anxious_aspirant
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Posts posted by anxious_aspirant
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Does anyone have experiences being counseled against the MA? I ask because the DGS at my wait list school expressed some doubt about the choice, throwing more of a wrench in my ridiculous confluence of deadlines demanding my more or less immediate attention.
I'd hate to give up a funded MA offer just on the hope I'd get admitted to an MA/PhD for round 2. And my job requires me to decide before this week is out (for leave-taking reasons). And of course I have hope for the PhD wait list long shot...So amid the general "Ahhh!" sounding in my head, I'm wondering if anyone has heard such mixed reviews before.
Not to crash the program-listing party; I could have sworn there was an MA debate thread at some point, but couldn't find it to bump.
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Haven't seen anyone mention Clark University; the only have an MA, and it's either one-year with tuition remission or two years with remission and TA-stipend. Unlike some, a thesis is required. And they have a really wonderful faculty.
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So, the 15th is a Sunday. How will that work? I wonder if last-minute notifications will really be going out Monday the 16th?
Also, I consoled myself with a new Macbook Pro today. Dangerous coping mechanism.
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Hope is the thing with feathers, lolo. Clutch it for dear life - at least, that's what I'm doing.
I also love this whole tattoo conversation, though I've only been an observer - I've been considering a literary tattoo, but I tend to like long, drawn out, wordy passages, and I want something short and to the point for aesthetic purposes. I will (perhaps forever) continue my hunt for the perfect line. I knew a girl who had the Shel Silverstein "Hug O' War" illustration, which first got me thinking that I need something from a book memorialized on my body.
...Also I have a really low threshold for pain. Maybe I haven't found the perfect one because I'm chicken.
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So. How much DGS emailing is too much emailing...?
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Hi all,
Dr. Clingman got right back to me and said chances are getting slimmer for admission basically because the writing center won't have very many TA spots open. I don't know if he meant that no one will get off the list, but that's the situation as he laid it out.
Going to go cry/lament now. Hmph.
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I just declined UMass Amherst yesterday. My medley is something like gender, disability studies, and postcolonial.
E-fricking-gads squared. (Running out of non-profane ways to represent my inner monologue publicly
.) I don't know if all these declines give me hope or more fear that I STILL won't make it and then just feel worse about myself for being so far down on the waitlist. Come on, #3! One of my fave students (I teach HS) is waitlisted for admission at UMass Amherst (for undergrad), and we commiserate about this daily.
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I like the way that Thunderpaws thinks!
There's an April 4 '11 wait list acceptance in the boards from UMass, too...
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I ask myself that every day...
*sigh*
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Does anyone know if applicants admitted holding BAs and MAs are considered on an even keel with this whole admission/waitlist process? Like, if an admitted student who already holds an MA turns down their spot, does their spot go to a waitlister in the same position, or can it transfer to an MA/PhD applicant? I found this confusing when people say, "such-and-such a school admitted 10 PhD students," etc - does this mean all students on a PhD track? Considering they'd have to fund me two years longer, as an MA/PhD, than my MA-holding counterpart - do you think it makes a difference?
Because I like to tie my brain into waitlist conundrum-knots, apparently. Boo!
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I'm still on the waitlist at a school I'd very much like to attend, but I'm starting to think about a second round of applications in case it comes to that. I know that the SOP and writing sample are way more important than the GRE lit score, but I'm planning to take the test again because it won't hurt to have a higher score.
I scored in the 79th percentile the first time around. For anyone who's done better than that, did you find the Princeton Review book and Vade Mecum helpful? I've heard from many who have scored in the 90th + percentile that the test has changed drastically in the last few years and that there aren't really any resources out there with accurate prep information. Besides doing your best to memorize the Norton Anthology, has anyone found good resources/strategies that match the current exam?
I used a combo of the PR book, Vade Mecum, and my Nortons. I was also prepping to teach Brit Lit the next semester, so I think planning units on Chaucer, Marlowe, etc. went a long way. I scored in the 89th percentile (as a non-English major). In that case, I'd say those sources "worked," but I can't say I saw a ton of it coming up on the actual exam. Most of the exam questions required me to draw on my own background knowledge (from pre-cramming) and/or close-read an unfamiliar text. Some are giveaways, too - as in, no analysis, just identifying the title, author, or translator. Though, even if you don't see the exact authors and text you studied on the exam, you can do some pretty informed guessing, placing the test excerpts alongside what you know to hypothesize about the time period, etc.
And overall, it's a poorly written test. I remember a Bradstreet question asking about a particular line, and since the image was a clear metaphor, two of the answers were completely sound - depended if they wanted a literal or figurative answer. And the question itself didn't help - it legit said, "What does line ___ mean?" For a lot of these, it comes down to outthinking the test itself, which can't always be done. For that particular question, I was asking myself - is this a question about comprehension or analysis? A question for which I should confine my answer to what's shown in the excerpt, or bring in what I know about the rest of the poem? Alas, there's no one there to clarify during test-time.
I'm also living proof that the GREs aren't the biggest factor in applications. In contrast to many, many on this board, I had high scores (with 99% in both verbal and writing), and was virtually shut out this season. I know for a fact that was due to my SOP, but still. WIth the time I spent cramming, I wanted them to mean something. I was hoping GREs would help alleviate any admissions worries about my not being an English major, thereby proving I am an able autodidact, but no dice.
Another warning: the practice test they send you is MUCH more well-balanced, in terms of question type and literary time period, etc., than the actual test I took. I scored much higher on my practice tests than the real thing. Don't bother with Old English - there are a few questions max - and the Middle English passages were mostly comprehension, if I recall from practice tests (where it came up more). I've never studied anything in Middle English and was able to use context clues to get most of them.
To echo Fiona, I was in a room with Computer Science test-takers who also said 20th percentile, or thereabouts, was an admirable score in their field.
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Woo, congrats! That's two open spots for UMass now. Hope some people on this board get the call soon.
Egads! I can't handle it. Though I don't think Stately being of the Renaissance persuasion will help me out a ton, but a girl can dream...
Every time I see this thread bumped, I hope I can join the likes of you all soon! Fingers crossed.
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Just got my rejection. Email to check the website, and then when I logged on there was a link at the very bottom stating my decision was available. This was my last hope for a PhD admit this year, but oh well. I'll be in an MA and hopefully strengthening my application for next season. Good luck to all those waiting to hear!
Silent_G, do you plan to reapply next fall, after just starting an MA? Wondering what others are doing, because I didn't know if it was a good idea to reapply when I don't have any grades to show for the MA I'll have in progress. Also, just the time involved in applying...Curious.
(And add me to the rejection train.)
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Just received an e-mail stating that the Graduate Program is still "very interested" in my application, but that I am on their waiting list for a teaching assistantship (they do not admit students without funding). Perhaps this means that those who did get a TA will be hearing very soon.
Did your status change when you login online, Isidore?
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Thanks, Trip - I didn't get to hang around campus that long when I went - or PM me if you'd prefer.
Luck to all!
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Reading through the thread, I am so amused that so many of us are wait listed at UMass
I'm not in the English department, but I was an undergrad in English (and I'm a member of the Alumni advisory board for the undergrad program)---- it is really a great place, with a lot of new life and interesting new directions because of a bunch of young faculty and passionate long term faculty. Best of luck on your status.Yay! I'm really so excited about (the possibility of) UMass. They're so nice, the writing program is awesome, I've already staked out classes I wanted take in the fall...
. Glad to hear from you and others who only have great things to say about it. From what I can tell, it would be perfect for me. If not this fall, hopefully next! -
[head in hands]
Though having been through a month of wait-list-purgatory now (coupled with my own indecisiveness), this kind of seems not that bad.
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Congrats, transcendental! And "madness" is definitely the appropriate word choice
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Just met with my superintendent about taking leave. He (jokingly / not jokingly) said, "As long as you're coming back the next year." If this wait-list thing works out, then I'm about to make a very intimidating man very angry.
I hate time and waiting and planning for eventualities that may / may not ever be necessary to plan for...I feel like there is no way everyone will be happy at the end here.
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Stipends are taxed like regular income. With an $18,000 stipend, less than 5% will go to federal tax. Use this tool: http://www.irs.gov/i...d=96196,00.html
Thanks. Definitely bookmarking this tool forever; necessary for a finance dummy like me. I don't think I know the difference between subsidized and unsubsidized loans [necessary shame acknowledged]. Only loans I've ever had are my undergrad ones, and that money just magically disappears from my checking account monthly...
Glad to hear most people are finding stipend-living okay. I was fearing an anecdote like, "And then I found out I had a life-threatening illness, couldn't afford it, and died." (Not that said people are around to tell of it, I guess). I'm all about frugality, even now, having a "real" job. I just always hate that roommate situation where the others in your apartment want deluxe satellite TV and internet with enough force to power the space station, and you end up paying chunks of these huge bills you never wanted anyway. Hopefully we'll be living with people in similar financial straits.
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Anecdotes would totally sustain me for the time being! Do share! We have had a few posters let us know that they turned down offers - meaning it CAN happen early, even if most don't.
Other topics of discussion to keep ourselves sane: What are your coping mechanisms for the time being - at least the most constructive ones? (Hopefully avoiding self destructive behavior...)
I wish we weren't all disembodied internet personalities scattered all over the country. It would be a relief to grab a drink with a bunch of people bearing my particular brand of insanity.
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Urgh, yes. And I really, really don't want to defer them while I'm in school. What are other people doing about their loans?
I'd also like to hear from others - I'm debating which is better: pay them off with savings (I'm lucky that they're not HUGE loans, but enough to hurt), and therefore deplete those savings before starting school, or keep paying that small sum each month and keep the security of savings (but then again, paying more interest in the long run). For me, deferring and just accruing exponential interest is just not an option.
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If you're getting a waiver and a stipend, you are already getting an excellent deal on your education, so the additional financial burden of a few small
I totally agree. If given the chance, there's no way I'd turn it down. My concern is more for the long haul - I'm even less worried about my potential MA (which carries tuition remission with no waiver), because not being a TA means I get the coursework done in a year. Much easier to subsist on savings knowing that it's only for a short time. I'm not sure if there are people on these boards who are a few years in, but it'd be interesting to hear about that, if so.
Also...some of us are still paying back undergrad loans
. Anyone else in my age group (early twenties) who will have the same problem?
Funded English MA programs
in Literature, and Rhetoric and Composition
Posted
Blerg. My MA offer is from such a school. Anyone else heard this? I considered it a plus, in that faculty are able to direct all of their attention toward MAs, all professional/job development goes toward MAs, etc., without those PhDs to hog the resources.