Dear Reader,
As we embark on 2024, I wanted to take time to reflect on my first semester as an MA student.
I just submitted my PhD applications. Some of them asked me to list any “relevant skills” that I possess. Why this question stumped me, I do not know. I mean, I have been in university for almost six years now! I have skills! I promise! Thankfully, last year, the phenomenal resume coaches at Career Services helped me highlight my skills during a stressful job application process. We identified my writing abilities as one of my central skills. Looking back over the course of this year, my writing has undergone some serious changes. While it is no surprise that graduate-level essays are drastically different from undergraduate-level essays, the learning curve was abrupt!
The longest essay I wrote during my entire undergraduate degree was around 12 pages. In my first class last semester, my professor outlined the expectations of a 20-page paper. I remembered struggling to reach the 12-page requirement of my undergraduate essay; how was I supposed to develop another eight pages on top of that?
Thankfully, I had exceptional guidance throughout the process, and I want to take this opportunity to share some of that guidance with you!
My greatest struggle in writing is getting started. The topic is what stumps me every time. So for one paper last semester, I spoke to one of my professors, who gave me some extra readings to consider. As I skimmed them, I came across so many new theories and ideas and considered how they could apply to the research I was conducting. At the flip of a switch, everything started falling into place all because of one essay in an anthology. This method made all the difference, and it got me writing much faster than if I had tried to develop the idea on my own. Who knew that reading extensively wasn’t just about finding others’ ideas—it’s also about catalyzing my own?
Another struggle is time. A 20-page paper is going to take longer than a 12-page paper. So how am I supposed to hit the deadline? During a guest lecture in one of my October classes, a remarkable professor gave my cohort a list of pointers for research. A particular piece of advice that stood out was identifying a topic early and developing the paper throughout the entirety of the semester. Prior to graduate studies, I was accustomed to crafting shorter assignments to refine my skills, and then producing a longer paper that I would begin in early-to-mid March. Once I had the idea for each paper, I took my thoughts and notes to my professors and sought their advice. Within the span of 20 minutes with each of them, I had a list of steps to complete over the coming weeks.
And then there’s actually writing the piece. Oh my. I have a hard time putting my thoughts into words sometimes, and I mentioned to a professor that I had deleted pages of my work between our meetings because I just didn’t like it anymore. He was taken aback at the idea of my deleting whole sections, but felt much better when I affirmed that I was actually just moving the notes to a separate document that one of my students once called a “recycling bin.” For that 20-page essay, I had 58 pages of additional notes and writing. There are sentence fragments, random jot notes, entire paragraphs, quotations from research, footnotes, and everything in between all sitting in that document. I just kept writing. And yes, it took months to craft that paper into a submission-worthy piece, especially with all the additional work that did not make the final cut, but it was much more productive than staring at a blank screen. And now I have 58 pages of additional ideas that I can possibly use for other projects! Nothing like a little academic hoarding. I don’t plan to produce that much for every paper, but normalizing the churn of production, refinement, and recycling is an important step for me.
Now, the submission process. Am I the only one who feels like I’m slowly being squeezed by a hydraulic press when doing a final review of my paper for submission? Based on the reactions I saw from friends last term, I’m going to assume that the feeling is relatively universal. When I felt my essay was ready to submit, I printed it and hand-delivered it to my professor because I knew I would spend the entire day re-writing the essay if I submitted it electronically at 11:59p.m. Although the feeling of dread is the same in both undergrad and grad studies, there is one major difference. In undergrad, when I did my final review before submission, I knew I probably wouldn’t read the paper again. It was up to my professor to grade it and send it back and that was that. But when I handed my papers to my professors last term, I knew they were coming right back with feedback to make them better. Of course, the stress lingers a bit when the suggestions (and the grade) come back, but it adds an extra layer that makes the work so much more meaningful.
Overall, one of the most important lessons I have learned about writing is to talk about writing! Through a series of critical conversations, I have been able to transition more smoothly into the realm of graduate writing. Talk to professors. Talk to peers. Talk to staff at SASS. Just get the ideas out there. The support and critique of these people is invaluable at every stage of the writing process, so as we enter the new semester, consider scheduling a meeting with some people to get work moving along!
Until next time,
April