TakeMyCoffeeBlack

I'm guessing at this point, there will be a couple that professors absolutely want, and a couple where something doesn't quite fit. The rest might be just up for grabs (e.g. we had someone doing this just graduate, so we could use him/her; or: we have one person with similar interests in first year, so don't need person X?).

There's nothing wrong with knowledge for knowledge's sake, folks. 

To be fair, you do come across as generally very intelligent. You can just be generally very frustrating.

Guy here... But in the next month a place like JC Penney's will have great deals. Not sure how you feel about Penney's brands, but I've gotten some blazers there for ridiculously low prices. 
 
I mean, someday I'll go get custom tailored suits. But for now, I'd rather drop $30 on a $150 jacket and have it tailored to me for $15-20. Just a thought.

In an "informal interview" like the ones OSU has done this year (though as I understand it - and I'm not an OSU applicant - this is more of a preliminary recruitment/getting to know you process in OSU's case, no?), what would be the types of things the interviewer might be looking for (positive and negative)? If a University has granted an interview, are they at this point gauging student interest, seriousness, etc. or might it be the make or break of the application?

I don't agree that race and gender should not be admission criteria. I don't think the world should be an absolute meritocracy, where the only thing that matters is how much someone has achieved. I think the level of achievement should be tempered by the conditions in which these achievements were gained. The reason is that the job market, the world, academia, etc. is set up in a way so that certain groups have clear advantages over others. If we don't keep this in mind, it will be a runaway cycle. To me, it's more important to have a diversity of good ideas than just the very best ideas. 
 
A personality profile might be a good idea, but I doubt the ability for a metric to accurately quantify a personality. But even if it worked perfectly, do we really want to restrict grad school or any career to certain personality types only? 

COACHRJC PLEASE INCREASE THE NUMBER OF ADMITS

While it hasn't come up too much in this thread. it looks like Rochester will not be making decisions this week.  Sounds like a slightly bigger pile than usual (though the pile is never very big relative to competitors).
 
Anyway, one less thing to gnash teeth about.  OH DEAR GOD LET ME GET INTO ROCHESTER SO THAT I CAN ENJOY COACHRJC'S WONDERFUL COMPANY AND ROCHESTER'S WONDERFUL WEATHER.

Oh yeah, and Magners is really popular too. I'm more of a Smithwicks guy myself.

I work at a pub, and we've got our holiday party tomorrow night. Should be fun to have some Guinness and Smithwicks!

Professor Nooruddin last year:  "Do we assign weights to the probabilities a given admit will come (i.e., do we have models of the yield?)? Of course, we do. But top departments believe they can compete and do."

Just wondering, how can admissions committees tell if someone is likely to come or not?

Look at the cost of grad housing and divide by 12 (even though you only get to live there for like 9 months, I think). How much is it a month? In most cases, you will save a lot of money by living off campus, either in a studio or by finding a roommate. 
 
Also, be in touch with your program and financial aid soon and frequently. My girlfriend got a sweet gig at like $18 an hour for 18 hours a week at her grad school, but it was one of very few jobs like that.

It's my understanding that the composition of the adcom should, in the end, play very little role. If you think about it, most adcoms have what, 6 people? And most faculties are much larger than 6 people. In cases where the adcom reaches out to POIs for opinion, I doubt that she wouldn't be consulted even though she is on leave (it's in her interest to have an opinion on these decisions!).

I'm kind of at a perpetual orange. I am desperate for information.
 
IR IR IR asked earlier what we'd be willing to do for admission. Well, for any admission committees members out there, I'd be willing to send you German chocolates and wines from the vineyards of Baden and the Rhine (my two favorite wine regions in the world)!

I'm kind of at a perpetual orange. I am desperate for information.
 
IR IR IR asked earlier what we'd be willing to do for admission. Well, for any admission committees members out there, I'd be willing to send you German chocolates and wines from the vineyards of Baden and the Rhine (my two favorite wine regions in the world)!

I'm kind of at a perpetual orange. I am desperate for information.
 
IR IR IR asked earlier what we'd be willing to do for admission. Well, for any admission committees members out there, I'd be willing to send you German chocolates and wines from the vineyards of Baden and the Rhine (my two favorite wine regions in the world)!

JUST GOT A PHONE CALL FROM A TOP SCHOOL'S AREA CODE! I won a free trip on a Royal Norwegian cruise... DAMN IT! 

Clarify in a follow up e-mail if you're really worried. You might want to demonstrate that although you have specific research in mind, you're open to other directions.

Clarify in a follow up e-mail if you're really worried. You might want to demonstrate that although you have specific research in mind, you're open to other directions.

So, we should assume that the admissions processes will proceed in a similarly accelerated manner, right?

an hour and a half in admissions time is like a year.

an hour and a half in admissions time is like a year.

I had similar dreams two nights ago... Woke up with an e-mail from Pitt, but it was just confirming that my application was complete (might have been because I updated my CV?). Killer...

I think this is what I'll tell my gf when she asks if I joined the gym yet.

all quiet on the admissions front...