Fall 2014 applicants??

[sugoionna]

Am I the only one who is gearing up for Fall 2014 applications already? If not, what have you started already?

 

I'm researching programs and POIs as well as prepping for GREs and even starting a rough rough draft of my SOP. 

 

Anyone else?

[DHEnthusiast]

Depending on how the next week goes, I will be prepping for the next round of applications very soon. I have been researching programs and going back over my research (undergraduate and graduate) papers to see if I can find a new avenue through which to market myself. At least looking for new programs and fields has helped keep my spirits up a little bit.

[toasterazzi]

I am! I'm currently in a Master's program, and I should be finishing next spring. I'd like to begin a PhD program next fall. So far, I've been researching and bookmarking programs I'm interested in. I've also collected some GRE sources, and I'm starting to work with those so I can take the test this summer. I also just started a document on my computer to keep track of important info about the schools I'm interested in.

[NowMoreSerious]

Depending on how the next week goes, I will be prepping for the next round of applications very soon. I have been researching programs and going back over my research (undergraduate and graduate) papers to see if I can find a new avenue through which to market myself. At least looking for new programs and fields has helped keep my spirits up a little bit.

I hope you hear good news soon.

DH, for what its worth, I don't see how much "hotter" you can get than Digital Humanities/Print Culture. If that's what you want to do I wouldn't change interests, but instead see how you can make what you have better, provided that it's what you want to do. I'm into digital humanities myself.

I'm certainly no expert on anything, but if you want to PM me feel free.

Edited March 3, 2013 by ImWantHazPhD

[sugoionna]

Depending on how the next week goes, I will be prepping for the next round of applications very soon. I have been researching programs and going back over my research (undergraduate and graduate) papers to see if I can find a new avenue through which to market myself. At least looking for new programs and fields has helped keep my spirits up a little bit.

 

I hope you don't have to start! I'm sending good vibes your way .

[DHEnthusiast]

I hope you hear good news soon.

DH, for what its worth, I don't see how much "hotter" you can get than Digital Humanities/Print Culture. If that's what you want to do I wouldn't change interests, but instead see how you can make what you have better, provided that it's what you want to do. I'm into digital humanities myself.

I'm certainly no expert on anything, but if you want to PM me feel free.

 

 

I hope you don't have to start! I'm sending good vibes your way .

 

Thanks, you guys! I hope it works out too! But I am looking ahead in order to prep myself for the worst. If I feel like I have a back up plan then it won't feel as bad. If I do reapply, I am not aiming at high top 20 schools. I did get the itch out of my system! I am determined to find the right program for me. I know I will once I get back up on my feet! I appreciate your support!

[MissHavishslam]

Hello! I am a fellow 2014 applicant! I applied a year ago while I was finishing up my MA but decided to take a year off and do some teaching. How are you all going about narrowing down programs? Rank, POIs, funding packages, etc? I have a couple in mind and do not want to shoot too high with rank, like the ivies, but I also want the schools I apply to to be good schools with great placement records. What are your thoughts?

[kayrabbit]

Hello! I am a fellow 2014 applicant! I applied a year ago while I was finishing up my MA but decided to take a year off and do some teaching. How are you all going about narrowing down programs? Rank, POIs, funding packages, etc? I have a couple in mind and do not want to shoot too high with rank, like the ivies, but I also want the schools I apply to to be good schools with great placement records. What are your thoughts?

I applied this year. I think the different processes by which one selects schools are interesting, because there really are so many great programs out there that at some point it starts to feel almost arbitrary which programs you look into and which ones simply never make it on your radar.

 

I started with rankings, even though they aren't necessarily reliable, and placement records because I wanted to make sure I was only applying to schools that were likely to help me be competitive on the job market. Some rather bleak talks with my current professors convinced me (perhaps incorrectly) that I would have a hard time applying my PhD in the way I hope to if I didn't attend a program with a strong reputation. I also looked into programs specifically recommended by my professors.

 

Full tuition remission and a stipend at or near the amount one could expect to make working a full-time, minimum-wage job were requirements for me. Many programs were ruled out simply because they didn't offer guaranteed funding. This felt unfortunate in some ways because many of the schools I looked at offered funding to some students through fellowships or TA positions that students had to compete for, so it's possible that I may have applied to one of those schools and received the funding I needed. However, I wasn't willing to gamble on that point, so I only applied to programs that offered full funding for all years of the PhD program.

 

Location also directed my initial sweep of universities. I admit I didn't look too hard for schools in places like Texas, Arizona or the deep southern US, where I simply couldn't imagine myself living (being an Oregonian who prefers cold, wet weather). On the other hand, if I was already interested in a particular program, I didn't let location deter me.

 

The previous factors led me to look into the programs, professors and research at particular schools, and from there it was all about how they matched up with my interests, whether there were people there I could see myself working with, and the impression the department website and outline of the program gave me. It felt odd to base my feelings about some schools on the content of their websites, but in some cases I didn't have much else to go on, and there is a very wide field of programs to narrow down, so some of these decisions are going to end up hinging on trivial things.

 

That's pretty much how I chose my list of 10 programs to apply to. This was my first year applying, and I felt completely overwhelmed at first by the prospect of choosing a small number of schools to bet everything on. And I still made some bad decisions, like applying to Cornell and considering it one of my top choices, even though I was more in love with the location than the fit of the program for me. I also let reputation and the kind of sticker value impact of top schools sway me to apply for their programs when there were probably schools with less famous names but still strong programs that would have been more suited to my interests. I did manage to work in a few of those non-Ivy programs that made sense for me and offered great programs and reputations, which I think will allow me to end up in the right place. So for me it ended up being a mess of different priorities to sort out while trying to make good decisions and hoping for the best.

[aGiRlCalLeDApPlE]

Here I am, getting myself ready for Fall 2014 cycle. I'll actually start by "building up" my CV  I'll start working on my GRE later, maybe in May. What really needs to be done is for me to find a topic for my writing sample, I'm sure my old one sucked. And although I liked my SOP, I think I'll have to rewrite some parts of it. That's all I can think of right now. Do you think it's about time to start preparing your list of schools? 

[champagne]

I've got a huge list of schools that were put together by ranking/placement almost exclusively. I will start narrowing down when I get to writing my SOP later this year and I can really look at POI's. Mostly, I've been prepping for the April GRE (I know most people say don't waste time you could be spending on your writing sample, but first things first, right?) and bouncing ideas and fears off of my professors in undergrad. I'm lucky in that I went to a small school and have great relationships with several professors, but I'm also unlucky in that I went to a small school of which no one has ever heard.

 

I too have had the crushing blow of reality laid on me by just about all of my professors. Then, I threw it back and told them I didn't care. They gave me their blessing after that. 

Edited March 7, 2013 by champagne

[kayrabbit]

I too have had the crushing blow of reality laid on me by just about all of my professors. Then, I threw it back and them and told them I didn't care. They gave me their blessing after that. 

Yes, that seems to be how it works. They give you their most bleak assessment, and if you still don't back down, you pass the test. Very odd, as I'm not sure whether they secretly want you to pass that test and join them in fearless pursuit of your dreams or if they're hoping you'll turn back while you still can. Depends whether the professor is a pessimist or an optimist, I suppose.

[champagne]

Yes, that seems to be how it works. They give you their most bleak assessment, and if you still don't back down, you pass the test. Very odd, as I'm not sure whether they secretly want you to pass that test and join them in fearless pursuit of your dreams or if they're hoping you'll turn back while you still can. Depends whether the professor is a pessimist or an optimist, I suppose.

 

Oh, one of said professors is probably the most cynical person I know (this may be why I love him so much). When he gave me the go-ahead, I had to restrain myself from doing a one person Harlem Shake in the library.

 

 

Also, they are probably all members of the Illuminati. 

[Gwendolyn]

Preparing for Fall 2013 damn near killed me. I wish you all the best at any rate! 

[toasterazzi]

I've looked at rankings, but they haven't been especially helpful in assisting me with deciding which schools might work best for me. So I started looking at the courses that each school offers, and I've found that to be much for useful in terms of developing a preliminary list. It's especially beneficial when the sites have detailed course descriptions and/or syllabi available. From the preliminary list, I'm going through each site carefully and collecting pertinent info in a document (requirements, funding and such). I've also started to request info from some schools. Once I've gathered information about all the schools on my list, I will hopefully be able to narrow down the list to ten or so prospective schools.

[MissHavishslam]

I've looked at rankings, but they haven't been especially helpful in assisting me with deciding which schools might work best for me. So I started looking at the courses that each school offers, and I've found that to be much for useful in terms of developing a preliminary list. It's especially beneficial when the sites have detailed course descriptions and/or syllabi available. From the preliminary list, I'm going through each site carefully and collecting pertinent info in a document (requirements, funding and such). I've also started to request info from some schools. Once I've gathered information about all the schools on my list, I will hopefully be able to narrow down the list to ten or so prospective schools.

 

Yeah, I don't know how much I am willing to rely on rankings. Just because the school is a top 20 does not mean that it will be a good fit for you. When I did my first round of applications I was accepted to Tulsa with no funding (no thank you), but it also was not a good fit for my interests. I think my main approach this time around is going to be POIs, placement records, and funding packages. I think that I'm willing to shoot for one top 20 school but that the rest (probably 9) will be more within my reach. I mean "in my reach" in regards to my GRE scores and undergraduate transcripts. My MA transcript is from a top 30 school and is stellar but I'm not sure how far that will get me.

 

Also, in regards to rankings, I think placement is more important. Who cares about the ranking of your program when they have the ability to help place you in ANY job in our field?

[intextrovert]

On 3/8/2013 at 7:44 AM, MissHavishslam said:

Yeah, I don't know how much I am willing to rely on rankings. Just because the school is a top 20 does not mean that it will be a good fit for you. When I did my first round of applications I was accepted to Tulsa with no funding (no thank you), but it also was not a good fit for my interests. I think my main approach this time around is going to be POIs, placement records, and funding packages. I think that I'm willing to shoot for one top 20 school but that the rest (probably 9) will be more within my reach. I mean "in my reach" in regards to my GRE scores and undergraduate transcripts. My MA transcript is from a top 30 school and is stellar but I'm not sure how far that will get me.

 

Also, in regards to rankings, I think placement is more important. Who cares about the ranking of your program when they have the ability to help place you in ANY job in our field?

 

I mostly agree with you here, but the flip side is that just because it's a top-20 doesn't mean it won't be a good fit for you, either! Don't limit the number of top-20 programs you apply to simply because they happen to be "top-20." I was admitted to several top-20s when I applied, but also rejected at several programs outside of the top 40. Purposely limiting yourself to just one program in that very arbitrary range, when there are several that would be good fits, is letting the rankings dictate too much, and you may miss out on some excellent programs that are good fits simply because you're hedging your bets prematurely in a way that doesn't really make sense. Seriously, fit is going to dictate where you get in, not ranking.

 

On that note, looking at your interests, of which I share some (particularly ecocriticism), mind if I suggest a few (mostly top-20-ish) programs? First, Michigan's Scotti Parrish is currently doing a project on Hurston (and Faulkner) and ecocriticism; Patsy Yaeger is deep into ecocrit and also has a background in Southern lit; we also have many excellent African-American lit scholars (Meg Sweeney, for example, is lovely, and we are in the process of hiring another) as well as an African-American Studies certificate program; regionalism is also a thing the department does well. Definitely apply! My other suggestions are the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which has plenty of ecocritics and an awesome interdisciplinary environmental humanities program led by William Cronon as well as a strong African-American lit faculty, and definitely UC-Davis, which is a very ecocriticism-oriented department that also has several people that focus on working-class lit. Oregon is trying to brand itself as a decidedly environmentalist-oriented program, so it would make sense to apply, but be warned that even good funding there is paltry (and I don't know much about its placement, so be sure to ask for that info). Hope that helps!

[MissHavishslam]

I mostly agree with you here, but the flip side is that just because it's a top-20 doesn't mean it won't be a good fit for you, either! Don't limit the number of top-20 programs you apply to simply because they happen to be "top-20." I was admitted to several top-20s when I applied, but also rejected at several programs outside of the top 40. Purposely limiting yourself to just one program in that very arbitrary range, when there are several that would be good fits, is letting the rankings dictate too much, and you may miss out on some excellent programs that are good fits simply because you're hedging your bets prematurely in a way that doesn't really make sense. Seriously, fit is going to dictate where you get in, not ranking.

 

On that note, looking at your interests, of which I share some (particularly ecocriticism), mind if I suggest a few (mostly top-20-ish) programs? First, Michigan's Scotti Parrish is currently doing a project on Hurston (and Faulkner) and ecocriticism; Patsy Yaeger is deep into ecocrit and also has a background in Southern lit; we also have many excellent African-American lit scholars (Meg Sweeney, for example, is lovely, and we are in the process of hiring another) as well as an African-American Studies certificate program; regionalism is also a thing the department does well. Definitely apply! My other suggestions are the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which has plenty of ecocritics and an awesome interdisciplinary environmental humanities program led by William Cronon as well as a strong African-American lit faculty, and definitely UC-Davis, which is a very ecocriticism-oriented department that also has several people that focus on working-class lit. Oregon is trying to brand itself as a decidedly environmentalist-oriented program, so it would make sense to apply, but be warned that even good funding there is paltry (and I don't know much about its placement, so be sure to ask for that info). Hope that helps!

 

Thanks for the advice. I definitely see the point. Michigan is  a school I plan on applying to. I'm just worried that with my scores (they aren't bad but they aren't great) that some of the higher ranked programs won't even bother. I just don't want to have another application season like my last one, where I applied to a bunch of top schools and got slew of rejections. I do see that you are at Michigan, though, correct? Would you mind if I PMed you some questions about the program and faculty? I would love some advice, especially a fellow ecocrit. 

Edited March 8, 2013 by MissHavishslam

[intextrovert]

Thanks for the advice. I definitely see the point. Michigan is  a school I plan on applying to. I'm just worried that with my scores (they aren't bad but they aren't great) that some of the higher ranked programs won't even bother. I just don't want to have another application season like my last one, where I applied to a bunch of top schools and got slew of rejections. I do see that you are at Michigan, though, correct? Would you mind if I PMed you some questions about the program and faculty? I would love some advice, especially a fellow ecocrit. 

 

Yes, of course! PM away.

 

(I would say, though, that top 50-ish programs are not necessarily any more or less forgiving about scores than top 20-ish ones. Unless you're below 600 or so on the verbal, in which case I'd suggest taking it again, you're fine. "Top" programs regularly admit applicants well below their average. It really just depends on the program and your fit, etc. We can talk more about second rounds and such over PM.)

[toasterazzi]

Yeah, I don't know how much I am willing to rely on rankings. Just because the school is a top 20 does not mean that it will be a good fit for you. When I did my first round of applications I was accepted to Tulsa with no funding (no thank you), but it also was not a good fit for my interests. I think my main approach this time around is going to be POIs, placement records, and funding packages. I think that I'm willing to shoot for one top 20 school but that the rest (probably 9) will be more within my reach. I mean "in my reach" in regards to my GRE scores and undergraduate transcripts. My MA transcript is from a top 30 school and is stellar but I'm not sure how far that will get me.

 

Also, in regards to rankings, I think placement is more important. Who cares about the ranking of your program when they have the ability to help place you in ANY job in our field?

Right. There are many schools in the very top of the rankings lists that I've already ruled out because I don't think we'd fit well together. As for whether or not they'd actually accept me if I applied...well I'm choosing to remain somewhat idealistic about that lol. At any rate, I really need to see my interests reflected in the course work, faculty, etc. If that's not there, then I see no reason for me to apply to the school, even if it is ranked number one.

P.S. Literary roller derby sounds like a great time (^.^)

[champagne]

http://people.duke.edu/~tmw15/

 

http://lasr.cs.ucla.edu/alison/hapaxlegomena/index.html

 

I will leave these links here for those of you planning to take the GRE subject test in April. The test can be pretty daunting but also enjoyable in that it lets you explore "new" literature. Both of these sites are great just for the organization they give to the studying process, but they can also offer pithy synopses for a lot of the works that are too long to be tackled before next month.

 

Best of luck to everybody taking it! It's a beast of a test, but it is NOT the end of the world if you do poorly. The majority of people taking this test do miserably on it, and many of them still get accepted into programs and great funding. You might as well do the best you can so you have as many options open to you once you get to honing your writing sample and SOP (i.e. the most important parts of your application). These study guides are a great place to start!

Edited March 14, 2013 by champagne

[MissHavishslam]

P.S. Literary roller derby sounds like a great time (^.^)

 

I love derby names and books/authors lend themselves to it superbly  WEB DuBruise, Zora Neale Hurtsome, Slammery O'Connor, Holden Maulfield, Lady MacTuff, etc. Obviously, I need to get into a program ASAP as I have way too much time on my hands!

 

http://people.duke.edu/~tmw15/

 

http://lasr.cs.ucla.edu/alison/hapaxlegomena/index.html

 

I will leave these links here for those of you planning to take the GRE subject test in April. The test can be pretty daunting but also enjoyable in that it lets you explore "new" literature. Both of these sites are great just for the organization they give to the studying process, but they can also offer pithy synopses for a lot of the works that are too long to be tackled before next month.

 

These sites are amazing!! Thank you! I originally wasn't going to retake it because my scores were so bad (as in I honestly think the only points that I received were for spelling my name correctly) and just avoid the schools that required it. However, UCLA and UC Davis fit my interests perfectly so it would seem to be a shame not to do everything in my power to have a stellar application for them.

[Datatape]

I love derby names and books/authors lend themselves to it superbly  WEB DuBruise, Zora Neale Hurtsome, Slammery O'Connor, Holden Maulfield, Lady MacTuff, etc. Obviously, I need to get into a program ASAP as I have way too much time on my hands!

 

Dibs on "Eufloora Welted."

[KenAnderson]

Location also directed my initial sweep of universities. I admit I didn't look too hard for schools in places like Texas, Arizona or the deep southern US, where I simply couldn't imagine myself living (being an Oregonian who prefers cold, wet weather). On the other hand, if I was already interested in a particular program, I didn't let location deter me.

 

I am finishing my MA English at Portland State (Oregon) this year and location was a big factor ...I wanted to stay close to family here, but there is only 1 English PhD program in Oregon, and just 2 in Washington.... but if I apply again this fall, I think I  might have to forget about location...and look more carefully at Midwest schools....and in the South.

[MissHavishslam]

I am finishing my MA English at Portland State (Oregon) this year and location was a big factor ...I wanted to stay close to family here, but there is only 1 English PhD program in Oregon, and just 2 in Washington.... but if I apply again this fall, I think I  might have to forget about location...and look more carefully at Midwest schools....and in the South.

 

That's how I feel. I really (REALLY) want to stay in the Northeast/Midwest area but when I really look at programs the best fits for my interests are in the South or on the west coast. I love snow...I guess I should be willing to give it up for a couple of years...or really really pray for Michigan to work out.

Edited March 15, 2013 by MissHavishslam

[antecedent]

I'll be applying in linguistics next fall, but I've already started planning so I thought I throw in my two cents. 

 

I've got a list of schools and POIs going, and I've been trying to gauge how much work to put in to retaking the GRE. There's not really a question about retaking it, so much as how much of my time should I devote to studying for it. I'm just thankful there's no linguistics subject test, because I pretty much bombed the literature one last year!

 

I'm limiting my school choices to relevant programs in the Western half of North America(California, Oregon, Colorado, Texas, Arizona, and British Columbia, basically). Out of those I think I have at least 10 schools, though I kind of wish there were more programs with good fit I could apply to.