JackieW

...and I'm nervous as hell! Anyone else have a minor freak out before you hit "send"? (I'm also not doing it right now because it's 10:30 on a Sunday night and that's not terribly professional.)

I applied to four schools last year, and I didn't get in anywhere. But, I have learned a LOT since then! First, I totally did not apply to enough schools! 4 is not enough, not in anyone's book, and all 4 programs were highly competitive. This time around, I'm applying to 13 schools, which is almost too many--- but, better too many than too few. The application fees are going to kill me, but it's going to be worth it in the end. I'm applying to a wide range of schools all over the country, from Rhode Island to Wisconsin. Also, I made sure there were at least 1-2 professors I would want to work with at each school, and I am going to start emailing these professors in October. Second, my first SoP was absolute crap. I have realized this in hindsight, and I'm putting a lot of effort into writing a much better one. I'm only on my second draft, but it's already leagues better than the one I used last year. I recommend buying the Asher book: Write Your Way into Grad School, or something like that. Amazing book. Third, I'm re-working my writing sample. I'm using a 15 page paper that was my "senior thesis" (the English thesis at my University is shorter than at most places), but I'm making some edits to it to make it a much stronger sample. A professor of mine from college is going to go over it with me, and I think this will turn out to be a very, very good paper. Not to brag. Fourth, and last, really, I'm re-taking the GRE's. My scores last year were atrocious, but I was too... mad? stubborn? embarrassed? To re-take them. I'm going for math tutoring with a good friend, who is also a math phD student, and I'm just working on my vocab. I go on number2.com at least five times a week, and I carry flash cards around with me. I am NOT, however, re-taking the Literature GRE. While my scores were only in the 50th percentile range, a good number of the schools I am applying to do not require it. I would much rather spend the hours upon hours it would take studying for this test on my SoP and writing sample, and I think most schools agree with me. Whew. Okay, I think that's it. Best of luck to all!

Oh, I wasn't referencing your post! The entire thread seemed to take a negative turn, so I was trying to re-focus.

On that delightful note... Where are you all getting your words from? I've been doing number2 and the lists in the PR book. Are there any other lists I should be looking at?

I came up with a hook at 2am the other day! It's still a little fuzzy, but it's still a Work in Progress... and it's something. I do have the Asher book, and I recommend it to anyone.

Have families that do not understand academia at all? Mine is under the impression that I'm going to go to grad school for another year. (I want a PhD in English.) I'm living at home and trying to find a job so I can save up some money before entering graduate school in 2010 and I'm going stir crazy. Any ideas on how to cope if you're going through the same thing?

Oh, your field-specific advice was absolutely fine: I'm applying to English phD programs with, coincidentally enough, a focus on Victorian Literature. The question in most of the SoP guidelines reads something like "What are your career goals?"--- of course my career goals are to enter academia, I want a phD in English! I think I might be over-thinking this a little...

All right, so I have a question: I completely understand that we are not supposed to say we want to enter the field of academia. So, what SHOULD we say when they ask us what we want to do after graduating? Mention what we want to do our research on? I am completely lost on this part!!!

...are hard to write. Just wanted to share. Grr.

This made me laugh at loud. Hard. Thanks for that!!!

I'm pretty sure I'm decided on 13. Oh, my bank account is going to hate me soon...

You know, I was thinking, and I don't mean to insult your intelligence (or your friend's!)... but is it possible that you were looking at a SAT book?! 60 minutes and 60 questions sounds closer to a SAT than a GRE, if I remember correctly...

Visit the ETS official site for all of your GRE needs! http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menu ... f95190RCRD

I just wanted to say thanks to Serric for that little template! I am totally going to use that.

Yet another question about this ever-so-hot-topic... So, when is a good time to contact professors? I sort of want to start doing so, but I don't want to do it so early that they forget about me come application time! I also feel like a month before applications are due is cutting it waaaay too close, but I also don't want to bug a professor when he/she is at his/her busiest time of the semester.

Sooo, on that note, if a school has rolling admissions, what's a good time to apply? Just wondering if anyone has any thoughts.

compost (creative, huh? But it's where most of those should end up...)

I did some more research. Go me, right? Anyway, if you want to know anything about admissions rates, check out Peterson's. Sure, it's a little outdated, but it's better than just a shot in the dark, right? Also, always assume they overshoot rates, rather than undershoot. For example, Syracuse's acceptance rate is 9%. Good luck to us!

They told you it was experimental?! Has the test changed from last year, then?

So, I just graduated with my BA, applied for Fall 2009 grad school, didn't get in, and am reapplying for Fall 2010, blah blah blah. Very common story, I suspect. Anyway, so my plan was to work in the meantime. However, this also means I will be out of school for a year--- something I'm not exactly used to at the moment. SO, I was thinking of taking a course at the local community college, just to occupy my time. I was wondering if graduate schools, however, would frown upon this--- would it look weird if I was taking a community college level course when I already had my B.A.? Just wanted some thoughts from you guys!

Well, getting back to the game... And I haven't! So... unlearned.

Should have done some research, yes... heh. Anyway, I'm applying because one of their specialties is Victorian Lit. But, I tried and I couldn't figure out how competitive Syracuse is. If the results help, three people were accepted last year and four were rejected. I just did a rather detailed search and couldn't find any numbers for Syracuse--- which, at the very least, certainly means it's not Yale "We Accept 4 People Out of 4 Thousand" competitive, right?

Hmm. Well, I think I might be applying to Syracuse, if that helps you out at all?

Addled.

Hi Jasper, Wow, your list is much more organized than mine! I'm just sort of going the "pick and choose what book I feel like reading" route. I just started Vanity Fair, so I figure that will take me some time to plow through. After that, I'm on to Sense and Sensibility. I do, however, need to read some Henry James, and I should tackle a few more Dickens novels. Let me know if you want to coordinate and read some of the same books at the same time and have a mini-discussion or two?