Fall 2013 English Lit Applicants

[sebastiansteddy]

Thanks for everyone who replied to my inquiry.

New issue: I am working on my writing sample (editing the paper I will be using) at the rate of about one sentence an hour. I just can't focus on it, and will never finish it. Grrrr.

[downtherabbithole]

anyone else take the Subject Test today? I love spending 3 hours on Saturday morning being made to feel like the most incompetent fool! Who knew that you could spend 5+ years primarily studying English lit and still not know anything?

I'm just relieved that it's over so I can finally devote my time to my SOP and writing sample...

[bfat]

anyone else take the Subject Test today? I love spending 3 hours on Saturday morning being made to feel like the most incompetent fool! Who knew that you could spend 5+ years primarily studying English lit and still not know anything?

I'm just relieved that it's over so I can finally devote my time to my SOP and writing sample...

Yes. It was pretty brutal. All that studying and the test was FULL of stuff that wasn't in any study materials... Or in any of my English classes. I think I left about 45 blank. Ouch.

But yes, now onto more important things.

[waparys]

Yes. It was pretty brutal. All that studying and the test was FULL of stuff that wasn't in any study materials... Or in any of my English classes. I think I left about 45 blank. Ouch.

But yes, now onto more important things.

Arrrrghhhhhhhhhhh how can it be that bad?! ETS is crazy. We're all crazy for playing their game! Anyone else gearing up for Nov 10? I'm taking it here in Berlin...HELP.

[thestage]

don't leave anything blank. you can always find a way to eliminate one answer, and if you can eliminate one answer then guessing is statistically worth it.

[sebastiansteddy]

Yes. It was pretty brutal. All that studying and the test was FULL of stuff that wasn't in any study materials... Or in any of my English classes. I think I left about 45 blank. Ouch.

When I took the test two years ago, I walked away from it ready to give up all hopes of graduate study. On all of the practice tests I took in preparation, I was getting dismal scores in the high 400s to low 500s. When I got my results for the actual test though, I was very pleasantly surprised and did MUCH better than I ever suspected. So... don't give up hope! You never know until you get your scores back.

[Gauche]

Arrrrghhhhhhhhhhh how can it be that bad?! ETS is crazy. We're all crazy for playing their game! Anyone else gearing up for Nov 10? I'm taking it here in Berlin...HELP.

I'm taking it in November too. I spent my summer studying for it, and I helped organize a couple of workshops to study for it this past week, and I still don't feel prepared. But I'm just going to jump right in and hope for the best.

[bfat]

don't leave anything blank. you can always find a way to eliminate one answer, and if you can eliminate one answer then guessing is statistically worth it.

The real problem wasn't being able to eliminate and guess, it was getting to all 230 questions in 170 minutes. Considering they ALL refer to passages that you usually need to reread or refer back to in order to answer (and some of them are long and/or in Middle English), I just didn't have enough time to even dedicate a good 10 seconds for guessing.

In retrospect, I would have tried to work quicker at the beginning, instead of fretting over each time I had to guess. I hate not knowing the answer, so it's a mini internal struggle each time, especially when I can eliminate down to 50/50. My advice is just guess and move on quickly, because it's best to at least be able to reach the end and then come back and confront those tough ones if you can.

[NowMoreSerious]

The real problem wasn't being able to eliminate and guess, it was getting to all 230 questions in 170 minutes. Considering they ALL refer to passages that you usually need to reread or refer back to in order to answer (and some of them are long and/or in Middle English), I just didn't have enough time to even dedicate a good 10 seconds for guessing.

In retrospect, I would have tried to work quicker at the beginning, instead of fretting over each time I had to guess. I hate not knowing the answer, so it's a mini internal struggle each time, especially when I can eliminate down to 50/50. My advice is just guess and move on quickly, because it's best to at least be able to reach the end and then come back and confront those tough ones if you can.

I believe I made the same error. I kind of burnt the first 45 minutes to an hour being a perfectionist and subsequently felt like I was bailing water the rest of the time.

But the most disheartening thing for me after taking it wasn't that I didn't do well (left over 40 blank), but it was that I am not sure studying literature will improve my score at all. Studying speed reading, test taking skills, and more practice tests to get into a rhythm will probably do more for my score than studying literature.

[marlowe]

I believe I made the same error. I kind of burnt the first 45 minutes to an hour being a perfectionist and subsequently felt like I was bailing water the rest of the time.

But the most disheartening thing for me after taking it wasn't that I didn't do well (left over 40 blank), but it was that I am not sure studying literature will improve my score at all. Studying speed reading, test taking skills, and more practice tests to get into a rhythm will probably do more for my score than studying literature.

Unfortunately, doing a PhD won't really improve your score either. The test is pretty silly.

[ProfLorax]

I just have to vent for a split second.

Why do so many different English programs have slightly different requirements for supplemental materials?! Well, I actually understand why they do; each school is looking for a different type of applicant. But still-- it's driving me bonkers! For example, University of Illinois wants a 300-500 word SoP, whereas other programs want no more than 1,000 words or 3-6 pages. Cutting down my SoP for U of I was so challenging that I had to start from scratch. Then, I just read that University of Maryland's SoP is more than simply an intellectual statement; they actually want to know about my life as well. I mean, I'm glad that they acknowledge that I am more than just my academic interests, but now I have to seamlessly add a whole new paragraph. And then, UNC Chapel Hill wants a one page teaching statement in addition to the SoP, and Purdue requires a diversity essay for university-wide fellowships.

Fortunately, I only have three applications left, but I am already so over reading and revising my own SoP; I am actually tired of myself!

/rant

[NowMoreSerious]

I just have to vent for a split second.

Why do so many different English programs have slightly different requirements for supplemental materials?! Well, I actually understand why they do; each school is looking for a different type of applicant. But still-- it's driving me bonkers! For example, University of Illinois wants a 300-500 word SoP, whereas other programs want no more than 1,000 words or 3-6 pages. Cutting down my SoP for U of I was so challenging that I had to start from scratch. Then, I just read that University of Maryland's SoP is more than simply an intellectual statement; they actually want to know about my life as well. I mean, I'm glad that they acknowledge that I am more than just my academic interests, but now I have to seamlessly add a whole new paragraph. And then, UNC Chapel Hill wants a one page teaching statement in addition to the SoP, and Purdue requires a diversity essay for university-wide fellowships.

Fortunately, I only have three applications left, but I am already so over reading and revising my own SoP; I am actually tired of myself!

/rant

I feel ya. I am also experiencing a strange paradox: The more precise, polished, and personal my statements become, the less they seem like they are actually about me, for some reason.

[Datatape]

Oh, I had such good intentions when I started this process. And yet here we are, almost November, and I still don't have a writing sample or statement of purpose that are anywhere near to done, I still have seven POIs to email and establish initial contact with and I've got the subject test breathing down my neck. I thought I'd have so much more time now that I'm not going to school, but moving to a new apartment and working 30+ hours a week at my office job and adjuncting at my alma mater and dealing with stupid family drama and - and - and - and -

Somebody give me a hug, please.

[joy illimited]

Datatape, I can sympathize with starting out with good intentions and then letting them fall by the wayside. I'm working FT as well, and I had such high hopes of working on my PS and writing samples (and reading lots and lots of criticism) over the summer. And here I am, doing things very last minute! I'm hoping that the looming deadlines and my general paranoia will compell me to finalize things in the next 2-3 weeks so that I can submit applications with some breathing room left.

Speaking of paranoia, is anyone else worried about submitting GRE score reports and transcripts before submitting the actual applications themselves? I have a fairly common name, so I'm terrified that should those items arrive first, they won't be matched up to the rest of my application.

Finally, I am going to echo proflorax's sentiments about the different requirements for supplementary materials. They're driving me bonkers, especially the various writing sample lengths.

[asleepawake]

Oh, I had such good intentions when I started this process. And yet here we are, almost November, and I still don't have a writing sample or statement of purpose that are anywhere near to done, I still have seven POIs to email and establish initial contact with and I've got the subject test breathing down my neck. I thought I'd have so much more time now that I'm not going to school, but moving to a new apartment and working 30+ hours a week at my office job and adjuncting at my alma mater and dealing with stupid family drama and - and - and - and -

Somebody give me a hug, please.

I'm in the same boat, other than that I won't be e-mailing POIs (mistake? right choice? !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! AIDFHJPIADFN) and I will never look upon the Subject Test GRE again.

Where has the time gone?

My first application deadlines are December 5th. That's like... soon.

[sebastiansteddy]

I'm in the same boat, other than that I won't be e-mailing POIs (mistake? right choice? !?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?! AIDFHJPIADFN) and I will never look upon the Subject Test GRE again.

I am not emailing POIs either, unless I genuinely have a question. All of the professors at my current MA program have told me that it makes no difference, and that professor's rarely remember who has e-mailed them and who hasn't. A few have told me that when they DO remember, it is usually for a negative reason (such as they perceived the applicant to only be grasping for a way to make contact). Many have told me that they are more than happy to answer questions about the program or their interests, but it annoys them when it is obvious that they are only being e-mailed to establish contact. I am taking their advice, and I hope it doesn't come back to haunt me!

[Dark Matter]

Yes, it doesn't make a difference.

[practical cat]

Question: Why is the SOP the worst thing in the whole entire world?

Or, maybe more accurately, why is MY SOP the worst thing in the whole entire world?

(Don't even get me started about editing my writing sample and leaving myself comments like "write better.")

[eriksmegs]

Speaking of paranoia, is anyone else worried about submitting GRE score reports and transcripts before submitting the actual applications themselves? I have a fairly common name, so I'm terrified that should those items arrive first, they won't be matched up to the rest of my application.

When I was applying, I was paranoid about schools matching my applications with my GREs and transcripts, because I took the test/graduated under my maiden name. Some schools had application tracking websites that informed me if any pieces of my application were missing. I ended up calling a few schools who listed they hadn't received my scores, as well as all schools that didn't provide this information for me online. I'm very glad I did so, because at four or five of my schools my scores and applications weren't matched. The good news is matching up my scores and applications only took a five minute conversation with these schools. The people I spoke to were very nice and happy to help---it was a pain that I had to go through this process, but the process itself was pretty painless. So if you're worried about your apps and scores matching, it's probably not a bad idea to double check, and it's easy enough to do so.

[Stately Plump]

Question: Why is the SOP the worst thing in the whole entire world?

Or, maybe more accurately, why is MY SOP the worst thing in the whole entire world?

No, it's SOPs generally. Terrible. Shield yourself with SOP sunglasses --->

[ProfLorax]

I just emailed UMass--Amherst to ask whether or not I should staple or paperclip my application materials. I realized just how overwhelming this process really is after I spent nearly 30 minutes conducting an internal debate about the pros and cons of staples and paperclips before deciding to contact the grad department.

And for those of you who are also conflicted about grand paper clip vs. staples debate (I can't be alone, can I?!), Barbara with UMass suggested paper clips because the department ends up scanning all materials as soon as they receive them.

[Phil Sparrow]

Always paperclip. Much easier on the receiving end.

I just emailed UMass--Amherst to ask whether or not I should staple or paperclip my application materials. I realized just how overwhelming this process really is after I spent nearly 30 minutes conducting an internal debate about the pros and cons of staples and paperclips before deciding to contact the grad department.

And for those of you who are also conflicted about grand paper clip vs. staples debate (I can't be alone, can I?!), Barbara with UMass suggested paper clips because the department ends up scanning all materials as soon as they receive them.

[skybythelight]

Speaking of paranoia, is anyone else worried about submitting GRE score reports and transcripts before submitting the actual applications themselves? I have a fairly common name, so I'm terrified that should those items arrive first, they won't be matched up to the rest of my application.

I actually had this exact strike of paranoia tonight. I'm applying to nine programs and my funds are tight, so I'm having score reports sent when I can (i.e. on paydays) rather than doing them all at once... much less overwhelming to spend $25 a week than to spend $225 in a single go. But yes, I am nervous about the schools that are getting my GRE scores now-ish and won't get my application for another month.

[Magical Realist]

Although this isn't contributing really, I'd just like to say how reading everyone else's paranoia is making me feel a bit less alone. My current bouts with paranoia include:

1) Oh my god, what if one of my recommenders secretly hated me but pretended to like me all those years ago, and is just now exacting her revenge (this is, obviously, ridiculous, and I'm obviously giving myself way too much import in the minds of others). I'm looking for the most minute markers of subtext in every single email. Ridiculous.

2) My writing sample is a part of a larger thesis. I'm wondering do I provide an abstract for the missing chapters. Also, should I use my cover page and table of contents still, to provide some context for what's missing. If so, how do I format this? (I'm fairly confident this won't make or break my application. In my mind, however, it will).

3) For my "major GPA", do I select the strongest GPA of my majors, or the GPA for the major that seems most relevant? (Since they'll have my transcripts, it's probably six one way...).

UGH! I'll be so glad once 2013 rolls around, and my apps are done.

[bfat]

(Don't even get me started about editing my writing sample and leaving myself comments like "write better.")

omg, this is me. I look back at my editing notes, and I'm like, "Seriously past me? That's your suggestion? Screw you for being a crappy editor AND a crappy writer."