Finding an Edge - How am I doing

[CulturedExperience]

Hello all- A few Questions. I am looking for some advice/input from Grad students as well as those who have recently applied. I will be graduating next fall and want to begin prepping for my application experience into an MA program or PhD direct entry program.

Currently I have a 3.55 overall GPA – 3.62 English Concentration GPA – 3.8 Creative Writing Minor GPA. I am also on the Dean’s List for semester grades as well as the Chancellor’s Award List. Additionally I have attained two internships (one which I am still currently participating in). The first internship was as an editor and writer for an online modern issues website, and the second as a writer for a local magazine. I am also an active member in Sigma Tau Delta where I have been nominated for a national scholarship and have also submitted works to their national convention.

Obviously my intention is to raise my GPA with my remaining spring, summer, and fall semester. However, I am worried this will only push my overall to a 3.7(something). I also plan to score well for the GRE, but I am fearful of my test-taking skills. As for my writing sample and SoP I am looking for some guidance. I really would like to stand out and make an impact; therefore ideas on overused thesis to stray from would be great.

I am also concerned with schools that do not ask for GRE scores or writing samples for their MA programs. Has anyone applied or been accepted to one of these programs? What did you do to stand out? Also is it smarter to chose a more renown MA program over a less known PhD program (considering acceptance in both)?

I am ultimately striving for these schools:

UCL (London)

Brown

NYU

Toronto

University of Amsterdam

Rutgers

Columbia

WashU

"> Be as straightforward as needed. I want to get prepared!!

[strokeofmidnight]

It might not be a bad idea to scroll through some of the previous posts, even if they don't address your precise question. The repeated refrain among successful applicants in these forums is that the numbers (GRE, GPA) and reputation (your CV, your school's rank) count for FAR LESS than most applicants imagine. I can cite dozens of students from no-name schools, with poor GRE/GPA (or all of the above) who had the luxury of turning down multiple ivy league PhD offers. I can also cite dozens of peers with tip-top grades/scores from tip-top schools who got in nowhere...not even into their so-called "safety" schools.

It's the writing that counts. Seriously. Your writing sample and SoP will trump almost anything and everything else. Focus on that--not on your grades. Take the next 3 semester (long, if you need it--the vast majority--like, 95%--of extremely successful applicants that I know of did NOT apply straight out of undergrad, but either went through an MA program or simply took a few years to explore non-academic avenues) to develop your skills as thinker and writer, to figure out what projects, topics, ideas, thinkers, writers, etc...that you gravitate towards. To find your own project (however rough), and to make sure that this career path (because a PhD in English is definitely a career path, and an extremely risky and unrewarding one at that) is something that you can't live without. THAT is what is going to get you into strong programs, not a good gpa/test scores.

[CulturedExperience]

It might not be a bad idea to scroll through some of the previous posts, even if they don't address your precise question. The repeated refrain among successful applicants in these forums is that the numbers (GRE, GPA) and reputation (your CV, your school's rank) count for FAR LESS than most applicants imagine. I can cite dozens of students from no-name schools, with poor GRE/GPA (or all of the above) who had the luxury of turning down multiple ivy league PhD offers. I can also cite dozens of peers with tip-top grades/scores from tip-top schools who got in nowhere...not even into their so-called "safety" schools.

It's the writing that counts. Seriously. Your writing sample and SoP will trump almost anything and everything else. Focus on that--not on your grades. Take the next 3 semester (long, if you need it--the vast majority--like, 95%--of extremely successful applicants that I know of did NOT apply straight out of undergrad, but either went through an MA program or simply took a few years to explore non-academic avenues) to develop your skills as thinker and writer, to figure out what projects, topics, ideas, thinkers, writers, etc...that you gravitate towards. To find your own project (however rough), and to make sure that this career path (because a PhD in English is definitely a career path, and an extremely risky and unrewarding one at that) is something that you can't live without. THAT is what is going to get you into strong programs, not a good gpa/test scores.

Thank you strokeofmidnight, I really appreciate your insight. I am predominately heading in the direction of MA entry, however the few direct entries for PhD seemed appealing (I might mix it up a little). I guess my remaining question would have to be -what makes a good SOP and WS (a lot of the MA programs require a WS). I don't want to use topics that essentially bore the board. Thanks Again!!

Edited December 21, 2010 by CulturedExperience

[strokeofmidnight]

Thank you strokeofmidnight, I really appreciate your insight. I am predominately heading in the direction of MA entry, however the few direct entries for PhD seemed appealing (I might mix it up a little). I guess my remaining question would have to be -what makes a good SOP and WS (a lot of the MA programs require a WS). I don't want to use topics that essentially bore the board. Thanks Again!!

This is going to sound redundant and a bit naive, but from my experience...it's REALLY, TRULY, not about playing to the trends. On the one hand, you don't want to be the lone wolf, working on a project that has absolutely no currency, which no scholar understands or cares about. On the other hand, one of the biggest mistakes that I see (constantly!) are candidates who try to sniff out the "hot topics" and tailor their SoP accordingly--and artificially. It shows and will turn people off. Take the time to figure out what actually interests you. Read more about it. Then, write, research, and read some more. Rethink your interests. Explore the critical conversations around those interests. Repeat over months (and for many of us, years). It isn't lost time--this background will put you in much better shape once you enter grad school. If you take the time to actually figure out what draws you--and why, and how, and what contributions you might make (yes, even at this level), and which programs are the best fit for those interests, you WILL be able to write a strong SoP and writing sample. The writing sample is your contribution to that critical discussion. The SoP is the context for it. If you cut corners (as I did), it'll will show in your application. It always does, even in the apps of candidates who are actually very bright, but went about this process in a way that leaves them feeling as though they have to pretend that they more than they do.

[Alyanumbers]

What's confusing is that you give us the names of schools you want to apply to, but you don't talk about your research interests. It should be the other way round: you'll choose schools based on finding people there who match your interests.

[CulturedExperience]

What's confusing is that you give us the names of schools you want to apply to, but you don't talk about your research interests. It should be the other way round: you'll choose schools based on finding people there who match your interests.

Alyanumbers,

So far my interests are 21st century fiction, American Noir fiction, Sexuality and Twentieth-century culture, Queer Theory 1900-1950 (Although, I continuously find topics I would like to add to the list)

The majority of the programs I'm looking at teach the American 20th century fiction/ Issues in Modern Culture, so I was aiming for that when applying for an MA.

Edited December 22, 2010 by CulturedExperience

[wanderlust07]

Ok. So ideally you want a sound sample of critical writing that addresses one (or more) of those areas. Honestly, for an MA, those areas of interest are probably plenty specific--one of the benefits of doing an MA before the PhD is that most require you to complete a similarly broad foundation of coursework, so you get to play around in various time periods and with various critical lenses to find out what else might interest you. I went into an MA claiming an interest in contemporary American fiction and folkore and am applying to doctoral programs with interests in Victorian literature, queer theory and disability studies, among other things. (Not that it doesn't matter what interests you, because it does and you should have an excellent sense of what those interests are and WHY, but no one will chuck you out on your ear later for changing as a scholar).

The adcomms won't expect you to have your dissertation mapped out--only that you will have a sense of a) where you currently are as a scholar and how those interests fit well with the specific program, potential for further scholarship and growth, as demonstrated by your writing, a willingness to keep exploring and delving, and a sense that you are capable of independent research and reasonably conversant with the field. I pretty much second what's already been said here--your SoP and writing sample should clearly connect your interests (current and where you see them heading) to how those fit with the programs to which you're applying. If you've selected schools with good fit, that fit should be apparent in your writing.

[lifealive]

Thank you strokeofmidnight, I really appreciate your insight. I am predominately heading in the direction of MA entry, however the few direct entries for PhD seemed appealing (I might mix it up a little). I guess my remaining question would have to be -what makes a good SOP and WS (a lot of the MA programs require a WS). I don't want to use topics that essentially bore the board. Thanks Again!!

I think the relevance of your project is an extremely valid concern, though you may be approaching it from the wrong direction. Instead of trying to guess what approach the adcom likes or finds relevant, do some research in your field. Find out what approaches people have been taking in the last five years. Make sure you're not doing work that was already done in 1983 (this was my mistake the first time I applied). It's probably unfair that adcoms expect new BA holders to have an updated understanding of the current trends in scholarship (especially when some people work for several years outside of the university), but this field has become increasingly competitive. BA-holders are professionalizing like never before, and people are now entering graduate school with a lot of research experience and a pretty decent understanding of what they want to dissertate about. When you revise your writing sample, you should spend a lot of time trawling the MLA bibliography for recent articles, and then track down the critics that these people all reference.

With this in mind, you should pursue your area-specific interests but not get too hung up on doggedly applying certain types of theory. Dropping references to Foucault and Judith Butler and Stephen Greenblatt can misfire if 1) you misuse them, and 2) the adcom happens to hate these theorists. For instance, certain professors at my graduate program absolutely despise New Historicism and race-class-gender theory flim-flam. They send any whiff of "performativity" to the shredder. However, if these stodgy people AREN'T on the committee, then it's a different ballgame. But if you're an outsider, then it's impossible to know who's on the committee, who has a lot of pull, and how things will go during any certain year.

So, my point is twofold: Do your research, but don't try to outgame an adcom. Trying to suss out an adcom's particular tastes and whims is a waste of time, and you should ultimately spend your time doing what interests you.

Edited December 23, 2010 by lifealive

[CulturedExperience]

Thanks for all the advice! I am nervous but feel a little more prepared understanding some of the basics better.

-What would you say about schools that only ask for an SOP. I know a lot of wieght will be on the SOP, but how much can that really be without using the GRE/GPA/CV pretty heavily as well?

[Bumblebee9]

In talking with many professors at various institutions (and working as an adjunct faculty member at a few), I've heard that the general order of importance is:

SoP/SoO (focus/interests/outlook matches department/faculty--all about fit)

Writing sample (if required)

Letters of recommendation

GPA (and other indicators of academic performance)

GRE (generally used more for funding/TAs,GAs,RAs/institutional records)

CV (if optionally submitted)

This varies by institution, of course...

[CulturedExperience]

In talking with many professors at various institutions (and working as an adjunct faculty member at a few), I've heard that the general order of importance is:

SoP/SoO (focus/interests/outlook matches department/faculty--all about fit)

Writing sample (if required)

Letters of recommendation

GPA (and other indicators of academic performance)

GRE (generally used more for funding/TAs,GAs,RAs/institutional records)

CV (if optionally submitted)

This varies by institution, of course...

Bumblebee9

I was curious which institutions had directed the importance this way. I always thought the letters of recommendation were more of a buffer between students who really want to get in and those who are just fufilling the app requirement. Which leads me to another question. What makes an outstanding recc in that case??

[lady_coffee]

In talking with many professors at various institutions (and working as an adjunct faculty member at a few), I've heard that the general order of importance is:

SoP/SoO (focus/interests/outlook matches department/faculty--all about fit)

Writing sample (if required)

Letters of recommendation

GPA (and other indicators of academic performance)

GRE (generally used more for funding/TAs,GAs,RAs/institutional records)

CV (if optionally submitted)

This varies by institution, of course...

Every English lit program I've encountered asks for both a writing sample and a statement of purpose.

Also, while your statement of purposes tells them what you want to do, your writing sample is the piece by which they actually judge your ability to do it -- that is to say, it is what demonstrates your scholarly potential. And I think we can all agree that if they don't see strong potential in the writing sample, they aren't going to give two beans about what you're interested in and who you want to work with.

[bigdgp]

Every English lit program I've encountered asks for both a writing sample and a statement of purpose.

Also, while your statement of purposes tells them what you want to do, your writing sample is the piece by which they actually judge your ability to do it -- that is to say, it is what demonstrates your scholarly potential. And I think we can all agree that if they don't see strong potential in the writing sample, they aren't going to give two beans about what you're interested in and who you want to work with.

On the other hand, they aren't going to give two beans about what you have done (writing sample) unless you can give them a cogent articulation of what you intend to do (SOP). We can all agree that these are the two most important parts of the application, but I doubt whether any gradcom in the country would be able to prioritize one over the other.

[Bumblebee9]

Yes, the writing sample is really important--I never said it wasn't. (Also note, there are some MA programs that only require a writing sample if you are applying for a GA/TA/RA). But often times due to the number of applicants, admissions committees weed out potential admits via the SoP, which is usually considerably shorter than the writing sample. I believe many institutions read through the entire application of each student; however, for those applicants that can't articulate what they want to study (in some form) and why they would be a great fit, their writing samples receive less attention from the get-go.

Imagine, as a committee of six or eight people, reading 300+ applications, each 20+ pages in length, within two months--in addition to your regular teaching load of 3 to 5 courses and other committee work at the program and institutional level. Bottom line, you've got to impress with your SoP.

Edited January 19, 2011 by Bumblebee9