anonscribe

Wow. That's ridiculous. UMass is a great school and all but keeping someone dangling until the summer just seems...well...unethical. WashU is the better of the two schools by far though.

UCR and UF (English) have both told me that their wait lists have opened up and that they will be pulling people off it until they have their entering classes full.

; )

I'm on two waitlists right now and have gone beyond freaking out into shitting myself hourly. It's terrible. This is the deadline for others to accept offers, and not for people to get accepted off the waitlist, right? God I hope so.

I chuckled in a friendly way. I'm a grammar teacher, but I don't care about spelling. I only care when people use semicolons incorrectly...

I'm currently on two "unofficial waitlists" who wouldn't have informed me if I hadn't emailed the chairs.

There are two epicenters that I think fit your desire to live without a car and go to UCSD. By shuttle (all in uptown): 1. Hillcrest* (this is where the shuttle leaves from) 2. University Heights* 3. North Park* 4. Missions Hills south* 5. Banker's Hill 6. Normal heights By campus: 1. La Jolla (crazy expensive) 2. UTC* (also somewhat expensive--and a stucco nightmare) 3. Clairemont (nondescript suburb with lots of houses and apartments) By regular bus (all three are congested and full of frat boys and surfer punks and loud bars): 1. Ocean Beach 2. Mission Beach 3. Pacific Beach* So, those are the main communities you could live in and get to UCSD reasonably without a car. Hillcrest/University Heights I think offers the optimum balance of affordability, ease of transport and culture/character. They're both in uptown, just above downtown. Lots of coffee shops, restaurants, bars, etc., but almost none of the frat boy/surfer punk contingent. You need to be GLBT-friendly to live near Hillcrest though. Here are some links for rentals and neighborhood descriptions: signonsandiego.com sdreader.com craigslist.org (click on san diego) *I've lived here.

I got my M.A. from San Diego State, so I had some interaction with UCSD folks. Professors in my department had some rancor towards them; they thought they were a bit elitist, but that could have been nothing more than sour grapes. The grad students I met there seemed happy, except that funding seemed like a common complaint. As far as reputation: I think their placement record speaks for itself. It's well-regarded, and the emphasis the program places on foreign language ability increases your marketability. In short, you should be very happy. UCSD is a fantastic school with a strong reputation. I hope you enjoy it there. San Diego, though a bit bland sometimes, is a beautiful city. My only advice: don't live next to UCSD in University Towne Center. It's a stucco nightmare. Living close to downtown is worth the short commute (15 minutes by UCSD shuttle from SHARP medical center in Hillcrest). ps: "reputated" should read "reputed" in your last post.

Anyone else waitlisted at UF for English? Anyone accepted going to decline? It's my only option at this point, so I'm curious to hear any information.

yeah, german and french are best if you're into critical theory. latin i hear is a must if you're a medievalist. french is probably the safest all around, but because of that it's the most frequently studied. you could always work an interesting angle by learning arabic, or some other neglected language in the west, and using it to your advantage in scholarship.

Here's the report on faculty reputation and productivity I mentioned. Cheers. http://chronicle.com/free/v53/i19/19a00801.htm

I would have a hard time if I had to reapply. Freaking, I'm similarly drained. I'd almost rather give up and sell myself to corporate America than go through this again. As for the rankings: grad school isn't like undergrad. While it's important to go to a school with a good reputation, US News rankings aren't a very good indicator of this reputation. Check out other sources too. In the Chronicle of Higher Education, there's a report on faculty productivity that turns some of the rankings around. University of Florida, for instance, ranks fiftieth on US News but jumps up to eighth in the Chronicle's report for English. The best way to find out a school's reputation is to ask around with profs and grad students. Even UC Riverside, which gets so much shit on here, has a strong English program that is respected by many faculty in the field. Sure, the name brands (Berkeley, Harvard, etc.) will always have an edge in rep, but there are lots of great schools that aren't given a accurate image by the US News. I second Freaking's advice about an MA. I got my MA from a school that doesn't offer the PhD after a horrible GPA in undergrad. I've gotten into two of my top schools. A strong showing in an MA program, with lots of conferences and publications can jump start your app. As for transferring: do you think it would be likely for you to get into programs as a transfer after a year? What will have changed on paper that would make you look like a better candidate? If these questions don't have answers, you should go for the MA.

Both are good programs. If I were in your situation, I would choose Purdue. I've always loved the vibe of that place, and Florida is in BFE.

I also feel your sting... UCLA, Stanford, Columbia, Berkeley, Brandeis, WashU - Rejected all around. UC Riverside, Boston University and U of Florida - No word. I'm freaking out. I have no backup plan.