What Do You Do With a BA in English?

Personal Statement Planning!

Why do I want to go to grad school?

1) I hate my job.
2) I miss using my brain.
3) I want to devote a significant amount of my time to writing.
4) I want to GTFO of this part of the country. 11 years is just way too long. And I'm old enough that I really shouldn't be living with my parents anymore. Noooooo.
5) I miss workshopping!
6) I want to sit around and discuss ways to present ideas in writing. Dork!
7) I want to EDIT more!
8) I want to (FINALLY) write a story longer than a few pages from beginning to end.
9) I want to learn how to plan a novel... and then apply that plan to my "novel," which needs some refocusing and um, about ten rewrites.
10) I fucking hate commuting.
11) Having a BA in English doesn't qualify me to do SHIT except, perhaps, writing essays and mediocre literary criticism. (I can haz certification in SOMETHING useful that pays, PLZ???)
12) Okay, having an MA or MFA in creative writing will land me in the same puddle. I don't care. Having an MA or MFA in something is better than nothing. And I can't stand the thought of studying something I don't love. Silly romantic that I am.
13) Maybe I can take an editing course! I could put that on my resume!!! And be absurdly proud of it!
14) I think I'll be less angry if I'm more fulfilled.
15) Oh man, having time to write ANYTHING.
16) I have to prove that I'm worth something to humanity so when the rat-bots take over, I won't get dead. (Google Gordon rat brain robot. You'll see.)

Now, I just need to rework this into something like a personal statement. ^__^

Labels: grad school

posted by ariah @ 1:03 PM