ProfLorax

Hey plzn, you may find some good ideas in this recent thread:

Hi All, Thanks for reporting your concerns. I have issued a warning to Sum_1 and will continue to monitor the thread.

If you find a user to be annoying, you can always block his/her with the "Ignore Preferences." This can be found under "My Settings."

I have two hands now! "The faculty of UMD's Women's Studies department decided collectively to take February 25, National Adjunct Walkout Day, as a state furlough day. We do so in solidarity with the academic labor concerns of non tenure track faculty across the nation and especially in solidarity with such faculty members on our campus and within our state system who would wish to participate in a walkout but are too vulnerable to do so. Most of these faculty members, many of whom are part-time, are contractual, often hired from semester to semester. Many non tenure track faculty members are instructors with responsibility for undergraduate instruction, while others conduct research, and still others share practical knowledge in public service outreach." - See more at: http://wmst.umd.edu/#sthash.OWFqdh54.dpuf

Hey Jarndyce! As I mentioned just a few posts above yours, my BA and MA are both in literature. My experience is that many PhD students in rhet/comp have their MA's in literature or even other fields. I do suggest taking at least one rhet/comp class in your MA experience, so that you may have a writing sample to submit (though mine was from a lit seminar and strangely related to writing studies!).

I don't even know if the rankings apply to MA programs? Regardless, the consensus here seems to be that in the case of MA's, funding > ranking in terms of pretty much everything. That being said, it's early: why not wait to see if the "competitive funding" comes through? If it does, you can choose between the two programs based on coursework, faculty, PhD placement rates, professional development opportunities, location, and department culture.

Extended time and extra breaks may be helpful accommodations if you choose to retake. I'm not advocating that you do, but you should know all the options. https://www.ets.org/disabilities/test_takers/accommodations/

Geodude: the video game suggestion is kinda brilliant.

I'm really uncomfortable with the suggestion that some people can't "hack" grad school because of a disability. People with anxiety, autism, panic attacks, depression, and PTSD make important contributions to academia all the time. I do agree that you, youngcharlie, need to prioritize your health above all else. Does ETS offer accommodations for documented disabilities? You may want to look into that. Also, what did your professors say about your GRE scores? Did they offer any strategies for how to overcome them in your application? ETA: Let's not wish we had another disability in place of our own.

Youngcharlie, have you talked to any of your professors about your application? They might be able to give you some specific feedback on the strengths and weaknesses of your specific application.

Bullshit. Not getting a TT job isn't just a mild disappointment. It's emblematic that the heart and soul of higher education is eroding in a tidal wide of corporatization. Who suffers from the most from this trend? College students, and often the most disadvantaged, who no longer have access to office hours or commited advisors because all their adjunct instructors are teaching seven classes to make ends meet. Is it surprising that students of color, low income students, and disabled students are dropping out of college in record numbers just as the powers that be put all their efforts into streamlining everything in higher education? It's all connected: adjunctification, the gutting of student services, caps on financial aid, caps on basic skills courses, the devaluing of the humanities. And there are awfully big stakes.

Thanks IQ84. As a former adjunct, I appreciate the solidarity. I'm not teaching this semester, so I had no opportunity to walk out or teach in, but I did go to campus for a departmental meeting on graduate student issues. Some of us had drafted a statement about wanting more inclusion in the decision-making process at the departmental and university levels, and in that statement, we stated our support for National Adjunct Walkout Day and contingent faculty in general. The women and gender studies TT faculty here at UMD took their furlough today in solidarity with NAWD. The statement they put out explaining their move is pretty awesome. I'd love to paste it here, but alas, I am on my phone with only one free hand.

All good feedback so far. My only contribution is this: what do you want to teach? Do you want to teach writing, literature, foreign language, or philosophy? What you want to study is important to know, but you should also want to teach whatever subject you get your degree in.

Here's another tip: if you are driving across the country via the Northern route, take a detour through South Dakota. With Custer State Park, Badlands, Mount Rushmore, Sioux Falls, and Crazy Horse, South Dakofa far more beautiful than it has any right to be. Plus, Wall Drug is a trip. Also, we got some all-natural, non-narcotic anti-anxiety meds for the dog; they were a lifesaver. Ask your vet if they can help you out!

I adjuncted at a community college for three years. For every tenure-track job opening, the department received 100 to 200 applications. The one full-time position that was open while I was teaching was pulled for funding reasons. This is all to say that community college tenure-track jobs are no longer a given either. ETA: I also want to caution against the "well, there's always community college!" line of logic because there are plenty of scholar-teachers whose first choice is to teach community college, so you'll be competing against folks with extensive experience and knowledge of basic writing, FYC, and English language learners--basically, people who have been training to teach the community college student population.

I did my BA and MA in literature, and I loved studying literature. But I realized I wanted to research and write about texts outside of the literary canon, the writing of everyday, ordinary people. I became increasingly more interested in how people rhetorically construct arguments on Twitter, in zines, on protest signs, and with bodies than in canonical poetry and novels. Then, I taught writing and reading at a community college in California. God I loved it. My students were amazing-- they had overcome and still were overcoming so many obstacles to write their stories and their perspectives. While many teachers with lit MAs bemoaned the "tragic" state of our students' grammar, I found the writing to be exciting, authentic, and original. Rhetoric and Compostion as a field finds value in and celebrates these students, as well as texts crafted and delivered outside traditional publication. Ultimately, I felt I could better incorporate my commitment to social justice in my research, writing, and teaching within the field of rhet/comp, way better than I could in other English fields. So far, I haven't been disappointed.

One of the programs I was going to visit booked me a double room with another prospective grad student, so it's definitely possible. You may want to inquire before, so you aren't surprised when you get there.

This is a great list! It's somewhat geared toward single, childfree grad students, so here are a few questions I'd add: -What is the department's parental leave policy? -What form of health care is available to graduate students and their families? Can they sign up for the same health insurance plans as faculty and staff? -Are partners/spouses/children welcome at departmental and social events? Are they seen as part of the cohort? -Where do students' partners work? (this was important when I was considering schools in the middle of nowhere, like Urbana-Champaign and Oxford, OH). -What childcare services does the university offer? -Where do grad students with families tend to live? -Is there a lactation room in the building? Or on campus?

I think it's 100% fair to ask the DGS for specifics regarding the "at this time." Express your concern about the cost. Then ask how what percentage of MA students have any kind of funding, how many TA and GAships are available for MA students, how competitive funding is, and what other MA students do to manage the high costs. Knowing the specifics about funding will help you make an informed decision. I wish I had done the same for my unfunded MA!

This is so important! In addition to the institution's policy on parental leave, you may also want to talk to current graduate students with kids. They can give you a better sense of the departmental culture and attitude towards work/life balance. Also, as a grad student on maternity leave, I can also tell you want to make sure your advisor will be supportive. I was fortunate enough to have my then-POI and now-advisor straight up tell me that she supports and advocates for grad students who have kids. I never had to ask. And so far, she's absolutely kept her word.

It's important to note that the people who did take out loans and went through repayment are the very ones who are cautioning against this unfunded offer. Really, I can't stress this enough, paying $300-600 a month on an adjunct's salary just sucks. And loan forgiveness is not something to bank on, especially since adjuncts are the New Faculty Majority.

As someone who was shutout with only a BA and had a successful round with an MA, I have some thoughts on this. Looking back, I was an awful applicant coming straight out of undergrad. Like many folks here, I was an exceptional UG student, but I didn't realize that being a great student and writer does not necessarily equal being a great applicant. I thought my SOP was focused; it was not. I thought my WS was original; it was not. Neither of these deficits were emblematic of my abilities. I just didn't know what was needed for grad school applications, and most importantly, I really didn't know what I wanted to study (though, I thought I did!). After my MA, I was a much better candidate. I had original research interests that were both focused and varied. One of my POIs mentioned how, though I had three distinct interests, I demonstrated how they intersect in my statement. I articulated the kind of scholar-teacher I wanted to be using the vocabulary of our field. I lucked into writing an original WS in one of my MA seminars. My numbers? Pretty much the same. But my packaging of myself and knowledge of the field? So much more improved. I think what we don't stress enough in successful applications is the performative aspect. I had to learn what the academy wanted from its graduate students, then find a way to be authentic to myself while performing the ideal grad school applicant. It's a tricky balance, and for me, one that required a ton of awareness of me as a person, scholar, and teacher as well as of the field I wanted to join. Earning an MA was critical in achieving that balance.

Awesome! I'll be the one with the baby. Say hi!

Yes to everything IQ84 said. I also wanted to address this note right here. We grads are lucky, but many many many of us overcame significant hurdles to get where we are. Many of us have been in similar positions as you are right now, and we kept going even when we just didn't feel like we could. Dreams are needs, indeed, but they are also journeys that take time! Give yourself the opportunity to fight for that dream, even if the road you may take may be longer than someone else's.

If I only had less than $10k in loans from undergrad, my response wouldn't be, "well, let's go take out a shit ton more!" Graduating with that little of debt is an accomplishment. You should be proud of that and try to stick to that low of number. As someone who had to start paying back loans (I worked for three years after my MA), I can tell you that repayment really sucks. Monthly payments, even low ones, eat into your take home salary. And as you've probably heard, English MAs and PhDs aren't raking in the cash. Also, while repayment is typically delayed a few months after undergrad, I don't think that's the case for an MA. I was shocked when my job-searching ass had to start paying $200 right away. I'm not saying to avoid all loans and debt, but you can select a program that will minimize your costs while maximizing your professional development opportunities.