Chance me: English Lit Ph.D

Graduate School
1

<p>Hi there,</p>

<p>I just found this site and I wanted to get some opinions on my grad school chances as I wait for my admissions decisions.</p>

<p>University: Bridgewater State University (in Massachusetts)
GPA: 3.96 overall, 4.0 in major
GRE Scores: Verbal: 170 (perfect score), Quantitative: 155, Subject: 610
Major: English (w/ Honors)
Minors: GLBT Studies, Spanish, History (Women's/Gender focused)
Commonwealth Honors with Honors Thesis (on Eng. Ren. lit)</p>

<p>Specialization: English Renaissance Literature, Humanism, (and I am somewhat versed in contemporary Spanish short stories in the original, in addition to the normal comprehensive English lit. studies).</p>

<p>Honors: Who's Who in Students nom., Dean's list, I've presented several papers at conferences inside Bridgewater, but I've also presented a Shakespeare piece at the Undergraduate Shakespeare Conference, and will present two separate Shakespeare scholarly works at the Sigma Tau Delta (Eng. International Honors) conference and the National Conference of Undergraduate Research. I've also been grant-funded for a semester for thesis research, and I have been on a short grant-funded trip (for a history paper) in Canada. Additionally, I lived in Oxford for one month taking an upper-level English course. I've also given a half hour lecture and facilitated a half hour discussion on gender in the U.S. for both students and faculty. Lastly, I have a scholarly piece in for publication that I will find out about soon.</p>

<p>I'm the secretary of Bridgewater's chapter of Sigma Tau Delta, and my employment for the past two years has been at the college's Writing Studio as a Senior Consultant, in which I work on rhetoric and composition with Bridgewater students from freshmen to grad students.</p>

<p>I'm applying to:</p>

<p>Yale
Brown
Tufts
Brandeis
University of Connecticut
Northeastern
UMass Amherst</p>

<p>(and I am totally aware of how much a reach school Yale is for everyone in the world lol)</p>

<p>I'd love to hear your thoughts!!</p>

2

<p>You do realize that odds of landing any kind of English/writing job are extremely slim, right? Why do you want to get a PhD in English?</p>

3

<p>I do realize that, and that’s not really much of a helpful comment. I’ve been researching grad schools and the field for months; I think I’d have picked up on the idea that the stat is around 50% of Ph.D’s landing tenure-track jobs within the first three years of the job search. </p>

<p>But it’s what I want to do, and it’s something I think I’ll do well, so a stat isn’t going to stop me. But thanks for the comment I guess?</p>

4

<p>English PhD programs receive hundreds and hundreds of applications for such few spots. There are far, far more English PhDs out there than jobs. I’m talking about not just the TT ones but also adjuncts and positions in community colleges where the emphasis is on teaching, not researching.</p>

<p>I know you say that you can’t imagine yourself doing anything else but continue what you’re doing. That’s because you haven’t actually done anything else other than to be a student. You would certainly benefit from taking some time off and reevaluate whether or not it’s truly worth pursuing an English PhD. There are a good number of people who go through a MA program as a stepping stone.</p>

5

<p>I know what you mean about the job market; it is ridiculously difficult. And I know that most grad programs receive around 400 applications for 10 to 20 spots. But it’s not that I can’t see myself doing anything else. I can see myself doing secondary ed, early childhood ed, as well as student advising. Additionally, I have thought about using my second language skills in Spanish to teach English abroad (I know, these aren’t necessarily lucrative careers either). I also have skills and practice in argumentation and could attempt the law school route. Law has been an interest of mine, and I think I could excel in the field. </p>

<p>I believe, however, that I will enjoy and find the most happiness in being an English prof. And yes, I haven’t been anything other than a student, but just because the job market is difficult, it doesn’t mean that my desire to do this is any less or that simply by taking a year off my vision for my profession will suddenly change.</p>

<p>As far as the MA is concerned, I realize that it is a great stepping stone. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of programs that offer that great of funding in the more established grad programs, and outside funding is almost as difficult to secure as a position in a doctoral program. I can get the MA at my university for free, but it is not all that reputable and I’d be wasting two years in a program that doesn’t even require a MA thesis for English. I thought seriously about whether to do a MA, and if I am not accepted to the Ph.D programs above, then I will likely apply to MA programs in addition to the Ph.D in the next go around.</p>

<p>I didn’t take this decision lightly or decide to pursue the Ph.D with visions of grandeur in the job prospects. You’re right in that I am a student; I did my research in this as well. I read just as many articles and grad student accounts about the difficulties of the programs and the job market (for tenure tract and visiting lecturer positions - I just threw that stat out as an ex. of my awareness of the problems w/ the field) as I read accounts of success. I’ve spoken to the younger professors at my college, some who have just recently completed the Ph.D and have heard the difficulties they have faced. This has absolutely been a calculated risk on my part. Yet, I’m graduating my university a full year early with a major and three minors (including honors), I have no student loans or debt and I do have my own savings, and I’m applying to grad programs that (with the exception of 1) essentially guarantee funding (yes, not a crazy amount, but a livable one for the most part), and I want to research and teach in this field. </p>

<p>But again, as I said above, I already have applied to Ph.D programs. Whether I want to pursue the Ph.D is not really something I’m questioning. I’ve had the Ph.D in mind since I was a freshman in high school, and I’ve steadily worked towards that goal. I enjoy being a student. While I enjoy other things as well, academia has always held my interest the most. I’m not saying that it’s not possible that this will change sometime in my life. But for now, I don’t see the point in not pursuing my goal when I feel strongly that I can achieve it.</p>

6

<p>I applaud your resolve to study what you love and to take to the top, especially if you can get a research or teaching gig during grad school to pay your way. Concern yourself with your areas of interest and expertise now; the jobs will come later. No you “probably” will not get a tenure track position at Major U, but someone does get those jobs so don’t let that make you not go down your path of interest. Another possibility at job time would be the finer prep schools which can be a great experience and which lately like Ph.D.s for their English (and other) depts. Best wishes.</p>

7

<p>As brusque as his advice and information may be, Tickle has a point. Assuming you are in your early 20’s its easy to not be overly concerned with the long term job prospects and being single minded on doing what makes one happy. It’s easy to say “It’s not about money. . .” when you’re young and single.</p>

8

<p>@snarltron Thanks for your comment! I wasn’t thinking about prep schools, but I will definitely keep those in mind down the line. Best!</p>

<p>@ ANDS! I realize that, and obviously things may change as I get older and my situation changes, and I think that I’ve fully acknowledged the points that have been made and addressed how I see them. I think I’ve shown that I have researched this and that I’m not entering the field with unrealistic expectations.</p>

<p>I think what I find most frustrating about this is that this has successfully diverted all attention away from my original question. I was hoping to get some advice based on any of the info that I originally posted and have received none, so I’m not exactly happy that I’ve essentially wasted my time on this site defending my career goals.</p>

9

<p>You know what? That’s because the admissions in humanities are extremely subjective and we just cannot assess your chances of actually getting admitted. Your writing sample, SOP and LORs are the most important factors.</p>

10

<p>I was going to offer the same thing; these “chance me” threads are a bit silly, since no one here is an a graduate committee, and it’s doubtful anyone who has been rejected/accepted from any of those schools is busy lurking about.</p>

11

<p>Well, you two are here “lurking about” apparently, so I don’t think it is entirely out of line to think that someone here could offer some advice; additionally, I said in the original post that I had just found the site and wanted to try it out. I’m not stupid, and I realize that someone online can’t accurately give me a yes or no answer. But all I was looking for was perhaps students that had gone through the process and had a little bit of advice, and I certainly wasn’t looking for only individuals determined to dissuade people from pursuing the humanities.</p>

<p>But, you know what? Obviously you’re intent on getting the last word in, so I’m not going to bother following this any longer. Enjoy whatever else it is you two do on this site because I’m certainly done with it.</p>

12

<p>If you can’t deal with “us”, then don’t even think about posting over at the CHE forums. The CC is the safest place you can find for these kind of posts. Just a FYI.</p>

13

<p>Oy vey. You have excellent marks, excellent extra-curricular activities, and obviously have applied your craft in a non-classroom setting. However, as Tickle pointed out - your major is hugely subjective. So “chancing” you is pretty futile. </p>

<p>This forum is what you make it.</p>