Possibly No Admits This Year... Can Anyone Offer Advice? (English Literature, MA and PHD Programs)

[profhopes]

Rejected from: 1. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor, 2. Indiana University-Bloomington, 3. The Ohio State University, 4. Case Western Reserve,  5. (wait listed).

 

I was rejected from the first 4 schools.  Is there a polite way to ask for feedback from those schools?  Who should I e-mail to ask for feedback...the DGS?  To be quite frank, I'm not sure they would be willing to tell me anything, but I could potentially stand to benefit from the information.

 

The 5th school had incorrect deadlines posted online.  Where you ask?  On their assistantship application...and other documents.  I suppose I didn't expect such a thing to happen.  Next time I will check and double-check everything.  Makes me rather sick...  I submitted it 2 weeks before the supposed deadline, which was actually 2 weeks after the actual deadline.  They say they still considered everything, but it sounded like they were trying to appease me.

 

I'll provide some information about my stats.  I had a 3.7 undergrad GPA, from a relatively unknown school (A- average).  I graduated with 2 degrees in 4 years.  I taught for 2 years (high school and middle school), then applied.  I believe my letters of recommendation were very strong.  My quantitative GRE was abysmal, but I majored in 2 languages and did the best I could.  My research interests can be categorized as Victorian (I did provide a specific author, title, and topic I would like to write about).

 

What are your thoughts on areas of improvement?  Any recommendations for schools to apply to next year?  I'm looking primarily in the Midwest.

[hj2012]

I think the DGS would be appropriate to ask. You applied to some really competitive schools and only only submitted a few applicationa, so it could have unfortunately just come down to luck. Was your combined GRE higher than 310? If so, I wouldn't worry about it.

I'm not in your field, so I wouldn't be able to give school recommendations, but just wanted to wish you luck! Don't give up!

[profhopes]

Thank you, Mocha.  If I apply again, I will definitely apply at more schools.