Fall 2016 Entry Applicants

[slawson4]

Hello, all! I'm taking a gap year this year (serious burnout from the MA) but I'll be attempting for Ph.D. placement in Fall 2016!

 

My research interests are primarily fairy tales and folklore and looking at the role gender has in influencing the editing and production of the tales. My master's thesis focused on the apparent 'ideal household' in Grimms' fairy tales that is produced by cutting out themes of female sexuality, enforcing narrative silence for women, and most notably altering the spinning tales to say something different (and male-coded) about domesticity and womanhood. 

 

With that said, any school I'm interested in needs to have a strong gender studies and folklore program. I'm looking at Comparative Literature programs because I think they would help with the interdisciplinary nature of my research interests. A sprinkling of medieval studies doesn't hurt (because literary fairy tales are so influenced by medieval ideas and themes). Right now, I'm looking at:

 

Indiana University

University of Wisconsin-Madison

University of Oregon

University of Minnesota

Oxford University (St. Hilda's)

 

My MA advisor is pushing me toward Indiana. I'm not sure why, but the thought of spending years in Indiana doesn't thrill me (maybe because I'm from Upstate New York and it feels like it may be more of the same). I did my B.A. at SUNY Geneseo and my M.A. at University of Rochester.

 

Oxford is on this list because I studied abroad there last summer when I was completing my B.A., and I loved it there so much that it would be a complete dream to do my D.Phil there. It's a tough call though because of how poor to dollar is to the pound right now and the major differences between a UK D.Phil (shorter and mostly research) and a U.S. Ph.D.

 

Anyone have any recommendations about which of these schools might be a good fit? Or any others that I might not have considered yet? And I always love input on the D.Phil/Ph.D. question. 

 

Thanks and best of luck to everyone!

[Ramus]

Hello, all! I'm taking a gap year this year (serious burnout from the MA) but I'll be attempting for Ph.D. placement in Fall 2016!

 

My research interests are primarily fairy tales and folklore and looking at the role gender has in influencing the editing and production of the tales. My master's thesis focused on the apparent 'ideal household' in Grimms' fairy tales that is produced by cutting out themes of female sexuality, enforcing narrative silence for women, and most notably altering the spinning tales to say something different (and male-coded) about domesticity and womanhood. 

 

With that said, any school I'm interested in needs to have a strong gender studies and folklore program. I'm looking at Comparative Literature programs because I think they would help with the interdisciplinary nature of my research interests. A sprinkling of medieval studies doesn't hurt (because literary fairy tales are so influenced by medieval ideas and themes). Right now, I'm looking at:

 

Indiana University

University of Wisconsin-Madison

University of Oregon

University of Minnesota

Oxford University (St. Hilda's)

 

My MA advisor is pushing me toward Indiana. I'm not sure why, but the thought of spending years in Indiana doesn't thrill me (maybe because I'm from Upstate New York and it feels like it may be more of the same). I did my B.A. at SUNY Geneseo and my M.A. at University of Rochester.

 

Oxford is on this list because I studied abroad there last summer when I was completing my B.A., and I loved it there so much that it would be a complete dream to do my D.Phil there. It's a tough call though because of how poor to dollar is to the pound right now and the major differences between a UK D.Phil (shorter and mostly research) and a U.S. Ph.D.

 

Anyone have any recommendations about which of these schools might be a good fit? Or any others that I might not have considered yet? And I always love input on the D.Phil/Ph.D. question. 

 

Thanks and best of luck to everyone!

 

You might check out OSU. I honestly don't know too much about the Folklore Studies program, but it has  its own, semi-autonomous interdisciplinary center that might facilitate the type of work you're interested in. In any case, there's a lot more to do in Columbus than in Bloomington, and the costs of living in each are nearly identical. 

 

As to your last set of questions: if you're interested in teaching in North America, you should probably stick with a school here. One of my former professors got her D.Phil from Oxford, and she ultimately had to take a lectureship at UMich in the final year of her graduate program because Oxford offered her no opportunity to gain teaching experience. Between that problem, and the fact that English grad programs are often paid for out of pocket —especially for international students—I'd say the PhD is the way to go. 

Edited August 6, 2015 by Ramus

[sarabethke]

Hello, all! I'm taking a gap year this year (serious burnout from the MA) but I'll be attempting for Ph.D. placement in Fall 2016!

 

My research interests are primarily fairy tales and folklore and looking at the role gender has in influencing the editing and production of the tales. My master's thesis focused on the apparent 'ideal household' in Grimms' fairy tales that is produced by cutting out themes of female sexuality, enforcing narrative silence for women, and most notably altering the spinning tales to say something different (and male-coded) about domesticity and womanhood. 

 

With that said, any school I'm interested in needs to have a strong gender studies and folklore program. I'm looking at Comparative Literature programs because I think they would help with the interdisciplinary nature of my research interests. A sprinkling of medieval studies doesn't hurt (because literary fairy tales are so influenced by medieval ideas and themes). Right now, I'm looking at:

 

Indiana University

University of Wisconsin-Madison

University of Oregon

University of Minnesota

Oxford University (St. Hilda's)

 

My MA advisor is pushing me toward Indiana. I'm not sure why, but the thought of spending years in Indiana doesn't thrill me (maybe because I'm from Upstate New York and it feels like it may be more of the same). I did my B.A. at SUNY Geneseo and my M.A. at University of Rochester.

 

Oxford is on this list because I studied abroad there last summer when I was completing my B.A., and I loved it there so much that it would be a complete dream to do my D.Phil there. It's a tough call though because of how poor to dollar is to the pound right now and the major differences between a UK D.Phil (shorter and mostly research) and a U.S. Ph.D.

 

Anyone have any recommendations about which of these schools might be a good fit? Or any others that I might not have considered yet? And I always love input on the D.Phil/Ph.D. question. 

 

Thanks and best of luck to everyone!

 

 

When I was looking into Oregon it seemed to have a lot of what you're looking for--I've an interest in folklore too!

 

I want to say University of Pennsylvania has something along those lines as well, and it's a really good school.

[Darkmatters]

Hi all,

 

My schools of choice are UChicago, Catholic University of America, Columbia, and Pitt for eighteenth century British literature with a focus on women's writing and particular attention to the novels of Mary Darby Robinson. I'm applying straight from undergrad to PhD. I've taken the GREs, compiled the spreadsheet, and already obtained my letters of recommendation. Full funding is my goal. Have you all started S.O.P. yet?

 

-B

For Eighteenth Century, you should consider Yale, Stanford, Penn, and NYU as well.

[idobecauseiwant]

Hi all, 

 

I'm attempting a PhD placement in Fall 2016 with interest in 20th-21st Century British woman writers, affect theory, and gender studies. I'm having a hard time to figure out the school list, so could anybody help me out? Any suggestions would be appreciated!

 

Thanks and good luck to everyone!  

Edited August 11, 2015 by idobecauseiwant

[knp]

For folklore and medieval studies, maybe Harvard should be on your list? When I was a baby high schooler I was obsessed with majoring in folklore there, and I think it's strong in medieval studies, too. I know it's a reach for anybody, but it sounds like it would be a good fit, and that's the most important thing.

[Dr. Old Bill]

For folklore and medieval studies, maybe Harvard should be on your list? When I was a baby high schooler I was obsessed with majoring in folklore there, and I think it's strong in medieval studies, too. I know it's a reach for anybody, but it sounds like it would be a good fit, and that's the most important thing.

 

Actually, admission statistics indicate that Harvard is not much harder to get into than many other top 50 programs. I don't remember the exact figure off the top of my head, but recent acceptance percentages were around 6%...higher than places like Vanderbilt etc. I mean, any graduate program is technically a long shot, but there are no programs not worth applying to because of their perceived exclusivity. So long as your research interests seem to fit, it's worth applying.

[jhefflol]

WOW! Thanks! 

I'd love to read it!! 

So sorry that my reply is so late! I officially got my adjunct assignment (yay!) and a full time job, so I won't be applying this year, which means I haven't been checking the boards. If you're still interested, send me a PM with your email address and I'll send it your way!

[SoyCoffee]

So sorry that my reply is so late! I officially got my adjunct assignment (yay!) and a full time job, so I won't be applying this year, which means I haven't been checking the boards. If you're still interested, send me a PM with your email address and I'll send it your way!

 

Congratulations! 

 

Sent you a PM 

[Dr. Old Bill]

So sorry that my reply is so late! I officially got my adjunct assignment (yay!) and a full time job, so I won't be applying this year, which means I haven't been checking the boards. If you're still interested, send me a PM with your email address and I'll send it your way!

 

Way to go, J-heff!

[blomnosgrad]

Hello fellow Fall 2016 applicants,

My area of interest is postcolonial/transnational studies and the programs I have been looking at so far are CUNY, NYU, WashU, Emory, Brown, U of T and McGill. All Eng Lit programs except for Emory where I think the Comparative program is a better fit for me.

But given the present abysmal funding situation (especially when it comes to international students like me), I was wondering if anyone has any other suggestions in terms of programs.

[Ramuel]

Hi all,

My area of interest is the intersection of ethics and aesthetics in 20th century fiction, with particular reference to Adorno and Levinas. I'm currently completing an MA at the University of Otago, and I will finish in February 2016.

My shortlist so far is: Toronto, McGill, Sydney, Cambridge, Oxford, UCL and Edinburgh. Auckland (NZ) is the backup backup.

I'm not applying to any US programmes because the GRE can GTFO. (I was sorely tempted, but I started to lose my mind just reading about it!)

[genderboi]

Will be applying to three lit/english programs this fall at: 
- UChicago 
- UPenn 
- Brown
- Stanford (MTL)
 as well as a few interdisciplinary programs at Rutgers, NYU, Duke, and Emory. A bit nervous about the GRE... still haven't started studying XD

[bhr]

70 days until Deadline #1 and I've got bupkis.

[HumanCylinder]

Hey all,

I thought I'd bump this thread back up so we could all just check in with where we're at or share any questions/concerns.  (Or maybe it will just be me sharing. )

One decision I've been grappling with lately is whether to name specific people in my SoP.  As I may have shared earlier, I'm on my third round of apps (but it's my first time applying to more than 5 schools).  The advice I've received on this issue (mostly from my recommenders) has varied greatly, and in past applications I did name around 4 people and described why/how they would be particularly good assets for the work I'd like to pursue.  I've begun to rethink this approach, though, since I changed one of my recommenders for this round -- in discussing my application with him, he strongly suggested that I don't name people because of the risk it entails.

If others wouldn't mind sharing, I'd be interested to know how those of us applying in this round are approaching this aspect of the SoP. 

[haltheincandescent]

Hey all,

I thought I'd bump this thread back up so we could all just check in with where we're at or share any questions/concerns.  (Or maybe it will just be me sharing. )

One decision I've been grappling with lately is whether to name specific people in my SoP.  As I may have shared earlier, I'm on my third round of apps (but it's my first time applying to more than 5 schools).  The advice I've received on this issue (mostly from my recommenders) has varied greatly, and in past applications I did name around 4 people and described why/how they would be particularly good assets for the work I'd like to pursue.  I've begun to rethink this approach, though, since I changed one of my recommenders for this round -- in discussing my application with him, he strongly suggested that I don't name people because of the risk it entails.

If others wouldn't mind sharing, I'd be interested to know how those of us applying in this round are approaching this aspect of the SoP. 

As in naming people at specific departments as potential advisors? I am, and I recently showed one of my drafts to my thesis advisor, and he thought it--with naming 4 people, briefly--was good. Another of my letter writers just outright assumed that I was going to name at least one person (he's a recent alum at a school I'm applying to, and when he asked for a draft of the SoP, just said "I'm looking forward to seeing who you'll name!") Just a couple of additional opinions, really, though. Although, I can't say I've ever really seen any explicit advice not to do this (if anyone thinks no, why would it be a bad idea?); I feel like it's one of the best ways to demonstrate your fit with and knowledge of the department. (I was warned, however, not only to name Assistant profs, which could be something to watch for.)

 

Otherwise, I'm just now getting to the writing sample editing stage. Really wishing I would've thought a lot farther ahead, and just written my thesis in 15 page sections rather than 10, 10, 30, because cutting has not been fun! (so many rhetorical flourishes gone....some, though, honestly for the better, hah!)

[HumanCylinder]

Thanks for your perspective, haltheincandescent. I was pretty confident in my own decision to name faculty in previous versions of my SoP because I guessed, after talking to other people I knew applying, that it was common enough to be expected.  I didn't want my statement to lack some element that seemed to have become a part of the "genre."  I think your experience does its part to support that (as much as 2 opinions can, as you point out).  I have two recommenders who do not think it's a good idea, though.  One thinks it's generic sounding and that fit should be rather evident from the bulk of the SoP that's dedicated to describing one's academic interests.  This reasoning wasn't enough to dissuade me.  My newest recommender said it could be risky to name someone who might end up taking sabbatical, plans to leave, or can't take on students for whatever reason, which would be an easy way to eliminate an applicant.  Though, I think naming around 4 people mitigates that risk to some degree.  From another angle, if a faculty member reads your work/application, responds favorably to it, but is not mentioned in the fit paragraph, that is also problematic.  This all seems very situational, though, and I'm not sure that I should be scheming for specific situations.  Perhaps I will hedge my bets and do it in some applications but not others (I'm applying to 15 schools this time around).  

Otherwise, I'm just now getting to the writing sample editing stage. Really wishing I would've thought a lot farther ahead, and just written my thesis in 15 page sections rather than 10, 10, 30, because cutting has not been fun! (so many rhetorical flourishes gone....some, though, honestly for the better, hah!)

I am also planning to edit my writing sample this weekend.  It's from a seminar paper from a grad class I took in 2012, and I've worked on it since then, obviously, but I still want to make sure that it's up to date with anything that's been published very recently. 

[1Q84]

I struggled with this when I wrote my SOP. The best bit of advice I received to that end was to make good friends with the department's grad secretary. You can pick her or his brain about which profs are on leave, which ones moved departments, or which no longer take students, etc. This will help you to name-drop in a more informed and strategic manner.

[bhr]

SoPs are done. I mentioned coursework/research, but didn't mention specific professors (except in one case where I met one of them who specifically invited me to apply). Now to create a writing sample (I really don't have a single-authored paper yet)

[neelisky]

Hi all! Five weeks to deadlines and I'm finally getting REALLY started. Applying to Lit PhDs with interests in New Media studies, critical theory, and ethnic studies -- to NYU, Columbia, Duke, UCB, UCSB, maaaaybe Princeton if I can muster up the courage... 

Anyone take the GRE Lit test today/yesterday? 

[BooksCoffeeBeards]

Hi all! Five weeks to deadlines and I'm finally getting REALLY started. Applying to Lit PhDs with interests in New Media studies, critical theory, and ethnic studies -- to NYU, Columbia, Duke, UCB, UCSB, maaaaybe Princeton if I can muster up the courage... 

Anyone take the GRE Lit test today/yesterday? 

I took it yesterday; they weren't kidding about all the Middle English and Medieval stuff. oof.

[haltheincandescent]

First app submitted! ("We will let you know the results of our review in due course" )

As for the others....now the SoP is basically done, then, having submitted it once. Just some tinkering here and there needed to highlight particular parts of my past work for the slightly different emphases of different programs. Still waiting on a response from my advisor about whether or not my radically shortened writing sample is going to work. (It's been one week since he said he'd send comments "tonight." Starting to worry....!)

[sarabethke]

On October 23, 2015 at 4:37:32 PM, HumanCylinder said:

Hey all,

I thought I'd bump this thread back up so we could all just check in with where we're at or share any questions/concerns.  (Or maybe it will just be me sharing. )

One decision I've been grappling with lately is whether to name specific people in my SoP.  As I may have shared earlier, I'm on my third round of apps (but it's my first time applying to more than 5 schools).  The advice I've received on this issue (mostly from my recommenders) has varied greatly, and in past applications I did name around 4 people and described why/how they would be particularly good assets for the work I'd like to pursue.  I've begun to rethink this approach, though, since I changed one of my recommenders for this round -- in discussing my application with him, he strongly suggested that I don't name people because of the risk it entails.

If others wouldn't mind sharing, I'd be interested to know how those of us applying in this round are approaching this aspect of the SoP. 

A friend of mine who applied to Michigan told me they did not want any professors mentioned, but on many application pages (such as UT Austin I think) you're encouraged to mention people you'd like to work with, so look for that kind of thing!

[thepriorwalter]

For the record: I'm at Michigan this year, and I named names in my SOP (I also made a list of questions I was interested in thinking about for my dissertation that took up about the last third of my SOP, so unconventional styles can work!). Someone I named as wanting to work with died between when I submitted and when acceptances were sent out, one of the profs is going on sabbatical, and a third prof is not taking new students because they are likely retiring. Still, they thought I was a good fit.

I think whether or not to name names becomes something to stress yourself about that doesn't actually matter that much to the admissions committee. It can be a good way to demonstrate fit, but if you fit, they'll likely see that whether you do or do not name names. 

[HumanCylinder]

13 hours ago, thepriorwalter said:

For the record: I'm at Michigan this year, and I named names in my SOP (I also made a list of questions I was interested in thinking about for my dissertation that took up about the last third of my SOP, so unconventional styles can work!). Someone I named as wanting to work with died between when I submitted and when acceptances were sent out, one of the profs is going on sabbatical, and a third prof is not taking new students because they are likely retiring. Still, they thought I was a good fit.

I think whether or not to name names becomes something to stress yourself about that doesn't actually matter that much to the admissions committee. It can be a good way to demonstrate fit, but if you fit, they'll likely see that whether you do or do not name names. 

Thanks; I appreciate this very grounded perspective!  I think I've just begun to convince myself to stop being so paranoid about a few sentences in an entire application.