thebeatgoeson

Weirdly enough, I haven't thought about the (un)likelihood of my admission in a few days. I've actually been too emotionally involved in bemoaning the complete lack of response to consider what that response might be. Overall, feeling good about my odds, awful about the process. And Northwestern is a helluva program, It's(Not). It might be comforting to think that you were among the hundreds who didn't make it this year. (It might not.)

Totally NOT just congratulating you in hopes that I can earn some good karma. Seriously, though. That's great.

Because this process isn't already stressful enough.

Working through this process with my partner has been difficult. She's halfway through her own PhD program, so she's not heading anywhere. At the same time, it doesn't seam feasible for me to wait around for three more years before starting my own program. When it comes down to it, I suppose we're both more invested in our careers than we are in our relationship. I hope to stay within a few hours (Maryland, Chapel Hill), but we may be trying out a serious long-disance arrangement if that doesn't work out. Fingers crossed for any acceptance whatsoever at this point.

I'm going through a similar difficulty in terms of scheduling vacation. My partner and I are supposed to go to New Orleans over our spring break (we are both students at the same university), and I just realized that it may overlap with visiting day. The visit is important to her, as I'll be meeting her mother, some of her childhood friends for the same time, but, then again, deciding where I'll be spending the next 5 years of my life is not a small thing either. It seems criminal that academics so often end up with other academics. I suppose it's just one more log to put on the "I'm leaving while you stay here for 3 more years to get your PhD" (in psych) fire. Blah.

It seems unlikely that WUSTL is getting a way-larger-than-usual group of applications this year, but it does feel like everyone applied there. I wonder if there's some sort of correlation between the kinds of people (a wibbly-wobbly idea, for sure) who use GradCafe and the kind of people who are most likely to apply to that program. Merp. I wish some of my comp students would come to my office hours so I could feel productive.

Right? I choose to see this as indicative of the laid-back atmosphere up there. Or maybe things just don't move as quickly at those altitudes. DISCLAIMER: thebeatgoeson knows nothing about the atmosphere of the English department at Boulder, but his POI was very kind.

Right there with you on all three. Sweet Cheesus, it's going to be a long week.

Woke up this morning and immediate checked my email, the results board, and several application pages that should be changing soon. Blah. That being said, good luck to everyone this week!

This. Cannot say enough about how great my MA has been. In addition to everything mentioned above, getting paired up with a mentor who can walk you through the brass tacks of professionalization is really valuable. Edit: I had the same experience of rejection, and now I'm also reapplying. The confidence boost has been so helpful.

Shame on you! (I did exactly the same thing.)

"I hear you haven't yet responded to thebeatgoeson. When will he be notified about the status of his application?"

All of this, a million times. Last cycle (2 years ago), I got rejected from every PhD program I applied to. I resolved to go into my current master's program despite knowing the difficulties (financial and emotional) that come with re-applying. I didn't come in with a lot of confidence in the program, but I have been astounded by my professors' and colleagues' knowledge and generosity again and again. Two years ago, my work could not have adequately pointed me toward a 6 year comittment at a PhD program. This time, I have a much better idea of what I'm signing up for, what I want to study, and where I want to study it. Hang in there and keep an open mind, even if you don't get what you think you need, you may fall victim to a happy accident that sends you to an even better place. pep talk // real talk, indeed.

I'm reading Margaret Cavendish's Blazing World and Doreen Massey's Space, Place and Gender, just like this time last year. Massey's book is spot on; several times through, and I still want to pick it up (almost) every day.

No apologies needed. Had a near death car-on-bicycle altercation last month that left me with a number of broken bones, so I've had a lot of time to sit around and convince myself that applying is not a life or death proccess. I got the rejection via email, but my app status now shows it as well. Best of luck!

I also got mine this morning, about an hour after a friend. They may be breaking it into small groups to avoid email bounce-back. Or maybe rejection has made us cynical and you've been waitlisted!

First rejection of the year from U of Wisconsin. At least they got around to sending a letter! Taking a moment to celebrate the way closing doors give me a better sense of where I'm headed.

I'm currently negotiating the public/private, professional/personal issue in my blog. It's really designed as a place for reflexive writing immediately after I finish teaching my first-year writing class, and, given that first-year composition tends to support earnest reflection, it often blends the personal with the professional. If that's not essential to the humanities, I'm not sure what is. In any case, here's a link! http://greenestteach.wordpress.com/

Hey Proflorax, that is awesome. Thanks so much. bfat, the conference is being held at Duke this year. I got lucky; I'm just down the road in Raleigh. I don't know that I'd call that "easy driving range" from where you are.

Hi all, Is anyone else attending/presenting at SAMLA in November? I actually managed to get a paper accepted (my first conference), and I'd love to swing by some panels and see what other GCers are working on. Also, post-conference drinks don't sound awful. Ever. Cheers.

Timshel: Yeah, I've heard the same thing. It's just hard to come to terms with the fact that I probably shouldn't apply to a school that seems like such a good fit. Alas. Still searching for a comparable replacement.

Hello friends. New member here. I look forward to suffering through this application season with you; doing it by myself the last time through was a special kind of hell. In other news, here are my schools! University of Michigan (UMich) University of North Carolina (UNC) Brown Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL) U Wisconsin Madison U Minnesota Twin Cities New York University (NYU) U California Riverside Rochester Northeastern My interests include -British Women Writers (Early Modern and Long 18th C.) -Feminist Geographies -Women and Science Writing -Margaret Cavendish (Yes, she deserves her own bullet.) I feel like I have a nice little three-tier system going on. I'm still on the fence about Chapel Hill because it is my undergrad. Still, I can already see the professors who would make up my panel. Does anyone ever get back into their undergrad institutions?