Hopeful3

Thanks for the information ! I will check it out !
 
 

TinaBelinda, 
 
I would not get upset about your application getting transferred to Ryerson. I know people who prefer the Ryerson side of the program over the York side. While York has a tone of money - that's true - RY PhD students have a lot more control over their TA/RA loads and the commute time to your TA duties (all administrative matters) is a lot shorter. Most ComCult PhD students registered at York have to be at York campus twice a week to teach in addition to the classes they are taking. And the teaching load is heavy. At RY, you can pick a gradership / a less demanding teaching position while you are still working through your coursework and get into teaching in your second year. This saves a tone of time. 
 
In addition to that, the director at RY is awesome. Very approachable and professional. Very in tune with the needs of his students. 
 
BTW, to all those who want to try applying next year: one of the ways to get to know the program is probably to attend the grad student conference. One could meet the directors in person, talk to students, some professors, and maybe even pitch your application file in a way. ) It's over for this year, but it's an annual event. 

April, sorry for not replying. If you're interested, here's my bit of advice. Make yourself known to the staff, and show that you're interested in the program. Possibly contract a potential supervisor at the beginning of the year, before the start of application season, and see if they're interested in your research and/or if they think it's a good fit for the program in question. Universities take in students based on the research and how it fits with people within the program. It's a good idea to familiarize yourself with the staff, and to look through who would be the perfect fit, or at least the closest.
 
Good reference letters hold a lot of weight when it comes to applications, so be sure that when you ask for a reference letter, that a) the referee knows you fully as a student and/or TA/RA, and b ) you ask them to write you a good reference letter. It makes a difference, and you'd be able to see who is willing and who is reluctant. It's a good idea to not push for a reference letter when you see a sign of any reluctance at all. 
 
Also, there's the CV. My MA supervisor told me that schools look at how invested students are in academia during their time away from it, so try attending as much conferences as possible. Either as an attendee, a moderator and/or a volunteer, just to put it on your CV. Of course, presentations are the best. Show that you are continuously working to make yourself better and that you're not falling behind in your field of study.The other side of that is trying to get publish. Look out for Call-For-Papers in anthologies or journal articles, and submit. You can put that on your CV, no matter at what stage (ie: manuscript in progress, submitted, first round peer review, second round, etc.). Again, this will show them your continued interest. That you didn't fall out of the wagon. 
 
Finally, ask the program. Tell them of your situation, and if they have any advice of what you can do to make your application stand out. Most of the time, they'd be able to tell you, and accomodate you, especially if you make yourself known to them. I hope this helps, April.
 
Tina, I am sorry to hear about your update. I do hope Ryerson works out for you! If you don't mind me asking, how did you find out? I'm still waiting on any word myself, but I trust I'll be back here soon enough. For now, take care.

FYI, I called York's Com Cult again today and the administrator told me they had their PhD admissions meeting already and have made their decisions. She suggested I email the graduate program director who would tell me my status. That said, I haven't gotten a response yet. 

Thank you for you advice in regards to accepting my other offer and I believe it is still a good program but waiting for my options. I hope to hear from Ryerson soon but understand my other offer and would like to accept that one this weekend sometime. 
 
I wish you all the best in your applications.  

York's ComCult PhD program has made their first round of offers and my file was not one of them. I am still on a list of possibles, but it will depend on whether the first candidates (and how many) accept the position or not.  Sigh. Just wanted to share what I heard.

Just a question, do Canadian schools keep any data at all on rates of acceptance for graduate programs etc.. per program/university. I've searched but can't find anything. I think that's strange. I find it weird that I can't even find out how may full time students each school accepts.

Just got into Queen's sociology MA with full funding and an OGS! I AM SO EXCITED!!! 

Umm, I think its more like: application complete, department review taking place. Well that's how I interpret it because my status has been that for at least the last one month :/

Thank you! And if you decide to go to UWO I have a two bedroom basement apartment for rent in London Ontario for 850 per month inclusive! Great quiet place. I live upstairs. It is on the bus route with parking private entrance bathtub fully finished and you can walk to the walmart complex with banks restaurants etc. 519 702-5547 it will be available in August. 

Yes I applied to educational psychology in the department of education. Last week I called the department and they told me that the committee sits on Mach 7th, and that I will hear in the beginning of next week.  Of course this is for education, but I recommend just calling your department. I was hesitant about calling thinking that they are probably get so many calls with questions they can't answer, but I ended up receiving really useful answers from all the universities I called (also Ryerson and Brock).