common_refusals

Curious if anyone on this thread applied to and has heard anything from UW-Madison Gender Studies? I have been hoping/expecting to hear *something* from them since the start of February, but still nothing. I am currently waitlisted at two programs and Madison is my main, last hope for an outright acceptance, so needless to say the stress & anxiety is brutal, combined with the general state of things… 😕

To AsKingfishersCatchFire, softcastlemccormick, and anyone else on the UW-Madison waitlist: I just declined Madison's offer--I'm in 20/21 C lit & theory. Good luck to all of you!

Congrats to all of the recent admits and waitlisters! (I'm on the mobile site, so can't upvote any of your posts, otherwise I would!) I just found out that I got into U of Toronto also, although I will probably decline their offer soon, so that'll mean good news for someone on the waitlist! (I do 20/21C lit and theory--feel free to PM me if you want more info.) That was the last program I was waiting to hear from, so now it's really decision time. Good luck to everyone still waiting on schools!

Christakins, that is the BEST news!!! Congrats!

Absolutely, I'll let you both know! Unfortunately, I probably won't be making that decision for a while--mid to late March at the earliest... (They're one of my top choices, so I want to visit before deciding anything.) Good luck!

CarolineKS, it's 20/21C lit. and theory. Not sure how either program arranges their waitlist(s), but hopefully that helps. Good luck to you!

Just declined offers from Pittsburgh and UNC Chapel Hill. Hoping this means good news for some of you!!

Thanks for starting this thread, thepriorwalter! I was accepted to Michigan (English language and lit.) also and am super curious about the program. It seems amazing, and I just got my funding info today (which also seems extremely generous, although I think I was just given the normal 2-year departmental fellowship?). I am from the west coast--California originally, now live in Portland--and have no familiarity with the area or program itself. (One of my mentors, however, did her undergrad at Michigan and absolutely loves the school and area...so there's that.) I am planning to go visit, although unfortunately not during the visiting days (just before them). Thepriorwalter, are you planning to visit? I'm deciding between a number of schools right now and don't have a top pick, but I'd say Michigan is definitely in my top three. Feel free to PM me if you'd rather continue this conversation that way.

Fancypants, I'm so sorry to hear that. Was that University of Michigan or Michigan State? I'm anxiously waiting on University of Michigan... Edited to Add: Sorry, ignore this question. I just checked the results board--looks like it was a different program.

I've debated about whether to share this story on GC or not, mainly because I don't want it to sound patronizing or, like, "I had this great experience and learned a lot from it and now I want to share my advice and wisdom with all of you," but it seems really relevant to this conversation about Plan B's and the possibility of not getting into PhDs this round, so here goes: In fall of 2012, I applied to a mixture of PhDs and MAs in English--I think it was 7 PhDs and 2 MAs. My undergrad is in a field other than English (anthropology), so prior to applying to grad programs, I had taken a number of non-degree, undergraduate level English courses at the school where I'm currently completing my MA, Portland State University. Going into the application process, I felt like I had a fairly strong English background and a good idea of where I wanted to go with my work in grad school, so I felt nervous but pretty good about my chances of getting in somewhere for a PhD. Between January and March of 2013, I was rejected from 6 of the 7 PhD programs I'd applied to, and was wait-listed at one (University of Minnesota, actually, where I was just accepted last week). I was completely devastated and, stupidly, hadn't even considered plan Bs, so I had no idea what I was going to do if the wait-list didn't come through--which it didn't, ultimately. Shortly before April, I got my first good news of the season: I had been accepted to an unfunded 1-year MA program at University of Chicago (MAPH, for those who are familiar with it). I was seriously considering accepting their offer (and going tens of thousands of dollars into debt for it), when I found out that I had also been accepted into Portland State's MA program with tuition remission, funding, and the opportunity for teaching experience. I decided to go to Portland State, where I had been living and taking classes for the past year and half, but I was a little worried that I wouldn't really gain anything new from the experience, and that it wouldn't significantly strengthen my application for PhDs. This year, I decided to re-apply to PhD programs for entrance in fall of 2015. (I'll be finishing my MA in June of this year, but had originally planned to wait another year before applying, so I sort of threw my applications together at the last minute during November and December WHILE taking classes--I do not recommend this route, simply for the sake of personal sanity/well-being!). In spite of the last-minute decision, I felt WAY more prepared this time around, had a much better (and different) idea of where I wanted to go with my work in a PhD program than I had the first time around, had amazing professors who were excited about writing me letters and helping me with my application materials, etc. So far this season, I've received offers from three programs that I couldn't me more excited about attending, and it's unbelievable to me how different the process has been for me this year than two years ago. All of this is to say: for me, getting an MA before reapplying to PhDs helped tremendously. It definitely helped that it was funded, and I know that there are some programs that seem to prefer people straight out of undergrad, but it seems like there are a number of funded or not super expensive MAs out there and plenty of programs where having an MA can only help. I realize there are a lot of factors to consider--time to PhD, money, living situations, partners, etc.--so I'm certainly not saying it's for everyone, but it's definitely something to consider in thinking about Plan Bs. There, that's my two cents. Good luck to everyone, I hope this week/month brings good news to all!!

Congrats Lycidas and Radcafe!! So excited for you both!

Congratulations Kurayamino! What an amazing thing to wake up to!!

Childermass, okay, good to know. Between caution/diplomacy or spontaneous public freak out, I will ALWAYS choose the latter... Who is your POI, if you don't mind me asking? (And, really, feel free not to tell me or to PM me if you're not ready to share. No worries!)

In my post-acceptance delirium, I forgot to say: congratulations AsKingfishersCatchFire!!!! That's fantastic news!

Childermass, the email was from Teresa Shewry. I'm also really excited about working with Bishnupriya Ghosh and Russell Samolsky. I also just remembered that you had posted a vague email a couple days ago about being informally accepted to a West Coast school...and now I'm worried it was UCSB and I broke the rules of Grad Cafe/UCSB by posting too early...and that now I'll be rejected from both. Feel free to PM me!

Thanks Sillyrabbit! Yes, exactly, I received the email just before 6:30 PST.

OMFG!! UCSB just emailed!!! I've been accepted and nominated for a first-year fellowship! This day CANNOT get any better!! I hope you're all having a great night...I sincerely hope this week brings tons and tons of good news for everyone!!

Thanks Lycidas. I know nothing about the area or school (other than what I learned in researching grad programs), so I may take you up on that!

Cool, good luck!! My fingers are crossed for you!

Thanks bookworm! Was just about to post here. I got a very nice call from Katherine Scheil this morning, followed up by an email with funding/visiting info. I don't know if anyone else has heard from them yet(?), but based on last year's results they'll likely send out acceptances sometime this week. I was nominated for an amazing first-year fellowship(!!), so I might have been notified a little early because of that...

Sorry, Hesse, I should have specified: Literary Studies.

Hi all, I've mostly been staying off grad cafe this year, but I wanted to let everyone know that I'm one of the UW-Madison acceptances (just posted my info on the results board a few minutes ago). Obviously I am BEYOND thrilled!! Huge congrats to everyone who has already heard good news (from OSU and elsewhere), and good luck to everyone still waiting!

Yes, but it's also better not to attack and/or deride said individual for being "woefully misinformed." Better to kindly enlighten them on the (grim) realities of the situation, wish them luck, and move on. Anyway, moving on...

To the OP: To basically reiterate what has been said above, although in perhaps a somewhat less disparaging tone, getting into a top-ranked PhD program in English in the U.S. in year 2013 is EXTREMELY difficult. It's hard to imagine just how difficult it is prior to going through the process. (I say this, in part, based on personal experience.) That is great that you have so much confidence in your abilities as a writer--confidence that, I'm sure, is well-founded--and also great that you are so committed to pursuing graduate studies in English. Like Cactus Ed says, that is the attitude one MUST have given the insane competitiveness of both grad programs and the all-important Job Market. However, here's the problem: there are (and this is a good thing!) many good, even great, writers out there--people completely invested in their literary studies and committed to engaging, professionally, in academic research. And they all want to go to grad school. As everyone will tell you, broaden your list of programs you think would suit your interests and help you most in the long run--perhaps to an even greater extent than this single Ivy you speak of, which presumably has an excellent reputation in general but may not in fact be a good match for you personally. I really do wish you luck and hope you find a way to get into a program of your choice (which may or may not turn out to be an Ivy League one). Doing an M.A., either in the UK or US, is not a bad idea, especially if you can manage to get funding, as it will give you the opportunity to refine your interests and learn about other potential PhD programs. Good luck!

Yes, I'm wondering this too! I don't even have a current institution (I'm "between institutions," as it were), and it seems odd to submit a proposal institutionless. In my case, the conference itself does not take place until after I will have started at my future grad program, but the proposal is due before that. So, to echo Nada.am's question: can I list my future institution when I submit my proposal?