Appropriate Course Load

[bzrunner2009]

I was hoping that some current grad students could help me out with this one. I will be entering into a history MA program this fall and have been looking at my potential course load. From my understanding, the school's maximum credit load for a graduate student is 15 credits. My friend told me to take no more than 9 credits, but here is where it gets sticky. I kind of screwed myself over by not taking a language during my undergrad (my school was a small, private school and only offered two languages, which neither held my interest), so now I must take a language in addition to my graduate courses. The language course is 5 credits alone while my grad courses will be 3 credits each. My advisor said that I should do 3 graduate courses and my language course. She also recommends that I take my language during the summer, but this will not be possible until the summer of 2011. I am used to tackling heavy loads, especially since I did it quite a bit during my undergrad years, but I also know that graduate school is another whole ball game. I was hoping I could get some advice on this one.

[red_crayons]

I'm interested in this, too. I don't really understand why grad students are stressed all the time.

As an undergrad, senior year I took 18-20 credits (with 4-8 of those in grad humanities classes, and the rest in hard sciences) and worked 15+ hours a week while partying 5 nights a week and got a 3.9. Now, I work 50+ hours a week, have recently been spending 5-10 hours a week on doctor's visits, and get A's in grad classes... Can grad school really, possibly be any worse than what I've already been through? Can someone explain?

One of my friends from undergrad has been shocked by how little effort is required in her grad program. Her hypothesis is that our undergrad was just so, so insane that anything else is going to be better/easier. That strikes me as kind of elitist, but I haven't seen any evidence to the contrary. I'm genuinely curious and want to hear from current grads!

[anxiousapplicant]

I'm curious too. As an undergrad, I take five classes a semester, no electives (double major takes up all my space), with a very heavy reading/writing load. I spent basically all my time either in class, at work study, or studying on my own. I have all A's, but I am continually at the breaking point. I'm scared because if this is only undergrad, and I have no time for anything else, what the hell is grad school going to be like for me? And I attend a really shitty non-elite school! I don't get it. It scares me.

[UnlikelyGrad]

I'm curious too. As an undergrad, I take five classes a semester, no electives (double major takes up all my space), with a very heavy reading/writing load. I spent basically all my time either in class, at work study, or studying on my own. I have all A's, but I am continually at the breaking point. I'm scared because if this is only undergrad, and I have no time for anything else, what the hell is grad school going to be like for me? And I attend a really shitty non-elite school! I don't get it. It scares me.

Well, as a grad student you do more than just take classes. I take 3 classes a semester, but I also teach 3 classes a semester. Plus I'm trying to do research.

Remember--it doesn't matter how many classes you take, you won't get your Ph.D. until your dissertation is written. Research needs to be your #1 priority. Taking 3 classes and teaching 3 classes, I find it hard to put in more than 5-10 hours a week on research.

[breakfast]

I'm sure your adviser, depending on how close a role they intend to play in your course decisions, will have something to say about it. Also, if you have any TA or RAships, you might have to take a certain amount to meet requirements in the TA or RA contract.

At the department I am going to, a full-time graduate student who has a tuition scholarship and/or a TAship has to take at least 12 graduate credits during the first year, and then at least 9 every year following. However, the courses at this department are 4 credits each. I'm not sure how many classes I will be taking, but when I spoke to my adviser on the phone a while ago it seemed like they were going to help me figure all of that out (by having me take courses that would be good for my development and with professors I should work with) when it is actually time for me to register.

Edited March 30, 2010 by breakfast

[anxiousapplicant]

Well, as a grad student you do more than just take classes. I take 3 classes a semester, but I also teach 3 classes a semester. Plus I'm trying to do research.

Remember--it doesn't matter how many classes you take, you won't get your Ph.D. until your dissertation is written. Research needs to be your #1 priority. Taking 3 classes and teaching 3 classes, I find it hard to put in more than 5-10 hours a week on research.

I do realize that grad students do more than take classes. That's why it scares me. Because all I do now is take undergrad classes, and the workload leaves me with no additional time, so I have no idea how I'll handle an ever bigger courseload plus the other responsibilities.

[UnlikelyGrad]

I do realize that grad students do more than take classes. That's why it scares me. Because all I do now is take undergrad classes, and the workload leaves me with no additional time, so I have no idea how I'll handle an ever bigger courseload plus the other responsibilities.

You won't take a bigger courseload. I took 4-5 classes per term as an undergrad. Now I only take 3. Yes, people here take 12-15 units per semester, but much of that is research credit. (This semester for me: 8 units coursework, 4 units research.)

Also, I've noticed that grad classes tend to have a lot less busy work than undergrad classes do. (Unfortunately, I have to take a couple of undergrad classes to remedy "deficiencies"--it's my undergrad class that's killing me this semester, not my grad classes.) There's a lot more original thought required in grad classes, though--just regurgitating material is rarely enough to get a good grade.

Don't worry, you'll manage somehow.

[rising_star]

I think the appropriate course load varies by department. I worked my a** off in undergrad (5 classes, 1000+ pages of reading per week) and while I don't have as much coursework to do in grad school, I do have just as much work. It's all about time management. I'm taking two classes, grading for two classes (total 165 students between them), writing grants, prepping for summer fieldwork, making comps lists, and doing all kinds of other things that eat up my time during the day. The key is to not fall behind, have set hours for working, and know what has to be read carefully, what can be skimmed, and what can be skipped. It's all about managing the workload.

As far as the courseload, my MA program required a minimum of 9 graduate units to keep an assistantship. My current program requires 6 graduate units for TAs and RAs but at least 9 if you don't hold an assistantship. Unfortunately for you, language courses at the undergraduate level won't count towards the minimum number of hours you need for enrollment or towards the hours you need to get your degree. Which sucks for you. Is there any chance you could start learning the language this summer, either formally or informally? One of the problems with introductory language courses is that there's often nightly homework assignments you have to complete. Those are a time sink. If at all possible, you should at least learn the basics of the language so that you'll be a bit ahead in your first few weeks. Then, you can try to stay ahead the whole term.

Three times I have taken 4 graduate courses (12 hours) at a time and I seriously don't recommend it. The weekly reading was a lot but even worse was having 3-4 gigantic papers due at the same time, particularly when you have other things to get done, like grant applications.

Have I said grant apps enough? I spend a lot of time applying to various small grants to fund my fieldwork, which may or may not be a part of your experience. Mine is that my advisor doesn't give his students projects so you have to find your project, which takes time, then do all the background reading to be knowledgeable enough that you can ask an intelligent research question about the field, which again takes time. Then, once you have the questions, you can figure out a methodology for answering them (which you might be able to get from your coursework) and write up a plan for actually doing it. If your research involves fieldwork like mine does, you then have to start applying to different groups that might give you the money you need to go into the field. I've been really lucky at getting funding (I got everything I applied for in 2009) but that doesn't mean that it doesn't take time to alter your proposal from one set of guidelines to the next.

So, keep in mind that as UnlikelyGrad has said, you don't get a PhD until you successfully defend a dissertation and that all the things I've written about above are necessary steps for doing that. Personally, I prioritize in the following way: 1) research; 2) grading/TA work, because it pays the bills; 3) coursework. No one seems to have a problem with me doing things this way.

[quichelover]

Along the same line, what do you all think is an appropriate course load for 6-week summer courses? I am starting my Masters this summer and so far am registered for 9 hours/3 classes. I will physically be in class from 8 Am until 3 Pm T/TH with an hour for lunch between 2 of the courses and then the third course is online. My husband is cautioning me against adding another course since it's my first semester and because the classes are only 6 weeks so they will be condensed.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[Bumblebee9]

Along the same line, what do you all think is an appropriate course load for 6-week summer courses? I am starting my Masters this summer and so far am registered for 9 hours/3 classes. I will physically be in class from 8 Am until 3 Pm T/TH with an hour for lunch between 2 of the courses and then the third course is online. My husband is cautioning me against adding another course since it's my first semester and because the classes are only 6 weeks so they will be condensed.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

I would take no more than three. I've taken 1, 2, and 3 courses during summer session during different years (some that only ran 2 weeks long). If the courses are for 3 or 4 credits, you have to remember that you will be doing 15 week's worth of regular coursework for each class during those 6 weeks. *Twice as much work per day as you would normally have in a full semester masters course.* That means tons of homework/reading/papers squeezed into a small amount of time. If you have a job/family on top of this, three becomes very very difficult to manage. Motivation is the key. When I took 3 courses during summer session, one of which was an independent study, I was frazzled. I also worked 20-40 hours a week. Needless to say, I don't remember much about that summer. I would suggest reading ahead if you get any of the text/assignments before class starts. Or take only one or two courses to dip your toes in before you begin your formal masters coursework (unless it is absolutely essential to your coursework that you complete a certain number of summer credits--like my MSW friend who is required to take 9-12 credits summer, fall, and spring). Summer courses are a good way to adjust to masters-level work but don't overdo it.

[Bumblebee9]

I'm interested in this, too. I don't really understand why grad students are stressed all the time.

As an undergrad, senior year I took 18-20 credits (with 4-8 of those in grad humanities classes, and the rest in hard sciences) and worked 15+ hours a week while partying 5 nights a week and got a 3.9. Now, I work 50+ hours a week, have recently been spending 5-10 hours a week on doctor's visits, and get A's in grad classes... Can grad school really, possibly be any worse than what I've already been through? Can someone explain?

One of my friends from undergrad has been shocked by how little effort is required in her grad program. Her hypothesis is that our undergrad was just so, so insane that anything else is going to be better/easier. That strikes me as kind of elitist, but I haven't seen any evidence to the contrary. I'm genuinely curious and want to hear from current grads!

You'll find out soon enough. Grad students generally aren't stressed "all the time," but tension and deadlines run high a lot of the time. For a comparison:

I took 6 classes (24 credits) my last semester of undergrad (I needed to graduate in 3 years)

One of these 6 courses was my senior seminar in which I had to write a 30-40 page honors thesis

I worked 3 jobs (time fluctuating between 30 and 60 hours per week)

Plus I volunteered my time as a UG-TA (usually grading papers)

*Even with that workload, I had more time to myself as an undergraduate than I do as a masters student taking 9 to 12 credits (3 to 4 classes) a semester, writing my thesis (140 pages/40,000 words), TAing (instructor of record for one 100-level course and one 200-level course), being a member of a couple curriculum development committees, presenting at conferences, and other odds and ends expected of graduate students. Time management, as everyone else is saying, is essential. Here's my order of priorities: 1) teaching, 2) coursework/thesis, 3) professional development (committees, conferences, random certifications, etc). It's worked for me so far. I'll be done in May with a terminal masters.

Time breakdown (average week):

In class: 9 hours

Homework/thesis: 30 to 60 hours

Teaching/grading/office hours: 20 to 40 hours

Sleeping: 40 to 56 hours (when you have multiple big/important assignments due, sometimes you just don't get to sleep at night)

Left over: Readings, committees, conferences, parties

Also, graduate school is what you make of it. If you don't feel challenged, there are usually plenty of opportunities to work yourself harder: internships, assisting profs with research, mentoring, joining/running graduate organizations, trying to publish (important if you want to continue on to a PhD). Coming from Carleton, I know how strenuous undergraduate programs are. But in general, no undergrad will hold a candle to the type of work expected from you at the graduate-level. (Students who feel their graduate work is too easy have either built up their expectations beyond reason or are in the wrong program or at the wrong school).

Edited March 31, 2010 by Bumblebee9

[timuralp]

With PhD, it's also a different kind of work. Right now, trying to figure out exactly what I'm going to include in the research paper and allow myself time to evaluate it, I've been searching the literature for a while. At the same time, the actual problem I'm working on hasn't been covered by anyone. There is no known answer right now, which means if I get stuck, it's just me, a computer, and a friendly wall on which I will bang my head once in a while.

Research work is rewarding, enjoyable, and not always stressful, but when you're not making much progress and need to get through things is when you stop sleeping regularly and doing other stuff. Also, once you're done with classes, it's easier to have better planned days and not overwork. All in all, I got 2 degrees in undergrad, did research every semester since sophomore year, and ended up with a 3.8 - looking back, I had more time than now. I think the biggest part is that research doesn't end, but a class project/homework/paper always does

[StrangeLight]

I'm interested in this, too. I don't really understand why grad students are stressed all the time.

HAHAHAHAHA! you'll understand soon enough. as an undergrad, i was working 20 hours a week on a research/writing job while taking 5 classes a semester in intensive seminars. graduate school is more work. you already took grad courses? were you reading a 400 page book and a 30 page article on a weekly basis and writing response papers for them in those classes? if so, then you have an idea of what you're in for. if not, then you don't.

i'm a graduate student in a history program. the "minimum" courseload is 9 credits a semester, or 3 courses. that is also the unofficial maximum. in my first semester, i didn't have any teaching requirements, so i took 3 graduate seminars (9 credits) and a "one credit" independent seminar that met every other week. "one credit" in quotation marks because, due to the length of the books assigned (often over 450 pages) it may as well have been a book a week and considered an additional full course.

that semester sucked. i barely slept. i had well over 70 hours worth of work to do every week (reading and writing papers for coursework plus the occasional paper/research time devoted to my masters thesis). seventy fucking hours. i'd pull at least one all nighter every week just to stay on top of it.

yeah, you took 5 courses a semester in undergrad and that wasn't such a big deal, but you weren't reading three or four 300+ page books a week and being expected to write papers on them every single week.

to the OP: DO NOT take 3 graduate seminars plus a language course in a single semester. YOU DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH TIME IN THE WEEK TO DO ALL OF THAT WORK. history in particular is a discipline that is heavy on reading. odds are you'll read one book and one 30-page article per class every week. 3 seminars in and of themselves will be incredibly time-consuming (because, guess what, beyond the material being long, it's also difficult, so you'll have to read things more than once or think them over for a few hours before you can begin response papers). adding a language class on top of that will bring the quality of your work down (and your ability to actually acquire that new language) in all of your classes. do you have to TA? if so, you either will fall really far behind in your work or you will burn out FAST (TAing is supposed to take 20 hours a week, but when you're grading papers, it's more like 30-40 hrs, and that's on top of however long it takes you to complete your coursework).

again. DO NOT DO IT. you're in a difficult position because you need to get at least one language under your belt before you complete your masters. that's a requirement you can't afford to put off. my recommendation would be to take two graduate seminars and one language class each semester. that's it. most masters programs don't require 36 hours of graduate level coursework (that would be 2 years at 9 credits a semester). take 6 credits of grad classes a semester and then however many credits the language class happens to be (that doesn't really matter unless your total number of credits exceeds the maximum the school is willing to cover as part of your tuition remission). find a polite way to tell your advisor that you'd rather start with two graduate courses than three, and if you find the workload more than manageable (you won't), you'll happily increase to 3 grad classes + 1 language in the following semester.

please, please, please, please, please, please, please for your own sake, listen to me. three grad seminars, with no other responsibilities (TAing, language training, etc.), is very time consuming. i didn't believe it either when i was in your position last year, so 3.5 seminars in one semester didn't seem unreasonable to me. it is. learn from my mistake.

Edited April 2, 2010 by StrangeLight

[TMP]

I have to agree with StrangeLight on so, so, so many points. Even though my MA was in an interdisciplinary program, I was mostly focused on history. Even so... my interdisciplinary program was pretty reading heavy.

HAHAHAHAHA! you'll understand soon enough. as an undergrad, i was working 20 hours a week on a research/writing job while taking 5 classes a semester in intensive seminars. graduate school is more work. you already took grad courses? were you reading a 400 page book and a 30 page article on a weekly basis and writing response papers for them in those classes? if so, then you have an idea of what you're in for. if not, then you don't.

If my UG profs ask me next time I visit my alma mater and ask what they could have done better to help me prepare for graduate school, my first response would be, "Weekly response papers!!!" Even though my senior seminar did it, it was just one class and I wish my profs had done more of it in their upper level courses. 5 response papers per semester isn't going to prepare me well to submit 2-3 response papers each week. That's what I hate the most about seminars. My friend hates response papers more than I do- she actually didn't post them online for a while. It wasn't until I smacked in her head to tell her to get over it and just do it when she did finally post them. (And she was a PhD student!)

Also each program varies in terms of what's considered a "paper." Really question the grad students about their workload. I have another friend elsewhere and it seemed like her workload was bigger than mine. Not only that, if you have to take an undergrad course and "turn it" into a grad course, you will have to do an extra paper (usually 10-20 pages) on top of all other assignments for that course. Sometimes you can work out a deal with a professor so you don't have to do the "busy" work and just write one heck of a big research paper.

to the OP: DO NOT take 3 graduate seminars plus a language course in a single semester. YOU DO NOT HAVE ENOUGH TIME IN THE WEEK TO DO ALL OF THAT WORK. history in particular is a discipline that is heavy on reading. odds are you'll read one book and one 30-page article per class every week. 3 seminars in and of themselves will be incredibly time-consuming (because, guess what, beyond the material being long, it's also difficult, so you'll have to read things more than once or think them over for a few hours before you can begin response papers). adding a language class on top of that will bring the quality of your work down (and your ability to actually acquire that new language) in all of your classes. do you have to TA? if so, you either will fall really far behind in your work or you will burn out FAST (TAing is supposed to take 20 hours a week, but when you're grading papers, it's more like 30-40 hrs, and that's on top of however long it takes you to complete your coursework).

DO NOT DO IT. you're in a difficult position because you need to get at least one language under your belt before you complete your masters. that's a requirement you can't afford to put off. my recommendation would be to take two graduate seminars and one language class each semester. that's it. most masters programs don't require 36 hours of graduate level coursework (that would be 2 years at 9 credits a semester). take 6 credits of grad classes a semester and then however many credits the language class happens to be (that doesn't really matter unless your total number of credits exceeds the maximum the school is willing to cover as part of your tuition remission). find a polite way to tell your advisor that you'd rather start with two graduate courses than three, and if you find the workload more than manageable (you won't), you'll happily increase to 3 grad classes + 1 language in the following semester.

On the money here. Be conservative in your first year. See what you can handle. One girl attempted to take 12 credits in her first semester even though people told her not to. It wasn't until mid-October that profs figured it out and told her to choose between 2 courses in order to reduce her courseload. She admitted that she felt MUCH better afterward. Another grad student did 12 credits during her second semester and confessed that she would never, ever do it again even though she didn't have any other responsibilities. As for me, I really lucked out. I took 2 seminars (3 credits each) and a language class (4 credits). The language class wasn't all that difficult so I was able to focus quite a bit on my seminar. I used the summer to really catch up on my language in order to prepare for 300 level lit level. Then in my third semester, I had 2 seminars (which I wasn't quite fond of), a thesis (3 credits), and an "independent" study of 1 credit in order to finish ALL of my MA coursework by December. That was... a killer semester because I put in so much time on my thesis, followed by my seminars, and lastly, my language reading sessions. Your languages will always take a backseat unless you're not doing anything else. That's what summers are for. You can catch up really fast in European languages, especially Romance and Germanic languages, in one summer. Even my adviser knew that languages are on the bottom of every grad student's list, even though we needed 8-12 language credits to graduate.

[aginath]

It's been said. Consider all the factors and err on the conservative side.

For instance, my major requirement is that my assistantship requires 12 hours of credit/semester. Am I actually taking 12 hours of coursework? Of course not. Only 6 of those hours are actual courses with letter grades. Another 1 hour is our required program seminar for all first and second year doc students (Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory). Another 2 of those hours are directed readings/internship with my advisor. To fulfill that, I participate in a team-based research study under his direction and it requires reading, collaboration with his other doc students, and occasional meetings (Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory). The remaining 3 hours are filler to reach the assistantship requirement. I go to work for 16 hours/week, I do my job (manage the graduate school website), I get a Satisfactory grade.

I have classmates who fill those last 3 hours with another class. I've watched them struggle this year to meet all of the deadlines and still work on personal research interests. Don't get me wrong, I still stress and have my share of headaches, but I've always been one to err on the conservative side (I was a 12 hrs/semester undergrad). Looking at the long term plan, my classmates that have done the 9 hours of coursework/semester are realizing that they'll be out of classes by mid second year and will then HAVE to shift to all research hours and dissertation work for lack of anything else.

[PastHistory]

Don't try to take the language course with 3 grad seminars. I had to take 2 semesters of language for my undergrad degree. Although the courses were just the basics (learn to speak, read and write), they were the most time consuming classes I took those two semesters. It's not that the work is terribly difficult, it's just requires much more time than you think it will. Our classes had grad students who were trying to take the language requirements alongside their regular grad courses and were struggling to keep up. For your first semester, test the water - see how much work you can handle. It's better to err on the side of caution and take fewer classes than to overload your schedule and get burned out on school by October.

[bzrunner2009]

Thank you everyone! I am definitely taking everything to heart.

[MsScarlet]

Well, i don't really see the problem with three courses and a language. I am a 1st year PhD student and I took four my first semester and three my second, including working as a teaching assistant in charge of 50+ students and two sections and having a job on the side. The only time that I found it difficult is that end of the semester crunch when final papers are due, but with proper planning you can manage this quite easily. I also did a master's and took five classes at once... I am in history and I do the regular reading load, one book plus a few articles per week per class. Especially if you're not working, I don't see any problem with taking four. I still had a life, went out on the weekends, and got all As in my courses. As long as you plan and budget your time well, you should be just fine.

As for TA assignments, you learn really fast how to cut back on that time. 1) stop assigning writing assignments in addition to the regular assignments. 2) keep the in-class assignments simple and stick to lecture. 3) all those comments you take great pains and time to write? no one reads 'em. Keep it short, brief and to the point. if they have questions, they'll ask you. I know some people have said that students like personal touches but by the 2nd paper I know who will read it and want to think about the comments and who won't.

[bzrunner2009]

Ok, I'm really taking everything to heart, but I'm going to admit that I'm becoming very torn. I should probably add in some factors that I've have been weighing in when I register for classes. When it comes to reading load, I'm not too concerned. I am an avid reader and definitely not a slow one. My current job is a youth services clerk at my local library, and I can normally pump out 3-4 books a week, if not more. Many of these books tend to be non-fiction with some light reading mixed in.

I can understand the emphasis on the writing load, especially if I have three 20-30 page papers due at the end. Again, this is not terrifying to me. During my undergrad years, I was used to a minimum of two large term papers due at the end of the semester, many times with them due back to back. I'm pretty sure I will be crying when the time comes, but I have done it many times in the past and survived. I actually do very well under pressure.

I am not working my first semester (I've been putting quite a bit of money aside so I would not have too for the first semester), so this definitely frees up some time. At the moment it looks like I will just be taking classes. For me that is a LOT of free time. I'm used to my schedule filled up with extra-curricular activities and work.

I have come two options that I thought might help. I thought that I could email some current students in the department and inquire about particular classes/professors to get a feel for what to expect. I also thought I could attempt the the 3 grad classes with my language and see how I feel after two weeks. If I'm already overwhelmed drop a class.

What about some thoughts on these ideas?

[rising_star]

I am not working my first semester (I've been putting quite a bit of money aside so I would not have too for the first semester), so this definitely frees up some time. At the moment it looks like I will just be taking classes. For me that is a LOT of free time. I'm used to my schedule filled up with extra-curricular activities and work.

I just want to say that I think you'll be amazed by how quickly that "free" time disappears. I'm actually more productive when I have a very busy schedule than I am when I have a lot of free time on my hands. It actually led to me getting an offcampus job during the second year of my MA because I was done with courses and needed something to structure my time.

I have come two options that I thought might help. I thought that I could email some current students in the department and inquire about particular classes/professors to get a feel for what to expect. I also thought I could attempt the the 3 grad classes with my language and see how I feel after two weeks. If I'm already overwhelmed drop a class.

What about some thoughts on these ideas?

I would definitely check with current students, particularly those who have taken the language that you will be taking at that university. I know I'm always amazed by how much work Intro Spanish is here, particularly compared with Intro Spanish at my undergrad. And then there's the differences in work between Spanish and Arabic, for example.

Before deciding to enroll then later drop, you may want to check and see what the deadlines and financial penalties are for withdrawing from a class two weeks in. Here, you would have to pay a fee and the course would appear on your transcript as a withdrawal. Something to keep in mind.

[StrangeLight]

yeah, withdrawal dates are different at every school. at my school, not only do you need to drop before the second class, you can't return any textbooks to the bookstore after the second class. so you've got to know whether or not it's too much work before you even start your first full post-talk through the syllabus class or you get stuck with Ws.

i'd definitely advise asking other current students (and other professors you may already know) if the courseload is manageable. when i took 4 courses (all seminars, none of them languages) in a single semester, my advisor thought it was perfectly reasonable because i wasn't teaching, wasn't working a regular job, wasn't into the meat of my masters research yet, and she only sleeps 4-5 hours a night so why should i need more? when other professors (including the current and future heads of the department) asked me casually what my courseload was like, their eyebrows shot up. they usually give their advisees two seminars and a language class or three seminars, period. even though i said "well, i'm not teaching," they replied, "yeah, but four is still a lot." i made it through with a near-perfect GPA, so it's not like i struggled or it was impossible. but it was extremely unpleasant. don't do that to yourself if you don't have to, you don't get extra points for torturing yourself.

if you can read fast and take good notes quickly then 3 + a language may not take over your life. if i skim, i don't absorb what i'm reading very well. if i don't skim and i take strong notes (ones that will be useful for comps in a few years so i don't have to re-read the whole book), then i can get through 20 pages in an hour. in the four-course semester, that was roughly 1200 pages a week, or 60 hours just for readings. then add on the time it took me to write the response papers plus the 15-20 page paper my advisor had me writing every few weeks based on additional secondary research, and that's already over 70 hrs a week. and that's just because i write quickly (20-30 minutes per page).

if you can tear through books quickly and still take in the arguments and type up useful notes, then that's awesome and you probably won't feel such a crunch. i'd still run this by other profs and other students in the program.

Edited April 7, 2010 by StrangeLight