Platonist

Thanks for the information, doubtfire! I did apply to some schools that are higher ranked than Minnesota on the PGR. I hope an offer will come from one of those schools! Thanks for the advice regarding the graduate school. Yes, I know philosophy is a critical subject by its very nature. So I am not afraid of criticisms from my professors and peers at graduate school, though I will surely unhappy with very negative comments by paper reviewers, which will cause my paper to be rejected for publication. Thanks again.

U of Minnesota requests 3 statements: statement of purpose, statement of diversity, and statement of extenuating circumstances. It took me a lot of time and efforts in writing these three statements. Does this school only take students whose interest is in philosophy of science, not any other area like ethics? Anyway, I am trying to forget about Minnesota. Thanks again.

Thank you Vineyard. I checked the application status, and saw no rejection. But I think they are behind the updates, and a rejection will appear in the next week. It seems that not many people in this forum applied to Minnesota, and the applicant pool may be not that big. Failure in this case makes me feel so worried regarding the prospects of finding a place elsewhere. I remember this school requires 3 (!) statements, more than any other school does. I worked very hard on the three statements when applying. Feeling so bad now. Hope there will be good news regarding other schools.

Thanks for your suggestion, wildc4t. I am so sorry for having so many posts; I am really really stressed out. I do not drink any alcohol. Otherwise I would drink heavily. I will try to post less from now. Thanks for your understanding.

U of Minnesota has released both the acceptances and the wait list. I did not receive either an acceptance or a waitlist notice. So there should be no any hope regarding my admission to this school (I guess the rejection email will come later). Is that right?

Yes, that is a very nice gesture. It is also good for the applicant to know the results as early as possible!

Yes, that is completely right. Thanks, Kate.

Yes, aduh, I agree. But I called and learned that the adcom has already met to review the applications, though I do not know if decisions have been rendered. Anyway, I think it is good not to do so.

I saw from the results page that a guy got an *informal* notification through a faculty member he knows in the department. I am not sure if he got to know this by checking with that faculty member or by receiving an email from the latter. *Informal notification* is too vague. (If we define formal notification as one that comes from the director of the graduate school or from the director of the graduate program, then all the other forms of notification should be counted as informal. So informal seems a so broad term.) I know a faculty member in the department, who may or may not be on adcom. I do not know if the adcom has made the decision. Is it appropriate to write to him asking if the decision has been made and if I am accepted? I feel very hesitated to do so. Your thoughts?

I did write to them, but got no response. That confirmed my guess that I missed the review process. Still, you can write to them with this inquiry, and you might get a positive response. Please let me know how they have replied. Thanks.

Intuition. Also, they urged me to do it very quickly, but I cannot for many reasons. I submitted them about 4 days after I received their email notice. So I am pretty sure my missing documents did not arrive on time. I spent 80 dollars only to find that my application did not get reviewed. More importantly, I missed an opportunity. I was really really frustrated.

It happened to me too. I had the sense that they were requesting the missing materials only at the last minute of the beginning of the review process. I strongly believe that my missing materials did not make it on time; they arrived only after the admissions committee had held the first meeting. The committee would not postpone the meeting only for a single person. I got so frustrated and wanted my application fee back.

Congratulations to the guys who have received the offer from Duke! So far there have been 4 offers posted. Duke may have 4 or 5 spots to fill in. So how many offers will Duke make? probably 6 offers plus 2 or 3 waitlists? (I have applied to Duke but now give up hope completely.)

Hi all guys, I have 2 questions: 1) Is the chairperson of the philosophy department most likely to be on the admission committee? 2) In the statement of purpose, is it wise to mention the work of the specific professor whom you want to work with? What if that professor is not on the admission committee? Could it cause envy and have negative impacts on your admission? I have finished application, but am becoming concerned with these issues. Thanks.

Yes, that makes perfect sense. Having 10 people interviewed face-to-face and then picking 5 of them would really be humiliating. Obviously, Cincinnati has decided to admit any one of the 10 people, but is very sure that at most half of them will accept their offers. That is why they are sending out 10 offers. Even a prestigious program like Michigan is expecting that only half of the offer receivers will accept the offer that they make. I regret so much that I did not apply to Cincinnati.

Thank you all guys for your posts. I have two comments. (1) Yes, I am becoming stressed out because I am not so sure if I can get into any one school; and I cannot wait another year to apply again and *HAVE TO* go to graduate school *this* year for many reasons. So I am becoming very worried about any tiny thing that might hurt my chances of admission; and (2) there might indeed *some* programs that review applications on a rolling basis, and thus earlier applications would be in a more competitive position. But I do not seem to encounter any such programs. I have applied to about 12 programs, and all of them do not follow a rolling review policy. But your advice makes me feel good. Thanks.

I saw in this forum that some people regret for not submitting their application earlier. I am among them. Actually I submit my almost every application on the date of deadline! But does it really make a difference to submit an application on early or late dates? As far as I know, most of the programs do NOT review applications on a rolling basis. But I might be wrong. if I am indeed wrong, I would become REALLY worried about my very late submission. No one cannot be later than me, and I would be the last one to be reviewed in the review process. I feels so bad. Please post what you know about this.

Thanks, DHume. Your remarks make me feel a bit good. I am becoming stressed about my application.

Thanks for all your inputs. I made a mistake. Since the lady in the office who I do not know signed her email with first name, I responded to her email beginning with her first name. I should have used her last name with a prefix. I am so stupid. Hope that would not ruin my admission.

Come on guys, it cannot be so soon. The earliest day would be the end of February.

Hi, I found that many applicants make contacts with professors in the graduate program before they start or submit their application. But I have never done so. I am regretting that I have not done so, which could put me in a less competitive position. But are previous contacts really good and necessary for getting an offer of admission? I am stressed out. Please post your opinion or advice.

Thank you, Catwoman, for your input. Also, how should I address a professor (who has a PhD) in the department who I do not know? Should I address Dr. Firstname or Prof. Firstname?

I am an applicant and writing to the department with inquires or concerns about my application. The people (usually ladies) in the office of the department replied to me with the ending of her first name. How should I address her in my response to her reply? Should I address her by her last name with a prefix of Ms. or should I address her by her first name (since she ends the letter with her fist name)? Of course, I do not know her. Please give me your advice. Thanks.

Hi, I may attend Washington University in St. Louis for graduate study. I will have to live near or on campus because, very unfortunately, I do not drive cars. By living near or on campus, I will have no much difficulty waling to and from the university. But I have two main concerns regarding living near or on campus: safety and rentals. My questions are: Are there neighborhoods near campus that are safe enough but the rate for renting a studio is not high (say, within 600 per month)? Please give me you advice. Thanks so much.

Thanks，Bar-Scene-gambler. I know the formal offer must be made by the Graduate School. But who sent you the informal notification: the philosophy department or the graduate school?