The Draw of the United Kingdom PhD in Creative Writing

The Draw of the United Kingdom PhD in Creative Writing Miriam Johnson Introduction In the summer of 2005, my friend and I spent six weeks in Florence, Italy studying creative writing and traveling around the country During this six-week trip, I was able to see a bit of Europe, organize my schedule back at my home university allowing me to graduate a semester early, save money and time by going abroad and get a taste for education outside of the American system I think my parents hoped that by sending me to Italy, I would get my European adventure out of my system and come back to the States, settle down and marry like a good girl from Alabama is supposed to They were so wrong and I’ve often wondered if they regret giving into me that first time This paper deals with the reasons why I chose the United Kingdom as a base for my post graduate studies in creative writing I will be discussing how the United Kingdom is a more viable choice for postgraduate studies for Americans in regards to testing, costs, timescale, application process, options in distributed learning and the teaching opportunities The importance of things such as visas, costs of moving and adjusting to a new environment are not negated in their omission, but are not the main concern of this paper and therefore glossed over The Issue of Testing The GRE is divided into two main tests, the General Test and the Subject Test GRE General Test ‘The GRE General Test measures verbal reasoning, quantitative reasoning, critical thinking, and analytical writing skills that are not related to any specific field of study’ (GRE General Test Overview) The test was designed by and is still under the jurisdiction of the Educational Testing Service It began as general aptitude test given to gauge skills in vocabulary and mathematics In 1985, the analytical writing section was added and in 1992 the test went digital, with most tests being given on computers at registered testing centers worldwide The scores for both the verbal and quantitative reasoning used to be given on a scale of 200 to 800 with ten point increments The scores for the analytical writing section will remain on a six-point scale that increases at increments The Subject Test The Literature in English Subject Test is comprised of 230 multiple choice questions regarding poetry, biography, the essay, the novel, short stories, drama, history of the language, literary criticism and literary theory The questions are drawn from English language literature worldwide and emphasize authors, works, genres and movements The Subject Test is scored in a 200 to 990 scale with ten-point increments with the average score being 542 and a standard deviation of 98 (ETS Guide to the Use of Scores Pg 14) I took the GRE General Test in 2005 and scored a 2401 in the quantitative section, a 650 in the verbal section and a 4.5 in the analytical writing section According to the GRE score interpretation guide seen below, on average, only one person scored lower than I did on the quantitative section, I was in the top 90th percentile in the verbal reasoning section and just above average in the analytical writing section Having taken the test twice to improve my quantitative scores, which only went up to a meager 290, I applied to ten of the top Creative Writing MA programs in the United States and was turned down by all of them–the only one with legitimately explained reasoning was Tulane University in New Orleans They kindly explained that due to Hurricane Katrina, they were not accepting any new students in the year I applied The other universities turned me away without even an explanation It may be thought that I was a less than stellar applicant in other areas aside from my GRE Scores, but as an undergraduate at Auburn University I was a member of the English Honor Society, received two scholarships from Quarter Horse organizations, maintained a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.8 in my subject, won an internship for the English department inside Auburn’s Jule Collins Smith Museum, had poetry published in a national journal and had recommendations from the museum director, poet Christopher Forhan and author Judy Troy It can only be surmised that the universities I applied to looked first at my GRE scores, which in the United States are often placed at the top of your resume and immediately passed over for one of the more ‘qualified’ applicants Time Versus Cost Scores are approximates to indicate the point During the application process for my MA in creative writing I applied to the University of Southern California, Auburn University, The University of Florida and I shall include Harvard as an Ivy-League example The application deadlines were as follows for admission to the Fall 20062 class: The University of Florida: January 16 Auburn University: January University of Southern California: December (of the year prior to enrollment) Harvard: January I did not find out that I had been unsuccessful in my applications until the end of March, and by that time I had missed every deadline to apply to other universities in the United States and would thus have to wait until the following December to re-apply I was working as the managing editor for a local entertainment magazine3 and was ready to move on In the spring of 2005, I took a chance and decided to apply abroad for my MA in both the United Kingdom and Australia I applied to Loughborough University in England simply because they popped up first in my generalized internet search, and upon initial contact, I was greeted with warmth and continual help from the academic admissions department and the director of the MA Creative Writing Program, Dr Jonathan Taylor I also applied to Napier University in Australia Both universities required transcripts from all universities attended, at least two letters of recommendation, a sample of critical work and creative work (from 2,000 to 4,000 pages), resume, personal statement and a satisfactory application form (How to Apply, 2009) I was accepted to both universities within weeks and was welcome to start in the fall of 2006 I All dates listed below are current for the 2009-2010 academic year, but apply to the previous 2005-2006 year as well The Auburn Loafer settled on Loughborough University because the staff was so helpful and because my parents kindly offered to pay for the flight over if I went to England instead of Australia While in the second semester of my MA in Creative Writing at Loughborough, I made the decision to return to the United States to pursue my PhD in the same field I applied to about ten universities throughout the United States, but all required copies of my GRE scores, which I had not retaken after getting accepted to universities abroad In April of 2007, I received my last rejection letter from the list of US universities I applied to I was stuck in an academic no-man’s land of having to wait until December to reapply to US schools, and then begin in the Fall of 2008 or I could apply to another MA in the United Kingdom with my extra year I decided that the best choice would be to apply to Oxford Brookes University’s Publishing MA program I applied in May of 2007 and began the course in the fall In summer of 2008, I applied to the University of Edinburgh’s PhD Program in creative writing and was accepted for a January 2009 start date In the time it took me to obtain two masters degrees in the United Kingdom and begin my PhD, my peers had just finished their singular masters degree in the same subject would now (in some cases4) have to wait until the following December to apply to doctoral programs and wait yet another year before they can begin, which makes the United Kingdom a more sensible choice in regards to time Once the hoops have been jumped through and a student is selected for admission into either an the MA or PhD program of their choice, they must then weigh out the In some programs, where the students choose to stay on at the same institution for both their MA and PhD, the MA and PhD is rolled into one and progresses without much of a lapse of time between the two balance between costs of tuition and living versus the time it takes to complete the degree Costs Weighing Costs vs Time It can be seen from the above examples that sometimes it would be fiscally more sound to stay in the United States and attend an average university But where the universities with the better programs and reputations are concerned, the cost of attendance begins to expand and the United Kingdom can lay claim to a clear advantage of cost versus time Distance Learning/E-Learning In the United States, the doctoral student is required to take taught courses for their first two years before moving into teaching positions Therefore, it is expected that the student be a resident of the area near the university for continual access to classes and campus for the duration of their degree5 In the United Kingdom, most6 universities offer the option of distance learning This enables the student to be absent from the university setting during the duration of the degree and still keep on track for receipt of a three year PhD In most cases, unless the student is overseas gathering research, the student must make arrangements to meet with their advisor/s, usually on a bi-monthly basis Some United Kingdom universities are proactive and have taken an initiative in distance learning Teaching Opportunities Some leeway is allowed for on-site/off-campus research Most referring to most of the Universities contacted in the years 2005-2009 unless otherwise indicated If there is one area in which the colleges and universities of the United States are the superior option for a postgraduate degree, it may fall under the category of postgraduate teaching opportunities At the PhD level, the United Kingdom fares a bit better in comparison While in the United States, a doctoral student is allowed to begin teaching in their first year, however in the United Kingdom the same student would not be permitted to teach undergraduate courses until the end of their second year and into their third7 In their second year, the doctoral student who wishes to teach undergraduate courses must be instructed in teaching methods that correspond to the university of which they are a member In my own experience, after completing my MA in creative writing at Loughborough University, I looked into the possibility of returning to the United States and taking up a teaching position at a college There were a plethora of jobs to be had, but most required a PhD in the applicable field, and/or a list of published works and if that was not the case, they wanted the applicant to have at least a year’s experience teaching at the collegiate level I barely met any of the job specifications and was unsuccessful in any of my applications Therefore I decided to pursue my MA in Publishing and then my PhD in creative writing, which will give me the edge I need to obtain a professorship and the time to put together a list of publications GTAs are usually monitored by a full member of staff Information is based on conversations with directors at Edinburgh, Lancaster and Middlesex Universities Advantages of a Postgraduate Degree from Abroad By applying for a doctoral program in the United Kingdom, you immediately stand out due to your initiative as an international candidate Their doctoral programs in creative writing are among the best globally There are fewer reasons to apply for a position in an average university in the United States that happens to have a good doctoral program in your area With the trepidation of not meeting the criteria for entry and the fear of costs rising as the years extend, it is better to attend a university in the United Kingdom that is among the best in the world, for less cost, less time, an abundance of culture and inspiration, the option of distributed learning and the international degree that will land your resume at the top of the job pile and pull your creative output from the slush pile on an editor’s floor Conclusion Ultimately, there are pros and cons for American Students when considering pursung a postgraduate degree abroad Issues such as cost vs time vs experience vs teaching experience have to be weighed carefully before an informed decision can be reached Another consideration is the acceptance process In the Unites States, almost all graduate programs require the GRE, and though the department itself may ‘pretty much ignore scores’ (Leavitt May 2009), usually the university has minimum score standards that must be met before the department can consider the candidate, or otherwise an appeal must be launched on behalf of the student The United Kingdom, for the most part, does not require the GRE to be taken and rely more on writing samples There is also the comparative cost of the quality of the universities considered According to the university ranking on Topuniversities.com, which ranks the top 100 international universities by area of study and overall, Harvard is the best university overall and in Arts and Literature studies Five years of study at Harvard (with living expenses) will cost on average $276,780.00 In the United Kingdom, the top two universities, Oxford and Cambridge, respectively, not offer doctoral degrees in creative writing The third highest ranked United Kingdom university in the area of Arts and Literature is the University of Edinburgh Three years of doctoral study in Edinburgh will set a student back $91,335.00 That’s a cost difference of $185,445.00, plus the time frame of studentship is less in the United Kingdom When it comes to teaching experience, the United States has the advantage, but when all the factors are weighed out, it makes logical sense for an American doctoral candidate to look abroad to the United Kingdom and broaden their horizons while getting a degree from a world-renowned university And, if they are like me, they can save money, indulge in the luxury of the proximity to mainlined Europe, obtain their PhD and just decide to stay on this side of the pond Bibliography Educational Testing Service (2009) GRE General Test Overview [Online] Available from: http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menuitem.1488512ecfd5b8849a77b13bc392150 9/? vgnextoid=e1b42d3631df4010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD&vgnextchannel =5416e3b5f64f4010VgnVCM10000022f95190RCRD [Accessed on May 2009] (2009) GRE Guide to the Uses of Scores 2008-2009 [Online] Available from: http://www.ets.org/Media/Tests/GRE/pdf/gre_0809_guide.pdf [Accessed on May 2009] Harvard University, The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (2009) English: GREs [Online] Available from: http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/programs_of_study/english_and_american_literature _and_language.php [Accessed on 04 May 2009] Leavitt, David (04 May 2009) A GRE Question Email to Johnson, M  ... for the duration of their degree5 In the United Kingdom, most6 universities offer the option of distance learning This enables the student to be absent from the university setting during the. .. offer doctoral degrees in creative writing The third highest ranked United Kingdom university in the area of Arts and Literature is the University of Edinburgh Three years of doctoral study in. .. admission into either an the MA or PhD program of their choice, they must then weigh out the In some programs, where the students choose to stay on at the same institution for both their MA and PhD, the