Writing Samples 2015

[__________________________]

This may have been asked already, but if my writing sample is an article I've published, would it be a good or bad idea to submit the published version (i.e. the article PDF)? Thanks!

Mm, I'm not completely sure, but I don't think I would unless a program specifically, and explicitly, accepts that. I would *think* it would better just to mention in your SOP that it was published in so-and-so journal and format the paper how most people will be (double spaced, 1 inch margins, etc). That would also allow you a little more flexibility for tweaking things like font and font size to fit various size requirements.

I don't know though. That's what I would assume given no specific answer on a program's admissions website. Some programs will say that you can put in a special note for a WS that's an excerpt of a larger work -- depending on how a specific application works, maybe you could put the citation?

[1Q84]

How do people feel about overlapping information in SOP and WS? 

 

My WS will be something that is under consideration at Milton Studies, so obviously I describe this achievement in my SOP. But as I describe the paper in my SOP, I realized that much of it will be obviously as they read the paper itself as my WS. Is this making sense?

 

I feel like I should just cut out all description of the paper in my SOP, just mention it is under consideration and leave it at that.

 

Edit: I'm asking this because I'm not sure if the people reading my SOP will necessarily read my WS and vice versa. Isn't that how it works?

Edited November 27, 2014 by 1Q84

[unræd]

For what it's worth, I mention it, but don't describe it at length since, as you say, they'll have it in front of them. I have a sentence that talks about the way in which my writing sample is a good example of the approach I'd like to take in graduate studies, but I certainly don't rehash its content/argument.

Edited November 27, 2014 by unræd

[unræd]

Edit: I'm asking this because I'm not sure if the people reading my SOP will necessarily read my WS and vice versa. Isn't that how it works?

 

I'd think so… but maybe I'm wrong? Anybody else?

[Dr. Old Bill]

For what it's worth, I mention it, but don't describe it at length since, as you say, they'll have it in front of them. I have a sentence that talks about the way in which my writing sample is a good example of the approach I'd like to take in graduate studies, but I certainly don't rehash its content/argument.

 

This is pretty much my approach as well. I mention in my SOP a research seminar I took on Shakespeare's sonnets which had a major influence on the direction I wanted to go with graduate studies etc. Lo and behold, my WS is all about three of Shakespeare's sonnets. I don't mention the WS specifically, but the two obviously work together intuitively.

 

All told, I think (and have read / heard here and elsewhere) that it's a slight no-no to go on at length about your WS in your SOP. A sentence might be alright, but I can't imagine a scenario in which the adcomm members who read your SOP don't read your WS (unless, of course, there's something in your SOP that instantly disqualifies you). I do think you should mention the honor your WS is receiving though...just don't get into the content unless it's en passant.

 

Just my two cents. The blind leading the blind, and all that. (<-- smirking blind emoji)

[ProfLorax]

I'm not sure if this will be helpful, but here's my paragraph describing my WS. I approached my SoP as an intellectual history, so I tried to focus more on how writing the paper shaped my interest in disability studies (while knowing that many rhet/comp profs aren't really aware of the specifics of DS) rather than summarizing the paper as a whole.

 

ETA: In terms of space, this paragraph takes up 12.7% of the entire statement. 

 

My understanding of feminist theory deepened as a graduate student of literature at San Francisco State University. There, I was introduced to feminist disability studies in my American Autobiography class through the work of Eli Clare. I was immediately transfixed by this field that rejects medical definitions of disabilities and destabilizes society’s concept of normalcy. I wrote a paper analyzing how queerness and disability shape Audre Lorde’s and Eli Clare’s relationship to writing in their autobiographical works. In my paper, I argued that by complicating the prominent feminist discourse about writing and the body, Lorde and Clare form a new model for revolutionary writing that embodies contradictions and resistance within the intersections of queerness, disability, and gender identity. In 2011, I presented this paper, titled “Writing the Heat & Outside the Lines: Disability, Queerness, and the Shape of Writing in Eli Clare and Audre Lorde’s Biomythographies,” at the Modern Language Association Convention in Los Angeles.

[SilasWegg]

I need to revise mine so it reads more like this. I also wanted to test out my "signature"!

[HesseBunuel90]

I sent out all my applications, some of them months ago. I just have realized that I used a word that is the opposite of what I meant to convey in the writing sample. The professor who looked it over said nothing, so I figured that I used the word correctly. I probably am panicking over nothing, but can anybody who had similar mistakes in past writing samples tell me they still got into a graduate program? I need that little bit of reassurance.

[Put a cat on it]

I sent out all my applications, some of them months ago. I just have realized that I used a word that is the opposite of what I meant to convey in the writing sample. The professor who looked it over said nothing, so I figured that I used the word correctly. I probably am panicking over nothing, but can anybody who had similar mistakes in past writing samples tell me they still got into a graduate program? I need that little bit of reassurance.

 

I realized yesterday that I forgot to delete a source in my WC after cutting a section from my paper. So I'm in the same boat and need some reassurance, siiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiigh.

[HesseBunuel90]

Ha I did the same thing in the first few apps before I noticed it. The thing is, these schools get hundreds of applications, all with long writing samples. I am sure a couple misused words and an extra source will be ignored and dismissed. It's just so stressful.

[fancypants09]

Hi everyone, 

 

Just a quick formatting question: Footnotes versus endnotes? I think my writing sample will come out to about 15-17 pages (including all of the notes), but some of the footnotes are rather long because I have a few block quotes from foreign-language materials. Personally, I like keeping my notes as footnotes because then you can follow the notes as you're reading along, but I also want the readers not to be visually distracted by large footnotes. 

 

If there are stylistic conventions for this (especially under Chicago style) I'd appreciate the reference. Thanks for your help! 

Edited December 7, 2014 by fancypants09

[Dr. Old Bill]

There aren't really stylistic conventions in general, but I kept mine mostly MLA format, but included footnotes. About ten or so. I simply thought it was necessary to clarify a few things this way for adcomm readers who may not have an intimate knowledge of Shakespeare's sonnets. That said, none exceeded three sentences or so, so I'm not sure how much this helps.

[fancypants09]

There aren't really stylistic conventions in general, but I kept mine mostly MLA format, but included footnotes. About ten or so. I simply thought it was necessary to clarify a few things this way for adcomm readers who may not have an intimate knowledge of Shakespeare's sonnets. That said, none exceeded three sentences or so, so I'm not sure how much this helps.

 

Thanks for your input. I'm totally clueless when it comes to literary field stylistic conventions---I wrote earlier drafts in MLA, but a professor in one of the national literature departments I had review my draft commented that everyone in that field uses Chicago style. Personally, I've been using legal citation conventions for the past decade or so, so I'm having to re-learn everything, including this footnote business as well. In legal papers, footnotes are golden, and the longer, the better. I'm only using them in this paper for the block quotes because my analysis hinges on wordplay that you can only discern from the text in its original language and not in its English translation, and also because I am translating the text myself and so want to show the basis for my translation to the readers.

[1Q84]

Oh jeez. One program told me that page count does not include notes and bibliography so I assumed that this was standard across all programs. 

 

These recent posts are now making me second guess myself. 

[Dr. Old Bill]

Oh jeez. One program told me that page count does not include notes and bibliography so I assumed that this was standard across all programs. 

 

These recent posts are now making me second guess myself. 

 

It's usually the case that notes / references / appendices etc. don't count against the page requirement. But it's not always the case. One DGS I contacted mentioned that they wanted no more than fifteen pages total, and pointed out how many papers they have to read etc. I'm guessing a lot of adcomms would have a five-page requirement if they thought they could determine enough about the candidate from such a small size...

[unræd]

If you navigate a few pages back in this thread, you'll see that this very issue of what to note and how, especially in relation to second language sources, came up a bit earlier, too--you're not alone! My sample is also about wordplay in a language that isn't modern English, so there was definitely a lot of foreign language material. Some of that (especially secondary stuff) got put it in footnotes (I generally use Chicago anyway), but some is still in body of the paper to make it plain what I'm talking about. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to relegate it to endnotes--while I'm utterly convinced no one's going to be pouring through my detailed footnotes as they read one of however many writing samples they have to plow through, in case there is something they want to check I'd rather it was right there on the same page for them instead of making them have to flip twenty pages forward.

 

In terms of whether or not to have foot- or endnotes, in some ways the conventions really are subfield-dependent--for medievalists, at least, no one really uses MLA. Chicago's the norm.

Edited December 7, 2014 by unræd

[Dr. Old Bill]

In terms of whether or not to have foot- or endnotes, in some ways the conventions really are subfield-dependent--for medievalists, at least, no one really uses MLA. Chicago's the norm.

 

Thanks for making me self-conscious about my WS yet again, Unraed.

[unræd]

Thanks for making me self-conscious about my WS yet again, Unraed.

 

I know you're joking, but why would that make you at all self-conscious about your WS? Even if you were applying to do medieval work, which you aren't, there's no reason to assume that stuff has to be in Chicago simply because that's what the majority of the field uses--we're submitting writing samples, not articles to Speculum. (And besides, there certainly are medieval journals that do use MLA!)

 

Plus--I know your sample. It's just lovely!

Edited December 7, 2014 by unræd

[Dr. Old Bill]

Oh, I was totally joking. The reason I said it is because I use sort of a "hybrid MLA" in my WS. Most things are consistently in MLA format, but as mentioned, footnotes are generally a no-no in MLA. I don't want to fathom a universe in which I would get instantly rejected because of this deliberate violation of format. That would be particularly ironic, though, given that I added the footnotes to help adcomm members who might not be familiar with certain details that I can't really cover directly in the context of the paper.

 

Truly, I'm very happy with my WS. It has my personal stamp of approval (which can be hard to come by), but has also been seen and given the thumbs-up by enough professors, writers, and other academics (including you!) that the only thing my admission-neuroses can concern itself with is formatting considerations.

Edited December 7, 2014 by Wyatt's Torch

[unræd]

Truly, I'm very happy with my WS. It has my personal stamp of approval (which can be hard to come by), but has also been seen and given the thumbs-up by enough academics (including you!) that the only thing my admission-neuroses can concern itself with is formatting considerations.

 

That last bit, right there. I mean, really, I think this is one of those things that matters so much less than any of us imagine, one of those little, minor ("Does the font I've chosen for my CV have the appropriate kerning?") things we grab onto because there are, in some ways, so few handholds for us in this process, so few things that actually are under our control.

[__________________________]

 because I use sort of a "hybrid MLA" in my WS. Most things are consistently in MLA format, but as mentioned, footnotes are generally a no-no in MLA.

I use explanatory footnotes all the time in MLA and did in my sample as well.  None of my professors have ever batted an eye.  Though I've heard some rather catty rants from Chicago Style evangelists about the supremacy of the footnote and on the atrocities known as in-text citations. 

 

I hope my "hybrid MLA" isn't a problem.  Because I'm not going to go back and change it at this point

[Dr. Old Bill]

I use explanatory footnotes all the time in MLA and did in my sample as well.  None of my professors have ever batted an eye.  Though I've heard some rather catty rants from Chicago Style evangelists about the supremacy of the footnote and on the atrocities known as in-text citations.

 

As silly as it sounds, this gave me a big ol' smile. Seriously, this process makes the most insignificant elements seem monumental...

[ProfLorax]

Deep breaths, y'all! Just remember: adcomms aren't looking for already polished, perfect scholars when they read your writing samples. They are looking for proof that you have the potential to grow into a polished scholar! My writing sample was probably one of the strongest part of my application, but a year and a half into my program, I already feel like the sample no longer represents my writing or research abilities. You want to revise your sample until it's as strong as it can be, but don't fret over the small details. The best sample is one who shows the adcomm what kind of student you are and what kind of scholar you can be. 

[1Q84]

Deep breaths, y'all! Just remember: adcomms aren't looking for already polished, perfect scholars when they read your writing samples. They are looking for proof that you have the potential to grow into a polished scholar! My writing sample was probably one of the strongest part of my application, but a year and a half into my program, I already feel like the sample no longer represents my writing or research abilities. You want to revise your sample until it's as strong as it can be, but don't fret over the small details. The best sample is one who shows the adcomm what kind of student you are and what kind of scholar you can be. 

 

I'm so glad you said this. I've been having weird anxieties now that I've submitted four apps about how inadequate my WS is (how it could be better/more complete if I had more time, etc.) and knowing the adcomm's could pick it to pieces has been getting to me. I do have some faith in it showing my potential, though, which is the best I can hope for at this point.

 

Now what I'm going to tell myself is that I can only put my best foot forward, not my perfect foot. 

Edited December 8, 2014 by 1Q84

[fancypants09]

If you navigate a few pages back in this thread, you'll see that this very issue of what to note and how, especially in relation to second language sources, came up a bit earlier, too--you're not alone! My sample is also about wordplay in a language that isn't modern English, so there was definitely a lot of foreign language material. Some of that (especially secondary stuff) got put it in footnotes (I generally use Chicago anyway), but some is still in body of the paper to make it plain what I'm talking about. I certainly wouldn't have wanted to relegate it to endnotes--while I'm utterly convinced no one's going to be pouring through my detailed footnotes as they read one of however many writing samples they have to plow through, in case there is something they want to check I'd rather it was right there on the same page for them instead of making them have to flip twenty pages forward.

 

In terms of whether or not to have foot- or endnotes, in some ways the conventions really are subfield-dependent--for medievalists, at least, no one really uses MLA. Chicago's the norm.

 

Thanks so much! And you're right, I think footnotes make much more sense---especially if other notations are going to be short citations. It's just these two block quotes that are somewhat lengthy.