Please help save me some application fees

[Tails]

Major: English

Undergrad: Elite Public

GPA: 3.034, In-Major GPA: 3.0

GRE Practice Test Averages (Five tests): Verbal- 168, Quantitative- 166

I also enrolled for a year in an unrelated professional school after undergrad and withdrew with bad grades due to lack of interest.

 

Is my GPA too much of a killer for me to apply to top English MA programs and expect to have a reasonable chance of admission? I have no significant research or work experience, and, because I went to a large school, my letters of recommendation will likely be generic. Even if I duplicate my practice GRE performances on the actual test in September, am I in serious trouble in terms of getting into a top program?

I wanted to apply to Rutgers and NYU, but, since they're top 20 programs, I believe that they won't consider me competitive because of that GPA; therefore, I was only going to apply to Fordham and Seton Hall (90+% acceptance rate).

Fordham's most recent admitted MA class had an average GPA of 3.59. My practice GRE scores are above the class's 75th percentiles, but I fear that my in-major GPA will make me look unappealing as an MA candidate.

Am I better off not even applying to Fordham? I fear that if I go to Seton Hall, I won't get as strong of an MA education and it'll hinder my chances of getting into a high-end PhD program. I'm ready to devote my time and effort to doing exceptionally well in graduate school, just as I've done during my GRE prep.

Edited August 9, 2016 by Tails

[ExponentialDecay]

jsyk you will need to submit all of your higher education transcripts, including ones with the bad grades from the professional program you withdrew from, so technically those matter too. You should also post this on the literary studies subforum, not here, because that subforum will have more knowledgeable people and may be more active.

But, just off the top of my head, two things. English MAs really aren't super competitive, so as long as you meet their minimum requirements (which may not be the case for Columbia, from what I remember, but you can check that yourself), go ahead and apply. The other thing is, I'd recommend against judging the quality of an MA program by the brand name of the university it belongs to, especially since brand name is the least of your problems. Many academic MAs in the US are cash cows for the university (definitely the MAs at Columbia and NYU, not sure about your other schools), meaning you're there to pay exorbitant fees to attend graduate classes, but you don't get any attention from the professors, who are exponentially more concerned with their PhD students, any research or conference support from the department (because that again is earmarked for the PhD students), or any opportunities to fund yourself and get relevant experience with RA or TA positions (again, those are for the PhDs). This would be fine if all you needed was a reconstructed transcript, some classes relevant to your discipline, and a loud institutional name, but you also need strong LORs and research experience (which in English means working closely with a professor), so imho it's not the right option for you. If you can't pay for this degree out of pocket, it is 100% not the right option for you.

I would focus on finding a small, intimate program with maybe not superstar but solid faculty that has explicit opportunities for master's students. Ideally a masters-only program (other disciplines have very prestigious masters-only options at elite LACs like Williams or Bryn Mawr, but sadly, English does not). Getting into an elite PhD with a 3.0 GPA, no research experience, and no good recommenders is going to be an uphill hike even with a good master's, and the NYU name isn't going to save you.

[rising_star]

@Tails, are you geographically restricted to the NYC metro area? Are you concerned at all about funding for the MA program? Are you interested in literature or rhet/comp? Knowing these might help people who want to provide you with some advice. 

In general, I'd say that you're competitive for some MA programs but, it will depend on whether or not you're trying to get funding (tuition waiver, TA position, etc.). If you're able to look at other schools, then there are a number of options.

Here are some previous threads that you might find helpful:

The "Literature, and Rhetoric and Composition" subforum has lots of posts about specific MA programs as well so check those out for more information. Good luck!

[Tails]

Thank you for the advice, ExponentialDecay. Rising_star, I am restricted to the NYC metropolitan area. If I were to apply now, I would only consider Fordham and Seton Hall. Funding is not important, although I'm aware that NYU funds half of the tuition costs for all admitted MA students. Because Peterson's lists NYU's MA acceptance rate at ~25%, I feel that I would be burning $100 on the application, plus the $150 I would spend on the subject test in literature. I worry that the admissions officers would not overlook average recs and a low GPA just because of high GRE scores and a strong statement of purpose and writing sample when there are probably more well-rounded candidates applying. I am interested in literature with a focus in 20th century British literature. 

 

 

[rising_star]

Honestly, you should talk to admissions folks about your chances, rather than blindly (and perhaps naively) assuming you wouldn't get in.