Wednesday, April 2, 2008

A Masters? Really???

So as most of you know, I'm taking English 495: Shakespeare in Film this semester. I'm taking it from the same professor I took Shakespeare 382 from, Dr. Brandie Siegfried. And if you've ever heard me talk about her, you know I idolize her and think she is pure genius. 99% of the time, I'm hanging off her every word in her lectures, I invest more time in her classes than any other class, I am BARELY pulling an A-, but I'm perfectly ok with that. So, now that I've set up the repertoire I have with her and how much I respect and, let's be honest, want to be like her, I'll tell you what happened today.
I had a writing consultation with her, which she does for all of her students. She reviews all your papers you've turned in for the semester and offers you the chance to sit down and she'll critique your work. You know, tell you your strengths, weaknesses, and how to improve your overall writing ability. Well I did it last year and really feel that her insights helped me to become a better writer over the past two semesters. So naturally I wanted to get her feedback this time around, as well.
So...my weaknesses? I don't use semi-colons appropriately. Ok, I can live with that. Semi-colons to me are like those big chunky belts that are in fashion right now. They aren't my thing and when I try to pull them off by putting it over a cute shirt, it's all wrong. My other problem Dr. Siegfried pointed out is that I have trouble committing to a thesis. Again, I totally agree. I don't make bold, specific thesis statements in my paper because I don't want to be proven wrong. I tend to keep them general so if someone wants to argue against me, I'm not 100% wrong. And again, that's just my personality and a complex I have...I can't be wrong!
I'll skip over the strengths...to spare you my huge ego. But she thinks I'm fabulous. And then she came out of no where with, "Sarah, I know your life is busy right now, but I need you to promise me that some day you will pursue a Masters." WHAT!?!?! Then she went off for a while about how I have so much potential that a simple Bachelor's degree is not going to do me any justice. Then, to further that along, she wants to help me get published within the next year. She said it will help with an eventual Grad School application, plus she said it might help me comprehend that my writing is "quite exceptional."
Needless to say, I was more than flattered. I was FLOORED. The woman that I look up to, seek constant approval from, and respect above all other professors, thinks I am amazing. So yay me! However, I just looked at the MA for English at BYU and it's like 32 credits...about 2 years. So, maybe if we stay in Utah, I'll think about it. Anywhere else is just going to be too expensive in the near future, but I'll definitely keep it in mind. But again, yay me!

4 comments:

BriAnna Jenkins said...

That is so awesome Sarah!! you, me, ashley, logan, breakfast. Soon please!!

pam said...

Sarah, that is SO COOL!!!!!! I'm happy for you! Why is it so easy for the rest of us to see how amazing and fabulous you are, but hard for you? You SHOULD have a huge ego!!!! :)

Dani said...

Sarah is SO smart!

Tess said...

I love this! I remember when you told me about it. Seriously, Brandie is awesome and such a high opinion of you is very accurate. You rock!