cupofnimbus

I hope so!

I'll be happy if they do it so I'm not just anxiously jumping every time Gmail flashes that there's a new email. Though, I suggested to a friend last night (also applying to grad school in CS) that if she didn't want to get a rejection from MIT on her birthday (today), she could email the program and ask them to hold off a day

Your thesis sounds find, but certainly don't feel like you need to get an MA in Political Science before you go to the PhD! I did what you are thinking of doing (working for a few years after a Master's program), and it's been good for me in a lot of ways, but there are plenty of people who switch from other fields into political science. Since you're coming from economics, I think you're even better situated than most, because you have some additional personal study that has boosted your awareness of the field. But no, I don't think it's advisable at all to pursue a second Master's before moving to the PhD.

Well, I think we have learned something today, and that is nightmares are contagious. *shudder*

Squishy leaking pears are the worst! Worth at least one acceptance. (Well, maybe not the worst. That dubious honor is reserved for discovering that the source of the wretched death stank from your cabinet is a single NOW LIQUEFIED potato. Not that I have experience with this. Stank potatoes are worth at least three acceptances.)

Yes. Yes, yes, yes. That is to say, cultivate those networks if you are interested in becoming a non-academic, but do not ever admit to anyone that it's something you're interested in.

Thanks for that! I'm not desolate (yet, I suppose!), but that is reassuring. By reading through the forums, I reasoned that it was possible that schools were acting on their easy decisions (courting the top of the list, rejecting applicants they're sure they won't admit), but my anxious lizard brain has no use for reason.

I was wondering the same, but thought it might be salt in someone's wound. I haven't heard about interviews at all, so I may be able to safely say it's a reject, but I haven't heard anything definitively from them. It's also listed as an "Other", so I find myself wondering what that meanssssss.

RE: Professors -- my default is to go with the highest formality appropriate until asked to use another, so I would use "Professor" until they told otherwise.

Seconded! And to the UCLA admits--sounds like speculation was correct!

Thank you! (I think, right?) I definitely think you might be underselling your own experience and its comparative worth. If it were the thing every program wanted and needed, then everyone would do it. But since variety in background is desirable, people who aren't headstrong and set on their area of interest and open to cool new things are also very desirable.

That all sounds impressive to me! (But I suppose you're not trying to convince me!) You might be overthinking it. I don't know how quant-heavy the programs you applied to are, but that can be a big deal or not a problem at all, depending on their perspective and your research interests. I got the impression while talking to departments last summer that some expect lots of quant preparation, some don't (but will expect you to jump on and learn fast), and some don't care very much, depending on your area of interest. I have an MPP (undergraduate in political science) and several years working in the area I'm interested in studying/researching, and while I feel like that experience has focused my interests (confirming what I'm interested in, giving me experience with the practical implications/limitations of my research, getting a break from the onslaught of Grad School Part I), I worry now that I've tainted myself a little bit by getting into the hands-on application of research and not focusing on just research...

Agreed 100%. All I have is the rejection from OSU, which wasn't a huge surprise to me. Why do you think you're a weird candidate?

That would be pretty great -- I wasn't expecting to hear from them until March at the earliest. Sounds like there's a good chance I'm going to have a surprisingly calming week. I have reached a place where I am at peace* with anything that happens, as long as I can stop putting off big life decisions while waiting for decisions! *Um, sort of.

UMD = Minnesota Duluth or Maryland? (Maryland's deadline was Saturday, so I would be surprised to hear so soon from them, even if they've had my application since December!)

First time posting! I got my first rejection letter last night (I am handling it very well, I think!), but now I am anxious. I see Penn State acceptances on the board, and invitations for interviews at Vanderbilt. Since I haven't heard from either, should I consider these as rejections?