School Lists 2013 (Where are you applying?)

[sebastiansteddy]

Definitely: SUNY Buffalo, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, Penn State, U Washington

Maybe: SUNY Albany, Chicago, UPenn, Brown, Stanford (MTL), NYU, UMich, OSU, Minnesota, Stony Brook.

Interests: 20-21st C novel, visual culture, theory, and notions of "experimentation" or "innovation."

Current MA student.

[thebeatgoeson]

Timshel: Yeah, I've heard the same thing. It's just hard to come to terms with the fact that I probably shouldn't apply to a school that seems like such a good fit. Alas. Still searching for a comparable replacement.

[Janacek]

Programs that fit my interests like a glove:

University of Michigan

University of Oregon

University of Massachusetts -- Boston

Programs that I'm considering applying to when I've combed through their faculty publications thoroughly:

CUNY

University of Washington

Syracuse University

University of Chicago

"Safe" schools:

UCF (my current school, an enormous but unimpressive state university)

My research interests are somewhat broad. For my honors thesis I'll be writing about the theme of shame in women's fiction, specifically through the lens of affect theory. I'm doing my "research" semester presently and am surveying (mostly British) literature from Jane Austen til the present. I'm interested in sentimentality and emotion, specifically how women express themselves or have their expressions repressed in the genres of sensation and romance fiction. It's pretty exciting stuff and is also a bit of a hodge-podge of my interests like film and confessional poetry. I'm not sure if it's the kind of thing worthy of a PhD or Master's application - though my first chapter will probably be my writing sample since this will be the most intensely worked-on paper I'll have ever attempted.

I feel really nervous applying to schools that get a lot of applicants. I'm trying to be reasonable with my ambitions but it's so tempting to apply to some perfectly beautiful programs.

[1Q84]

I'm probably going to apply for two funded M.A.'s as well as Ph.D. programs.

Which funded M.A.'s are you applying to, if you don't mind telling.

It's usually stated on the website, though I don't think I've actually seen any official school websites that use the word "feeder." I know that UIC and U Washington's site makes it clear. This is what it says for U Washington, for example:

Continuation to the Ph.D. Program

Our M.A./Ph.D. program is fully integrated. Students wishing to continue to the Ph.D. can do so internally and non-competitively, given satisfactory academic progress and completion of the Master's Essay.

Yes, what Rachael2687 said. Schools such as UIUC, UConn, Penn State and IU Bloomington where you don't have to continue to the PhD, but you don't have to reapply to get into program.

Ah, thanks!

Do any of those CSU schools offer full-funding?

CSU:LA offers tuition waivers... I don't think it is fully funded but it's a large portion of it.

For those MA programs I'd really shoot for Northridge or Los Angeles, which is where I am finishing up right now. And yes, McManus is a great professor. I took her for Renaissance Literature.

Yes, we spoke about this before! (I had a different username then). The problem is I don't have the funds for Northridge... I was told that I'm already guaranteed a spot there. What a dilemma.

[chalkboardsonata]

I'm still in the process of winnowing a massive list of programs, so I won't even attempt to 'tier' the programs I'm interested in in any way, but I'm sure as I go along some will fit more strongly than others.

Michigan

U of Chicago

Vanderbilt

Brown

WUSTL

My research interests include the 20th cent. US novel ==> modernism ==> the relationship b/w economic and literary forms ==> literary representations of urbanization ==> Los Angeles fiction in the midst of 1930s/40s crisis, + Saul Bellow's Chicago and Dos Passos' New York.

With the use of arrows, I want to represent my interests as a range from general to specific, because I think that's a better way of understanding how we pursue our interests as critics: we have several levels of specificity we can engage on. And put this way it avoids looking at our interests as sometimes vapid, categorical specialization.

I guess the main reason I want to share my prospects and academic interests is to get some insight on an insider's experience of a department. Anybody go to any of these schools and can give a little perspective on the feel of any of these departments? Thank you, girl who wears glasses, for your advice on Michigan.

[Stately Plump]

Programs that fit my interests like a glove:

University of Michigan

University of Oregon

University of Massachusetts -- Boston

You may already know this, but UMass Boston only has an MA in English (well, and an MFA). Just wanted to throw that out there... You list mostly PhD programs and one MA program, so I wanted to make sure that was intentional.

Best of luck in your applications everyone!

[Timshel]

Definitely: SUNY Buffalo, UC Irvine, UC Riverside, UC Santa Cruz, Penn State, U Washington

Maybe: SUNY Albany, Chicago, UPenn, Brown, Stanford (MTL), NYU, UMich, OSU, Minnesota, Stony Brook.

Interests: 20-21st C novel, visual culture, theory, and notions of "experimentation" or "innovation."

Current MA student.

I think UCR is an excellent choice for your interests. I am in the program if you have any questions.

[sebastiansteddy]

I think UCR is an excellent choice for your interests. I am in the program if you have any questions.

Thank you! I will probably message you a few questions in the very near future. I appreciate your insight in advance - UCR is certainly a program I'd really like to attend.

[Another Crazy Poet]

I love and appreciate this thread sooo much. I am applying to

Vanderbilt University-Ph.D in English

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor-Ph.D in English and Women's Studies

University of Wisconsin at Madison-Ph.D in English

University of Minnesota-Ph.D in English

UC Santa Barbara-Ph.D in English emphasis Feminist Studies

Considering

NYU

WUSTL

these schools are pretty competitive and don't know if its worth it?

My research interest include gender and sexuality studies, queer politics, queer film and representation, butch and femme identities, the role of gender and performativity, race and identity, feminism/womanism, and writers of color.

Any programs people would recommend? My focus is def full funding and programs that are a good fit. Which I feel my list is.

[Stately Plump]

On 9/15/2012 at 12:41 PM, Another Crazy Poet said:

I love and appreciate this thread sooo much. I am applying to

Vanderbilt University-Ph.D in English

University of Michigan at Ann Arbor-Ph.D in English and Women's Studies

University of Wisconsin at Madison-Ph.D in English

University of Minnesota-Ph.D in English

UC Santa Barbara-Ph.D in English emphasis Feminist Studies

Considering

NYU

WUSTL

these schools are pretty competitive and don't know if its worth it?

Are you referring to NYU in particular, or all the schools on your list? Because all the schools you listed, and actually pretty much any top 50 PhD program in the country, is so competitive that it probably is "not worth it." Most of us applied (or will apply) to 10-15 schools, and the lucky ones will get into 1 or 2 programs.

This isn't to scare you, but just to point out the harsh realities of graduate education in the humanities.

[Two Espressos]

Which funded M.A.'s are you applying to, if you don't mind telling.

Probably Villanova and Georgetown. I'm sticking to M.A. programs in the Northeast because I don't want to travel far for a 2-year program. Most of my Ph.D. selections are in the Northeast as well.

[BookGeek]

I met with my M. A. department chair this week to discuss potential Ph.D. programs and he said that instead of the original 15-17 programs I was planning on applying to (which I thought was a generous number), he said I should be applying to "no less than 30." Oy...Is this realistic or not? Especially since a lot of the application fees are hovering around $80-90, I'm hoping that I can apply for fee waivers to several (all) of them.

[Two Espressos]

I met with my M. A. department chair this week to discuss potential Ph.D. programs and he said that instead of the original 15-17 programs I was planning on applying to (which I thought was a generous number), he said I should be applying to "no less than 30." Oy...Is this realistic or not? Especially since a lot of the application fees are hovering around $80-90, I'm hoping that I can apply for fee waivers to several (all) of them.

Methinks your department chair gave you shitty advice. Thirty programs? No way. I think 10-12 is a reasonable amount. Then again, I'm only applying to 7-8 programs, but that's strictly for financial reasons.

[ghijklmn]

Holy crap. Well, if you can afford it, sure. But then again, if you're just copy and pasting and not really paying attention to how well you fit with a school (I know everyone says this, but...), I would say it wouldn't increase your chances by much.

[1Q84]

Probably Villanova and Georgetown. I'm sticking to M.A. programs in the Northeast because I don't want to travel far for a 2-year program. Most of my Ph.D. selections are in the Northeast as well.

I guess we're staying well out of each other's spheres of application haha!

[Stately Plump]

I wouldn't apply to 30 schools. I would find 10-15 schools where you feel most confident in your assessment of how you well you "fit" (you won't be able to actually gauge your fit, but give it your best guess) and focus on submitting a solid application to those schools. My thinking is that if you apply to 30 programs, you will be so overwhelmed with application materials that you will end up submitting an application that is just okay. And "just okay" won't get you in anywhere.

[waparys]

I don't have a final list yet, but I know I want to stay on the east coast (ish). Any recommendations for more "safety"-type schools would be great. These are all English PhDs, by the way.

Penn

Columbia

Harvard

Yale

Maryland

Delaware

Temple

Chicago

Northwestern

I know it's a lot of Ivies but I'm an Ivy gal myself and would love to go back...but I just read that Harvard wants at least one rec to be from the last place you were a full-time student and I just don't think anyone from my one-year UK master's will be able to say all that much. Thoughts?

[TripWillis]

I wouldn't apply to 30 schools. I would find 10-15 schools where you feel most confident in your assessment of how you well you "fit" (you won't be able to actually gauge your fit, but give it your best guess) and focus on submitting a solid application to those schools. My thinking is that if you apply to 30 programs, you will be so overwhelmed with application materials that you will end up submitting an application that is just okay. And "just okay" won't get you in anywhere.

SERIOUSLY. 30 is WAYYYY too many. I'd say 10 is a good number, maybe even fewer.

[wreckofthehope]

I know it's a lot of Ivies but I'm an Ivy gal myself and would love to go back...but I just read that Harvard wants at least one rec to be from the last place you were a full-time student and I just don't think anyone from my one-year UK master's will be able to say all that much. Thoughts?

What is your worry - that they don't know your work well enough after a year or that they aren't invested enough in your future (only knowing you for a year) that they might not want to make the effort?

I had three recs from profs on my 1 year UK MA, all were more than willing to help out. I had good relationships with them all - it helps that my program was very small and so they knew me fairly well but, yes, for only one year. I got one rec from undergrad and mixed them up across programs.

I've heard that it is better to have recs from the most recent program you've been in, since you're hopefully always evolving and maturing as a scholar. Not having any rec from your MA would probably look pretty suspect to an adcomm - they'd be wondering why no-one cared enough about you or your work to support you, it would probably be a bit of a red flag.

[Stately Plump]

I just don't think anyone from my one-year UK master's will be able to say all that much. Thoughts?

I would try to get mostly recs from your masters program, even if it is only one year. One year of thoughtful, productive, and intelligent work should be enough to impress your current professors (or at least convince them that you are qualified to go on and succeed). At the very least, this is the thought that will be running through the adcomms' heads. They will assume that if you have no letters from current profs, there is a reason for that. And even though you've only been there one year, they will wonder why you didn't make some really solid connections in that year.

The problem (well, one of the problems, among many) with the application process it that it is so wildly competitive that, in the final analysis, adcomms will assume the worst of you. That is, once they get down to 30-40 students who look identical on paper and who are all overly qualified to attend (and who are even wanted by the adcomms), they have to find some way of sorting those 30-40 down to 15-20. At that point, they have to assume the worst of us. Bad grades? Here's a different student with perfect grades. Sketchy letters of rec? Here's a student with all stellar recs.

Of course, it isn't always true that only the "absolutely perfect" students are the only ones who get in. Funky things can happen on adcomms. This can be good or bad for us. But I would try to eliminate, as much as you can, the possibility for them to have any doubt about your application.

[waparys]

Thanks for the tips guys. I also think it's the difference between US and UK professors. I felt much closer to my undergrad professors and therefore thought they could better speak to my abilities. I only took 4 classes at Edinburgh and each met for a total of about 26 hours over each semester. I rarely saw the professors out of class (it just wasn't something that we were expected to do). I guess I could have one rec from Edinburgh, but all of my Penn recommenders have already said yes anyway...Now I'm scared...

[Swagato]

Nothing against having an extra letter as long as it isn't fluff. I will likely have 4 letters myself as I have some undergraduate spotty spots that need explanation. My undergrad advisor and I are extremely close, so I trust him entirely to bat those issues out of the way in his letter. When it comes to actually discussing my MA work and positioning me directly (academically) for the PhD, I'll have 3 letters from my MA institution.

[sebastiansteddy]

I wouldn't apply to 30 schools. I would find 10-15 schools where you feel most confident in your assessment of how you well you "fit" (you won't be able to actually gauge your fit, but give it your best guess) and focus on submitting a solid application to those schools. My thinking is that if you apply to 30 programs, you will be so overwhelmed with application materials that you will end up submitting an application that is just okay. And "just okay" won't get you in anywhere.

I am close to finished with narrowing down my list of schools. Do you think that 15 is too many to apply to? Right now, I have just about 15 across a wide range of tiers that all seem a pretty decent fit with professors I'd want to work with. Do you think I need to narrow it down even more?

[Swagato]

15 seems reasonable. My friend earned his MA from a top department and applied to around 15-16; got into two top English programs.

[khyleth]

- Pitt

- Vanderbilt

- Rochester

- NYU (?)

- At least three mid-table MA programs. (My MA was in Medieval History, so I'm resigned to the possibility of having to do a second one.)

I'm interested in contemporary medievalisms, especially in popular culture and fantastic literature, but hardly anyone at brand-name schools does that sort of thing (no points for guessing why). Maybe I'll just con my way into a respectable program and then yell, "Surprise! Half my MA thesis was about Game of Thrones!" (The history faculty at U. of York were not at all happy with me.)