DisneyLeith

Here's a recent topic that is in a similar vein:

I just wanted to add my two cents, for what it's worth. I've been adjuncting at CUNY for the last two years with an MFA, and I have had no trouble maintaining a 3/3 teaching appointment (plus I've been offered summer courses two years in a row). I was accepted into CUNY's PhD program this year as well (also without an ECF), and, while it's not the most ideal situation, I'm pretty stoked about the opportunity--and you should be too! Teaching, you'll find, goes hand-in-hand with scholarship. Your students will inspire you, as will your colleagues. Plus, you'll leave the program with 6+ years teaching experience--and that's invaluable. I say go for it--I didn't have to think twice myself. If you have any questions about the logistics of adjuncting, though, let me know. If your main hang-up is the insecurity of job retainment, I can assure you it's not as fickle a system as it may seem. You'll be fine!

I'd like to say:

A. Right on to everyone in here, especially Tortola. That was a very heartwarming and inspiring message and I'm so glad things have worked out for you. Clearly you deserve it.

B. I look forward to being in a position to celebrate with you all, whether it's in a couple of days, a couple of weeks, or a year from now. In the meantime, I'm still waiting/confused. Moreover, I've had a curveball or two thrown in my direction right around the time when things are supposed to be clearing up. As I've discovered, "The Day After" is not a unifying day of resolution. This will be something I encourage folks to keep in mind next year on this forum, which I will frequent whether or not I decide to take what this year gives me.

C. Again, all my best to everyone in here. This is a wonderful community I'm so glad to have found.

I almost can't believe that it's April 16th. When I submitted my first application (UCLA on December 1st), I thought this day would never come, and it has been the LONGEST four and a half months of my life. On campus visits and in the offices of my current MA, people (myself included) would always joke about "the gradcafe" and how it was a dangerous website. Some would only check the results forum. Some never logged on at all. There were debates about the usefulness of the site, particularly when contrasted with the inevitable reality that this site DOES add to the stress of the application season.

I will only say this--Regardless of anything else, good or bad, about this website, it has made it abundantly clear to me how difficult it must be for admissions committees. If I was tasked with picking out a group of 6-10 people from just the Gradcafe membership (which is just a small percentage of the overall applicant pool), I don't think I'd be able to do it. Over the last few months, we've agonized together, commiserated together, celebrated together and grieved together.

For all of that and more, I say to the Gradcafe community at large--THANK YOU!

For those that made it--Congrats!

For those facing another round of applications next year-Good luck, and we'll all be around pulling for you.

Also- I just want to plug my MA institution. I have spent the last two years doing my MA at Saint Bonaventure University in Western NY. I can't say enough good things about the program. When I look at the work I was doing before and after the program, the difference is somewhat frightening. For anyone who may be interested, Bonaventure's deadline isn't for another couple of weeks yet.

Some details about Bonaventure:

-36 credit MA
-They have a Learning/Teaching Fellowship that gives you the chance to add teaching experience to your CV
-The funding is 50% tuition waiver and then a stipend that covers the other 50% (and the cost of living is so cheap in this area that you can do the program without taking loans).
-There is support for submitting to and attending conferences. You will also gain experience (and CV material) in organizing a conference, as Bonaventure hosts an annual grad conference.
-Four of the students in my cohort wanted to continue our education (3 at the PhD and 1 who wanted an MLS). All four of us received at least one offer. The MLS student got in to the only school she applied to. Between the three of us seeking PhD's, we ended the season with a combined 5 offers of admission and 7 wait lists (including Florida, Rochester, Buffalo, Maryland and Toronto). I will be attending Rochester, and the other two will be attending UBuffalo.

Last year, two of the graduates sought to continue on. Both are now in PhD programs.

I'll digress for now, but I've had such a great experience at this relatively unknown program, and I wanted to let others know about it--particularly those who have not received good news this week.

This is the link to the program:
http://www.sbu.edu/a...es.aspx?id=8480

I think your best bet would be to get information about their placement, particular for PhD graduates in your field. Whether the placement is good or bad should be the best indicator of the program's reputation.

From what I've heard from friends who are currently enrolled in programs, and from where I'm standing personally, it's perfectly normal to have (serious) doubts, both before and during a program (and, according to some profs I love and respect, after, as well). It sounds like you're really going through a rough time, and that will definitely skew the way you're looking at everything in your life, including a graduate program. If you can-- and again, with the stuff you're going through, it probably won't be easy-- try and consider how you would feel if you didn't pursue the opportunity you have in front of you, say a year from now. Do you think this is just an overall feeling of dread due to a combination of personal issues and all the things we've been hearing about the job market, etc.? Or do you really believe this is something you don't love, aren't passionate about, and want to leave behind you? I don't think any of us is in this for the money, and we're generally driven by some kind of passion, but that doesn't mean we never doubt ourselves.

As for the not-so-distant future and the job market, here's a quick story: I have a friend who wanted to be a high school art teacher. Someone told her she'd never find work, so she studied to be a math teacher instead. She's done some work, but now has to look for a new job, and has said that people have been telling her she'll never find work as a math teacher, and she's thinking of being an accountant. Does that sound like insanity to you? It does to me! (I told her so, too!) It's hard to get a job everywhere right now; if you step away from something that drives you just because you feel something else that you feel no passion for is "safe," that's when it's time to really start worrying. The future is definitely uncertain, but make sure you're not being scared off by talk, because that's all it is-- talk.

No worries. I think the ND DGS felt worse about it than I did. I had already received my rejection, so I figured from the first that it was some kind of a mistake. It's easy for us to forget that the adcoms are insanely overworked this time of year. They're basically trying to sort through 300-500 applications using the same format that was used back when they only got 70-100 applications. Mistakes like that are bound to happen. Frankly, the most depressing part of the whole situation was the fact that I liked Notre Dame all the more for his reaction to his error. He's never going to see me again, and he could have been a jerk about it. Instead he apologized and showed genuine remorse for what was, in the end, a simple clerical error. For the folks going to Notre Dame--you've got a great DGS over there.

As for the wait list situation, I can only hope it works out. Ideally, everyone ends up at a place that fits them best.

Likewise. Since I joined GC, I've been watching a number of regular posters and keeping fingers crossed for people. This was a big one, as it was clearly apparent how much you wanted it. Congrats, Tortola!

I love that tonight I am going to a "grading party," because the people in my program totally get that sometimes facing student essays requires pizza and communal support. This will also raise student grades.

I love that one of my struggling students sat in my office for half an hour last week going over his first draft and insisting that my (required) comp. course is important to him, even though he's working 20+ hours a week to pay for school.

I love that even though my health sucks this quarter, my advisor is more worried about my ability to get the care I need than my ability to turn in my papers. I also love that she's genuinely pleased about my admission to another program for next year, even if it means I have to leave.

I love that I can watch crazy, surreal, batshit insane German cinema and call it "homework." Ditto for indulging in long, jolly Trollopean novels and campy scifi shows.

I don't know anyone in the general rhet/comp field who has anything to say about this program. It's not really part of rhet/comp, as far as I understand. I've only met one graduate of the program, and she taught film studies at my undergrad institute's film school. When I asked her, she had no input whatsoever about composition or "rhet/comp" as most of us understand it. For her, it was basically a film studies program.

I mean, just look at their dissertation list! It seems like a hodgepodge of Marxism, literature, and the occasional legal or film critique. It's one of those lists that just begs to be targeted for a Fox News report: "Tax-payer money funding students for bizzare research projects such as 'Subjectivity, Ethics and the Question of Survival in the work of Semprun, Levinas and Derrida'".

I suppose it's one of those "you're awesome because we accepted you, do whatever you want, and you'll get a job writing about obscure topics at another awesome school for the rest of your life" programs.

(Of course, there are some legit rhetoric dissertations on there, too.)

I am currently attending and wanted to jump in with some information.

The bill has not yet passed. Each day that it is delayed, there is a better chance that it won't. This is, as someone else mentioned, happening in a number of states including Indiana, New Jersey and Ohio.

Walker has made an unprecedented attempt to overhaul the right to unionize/collective bargaining by proposing a "budget repair bill" that is unnecessary. The issue is quite complicated but, basically, if there is a deficit of a certain size in a two year period, the state has to come up with a new budget that will repair this deficit. Our budget DOES NOT currently fall within the mandated percentage--Walker is proposing this bill as a way to force through other non-budgetary legislation, most importantly a revocation of the right to unionize.

What does this mean for graduate students? It will be difficult to say until the budget passes. If it does pass, the most obvious bottom line is that cost of health insurance will rise. There are a number of plans one can opt for but, currently, if a student is on one of the three cooperative plans (this is the way most students choose to go), the cost for a single person will go from approximately $19 to about $43/month. As you can see, this is still QUITE affordable. Other than that, the greater concern here is that, if this bill is passed as is, unionization will be crippled (if not all together impossible). Because this is the way the TAA (UW's grad assistant union) voices concern about and bargains for wages, benefits and the quality of working conditions, it is obviously quite important that the right to unionize is retained. If it is not, Walker would have an unprecedented amount of control over the things just mentioned.

My advice: Do not panic or write UW-M off as a lost cause. Our faculty is backing us and I think we are turning things our way. A number of the republican senators are wavering. This is huge--there are 19 repubs and 14 democrats in the state senate. If we can swing only THREE republicans, the bill will not pass.

BUT, please voice your opinion on this issue if you oppose the bill. Just because you do not live here does not mean you cannot get involved or make a difference. Spread the word. Write your representatives, senators, governors, etc. Tell your family and friends. Comment on news stories and voice your support of union rights. Wisconsin is a "tester" for the rest of the nation, as far as I am aware. If this is successful, you can bet that similar legislation will be attempted throughout the country. Walker is one of a number of republican governors elected last fall--all can probably be classified as tea partiers and this is in no way coincidental. What is going on here is huge and is preparation for the coming 2012 presidential election.

If anyone has any questions whatsoever, do not hesitate to ask. I could go on, but that would get quite lengthy. There are some other significant concerns if this passes, but these would not come into play until well into the future. There has also been a significant amount of misinformation circulated by the news media--if you have questions about the nature of the protests, the issues, anything, please ask! I have been at the Capitol protesting between classes everyday this week and I can tell you this: we are changing things. Each day that strong crowds turn out and unions mobilize, our cause becomes stronger. If you can help in any way shape or form, we need it! And if you are considering UW-Madison as an option for your graduate study, I'd suggest doing whatever you can. It will benefit everyone in the long run.

Since bloggers have so much influence, I would like to encourage everyone to send me all their money. Immediately.

Oh, scratch that. You're grad students. You're all broke.

Another blog about how horrible grad school is. How wonderful.

Did you guys know that the job market is bad? And that some people don't fit in? That you might have a shitty boss? You could feel overwhelmed and overworked? You might be making a mistake?

Welcome to life! These are issues everywhere you go. All the bitter ex-grad students want you to believe that grad school is the only place where things are hard like this, or these are the issues. Guess what, they aren't. These are realities in every field. Be aware of the pitfalls, but don't presume that every cranky poster with ablog account has some magical insight because they had a bad experience. Most of us have heard the speeches and been apprised of the risks. Ultimately we are going to give it a shot. I'd rather be an unemployed phd than some dick wondering how things could have been different if I had just given it a shot. Maybe I'll drop out in a year or less. Shit happens. But if we had everyone who had a bad experience in a given field write a blog, no one would want any job ever.

I declined a fellowship MA offer from Boston College, as well as the MA program at Buffalo and Chicago's MAPH.

Edit: Also just declined a fully-funded MA offer at Miami University of Ohio.

This is the summary of the accumulated advice I have heard from current English graduate students, as well as professors: Go with whichever school you think will help you produce the strongest possible writing sample, statement of purpose and recommendations. These are really all that seem to matter when you're applying to PhD programs. The school at which you received your MA (and even the fact that you have the MA at all) generally seem to matter very little. So if Villanova is a poor fit, and thus its program isn't going to help you refine and deepen your research interests in order to produce more compelling PhD application documents, going there probably doesn't make sense.


Also, unless you are financially capable of shelling out the money for Villanova, I'd steer clear of going into that much debt. It's just not practical when there are funded MAs out there (like your Seton Hall offer!) that will get you to the same place. But the financial thing really boils down to personal situations. Hell, if I were accepted to a top MA program with no funding but had some way of paying for it, I sincerely doubt I'd turn it down.

I've heard this sort of thing quite frequently, too, but it went more like "if you don't go to a top 20(ish) program, it'll just make finding a job afterwards that much harder." So, if you want to teach at a top-tier research university, you'll pretty much have to get your PhD from a top-tier research university. A quick search through the faculty at these programs will confirm this fact.

That being said, if your desire is to teach elsewhere--say, lesser known local college and universities, those without graduate programs, community colleges, and just lower ranked schools in general--the going to a top 20(ish) program issue isn't quite as imperative.

Contact both programs to find out about where their MA students wind up going for PhDs. Contact current students in the programs to find out more information about each. These insider perspectives can't be beat.

The universities to which you apply for jobs with your PhD in hand aren't going to care where you got your MA; they're going to care where you got your PhD, so whatever helps you get into the best PhD program possible is what you want to do.

I've heard this sort of thing quite frequently, too, but it went more like "if you don't go to a top 20(ish) program, it'll just make finding a job afterwards that much harder." So, if you want to teach at a top-tier research university, you'll pretty much have to get your PhD from a top-tier research university. A quick search through the faculty at these programs will confirm this fact.

That being said, if your desire is to teach elsewhere--say, lesser known local college and universities, those without graduate programs, community colleges, and just lower ranked schools in general--the going to a top 20(ish) program issue isn't quite as imperative.

Contact both programs to find out about where their MA students wind up going for PhDs. Contact current students in the programs to find out more information about each. These insider perspectives can't be beat.

The universities to which you apply for jobs with your PhD in hand aren't going to care where you got your MA; they're going to care where you got your PhD, so whatever helps you get into the best PhD program possible is what you want to do.

What an odd and unnecessary insult to community college students and UCI students.

To supplement DisneyLeith's helpful post, of course.

There have been two very informative discussions on this in the livejournal english "wgi 2011" community. I'll link them below.

http://community.livejournal.com/wgi_lounge_2011/30548.html

http://community.livejournal.com/wgi_lounge_2011/34713.html

The second one is a locked "members only" post, but I strongly suggest making an account (if you don't already have one) so that you can access the information in these posts.

There have been two very informative discussions on this in the livejournal english "wgi 2011" community. I'll link them below.

http://community.livejournal.com/wgi_lounge_2011/30548.html

http://community.livejournal.com/wgi_lounge_2011/34713.html

The second one is a locked "members only" post, but I strongly suggest making an account (if you don't already have one) so that you can access the information in these posts.

Or, "The university I will be attending is more well-endowed."

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

Here's a recent topic that is in a similar vein:

After reading your blog, I'd say your proper home is with us rhetoricians, compositionists, and applied linguists. Ditch literature. Academic literary studies is nothing but a giant circle jerk. Do you really want to be someone who can crack a joke about "The Laughing Medusa" or talk for more than two minutes about post-colonial queer theory's relation to contemporary Caribbean poetry? Psh. Useless. The work you're doing has a place in the academy. Come on over to the rhet/comp pool. Water's nice and warm.

It's *almost* universal in that it's the mandated earliest deadline by the Council of Graduate Schools. Very few programs do not abide by this standard.