mikers86

Like WT said, it depends on what you're counting for publications. Most incoming students have minimal pub. credits to their name. An exception to this would be if you've been out of a degree program for several years but are still active in the field.

Waitlisted hasn't been a common results post for Duke over the last 4 or 5 years. Last year there were x number of students accepted who attended recruitment weekend, with the idea that 5-8 would accept other offers. Basically - I'm not sure if there is a waitlist. Edit: it could even vary year to year. Sorry I can't be of more help.

I figured those acceptances/rejections would go out today or tomorrow. There will likely be a lot of red to come. Congrats to the Duke acceptance!

Loosely related to fit - but since someone mentioned graduate student profiles - if listed, see what programs current graduate students are coming from. I know I said it previously before apps were due, but some places, such as a university in Boston, select PhD applicants from their MA program - almost exclusively. It's not super common, but it's always stuck out in my mind (likely since I paid that application fee BEFORE noticing that pattern).

Generally by the end of January.

I was definitely an outlier last year and it worked out in the end. Happy to share, though PM if you want numbers.

I remember being on my campus visit at the end of Feb/beginning of March when the Rutgers rejection finally came out - though it was implied for roughly a week or so before then. Really, once an adcomm has narrowed it down to ~50 applicants (give or take), it's more a matter of nitpicking, figuring out faculty preferences, who is on leave, who hasn't had a new student for a few years, and which WS and SOP really captivated them. It could potentially be any of the ~50. Sure, there are likely a few standouts, but at that stage it's less about being qualified. If you made it to that point, you're a strong applicant. There's just a variety of reasons that will likely never be disclosed to you why you may or may not make the final cut.

Email them immediately and thank them for the acceptance. As others have stated, ask if there's a date they are imposing for a response. There's a list of schools that follow the Council of Graduate Schools' suggestion of not taking away offers of funding if you don't respond by a certain date (it should be April 15). http://www.cgsnet.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/CGSResolution_Rev2015.pdf But give them a written acknowledgment of the offer, and thank them, and say that you're considering their offer. Down the road, if you receive another offer from a program you know you're more likely to attend, formally decline the first offer so if there is a waitlist they can go to it sooner rather than later.

It's so incredibly early in the season. Anything can happen. I got into Duke and UCONN and was shut out of 12 other programs. Nobody knows where the cards will fall. Don't give up hope!

Yeah, I didn't get the first notification until January 31st. It doesn't feel real until the mass Duke rejections appear, and then you realize everything is going to change over the course of 2 to 3 months.

My LOR writers also explicitly stated not to get them gifts. As Ramus stated, it's part of their service. A card is sufficient, though taking them out for a drink at a "nice" establishment isn't outside the realm of possibility.

Take a shot every time between now and the end of decisions *fit* is mentioned on this forum. It will make acceptance/rejection season far less painful. You won't even remember getting rejected! (granted, you may not survive long enough to attend a program if you were accepted) But really, of all the things you write in your SOP, the fit section is the hardest and feels odd or uncomfortable. Adcomms know this. It's part kiss-ass, part strategic, and mostly obnoxious in that you're taking a stab at imagining how you can potentially fit within a department going off a likely outdated department website with faculty profiles that haven't been updated in 10 years. Unless you completely misidentify a potential POI, the fit section will likely not make or break your application. If you did a sufficient job describing yourself in the remainder of your SOP, Adcomms will likely be able to figure out whether or not you *fit* in that department. Cryptic, mysterious, WTF: that's the nature of the fit section for you. That doesn't make it any less-stressful, though. And when I did this last year, I had one main SOP that I altered depending on the program and their requirements. 1 for every program? That would be crazy. Also - it really helps if you save the main template as an entirely different document, leaving things like (Name of program) and (person of interest) rather than copying and pasting from the one you wrote for Harvard. There's nothing worse than realizing you sent off a SOP with another institution or professor's name that are not at the institution to which you're applying. #hawkward

I just assumed we weren't counting Dartmouth as they don't have a PhD program.

Some do. Some have grad students Google you because: delegate tasks that take up valuable committee time. Some don't and it's simply a coincidence that someone located near the town the program is located in found you online. Don't read too much into it, but seriously Google yourself to make sure what could come up isn't horribly inappropriate, e.g. singing Electric Six's "Gay Bar" at karaoke while completely intoxicated (true story - that happened to someone).

During last year's application season, I limited myself almost entirely to the Northeast, with only a handful of apps in Washington, CA, Texas, and NC. My s.o. is not particularly transportable due to work. Ultimately it was between 1 program near ideal location, and a program in NC. Career-wise, the latter program made the most sense and thus I find myself flying back and forth on a monthly basis. The trade off for me is essentially limiting job prospects in the future - not the smartest decision I can make, but after 7 years you may have to make some sacrifices. It comes down to knowing yourself, your relationship, and what you are and are not willing to do, how much direct support will you or they need, all the while limiting the amount of potential resentment between the two of you.

Scholarship. If you have some teaching background, include it briefly (every word counts with such little space), but it will not be what makes or breaks your application. They're accepting you based predominantly on your research interests, not if you will make a good TA right out of the gate. If, for example, you know that their FYW program has previously offered courses with some kind link or connection to businesses within that community and you have similar experience leading a course with a similar component, by all means highlight that. Or, if the application has a separate teaching statement, I wouldn't waste any space in the SOP on that topic Edit: This is especially true if the program doesn't have a heavy teaching load for doctoral students. I should say that if the program has a 1/2 or 2/2 teaching load, then spend a little room describing teaching experience/love of teaching/however you want to frame it. But more often than not, research>teaching within the SOP.

To clarify my earlier statement - yes. The ivy will most likely give you the best chance in this market. Who you know can make a world of difference, though there are a host of other factors that play into hiring decisions. But as I stated, you can't rest on your laurels, particularly because of the state of the market. My undergrad/masters institution is not incredibly highly ranked yet produces strong candidates and very rarely does not place students who complete the doctorate in TT positions, even resulting in multiple offers. Since this thread is focused on "safety" schools, I thought it pertinent to at least allude to some potential pitfalls associated with big names - because it can and does happen. Not to mention attrition rates in elite programs (and grad programs in general), and overall mental well-being. If you know you'll be happier going to smaller state school than ivy, then who are we to judge you for that decision? No one is going to tell you NOT to consider elite institution - obviously - but I still suggest that you not limit yourself to the mystical realm of the top 10 because #25 or #70 might allow you to produce stronger work with faculty whose interests are a better match with your own. Application season is a numbers game: 100s of applicants for only X number of slots (and dropping) in top ranked (and all) programs = do yourself a favor and look outside top programs for other strong departments, something I think this thread has done a good job of highlighting.

I.S. are useful if there is a subject area you're interested in and your dept hasn't offered or will not offer a course relating to it. A great deal of time and effort is spent designing it with a professor, and it should enhance your knowledge in a way that traditional coursework hasn't. So in theory, that could demonstrate to admission committees a drive on your part that is desirable in MA students. But I've seen I.S. backfire because the way it was designed resulted in too heavy a work load when combined with other coursework, or professors agendas derailing the intended trajectory. I usually caution people from pursuing them unless the details have been rigorously discussed with the advising professor and there's no other way to incorporate the topic in an upcoming seminar offered by the dept. You'd be surprised how accommodating professors can be if you simply ask if they can add such and such a book or topic to a syllabus if it tangentially related to a class. This is less work for them than overseeing an entire I.S. TL;DR An I.S. could be beneficial on an application but is by no means necessary to get into an MA program.

You could try, but I will say that as long as you gave a good depiction of yourself and your interests, the AdComm will be able to determine your fit even without faculty member. I remember in one of my SoPs I listed a faculty member and immediately after submitting it was announced she was leaving for a different institution. If say everyone you mentioned left (department mass exodus does happen) then you'd be in trouble. But 1 person isn't of great concern.

You would think the early acceptance would diminish your stress levels. But having my first response be an acceptance, it did not make the subsequent waiting and rejections that much easier.

Story of my life. But it can't hurt to follow through on the application. You could realize that you're a better fit than you had thought.

"Early" generally means within the last week or so of January to maybe second week of February. It's really dependent on when adcomms meet, cull applications, and can work through the remaining applicants to come to some kind of consensus. You can look back over the last several years on the decisions page and figure out roughly the schedule certain programs follow, but they do change from year to year. As for individual early acceptances that break from the widespread acceptances, I don't have any experience with that. You could make all sorts of assumptions - an adcomm thinks a certain candidate may have several top offers and so they want to offer admission early, or a few early acceptances were decisions that were completely unanimous and didn't need much deliberation, etc. Who knows. But I think it's less common for the second type of early acceptance to go out - offers normally go out in waves or all at once.

One of the drawbacks to getting a degree from elite university is that it definitely limits who might hire you. Tiny SLAC has the right to wonder whether you're going to just look for a better ranked university during your employment. That may not be the case, but it's something that you potentially have to overcome. The name no longer equals offers. It helps, but you have to make yourself a viable candidate regardless of the program you're in. Top 10 might be the "better" program, but you might produce better, stronger work at a top 50 or 60 or 100. I realize that's what this thread is about, but it can't be said often enough that there is a world outside of elite institutions, and they can be viable options. Before slashing programs, at least those you consider to be potentially good fits, email their DGS and ask if they can share placement rates and institutions where they've placed in the last few years. Some programs don't like transparency, but it can't hurt to inquire. If they aren't placing anywhere, or even graduating students (much harder to find that out without cooperation from professors or current grad students), then you should strongly consider cutting them from your list.

I'd caution drawing that conclusion. I've seen professors from top institutions give both absolutely terrible and absolutely inspiring papers. It does give one hope, but everyone also has off conference papers.

And as always, they're subject to change. I remember the approximate dates from previous years didn't match up with several of the notifications (read: rejections) I received. I can say that Duke is always mid-late January, Harvard almost exclusively notifies acceptances via e-mail, and if I remember correctly, Penn has a tendency to not notify rejections. It's also crucial that you acknowledge an acceptance soon after you receive it.