Self-Directed Prep for 2021 Season

[wccarter]

I have somewhat recently decided to go for grad school after contemplating it for years. I will graduate with a BSE in high school English in the spring and I'll be applying for grad school next year. My question is this: What are some things I can do in my free time to help prepare myself for applications and then, hopefully, an MA program? My verbal score on the practice GRE was 168, so I won't need a ton of preparation for that. I have research papers from classes, but I'll be working on a new writing sample for my applications. I bought the Norton anthology of Romanticism (my tentatively chosen period) and a couple books on critical theory. I've had a few conversations about grad school with professors who have recommended stuff to read, but I'm looking for all the help I can get to improve my chances as a relatively weak candidate. Any ideas?

[politics 'n prose]

Speaking as someone who's applying for Fall 2020 and wishes they'd been more deliberate about preparing for app season, it sounds to me like you're definitely ahead of the curve here. The elements of your application that are most heavily-weighed--and over which you ultimately have the greatest control--will always be the writing sample and the statement of purpose, so my suggestion is to get started sooner rather than later on both of those so you have plenty of time to go through multiple rounds of revision (ideally with a trusted reader or two who knows something about your proposed field of study, or just the discipline more generally).

It's also never too early to research schools and identify programs that might be a good fit for your academic interests (as well as your preferences/needs in terms of location and other idiosyncratic deal breakers). I thought I'd finalized my list of schools way back in September, but then I had to drop a few in mid-October due to external circumstances (e.g., Buffalo reportedly being unable to fund its incoming class, Case Western being cagey on the availability of faculty advisors); fortunately, I'd done deep enough research over the summer that I was able to identify two replacement programs pretty quickly and I didn't lose momentum.

I guess the ultimate takeaway here is that it's probably impossible to be overprepared, but it's going to be in your best interest  to focus most intently on those things that are within your control (where you apply, and what materials you apply with) and not those things that are outside your control (what your rec-writers will say about you, whether that faculty member you're dying to study with is still at the program by the time you get there). Good luck!

[onerepublic96]

To second what has already been said, you're in a good place as it stands. 

However, about the writing sample: I would caution against writing a wholly new work on your own (unless you'll be able to get feedback from a professor or faculty advisor from your institution). Perhaps it might be a better idea to expand & strengthen one of the research papers you've already written (and presumably received positive feedback on). 

[wccarter]

On 12/8/2019 at 7:06 PM, onerepublic96 said:

To second what has already been said, you're in a good place as it stands. 

However, about the writing sample: I would caution against writing a wholly new work on your own (unless you'll be able to get feedback from a professor or faculty advisor from your institution). Perhaps it might be a better idea to expand & strengthen one of the research papers you've already written (and presumably received positive feedback on). 

Luckily, I do have a professor in my field who has offered assistance on an outside writing sample. Though, I have a paper from this semester I’m considering expanding. 

[wccarter]

On 12/8/2019 at 5:41 PM, politics 'n prose said:

It's also never too early to research schools and identify programs that might be a good fit for your academic interests (as well as your preferences/needs in terms of location and other idiosyncratic deal breakers). I thought I'd finalized my list of schools way back in September, but then I had to drop a few in mid-October due to external circumstances (e.g., Buffalo reportedly being unable to fund its incoming class, Case Western being cagey on the availability of faculty advisors); fortunately, I'd done deep enough research over the summer that I was able to identify two replacement programs pretty quickly and I didn't lose momentum.

Ooh, that’s a good idea. I had considered this one of the last steps, but I should definitely start the search sooner. Thank you!

[Cryss]

I decided in July that I wanted to apply, and immediately started my prep. This includes a lot of research. If you haven't already seen this, check out the Fit Finder by @punctilious . You can find it here https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/93170-tips-for-applying-to-english-phd-programs/page/2/?tab=comments#comment-1058603368

I agree with @politics 'n prose I had a long list of about 18 schools I had researched (not just the program and faculty, but stipends, cost of living- rent, bills, food etc, entertainment, how accessible it is for travel). I was planning to apply to 5, but when I got some fee waivers, I easily added more because I had previously done all that research. I asked my professors for recommendation letters in July, during their summer break, which they all appreciated. Even if they don't start it until later, it was good for them to know what I needed from them before going into their semesters, before all their work piled up. 

There's definitely a lot of positives for beginning earlier, including being able to put aside your application materials, and then looking at them with fresh eyes weeks and months later. BUT, speaking from my experience, sometimes spending too much time looking at it makes you frustrated. I feel like I've looked at my materials too many times and things that are fine start looking and sounding wrong.

Do lots of research, especially if you will be applying to some PhD programs, but focus on other things too.

I would say, in terms of improving your chances, know the current academic conversations in your field (from the past 10-ish years if possible). You may be able to use some of this in your writing sample or statement of purpose

 

[Brown_Bear]

3 hours ago, wccarter said:

Ooh, that’s a good idea. I had considered this one of the last steps, but I should definitely start the search sooner. Thank you!

I'm applying this cycle, and let me tell you this myself, and reaffirm what other posters have said: start brainstorming a list of places you may want to apply to as soon as is reasonably possible. You should be looking at places that fit a certain criteria that you establish for yourself (ex; funding, research fit, location, size of school, ect.), and excluding others that do not. I found that it took me a few lists before I got to the 14 or so I am now applying to, and this process lasted a few months of long contemplations. Despite other suggestions, I myself wrote an entirely new writing sample from scratch over the summer, so in theory, it can be done. But consider matching your writing sample to your proposed area of interest, and think about papers you've already written and see if you can just add to them. When the time comes, the statement of purposes and personal statements will occupy a large amount of your time, most likely, so you will want to transition into preparing the first drafts of those so you can revise them. I agree too with the other posters, and you should identify your letter of recommendation writers sooner than later, and clarify with them of your intentions and that they are willing to write you a strong letter.

Not to overwhelm you, but these are some of my thoughts. You can take your time, I think, but stay organized and focused on the biggest picture of what you have to finish.

[caffeinated applicant]

Tossing in another vote to start looking at programs early. Researching programs really helped me refine my priorities, and because I had started fairly early (I think I made my program spreadsheet in February of this year?), I had a lot of time to slowly build a detailed spreadsheet of programs that I could reference throughout the process. Also, beginning my program research early gave me more time to dive into professors' current research and explore subfields--though I ended up doing 90% of that reading in October and November anyway. Relatedly, I agree completely with @Cryss about the pros and cons to starting work on your materials months in advance: it's great to have time to set aside the statement and come back to it later, but I quickly got to the point where I couldn't stand to look at my work sample any longer. The right balance for me was to choose what I was going to submit for work samples and write a first-draft statement fairly early, but then not spend terribly much time on either until late summer/early fall. (Bearing in mind that I spent all of the spring studying for the GRE, and I graduated college in 2018, so spring, summer, and fall all had the same amount of free time for me.)

I emailed profs to ask for letters in late spring or early summer and sent them the first draft of my statement of purpose over the summer. I also included a couple of work samples and a CV in case any of the profs needed to refresh their memory on what I did in their classes.