Writing Sample Advice??

[victoriansimpkins]

Hi all,

I applied Fall 2015, wasn't successful, took a year off to research/teach/go to conferences, but I'm ready to apply again this fall, and need some advice on my writing sample.

I am applying for mainly 19th-century British/Irish/Transatlantic (or programs that are a combination of the above) and, depending on which programs I decide to actually apply to (I am still narrowing my list of potentials, but have 4 definites), I want to make sure they get the **right** writing sample that matches their programs/my interests. I have a really good paper that concerns Transatlantic monstrosity, but I'm worried that using a Transatlantic paper will worry the committees that I'm not "focused" enough. However, nearly every program that I am interested in says that applicants can submit a portion of their Master's thesis for their writing sample, but I'm not sure if this is a direction that will work. I know which chapter of my thesis I would like to use as my sample, but the chapter is still nearly 25-30 pages (sans bibliography and without me adding portions from the thesis introduction/conclusion). Those of you who are applying/were previously successful, what do you suggest? Each of my writing sample choices have been through revisions either in classes, by professors/advisers, or in graduate writing circles, so each is of roughly the same caliber and I'm not what the right move is at this point. 

Thanks in advance! 

[urbanfarmer]

From what I've heard, by and large, the writing sample is mainly for them to get an idea that you CAN write, and that you have interesting thoughts. I think the topic is probably less important (within reason-- I don't think anyone expects your WS to be completely narrow in the same way your dissertation would be), although I'd recommend talking about your writing sample in your SOP to give them an introduction as to why you've chosen that paper to submit (in my SOP, I addressed that although my WS was about a completely different area, many of the themes were the same). Obviously most programs have a 20-25p limit for writing samples, so that may end up dictating what you use-- but of course you could edit your thesis chapter down if you wanted to (which is what I did). 

[xolo]

I have no knowledge of your field, but I was successful in applying to PhD programs (4 out of 7).

In my opinion, the Writing Sample ideally should be consistent with your Statement of Purpose and should align with the interests of a faculty member, especially one who is on the admissions committee. It's sort of a semi-random alignment of the stars type situation. 

I would say the Writing Sample should show that you have potential to do independent research. Your MA thesis should show basic independent research, and the dissertation should show in-depth independent research.

 

[renea]

19 hours ago, xolo said:

the Writing Sample ideally should be consistent with your Statement of Purpose and should align with the interests of a faculty member, especially one who is on the admissions committee.

To expand on @xolo, the advice I was given when applying for MA programs (and this was reiterated by my committee chair for my PhD applications as well), was that your application as a whole should tell a story. When beginning the application process you should think to yourself, who will this story speak to (those are your target universities). Your SOP is a way for you to explain what the story is, your transcript is the background to that story, and your writing sample should show the story. So if your SOP states, I'm interested in x,y,and z then it's helpful if the writing sample backs that up by displaying some research you've done on one of those topics. It's also possible that if you don't have experience in x,y, and z you can state upfront, "In the past my research was focused on A/B/C, because of whatever reason (department requirements, lack of resources, coming from a different discipline, ect), but I have since shifted to x/y/z because of blah...blah...blah" then it would make since that your story is about a shift from A/B/C to x/y/z.. Your transcript might show that shift in coursework, your LOR might explain that shift in terms of your work, your CV might show a change as well. However, it would make since in this scenario that your writing sample would be about A/B/C, although in my opinion it would be better if it was about x/y/z since it shows that you are already investing in your new research interest. 

 

In terms of using your thesis, this is totally ok! I'm considering that route for my writing sample as well, the advice I was given is do not send the entire thesis. Lots of applicants do this and it can be too long. Instead, I was told that if I choose to include my thesis, simply choose the section that you believe demonstrates your work/story best. Take that section out and provide a statement (roughly one page) in the beginning that provides context for the writing sample and explains why you chose that section.

[Concordia]

This may not hold for your situation, but I used two coherent snippets from my master's dissertation-- plus explanatory paragraphs to establish context-- to keep under the 5,000-word maximum.  I chose those passages largely because they showed off the best aspects of my research and writing, at least the ones that my examiners liked and therefore might have been mentioned in my recommendations.  

My doctoral proposal was tangentially related to previous work, but this was the closest I could get in a writing sample.  I have no idea if any of the admissions committee members gave a damn one way or the other.  

One school I applied to actually didn't ask for samples.  Their philosophy was that if your referees couldn't be bothered to sell your writing, they wouldn't waste time trying to see what nobody else noticed.

[ProfessionalNerd]

On 8/26/2017 at 1:34 PM, renea said:

 

 

In terms of using your thesis, this is totally ok! I'm considering that route for my writing sample as well, the advice I was given is do not send the entire thesis. Lots of applicants do this and it can be too long. Instead, I was told that if I choose to include my thesis, simply choose the section that you believe demonstrates your work/story best. Take that section out and provide a statement (roughly one page) in the beginning that provides context for the writing sample and explains why you chose that section.

 

On 8/26/2017 at 2:02 PM, Concordia said:

This may not hold for your situation, but I used two coherent snippets from my master's dissertation-- plus explanatory paragraphs to establish context-- to keep under the 5,000-word maximum.

I used my thesis proposal during this past cycle. I put a nota bene (about 4-7 sentences) at the beginning. I had pretty good success doing that. I think the point is that you should send in your best work (if that happens to be a thesis or a seminar paper, go for it  ) 

[Bumblebea]

On 8/23/2017 at 8:15 PM, victoriansimpkins said:

I have a really good paper that concerns Transatlantic monstrosity, but I'm worried that using a Transatlantic paper will worry the committees that I'm not "focused" enough.

I wouldn't worry a lot about this. Transatlanticism has been around for a while now, so most programs won't be stymied by a transatlantic writing sample. 

I was told the same things when I applied years ago--that "you have to choose!" between one continent or the other--but then I hit the job market and, no joke, almost every job was looking for someone with a transatlantic focus. The reason? A lot of programs are looking to kill two birds (or more) with one stone. If they can get someone who can do both British AND American, they're thrilled. 

Regarding the sample itself--just be sure that your first page and introduction are VERY strong--that's what tends to get read most closely. 

Go in peace and work on polishing your writing sample.