SilasWegg

Congrats kurayamino!

The one night I decide to turn off my phone and disconnect from GC.... I get a phone call from Meredith McGill at Rutgers. I was drinking beer and playing drums so I missed the call. She wrote such a nice email welcoming me to the program. This is totally crazy to me. I have a feeling this program is going to kick my ass... but I'm ready.

I am on the waitlist at UMD too. Professor Bauer informed me I'm #4 for US Lit pre-1900. While it does not seem at all likely this will convert, I'm happy that they gave me a look. Also, I suppose you could say something like "anything can happen" here but I don't really say things like that.

*hugs* to WT. "The Conversion of Implication" could make a nice title for a sonnet btw.

And this is precisely what I love about GC. Sometimes, it really feels like we have "hacked" the admissions process.

Agree... walking back my original comment. I wholeheartedly endorse the preservation of our right to complain, organize, and act.

I can't agree more. There is no other industry where the labor market standard is basically a life appointment. It really irks me when my academic pals bemoan the state of the job market on the basis that their many years of elite training does not automatically entitle them to an esteemed and high-paying lifelong appointment. I've worked as a dishwasher, pizza delivery guy, baker, file clerk, and telemarketer... teaching and researching literature, though ruled by elitism and brutally competitive, offers far more job stability and financial reward than any of these various "career paths" I've tried. Basically, I've been on far more unsteady ladders to success (musician and writer) with far more discouraging results. We really have no right to complain. That said, I think the admissions process should be less prestige oriented. It doesn't seem like the prestige of an undergraduate degree is in any way a good predictor of success. Yet, it seems like this might be more of a factor in the application process than we are willing to admit. I would even argue that a wonky undergrad experience glaringly delimits the outcomes of an applicant's options. It makes me sad, is all.

Everyone... please forgive this rant... I've had a lot of coffee and there's something on my mind... I'm one of those applicants with a major undergraduate disaster. I'm talking SUB 3.0, multiple failures, ineligible GPA. However, I've also made a pretty surprising comeback: near perfect MFA GPA and perfect GPA in MA. However, it seems like my undergraduate record has set the ceiling for admissions. Schools in the Top 30 (whatever that might mean) don't seem to want to even give me a look whereas schools just outside of the Top 50 are happy to have me. I realize I might have been able to do a bit more to strengthen my applications in terms of stating my research objectives more clearly and convincingly in my SOP, but I'm beginning to wonder if this would even matter. I'm not seriously considering reapplying... I have good offers from strong programs. Whats more, I would never want to ride this emotional roller coaster again. But given the amount of angsty discussion on GC lately about the relationship between an institution's perceived prestige and the career outcomes of graduates, I've begun to feel disappointed with the elitism I see in the admissions process. I wish someone had told me that no matter how much I achieve in graduate programs, my undergraduate performance precludes me from consideration at top programs. Sure, there might be a million other reasons why I won't get an offer from top schools, but the only real weakness I can see in my application is this undergraduate disaster from ten years ago. The application season is still young and I still have some schools that haven't reported. I really want to be proven wrong. Also, I'm generally really happy with the way my season has gone. But this is definitely an eye-opener for me. In the future, when we advise prospective applicants, be it here on GC or in our discussions with our students, the sugar-coated truth that "anything can happen" might be a little misleading. The fact is, because of the selectivity of these programs and the competition for TT jobs, some applicants just won't compete at more prestigious institutions. As you can see, I'm a bitter beatrice today. And isn't that what the rejections thread is for? I just had to get this off my chest. Thanks for reading and I welcome your responses.

Today is a good day on the grad cafe! Congrats allplaid and hannalore!

Woah... telephone acceptance from Delaware from Dr. Spaulding! Sooooo hard to keep it together on the phone. This is a really good fit for me and I'm really really happy today.

Welcome Quesillo! And congratulations! Delaware is one of my top choices... did they mention how many they will be accepting for the PhD program?

LOL the moment I noticed a Delaware acceptance via phone on the results board my phone rings.... its a PA area code... its... a telemarketer.

Hey congrats cornell admits!

After last week's rejection extravaganza, I'd really love to get some more acceptances going. Options would be nice, right? Here's to another week on the emotional rollercoaster! Get your coping mechanisms ready!

It seems like they haven't really sent out many acceptances for PhDs yet. Maybe there are more to come?

Official rejections from Austin, CUNY, Berkeley, and UVA in 24 hours. My inbox is looking sad. This is beginning to hurt.

Congrats WT! That's a great school and it sounds like you wouldn't have to turn your world upside-down to relocate. Fingers crossed for a doctoral admit though!

Having not received official rejections from Brown or Austin there's a glimmer of false hope.... it will soon manifest as even more crushing disappointment!

On my applyyourself page there was a hyperlink at the bottom of the page that said something like "decision reached." TeaOverCoffee... I noticed on your signature that you got a rejection from Temple. How did they contact you?

Infinity upvotes Ramus. These sorts of concerns are of utmost importance to a strong SOP and WS and we never talk about this on Grad Cafe. Every POI and LOR I spoke to said basically this. While they want to see ambitious and creative research projects, they also want applicants to demonstrate an understanding of the discipline of english today.

I saw someone post that they had been rejected from FIFTY programs. I do believe this poster did eventually receive an offer. The learning curve is really steep for this process. It seems like very few get an offer their first go around. I got shut out in 2013 and I have had two more rejections in the past 24 hours. Now I'm probably moving to Texas?

Congrats mmmscience! So far a clean sweep!

I've always predicted I only get acceptances from schools with huge football programs.