klader

Oh no! That must not be a good feeling... Would the funding from outside sources be just a one time thing, or does that have the potential to be guaranteed? If it can't be guaranteed, then I would really and stop and think about your options as it relates to attending this school. It would be horrible to be two years into your PhD and then all of a sudden have no funding because the department ran out. Do you have any other offers? (I see that your signature has one "pending", so are you still waiting to hear back from them?)

Good luck!! I hope you hear some good news and let us know what they say (or rather, if it's a general email back, one specific to you, etc.). I'm curious how other programs handle this.

It's not over until it's over, so don't lose hope unless you have a rejection in your hand!! I know that some programs indeed like to trickle out acceptances, so that could be a possibility for you. For the waitlist one, I said: Dear Dr. Y, Thank you very much for the offer of admission! I'm honored to have been accepted to your program. I do have a question regarding the funding, though: if I may ask, how likely is my chance of getting off the waitlist? I know that my letter said that I was placed on the top of the waitlist, but I would just like to know the likelihood of a TAship opening up for me. Thanks, klader Short and to the point because, really, that's all that is necessary. If you haven't responded to Davis yet, this template could maybe work for you as well (this was the first time I responded to this offer). And oh gosh, I waited like 2 weeks before asking more information about one of my offers, and it was all good! I just put in a little tagline of "I'm sorry for the delay in my response; I was waiting until I could ask you some good questions" and he responded promptly and nicely. I think they understand what we're going through and don't hold us to too harsh of standards with things like email (at least I hope!!)

Yeah, I totally feel you! Waiting is the absolute WORST. I think you should maybe wait a bit longer (maybe until mid-March?) and then send them a polite email asking when applicants can expect to hear back (or, if you want to be bolder, ask about when you personally can expect to hear back). Also, as far as emailing about waitlists, that's another story.One program told me that I was put on the waitlist for funding when I received my offer of admission, and I straight up asked about my position on the waitlist and if it was likely I would get an offer. She replied and told me where I was (#1 for my specialty) and when I could expect to hear back, so that was encouraging! Again, I think it might just depend on the program and maybe even how a person is feeling on a certain day. Good luck! If I may ask, which schools are you still waiting on? I'm waiting on Penn State and I'm so antsy because it's the only one I haven't heard back from yet!

I emailed a school about a month ago to ask because the program was supposed to have rolling admission, the deadline wasn't posted on the website, and I hadn't heard anything, and I wrote: Dear Dr. X My name is klader, and I applied to the MA program over the holiday break. I was checking the program's website for the application deadline to get a better idea of when I might hear back from you, but I didn't see it. If I could ask, when is your deadline, and when do applicants normally receive a decision? Thank you very much! Best, klader He responded promptly and positively, so I guess this could work for some people? I think a lot of it depends on the program and how many people might email them. I'd definitely keep it more general (so, "when do people usually hear?"), but they're probably going to look you up anyway (in my case, he told me that they hadn't even received my application yet, so it was a good thing I asked! Apparently there had been some mix-ups with my transcripts being sent over)

I decided to be brave today and ask the DGS of U. New Mexico where I am on the waitlist for funding. She told me that I'm #1 on the list and that they'll probably know if they can offer me funding in the next few weeks! Sometimes being brave is a good thing.

Alright gang, how long are we going to give them until one of us emails them?! This is the only school I'm waiting on now, and even though I expect a rejection, I just would love to hear back already so that I can move on and be happy with life I feel like other schools have notified earlier than usual this year, so maybe we're just getting antsy because of that.

Does it directly say that it isn't renewable? I have a couple offers that say the assistantships are contingent on my academic performance. Does your offer say something along those lines, too, or is it different?

I didn't see anyone post about getting in here or anything, but I'll most likely be turning down Ohio University's funded MA offer for comp/rhet (I just need to double check with some of my professors). For me, it's a battle between Miami- Ohio, USF, and UNM, though I'm still waiting on funding to come through at UNM (if it does at all) and am waiting to get an assumed rejection from Penn State.

Congratulations!! and yes, the signature thing is awesome. I only just discovered it the other day, and I feel like I've been missing out tremendously. Also, I guess I'm now part of the waitlist club since I was waitlisted for funding at one school, so bring on the waiting on things completely outside of your realm of control and power!!!

I'm very sorry that you're going through this right now. Putting yourself out there for grad schools is an incredible risk and we all make so many efforts since we have to gather letters of rec and the like, so it's horrible when things turn out this way (but still, it's not over until it's over! Your schools may come through!). You've already gotten some really great advice, but I just wanted to add my sympathy and remind you again that regardless of whether you get into grad school this round or not, you're still a bright, awesome human being. A couple of my letters (one rejection and one acceptance) said this has been an exceptionally competitive application season for them, so I'm sure that extends to other programs as well. As for how to tell people, just be honest. Say that you gave it a shot but you apparently just weren't what the schools were looking for this year. Your professors should understand since that's the way it works sometimes, and even if your friends and family might not understand it the way academics do, I'm sure they'll still be understanding and supportive. You said that people believe in you, so that's true - they'll believe in you even if things didn't work out this time. Obviously you should take all the time you need to process everything and come to terms with it, but I'd encourage you to take some kind of trip or otherwise mental vacation from all of this soon. Go on a road trip, go hiking, go lay out on a beach, go joyriding with your favorite music blaring, veg out on the couch and read some books you've wanting to get to - go do something to help ease your mind and then get you ready for the next stage. Are you planning on reapplying next year? If so, maybe you could ask schools how you can better prepare your applications or something? Or maybe you could work with your current advisers? If you can add any other cv-worthy activities to your applications, that would be a good use of your time as well. Maybe you could tutor writing, tutor high school students, do some kind of editing work, etc. I think there are a lot of threads on this site that give great advice on this subject. I'm sorry this became a bit long-winded, but I just wanted to let you know that I feel for you, am thinking about you, and wish you all the best! *virtual hugs*

You're right - a better quality of life definitely seems worth a small amount of loans (and especially the occasional alcoholic beverage!)! I have some savings that I can tap into for my first couple years in the MA program, but if/when I go on to the PhD, I'm definitely going to have to think about loans/another job/some serious budgeting skills. Ouch, that rent is killer!! That's on the high-end at one of my prospective schools, but I actually found some for less than $600 around schools in more rural areas. I do plan on bringing my car, though. I think tutoring would be a useful and practical thing to do on the side. Do you know if you can work at your school's writing center? (I see that you're in comparative literature, so I'm assuming that's something up your alley!). I've been asking a couple of my programs if grad students (well, mostly MA grad students in my case) are allowed to overload at the writing center.

I don't really know... I mean, we were told that rhet/comp people were starting to get notified 2 days ago, and here I am with an acceptance today (and put on the waitlist for funding, although my letter said I was put on "the top spot"). We're in different tracks, though, so I don't know if rhet/comp and comparative literature operate on different systems with different faculty. Could be, so then maybe they'd notify their applicants at different times? In the end, I'd say that it isn't over until it's over!!

Don't some programs have policies against working other jobs, though? I'm not sure if that's a universal thing, so I would definitely check with your program. That sounds like it would be absolutely draining! I fortunately received some funded offers at the MA level, but it's still going to be a stretch since fees/rent/utilities/health insurance will eat up most of my stipend. I plan on working like crazy this summer to save up extra money and then learn how to eat frugally! (Which means learning how to actually cook! :P)

I sent it!! I'm getting paranoid now and am worrying that he'll think I'm rude for not responding for so long, but I think I wrote my reply kindly enough, and I did ask some good questions. Thanks for the input!

Just got the email and I'm in at UNM, too, for comp/rhet! I'm waitlisted for funding, though (what about you, @HumanCylinder?) Does anyone know how much the stipend offer would be for an MA student, and when/how they start going through the waitlist? @ArthurianChaucerian? My acceptance letter said that assistantships become available as early as April and as late as July, but does it ever happen earlier than that?

Hi there, We have a lot of threads on this forum about professors not replying to our emails, but what about when WE don't reply to THEIRS?! So, I was accepted to this one school back a couple weeks ago. I got the initial acceptance email from the DGS and promptly responded with the "Thank you for the generous offer; I will consider it and let you know of my decision as soon as I can" type of thing. A few days later I got another email from a professor in the department saying that he was glad to see that I was admitted, that he hoped I would accept the offer, that I could take one of his classes in the fall if I decided to attend, and that I could ask him (or any other faculty) any questions that I had. He also provided some information about the program, so I kind of feel like it was a follow up to my original acceptance email. Now, the thing is I was literally GEEKED because this is a prof I really would like to work with and I was kind of fangirling, so I didn't respond right away. It's now been eleven days, though, and I realize that I should have initially replied with something like "Thank you so much! I'll be sure to let you know if I have any questions." I probably DO have a couple questions I could ask him now, so should I reply to the email with something like "Thank you so much! I'm sorry for the delay, but I was waiting until I had some good questions for you. I'm very interested in this program, and I was wondering how I could BLAH BLAH BLAH and I wonder how other grad students BLAH BLAH BLAH" or something? I'm stressing over this way more than I should be, but I think it's because this program is one of my top choices and I don't want to make it look like I'm blowing them off (because I DID get back to them right away saying that I appreciated their offer and I AM attending the open house). Also, since the open house is coming up soon, should I even bother emailing him? Should I just seek him out in person instead? Advice/opinions/anecdotes/etc. would be appreciated!

Ahhh! The pressure is on. Do you know if they give out admissions in waves (as in fellowship offers first, assistantship offers next, PhD acceptances first, MA acceptances afterwards, etc.)? And congratulations on the double acceptances, @HumanCylinder!!

There's some great advice on this thread! I'm comparing rankings/prestige and finances as I decide between programs as well, and I've found that reaching out to people who have more knowledge of the specific programs is very helpful in considering each program. The advice I've received from people mirrors the advice here (follow the money, don't worry about MA rankings too much, look into each school's placement rates and opportunities for grad students, and focus on which program can best help YOU personally). Do you know anyone who has gotten in/attended your prospective schools that could perhaps give you a better look into the specific programs? Even on this site? I agree with everyone that money is definitely important, but so is fit. You said that the R2 seems better suited to your interests and overall goals, so do you think that would better help you prepare for PhD work (if you go that route)? Could you see yourself working closely with the faculty in the program and being able to do the kind of work that you want to do? I've been told by a lot of people that you get the most out of a grad program when you get along well with the faculty. Also, is there a big difference in the funding between the schools? (There's a biggish difference between my highest and lowest stipend offers - about 4.5 thousand dollars). You said that you were offered a fellowship at the R2, so I would imagine that would be impressive when you apply for PhD programs (and that it can help you focus more on your own research!). I really don't have much advice to offer except to dig deep and think about what's best for you as the rising scholar that you are. I find this entire process so tricky because each person is so different and has unique goals and interests, so in the end, its ultimately up to us to decide what's best!

Congratulations!! I'll see you there, then (my flight was just confirmed and booked yesterday!)

Got an email from Ohio University, and I received an offer of admission to their MA program in Rhetoric and Composition with a teaching assistantship! Good luck to everyone who's still waiting to hear from their programs!

I'm a Comp/Rhet MA applicant and I have a rejection from Michigan State and acceptances from Eastern Michigan University, Miami University of Ohio, and the University of South Florida. I turned Eastern down, am visiting Miami and USF in March, and am still waiting to hear back from 3 other schools. I'm pretty torn between Miami and USF at this point, but I hope to pick one after I attend both open houses. And maybe by then I'll have heard back from the other schools, too. Good luck, everyone!!

Penn State is the only school that would be a game changer for me right now, so I'm getting very antsy!!! I'm also getting anxious and am fearing that no news is bad news, and then I'm starting to feel bad because I'm holding up my other offers because of this.

@Rose Egypt and @HumanCylinder, I applied to UNM as well (MA in rhet/comp) and haven't heard anything either. In the past, it looks like they notified in March

I already got accepted, but I received another congratulatory email this weekend from a professor in the one school's department whose work I read and who I really admire, so I started mildly fan-girling because he told me that I was welcome to call or email him to ask any questions and that he hoped to see me in his seminar in the fall. I just felt so honored and so giddy! I'm still waiting on other schools, but these people make me wanna accept right away!!