Preparation for Masters in English

[antoinette]

I'm planning to apply for Masters programs in rhetoric, composition and pedagogy. The schools I'm considering are mostly smaller state schools. Right now I'm taking the year off (I just graduated with my BA in English, minors Psychology and Spanish this May). Later this summer I will start a 4-month internship in South America where I will teach English at a language school. Once I return I plan to apply to Masters programs for Fall 2013. As far as my qualifications go, I earned a 3.89 GPA as an undergraduate (honors), participated in the English Honor Society and was the president of another student organization, and I worked part-time for three years at my university's writing center as a Writing Tutor. This position was really valuable both personally and professionallly as it led me to my current interest in composition and the teaching of writing. I'm expecting my internship to give me valuable experience and direction as well. I'm going to apply for Teaching Assistantships (all the schools I'm considering offer them to MA students), so is my background adequate enough to be awarded a TA position? What makes me uneasy is that I know my university's undergraduate English program is weak. While I cultivated relationships with my professors and got as much from my program as I thought possible, I only received very introductory instruction (if that) in literary theory, for example, and I didn't have any "specialization". I guess I'm just worried that my undergraduate English courses were too general and not challenging enough. I'm not applying to Ivy Leagues/prestigious universities (or even top state universities for that matter), but I still don't want to be naive about grad school in English. What academic background is expected of a student entering a Masters in English?

[ComeBackZinc]

Sounds to me like you're in great shape. Stress your experience and interest in teaching. Discuss the interface between your research interests and your teaching interests: how will your research inform your teaching? How will you draw upon teaching experience to direct your research? Also, ESL skills and working with non-native English speakers is huge right now, so be sure to stress that in your materials. You seem to be in better shape than I was to start my MA in rhet/comp.

As for me, my preparation went pretty much like this:

[antoinette]

"Discuss the interface between your research interests and your teaching interests." Great point, I will keep that in mind. Thanks for the advice and the much needed laugh . That clip was a riot.

[RelaxButterfly]

I think you should be fine! As long as you're knowledgeable in your area (which you appear to be), I think you'll be okay.

On a side note, if you don't mind answering...is Nebraska one of your options? I'm just curious because there's a professor at the school I completed my undergrad at who works extensively in the areas of rhetoric and composition, and that's where he did his PhD, so I'm thinking they must be good. I'm not sure if you'd be willing to move to Canada for your masters, but if you're a part of Windsor's MA program, you have the option to actually teach an undergrad course in composition yourself. The professor I mentioned above is in charge, and then each student runs his/her own section of the course. Just thought I'd let you know in case you were looking for more choices!

[antoinette]

Amanda C,

It's interesting that you mention Nebraska because one of my professors this past semester also mentioned that Nebraska's English MA program is really strong. It seems like it's a school worth considering, I'll have to look into it. Going to school in Canada has always been a dream of mine, and nothing more, unfortunately, because I assume, as an international student, I would pay an exorbitant amount for tuition. Maybe I'm wrong. I should probably do more research because the what you've said about the Windsor MA program sounds great. Thanks for the advice!

[ProfLorax]

Antoinette,

Just out of curiosity, is San Francisco State on your list? I did my MA in lit there, and it was where I was introduced to rhet/comp as a field. It features fantastic faculty, opportunities for teaching, and dynamic and down-to-earth student population. Their rhet/comp program is a huge reason I'm making the switch from lit to rhet/comp for my PhD applications.

As for your question about preparation: I also went to a weak undergrad institution for my BA (they didn't even require a lit theory class. I entered grad school in literature with no knowledge of Derrida, Barthes, or Bloom), and for the first few weeks, I definitely felt like I was behind in my MA classes. My solution? I chose classes that reflected my interests, developed close relationships with my professors, and wrote seminar papers that really revved my engine. I put the extra effort to connect with my classmates (cohort cohesion seems to be more of a given in PhD programs), and we built a fabulous support system for each other. I ended up kicking my MA's ass, so it's possible to do well, even when starting with a weak foundation.

Also, from what I observed at SF State, rhet/comp programs tend to be incredibly student-focused and often require an Introduction-type class that brings all entering MA students to the same page. So that's helpful!

Lastly, if you're still anxious about preparation, I remember seeing a thread in this fora about great books that provide an overview of rhet/comp. It certainly wouldn't hurt to check those out. I know I will be doing some summer reading in hopes of catching up with the rhet/comp field!

[mspiegel72]

Antoinette,

I went to an Ivy League college for undergrad, and we had no requirement for theory either; specialization was by no means a requirement. In other words, I think you're in a pretty typical situation. However, if you want that background info, know that Yale's lit theory class is actually available for free online at Yale Open Courses. There are videos and transcripts of all the lectures, and I believe the course readings are also available online. (Yes, watching these videos is what I will be doing this summer.)

[I'm a fact.]

However, if you want that background info, know that Yale's lit theory class is actually available for free online at Yale Open Courses. There are videos and transcripts of all the lectures, and I believe the course readings are also available online. (Yes, watching these videos is what I will be doing this summer.)

Thank you! This is awesome.

[RelaxButterfly]

Hi Antoinette. I'm not sure how much tuition is at Windsor for international students, but I know we have a pretty solid base of international students at all levels, so I'm thinking that there might be decent amounts of funding available if you were interested and wanted to do some more research.

[antoinette]

Thanks everyone for such great advice. It's nice to know my situation isn't abnormal, and you've mentioned some interesting programs to consider and offered resources for further preparation; mspiegel, that is soo awesome that Yale's lit theory courses can be accessed online, thanks for that information! I know I'll be checking that out.

[Lycidas]

Antoinette,

I went to an Ivy League college for undergrad, and we had no requirement for theory either; specialization was by no means a requirement. In other words, I think you're in a pretty typical situation. However, if you want that background info, know that Yale's lit theory class is actually available for free online at Yale Open Courses. There are videos and transcripts of all the lectures, and I believe the course readings are also available online. (Yes, watching these videos is what I will be doing this summer.)

I second this recommendation. Yale's online courses have been very beneficial for me in filling in gaps not offered by my undergrad institution. For a different sort of approach to theory (one that was largely unfamiliar to me as an American, although like I said, my undergrad has curriculum gaps) you could check out Cambridge's Itunes U course on Literary Criticism as well.

[Grunty DaGnome]

I second this recommendation. Yale's online courses have been very beneficial for me in filling in gaps not offered by my undergrad institution. For a different sort of approach to theory (one that was largely unfamiliar to me as an American, although like I said, my undergrad has curriculum gaps) you could check out Cambridge's Itunes U course on Literary Criticism as well.

Yes, I third this!!! Best class I never took!