crackthesky

Hi all, I am in the fortunate position of being accepted at a few schools, but now I have no idea how to choose. I had 2 schools at the very top of my list (and I was accepted at one with a fellowship and wait listed at the other) but these were also the only two schools that I had the time and money to visit. Is scraping together the funds to visit the other schools I was accepted at worthwhile? I'm already a grad student so I don't have too much money for travel expenses. How do you all make decisions when funding, cost of living, place of residence, and program rankings all vary so greatly? Is there anything that you find more important or less important when trying to discern where to go? I feel a little lost and I'm not sure how to go about deciding.

Thanks so much! Don't lose hope! I just now found out and I know someone who found out last week so I'm not sure what their process is. I didn't even get a phone call...just an e-mail! Hoping for the best for you!

Thank you so much. This actually makes me feel much better and it also makes a ton of sense.

Scratch this...I just received an e-mail a few seconds ago that I was admitted into Fordham with full funding! Whooooo! No, I haven't heard ANYTHING from ND so I'm assuming I was rejected because I was never offered an interview, either.

Congrats on Duquesne! I have not yet heard from Fordham, either.

This thread is hilarious. When applying: "Why don't you apply to Yale?! I LOVE Yale. They're Ivy, you know." "There's no one at Yale I'm particularly dying to work with." "Who cares about that? It's Yale."

Congrats!

Ahh, I suppose it's still too early to start looking and I should perhaps wait a month or two. I am so antsy just to find a place! Everyone on Craigslist seems to still be looking for summer sublets. I'm hoping to find and sign on to a place in the next few months so that I don't have to pay a small fortune or worry about moving in on September 1st! August would be perfect, though.

I think I must still be buying time to find this courage. Deep down, I'm pretty sure I know where I'll end up but I keep telling myself otherwise because I feel bad making a firm decision!

I recently realized that although I am not Catholic, every school I've attended has identified as Catholic. Thus, I have a BA and MA in theology from a Catholic university, and the PhD offer I intend to accept is also from a Catholic school. The graduate program I'm currently attending is also at a Catholic university. I seem to gravitate towards Catholic liberal arts education but I'm wondering if this will be a detriment when I go out into the job market. (I hope to one day be a professor at a university.) Does anyone else have a fairly homogenous theological background? The other school I've considered is more explicitly ecumenical, but my top choice is professedly Catholic (even though it certainly does have a commitment to ecumenical dialogue.) I don't want to give up my top choice school for this reason, but it's also something I've been thinking increasingly about. Thoughts?

I've been thinking a lot about how to decline and plan on doing something very similar to this. The letter that I'm drafting is similar, anyway. I'm in the same boat where I feel some schools and POIs have spent an exceptional amount of time answering questions and trying to recruit. Does anyone else ever feel nervous to send these things? Not in the sense that I feel I'm amazing and these professors will be totally devastated, but I've received a few e-mails from POIs explicitly mentioning that they hope I will choose their program and that they think it is the best fit for me. I feel so awful at the idea of disappointing some of these people, especially because they have been so kind and invested so much time!

One of my acceptances came via e-mail, the other via postal mail. My wait list status came over e-mail as well. The only status I received from the website was from Yale, but they sent an e-mail first requesting that you log in to find out your status (where they had just posted a mass rejection letter.) My acceptances are still not posted in any of the online portals. From my experience, your best bet is to continue checking your e-mail and postal mail! It seems the online systems are the very last to be updated.

That's awful! I have a couple degrees from the same institution so when my transcripts were sent, the online portal claimed that only one was sent when in fact, they were all combined. Luckily I caught this and e-mailed them about it before it ever became an issue. I'm glad everything was okay, though! All is well that ends well.

Not at all trying to be preachy, but if you're going to do law school for you parents, make sure it's for yourself, too! I can tell you from experience that it is exceptionally difficult to invest years of hard work into a program that you don't find yourself passionate about. It's not impossible, but it's no where near as gratifying as investing the time into something that you care deeply about. If doing a JD and MTS at the same time would help to temper any reservations you have about law school, then it may very well be the best option for you!

Hi! I'm in the opposite situation as you: I live in Pittsburgh and I am likely moving to Boston in the summer/fall for grad school. I can repeat what everyone else has said in here: Pittsburgh is a totally affordable city on a graduate stipend, especially compared to Boston. I am in total sticker shock just looking at the cost of living in Boston! As for neighborhoods to live in, I would definitely recommend either Shadyside or Squirrel Hill. Most graduate students live in one or the other. Shadyside is definitely more upscale and has nicer shopping and bars, but Squirrel Hill is a little cheaper and if you live anywhere near Murray Ave, you can walk to the grocery store and there are other shops on that road as well. Regent Square is also a nice area, but way more residential -- not as many students. I'd stay as far away as possible from South Side/The Slopes. South Side is basically a huge bar area and so if you value privacy and the quiet, it isn't that great of an area as a graduate student. Oakland is okay, but it's also become really populated with undergraduates so there is a ton of noise and partying there all the time. Fun for a Friday night, but not so much for a place to live. I moved here last August from the suburbs and were it not for needing to move to attend a different program, I would definitely stay here. If you are planning on attending Pitt or CMU, riding the bus is free which is super nice. I don't really consider Pittsburgh a city in the way that I do New York, Chicago, or Boston. It feels more like a ton of different neighborhoods right on top of each other, each with its own ethos. If you do plan to visit, don't plan on spending much time downtown. It's basically a big business area with a few nice/upscale restaurants. When I first visited and only saw downtown, I thought I was moving to the most boring place on the planet. Also, everyone will tell you that when you get to Pittsburgh, you need to eat a sandwich at Primanti's. I'd skip that and just go straight to Fat Heads in South Side. Primanti's is a big touristy place and all, but really it's just a sandwich with fries and coleslaw on top. Plus, if you like beer, Fat Heads has 42 on tap! D's Six Packs and Dogs in Regent Square is another hidden treasure if you're into beer: they have over 1,000 different ones and you can make your own six packs. I think that's everything important.

This is really good advice. Easier said than done, but certainly wise. Also remember that you aren't just a number and most schools look at you and the "whole package," so to speak. I know my record certainly isn't blemish free, but if you take the less-than-stellar parts of your application and use them as an opportunity to show significant growth (which, it sounds to me like you have), than I'm with Therewillbeluke: sit back and breathe. You've come this far!

I think it partially depends on your long term goals. Obviously, you are in an enviable and awesome position, having no debt to your name. Thus, you have options that most don't have and can work them to your advantage. I think you should probably consider what you plan on doing with this graduate education. If your goal in life is to get a PhD and teach at a university, then the 50K investment now in a graduate program that will help to facilitate a funded acceptance into a reputable PhD program seems like it might be a good investment to make. On the other hand, if you don't want to purse education further than a Master's level, then consider what job options will be available to you with that education and how manageable paying off that sort of debt will be should you be employed.

Came on here to see if the acceptance was you. I know we are all rooting for you! Hang tight and be patient. I know its really tough but sometimes there is no rhyme or reason to this process. One of my acceptances (not even from a wait list) came a week and a half after other people had already heard back. It a'int over 'til it's over. I'm staying hopeful for you!

Regardless of your likelihood of getting in (because I have no idea how to even begin to guess at that), congratulations on your wait list status! I think that even being wait listed at a school like Notre Dame is a tremendous accomplishment.

It totally was. I answered the phone in my "nice" voice and everything! Hahaha, thanks! By someone in moral theology, too! Congrats to the person who was offered the acceptance!

Taxes are currently taken out of my stipend check, although technically I work for the university that pays me, so I am employed by them. As for schools that I am considering for the fall, I have received fellowships from some. Thus, the stipend is given entirely on merit and is not in exchange for any services. I'm not sure if you pay taxes on a fellowship stipend the way you would on a stipend that you work for.

I just received a call on my cell phone from an Indiana number. Despite the fact that I didn't interview, my heart naturally skipped 546843164 beats, as I know Notre Dame is making calls today, and I rarely ever receive calls from unknown callers. It was a telemarketer. AHHHH!

This is great advice, thank you! I know I definitely need to speak to roommates in advance, and I would certainly be upfront about his visitations being every other to every third weekend. Likewise, I would be gone every other or every third weekend to fly out to see him and would want to be clear about this, also. I'm hoping to start looking for an apartment (should I accept the school's offer) in April/May so it sounds like my timing for finding housing will be okay. Thanks again!

I can sympathize with this. I'm worried about finding roommates who will be okay with my boyfriend visiting every other (or every third) weekend. We have decided to do our relationship long distance while he finishes up his PhD program and I begin mine, but we definitely will be doing a ton of traveling to visit each other on weekends. I've always had my own place, so it was never really a problem.

I'm not sold on the idea of living with roommates, but I might have to. If you can get 1 bedrooms for cheaper than $1,500, is there any time in particular that might be good to start looking? I don't mind moving over the summer, or living in a less upscale neighborhood.