state colleges, branch campuses, etc.). The ticket out (or the ticket to get in the line to get out) is to have your PhD, pure and simple. OP, keep in mind something else I said: this is a rural, undesirable area, and we have low cost of living. Most adjuncts teach at two colleges, and probably average $20,000/year. It's not easy, to be sure, but it can be done.

I agree with Lioness. One of my letter writers volunteered one or two sentences (I didn't ask to see it), which was very overwhelming. I couldn't imagine reading the whole letter. In any case, the letters are not written for me to read; it's simply not my place to put someone who has done such a gracious thing as write me recommendations in an awkward spot.

I seem to have been thinking about the Young Writers Conference - I apologize for any confusion, but it has been awhile since I've been in high school, and that was the last place I remember hearing about Bread Loaf.

Honestly, the people who will actually have an answer for you are your faculty advisors - ask your letter writers for advice. Most faculty can't keep their mouths shut when it comes to dishing opinions, and they certainly know more than we. I've heard of Bread Loaf, and considered it prestigious for a high schooler or undergrad to attend - I had no idea that it had a graduate component. I wouldn't worry, perhaps, so much about prestige, but rather about fit, and what you can accomplish there. What faculty teach there? What opportunities are there for you and your specific project? If it's a summer MA, I assume it's a part-time, low-res program? Even if you can't find specifics on how Bread Loaf itself is regarded, you could do more general research into how low-res programs are looked upon by PhD adcomms. In such a case, I image what you do apart from the summer is significant as well. Edited for typos!

Wait! Don't do it! You may find your mind changes again (I know I frequently waiver) and there's no reason to create a situation where you'll beat yourself up. Don't decide until A.) You've received all offers/rejections (baring waitlist purgatory, I suppose) and B.) You've had a chance to visit campuses. You might find that after these two things have happened, you feel very differently about the situation. Even if you're *sure* you want to go to school A, I promise that waiting will at the least have a completely neutral effect but may actually be beneficial. At the least, you can possibly negotiate a better deal at school A with information from the 8 schools you haven't heard from. Anyway, you paid all those application fees. I'd keep myself in the running just for that But congratulations! Bask in your good fortune and happy situation, and leave the decisions to less halcyon days (i.e. March's long slog).

For some CC jobs, all one needs is an AA (a BA will not cut it) (I assume this holds true for trade positions exclusively, rather than more traditional academic fields), but for Poli Sci positions, I assume an MA or higher is desired. Depending on where you are, CC jobs are almost as competitive as 4 year college positions, hence the need for a higher degree. Undoubtedly, you can get a job. However, most likely you'll be trapped in adjunct hell, and you need a PhD to escape that, in this day and age. I live in a very rural, undesirable area, and know that this is a requirement for full time faculty even here. As an adjunct, you could easily make less than $10,000 a year, even teaching 3 courses per semester. That's not something I would happily jump in to. Keep in mind that the ratio of adjuncts to full timers is even worse than 4 year colleges - a small handful of full timers for a veritable army of adjuncts schlepping between campuses is not unusual. It may be difficult to get a position at a CC off the bat if you don't have experience at one and/or come from a very elite background, simply because CCs are so different than other colleges and worry (rightly) that those with champion pedigrees might jump ship for greener pastures (how's that for mixed metaphors?!). I'd recommend looking at the Chronicle of Higher Education for further advice from professors - both the Chronicle itself and the fora (especially the job seekers and the non-tenure track, to get a sense of what you might get into). As someone who has adjunct experience at a CC, I'd recommend each resource, though of course take all information with a grain of salt. Depending on where you are ABD, you might want to suck it up and get it over with. Not an easy thing to do, I concede, but I don't think that leaving at this point with hopes of landing a CC job will end up being a happy resolution.

Please tell me you study Flarf Congratulations to you both!

Guys, the poster might be a spammer. I think your argument might be over nothing. I could be wrong, but I don't think so. For one, that TOEFL score makes no sense. Perhaps Howard Stern?

I wholeheartedly agree with this post. The bolded part is what really gets me riled up - because it's so often the case. I also find it discouraging and confusing that the woman who chooses her career over her family be seen as taking a lesser path - perhaps her career, her publications are just as fulfilling, just as significant as another woman's family? Sure, maybe one woman cannot imagine her life without her husband/children, but why can't she imagine that everyone may not feel that way? I particularly like this article by Emily Toth/Ms. Mentor: "He Doesn't Like the Midwest" on the Chronicle of Higher Education (subscription only, which is why I'm not linking it). Perhaps, looking at this objectively, one should take into consideration the following statistics, then determine for his/herself what is the best decision: The average career lasts 30 years The average marriage lasts under 7 years, and half of US marriages end in divorce Ms. Mentor continues: "...it might be easier to find a new husband than to find a new job." Obviously, she's being cheeky here, but still makes a good point. As for your particular situation, OP, I weigh in favor of considering your career a bit more. It's a big decision, and one you might come to regret if it's made too hastily.

No worries - but there is a search function Personally, I wouldn't email them - schools are absolutely swamped with applications and I imagine they don't want to answer emails of this sort, unless you're concerned your file is incomplete and want to check on that. Patience (Trust me, I know it's hard.) Don't freak out yet - it's possible your schools notify in waves. That would be a trend worth investigating. Perhaps you're on the waitlist, or will be accepted soon. Nothing's done until they notify you. Good luck!

Because it was spam.

What she said. It's a big decision, and this is an excellent way (IMO) to help you reach that conclusion. Also, depending on why you're "losing your mind," you may also want to see your school's counseling center. And the careers guidance office, to help you plot alternatives to finishing your degree/help you see other possibilities outside of academe. Good luck

What a pain in the ass, though! Sheesh. I wonder if they troll these boards and decided, "Hey, the anxiety level isn't NEARLY what it *could* be - let's see what we can do..." (Paranoid and hyperbolic of me, to be sure, but isn't that what the season calls for?) Good luck

Have you emailed the grad secretary? Temple had a similar glitch - I swear they changed the due date on one page to 15 days earlier, but in any case had two very different due dates on the general grad website and even within the English Department website. All it took was an email to clarify. Gawd knows we have enough nerves at this time of the year - it might help to contact them.

Something else for you (or anyone else) to keep in mind is that some universities are going "smoke free," which means no smoking on campus, period. Can't say I necessarily agree with that, but wanted to bring it up as it would be a rather large faux pas to get ticketed while at an interview weekend.

Check out this gem: James Franco on James Franco

Congratulations! I imagine that's a relief. Plus, you can now commence with lame Wizard of Oz jokes. Win-win

I can't address your field-specific question, but I can say that Penn is one of the most respected universities in the U.S., and I imagine that a degree from them might carry extra clout, no matter your field. Congratulations! Acceptance there is no small accomplishment

I know it'll give you a lot of threads to look through, but try a search - we've discussed this ad nauseum. The general consensus (since we're not actually adcom members) is: sometimes. Some schools don't desire those coming with MA degrees, others prefer it. Something to keep in mind is that schools will also vary on whether they will transfer any of your MA credits towards your PhD or not. But, it doesn't seem to be a determining factor all in all. Schools often hold those with MA degrees to a higher standard than BA degrees, and with good reason, but it's a little late to evaluate your application on that basis! I'm applying with an MA, and I choose to see it as an advantage. I know what I want out of graduate school, and I can articulate that. Whether this helps get me in remains to be seen, of course.

You could try looking at the local papers, and/or weather.com (I imagine that factoring in the weather would be important in this situation).

That is hilarious! Although I would kill for my first years to be so polite and well-spoken!

Thanks for the heads up... good thing mail takes *forever* to get up here. Now I know to prep myself for the false alarm heart attack

I now give syllabus quizzes. Double proof and no excuses. Oh, you didn't know my late policy? Well, on January 19, you did. I also gave them an email assignment, because, despite the fact that I teach writing, my students seem to think that "okkkk so i missed class i was puking what did i misss????" is appropriate, even at the end of the semester. And I'm now refusing to answer emails until they are in the format I specified (in other words, that they employ complete, grammatically correct sentences, give their name, and address me). Students seem to be extra vicious towards young women. My experiences vs. a male counterpart illustrate this, but it seems fairly substantiated in the Chronicle of Higher Education. If you fit that mold, take that into account. Students evaluate female teachers who are authority figures as bitchy, but love male ones who have the same demeanor.

http://www.thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php?q=english I'm expecting, looking at previous years, to hear back no sooner than early February, if I'm lucky.