runonsentence

My friends and I started an informal running group. We met on weekends, and usually did a 5-mile trail. There were about 5 or 6 of us total, a mix of grad students and some faculty. It was enough people that at least one person would pipe in with a kick-in-the-seat and say, "Hey, when's the next run happening?" Our uni just started offering fitness classes for free this year. Something that can also help one commit. For me, what keeps me exercising regularly is knowing that someone is waiting for me to show up. Find at least one like-minded exercise buddy is the best advice I can give.

First of all, sorry you didn't have any success with this year's applications, but glad to see that your'e looking forward to next year's round! I can't echo this enough. I have to admit my eyes bugged a bit looking at your list. Really great schools—also, really hard to get into! To give yourself a better chance at an acceptance, I'd suggest you spread your application pool evenly along three tiers (almost all of those schools are Tier I). Ditto on going for "fit." Sure it'd be awesome to be at Harvard, but you might find that it's equally awesome to be at a program that is doing exactly the kind of work you want to do and begs you to come work with them! One of my mentors told me, unequivocally, that the way you get into a PhD program is to demonstrate fit with the department. Why do you need to do your PhD at X school? Why is X school the best possible place for you to be doing your research? These are the questions that adcom will have after reading a strong application, and if your SOP answers them, then by george, you're in! It sounds like you have a fairly strong background. You did well as an undergrad, you're doing well as a master's student, you're doing a thesis (which you can really play up—PhD programs love to see an MA student already familiar with that process), and you have some teaching experience and some identifiable research interests to articulate. I'm sure that if you find some programs that are a really great fit and diversify your application pool, you'll have some acceptances in hand next year. Ditto, ditto, ditto! Do you have any presentations on your CV yet? If not, you NEED to do this. The chair of my department once told one of my friends, when he asked about the importance of presenting at conferences as a master's student, that "you may as well not bother applying to PhDs" if you don't have any presentations. Presentations are also a good goal to pursue before trying for publication. The feedback you get at a conference can also help shape a stronger project. Conferences seem really frightening at first, but they're such a great experience. (I sometimes even use CFPs as an endgoal, as a way of finding a focus or idea for a seminar paper.) Papers needn't be long, either—in fact, you'll want no more than 8 pages worth of material in order to keep within your allotted timeframe.

Have you tried posting in the "meet and greet" forum as well? It's possible there will be others there to help answer your question. Good luck!

I'm of the mind that sometimes there is no "wrong" choice, just two different choices. And that we have the ability to make each of them good choices for us and to make ourselves happy wherever we end up.

Keep inventory slips and do some kind of tracking or insurance on those boxes, though. Media mail is an excellent deal, but my roommate had several boxes opened by the USPS (probably because they were so huge and heavy and looked suspicious) and had some lovely Norton anthologies lost and some weird "____ for dummies" and self-help books added to a couple of his boxes.

Sorry to ask, but since it's not in your avatar info: are you coming from an English background? Do you have coursework you could talk about? Knowing about what makes good writing (from a literature or writing background) could be something to talk up.

I like that idea. Sounds like the kind of work we encourage in our intermediate comp course, where we start talking about discourse communities.

I agree on avoiding a literature-heavy reading list, though for me, the biggest concern I have with the readings is whether they make the class more about a topic instead of the actual content (writing). I used writing-related texts last quarter I taught (particularly Lamott, Murray, Susan Wyche). Got some of the most thoughtful end-of-quarter reflections I've ever seen in terms of what the student discovered about writing, and what writing means to the student. They weren't as popular as pop culture reading modules I've used, but you're never going to find universally beloved readings, anyway. To that end, Writing About Writing is also a great new student text (Doug Downs and Elizabeth Wardle) published by Bedford/St. Martin's. Focuses on genre, discourse communities, and transferrable skills. For us at my institution it's more useful for intermediate composition than first-year comp, but it's something to put on the back burner or to page through and get ideas for readings.

It's definitely cheap. I found a single-bedroom apartment with tons of floor space for $525/month, INCLUDING all utilities except for Internet. My little building is old and full of spiders, but adorable and in a great part of town. Yes, Clifton Gaslight is still a "be smart" area, but I also feel safe here as a single woman and see some runners at night, if that helps anyone.

Norton gives out TS/IS like candy at conferences, and I got one without even having requested it last year (I think our rep just sent a bunch out, since Russel Durst is in my department). Even though you're not yet matriculated, see if you can get a free desk copy somehow. You shouldn't have to pay for it.

I guess we'll just have to disagree then, NurseWretched. StrangeLight: I just met a colleague at a conference who is finishing her dissertation (doing some very exciting work) and has had FOUR children!

Nice to meet you, ComeBackZinc! I have a friend at Purdue who did her master's with me. They have a great program. Out of 10 apps, I ended up with three rejections (no surprise on any of them, especially MSU which probably was the worst in terms of fit), four waitlists, and three accepts (though no word on funding from Georgia State). It was a tough decision, and I had to turn down the Chancellor's Grad Award plus some extras I didn't even ask for when I turned down my offer at Milwaukee (that was tough), but I'm very excited to have accepted Cincinnati's offer! Senioritis is the worst. Plus, I'm on the quarter system right now, so we're only in week 3 of 10. Looooong way to go.

Lammott is great. Students really respond to (and are comforted by) her candid assessment of her own writing process. If nothing else, a PDF excerpt of "Shitty First Drafts" is a must. I use it almost every term and the majority of my students have responded positively.

I think Bison has it. If you have a very supportive S.O. and you don't think it would be putting a strain on your relationship, I think that you could work through the money and the location (with regards to S.O.'s job prospects). It sounds to me like you're going to be happier at School A. However, if it feels too one-sided to consider the school that only works better for one of you, or if you think that even if your S.O. agreed to go to school A s/he wouldn't be happy there, then I think you'll also do well at School B. No matter where you decide to go, it looks like you have something to look forward to at each school. I'm a mess with making decisions, so I understand the stress. Good luck!!

Congratulations on your offer! Like theatrehippie said, it looks like the department is covering the difference between the in-state tuition rate (covered by the university/grad school) and the out-of-state rate. Most states let you apply for residency after having lived there for a year (maybe sometimes less?), so just be sure to look into making yourself officially a resident when you get there, in case they don't continue covering the difference year to year. This is something that I was asked to do by my department. Also, not sure if it was part of your original question, but "half time appointment" means that you'll be working 20 hours a week—standard for a grad assistantship.

Yep, I reccommended Tate et al. in my original post! It's got a really nice overview of comp/rhet pedagogy. I've only read selectively from it so far, but it's a nice introduction to the field.

Moving definitely can be fun! I had some culture shock after moving about 10 hours west of where I grew up, but I'm still so so glad I did it. I've had friends use the PODS and LOVE them; I'd definitely recommend looking into them. Trucks: my own recommendation would be to use Penske (who keeps their trucks really well maintained—anything above a certain number of years on the fleet gets retired) or Budget, which I used for my last move and was very pleased with. I know we're all poor, but avoid U-Haul, if possible. A number of news stories have come out in recent years (LA Times and in Canada) about how unsafe their vehicles are: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U-Haul#Safety_issues http://www.mymoneyblog.com/u-haul-vs-penske-moving-truck-rentals-share-your-story.html Personally, I wouldn't want to drive one of those things cross-country.

Echoed. I live in Clifton Gaslight now, and love the vibe. There are coffee shops, restaurants, and a fantastic hometown dive (called Arlin's) that my department frequents. It's walkable to campus as well, which was a major factor in my choosing to live there. Unfortunately, you have to walk up a hill to get to campus, but this is Cincinnati: you will have to walk uphill (often both ways!) to walk anywhere. Coming from the Philadelphia area, CIncinnati was a bit of a culture shock, but I enjoy living here. People are friendly (the culture is very midwest) and the city is small but well served. Tons of great restaurants and bars (I can take you on an amazing virtual burger tour), great parks, museums, and a great baseball stadium with plentiful $15 seats. The other thread on Cincinnati is weird and, I think, misrepresents the city. Yes, there are sections of the city that are more dangerous than others, but I think it's a mistake to characterize the entire city as some crime-ridden hole. In the two years I've lived here so far, I've noticed there's a strange view of the downtown and university areas by those who live in the suburbs, and it looks like those are the sorts of people who contributed to the last thread. Cincinnati is very much a neighborhood-y city, and in some cases changes block-by-block. I'd definitely recommend visiting if you can to check out potential living situations in person. You'll want to be able to get a feel for the area; every neighborhood has a very different character. The area to avoid living is south of campus (and that's where all the undergrads live, anyway, so double the reason!) and some areas to the west, which are both in Clifton Heights. Other neighborhoods my friends have found success living in, apart from Clifton Gaslight: Northside, College HIll, Norwood, O'Bryonville, Newport (Kentucky), Corryville, and even OTR. - Northside has the advantage of being on a direct bus line to campus. - College Hill is on the same bus line, but a bit of a hike (15 minutes, maybe more by car). But it has a really low crime rate. My advisor and one of my classmates lives there. - Norwood has a low crime rate as well (I think the lowest in the city?), but you'd definitely have to drive from here. - O'Bryonville (and parts of East Walnut Hills) would be accessible on a direct bus line, and O'Bryonville is cute. - Newport is closer than you'd think; definitely a 10-minute drive or more, but it's lots cheaper to live down there, and there's a lot of bars, coffee shops, and stuff to do within walking distance. - Corryville is next to campus, on the East side. Parts of it are ghetto, but parts of it are livable. My boyfriend lives there, as do a lot of students. - OTR admittedly has the highest crime rate in the city. You'd have to know what you're getting into there. But that said, I have a number of friends who live down there and enjoy it. Space is cheap, and the area (for better or worse) is gentrifying and "revitalizing," so there are a lot of really awesome bars, restaurants, and coffee shops moving in. My friends who live down there have lived on Main Street. Hyde Park and Oakley are definitely nice, but also a little far out (10-15 minute drive, more with traffic) and probably only easily accessible by car, in most cases. It's probably also one of the most expensive areas you could live in, apart from Mount Adams (which is a "young professional" party scene, anyway). Parking around campus is either really expensive in the garages or a headache trying to find on the street (which I did last year). I'd recommend trying to find a place within walking distance or on a direct bus line (by that I mean you don't have to transfer buses).

Glad to help!

*bump So, how has everyone's application season been winding down?

A couple of quick responses! And congrats on deciding to work toward rhet/comp! No personal experience with ASU's program, but the faculty there are pretty visible in the field (and incidentally, they also moderate the WPA-L).I'd say most rhet/comp PhDs are preparing to work in the academy, but work with digital and technical writing/communication might have more potential for crossover into professional settings.Things to do as an MA student to prepare: try to read as much in the field as you can, so that you can be as informed as possible when writing your personal statement and preparing your application for the PhD. Write, and try to present at at least one conference. Attend the CCCC next April or the NCTE this November, if possible! Also, leap on any chances you're offered to gain experience in teaching, tutoring at the writing center, or otherwise gaining experience in rhet/comp.

I've found perusing top-notch textbooks themselves to be very useful, myself. A few that especially come to mind: They Say/I Say, the Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing (our req'd textbook, but a useful one) add Rewriting (Joe Harris). The Writing Teacher's Sourcebook is an edited compilation that might help orient you in the field of comp/rhet pedagogy.

Since you're not moving furniture, I'd recommend doing what you can to avoid renting a full-out van. Besides saving yourself a ton of money, U-Haul is pretty awful in terms of maintenance on their vehicles (try a quick Google search or this Wikipedia entry and see for yourself); I'd feel very unsafe about driving one of those things cross-country. Greyhound also has freight shipping options, I think I've heard, and you could media mail your books. (Though definitely get insurance and/or tracking if you go the media mail route—my roommate lost some of his books when shipping media mail. But on the plus side, it was DIRT cheap!) Consider taking only what's most valuable/important in terms of kitchen supplies and buying once out in San Fran. IKEA is amazingly cheap in terms of basic kitchen supplies, and I can't tell you how amazing moving sales are for that kind of stuff. I have some top-notch kitchen stuff sold by people in your very position, and they're usually desperate to just get rid of it, so it can be gotten cheaply.

Undoubtably. But at the same time, you (the parent) won't get any younger as your child grows. I still think there's some wisdom in considering starting a family as soon as one can.

yes, excellent point. I've gotten more judicious in my seminar book buying, especially if it's a class that doesn't directly relate to my PhD exam areas (I'm currently finishing my master's...).