MA/MPhil and PhD English Applicants 2022

Hi, I thought it might be useful to continue last year's thread (https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6763266&page=48) for this year's applicants so here it is.

We could start by introducing ourselves and the courses and/or universities that we're interested in/applying for, as well as a little bit about ourselves.

Universities that you're interested in/applying for:
Courses that you're interested in/applying for:
Brief description of research interests:
Current/most recent university:
Current/most recent course:
Favourite book/book recommendation:
Currently reading/most recently read book:
Nationality:

And lastly, I hope that this can be a helpful, informative and supportive environment for this years applicants - so best of luck with your applications!

Hi there,
Universities that you're interested in/applying for: QMUL, UCL, SOAS, Durham and Uni of Kent (made contact with prospective supervisors)
Courses that you're interested in/applying for: Post colonial literature and culture, Comparative Literature, South Asian Studies.
Brief description of research interests: Interested in analysisng marginalisation and subalternity
Current/most recent university: Jadavpur University, India
Current/most recent course: B.Ed
Favourite book/book recommendation: Les Miserables
Currently reading/most recently read book: A gentleman in Moscow
Nationality: Indian

Hi, great to hear from you! By the way, are you looking to apply for an MA/MPhil or PhD? I should have put that in the original description so I'll edit that now.

I am applying for PhD.

Oh cool! How are your applications going so far?

Not bad actually. Most of the professors have expressed their willingness to supervise my work, if I am selected. I am yet to hear from anyone at SOAS.

How are your applications going on? I really wanted to apply at Oxford but couldn't find a supervisor whose research experience matches my area of interest. I hope you get in Oxford University. It is really one of the best.

Hi, I thought it might be useful to continue last year's thread (https://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=6763266&page=48) for this year's applicants so here it is.

We could start by introducing ourselves and the courses and/or universities that we're interested in/applying for, as well as a little bit about ourselves.

Applying for a Masters or PhD:
Universities that you're interested in/applying for:
Courses that you're interested in/applying for:
Brief description of research interests:
Current/most recent university:
Current/most recent course:
Favourite book/book recommendation:
Currently reading/most recently read book:
Nationality:

And lastly, I hope that this can be a helpful, informative and supportive environment for this years applicants - so best of luck with your applications!

Hello guys! To those of you applying for a PhD, did you prepare (or are you planning to prepare) your research proposal before or after you contact(ed) your prospective supervisors?

That's great to hear and hopefully you'll hear back from SOAS soon. My applications are going okay. I'm reapplying to Oxford this year, having been put on the waiting list last year so I'm reworking my applications from then. I'm also going to use different essays as my examples of work this time round so working on adapting those as well. Thank you also for your kind words and best of luck with your applications!

Hello, honestly wasn't sure if I should reply to this post or not, I'm a bit nervous about applying to do a Masters but I'd love to hear about other peoples experiences and plans! I'd appreciate any advice!

Applying for a Masters or PhD: Masters. I've taken the year out after my undergrad to think about it but I'm thinking of applying for some form of research masters as it is most accessible to me. I haven't made contact with any potential supervisors yet but if any one has any advice about that then it's be very helpful!
Universities that you're interested in/applying for: University of Glasgow
Courses that you're interested in/applying for: English Literature
Brief description of research interests: Representations of gender, along with a focus on fantasy fiction
Current/most recent university: UHI
Current/most recent course: Literature BA (Hons)
Favourite book/book recommendation: I always feel very put on the spot by this question, sorry!
Currently reading/most recently read book: Currently reading the Hobbit for the first time!
Nationality: Scottish

Hi, great to hear from you! I'm also applying for a masters course after taking some time out this year and did some applications last year so I'm somewhat familiar with the process - and so I am more than happy to answer any questions here or over private message. In terms of being interested in research courses, whilst I haven't applied for them before because mine were all taught courses, I have some ideas of what is involved and helped a friend with her application - probably more importantly however, is that I know that Newcastle University also offers an English MLitt course, which is a research programme. Also, having studied there at undergraduate, I know that there are a lot of staff with interests and specialisms in gender - partly because this is something that I'm also interested in and wrote about for my undergraduate. I'm not as familiar with fantasy fiction though so it could be worth having a look on their staff pages to see if someone there has research interests aligned with your own. I would also say as a final note on Newcastle that I love the university and it's a great department, the only reason I'm not staying is because they don't offer the course I want to, otherwise I would definitely carry on there. So hopefully this is some food for thought on case you're interested in looking at other universities as well Glasgow. Best of luck though with wherever you decide to apply and like I said before, I'm more than happy to help out in any way that I can!

Hi guys! Thought I'd join this thread as I've just submitted my first application

Applying for a Masters or PhD: Masters
Universities that you're interested in/applying for: Sheffield, Bristol, & York so far; might look at others
Courses that you're interested in/applying for: English Literature
Brief description of research interests: I'm mostly interested in 18th/19th century stuff! Not really doing research though
Current/most recent university: Southampton
Current/most recent course: BA English (graduated with a first a few months ago )
Favourite book/book recommendation: Nerdy but the complete works of William Blake is my go to!
Currently reading/most recently read book: Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall... I like a bit of easy-to-read romance sometimes
Nationality: British

Hi, great to hear from you! Besides William Blake, what sort of 18th/19th century literature are you interested in? I'm also interested in 19th century literature so it's great to hear from someone else who is! In case you're interested, Durham offers a Romantic and Victorian Literary Studies MA, which I applied for last year and it offers modules which, by the sounds of things, would fit well with your interests.

Hi! I'm pretty much interested in anything from early Romantic to fin de siècle -- I'm not sure what it is about that whole period that appeals to me, but it's always been my favourite

I did look at that exact course at Durham and I loved the sound of it! If it were up to me I would definitely apply, but I'm in a long-term relationship with someone who refuses to go to Durham because it's too small and pretentious...

How are you getting on with your applications? I'm not sure what the best time to apply is, I feel a bit lost in the whole process!

Oh cool - I'm similar but probably lean towards the fin de siècle. That being said, I've been doing a Jane Austen binge recently and am half way through Sense and Sensibility at the moment. If it's any consolation for your partner, many people that study in Durham live in Newcastle, which is where I studied and currently live and work, and it's a much bigger city and far from pretentious. Plus, even if you live in Durham, Newcastle is 10 minutes away on the train so can visit as much as you'd like - I often like going there, but to be honest I love Newcastle so much that I don't go loads (unfortunately Newcastle doesn't offer a specific Victorian course, which is what I'm after, but I'd definitely consider going back for PhD - but I digress). Also, just as a last thought on Durham, it is small in comparison with Newcastle, but it is also quite sprawling and there is lots to do. Whilst the university has a prestigious and arguably pretentious reputation, the city itself and the people that live there aren't like that at all. So if you like the idea of living in somewhere with the beautiful, old architecture, but isn't a really posh place then Durham definitely has that in my opinion.

In terms of re-applying this year, I've been a lot slower to getting started than I'd like. In between having to get a job to save for a masters, find somewhere to live and having had laryngitis and food poisoning today, it's been hectic to say the least. Mentally, I've given myself until the end of October because I can reuse a lot of my application, just need to tweak and change some parts - plus I've just got Oxford that I'm probably going to apply for this year so just need to focus on getting that in for the January deadline. So basically what I mean to say is don't stress if you are planning to do things later on, I'm a bit further ahead than some people because of having done it before and only having the one course and university to apply for. What I would say though about the best time for applying is that it depends on your current situation. For you because you've recently graduated, there isn't the same advantages of waiting as long as someone in their final year because, for them, they often need time for their research interests and experiences to develop (my interest in age studies only came after doing a module on it in my second semester of third year for example). That being said, it's definitely not worth rushing and as long as you get in touch with your referees and let them know your plans (which I imagine you've already done having had submitted an application already), then take as much time as you need. Even though you might not have modules this year that would change your interests, there are still lots of experiences that you might have this year that could change and redirect where you want to go so it's worth in some ways staying open to that and allowing yourself the time for things to change. On the other hand, in terms of your own sense of security and being able to plan for the time ahead, it is good not to leave it to the last minute, and also because a lot of places have rolling deadlines, there isn't necessarily a sense of first come first served, but it is good to get applications in earlier rather than later. When I applied to Oxford last year, I got put on the waiting list and my application went in quite late because I was balancing my third year workload and whilst for me I don't think the timing made a difference on me being put on the waiting list, rather than being given an offer, there were other people on waiting lists for different courses that I spoke to on The Student Room that felt as though this was the case for them (as their applications were ranked really strongly and sometimes even had the offer box ticked on their assessment forms that they got back).

So basically what I'm trying to say is don't rush yourself and risk the quality of your application, but also don't leave it too late on in the application cycle. Hopefully this helps and let me know if you have any other specific worries. I think a lot of people feel confused by the application process (myself included and this is my second time!), but hopefully we can help each other out through threads like this!

Hi! So sorry for the late reply! Thank you so much for your advice, it's really helpful. I've been to Durham twice actually and really loved it, I applied to do my undergrad there but didn't get in. Maybe Newcastle would be a nice alternative, it's definitely something to look into. There's so many nice cities and universities but things are suddenly a lot harder when you're two people with different preferences both wanting to do a postgrad course, but I'm sure we'll figure it out

I definitely like to get things sorted out early, I get nervous leaving things to the last minute. Plus this way I can ask for references without them asking "and who are you again?" -- since the last year and a half of my course was online I don't know any member of staff that well! Fortunately I've got my personal tutor and my diss supervisor willing to provide references but I'm a tad worried they won't have that much to say about me. We'll see! What's the application like for Oxford? Is it the same as other unis? I had a look at Oxford last year but was put off by the fact that I probably wouldn't get in anyway, and also the tuition fees were quite high if I remember correctly?