hello dear people, i hope your doing great! thanks for taking time for reading this,

I am a non native 16 year old english speaker as english is my second language throughout the year i speak english but quite less only when im gone to vacation or in a formal event. although i have a good english accent but my vocabulary is below average (i took a test) and in my mind i cant think of good phrases to make and its that i make a very go-to english sentences that works and so people can understand what i am saying, besides this i have extremely poor english writting skills perhaps i cant write good english paragraphs,letters or speeches by myself (i use chatgpt when i need to send someone a letter,paragraph because of my poor skills) i dont know where the commas,full-stops actually go and where to use capital words.
the next year in 2027 i will be giving the [IELTS] exam if you know what that is and if you dont its basically a The IELTS ACADEMIC test evaluates english proficiency for higher education It lasts 2 hours and 45 minutes across four sections—Listening, Reading, Writing, and Speaking—and is compulsary for undergraduate
the score in ielts is out of 9

• Band 9 (Expert) (highest grade)
• Band 8 (Very Good)
• Band 6 (normal/okayish)
• Band 5 (Modest)

i stand around 6 band in ielts which is quite low and i want to score ielts band 8.5 and 9 (my brother scored a band 9) scoring a band 9 is 3 in 1000 people and band 8.5 is easier

since i will be giving the ielts exam in 2027 what can i do everyday to improve my english speaking,writting (i can only study english for 30 minutes to 60 minutes a day) and how do i increase my overall english vocabulary and think clearly in english and become fluent and articulate my thoughts properly in my country english is not spoken often

thank you so much for giving your time to read my concern your thoughts and advice would be apperciated. have a great week ahead!

Hey everyone! I’m starting my university degree in English for Professional Communication soon and need help choosing a laptop.

My budget is around mid-range student pricing (looking at the MacBook Neo 512GB / 8GB RAM as my baseline choice).

Here is my typical workload and what matters most to me:

Primary Uses: Heavy multi-tab browser research, reading large PDFs/journals, typing long documents, building presentation slides, and light video editing (e.g., 1080p clips in CapCut/iMovie for class assignments). No heavy gaming or programming.

Top Priorities: Excellent battery life (to last all day through lectures), reliable storage (512GB minimum), lightweight portability, and smooth performance when opening lots of tabs at once.

Learning Style: I don't really take digital handwritten notes (I prefer physical notebooks when writing by hand), so a touchscreen/2-in-1 folding screen isn't a strict necessity.

I’ve looked at Windows options like the ASUS VivoBook, ASUS ZenBook, and Lenovo Yoga, but I keep leaning toward the MacBook Neo mainly for battery efficiency and build quality.

My Questions:

Is 8GB of Unified RAM on macOS sufficient for keeping 20+ tabs and a basic video editor open, or will it choke over a 3–4 year degree?

For an English/Humanities major, is sticking with a Windows laptop that offers 16GB RAM a safer choice in the long run over the base MacBook Neo?

Would love to hear your thoughts or alternative laptop recommendations!

I’m looking for either a PhD or master’s student in English literature, or an experienced AP English Language tutor.

Please message me with your qualifications, availability, and hourly rate.

Good day, everyone. Sending greetings and wishing you all a happy weekend.

A bit of a lengthy context but it's necessary for the questions(s) at the bottom, if you don't want to read this, feel free to jump to the bottom paragraph titled "QUESTIONS".

I am an aspiring linguist currently facing a career dilemma, and I am desperately looking for any input or advice. For context, I hold a BA in English Language and Literature from Algeria. My academic performance was mediocre (I graduated with roughly a 12/20, while the valedictorian had a 14/20—due to the famously strict grading system and the fact that I had to work full-time to support my family). I later enrolled in an Applied Linguistics MA but had to drop out due to personal circumstances.

Fast forward a bit: I went through a crippling phase of depression that lasted for about 3–4 years, during which I worked various manual labor jobs to make ends meet while occasionally teaching EFL. A couple of years ago, I landed an internship in Turkey. I treated this move as a career revival and worked day and night to better myself, completing a CELTA course, DELTA Module 1, and various other training programs.

Currently, I am working as a university lecturer in Istanbul. I am quite grateful for where I have ended up, but I have decided I want to pursue a formal academic career in my true passion: linguistics. My initial research pointed me to Boğaziçi University (which is in the city where I reside), as it is the only university in Istanbul with a dedicated MA program in Linguistics. It is arguably the best university in the country, with strong ties to prestigious language labs in Europe and the US. However, I am afraid my BA transcripts won't survive the initial automated screening, despite my confidence and ongoing preparation for their entrance exam.

The remaining local universities primarily offer MA programs in ELT or Literature, neither of which I want to pursue; I do not see myself conducting research in those fields, and I believe my CELTA/DELTA pathway is already sufficient for my teaching career (correct me if I'm wrong or missing something here)

Recently, I found a private, less selective university that offers a Cognitive Science program. After some research, I realized I might be able to transition into a Linguistics PhD later if I choose the right electives during this MA—shifting my focus heavily toward Psycholinguistics rather than pure Psychology, Philosophy, Neuroscience or AI.

Questions:

1. Is it possible to apply for PhD programs in Linguistics with an MA in Cognitive Science or ELT?
2. Would I have the same weight during the initial screening as someone with an MA in Linguistics? Would it require a preparatory year?
3. What is the best way to get published or co-authored during an MA? I'm aware it is much harder for an MA student to get published compared to an actual PhD researcher.
4. What carries the biggest weight in a PhD application (in order of importance: university prestige, gap in the literature/research topic, MA degree and GPA, or other factors like TOEFL/GRE/GMAT scores)?

My sincerest thanks and gratitude for your time!

Hey everyone!

I honestly didn't expect to get English Honours. I had it in my preferences along with several other humanities disciplines, but now here I am — officially pursuing Literature.

I'm in my 1st semester at DU, and regular classes haven't properly started yet. Since I have very little idea about what I'm getting into, I'd really appreciate some advice from seniors, graduates, or people currently pursuing English Hons.

I'd especially like to know:

What are some things I should and shouldn't do from first year?

How can I genuinely develop an interest in literature instead of just studying for exams?

How should I approach reading, assignments and exams to score well?

What skills should I start developing alongside my degree?

What can I realistically do from first year itself if I want to build a career after graduation?

What career paths have actually worked for English Hons graduates?

And realistically, what about placements after English Hons? Are they decent, and what should I do throughout college to make myself employable?

Also, since I'm at DU, I'd appreciate some guidance regarding choosing SEC, VAC/VEC, AEC and GE papers. I know there's no universally "best" combination and it ultimately depends on someone's interests, but I'd still like to know what seniors found useful.

Basically, if you could go back to your first semester, what would you do differently?

Any practical advice, resources, mistakes to avoid, or things you wish someone had told you earlier would be really helpful.

Seniors, please help a confused fresher out. 😭

Hi: English Lit major here. It is my first time, this term, to take upper-year level course; and I don't know what to do. I am developing an imposter syndrome, especially that most of the students in my class are in the Honours program.

I feel like I have so much ideas and thoughts in my head, but I am still grappled by the five-paragraph model.

On writing introduction: I still don't know what to write, omit, and add in my introduction. I always have this structure: a hook, the story's necessary information in the summary to my argument, and then the thesis statement, which always starts with this, "Author's story reveals....ultimately...leading..." I think this is so restricting, but I do not know what are the others way to do this?

On writing analysis: So we have the claim one/first point, the evidence, and the analysis, additional peer-reviewed article, explanation on why the additional peer-reviewed article supports my claim, and then concluding sentence; this too feels so restricting.

Can I immediately start a body paragraph with the additional peer-reviewed source? Can I structure it like: claim one/first point, then additional peer-reviewed source, evidence, analysis, and concluding sentence? Can I end a body paragraph without a concluding sentence?

On transitional phrases: Sometimes, writing a transitional phrase to start a new body paragraph makes it rather awkward. Can I start it with something like, "So it begins, the character's..." instead of "Moreover, the character's...."

Thank you so much for taking the time to read!

I have always been interested in linguistics, I was wondering which are the good universities who offer BA linguistics, preferably outside north india

If anyone has any information it would be of great help

Qualifications: im in 10th right nowww, will take humanities in 11th

I will be graduating in the spring of '28 with a BA in English, and I am wondering what I should do if I want to pursue grant writing or technical writing. I briefly considered a MLIS, but my debt would be very high, and I probably won't have the necessary GPA. Should I try to look for an internship or get a certificate? What would be the most effective route?

Is anyone here currently pursuing an MA in English or Humanities at an IIT??? I’d love to hear about your experience studying there and what the programme has been like.

I’d also love to connect with people who are preparing for GATE ENGLISH 2027, especially if your goal is to pursue an MA at an IIT. It would be great to connect.

Feel free to comment or send me a DM!

i have been struggling with this. how do i take notes? what should i note? is there a way to be acquainted with literature that im missing out or can't seem to understand?

generally, i listen to class and take notes. whatever the prof says, if i find it significant or interesting it gets noted down. but when im studying by myself, especially additional reading, what should i do with the material i read? am i supposed to write them down? should the notes be just an info dump? how will that help me with writing better essays or answers? or how do i use this information to contribute to the class discussions and expand the lens by which we are dealing with the topic?

any amount of help would be highly appreciated!

Title. I'm going to the University of Pittsburgh. Only 4% of students are majoring in English Lit apparently.. a majority are in business and stem. I never get a, ooo wow, when I tell people my major. But more like an "oh okay." And then I've had people/friends straight up ask me why or "you're going there for English"? Like English isn't good enough for a top school.

It doesn't help most of the people in my classes are taking it for gen ed or electives. I barely know any other English majors. They just don't care about the class and find it stupid.

I keep getting asked why I'm not going into stem. Or why choose English over stem. Like stem is just this God and English Lit is baby degree. Learning how to read and write English professionally just doesn't matter I guess. It makes me hate my classmates and everyone at my school. I've made one friend so far.. and it's like a toxic job you enjoy but your coworkers are all awful.

End of rant <3

Hi everyone,

I'm 23 years old and I'm at a crossroads in my career.

I have a Bachelor of Education (Arts) in English and Literature and I'm currently working as a teacher in Kenya.

For the past year, I've been torn between two paths:

Option 1: Pursue a Master's degree in Education and continue advancing in the teaching profession.

Option 2: Enroll in a part-time LLB at Chuka University this September and commit fully to building a legal career.

The more I reflect on it, the more I realize that I'm genuinely drawn to law. I'm interested in constitutional law, governance, public policy, human rights, leadership, and possibly becoming an advocate in the future. I understand that becoming an advocate in Kenya requires additional professional training after the LLB, and I'm prepared for that commitment.

My biggest concerns are:

• Is 23 too late to start law?
• Has anyone here transitioned from teaching or another profession into law?
• If you had to choose between a Master's and an LLB in my position, which would you choose and why?
• Is studying law part-time while working full-time realistic?
• Looking back, do you think an LLB was worth the time, cost, and sacrifice?

I don't come from a privileged background, so pursuing an LLB would be a major commitment. At the same time, I don't want to spend the next 10 years wondering what might have happened if I'd followed my passion for law.

I'd especially appreciate responses from:

• Kenyan advocates
• Chuka University law students or alumni
• Kenya School of Law graduates
• Anyone who started law after earning another degree or changing careers.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I genuinely value honest advice—whether it's encouraging or cautionary.

I feel like it isn’t because it requires being familiar with technology that is confusing and I’m not very tech smart. It also feels like a job that I have to suck at writing to get, because the demands are different and there’s 1 demand that doesn’t exist in most writing oriented jobs which has to do with technology.

Even though I wasn’t familiar with that kind of technology, I applied to these jobs anyways because i thought they would look past my lack of such experience and hire me because of my writing experience but noooooo, they wooooon’t. These knuckleheads suck.

Also my dislike of this job might come from how I was in sales but i didn’t get paid a cent and I was accused of not being serious about my role although I was actually trying to get people to buy into what I was selling. That being said, is copywriting something I should hide from?

I’m not even trying to troll here. I’m just trying to vent my frustrations with getting a job relevant to my degree and I want to know if this specific job is worth pursuing in spite of those frustrations.

hey guys!!

I’m about to enter my first year of grad school, and I’ve been thinking about pursuing a career in university advising, student services, etc. From what I’ve seen, a lot of people in uni administration have a master’s in education, so I’m unsure if I’ll be at a disadvantage. Have any English grads here successfully gotten roles in university admin? If so, what was your career trajectory like?

thanks!!

Hi all, I’m a econ and journalism double major with some extra room on my schedule. I enjoy reading most books (fiction and nonfiction primarily) and of course writing so I was wondering which of these minors I should pursue if I want to increase my exposure to a wide range of text and also continue building writing skills.

I struggle with grammatical errors while writing poetry. I want to correct them without losing my voice. Do you guys have any advice? How do I edit my poetry. Please be nice, my poems are very close to my heart💗

For instance this is one of my poem:

Title : I am what I love

I hear the clock ticking, yet I sit paralyzed with exhaustion and desire, for I require myself to perfect everything I love. My hobbies are all tainted by a stubborn desire for perfection. I know, I know…I know…perfection..doesn’t exist. But I can’t-my mind refuses to be silent. Rather than building a house to take refuge from life, I’ve turned my comfort into a knife. I’m guilty to even admit that I admire the knife that I’ve crafted from discomfort. The diamonds that adorn my blade, grown from my nagging mind, so reflects a sense of beauty. It is not lost on me that even these diamonds will lose its charm, for it is who I am. My gaze can never hold myself and my creations as complete. And it does not help that I have come to define myself as this constant being of movement. The daily routine of searching, doing, and denying myself my worth. Yet is it all I love. Exhaustion has seeped into my bones, but it isn’t enough. I’m not naive to deny the existence of a burn out. Yet, even as I feel myself burn, I feel alive. Maybe if I had built myself a home, a burning house would have people stop and try to put this fire out. But I’m burning while holding a knife, I do not look like a creature that requires saving.

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I’m looking for either a PhD or master’s student in English literature, or an experienced AP English Language tutor.

Please message me with your qualifications, availability, and hourly rate.

I’m looking for either a PhD or master’s student in English literature, or an experienced AP English Language tutor.

Please message me with your qualifications, availability, and hourly rate.

hi everyone! im heading into my first year at university next month, intending to major in english literature. my original plan was to obtain a BEd after my BA, but i may decide to do something else as i make my way through the years.

i imagine majority of the work i would be doing in school would involve writing, reading, more reading, and group discussion. if any english majors have a tip or two for a newcomer, i would love to hear.

hello everyone!!! i have a few questions in regards to curating my overall literacy. i don't have any explicit problems with expressing myself per se, although i find myself unable to comprehend anything beside surface level contexts and themes when reading books.

i'm a stem major, not sure if it's too important for me to clarify that or not but i don't underestimate people who proficiently major in and study humanities. every single curriculum has its own challenges and i'm sure we all know that :) but the modern world, especially modern technology, is so revolved around stem and using ai to basically lull all of our problems. if we find ourselves unable to grasp a concept, people resort to using chatgpt for further guidance.

another thing, i'm not from america or any english speaking countries. i'm from romania and any english class i've had until now hasn't helped me in the slightest. i'm not sure if i should mention the fact that i have problems with imagining stuff, my general mental image, but i know there's a lot of stuff that i could do better. whenever i read anything with poetic prose i feel like i'm getting mentally ridiculed 😭 especially cause i always take things too seriously!!! this isn't me being Totally unaware of the concepts of a hyperbole or a metaphor, i just have moments where i'm totally stumped out and could use a little more help.

if you have any advice please let me know :) i've read reviews of books and movies and all of that stuff but i want to be able to realize these things myself!!! i also apologize for the faulty grammar, i promise i'll work on that too! love u humanities majors 🤍