Online Courses?

[booktobook]

In my previous post it was recommended to me that I take a graduate-level literature class to create a writing sample and potentially cultivate a LOR. After reading many posts, I'm discovering that several people are taking online literature classes. How do you do this? Which universities offer online courses for students who are not admitted into their programs? My local university does not seem to offer much in the way of graduate level literature classes (I did an MS in Publishing there, which is the program that funds most of their English department), so online seems to be a better idea.

Also, for those of you whose FL skills were not up to par prior to application, what did you do to improve them? I speak more German than a 101 class, but I don't know what level to start at. My husband is downloading Rosetta Stone for me, but...??? I feel lost in this process before I've even begun.

Thanks for all your help!

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

In my previous post it was recommended to me that I take a graduate-level literature class to create a writing sample and potentially cultivate a LOR. After reading many posts, I'm discovering that several people are taking online literature classes. How do you do this? Which universities offer online courses for students who are not admitted into their programs? My local university does not seem to offer much in the way of graduate level literature classes (I did an MS in Publishing there, which is the program that funds most of their English department), so online seems to be a better idea.

Also, for those of you whose FL skills were not up to par prior to application, what did you do to improve them? I speak more German than a 101 class, but I don't know what level to start at. My husband is downloading Rosetta Stone for me, but...??? I feel lost in this process before I've even begun.

Thanks for all your help!

Book -

I'm currently enrolled in a graduate summer seminar, conducted wholly online through UMass. Do a search for "UMass online" in google, and you'll get there. I'm also sure that there are other schools that offer the occasional graduate lit class online, as part of their continuing education programs. It may take some digging to find, but it's possible.

Languages - I'm planning on taking my first year of Latin online as well (also through UMass) and then testing into intermediate Latin during my first year of Grad school. If you live near a community college that teaches languages go there and take their language test to see what class you should start taking and start taking the class.

[strokeofmidnight]

In my previous post it was recommended to me that I take a graduate-level literature class to create a writing sample and potentially cultivate a LOR. After reading many posts, I'm discovering that several people are taking online literature classes. How do you do this? Which universities offer online courses for students who are not admitted into their programs? My local university does not seem to offer much in the way of graduate level literature classes (I did an MS in Publishing there, which is the program that funds most of their English department), so online seems to be a better idea.

Also, for those of you whose FL skills were not up to par prior to application, what did you do to improve them? I speak more German than a 101 class, but I don't know what level to start at. My husband is downloading Rosetta Stone for me, but...??? I feel lost in this process before I've even begun.

Thanks for all your help!

Foreign language: actually, you might want to look reading-only opportunities--either books or classes. (For the former, check out "German for Reading" and "French for Reading" books). Classes can be horrifically expensive (my current class is over $4,000), and since the focus is frequently on speaking/conversation rather than translation skills...it might not be ideal for what you'd need for graduate school. On the one hand, most programs will require FL skills (and even if they don't, it's a good idea anyway) and you'd want to get started as early as possible (even if ad-comms will rarely penalize you for not having FL under your belt). On the other hand, you might want to avoid shelling out thousands for a class, especially since your graduate program might pay for it once you're admitted.

I had 2 years of high school French, and managed to pass a French translation exam after a summer of working through my "French for Reading" book.

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

Foreign language: actually, you might want to look reading-only opportunities--either books or classes. (For the former, check out "German for Reading" and "French for Reading" books). Classes can be horrifically expensive (my current class is over $4,000), and since the focus is frequently on speaking/conversation rather than translation skills...it might not be ideal for what you'd need for graduate school. On the one hand, most programs will require FL skills (and even if they don't, it's a good idea anyway) and you'd want to get started as early as possible (even if ad-comms will rarely penalize you for not having FL under your belt). On the other hand, you might want to avoid shelling out thousands for a class, especially since your graduate program might pay for it once you're admitted.

I had 2 years of high school French, and managed to pass a French translation exam after a summer of working through my "French for Reading" book.

Stroke - do you mean the Sandberg "French for Reading" book? or did you use something else? I'm thinking about getting that done for French while taking College Latin online (I wouldn't presume to try to teach myself Latin, but French, I've taken a class with the French consulate before, so I have SOME basics down).

[Gingermick]

Booktobook- Harvard has a number of online courses that you can choose to take for undergrad or graduate credit (I believe more work is involved if you choose graduate). UMass sometimes has grad seminars, but so far I've only seen the medieval lit seminar that Branwen is taking, no other periods or genres. But UMass has many many other online offerings, more than most other schools I've looked at. Yale and Oxford have some really interesting courses that were video taped and then put online, so you can't take them for credit but you can learn a lot. Also, many of the UC Extension programs, like UC Berkeley Extension and UCLA Extension, offer for credit online courses. I like the Berkeley ones because they are mostly open structured - you start whenever you want, and you have 6 months to complete the course. I haven't seen a grad seminar from Berkeley though.

For languages, I'm currently taking Latin through UMass. So far it's a breeze. I wouldn't recommend taking an online course if your goal is actually to learn to speak the language, but with Latin and any languages you are learning just to pass the language requirement for grad school, I think online is the perfect medium. Rosetta will be more helpful if, for example, you want to travel to Germany and ask how to use the bathroom. And I'm not hating on language tapes, I love my Pimsleur and it really helped me when I was traveling, but it never taught me to read or translate.

Like Stroke said above, online courses are just as expensive as regular courses. So far, the courses I took have run about $1000 a course.

Hope this helps.

Edited June 21, 2010 by Gingermick

[booktobook]

Thank you all for your input. It looks like I'm just going to have to hold my breath and hope my local university offers a class that will work within the next year. I mainly want to take a lit class to cultivate a writing sample that is more relevant to my interests (Contemporary Women's Literature).

As for the language, I appreciate your input on the difference between learning to speak and learning to read/write. I will definitely check out German for Reading. I'm starting a non-credit class through my local community college on Wednesday. Hopefully the teacher will be able to help me out with some resources to improve my translation skills.

How does anyone trudge through this mess alone? Thank goodness for thegradcafe!

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

For languages, I'm currently taking Latin through UMass. So far it's a breeze. I wouldn't recommend taking an online course if your goal is actually to learn to speak the language, but with Latin and any languages you are learning just to pass the language requirement for grad school, I think online is the perfect medium. Rosetta will be more helpful if, for example, you want to travel to Germany and ask how to use the bathroom. And I'm not hating on language tapes, I love my Pimsleur and it really helped me when I was traveling, but it never taught me to read or translate.

Like Stroke said above, online courses are just as expensive as regular courses. So far, the courses I took have run about $1000 a course.

Hope this helps.

I'm starting the Latin course in the fall, and actually hoping to augment it with the Jones/Sidwell "Reading Latin" books - I'm actually hoping to manage to either take an upper-level Latin lit course in year one of grad school, or test out and jump straight into Medieval Latin.

My big quandary is whether to do "French for Reading" concurrently, or to just concentrate on Latin this year. *sigh*.

[Gingermick]

I'm starting the Latin course in the fall, and actually hoping to augment it with the Jones/Sidwell "Reading Latin" books - I'm actually hoping to manage to either take an upper-level Latin lit course in year one of grad school, or test out and jump straight into Medieval Latin.

My big quandary is whether to do "French for Reading" concurrently, or to just concentrate on Latin this year. *sigh*.

Some people may have better language departments in their brain, but I tried to take Italian and Spanish in the same year during my undergrad, and it was really confusing. I was fairly proficient at Spanish and only taking beginning Italian but I ended up dropping Spanish because they were congealing together in my head. Even now, I live in Japan and Spanish words pop out now and then. I think my brain divides languages into "English" and "other" and it's a pain trying to separate them.

However, my Italian and Spanish background have been really helpful for Latin, as I imagine your French will be. As it is, I am fairly sure that after just one year of Latin I could pass one of those translation tests with a dictionary. It seems like you want to go much further with your Latin though, so I don't know if it would be better for you to study both or concentrate on one.

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

Some people may have better language departments in their brain, but I tried to take Italian and Spanish in the same year during my undergrad, and it was really confusing. I was fairly proficient at Spanish and only taking beginning Italian but I ended up dropping Spanish because they were congealing together in my head. Even now, I live in Japan and Spanish words pop out now and then. I think my brain divides languages into "English" and "other" and it's a pain trying to separate them.

However, my Italian and Spanish background have been really helpful for Latin, as I imagine your French will be. As it is, I am fairly sure that after just one year of Latin I could pass one of those translation tests with a dictionary. It seems like you want to go much further with your Latin though, so I don't know if it would be better for you to study both or concentrate on one.

Passing the Latin examination is important, obviously, but I actually need the language for research (I'm planning on concentrating on Medieval lit - and to work towards a certificate in Medieval studies). I also need the French for research (and Old French to read original works from the period), but I could always postpone my serious French studies until my first year of grad school (I do have a year of French from about 5 years ago, and it seems to have remained in my brain - also, I've always been better at reading and understanding written french than speech - which, luckily, is exactly what I need to focus on).

My main concern is also making a mish-mash in my brain between Latin and French - I do know that having a good solid foundation in Latin will help my French considerably (after all, it is a derivative language), but while I fully expect to take an advanced Latin lit class (either classical or medieval), I doubt I will be taking a French lit class during my graduate studies, unless it's in Medieval French (i.e. Marie de France, Chretien de Troyes, etc.).

I'm sure I'll figure it out come September - I'll see how much the Latin takes out of me, and see if I have the energy and focus to take on another language for reading book.

Thanks for your input tho! It's good to know that the class is a breeze

[Medievalmaniac]

Branwen - I would highly recommend doing the Latin first, then picking up again on the French after you've safely been admitted to, or even begun, grad school proper. You know you need the Latin, because medievalists just DO. But dependent upon the program you end up in, you might not even need the French - what if you get into the Celtic studies program and go with the Welsh instead (which I KNOW you would prefer...!! ) Or, what if you decide to go with the idea you had awhile back and you find instead of French, you would use the Hebrew? At this point, your focus really needs to be on the class you are taking and on prepping your writing sample / application to be the most competitive you can make it. I'd hold off on the second language aand really work in Latin. A good base in Latin can never serve you badly, but if you try to do too much right now you could get too overwhelmed and hurt, rather than help, your application overall.

Edited June 29, 2010 by Medievalmaniac

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

Branwen - I would highly recommend doing the Latin first, then picking up again on the French after you've safely been admitted to, or even begun, grad school proper. You know you need the Latin, because medievalists just DO. But dependent upon the program you end up in, you might not even need the French - what if you get into the Celtic studies program and go with the Welsh instead (which I KNOW you would prefer...!! ) Or, what if you decide to go with the idea you had awhile back and you find instead of French, you would use the Hebrew? At this point, your focus really needs to be on the class you are taking and on prepping your writing sample / application to be the most competitive you can make it. I'd hold off on the second language aand really work in Latin. A good base in Latin can never serve you badly, but if you try to do too much right now you could get too overwhelmed and hurt, rather than help, your application overall.

I'll probably need French anyhow (even if I go for the Hebrew or Welsh, after all, as an Arthurian scholar, I should be able to read Chretien de Troyes and Marie de France in the original) - but you're right - the Latin will definitely help me pick up French faster, so I will do that - an intense year of Latin (so I can jump straight into Medieval Latin during grad school), and start French when I get there .

I can't wait for grad school. These kind of challenges are invigorating, and don't drain my soul (unlike certain life challenges, such as dealing with stupid bureaucratic idiocies and house-hunting)

[bigdgp]

I'll probably need French anyhow (even if I go for the Hebrew or Welsh, after all, as an Arthurian scholar, I should be able to read Chretien de Troyes and Marie de France in the original) - but you're right - the Latin will definitely help me pick up French faster, so I will do that - an intense year of Latin (so I can jump straight into Medieval Latin during grad school), and start French when I get there .

I can't wait for grad school. These kind of challenges are invigorating, and don't drain my soul (unlike certain life challenges, such as dealing with stupid bureaucratic idiocies and house-hunting)

Branwen,

Although I hesitate to help you out since we will probably be applying for the same spots at the same schools and your specs are better than mine, I guess I can throw you a bone with Latin study (LOL). I took an intensive Latin course this past semester at the CUNY Graduate Center, and our textbook was wonderful! The best thing about it is that it is very easy to use for a complete novice working alone, and it is comprehensive as far as grammatical constructions are concerned. It's called Latin: An Intensive Course and it is written by Rita Fleischer and Floyd L. Moreland.

BTW, I guess they're not the exact same spots, since I'm less interested in French Arthurian literature and want to focus more on the convergence of Briton Christianity with Anglo-Saxon Paganism and back into Irish-Celtic Christianity, and all of the mystical symbol-sharing therein. Our interests certainly do cross, though. I'm sure I'll see you at the conference in Kalamazoo at some point.

[Medievalmaniac]

Branwen,

Although I hesitate to help you out since we will probably be applying for the same spots at the same schools and your specs are better than mine, I guess I can throw you a bone with Latin study (LOL). I took an intensive Latin course this past semester at the CUNY Graduate Center, and our textbook was wonderful! The best thing about it is that it is very easy to use for a complete novice working alone, and it is comprehensive as far as grammatical constructions are concerned. It's called Latin: An Intensive Course and it is written by Rita Fleischer and Floyd L. Moreland.

BTW, I guess they're not the exact same spots, since I'm less interested in French Arthurian literature and want to focus more on the convergence of Briton Christianity with Anglo-Saxon Paganism and back into Irish-Celtic Christianity, and all of the mystical symbol-sharing therein. Our interests certainly do cross, though. I'm sure I'll see you at the conference in Kalamazoo at some point.

Bigdgp....hehehe, make that three of us..... You can join Branwen and me in our book project we're going to embark upon one of these days!

'Zoo 2011 CFP rolls out this month....!

[Branwen daughter of Llyr]

Branwen,

Although I hesitate to help you out since we will probably be applying for the same spots at the same schools and your specs are better than mine, I guess I can throw you a bone with Latin study (LOL). I took an intensive Latin course this past semester at the CUNY Graduate Center, and our textbook was wonderful! The best thing about it is that it is very easy to use for a complete novice working alone, and it is comprehensive as far as grammatical constructions are concerned. It's called Latin: An Intensive Course and it is written by Rita Fleischer and Floyd L. Moreland.

BTW, I guess they're not the exact same spots, since I'm less interested in French Arthurian literature and want to focus more on the convergence of Briton Christianity with Anglo-Saxon Paganism and back into Irish-Celtic Christianity, and all of the mystical symbol-sharing therein. Our interests certainly do cross, though. I'm sure I'll see you at the conference in Kalamazoo at some point.

Thanks for the Latin advice .

My research interests are on Arthurian lit in general, Celtic origins of Arthurian lit, and the whole idea of Chivalry in general (I'm currently fascinated by the contradiction between the "courtly love" knight and the "knight of God," for example). However, I'm also gaga for Chaucer, Celtic mythology in general and it's influences on medieval literature (Breton, Welsh, and so on), and I've recently become excessively fascinated by marginalia (I have a background in art, as well), medieval drama, and I always love anything with dragons . So I range far and wide in my interests.

Also, I'm glad to know that my "specs" are impressive to someone LOL (none of the schools I applied to this year were particularly impressed, so I'm working to change that!)

Bigdgp....hehehe, make that three of us..... You can join Branwen and me in our book project we're going to embark upon one of these days!

'Zoo 2011 CFP rolls out this month....!

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh book project!! book project!!