and now that i've got my visa interview letter, i'm reluctant to go: not that i've anything to hide - i'm not planning to blow up any universities - but such interviews are always unpleasant, condescending - and then i know they will ask along the lines of why i want to study english? and then where does one even begin? that's the kind of thing i've tried to do in a personal statement, and it is still not enough: it is exactly the sort of thing that takes a lifetime to answer - or else comes out hesitant and faffy, the only way to confidently answer it is to resort to the trite - oh you know, training to be good writers and communicators, hone important life skills such as organisation, analysis, prac crit, all of which are traitorous answers to my mind but can you say anything else? and that is the position i hate being put in.