SuddenlyParanoid

Ceseda, thanks for a reasonable and not incredibly hyperbolic reply (it seems like yesterday was just the mean people making mean comments day).

This is why I'm not married yet and don't plan to be married until I'm settled in my career. Of course you have to sacrifice when you are married to someone. In the meantime, it's much easier to find a new guy that I could be happy with than it is to find a new job that I'd be happy with. That may be harsh, but it's true. I don't believe in soul mates or anything close to soul mates, and I know that my boyfriend could also easily find another girl he was happy with. I want us both to have everything, and if we can't have everything together, then we'll have to have it apart. And for now, we've been lucky and will be very close for the next 4 or 5 years

I have only seen maybe 5 truly happy long-term marriages in my life, and it seems to me that the best formula for a happy marriage is two people who knew who they were before they married and are happy with all other aspects of their life. I want to be satisfied and happy myself rather than following someone else and depending on them for happiness.

I would love advice and perspectives from both males and females on this one.

I'm currently in a relationship with a great guy. He's applying to graduate school this fall, whereas I am finishing up my second year. I'm also currently at a top 5 program in my discipline with full funding, I just received an NSF GRFP, I have a prestigious internship this summer, and I finished my masters thesis a semester early. By most measures in my department I am considered highly successful. The fact that our grad school trajectories haven't matched up has been hard, and we've been long distance for a year. Things are still going well, and he applied to a bunch of schools nearby... but with the market the way it is, he's only gotten one offer so far. And to be honest.... it's practically slave wages. He's already got quite a few loans from undergrad (I have none) and I am very hesitant about him taking out more that he would need to survive. I'm not sure what his next move is at this point, and things are really up in the air.

Although things have been good up until now, it's hard for me to relate or give my boyfriend advice about his graduate career. Sometimes I worry that he will resent my success some day. At this rate, the way things are going, he would be the trailing spouse, the spousal hire. This is a reality that would be impossible for me to cope with, but I'm not sure he thinks of success the same way I do.

So my question is... how do other people cope with success differentials in a relationship? And to my male colleagues, would you honestly be comfortable with a partner who is more successful than you are in the long run? I'm a social scientist, I can take the reality, so don't be afraid to be truthful guys.

When I started this thread back on January 15, I had no idea that it would take me three months to finally hear from the place that was my first choice. However, it indeed did. I was admitted off the wait list at the University of Rochester about an hour ago and will be going there this fall.

For anyone else who's still waiting, I wish you the best of luck! I must say that I'm going to miss posting on this thread but as it comes to an end think it's pretty cool that there are over 3,000 posts and almost (probably by the end of the day!) a quarter million views.

This is such a relief to finally know where I'm going to be!

If the file was completed correctly on the applicant end, it was reviewed by Columbia. This means transcripts were sent in and all letters were received. That is the applicant's responsibility.

The conspiracy theories on this board this year are mind boggling. It just seems like yesterday that you were openly referring to one of my advisor's students as living in a 'fantasy land' because s/he got accepted to all the schools s/he applied to. I've tried to be helpful by sticking around this year and providing some context based on my experience wearing as a former employee of a graduate program, a former applicant, and now a graduate student. Since it seems that my insight is not wanted, I'll cease visiting.

-PS

OK, I confess: I am everyone on this site except you, the person reading this.

"Omnipresent" is more like it

Almost all of us were advised by professors to send applications to a broad set of schools (typically between 10 and 20) and I don't think that you need to be telling others off because they did this. More importantly, people can and should be allowed to talk about their entire experience, and shouldn't be made to feel bad for wanting to get off the wait list at a "top choice." We should be rooting for AP, not making him feel bad. He's certainly not bragging. That being said, admitted folks, take your time making your decisions .Don't feel like you're obligated to those on wait lists in turning down schools quickly.

And as a side note, I'm really saddened to see how this year's crop of students is interacting, at least on this website. I'm good friends with many people who used this site last year, and got drinks with them a number of times over the summer. I've written R packages with one person who is now attending my alma mater, and look forward to seeing him when I go back to visit. In summary, this is a grind, and you need friends in the profession. For those of you who have made it quite clear who you are, think about that every time you make a post on this forum that is snarky. For those of you who have yet to be outed publicly, there is no need to use anonymity to be mean spirited. You've all posted a ton of identifying information, and there is no need for any of you to be anything but collegial to one another.

You need to consider this *very* seriously. A phd takes years. In your instance, years at an expensive school in an expensive place (DC/Vir/Mar). Most people will tell you to defer from attending unfunded, and there is merit in the warning. There is pretty good research to the fact that those going to grad school will never make up the financial time/ground lost had they foregone grad school and simply taken a job. If you take out loans, you're setting yourself up for a long road to anywhere secure. This all depends, however, on your own financial situation. If you're minted, there are no worries, although it would be nice to be funded. If you need to take loans for all things considered; tuition, housing, general living, you should probably consider other options. Finally, you might consider this as well; funding offers typically go to the depts most desired students. If you go into it without funding there is little to guarantee you that there will ever be funding in the future.

I looked up this guy. His name is "Suddenly Paranoid" and he has acceptances from every program he applied to, including each Ivy he applied to. Take it from a sometime troll -- of course he is pulling everyone's chain!

He's in at all those programs, and District 9 will win Best Picture!

Your post on this thread is probably the most unnecessarily mean-spirited thus far.

Wow, you guys really are haters aren't you. I can confirm he was admitted to every school he applied to. How about instead of spending time gossiping about someone on the internet, you figure out which schools you want to go to based on your acceptance list.

SP is already doing that based on his.

I really don't think that it is a good idea to call someone a troll just because he/ she is successful with his/ her applications. I do know real people who got into every single top 10 programs that they applied to. Personally I will not defame another individual without solid evidence.

Fit is not an issue at best programs, which are the biggest ones as well. These can fit most people, as long as their profile is strong, their interests reasonable (and perhaps tweak their SOP here and there). Fit becomes important at lesser schools with fewer faculty, which need to specialize. Plus Political Science seems to be less competitive than Economics, resulting in reduced influence of luck for best candidates.

I have to agree with someoneoutthere. The statistical chance of getting into all those top schools is extremely slim. And his GPA was only what, 3.7-ish? I'm just not convinced that, however solid, his SOP fit every school's agenda.

As far as civil liberties go, I'm pretty liberal: Gay marriage, some drug legalization (though I've never even smoked pot), maybe even prostitution, etc. (get the gov't out of our personal lives!)...

As far as economics go, I recognize there are times where a gov't needs to be fiscally conservative, and that there are times when a government needs to SPEND!

Since my civil liberties side is the only constant I have, I tend to "label" myself left of center, but I just wish politicians were more fricken' flexible!

Write, write, and write some more.

Have plenty of time to start pole-dance classes, sell my car, get a boobjob and start being a *bilingual* stripper in my country. I'll finally have the money to take my boyfriend out to dinner and say: "its on me darling".

MUCH more time available to spend on Grad Cafe.........

I might get to see what the inside of a homeless shelter looks like.

Honestly, I care if my friends are rejected, but not about the anonymous mass of other applicants. I don't wish for everyone to get into all the programs they want; I like that PhD admissions are competitive and selective, and I don't think that everyone who wants a PhD should get one.

I actually used "since I was a kid" to explain not being involved in poli sci much until the end of my sophomore year and to show that I understood a phD was all about research. I redacted a few details but the structure is completely the same. Hope this helps future applicants.

Here it is:

Evenas a child I was interested in politics. My parents, fierce partisans,encouraged this, and any movements in the latest presidential approval ratingswere discussed at the dinner table. However, it was not until I was a sophomorein college that I understood the difference between keeping up with currentevents and actual research in political science. Although I did not completelylose my interest in the horse-race side of politics, political science began tofascinate me. I found both the substantive issues explored and the challenge ofinferring causal relationships from natural experiments and observational datadeeply engaging, which drew me deeper into a field where large-scale randomizedexperiments are often unfeasible.

Myinterests led me to seek out multiple research opportunities at myundergraduate institution. I worked as a research assistant for Letter Writer 1 atthe University of My Undergrad Center for the Study Related topic, andassisted him in his work on topic, topic, and topic. This provided me with experience in collecting and generating data, aswell as greater exposure to formal theory.

Myprimary research interests are American political institutions, especiallyCongress, legislator-constituent relationships, and the effects of electoralinstitution on legislator behavior. My senior honors thesis combines several ofthese substantive interests as well as my interest in inferring causalrelationships from natural experiments. My senior honors thesis, advised by Letter Writer 2, examines the effects of independent variable on the dependent variable. I make use of the natural experiment to provide an exogenous source of changein independent variable and compare change in treatment group to change in control group. To deal with thepotential selection bias in my paper, I use propensity score matching to select control group.

Mypolitical science undergraduate courses have introduced and grounded me inscholarly work across a broad range of topics from political parties and votingsystems, to political modeling and political communication. Additionally, Ihave a major in economics. Course work in that major, my work with Letter Writer 1,and a game theory class taught by Letter Writer 3, also spurred a newfound interestin formal theory. Although I plan to pursue American politics as my majorsubfield in graduate school, I do hope to pursue further training in formaltheory. I am attracted to Stanford because of the quality of the faculty inAmerican politics and the opportunity it gives me to receive training in formaltheory, both inside the department and through Stanford GSB. Professors I aminterested in working with are, among others, faculty member and other faculty member.

Uponthe completion of my Ph.D., I plan study American politics at aresearch-oriented university. I hope to both conduct research and teachundergraduate and graduate-level courses.

I actually used "since I was a kid" to explain not being involved in poli sci much until the end of my sophomore year and to show that I understood a phD was all about research. I redacted a few details but the structure is completely the same. Hope this helps future applicants.

Here it is:

Evenas a child I was interested in politics. My parents, fierce partisans,encouraged this, and any movements in the latest presidential approval ratingswere discussed at the dinner table. However, it was not until I was a sophomorein college that I understood the difference between keeping up with currentevents and actual research in political science. Although I did not completelylose my interest in the horse-race side of politics, political science began tofascinate me. I found both the substantive issues explored and the challenge ofinferring causal relationships from natural experiments and observational datadeeply engaging, which drew me deeper into a field where large-scale randomizedexperiments are often unfeasible.

Myinterests led me to seek out multiple research opportunities at myundergraduate institution. I worked as a research assistant for Letter Writer 1 atthe University of My Undergrad Center for the Study Related topic, andassisted him in his work on topic, topic, and topic. This provided me with experience in collecting and generating data, aswell as greater exposure to formal theory.

Myprimary research interests are American political institutions, especiallyCongress, legislator-constituent relationships, and the effects of electoralinstitution on legislator behavior. My senior honors thesis combines several ofthese substantive interests as well as my interest in inferring causalrelationships from natural experiments. My senior honors thesis, advised by Letter Writer 2, examines the effects of independent variable on the dependent variable. I make use of the natural experiment to provide an exogenous source of changein independent variable and compare change in treatment group to change in control group. To deal with thepotential selection bias in my paper, I use propensity score matching to select control group.

Mypolitical science undergraduate courses have introduced and grounded me inscholarly work across a broad range of topics from political parties and votingsystems, to political modeling and political communication. Additionally, Ihave a major in economics. Course work in that major, my work with Letter Writer 1,and a game theory class taught by Letter Writer 3, also spurred a newfound interestin formal theory. Although I plan to pursue American politics as my majorsubfield in graduate school, I do hope to pursue further training in formaltheory. I am attracted to Stanford because of the quality of the faculty inAmerican politics and the opportunity it gives me to receive training in formaltheory, both inside the department and through Stanford GSB. Professors I aminterested in working with are, among others, faculty member and other faculty member.

Uponthe completion of my Ph.D., I plan study American politics at aresearch-oriented university. I hope to both conduct research and teachundergraduate and graduate-level courses.

I actually used "since I was a kid" to explain not being involved in poli sci much until the end of my sophomore year and to show that I understood a phD was all about research. I redacted a few details but the structure is completely the same. Hope this helps future applicants.

Here it is:

Evenas a child I was interested in politics. My parents, fierce partisans,encouraged this, and any movements in the latest presidential approval ratingswere discussed at the dinner table. However, it was not until I was a sophomorein college that I understood the difference between keeping up with currentevents and actual research in political science. Although I did not completelylose my interest in the horse-race side of politics, political science began tofascinate me. I found both the substantive issues explored and the challenge ofinferring causal relationships from natural experiments and observational datadeeply engaging, which drew me deeper into a field where large-scale randomizedexperiments are often unfeasible.

Myinterests led me to seek out multiple research opportunities at myundergraduate institution. I worked as a research assistant for Letter Writer 1 atthe University of My Undergrad Center for the Study Related topic, andassisted him in his work on topic, topic, and topic. This provided me with experience in collecting and generating data, aswell as greater exposure to formal theory.

Myprimary research interests are American political institutions, especiallyCongress, legislator-constituent relationships, and the effects of electoralinstitution on legislator behavior. My senior honors thesis combines several ofthese substantive interests as well as my interest in inferring causalrelationships from natural experiments. My senior honors thesis, advised by Letter Writer 2, examines the effects of independent variable on the dependent variable. I make use of the natural experiment to provide an exogenous source of changein independent variable and compare change in treatment group to change in control group. To deal with thepotential selection bias in my paper, I use propensity score matching to select control group.

Mypolitical science undergraduate courses have introduced and grounded me inscholarly work across a broad range of topics from political parties and votingsystems, to political modeling and political communication. Additionally, Ihave a major in economics. Course work in that major, my work with Letter Writer 1,and a game theory class taught by Letter Writer 3, also spurred a newfound interestin formal theory. Although I plan to pursue American politics as my majorsubfield in graduate school, I do hope to pursue further training in formaltheory. I am attracted to Stanford because of the quality of the faculty inAmerican politics and the opportunity it gives me to receive training in formaltheory, both inside the department and through Stanford GSB. Professors I aminterested in working with are, among others, faculty member and other faculty member.

Uponthe completion of my Ph.D., I plan study American politics at aresearch-oriented university. I hope to both conduct research and teachundergraduate and graduate-level courses.

I actually used "since I was a kid" to explain not being involved in poli sci much until the end of my sophomore year and to show that I understood a phD was all about research. I redacted a few details but the structure is completely the same. Hope this helps future applicants.

Here it is:

Evenas a child I was interested in politics. My parents, fierce partisans,encouraged this, and any movements in the latest presidential approval ratingswere discussed at the dinner table. However, it was not until I was a sophomorein college that I understood the difference between keeping up with currentevents and actual research in political science. Although I did not completelylose my interest in the horse-race side of politics, political science began tofascinate me. I found both the substantive issues explored and the challenge ofinferring causal relationships from natural experiments and observational datadeeply engaging, which drew me deeper into a field where large-scale randomizedexperiments are often unfeasible.

Myinterests led me to seek out multiple research opportunities at myundergraduate institution. I worked as a research assistant for Letter Writer 1 atthe University of My Undergrad Center for the Study Related topic, andassisted him in his work on topic, topic, and topic. This provided me with experience in collecting and generating data, aswell as greater exposure to formal theory.

Myprimary research interests are American political institutions, especiallyCongress, legislator-constituent relationships, and the effects of electoralinstitution on legislator behavior. My senior honors thesis combines several ofthese substantive interests as well as my interest in inferring causalrelationships from natural experiments. My senior honors thesis, advised by Letter Writer 2, examines the effects of independent variable on the dependent variable. I make use of the natural experiment to provide an exogenous source of changein independent variable and compare change in treatment group to change in control group. To deal with thepotential selection bias in my paper, I use propensity score matching to select control group.

Mypolitical science undergraduate courses have introduced and grounded me inscholarly work across a broad range of topics from political parties and votingsystems, to political modeling and political communication. Additionally, Ihave a major in economics. Course work in that major, my work with Letter Writer 1,and a game theory class taught by Letter Writer 3, also spurred a newfound interestin formal theory. Although I plan to pursue American politics as my majorsubfield in graduate school, I do hope to pursue further training in formaltheory. I am attracted to Stanford because of the quality of the faculty inAmerican politics and the opportunity it gives me to receive training in formaltheory, both inside the department and through Stanford GSB. Professors I aminterested in working with are, among others, faculty member and other faculty member.

Uponthe completion of my Ph.D., I plan study American politics at aresearch-oriented university. I hope to both conduct research and teachundergraduate and graduate-level courses.

I actually used "since I was a kid" to explain not being involved in poli sci much until the end of my sophomore year and to show that I understood a phD was all about research. I redacted a few details but the structure is completely the same. Hope this helps future applicants.

Here it is:

Evenas a child I was interested in politics. My parents, fierce partisans,encouraged this, and any movements in the latest presidential approval ratingswere discussed at the dinner table. However, it was not until I was a sophomorein college that I understood the difference between keeping up with currentevents and actual research in political science. Although I did not completelylose my interest in the horse-race side of politics, political science began tofascinate me. I found both the substantive issues explored and the challenge ofinferring causal relationships from natural experiments and observational datadeeply engaging, which drew me deeper into a field where large-scale randomizedexperiments are often unfeasible.

Myinterests led me to seek out multiple research opportunities at myundergraduate institution. I worked as a research assistant for Letter Writer 1 atthe University of My Undergrad Center for the Study Related topic, andassisted him in his work on topic, topic, and topic. This provided me with experience in collecting and generating data, aswell as greater exposure to formal theory.

Myprimary research interests are American political institutions, especiallyCongress, legislator-constituent relationships, and the effects of electoralinstitution on legislator behavior. My senior honors thesis combines several ofthese substantive interests as well as my interest in inferring causalrelationships from natural experiments. My senior honors thesis, advised by Letter Writer 2, examines the effects of independent variable on the dependent variable. I make use of the natural experiment to provide an exogenous source of changein independent variable and compare change in treatment group to change in control group. To deal with thepotential selection bias in my paper, I use propensity score matching to select control group.

Mypolitical science undergraduate courses have introduced and grounded me inscholarly work across a broad range of topics from political parties and votingsystems, to political modeling and political communication. Additionally, Ihave a major in economics. Course work in that major, my work with Letter Writer 1,and a game theory class taught by Letter Writer 3, also spurred a newfound interestin formal theory. Although I plan to pursue American politics as my majorsubfield in graduate school, I do hope to pursue further training in formaltheory. I am attracted to Stanford because of the quality of the faculty inAmerican politics and the opportunity it gives me to receive training in formaltheory, both inside the department and through Stanford GSB. Professors I aminterested in working with are, among others, faculty member and other faculty member.

Uponthe completion of my Ph.D., I plan study American politics at aresearch-oriented university. I hope to both conduct research and teachundergraduate and graduate-level courses.