TitusAndronicus

Sure sounds like a waitlist to me. Have you called/heard anything from Georgetown yet?

This thread started out very tense and caustic. That said, the direction that it turned has been a hoot. Villanova sent out initial acceptances about 5 days ago. I wasn't one of them. I don't know if I'm rejected, waitlisted or lost in the kitchen cabinet, but I've been stressing. This thread had me cracking up laughing. Thanks all.

I did this, and got an e-mail with this list: "Here are the programs St. Bonaventure M.A. graduates have been accepted at over the past three years: West Virginia University University of Northern Illinois Marquette University IUP SUNY Albany (MLS) University of Maryland (MLS) North Carolina at Chapel Hill (MLS) University of Southern Mississippi Bowling Green University University of Rochester Multiple St. Bonaventure M.A. grads have been accepted at several of these schools. We have a 79% acceptance rate for students who want to enter Ph.D. programs; for the past two years, that rate has been 89%. A number of our students have chosen to pursue teaching positions at the four-year college, community college, or private high school level following the M.A., and 100% of those students have found positions of the type they sought." Some decent names on that list, but some blah ones as well (I know from experience that IUP is garbage, and, while Bowling Green isn't bad, their PhD program is a rhetoric rather than Literature track). The DGS said that Fellowship decisions will be made tomorrow and I should know about that soon. Once I know about the status of the fellowship, and the status of my Villanova app, I can make a decision (if the decision isn't already made for me- ie: no fellowship and no Villanova).

If, as looks likely, I end up going through this wondrous application gauntlet again next year, I was wondering if any kind folks could point me in the direction of some good info. One thing I've been realizing over the last week is that I was woefully unprepared for this application journey. I've been in the workforce for a few years, and I kept viewing this like a job application. I've since been reading up on different things that I should have done to improve my chances, but there is one area that I could use some help. People keep on mentioning the reputations of certain programs in certain areas. Where would one find such specific information? My first round of apps this year was based more on word of mouth, personal experience and geography. How would I find out which schools had good reputations/interest in Shakespeare? Specifically, I'm interested in looking at the relationship between Shakespeare and education (scenes of teaching/education within the plays, AND how the Bard has been portrayed in the contemporary classroom). I'm interested in merging the ideas of scholarship and pedagogy. Also, while I may just not have seen it yet, does an applicant's age ever count against them? I'm 29 (again, been working for a bit now) and I applied to Master's programs this year. Will a 30 year old candidate scare AdComs off, or could it be viewed as a benefit? Finally, I wound up with a BS for my undergrad (I had some language credits from prior knowledge, and I was listed as BA track up until about two weeks before graduation). Will having a BS as opposed to a BA count against me? I'm pretty much certain that I'll need to learn a new language anyways (my undergrad language was Japanese). Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. After wading through this website for the last couple of days, I'm just starting to realize how little I was ready for this application process, and I want to make sure that I get it right for next year.

Has anyone been rejected from Villanova? I see that at least three got acceptance e-mails today. I got no e-mail of any sort. Does than lean more towards rejection or waitlist? I've been e-mailing with Delaware (which was my top choice- old professors of mine RAVED about their program), and their DGS has offered to discuss the broad strokes of my application over the phone next week. I think I am going to hold all decisions until after that conversation. I've decided that if I don't get into Villanova and I don't get/don't accept the fellowship to Bonaventure, I will participate in the UNH Cambridge program (http://www.unh.edu/cambridge/) this summer. Not only does it look like a hell of a lot of fun, but it might look good on the resume as well, and I can absorb the $$ hit if I teach again next year.

I heard from Delaware last week, and I was under the impression that they told Masters and PhD students at the same time. Dr. Kinservik is pretty responsive, so it might not be a bad idea to just send an e-mail.

Nothing as of 6pm EST. The online app site doesn't show any status change or messages either.

I would be looking to continue on to PhD track. As for debt vs. money, I wouldn't be teaching at all if I were overly concerned with making it rich. I want to be happy. Working on a higher level and doing research on Shakespeare makes me happy. Teaching at the high school level, I encounter too many students who couldn't care less, and I don't get the time to do any serious research. It's academically, socially and spiritually draining. I want to go academic-career track, but I'm unsure if Bonaventure or waiting another year will be the best way to accomplish that goal.

OK, So here it is: The situation: I graduated with honors from a state university in 2005. I transferred into that university after drinking myself out of another university in 2001. The drinking and what not coincided with a number of family crises that are neither here nor there. Bottom line is that it was 8 years ago. I graduated with a 3.7 GPA in my English courses. I've been a high school teacher for the last four years. I've done well. I aced the Praxis 2 content exam (one point off a perfect score and got some award from ETS). I've won a curriculum award for a Shakespeare unit. I've participated in a selective program at the Folger Library where I got to research in the Folger reading room. I feel that I have a very strong writing sample and excellent recommendations, but my GRE general was relatively low (590). I took it in December, and didn't have time to take it again. I applied to three programs: Delaware, Villanova and St. Bonaventure. I was rejected from Delaware within two weeks of the deadline (which was depressing, as one of my recommenders was their own professor emeritus of Shakespeare). I was accepted to Bonaventure within two weeks of the deadline, but I have not received word yet on the fellowship I applied for (half tuition and stipend). I've heard nothing from Villanova. Here's my pickle: I'm assuming that I won't get into Villanova (at the very least, not with funding). What would be my better option: Getting the masters at Bonaventure (4.0ing through the two years to show a current track record of success), or staying in the high school for another year, re-taking the GRE and sending out a wider swath of applications next year? The Bonaventure program looks solid on their website, but I don't know anyone who has gone through it. Any feedback/advice?