empress-marmot Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 This past month or so has given me a rather Boethian lesson...one that I (unlike Boethius) hope to have the chance to fully learn from and apply to my own future endeavors. Do you reread Boethius when you're down as well? I went through a tough time one year in college, and my research professor suggested I cover Consolation as a "side project to what we're studying in class." I thought I was doing such a good job hiding it from everyone, too. __________________________ 1
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Do you reread Boethius when you're down as well? Not actively, but I read and studied The Consolation of Philosophy in a Milton course, and even though I'm not religious, I think about it quite often. It's such a marvelous text, and the lessons within truly transcend personal faiths. It's one of the few books that manage to be humbling, enlightening, and encouraging all at the same time.
__________________________ Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 "Then you must begin a reading program immediately so that you may understand the crises of our age. Begin with the late Romans, including Boethius, of course. Then you should dip rather extensively into early Medieval. You may skip the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. That is mostly dangerous propaganda. Now that I think of it, you had better skip the Romantics and the Victorians, too. For the contemporary period, you should study some selected comic books." - Ignatius J. Reilly softcastlemccormick, margeryhemp, lyonessrampant and 2 others 5
bgt28 Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 (edited) Rejected from Cornell...I went here for undergrad, so from the top, guys: "Smelly cat, smellllllly cat, what are they feeding you? They won't take you to the vet, you're obviously not their favorite pet!" I'm happy though. It'll be a good change, and bless those who got in! Edited February 20, 2015 by bgt28 softcastlemccormick, lyonessrampant and jean-luc-gohard 3
Mattie Roh Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Sooo...anyone else in their 30s who was shut out for the second year in a row? Was just officially rejected from my last option (Tufts). Also, I second the Pittsburgh question. WTH? khyleth 1
obrial42 Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Rejected from UMass officially. No worries.
InHacSpeVivo Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Officially got the Ohio State rejection. Not sure why that took three weeks... (sorry for the sour grapes, it was my #1)
BLeonard Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 I'm really sorry to hear so many of you received rejections from schools you really wanted. I have now been rejected from Brown and Pittsburgh. Although, really, I'm a popculture/film/lit studies person, so more prestigious universities are a little hesitant about my research interests. Thank you for this; it's nice to know that there's someone in the same boat as I am. Although I have interests in 18th and 19th American history/literature, I'm primarily a 20th century person who has interests more rooted in popular culture that would make the more prestigious schools hesitant. One of the reasons CUNY's rejection stung, however, is they seemed to be very pro-genre studies (which is what I want to focus on in part).
Put a cat on it Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Down to 4 left, although pretty sure Michigan and Indy are implied rejections. Blah.
Grizbert Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Sooo...anyone else in their 30s who was shut out for the second year in a row? Was just officially rejected from my last option (Tufts). Also, I second the Pittsburgh question. WTH? I'm 35 and have an implied rejection.
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Oh yeah. I'm 35 and have enough "implied" and "official" rejections to make an NCAA "Sweet Sixteen" bracket. Grizbert 1
lifealive Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 Oh yeah. I'm 35 and have enough "implied" and "official" rejections to make an NCAA "Sweet Sixteen" bracket. I'm guessing the rejections have nothing to do with your acumen as a scholar (because your interests sound awesome and much more focused than mine were at that level). Academia is extraordinarily ageist. Ageism and elitism play themselves out all over the job market, too. And I'm sorry that there is no solution to this problem. All I can tell you is that it's probably not you. Dr. Old Bill 1
Grizbert Posted February 20, 2015 Posted February 20, 2015 I'm guessing the rejections have nothing to do with your acumen as a scholar (because your interests sound awesome and much more focused than mine were at that level). Academia is extraordinarily ageist. Ageism and elitism play themselves out all over the job market, too. And I'm sorry that there is no solution to this problem. All I can tell you is that it's probably not you. I've been told repeatedly by faculty (back when I was a departmental admin for 6 years) that getting a PhD anytime before 40 is fine, and that academia is much less ageist than most fields. I know several people who got PhDs after 40. Some are TT, some are lecturers, some are adjuncts, some left the academy. My issue is more with an additional 4-5 years of lost wages at this time in life than my longevity as a scholar/worker. We'll all be working until we die, anyway.
lifealive Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 (edited) I've been told repeatedly by faculty (back when I was a departmental admin for 6 years) that getting a PhD anytime before 40 is fine, and that academia is much less ageist than most fields. I know several people who got PhDs after 40. Some are TT, some are lecturers, some are adjuncts, some left the academy. My issue is more with an additional 4-5 years of lost wages at this time in life than my longevity as a scholar/worker. We'll all be working until we die, anyway. It varies by field (rhet/comp and creative writing actually value age and experience), but literary studies is particularly brutal. "Under 40" is generous; the number I've been hearing lately is "under 35"--as in, you need to be on the job market by the time you're 35. Very few people get accepted to top-ranked programs once they're past the age of 30 or so. I know there are exceptions, and that there are mitigating circumstances, but I'm never surprised when I see an entire incoming cohort composed of people under the age of 28 or so. Whether or not this is outright ageism is debatable, I guess: top programs like people who fit a certain "trajectory" or who have a certain "profile." Veering from that trajectory means that you'll probably be slightly older (took time off for work; went into the military after high school; had children). It might mean that your scholarship isn't quite as "hot" either. (Columbia actually recommends that people who have been out of college for 5 years take classes to get back into things--at least they're honest, I guess.) This is one of the more obvious ways that institutional prestige replicates itself: programs just generally favor people who came from the background and the means to have a fairly respectable and easy time of it at college, and who "set themselves up" to apply to grad school while still in their 20s. Some links about this: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2008/12/17/age http://theprofessorisin.com/2012/04/24/ageism-and-the-academy-my-thoughts-and-a-request-for-yours/ Edited February 21, 2015 by lifealive
NowMoreSerious Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 I don't know. I got accepted to two top 12 English programs at the age of 34, (35 when I began coursework). And further, I was applying from an unranked state school that does not even offer Ph.Ds.
youngcharlie101 Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 Who applied to the Comp Lit PhD? Has anyone heard back from their Comp Lit programs?
1Q84 Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 Stanford sent a "results are out" email and told me to check my page....... but it hasn't been updated from "submitted". Thanks for making a rejection even more difficult, guys
Katla Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 (edited) Who applied to the Comp Lit PhD? Has anyone heard back from their Comp Lit programs?Last time I heard anything was my rejection from Michigan Tuesday... Since then it has been deafening silence on all sides. I wish they'd just send those effing rejections already, all this waiting for implied rejections to turn real is really messing with my head Edited February 21, 2015 by Katla
youngcharlie101 Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 I know. I got rejected from Brown and Columbia thus far. The only band I can think of is New Kids on the Block: "Oh whoa whoa whoa whoa. Hanging tough..." Grizbert 1
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 Stanford sent a "results are out" email and told me to check my page....... but it hasn't been updated from "submitted". Thanks for making a rejection even more difficult, guys Whew! Glad I'm not alone with that. Annoying!
Childermass Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 Stanford sent a "results are out" email and told me to check my page....... but it hasn't been updated from "submitted". Thanks for making a rejection even more difficult, guys Second to that. What the heck? I thought it was just me. There is no update to the activity page, just the same "Submitted" status. leda&theswan 1
kurayamino Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 Second to that. What the heck? I thought it was just me. There is no update to the activity page, just the same "Submitted" status. Yeah, same here.
kurayamino Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 Yeah, same here. nevermind, it's official.
1Q84 Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 nevermind, it's official. Mine's still not... guess they have a lot coming through the pipeline...
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 21, 2015 Posted February 21, 2015 So...not sour grapes here or anything (honest!), but...for a $125 application fee, wouldn't it be nice to have a couple of sentences about why you didn't make the cut and what you could do to make it better for next time? I know that's largely untenable, given the number of applicants, but it's one of my biggest annoyances about the process -- the lack of knowing what, if anything, you did "wrong" and/or what you could improve upon. I suppose this is all part and parcel of the "transparency" issue (read: lack thereof). kurayamino, youngcharlie101, __________________________ and 1 other 4
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