While obtaining an English degree can certainly set you on the right path to becoming a copyeditor, it doesn't necessarily mean you're ready to jump in head first to a full-time copyediting job! So what can you do to prepare?
Below, copyeditors with years of hard-earned experience share their advice for how to begin your career in copyediting, where to turn for information, important books to read, and more!
War has influenced much of what gets studied in college English departments across the country. Any survey course of British or American literature likely includes poetry from World War I poets like Siegfried Sassoon or Wilfred Owen. Compulsory military service in World War II meant that many writers served overseas, either before or after their writing careers took off. Kurt Vonnegut survived the bombing of Dresden as a prisoner of war, and William Golding participated in the D-Day invasion. Tim O’Brien’s novel The Things They Carried was based on his time as an infantry soldier in the Vietnam War.
Beyond just the written contributions of writers in uniform, two events in particular helped shape the contemporary literary scene in post-World War II America: Armed Services Editions of popular works (which democratized access to literature through mass produced pocket-sized editions of novels, short stories, and poetry; see Molly Guptill Manning’s excellent When Books Went to War for a detailed look at ASEs) ensured that soldiers, sailors, airmen, Marines, and coast guardsmen—as well as Allied military and civilian populations— could read their way through The Great Gatsby or A Tree Grows in Brooklyn as they fought across Europe or the Pacific; and the Serviceman’s Readjustment Act (better known as the G.I. Bill) allowed millions of returning veterans the opportunity to attend college or vocational training, an opportunity they most likely would not have had otherwise. Taken together, the ASEs and G.I. Bill helped create a literate middle class.
After Vietnam, the military transitioned from draftees to volunteers. Combined with other factors—a generally robust economy, the drawdown after the breakup of the Soviet Union, and a general apathy towards military service—this meant that fewer and fewer people served or knew someone who served. This translated into fewer and fewer writers with military experience. By the time of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq (combat operations which continue in some form to this day), a handful of soldiers and other service members were deploying more and more frequently, and the disconnect between the military and civilian sectors of the population grew less and less able to speak a common language of experience.
A growing number of writers with military service are becoming part of the literary world. A large portion of the earliest writing could be deemed memoir or autobiography and presented their experiences in combat through straightforward and fact-based accounts; think Lone Survivor or American Sniper. At the same time, writers are fictionalizing or poeticizing their time in uniform and are expanding the meaning of “military literature.” Army veteran Brian Turner stands out as one of the preeminent post-9/11 war poets—he is a Lannan Literary Fellow and directs the low-residency MFA program at Sierra Nevada College. Phil Klay is a former Marine whose short story collection Redeployment won the National Book Award. Military writers are also bending conventions of genre; Colby Buzzell turned his blog My War: Killing Time in Iraq into a well-received book, and followed it up with Lost in America: A Dead End Journey, two works which parallel the longstanding tradition of examining the warrior at war and the warrior at home (see Homer: The Iliad and The Odyssey).
Hassan Blasim’s short story collection The Corpse Exhibition: And Other Stories of Iraq comes from years of embargo, combat, and separation; Dunya Mikhail’s poetry likewise combines the voice of exile with lyrical and provocative passages; and The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is only the most famous of a large and growing body of work from Afghan poets and writers. As more works are translated into English, more college students and readers will have the opportunity to study and learn from those who’ve lived through the terrible consequences of combat.
At the most recent Association of Writers and Writing Programs (AWP) Conference in Los Angeles, there were no fewer than twelve events featuring military writers who’ve served in Iraq, Afghanistan, or both. Veterans have also started projects such as The Veterans Writing Project, designed to promote and publish writing by those who’ve served; Military Experience and the Arts, which works to combine writing with visual art, dance, and therapy; and Line of Advance, one of many veteran-focused literary journals. Additionally, sites like Randy “Charlie Sherpa” Moore’s Red Bull Rising serve as aggregators of military and veteran writing contests, submissions, and events. Peter Molin runs Time Now, a source for critical analysis of a broad spectrum of military writing, including works from Iraqi, Afghan, and other overseas voices.
With fewer and fewer people serving or knowing anyone who has, misconceptions and prejudices abound on both sides. When much of the populace draws their knowledge of the military from movies (with varying levels of accuracy) or from lingering resentments handed down from a generation that lived through the Vietnam War, and when the shrinking number of veterans self-isolate or denigrate those who never served in uniform, how do we make sure we can still talk across the divide?
Perhaps colleges could include more contemporary writing by veterans. The canon could be updated to include writing men and women (who are making up more and more a critical portion of the military) who’ve deployed overseas or who’ve lived through invasion and occupation. Much of the same issues examined by Hemingway or Remarque or Homer are still relevant but could be contextualized through current writers.
A newly revamped Post-9/11 G.I. Bill is allowing a new generation of veterans an entry into the academic world. Contrary to what may or may not be popular conceptions of who these men and women are, they don’t all have PTSD, haven’t all seen combat, and aren’t all war mongers. (In fact, very few are.) Instead, these incoming college freshmen are generally older than their peers, have varied backgrounds and skills, and are eager to begin new chapters in their lives.
Conversely, veterans could look to their classmates for lessons from their own experiences. Many of them have served in other capacities, either in their communities or across the country and world. They are teaching in underserved schools, working in the medical fields, or volunteering in numerous ways. They are also the writers creating new and exciting works, often alongside the military writers.
““After all, what does literature do but teach us about what it’s like to live as someone else?””
College English courses could provide a unique venue in which to challenge the assumption that, because of different life experiences, veterans and civilians have an inherent difficulty in communicating. After all, what does literature do but teach us about what it’s like to live as someone else? How else can we understand anyone other than ourselves except through art and empathy? Perhaps by incorporating some of the growing community of military writers (as well as other communities; this could be a concept easily applied to women writers, writers of color, or queer writers) we could expand the notion of who is creating work worth reading and begin to learn again how to talk with our neighbors.
Travis Klempan is a Colorado native who joined the Navy to see the world. He found out most of it is water so he came back to the Mile High State. Along the way he earned a Bachelor's of Science (not Arts) in English from the Naval Academy and a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing & Poetics from the Jack Kerouac School. He is currently pursuing teaching opportunities—adjuncting, substituting, and teaching at sea. He's also working on several pieces of writing at any given time, including a novel, a collection of fables, and a musical. He does not ski but makes a great road trip companion.
You can read the Dear English Major interview with Travis Klempan here!
According to WritersBureau.com, “a freelance writer is a writer who works on a self-employed basis. They can work for just one magazine or, more often, they write for several different publications at a time. The more diverse a writer can be, the more likely they are to be published and paid for their work.”
I define freelance writing in a similar, but more personal way. To me, freelance writing is also a mode of advocating for one’s own voice to be heard. Freelance writing is utilized across a wide variety of literary and pop culture magazines, websites, and other publications. That being said, you probably read freelance writing all the time and don't even realize it. Many of the writers employed by some of the most popular publications, especially online, are in fact freelance.
The beauty of freelance, especially online, is that you can become part of a team, community or chapter from virtually anywhere, provided you have a computer and internet access. This appeals to many Millennials generally between the ages of 16-27, who have grown up accustomed to the instant communication that online activity offers us.
First and foremost, freelance is becoming more and more accessible to people from all ages, cultural backgrounds, and socio-cultural groups. If there is a topic you are interested in—whether it be sports, music, politics fashion, etc.—chances are there is a popular or up-and-coming website just looking for writers! More established sites like Elite Daily, The Huffington Post, or Buzzfeed are such a hot commodity that they have works waiting to be published from hundreds of freelancers that do not necessarily promise a regular publishing schedule. Those sites are certainly worth the write; if you are published, having a piece published by a big name in the digital media world can carry that “wow” factor needed for impressing potential employers.
You should also consider writing freelance for the possibility of gaining exposure. Whether you are pursuing writing as a career or as a hobby, everybody wants his or her work to be seen. Applying to write for newer sites that are working out their kinks and are just now accruing their readership (and also may not have an extensive number of people on their writing team) is the best guarantee that your articles will be published on a weekly basis at minimum. Some people may be nervous about applying to low-profile websites due to their lack of notoriety, but doing so actually gives you the chance to attach your name to a start-up that could potentially become a game changer in the scope of digital media. Who doesn’t like being the one to start a new trend?
If you browse through a website, you will most likely find a "write for us," "contribute," “careers,” or "about" tab on the website that will allow you to apply for a writer position or get in contact with someone who can tell you about how to apply.
When you begin a freelance writing gig, you will initially be in contact with the editing or publishing manager of the website or magazine. These people will then most likely share various Google Drive documents, PowerPoints, and other paperwork that describes the mission of their publication or media site.
Social media and online profile are both factors that heavily influence how you will be part of the freelance writing world as a young adult. A good online persona shows that you know your way around media. It should also demonstrate that you know how to advertise your interests and attract a following, both of which are important qualities and show that you have a good chance of attracting a readership. What you post, like, tag and share will speak volumes about you as an individual before anyone has even met you—if they ever will.
Your website, blog, Facebook page, Instagram, Twitter, etc. will all be indicators of the social circles that you have influence in. Additionally, online publishers will hire recruiters to look through social media hashtags, geotags, posts and locations to see what users may seem like promising contributors.
When you are hired, websites and magazines will definitely want you to share your work with your network!
If you’re still in school, try to find a website that suits your schedule, interests, and personal needs as a writer. Knowing how to balance freelance writing with school, family life, and extracurricular activities is important to both your overall physical and mental health, as well as to the quality of your writing.
Be conscious of the time you can dedicate to writing outside of school that may be unpaid, incentive-based or paid. For college students, most writing will be unpaid, as publishing freelance generally stems from interest and exposure, and not need of money.
Interested in starting your freelance career? Here are some examples of sites and magazines that use freelance writers (and are open to beginning writers!) :
Figure out what interests you personally, where your writing passions lie, and what you like to write about. Having your writing online before applying to write for a website is important and key. If you already have your own personal work online for fun, people will be more inclined to hire you freelance if they can get an idea of the type of content you create (your form, writing style, aesthetic, etc.) and also what you specialize in as it relates to your major, hobbies, passions and career goals. Will you be looking for a poetry site, or are you interested in writing pop culture pieces? This will determine where you want to write. Becoming an “expert” in whatever field you inhabit will make potential hiring editors interested in what you have to say and how you use media to say it.
The best way to figure out whether writing online is for you is by trying out a whole bunch of sites and styles. Apply for a variation of publications that can teach you different methods of writing and will also challenge you to learn about new topics or see things from a new perspective. Getting out of your comfort zone will help you become more successful, more convincing, and more appealing to both hiring staff and readers.
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““The digital media industry as it relates to freelance writing is a field where you don’t have to wait for publishers to give you the opportunity to write. You create those opportunities on your own by blogging, marketing yourself online, and reaching out to others who share your passions.””
As an English major and as a writer, freelancing has strongly impacted me; it has increased my love for writing and has pushed me out of my comfort zone in terms of style, tone and structure. It has also helped me become part of a community of other writers who want the same things I do, and it has given me mentors as well. There is a certain level of pride and accomplishment that exists in seeing your work being shared online. Freelancing as a young writer also gives you the opportunity to receive constructive criticism and positive feedback from peers, editors, and even strangers. The digital media industry as it relates to freelance writing is a field where you don’t have to wait for publishers to give you the opportunity to write. You create those opportunities on your own by blogging, marketing yourself online, and reaching out to others who share your passions. Writing for digital publications lets you learn about the online writing world, and is a fun hobby that can become a livelihood if people decide they like your writing.
For anybody on the fence, I would definitely say to give freelance writing a try. You have nothing to lose from giving it a test run, and you never know what could come of it!
Wandy Felicita Ortiz
Originally from Brooklyn, New York and raised in northern New Jersey, Wandy Felicita Ortiz is a rising senior graduating cum laude with a Bachelor’s in French and English at St. John’s University in Queens, New York. In her studies, Wandy has developed a passion for digital media, Feminist literary theory, and poetry in both languages. A regular contributor and editor for Millennial platforms including Odyssey, Society19, and the all-female site Her Track, Wandy is excited to be discussing her expertise as a college freelance writer via her favorite website for English majors! You can also follow her @wanderingfelicity on Instagram, @wandyfelicita on Twitter, or shoot her an e- mail via her blog for more information on where and how to freelance. When she’s not rushing out of class to submit an article, you can find her watching the day’s sunset, dousing her quarter-life crisis in that third cup of coffee, or watching videos of cute dogs.
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People pursuing graduate degrees have varying reasons for doing so. For most, an MFA or PhD is the only track for tenured professorship. But what about those writers who are looking to create more job opportunities for themselves or just get writing training from career professionals to help them get published? Is the only way to find success by getting a grad degree?
““...Sometimes I wish I would have known about the credentials and alternatives available to writing students that aren’t grad degree programs.””
A couple years back, I got my MA in Writing and Publishing. I met some amazing people, read a lot of great books, and produced a lot of my best creative writing to date. It’s also pretty cool to say, “I have a master’s degree,” so I have no regrets, but sometimes I wish I would have known about the credentials and alternatives available to writing students that aren't grad degree programs.
Graduate school can be time consuming (most programs take 2-4 years to complete) and expensive (though lots of schools offer limited assistantships or scholarships), but the hardest part is that having an advanced degree doesn’t guarantee a job. Over the past few years, I’ve researched several different ways that aspiring writers can gain more experience and new marketable skills outside of a grad program.
This probably sounds like cheating. It’s not. It’s also obviously not the full graduate class experience—you won’t have an instructor guiding you through the material, asking questions, or requiring you to respond in a thoughtful way to the information. But books on writing are the raw tools of any writing or English graduate degree and the lists are easy enough to find.
If you already have a grad school-bound friend or colleague, ask them to keep a list of books that show up on their syllabi. College book stores will also have lists of required reading for classes, and you can find what classes are being taught each semester by browsing an online course catalog. Plenty of professors are also active writers and bloggers who regularly share their class reading lists with their online audience, and at the very least, a Google search for “most taught books on writing” will definitely give you a strong start.
If your desire to get a graduate education is steeped in a desire to become a published author, you’re not alone. One of the best things about going to graduate school is the opportunity to write extensively and workshop your pieces, letting others weigh in on your drafts. This is a hugely important step in becoming a published writer. But luckily, grad school isn’t the only way to achieve writing and revision.
If you know other people who are looking to improve their writing game—maybe from college or from work—you can easily suggest starting a writing group. It doesn’t have to take place in a classroom; the only rules for a writing group are to write, read respectfully, and revise. You can also use online forums or sites like MeetUp to find like-minded people to start a writing group with or even join an existing one. Libraries and community centers also often offer small, volunteer-facilitated groups or spaces for patrons to start their own.
If you’re craving the advice and instruction of a seasoned writer or veteran professor but don’t want to commit to a whole program, you can find courses online that specialize in teaching just about anything. Looking to brush up on the art of revision? Want to dive into fiction or horror writing or the short story? Want to learn about how to network with publishing or submit manuscripts? There are courses covering all of that and more at your fingertips.
For instance, LitReactor is an incredible resource for both aspiring and longtime writers. They not only write regular articles on books, writing and publishing and host a helpful podcast, they also offer very reasonably priced online writing courses. A 2-week online workshop class taught by Fight Club author Chuck Palahniuk was featured once and writers paid $250 for coaching and instruction; they also have classes on writing and selling YA novels, writing mysteries, and tons more.
There are also plenty of Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) available to students. MOOCs are defined as “a course of study made available over the Internet without charge to a very large number of people.” Lots of prestigious universities (like Stanford, Princeton, MIT, UCLA, etc.) as well as smaller institutions offer classes conducted in this open resource platform.
No matter what kind of class you take, however, make sure you can find information and review on the instructor or course by other students to make sure it will be a worthwhile and helpful experience.
Certificate programs are great for professional development and staying up to date on industry trends. Some of them function as condensed grad school programs—they’re the same classes that graduate students are taking, but certificate seekers take fewer of them and pay less.
Community colleges also often offer certificate programs that are designed for students who aren’t seeking a degree but are interested in updating skills or continue education in a specific field. Some English majors go on to earn Technical Writing certificates to help them get jobs in textbook or manual publishing. Whether you take the post-baccalaureate certificate route or decide to go for a continuing education certificate, certificates are a great way to add to your skill set and qualifications or help you prep for graduate studies down the line.
Writing conferences and conventions usually do two things. They connect readers and writers with publishers and books at trade shows and book fairs, and they also present on literature and discuss writing. Conferences are a prime destination for connecting with authors and agents, learning about the state of publishing, or workshopping in a genre.
There is no shortage of professional conferences for writers. For example, the Association of Writers & Writing Programs has an annual conference that features over 2,000 presenters and 500 readings, panels, and lectures. BookCon takes place annually and features tons of authors, book signings, and publisher appearances and panels. There are also plenty of smaller conferences held at libraries and community centers and genre-specific conferences!
The whole world is an educational experience waiting to happen, and you don’t have to limit your learning to the classroom. If you’re not sure about making the graduate school plunge or just want to sharpen a few skills, try some of these alternatives to grow your abilities as a writer, help you earn a promotion, or put you on the path to publishing.
Marianne has an MA in Writing and Publishing from DePaul University and currently works as a Content Developer. After getting her master’s degree, she decided to dedicate her life to being a huge nerd and semi-professional animal rescuer. She spends most of her time reading and watching science fiction, eating Greek food, listening to music that was popular in 2003, and thinking fondly about the time that she hugged John Barrowman. If the writing gig hadn’t worked out, she probably would have taken up race car driving or roller derby.
When I graduated college, “blogger” was not a job title. Not really. People blogged, sure, but very few were making money from it. I couldn’t name a single blogger celebrity or someone who got a book deal by being a successful and well-known blogger. Now I can name dozens. I’ve read many of their books. It’s a whole new world.
Still, for most English majors or people who want to have a career in writing, blogger celebrity status and having bills paid by blog ads or paid product reviews might still not be an option. The internet is really, really big and finding dedicated readership is increasingly challenging with so many competing voices.
Having realistic expectations about readership and book deals, however, does not mean that blogging is pointless. In fact, there’s tons of ways that blogging can help you grow your skills and ultimately help you further your career.
Blogging will help you exercise the same kind of writing skills you’d utilize at work. Plus, if you're serious about it, blogging puts you on a regular writing schedule with deadlines, which is something even very talented or paid professional writers struggle with but is important for just about any job.
Social media has changed the face of publishing forever; we are encouraged to live in the moment and simultaneously document and broadcast news, events, and thoughts as they are happening. This is not a negative. In a lot of ways, it’s forced people to be more aware and more creative when publishing content. But there is still a time and a place to slow down, do some research (or just some soul searching), and have another pair of eyes on your writing before hitting publish. This practice is crucial to lots of writing-centric jobs, including everything from working on a corporate marketing blog to working on a lesson plan to drafting a grant proposal for a nonprofit.
““If you have a dynamic, well-maintained, updated blog, you never have to worry about scrambling for clips if someone asks for a writing sample.””
If you have a dynamic, well-maintained, updated blog, you never have to worry about scrambling for clips if someone asks for a writing sample. When a company wants to know if you’re qualified to do something – stick to a timeline, complete a project, communicate effectively, craft a story – you can show them how you’ve already done it.
You usually have to pick a theme and build posts around your blog’s "voice" or topic like marketing, cooking, fashion, or book reviews. Successful writing—whether it's articles or regular ol’ emails—often has to be succinct, direct, and on topic with minimal meandering.
But it also should be encouraging, because it means you DO have a huge pool of potential readers. Anyone could find you! Maybe not book publishers (but also, maybe!), but people who dig your subject or style or your voice. And you can easily reach out to other bloggers, which is helpful in growing your audience and your knowledge. Blogging can put you in touch with other writers, creatives, and readers who you can potentially network with for work and projects or simply learn from in life. Plus, having a personal blogging website means you’ll show up in recruiter and employee online searches and that professional step might just put you ahead of other candidates. If you attend writing conferences and conventions, you could even consider having a business card made up with your blog URL to pass out to new contacts!
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Really, it comes down to “the more you write, the better writer you’ll be.” If you want to be a successful communicator in your chosen career (especially if that career is “paid writer”), you’ll benefit immensely from committing to regular writing and having people read it. If college gave you an excellent start and the tools you need to write well, then don’t stop after graduation! It can be challenging to commit to a blog schedule with other obligations, like work, class, internships, or trying to find a job, but even finding the time to update once a week or every other week is definitely a worthwhile commitment that can grow your career and showcase your creativity.
Plus, it’s never been easier to start and setup a blog. Gone are the days of hand-coding HTML or having to shell out major money on design or a domain name. Investing as little as a weekend and $10 bucks a year, you can set up your own personal website that you’ll be proud to share professionally. If you’ve started a blog in the past but fell out of the habit, now is the perfect time to get started again!
Marianne has an MA in Writing and Publishing from DePaul University and currently works as a Content Developer. After getting her master’s degree, she decided to dedicate her life to being a huge nerd and semi-professional animal rescuer. She spends most of her time reading and watching science fiction, eating Greek food, listening to music that was popular in 2003, and thinking fondly about the time that she hugged John Barrowman. If the writing gig hadn’t worked out, she probably would have taken up race car driving or roller derby.
If you’re an English major, chances are you’ve been asked about your plans to become an English teacher more times than you can count. And chances are, you’ve started to seriously consider either double majoring or switching to English Education altogether.
Or, maybe you are an English Education major trying to decide whether or not you want to keep with the program. Either way, here are some tips and bits of information to help inform your decision, from a former English Ed major:
Do you actually want to work with kids every day, or are you looking for job security? If you are considering being a teacher, my first recommendation is to take education classes to see if it’s something you might be interested longterm. If you decide that you might want to be a teacher, get a substitute teaching license and try your hand at substitute teaching. If you enjoy yourself at work, teaching might be in the cards for you. I initially thought that I had wanted to work with teenagers every day, but when I started substituting, I quickly realized that I was looking at the profession with rose colored glasses. I had thought that most of the kids would be like I was in high school: quiet, willing to work (if a bit grumbly about it), and willing to follow directions. The reality is, most kids will do anything to avoid working in class and you’re going to spend a lot of time telling them to exit Snapchat and put their phones away.
Chances are, you’re not going to be Robin Williams in “Dead Poets’ Society,” Hilary Swank in “Freedom Writers.” That isn’t to say you won’t change any lives, but it’s not going to be easy. Some days you will feel like you’re constantly fighting an uphill battle. Some days, you’re lucky enough to win, but you have to know how to deal with your losses and fight again. When I was in practicum (which is like student teaching, but usually doesn’t take the whole semester), I was lucky enough to have a good group of kids that completed the assignment I gave them. However, there was one student that only answered a few of the questions (and gave me half baked answers at that), and despite my offering of more time to complete the assignment and letting him know he would receive an F, he completely refused to finish the worksheet. Putting an F on that piece of paper was the hardest thing I ever had to do in my 5.5 years of college, even knowing that the student was okay with it. If you do decide to go down the teaching path, I would recommend keeping chocolate in your desk for days like that, because you will have them.
Most of your time will be spent writing lesson plans, grading assignments, attending meetings, talking with parents, etc. Many of my teacher friends are up late at night writing lesson plans and spend their weekends grading, which leads me to my next point...
Although you do have a personal life, it’s not as free as that of non-teachers. Teachers don’t work 40 hour weeks. Once grading, lesson planning, and meetings are factored in, the estimate is likely 60-80 hours a week. Additionally, teachers often must be conscious of going out to bars and restaurants on the chance that they might run into a student or a set of parents. I had one friend that, during student teaching, was so tired by the end of the week she ended up going to bed at 5 p.m. on Friday nights. I’ve also heard teachers talk about never actually having days off because they would spend 8 hours grading on a Saturday. This was one of the details of the job that sent me to the other side of the fence when making my decision. I am not somebody that does a lot of detailed planning, I’m more of a “go with the flow” kind of person, and more often than not, that personality doesn’t fit in with the education due to the amount of time spent making and adjusting lesson plans (because you will have to adjust them, especially if you have students that have special needs).
While seeing my friends’ Snapchat and Facebook teaching posts makes me wonder “what if,” I know that I would have been miserable. Despite my mother’s frequent inquiries about when I plan on getting my post-bac in Education, I know that I personally do not have what it takes to be a teacher. Teaching is the kind of profession that requires you to give 110% of yourself to all aspects of it, and that was something I was unable to do. Teaching requires nothing less than absolute passion, and if you have it, go for it! If you don’t, pursue the job you do have absolute passion for. For some, it’s creative writing. For others, it might be journalism. For me, it’s manuscript editing.
Whatever you decide... good luck!
Caitlin Anderle is a not-so-recent graduate from the University of Wyoming. A former English Education major, she currently works as a substitute teacher and as a media specialist for Townsquare Media. Caitlin hopes to work as a manuscript editor, specializing in fiction novels. When not working for the school or the radio station, Caitlin works as a contributor to eNotes and writes the occasional piece for Dear English Major.
Ah, the life of an English major. The endless hours spent hunched over one of the twelve books you have to read by the end of the week, as well as the ten page papers all due at once… the sweet life. The smell of old books and the sound the leather bound covers make as you slowly open them to bask in their knowledge... it is the most delicious part.
But the one thing that I cannot stand, the constant question that I get from everyone:
I have heard that specific question so many times it has driven me to start making up my major. Sometimes I pretend to be a psychology major, or a biology major, just to get people to stop asking that question, because it is always followed by: So what grade level are you going to teach?
““I just stare at them blankly and say, “I want to do research.” That astounds them, you can research literature?””
That really gets my goat. I just stare at them blankly and say, “I want to do research.” That astounds them, you can research literature? Yeah, you can. It’s called going forth and getting this thing called a Master’s degree, or even a PhD. Say what?! That’s right, graduate school. The scariest step you will ever take in your academic career.
You might think you are insane, but after a nice long ponder with a warm cup of tea, you come to realize, that is exactly what you want to do. It is not some lackadaisical decision made on some sunny afternoon on a whim, and it is not a last resort. It is something that you have seriously thought about, like I have. You have come to love what you have been doing for the past four years so much, that you want to get down to the nitty gritty.
You have become passionate about what you want to do, and there is no shame in that. You might think that you have lost your marbles, as you start filling out the applications and you realize how long you are going to have to wait before you get the results, and you will go crazy. From the time you apply in December/January, to the time you hear back in mid-March, you will have gone through so many different levels of freaking out, you’ll feel like Jack Torrance.
But I warn you, think about this decision. I deliberated this decision for almost two years before finally sticking to my gut and going for it. I am here to help with this heart wrenching process. If you are considering applying to grad school, there is a list of things you should do long before the application due date:
Is grad school really what you want to do for the next x amount of years? Do you want to be going to seminars and writing papers, where the length requirement will terrify the freshman in you? Are you willing to set yourself down for hours on end each night and roll up your sleeves to really dig down into the topic of your dreams?
If so, great! If your heart is in the right place and you know that you can do it, than by all means go for it—but start as soon as possible. Once you have made the decision, do whatever extra work you can and prepare for the most emotional, exacerbating, exhausting trip of your lifetime.
After all of that hard and long decision making on whether or not you should go, if any uncertainties still lie within that big juicy brain of yours, ask a professor. Your professors are there to help and guide you—they are such a valuable source of information. They have been through the same process as you, and know what you should be doing to get into the best graduate school, but most importantly, the right graduate school for you.
They will tell you what you need to hear to get on the right track, and they will give you fantastic advice. I absolutely adore my professors. They were phenomenal when I asked them what I should start with and where to go. Their advice is golden. Do not be afraid to ask for help.
““Get all of the scholarships done as soon as possible. I waited too long and most of the scholarships I qualified for were already closed for submissions.””
Once the decision has been made, the planning begins. Get all of the scholarships done as soon as possible. I waited too long and most of the scholarships I qualified for were already closed for submissions. The Fulbright Scholarship, for example, has a deadline in October. I was looking for scholarships in November. Do not wait for them!
Those bad boys will kick you where the sun does not shine if you do not study. Their website is helpful and you can get a lot of good material off of it for free. There are also the subject tests, and many colleges want the English subject test taken to help further separate you from the others. I recommend taking the GREs and the subject tests more than once. They are meant to screw with you! They are difficult, do not be fooled. The summer of your junior year going into your senior year is the best time to take them, but taking them earlier would be better. That way you have a chance to get the results by October, and they are the results that you want to send out, not the ones you have to send out.
While you are scholarship hunting and studying for the GREs, you are also going to want to start doing any extra work that you can. If you have great grades and can do any sort of Honors work, do it. Your school has an Honors Thesis program, so write one. Get involved with academia as much as you can.
Also, get started on what you will be using as your writing sample. The average length that graduate schools want for English/Comparative Literature majors is 20 pages. Some may want more, others may want less, but if you have a good enough sample there is nothing to worry about, especially if you have been doing well with your academics. You can even use your Honors Thesis that you worked so hard on for the writing sample.
Graduate schools want to see your best work to see how far you have come and if you have what it takes to go even further. All aspects of the application process are there to help you to stand out from other applicants. Your resume will help and you want to beef up your resume in your remaining years in undergrad.
This is also something you do not want to wait to get done. Your professors, as great and as valuable as they are to you, also have jobs to do. They do not sleep in their offices like vampires and wait for your shining face to enter through their door. They have papers to grade and classes to prepare. They have meetings and who knows what else on their plate. They are not at your beck and call.
If you want a letter of recommendation, ask them early and give them a due date, before the semester even begins. The longer you take to ask, the longer you will be waiting to get them. If they do not have it done by the time an application is due… well, it is not good. The school you are applying to will try to work with you, but only so far.
You also want to make sure you are asking the right professors for those letters. You want to go to the office hours as much as possible; hang out with your professors, see them outside of the classroom and try to play nice. Once you get to know them, they are pretty cool people. I mean, you will still have that one professor who will not stop quoting Shakespeare every five minutes, but it is endearing and amazing that they can pull out a quote from one of his many plays and put it in context with the conversation.
They have stories from their times in school as well, and they love to tell them. Your professors will not bite! They love to talk about their research, you get them going on that, nothing will stop them. I mean nothing. Befriend your professors, stop by to say “hi.” They are amazing people and are there to help. I cannot stress that enough!
Your statement of purpose is the most important part of your application. They may give you a maximum word count, so you have to say as much as you can, as briefly as you can. Let the graduate school know why you want to research your topic, the topic you want to research, and the people you want to work with within the departments. It shows that you have dedicated yourself to the application.
And for the love of all that is vocabulary, do not reuse your statement of purpose. Do not take the names and change them around. You are not getting away with anything, because if you mess up and forget to switch a name, there goes that school. So please, please, please, rewrite the statement of purpose for each program you are applying to. Each program is unique and is looking for students who want to work hard, there is no cheating on applications. You will only be cheating yourself of a great opportunity.
If you can, submit your applications early—the earlier the better! Submitting applications early means that you have been planning for this and spending valuable time working on the recommendation letters, the statement of purpose, your resume/CV, and all of the other odds and ends like TA applications. You want to get them done, and get them done right.
That’s right. Your head is going to be swimming as you apply to schools. You are going to be working on all of this while school is going on.
Your senior year is going to be stressful. I graduated a semester early and I am sweating bullets waiting to hear back from graduate schools. You are going to go through twelve stages of stress and then back again with a tub of Ben and Jerry’s on your lap. You will try to read and take your mind off of it, or maybe class work will make it go by faster… it will not. It is going to be absolute torture.
Then, when you hear back, you may even get a letter of rejection, and it is okay; repeat that to yourself about seven times and breathe while doing so. That school, that one school out of the six or so you applied to, found other candidates. Trust me, you will survive. Have a backup plan just in case—you may not ever need it, but it is there. This is something you want, and you have worked hard for it. It may be something that you have been dreaming about for the past few months, and you may get kicked in the shins once or twice, but you have to let your work speak for itself.
Do not be afraid of your writing sample, if you did the smart thing and started early and have worked on it diligently, then it will show. You have to have faith in your abilities!
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So, my fellow English majors, this process may take you through some interesting times in your life. Don’t be afraid of taking that leap. You may think you are going insane, wondering why you wanted to do this from the beginning, but just reread the papers you loved writing the most. I do all the time. It brings back the passion that I have for this great literary world. It reminds me of the classes I wrote them for, and the professors I got to know and befriend.
English majors, Mr. Darcy was turned down by Elizabeth on his first try—we all know why. The second go, he received the acceptance he had wanted, and we all should learn from that. If at first you do not succeed, try again. Keep working hard and it will pay off—maybe not at first, but you will see a light at the end of that long tunnel. I wish you luck in your endeavors and hope that you remember to simply breathe, and that everything will work out as it should.
Brittany Eldridge has a BA in English (Albright College) and is currently waiting to hear back from a few graduate schools, biting her nails every waking moment she can. It’s a stressful time, but she still keeps on writing and reading as much as she can. She even continues her research in her spare time. Brittany is an easily spotted bibliophile, as she always has her nose in a book. She wants others to know that they are not alone in such a crucial time in their life and to keep following their passions.
