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  1. Upvote
    especially reacted to Two Espressos in James Franco is Pissing Me Off   
    My thoughts on Franco:

    1. He's a terribly overrated actor. Starring in stoner comedies (Pineapple Express, Your Highness) does not a good actor make. The only role I genuinely liked of his was Allen Ginsberg in Howl. He was excellent as the poet.

    2. His writing is terrible. I only read parts of Palo Alto, but the writing I read was quite poor (things described as "shadow-colored," etc.). He's attended various reputable institutions for creative writing (which ostensibly should refine and improve one's skills), so I'm assuming he never really had the writing talent originally.

    3. He's a douche, ostentatious for no apparent reason. He's certainly entitled to pursue multiple advanced degrees at the same time, but so doing makes him look like an ass, in my opinion. I liked the earlier post that discussed Shakira taking a history course at UCLA, using a different name so as to disguise her celebrity status and actually for the most part attending class. That's the way to do it; I think it's very honorable for her to subtly take a course that interests her.
  2. Upvote
    especially reacted to runonsentence in Toning down specificity in SOP for M.A. programs?   
    You should adjust your statements for your M.A. programs because "the [M.A.] programs [you're] applying to aren't really geared toward [your] stated research interests."

    Programs factor in do-able-ness when making decisions about applicants; that is, they ask themselves if they can support this student's research interests. The specificity of your interests may not be so damaging as the fact that you recognize that they're tangential to these programs. So articulate something that does fit in with these M.A. programs.
  3. Upvote
    especially reacted to ringo-ring in Losing hope   
    What's the matter what you chances are? The graduate admission is a lottery. Even a stellar application won't guarantee you an admission, and the bad one won't necessarily be detrimental (and I would say you have something in between despite your GPA). You can never be sure before you get the results, so what's the matter guessing - Just keep truckin' along!
  4. Upvote
    especially reacted to runonsentence in Resources for Stressed Grads and Applicants   
    Hopeline, the national suicide prevention, awareness, and education organization, has a grad-student specific crisis hotline that I thought would be worth passing on for those feeling the pressure of deadlines, end-of-term craziness, and holiday hecticness:

    http://www.hopeline.com/gradhelp.html

    A number of other helpful resources are available at Grad Resources:

    http://www.gradresources.org/
  5. Upvote
    especially reacted to dbowe4415 in How does the percentage of disillusioned grad students vary from field to field?   
    Wow, I was really about type something very similar.

    It's so unfortunate how going into the humanities now and expecting a tenure-track position is considered a pipe dream. So yes, I believe that the humanities contain a whole lot of disillusioned individuals, myself included.

    However:

    The only reason I'm still applying to schools for an MA in English is because of the amount of backup plans I have. My rationale is this: if I'm committing to getting a tenure-track teaching job, one that's DEFINITELY not promised, then I should have a plethora of backup plans to fall back on.
  6. Upvote
    especially reacted to Grunty DaGnome in DONE. Ugh. Anyone else done?   
    Don't worry, Mistral, no one's December writing samples were polished, no matter how much we polished them. No one's SOPs were focused enough, even though I re-wrote mine 8 times.

    Don't forget that you have lingered over every single word, and ad comms are blowing through hundreds of samples and reading them with that level of attention.

    In the end, some of us will get in and some of us won't, but NONE of us will know why things worked out the way they did.
  7. Upvote
    especially reacted to AlphabetSoup in SOP mistakes: what to avoid   
    Even in those fields, alluding to volunteer and internship experience is enough for a personal statement (especially if you submit a CV which presumably covers the specifics of your past work in detail). The bulk of your personal statement in any academic field (I guess I mean for a research-based program) should be dedicated to answering four questions: What is an interesting problem in my field (research topic)? Why am I qualified to begin solving it(past experience)? How will ____ university help me solve the problem (fit)?
  8. Upvote
    especially reacted to antecedent in Airing of Grievances   
    I prefer to think of it as an "open relationship" consisting of me, my boyfriend, and my grad apps.
  9. Upvote
    especially reacted to BassAZ in Is a 93 an A?   
    Without knowing specifics, if the profs are being up front about their grading scheme and it's in a syllabus that was given to everyone, I don't see why an arbitrary grading scheme isn't fair.

    I know that many schools allow for bell-curve grading schemes where the average grade, regardless of the numerical value, is a B and the top 10% and bottom 10% get A's and C's, respectively. If you're getting less than an A for a 93 average and can logically argue that you deserve the A (going above-and-beyond in the class, engaging the professor frequently, showing interest in the subject matter, etc.) and it's that important to you, most profs will be willing to hear your argument as long as it's logical and not to the detriment of your classmates. That doesn't mean they'll agree with you and you're setting yourself up to be critiqued in that situation, so make sure it's really worth it to you.

    My personal feeling is that a 93% average is no joke and that you should be proud of the grade, regardless of the letter grade you're getting, and I would only argue with that grading if it was going to kill a particular cumulative average you have to keep.
  10. Upvote
    especially reacted to Eigen in applied to program, e-mailed Prof. with no reply, what next?   
    In general, I recommend not contacting professors after you've submitted your application, since it can be seen as a combination of pushy and trying to influence the admission process.

    You want to contact them ahead of time, and if you haven't heard back from them by the time you submit, it's probably best to just wait. If you mentioned them in your SoP, your application will probably make it by them at some point, and they may contact you then.
  11. Downvote
    especially reacted to InquilineKea in How does the percentage of disillusioned grad students vary from field to field?   
    In particular, I've found it interesting how so many biological science and chemistry students are so disillusioned, while most geological science/atmospheric science/astronomy students seem so much happier.
  12. Upvote
    especially reacted to Grunty DaGnome in 2012 Applicant Profiles and Admission Results   
    I like how jrnels categorizes himself as a "domestic male." I would think there'd be a huge market
  13. Upvote
    especially reacted to rising_star in late recommendations   
    I think my advisor would kill me if I did this. I generally send a reminder a few days before the deadline, just to make sure he wasn't forgotten. But, to be honest, faculty write a LOT of letters each year. I know last year my advisor wrote more than 140 recommendation letters (grad school apps, fellowship/grant/funding apps, postdoc apps, job apps, tenure apps) for various people. So, if everyone sent him emails every day, he'd never get anything done.

    Note: this is also why, once you're a grad student, you should be selective and strategic about what you apply to. My advisor has to write letters for everything I apply for, whether that's research funding, dissertation funding, jobs, etc. Yes, they agree to do this. Yes, they can write some boilerplate text that can be used each time you apply for something. BUT you have to remember that writing good letters that are tailored to both the applicant and the program you're applying to takes time. More time than you probably realize if you've never written such a letter before. The letters that you want, the ones that are more than just a form letter, require time. But, getting one of those is worth it, even if it is a few days late.
  14. Upvote
    especially reacted to ktel in My sociology professor is interested in me...   
    I know my university specifically has a person that deals with stuff like that, and you can go talk to them anonymously if you want. Find that person.
  15. Upvote
    especially reacted to gellert in My sociology professor is interested in me...   
    If you don't feel comfortable discussing it with him, it might behoove you to go to your school's counseling center and ask someone there who's trained in matters like this for advice. (Or, most schools have offices specifically set up for this kind of thing, like a women's rights center. Even the LGBTQ center at your school might be able to help.) One of those people can tell you either a good way to bring it up with him if you decide that might be helpful, or how you should handle things with him in the future if you want to just ignore it, or paths to pursue if you want to file some sort of complaint.
  16. Upvote
    especially reacted to lolopixie in Sending Subject scores to schools which don't require?   
    If your scores are good, send them unless the school specifically says not to. However, if your scores might hinder your chances, I wouldn't include them.
  17. Upvote
    especially reacted to Aubergine in Worst Writers?   
    I had a prof once say that if you think Deleuze is a bad writer, it's the translation. And I totally agree. For me, he's one of the good ones. Spivak, on the other hand, I find difficult. Though I haven't read any in a while. Whitehead is also super difficult, but I adore him anyway.
  18. Upvote
    especially reacted to lolopixie in "I am a genius who will get accepted"   
    For Tripwillis

    Positive thinking for all of us! Just look in the mirror and repeat: "I'm good enough, I'm smart enough, and GOSH DARNIT! people LIKE ME!"

    That should do the trick!
  19. Upvote
    especially reacted to TripWillis in 0% Confidence of Acceptance   
    We could call it a "university."
  20. Upvote
    especially reacted to perrykm2 in Worst Writers?   
    That's interesting because I find Butler to be not only lucid but very quotable/zingy. So many times I've found little blurbs in her writing that affect me so much more than other theory writers. I love the phrase "an identity tenuously constituted in time." I also love this quote from Undoing Gender, and I'm going to shamelessly plug it:

    “Let's face it. We're undone by each other. And if we're not, we're missing something. If this seems so clearly the case with grief, it is only because it was already the case with desire. One does not always stay intact. It may be that one wants to, or does, but it may also be that despite one's best efforts, one is undone, in the face of the other, by the touch, by the scent, by the feel, by the prospect of the touch, by the memory of the feel. And so when we speak about my sexuality or my gender, as we do (and as we must), we mean something complicated by it. Neither of these is precisely a possession, but both are to be understood as modes of being dispossessed, ways of being for another, or, indeed, by virtue of another.”

    Very punchy, in my opinion!
  21. Upvote
    especially reacted to Grunty DaGnome in Going Canadian?   
    Probably the biggest drawback to studying in Canada and then trying to return to the United States is that you'll be used to undergraduate students who are motivated, responsible and prepared.
  22. Downvote
    especially reacted to dm242 in What is you application nightmare?   
    Youre all being a bit childish. If your app isnt complete they will call you, if you get rejected it is by letter, email, or brief call from some undergrad. Do any of you honestly think coordinators, and advisors have time to deal with the rejects. Come on, they have to tie all the loose ends from the non-rejects. Just saying, grow up, and lighten up.

    My biggest application fear, 8 apps, 8 rejections.
    Just saying.
  23. Upvote
    especially reacted to AlphabetSoup in Suggestions for Theory MAs   
    Try Canadian schools... nothing beats a fully funded MA! I would suggest you take a look at Toronto, UBC, McGill, McMaster etc. etc.
  24. Upvote
    especially reacted to MelMcC in do adcomms read this forum/your Facebook/etc?   
    I don't want to start controversy but I think you should be a little more sensitive . Some of us that are applying to grad school do have children. And I don't believe that my Facebook picture with my husband and daughter is at all giving "the wrong impression." I can't speak for other programs but the one's I'm applying to specifically state on there websites that they are family friendly. In fact I wouldn't want to be part of a program that frowned upon women with children because I can almost bet there's a double standard and they don't see it as an issue for the men to have a child. Sorry but this is a sensitive point for me.
  25. Upvote
    especially reacted to Loimographia in Double Spaced vs. 1.5x spaced writing sample?   
    If they specify double space, I honestly think it would look pretty bad to still send 1.5 spaced, simply because it will look like you're deliberately ignoring explicit directions. It's not like they're not going to notice; if everyone else's papers are 2x spaced, they'll see yours side by side theirs and the difference will be immediate. It might merely irritate them slightly, but when competition is as stiff as it is these days, you don't want to be intentionally irritating the people who will get you in. I feel your pain in having to cut things down so much, it definitely sucks. But I'd say keep slogging at it (and if you're really desperate, go for 1.95x spacing or such, widen the margins a teeny-tiny bit)! Good luck ^^
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