Fleet23

I have an on-campus interview coming up, and I'm curious what to expect for a meeting with the dean of DEI. I'm a white person, but I do equity-related research and teach equity-related classes. Anyone else have experience with such a meeting?

I cannot answer any of the field-specific questions, but I would not say you are too old to start now. I was around your age when I began my Ph.D. program and many of my colleagues are even older.

Fit + visit impressions--as the decision date neared, I realized that I liked the emphasis for my particular program at TC a little more than the emphasis of the program at Vandy. It was a little more specific toward a certain career goal. Additionally, when I went to visit both, my advisor at TC was incredibly helpful and enthusiastic about her students' research, whereas Vandy could not even scrounge up a professor from my program for me to meet with, and I found out that my primary POI was leaving. It was't an impressive weekend. Also, my SO was thinking of applying to Columbia, so it would have made things much easier on that end too. Turns out, I think these initial impressions weren't very indicative of the experiences I had at TC or would have had at Vandy. I think I would have been quite happy at Vanderbilt, plus a little less in debt. But I guess I don't have any regrets; they're both fantastic schools.

Thanks @sierra918and @Jaydubs! and best of luck!!

I attended TC for my masters, and although I wasn't in the IED program, I think across the school it is quite difficult to get assistantships. They seem almost exclusively reserved for doctoral students. I think this because it has such a mammoth student body, slots are extremely competitive. However, I would reach out to professors in your program to ask for their knowledge on this as you make your decision. From visiting Vandy twice, as both a masters and PhD prospective, it seemed that assistantships are commonly available to masters students. But again, I would reach out to professors to inquire. It is a very good question that they'll want to answer if it will sway you toward their school.

I know what you mean. And your friends don't want to hear you whine about your first-world problem, haha.

It was called an "Impact Award."

I could be wrong, but as far as I understood it the super specific awards were only the FULL scholarships. My 20k total was a combination of a merit award plus need-based grant. The grant was 12,400, and the other award 7,600.

You can also get merit awards on top of the grants that make the total exceed $16k. They try to give you a competitive package.

I will be continuing to work. Hopefully I'll get a few days off in between.

It happens, guys. I got an email last night (Friday night) letting me know I was accepted off the waitlist at 9:40 PM. It's also pretty cool to know your professors care that much that they want you to have the info as soon as possible.

Same here. I only applied to one school because of fit + location, and I can't realistically apply next year. I know that it's silly to keep holding onto hope, but I still am! I want it so much!!!

So sorry to hear that @JeremyCrickets. I was really pulling for you.

You can definitely teach with an EdD.

Sounds like a good sign, but as you can see from earlier in this thread, things like that aren't always indicators of admission. I wouldn't pop the champagne until you get an official notification.