HarmonyMisc

Don't give up! I had a GPA worse than yours and got in to my top choice (USC)! I was super honest--and I mean HONEST. In my essay, I touched BRIEFLY on why I did so bad in undergrad, and then talked about what I learned from that experience. People kept telling me, "If they want to know, they'll ask!" Well, sure enough, they did. They came back and wanted a one-page essay on what the cause of my bad grades were. ONLY THEN did I go into detail. I was honest, and I got straight to the point, like, "look, this is what happened, this is why, I wish it had gone down different, but it is what is and it won't happen again because I am a better person." I think too many people try to explain too much in their essays. Focus on the kind of person you are today and how those struggles ended up being a good thing because they made you passionate. Just my two cents....but that route worked for me, and like I said, my GPA was worse than yours!

I agree with what was said above. It varies, but at USC, I had seven papers due the first semester (taking two classes)--all in APA. I only did one APA paper in undergrad, so that was my biggest struggle. Length and content wise? I'd say 10-20 pages depending on the subject. Be prepared to give your stance on policy issues and have the backbone to stand behind it. Sometimes it's more about getting your view/opinion out there and backing it up more than anything else.

Woke up to my email! What a relief!! But I will be calling to confirm too! LOL Congrats!

LOL....yes.....trust me! I'm laughing at myself too! And, no, no new buttons. It's pretty sad that the humans can't keep up with the computers, isn't it? Haha!!!

So, last night I noticed that my application status changed from "currently in review-blah-blah-blah" to "congratulations on your acceptance!" Huh? Interesting...never received that golden email/letter. I already knew where to go for my statement of intent, so I go there. Log in with my ID and birthday (as it directs). My information comes right up....signed it, got an email confirmation that I signed it, and then got my login information for the schools email. I actually used the email this morning. While that is all good and dandy, I STILL have not got an official letter. On top that, I contacted my admissions advisor and was told "it's still being processed and I should receive a decision soon." REALLY? Anyone else out there going through this? Is it just system error? Or is it my never-ending luck? Thanks for reading my rant...

I see you applied to UNC--just to be clear--I applied to USC; although, I've read so many posts on multiple forums that schools do this. SO frustrating!

Hmm...in a weird way, I'm kind of relieved that I am not the only one in this position. I submitted my application back in January, and still have not heard back. Just the typical "still in review" response. I also paid $85--I wish if being waitlisted were the case, they'd at least tell me. I'm losing my mind not hearing ANYTHING back..."you're waitlisted" would be a relief at this point!

Yay! Good for you! Congrats!!! Still nothing for me....but I applied to VAC, so who knows! :-D

Ditto AyaT! Good luck!!

I had my admissions advisor call and ask me to write an additional "brief" statement explaining some grade deficiencies from 5 years back--maybe that's what they mean when they say "second review?" But that was two weeks ago and I haven't heard anything else. Irritating....

I call/email my admissions advisor. I applied to VAC, so I'm not sure how different online vs on campus admissions are. I applied 8 1/2 weeks ago though, so either way it just seems like a long time.

I just passed the 8 week mark since my application was submitted. Everything's completed/received--I have checked with my admissions advisor about ten times now. "Still processing......." is the only thing I get.

I did hear from them, but no decision yet. I sent you a message about it last week.