booksareneat

I missed the noun. I need a noun! Or, is this mad libs? Egregious ______(noun)______ In that case: handkerchief Now your turn: Egregious handerkerchief _______verb______

myzzm, You went to the applyyourself website and checked it there? Mine still says "sent to program." I do remember from previous years that Minnesota is a late bloomer in this whole process.

Interesting. Where did you say you found that list of placement rankings? Again, I think it's good to note that some schools are better at placing different kinds of jobs. If you want a teaching gig, then it doesn't necessarily mean that you have a better chance at getting hired if you're from UW Madison than say UIC--UIC may have a better placement rate (I don't know their rate), but it is for a different sort of job. Depends on your priorities.

Rankings are helpful in a sense. I think it's better to think of the schools in tiers, though. Some on that top tier are better at job placement. For example, UW Madison (which is a great school, but one going through an existential crisis as I've heard it--losing key faculty in recent years) does not say what their placement rate is (http://www.wisc.edu/english/graduate/nextgen.html), but their grads get jobs at other state universities and good private schools . If you look at WUSTL (https://english.artsci.wustl.edu/phd-alumni-directory), they put people in what seems like a slightly lower tier of teaching positions --places like LSU and Wake Forest. The next tier seems to be the programs that place their graduate in the smaller liberal arts schools and branch state schools--these are the UICs (http://www.uic.edu/depts/engl/programs/ ... dents.html) and Loyolas (http://www.luc.edu/english/graduate_placement.shtml), etc... The question is how good are they at putting you there? If, then, you're lucky enough to have a choice (this year, that will be fewer of us) you ask for numbers and ask, how many of your graduates are placed into small liberal arts schools? How many go to research universities? That is what rankings tend to correlate to, not the ease of acceptance. The problem is that for some reason everyone thinks that because they love books and criticism, they need to be Harold Bloom or Frank Kermode or whoever and so they think, I need to go to the best, so they all apply to Ivies, thinking this will make them the best. That's fine, we need more kickass brilliance, but people shouldn't assume that the only way to go is "the best". You will probably have as good a chance of getting a job from WUSTL as you would Harvard, but the job you find will be different. Did that sound preachy? I came to the end and thought I sounded preachy. I'm trying to ignore Bussy D'Ambois right now... c'mon Bussy, get in a fight or something!

The NY Times has a blog entry today (http://parenting.blogs.nytimes.com/2009 ... ection/?hp) about the nail-biting of college acceptance time. I read it and wanted to stand before all those high school seniors saying, "you want rejection kid?" and then laying into some real blood-chilling description of the grad school process. Punks.

This all makes me think that our professors know even less than we do. I plan on writing a book about this process and it will be a best-seller, there will be lines out the door of desperate, clever kids praying for some illumination on this rat race.

Marquette and Wake Forest have funded MAs. There's probably more, but none that I remember off the top of my head.

Here's one for you, then, Lisbon Girl: "All the clustered up clever kids. Hold steady." That fits, I think.

Right and I didn't want to be rude calling out that Loyola poster. I've had years of rejection to prepare my mind for where I am. I applied to Loyola thinking that I should get in and would be surprised if I didn't, BUT nothing surprises me anymore. Once I heard just how picky they had to be this year, I realized that if I had gotten in directly (not the waitlist) then I would be really surprised.

Just because I can't seem to not be on this forum today, I'll play along. I study 20th Century & Narrative theory, rejected from Wisconsin, WashU, and waitlisted at Loyola (chicago). I applied to more, but I'll leave that part vague. I tend to think that anything could be better than MLA. You know that old saying about the thousand monkeys with a thousand typewriters writing Shakespeare? I think they wrote the MLA handbook. (Ok, I'm just playing, MLA, don't get mad).

Personally, I laugh when I hear anyone talk about a safety school. For example, someone recently put up that Loyola Chicago was their safety school. Loyola is only giving funding to 6 people this year and if they are anything like other grad schools, those positions will be divvied up between specializations. So, if you're a modernist, they're only letting in one or two modernists. I don't see how anyone can feel so confident that they are the number one modernist applying for a program, even if that program is a tier or two beneath Yale. I feel confident about a few schools I applied to, but I certainly don't think they are a "safe" bet. That's why I don't think there is anything such as a safety school--sure, you might be well-qualified to be there, but that doesn't really equate to automatic acceptance.

Orinin, You're on to something. Perhaps someone should start a program that is dual literature and detective/spy training. There could be a class on mystery solving including, obviously, Sherlock Holmes and also In the Name of the Rose. There could also be a Graham Greene class about international espionage/Catholic existential crises. Any other suggestions?

engguy, I was being pretty flippant (I thought referencing a Wahlberg film and a Hold Steady song would signal that). I know plenty of friends who have lost their jobs and it sucks. But investing years and lots of money to find out that next fall I could be job hunting whilst investing more money in applications, that sucks too. All it means is that this process is not for the faint of heart (or the casual of mind, perhaps). The drag is that often times getting into a program is a crapshoot (is that how it's spelled? I don't think I've ever written that expression.) with it being not always about how good you look, but what the programs needs are that particular year. This year, it becomes even more difficult. I am taking all this with my eyes rolling and tongue-in-cheek the best I can, but the fact is--this year is a b*tch for everyone. As for being creative in the meanwhile, I am considering sending a CV over to the CIA. They have to have a use for a guy who's read as many Graham Greene and Cormac McCarthy books as I have, right?

Hadunc, If funding is trouble, then you might want to consider marrying rich in the next few months. I'm pretty sure that's the only way to survive. Loans are for suckers, sugar mama's (or daddy's, depending on your preference) make sure that you can live out you graduate school experience in style. Come to think of it, since there are all of those FastWeb webpages that help you find scholarships and grants, someone should make a dating website: "Do you have lots of money? Want some bookish arm-candy to impress your friends at important events? Then come to our website!" As of yet, I haven't thought of a clever name for the website, so I'm accepting suggestions. Also, if you steal this idea, I require you to pay for my grad school.

This perfect storm does not star George Clooney or Mark Wahlberg. Rather, does anyone else get the impression that our fantastic economic breakdown is going to make this year's applications a wash for many very smart people? It seems like applications are up (do Wisconsin and Washington always get 500-600 applicants) because the job market is crap and if you get funding then you at least have some sort of employment for 5 years. In addition, schools like Brandeis put their endowments on the 6th horse in the 5th race (I think her name was Chips Ahoy!) and now they realize they can only let in half the students with funding. Loyola Chicago is offering funding to 6 students (6!). I don't care how confident I am with my application materials, I think whether I get into a program or not is based on some sort of cosmic deity who has not yet been discovered and for whom there is no religion (but you can bet I'll find that religion and beat you bastards to it). My consolation as I wait to hear from schools is that it's not me, it's the economic climate, but that isn't the sort of consolation that makes you feel better. It's the sort of consolation that makes you want to give in and work for the CIA, because, seriously, it has to be easier to become a spy than it is to become an adjunct professor of contemporary literature at a branch campus of some midwestern state college. Ugh. I feel better.

Since when were country music and literature mutually exclusive? I'll read Cash's autobiography before I'll read a good portion of contemporary literature. As for Nashville, I have a distinctly Northern fear of living in the South, but there are a few Southern cities (Austin, Nashville, etc...) that I think I could be happy in. Although, put me in a PhD program with funding and I'll move to Alabama (well, I'd at least consider it).

Yeah, I got waitlisted too, so if you're contemplating it and want to give me your address, I can help make your mind up for you.

I spoke with someone there yesterday and it seems like notification should be very soon, but the guy was brief and I didn't get any more specifics. Some people are more understanding of the impatience of applicants, but if dude's getting tons of calls from people like me, then I don't really get upset if he's not ready to share.

Any thoughts on UIC? It seems like no one got in. I was sort of surprised to see myself rejected within a month of the deadline, thinking that it was on the lower end of the schools I applied to. Then, as I've seen, others have been rejected from UIC and gotten in elsewhere, so I don't feel as weird. Just thought it was worth making fun of it.

I still haven't heard anything except that I believe acceptences will be done by email and mail and rejections will be sent out via the postman. That said, I'd love to hear more if just to torture myself.

For some schools, Washington for example, I have started checking my email in hopes of finding nothing. I know that they will reject via email and accept via mail, so I'm simultaneously praying for an email from school A and praying for no email from Wash. and others. It's a complex series of prayers, hopefully the good lord can sort it. I am getting a lot of wonderful deals from Crate and Barrel and the Sundance catalogue, so at least I can shop while I wait. Thank goodness for a tanking economy! gulp.

Perhaps it is just the type of people who end up posting in this forum, but I feel like you're missing something here. Yes, Princeton, Berkley, etc... have fantastic faculty. Yes, they have fantastic reputations, but that's not the question. The first question, is what do you want to be doing? Do you want to be teaching at a Research I school? Would you rather spend more time with students and less time making sure your CV is packed? Would you rather be at a small liberal arts school or a major state school? Depending on how you answer those questions, that's how you should be answering the aim for the stars question. If you want to be at a smaller school where you can spend time with more students, then you shouldn't be necessarily thinking of Yale. If you want to be at a research school, then yes, you need to be working to get into a top program. Also, some top programs don't have as great job placement as you would expect. That's a major factor. Schools like Washington University (WUSTL or is it WashU?) and Emory University have great job placement. As for the MA, for me it's done wonders. I love books before, but now I really know how to write about them. I have a very clear idea of what I study and what theories I use, etc... There are schools that fund MA students and let you cut your chops on teaching (to figure out whether or not you actually like those punks) and I think that going the MA route is not a bad one at all.

I'd love to hear this too. I really don't feel like inundating their office with calls, but part of me really feels like inundating them with calls.

The least they could do is recognize St. Crispin's day, especially since we're not waiting for letters on October 25th.

Since I am desperately trying to divert my mind to anything other than the postman, I thought I'd post these two articles from the Chronicle of Higher Education. The first was a study of different graduate programs and the aid offered http://chronicle.com/weekly/v55/i15/15a00102.htm. I was genuinely surprised by the survey. Some schools that I am a big fan of offer a lot less. Of course, there are issues of cost of living to account for some differences. What disturbs me more is the fact that some of these programs don't offer health care (such as where I am getting my M.A.), which I find to be reprehensible (ok, maybe not the best word, but I find it morally suspect). The second is an article about the high rate of depression in graduate schools http://chronicle.com/weekly/v55/i24/24b01201.htm. "At the University of California at Berkeley, 67 percent of graduate students said they had felt hopeless at least once in the last year; 54 percent felt so depressed they had a hard time functioning; and nearly 10 percent said they had considered suicide, a 2004 survey found." I have to say that having been through school rejections and being in graduate school, I'll take the depression of being overworked to the depression of wasting time, money, effort, emotions, etc. on getting across the board rejections.