bdon19

Well, I finally got my scores. I used my registration number, and that worked. I got a 660--87th%. Not bad, but not great. Meh. At least now I know and I can move on. I'm glad to finally be done with all this standardized test crap at least.

ARGH!!!! I just called the ETS number twice, and apparently it has no record of me in the system...but clearly they have some record of me, as my score page says my score reports were sent out today. DAMN THEM.

Same here. I had a legitimate breakdown following the exam, and it's really just getting to the point where I want to know so I can move on to the more important parts of my application.

@Timshel, I'd say just contact the departments for the two schools that have December 1st deadlines. I haven't yet ordered subject test reports, but I know that my school with a 12/1 deadline (UT-Austin), says the following: "Because of the ETS testing and score release schedule, we will accept subject test scores after the deadline. You may send subject test scores to us through the end of January. We will not accept them after February 1 as we anticipate completing the first phase of our review process by then." I have a feeling many schools--especially those with early deadlines--will understand that scores will not necessarily be sent immediately. I know that your question is about general scores, but I'm sure if you send a quick e-mail or call up someone at these two schools, you can get a concrete answer--and know whether you can save your money or not!

I feel like 320 as a cutoff is really pushing it. That only gives you a 20 point range to score within, period! Even if you got a 160 (not bad, by any means) in both sections, you'd just make that cutoff mark. I doubt that that can be right. For example, say you got a 160 in each section, giving you a 320 combined. Based on the concordance tables, that would be a 610 in Verbal and 760 in Quant, giving you a combined score of 1370--much higher than the former cutoff of 1200 at most schools. And, with regards to the above poster, yes that other person was talking about 1400 as a cutoff--something I've never heard of. Perhaps tacitly, for certain programs, but I doubt it. And, jilly, you're applying to Art History programs. If they're anything like English programs (which I suspect is the case), GRE scores are going to be the least of your worries. So don't sweat it! I'm sure you're fine!!

Hahaha believe me, I've been having these dreams almost every night lately. It's super frustrating, as it tends to happen regarding schools that it's very likely I won't actually get into. The weirdest dream was the one in which I got accepted to U Chicago, even though I hadn't applied there.

Is your boss familiar with academic letters of recommendation? Perhaps she didn't realize that it wasn't standard practice to show them until she got the requests generated from the online applications?

I feel the same way. My school's on a trimester system and gets out for winter break before Thanksgiving, so we literally have two weeks of class left. I have a paper I haven't even started yet and an overwhelming amount of reading left in my other classes. I haven't even been thinking about grad school stuff for the past few weeks. Thankfully, I have a full week and a half between the end of the term and my applications, but that means that I only will end up having a week and a half to get things put together for my first application deadline on December 1st. I'm feeling overwhelmed, and I'm really no further along than I was three weeks ago. I still don't have a full draft of my SOP, because it's been stressing me out so much. No wonder everyone told me to take a year off before applying... Oh, well. I'm still feeling like I've made decent progress with my applications. Even if I haven't done a ton, I've been thinking about the process excessively, and I definitely feel a LOT more secure about my areas of interest and what exactly I'd like to study. I started going back and doing research on faculty while productively procrastinating today, and I realized that there were many areas I'd neglected to check regarding faculty (such as forgetting to look into those listed under cultural studies/theory or even comp lit people in some cases). I'm still holding out the hope that my application is strong enough to get me an acceptance somewhere. I mean, I know it's possible that it's not, but if I was feeling utterly hopeless I'd be waiting a year. And I'm not. We'll be okay!!

Subject test scores will be released the 25th, unless we want to pay like 12 dollars to get them by phone. I think that option is available the 14th or something. I'll prob end up spending the money. I'm still a bit peeved on the Verbal. I know my score is fine, good even, it just annoys me that my estimate was 750-800, and a 167, which I ended up receiving, is equivalent to a 710. Based on your estimate, you should have been either in the 99th or 98th. (http://www.ets.org/s/gre/pdf/concordance_information.pdf) I mean, our scores are fine, good...It's just annoying that the ETS was so off in so many cases with these estimates.

V: 167, 98th percentile (I'm a little bummed that my estimate, 750-800, was within the 99th, but it's really nbd, just an ego thing haha) Q: 155, 69th percentile (I was also a tad bit bummed about this, simply because my estimate was 680-780, and I felt like that would make me look kinda good, even though math obviously doesn't matter...) AW: 5.5, 96th percentile (I don't really know what I wrote on that...but I guess I'm just pretty good at bs-ing. That and probably my time as news editor on our paper has helped me know how to write non-Englishy types of essays) I JUST WANT MY SUBJECT TEST SCORES. RIGHT NOW. Edit: Hmmm, I just realized that 155 technically is a 700-710 in math. I guess it just looks so much more impressive on the old scale. (Mantra: it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter, it doesn't matter). I wonder how adcomms are going to feel about the new scoring?

Do you really think this has any impact on admissions? I feel like I've heard that ad comms typically don't even start looking at apps until after the deadlines. I know for sure that at least my first one won't be ready until right up to the deadline...

Hey, $15,000 is nothing to scoff at. Hahaha. I mean, more would be nice, but I'm looking at $15,000 as the norm for a lot of the programs I'm applying to.

I'm applying to Toronto, but that's the only Canadian university I've done much research on. Basically, it was suggested to me because it's really strong in 18th-century lit, which is one of the things I want to focus on. As far as funding goes, I'm pretty sure that it works the same way as the American schools...though don't quote me on that. I didn't really do a ton of research into Canadian schools, basically because I feel that if I'm going to teach in the US, then US is where I should stay. Toronto, however, is close enough, is a great school, and is familiar enough to people that it wouldn't at all be a hindrance or anything. I don't know if I'd be all that interested, though, in a Canadian university that was too unfamiliar.

I took mine on 8/22. It's nice to see them early, though! Wish the same could happen for the subject scores...

HOLY SHIT. Thank you for this. I literally checked like an hour ago, too! My percentiles were a little lower than I was expecting, too. Meh. Verbal estimate 750-800 --> 167 (98th %) Math estimate 680-780 --> 155 (69th % ...tee hee) AW 5.5 (96th%)

I suppose I'm having a somewhat similar problem to the one you're encountering, though in a different sort of way. I'm primarily interested in the history of the novel and novel theory, but most of the theory that I'm methodologically influenced by is pretty old. I'm currently working on an independent study course in theory, and my professor is encouraging me to read some recent theory, so that I can at the very least display that I'm familiar with current trends in the area. There's not a ton of new stuff going on in the novel theory realm, but it's still there all the same. Same with psychoanalysis for you, I'm sure. Feminist psychoanalysis may not be the most relevant trend in theory right now, but that doesn't mean it's completely dead, any more than it would be fair to say that postmodernism is dead. As far as the SOP goes, don't despair. Haven't you ever written a paper that you felt was so kick-ass, just because nobody had ever written something exactly like it? Since I committed to being an English major, it's been my goal to come up with original and interesting arguments. Take what you know and what you've done, and put that in your SOP. It doesn't have to be exactly what you want to do, but it's better than simply saying you want to study gender and psychoanalysis.

I have a potentially ignorant question for you, Sparky, or anyone else who cares to answer this lowly undergrad. While I feel like I can recognize "trendy theory" when I see it, I don't know if I could concretely define what type of stuff currently fulfills that definition. I, like hermia, am using some potentially outdated theory in my writing sample, though I *hope* that I'm using it in a fairly interesting and original sort of way. I don't necessarily think my argument needs anything radically new or trendy to make it *better*. What I don't know, though, is if I'll be expected to really be up to speed on the more recent trendy stuff. Because the closest thing I can think of to trendy that makes sense in terms of my work is stuff by Franco Moretti. Sparky, you mentioned that people on the committees are more concerned about looking at making sure you're capable of integrating analysis/close reading with some sort of methodological approach. But to what extent do you (and others) believe that it might be helpful to be brought up to speed on the current trends, and where might I go about familiarizing myself with them? In any cases do you think the more recent trendy stuff might cause any issues?

Oh, boy. Now I'm second-guessing myself. I don't know, I still just don't feel that comfortable contacting people for no better reason than basically just getting my name out there. I mean, I guess I understand how contacting people could ensure that various faculty members' interests will fit with mine, but I don't necessarily know how e-mailing them will do anything than my SOP can't, except for the slight chance that I will pique a certain person's interest. ...But then there's also that chance that I'll come across in the wrong way and actually negatively impact the impression I make on an ad comm member. As I've been trying to get my stuff together for my applications, the most pressing questions I've had have been the types that I wouldn't ask an individual faculty member about but someone who works in the office. I guess I could always do it, but the idea of contacting someone at, say, Cornell, freaks the hell out of me. I just don't know what to do! I feel like, at this point, contacting people will just add undue stress on me. But if it's really that important...?

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeexactly. Haha, oh man. One night I'll have dreams that various real academic rock stars call me personally to accept me to their programs. The next, well...I think we all know the nightmare version. Blah.

I don't know...all the advice I've been given is that it's not expected to contact POIs, and that there's really no excuse to contact them unless you have a legitimate concern that only that particular person would be able to answer. Unlike the sciences, we're not necessarily applying to work with a single person (though that will, of course, happen eventually), and they're not going to discount your application for not contacting them. I would feel very uncomfortable coming to POIs with cold e-mails unless I knew for sure that they were the only person who could answer my question, which is why I haven't contacted any.

How many of the programs you're planning to apply to require the subject test? If it's not too many, you could always just not submit the subject test scores. It's not ideal, but maybe they'll overlook that one omission. One of the most prestigious schools I applied to for undergrad accepted me even though I forgot to pay the $75 application fee (and after the first friendly reminder I was too broke to pay it)...and even gave me a surprise merit scholarship at the last minute. Not that I'm advocating forgetting/omitting parts of applications, but there's always a chance that a school will like you so much that they'll ignore your missing subject test score. I'd say still apply to the programs that require the test that you absolutely couldn't live without applying to. The others, well, maybe you could forget about those. Unless, of course, you're like me and over half of your programs require the subject test. Then, I'm not sure what to tell you.