Eve, MA in Modern and Contemporary Literature

My name is Eve, and I’m originally from Derbyshire, but moved away five years ago now for my undergrad, and have stayed at the same university for my master’s.  Writing is something I’m really interested in, and I also like football, ballet and a bit of X-Box.

What master’s course are you studying and why?

I’m studying an MA in Modern and Contemporary Literature, which followed on from my undergrad in English Literature and Creative Writing.  I chose an MA in this area because I want to be a writer, and one thing I need a push with is reading more texts in the area that I want to write in, which this course enables me to do.  I think that will give me a real edge if I’m thinking about getting my work published.

What were you doing before you began your master’s?

I took a year out and did a graduate internship at my university, working in student support. It was while working full-time for a year that I realised I missed studying.  Even though the work I did was really interesting, I realised it wasn’t my passion.  So I came and spoke to some of my old lecturers and they were positive about it so I thought, well, I’ll go for it.

How did you find out about and choose your master’s course?

I knew I wanted to stay at the university where I did my undergrad, because I really liked my undergrad course, and I knew the academics and support staff. Also, I felt really settled in the city.

Had anyone in your family done a postgraduate degree before?

I don’t think so, no.

How have you funded your course?

I received a bursary, took out the postgraduate loan, and also work part time, around 20 hours a week.

What has been the most interesting part of being a postgraduate student?

The most fascinating part has been the course and what we’re reading, and being able to specialise in what I’m interested in.

How different is postgraduate study from undergraduate?

I think I underestimated how much of a step up it was going to be.  The content of what we’re discussing in my seminars is more complex than my undergrad. Also, at undergrad, not everyone had done their main reading, let alone the side reading. Whereas during a master’s, everyone has done all the reading, so the level of discussion is stepped up.  The other side of it is that you have more freedom – most of your questions you’ll be writing for yourself, coming up with your own topics.

Have you accessed any other support whilst on course? If yes, what, and how did it help?

I used my department’s student support team, who are really nice, and I’m also registered with the disability support team. My academic advisor has also been really helpful, and helped me find a solution when I was really stuck for money in January.

Was there anything you were worried about before you started your course? How did it turn out?

I was worried about pretty much everything! Especially money. I was also worried that the work would be really difficult, which it has been.  But I’ve actually really enjoyed how challenging it has been.

What has been the biggest challenge for you in taking a master’s?

I knew that I wanted to carry on studying, but I didn’t know if it was going to be too difficult for me, if I was ready to work at that level.  But the only way to overcome that is to just throw yourself in, and try and get as much out of it as you can.

What skills do you feel you have gained from your PGT course so far?

When I started my master’s, I was really keen to go onto to a PhD and kind of go down the academic route.  But my grades have been quite hit and miss.  Still, I’ve really enjoyed I’ve got out of it so far.  At the end of the day, you’re not going to uni just to get a number on a piece of paper, to go on to get another number on another piece of paper, and another degree.  You are here to learn, and I think everything I have learned has been really valuable to what I actually want to do, which is writing.

What are you planning to do next? Have your future plans changed during your course?

The course is making me think that I’d like to do a PhD.  But another thing is that I’d quite like to get into is charity work, or something like that.  So I’ve not got an 100% grounded plan, but I’m studying part-time, so have another year to go yet.

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