student90210

It's like a mafia, all together in this: schools, publishing companies, testing companies. I think it is a more broad issue, which concerns the costs of higher education skyrocketing in America and education being just for those privileged enough to have the resources to afford it. Sometimes I think about going back to Europe...

I totally agree with you and it is understandable, especially if you see rejection after rejection. I do think it is a very dry process, in which it is hard for schools to evaluate you at your real potential, but it's the same way on the job market. All it matters is to get in somewhere and prove yourself. You can do great research regardless of the school you're at, as long as you're hardworking and dedicated. I don't blame anyone that gets upset with a school for rejecting them, as you said, it's a coping mechanism and that's fine. Everyone goes through an existential crisis when they graduate and think: "Now what?" so being rejected by the academia and having to go find a job is really difficult.

Got into UCSB! Long, nice letter from the admission chair! Extremely happy! Funding information to come later.

I sympathize with you, I'm in the same boat. But look at the results board and you will see that a lot of the school you applied to haven't released anything.

Seriously? Stanford called someone at 6 am to let them know of their acceptance? Doubt it.

I'll open a bottle of wine for every rejection letter and I'll open a bottle of wine for every acceptance letter. Either way, I'll be drinking...

Disappointing season so far... Cornell is out and I didn't get the email. Same goes for Maryland (still have some hope although) and Austin.

I am kind of upset that I didn't get an email from Maryland, it was definitely my first choice for comparative/Eastern European politics. I see they are sending out acceptances...

I called the department and I asked about that and I received a pretty peculiar, kinda rude answer: If you didn't get an email by now, you're probably rejected, but we're still sorting through our system. It was brutal and it was hard to keep my mouth shut when someone that knows nothing about you announces you that you're probably rejected.

I've done the same thing, nothing for me either. Maybe it is a good sign, they sent out a few rejections and now they are still deciding on the remaining pool of candidates.

Thanks for this question, I wanted to know the same thing!

I do believe there's such a thing as a "safety school," but it usually applies to people that are very strong candidates. We like it or not, there are rankings and there is a placement record and you can compare a place such as Columbia (IR, for example) with Brown or Syracuse. The rankings are tricky and I learned a lot from them throughout this process of applying. I mostly used the Hix analysis and completely ignore the US News and World Reports. The NRC is good too, but has some problems, especially in terms of WHEN the data was gathered. I, for one, do not have a "safety" school, as I don't consider myself as an extremely strong candidate at this point, but I believe I have the potential, under the right guidance, to became a great scholar. Whether it's in the US, in Europe, Hong Kong or South America, I look at the world as waiting for me and offering me unlimited possibilities. I applied to CEU's Masters program as well, so I guess a Masters could be a "safety." PS: Not to mention the major differences between departments, faculty and subfields.

Sorry to hear about your rejection. I am not too optimistic, but still hopeful.

Did you get a letter? I've been checking the website today all day, nothing.

Got an email from WUSTL with the attached rejection letter. Really sucks, but I was kind of expecting it. I really hope that this will not be my life for the next 2-3 weeks, being told I'm great, but didn't make the cut. I do believe that I have a lot to offer and that it's not my loss, but theirs.

I would say WUSTL is almost done with acceptance letters, last year 7 were reported on gradcafe, this year we already got 5... Sad, I know, I was hoping for that email...

Man, such a slow Monday!

Stressful time

Oh, yes, I saw that. Maybe it's a good sign for all of us, we will get early letters and could plan accordingly.

Congratulations, Tupamaros!

My dream school... I don't think I have a set dream school, but I do like UCSD. However, I am not a big fan of the West Coast. Georgetown and University of Maryland are definitely up there, mostly because they are close to (or actually in) a city I love, DC and have great professors for my interest, comparative democratization. I do appreciate Stanford and Yale as well... NYC is a beautiful city, so I wouldn't say 'No' to Columbia or NYU. I believe the combination great city, great university, great professors is a hard one, so sorry if I cannot decide on one program I would choose.

My applications have strong and weak points and I am not sure at all of my chances of getting in somewhere... 157 V, 159 Q, 3.66 GPA from a small, not-so-great university. Good SoP, good writing sample, good letters of recommendation. Applied to Georgetown, Maryland, Cornell, GWU, American, WUSTL, Brown, Claremont, UCSB, Texas Austin and Brandeis, comparative politics. Now just waiting... Maryland has been emailing me about 3-4 times a week about completing my application, I know it is automatically-generated, but still...