...but how do you decide what's realistic and what's a reach?

[friendxenemy]

I will be applying in Fall 2011 for admission in Fall 2012, and I am beginning to look at programs . My undergraduate performance was mediocre in a top program, while my graduate performance has been much better, albeit in a lesser program. I recently met with my Department Chair, but I'm not sure we are on the same page as far as where I would like to go and what I would like to do. I'm hoping that the members here can help me determine what tier of schools would fit where in the hierarchy of realistic/reach.

University of Pennsylvania, May 2009

B.A. in English

Creative Writing Emphasis

GPA: 3.13 overall / 3.6 in major

Northwest Missouri State University, May 2011

M.A. in English

GPA: 4.0

GRE General Test

Verbal: 640

Quantitative: 780

Analytical: 3.5

I will be taking the general test again and the subject test for the first (and if necessary, the second) time during the next year.

Areas of Interest: Postcolonialism, Gender Studies

I know this is a rather rough sketch, but hopefully the community here can help me develop a better idea of where I sit in the applicant pool.

Thanks in advance.

[strokeofmidnight]

Unfortunately, stats can tell us (and I'd wager, the ad-comm) very little about your chances. One friend who graduated with honors (and departmental awards) from an Ivy did not get into any program the first round she applied. There are students in my (fairly strong) PhD program who came from "no-name" MA or BA programs with medicore scores and grades...but can write/think/research amazingly well. It really truly and absolutely depends on the writing sample, the SoP, and how well your proposed project fits the interest and needs of the programs that you apply to. You might want to comb through some of the other threads on this board--I think the near-unanimous opinion (particularly from those of us current enrolled in PhD programs) is that the numbers matter very little--it's the writing that will make or break your application.

One brief note about GPA. There's no need to worry about yours (the fact that you went on with an MA will help to pad whatever passing questions the ad-comm might have about your MA grades), but as you probably know, grades work very different in (US) graduate programs. For the programs that I'm familiar with, an A is generally an indication that you're doing "acceptable" work (ie, doing well). An A- or a B is a warning that you're not performing up to par. Every MA-holder from a US university that I know of (except for myself, oddly enough) applied with a 4.0. This isn't to undercut your achievement--it is to suggest that grades work differently then in undergrad, and will not be a particularly assert (or detractor) for your application.

I will be applying in Fall 2011 for admission in Fall 2012, and I am beginning to look at programs . My undergraduate performance was mediocre in a top program, while my graduate performance has been much better, albeit in a lesser program. I recently met with my Department Chair, but I'm not sure we are on the same page as far as where I would like to go and what I would like to do. I'm hoping that the members here can help me determine what tier of schools would fit where in the hierarchy of realistic/reach.

University of Pennsylvania, May 2009

B.A. in English

Creative Writing Emphasis

GPA: 3.13 overall / 3.6 in major

Northwest Missouri State University, May 2011

M.A. in English

GPA: 4.0

GRE General Test

Verbal: 640

Quantitative: 780

Analytical: 3.5

I will be taking the general test again and the subject test for the first (and if necessary, the second) time during the next year.

Areas of Interest: Postcolonialism, Gender Studies

I know this is a rather rough sketch, but hopefully the community here can help me develop a better idea of where I sit in the applicant pool.

Thanks in advance.

[friendxenemy]

Thanks for the info. I will continue to read/lurk, but thanks for tipping me off to what I should be paying attention to.