PhD with no MA?

[greenlee]

Hey all! I hope those of you who're heading to programs soon are having fun getting ready (or pulling their hair out from stress) for this year. I'm moving to Buffalo in a few weeks, and while it's all a bit overwhelming, I'm excited about getting settled.

Over the past few weeks I've been getting to know some of the people in my cohort (via listservs, Facebook, etc), and so far I'm the only incoming PhD student that I know of with just a BA, as well as one of the youngest. Some of the current PhD students are married with kids. I'm only 22 and I just got my BA a year ago, and while I applied to both MA and PhD programs this year, since I got into a PhD program that was a great fit for me (off the waitlist! I danced around my apartment in ecstasy for at least twenty minutes), I decided to forgo the MA and just do the PhD. Is anyone else in this forum in my situation? Is this a common occurrence? I think the students heading to the PhD program with an MA already in hand will definitely have a leg up on me in terms of knowing the atmosphere/politics of a grad program, time management, and research techniques.

For those of you with MAs, is there anything I can do before the semester starts to prepare myself? Any time management tips, books, etc? I'll never be able to gain two years worth of hard-won experience in two months, but if there's any advice to be had, I want to hear it. I should mention that this semester will be the first time I'll be teaching, so those of you with teaching experience, chime in with anything you want to say! I've already ordered some books from Amazon about teaching comp courses (The St. Martin's Guide to Teaching Writing and The Writing Teacher's Sourcebook), but individual advice would be great!

Thanks everyone!

[Tybalt]

Hey all! I hope those of you who're heading to programs soon are having fun getting ready (or pulling their hair out from stress) for this year. I'm moving to Buffalo in a few weeks, and while it's all a bit overwhelming, I'm excited about getting settled.

Over the past few weeks I've been getting to know some of the people in my cohort (via listservs, Facebook, etc), and so far I'm the only incoming PhD student that I know of with just a BA, as well as one of the youngest. Some of the current PhD students are married with kids. I'm only 22 and I just got my BA a year ago, and while I applied to both MA and PhD programs this year, since I got into a PhD program that was a great fit for me (off the waitlist! I danced around my apartment in ecstasy for at least twenty minutes), I decided to forgo the MA and just do the PhD. Is anyone else in this forum in my situation? Is this a common occurrence? I think the students heading to the PhD program with an MA already in hand will definitely have a leg up on me in terms of knowing the atmosphere/politics of a grad program, time management, and research techniques.

For those of you with MAs, is there anything I can do before the semester starts to prepare myself? Any time management tips, books, etc? I'll never be able to gain two years worth of hard-won experience in two months, but if there's any advice to be had, I want to hear it. I should mention that this semester will be the first time I'll be teaching, so those of you with teaching experience, chime in with anything you want to say! I've already ordered some books from Amazon about teaching comp courses (The St. Martin's Guide to Teaching Writing and The Writing Teacher's Sourcebook), but individual advice would be great!

Thanks everyone!

First- The only big thing to remember about starting grad school from scratch is that you WILL feel overwhelmed in the first few weeks of the semester. You will likely feel like the dumbest one in the room and wonder what the hell you were thinking about this whole grad school thing (that's how I felt--and every grad student I've ever met has a similar story on those first few weeks). By the end of that first semester, you'll start to "get it." By the end of the first year, you'll be right at the same level with the rest of your cohort. There really isn't anything you can read/do to "prepare" for that. Just remember that it will happen, you DO belong there, and it will get better.

Second- As for the teaching- Don't reinvent the wheel. You will have people in your cohort who have teaching experience. Use that experience. Share lesson plans. Discuss tips for grading. They will be able to give you the best feedback because they will be teaching the same courses as you. You aren't in competition with your cohort. Offer ideas when you have them and solicit help when you need it. I actually know two of the people who will be in your cohort, and they are absolutely amazing people. Trust me. You will be fine.

[Phil Sparrow]

Tybalt is right; you will feel overwhelmed. But you figure it out! You also may feel jealous of or intimidated by the first years coming in with MAs, because they already know how to be in grad school. The most important thing is to work on your own stuff. Try not to compare yourself to other students, just work on being as good a grad student as *you* can be.

To answer your question: generally speaking, going from a BA to a PhD in English is really common, though some programs take more MAs than others and it might not be common at your program. I went in without an MA and so did the vast majority of the people in my program. I feel glad that I went straight in, though sometimes I envy those who entered the PhD with more experience because they seem so much more confident. But there are advantages to entering fresh, too.

Just work on *your* stuff. It will pay off even if it doesn't feel like it at first.

Edited May 15, 2011 by Phil Sparrow

[Bukharan]

I am not in English but, if no one minds, will share my thought here. In the past, it used to be the norm to move to a Ph.D. straight from a B.A. So, by no means, should you be concerned with doing anything 'the other way'. You are actually sticking to the classical system. (It also means that your application was excellent once you've been chosen without an MA in the pool of many MA-holding applicants, so congratulations!!)

I suggest you read plenty of articles (think the Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Ed etc.) about the state of higher education in general and the health of your field, in particular. It is a purely practical advice. You will then be more aware of the practical issues and concerns in your field once you start your Ph.D. and will know certain vocabulary that panicking academics will be using all the time. Knowing of what is happening in academia at large may also help you determine your priorities (when to start applying for conferences, submitting articles for review and publication etc.) early in the game!

[intextrovert]

My cohort is about half and half entering with a BA vs MA. If anything, I think it's more common to go straight to the PhD, at least in my program. (I just finished my first year, and came in with just a BA, though I'd taken three years off.) But every program is different, so Buffalo is perhaps one that prefers its PhD students to have MAs first. At any rate, I wouldn't worry about it much. Those with an MA in hand may have a little bit of an edge just in knowing the ropes of how to be a grad student straight off the bat, but I don't think it makes a huge difference - I've been impressed by my peers with and without MAs both. You'll get into the swing of things quickly. They accepted you, so they think you're well-prepared, and no one knows better than them!

As for people being married and having kids - remember, you're going to be there for 6+ years, so one or both of those things may apply to you by the end as well! Congrats and good luck!

[runonsentence]

First- The only big thing to remember about starting grad school from scratch is that you WILL feel overwhelmed in the first few weeks of the semester. You will likely feel like the dumbest one in the room and wonder what the hell you were thinking about this whole grad school thing (that's how I felt--and every grad student I've ever met has a similar story on those first few weeks). By the end of that first semester, you'll start to "get it." By the end of the first year, you'll be right at the same level with the rest of your cohort. There really isn't anything you can read/do to "prepare" for that. Just remember that it will happen, you DO belong there, and it will get better.

Second- As for the teaching- Don't reinvent the wheel. You will have people in your cohort who have teaching experience. Use that experience. Share lesson plans. Discuss tips for grading. They will be able to give you the best feedback because they will be teaching the same courses as you. You aren't in competition with your cohort. Offer ideas when you have them and solicit help when you need it. I actually know two of the people who will be in your cohort, and they are absolutely amazing people. Trust me. You will be fine.

I think Tybalt's advice is spot on, on both counts.

Writing textbooks—there's a great thread here: I recommended the writing teacher's sourcebook there, it's a great intro to rhet/comp pedagogy. However, note: instructors are able to get FREE exam copies of textbooks (just tell your rep from the publisher that you'd like to consider teaching it, and they'll send you a copy), so don't rush out to buy them just yet.

See also this recent thread on teaching:

Edited May 16, 2011 by runonsentence

[truckbasket]

I feel like such a cheerleader for this book, but Greg Semenza's "Graduate Study for the 21st Century" seems invaluable. It basically outlines the humanities graduate experience and provides excellent resources and suggestions for the whole process. Couldn't recommend it more.

Oh, and I'm going to BA to PhD too. I've already got my classes and syllabi for the fall, so I'm hoping to get some serious pre-reading done over the summer. Bracing myself for that first semester.

[Protagonist]

I feel like such a cheerleader for this book, but Greg Semenza's "Graduate Study for the 21st Century" seems invaluable. It basically outlines the humanities graduate experience and provides excellent resources and suggestions for the whole process. Couldn't recommend it more.

I'll back you on this. While I haven't read Professor Semenza's book, I took a class with him for my capstone/advanced study/whatever you want to call it course at UConn. He's an extremely intelligent man and often spoke candidly about the English program at our school and how it was run. He was also more than willing to offer me advice as I told him I was interested in pursuing graduate studies, and a lot of what he told me was helpful. As well as that he made special note to grade my papers as undergraduate work but give me comments as if I was a graduate student without me even asking ( I received much more criticism than I would have expected on an A paper but he made it clear these were not faults of my own as an undergrad, just what would be expected of me as a graduate student, haha) and continuously pushed my thinking throughout the year. Though this doesn't have anything to do with his book it speaks to his character and how helpful he really is towards those seeking a graduate degree in the humanities.