hellopsy

First, congrats on your admit- the Psychology department at UIUC is amazing. I did want to chime in though and say that UIUC is not in "easy" school to get into as an undergraduate, especially for residents (contrary to what you said, it is not nearly as difficult for non-residents to get in). I would know, as I am from Chicago and I have my B.S. in psychology from UIUC. I had an awesome experience, mostly because the the amazing graduate students there...seriously! So there are definitely many bright undergrads that I would wager will be pretty integral to your/your advisors research program(s). For context, I will also be starting my Ph.D. in psychology in the fall at another big R1 school (I have a few offers that I am currently deciding between)! Much of my success has been because of very intelligent and supportive grad students in addition to the faculty, so don't totally knock the undergrads, some of us 'get it'! Sorry for my rant. Let me know if you have any questions about Champaign-Urbana!

The good things is that not all institutions are so myopic. I would actually have complained to the management of the school, about how condescending the letter was.

Gee, in my opinion the person who wrote this apparently grew up in a perfectionist family and apparently doesn't really feel he/she has ever measured up to his family's unrealistic expectations. Therefore, to make him/her self feel better, must put other people down.

Disclosure, not a psychologist nor plan to be.

Exactly. APHI, I feel like the points you were making make sense from the perspective of a master's student. It's not that master's students are inferior in any way, it's just that they're looking for different things. A master's program is much shorter so it is easier to support yourself without funding and it is not usually expected to be funded. In addition, the large majority of PhD students want to work in academia, and after they obtain a PhD they won't really be earning much more than if they get a job straight out of undergrad (so much more true in the Sciences/Engineering). On the other hand, a MA or MS can account for a significant pay increase in industry. I realize a PhD will too in the same type of job, but the large majority of PhD students are not aiming towards those kinds of jobs. I agree with what you said earlier about the apprenticeship. In many ways that is what I believe a PhD program will be like: after the first year or two, I will be doing research and teaching just like the professors and I will be trained to develop those skills so that eventually I can also teach others. Apprenticeships traditionally involved the support of whoever was training you, at least in terms of room, board, and other essentials, and while most PhD stipends are more than enough to live off of, the poverty line is 11,616 so they're not that much more than what you need to live off of. Also, if you have well over 100k in loans from undergrad (as many of my friends do), paying for your PhD for 6 or 7 years is just not feasible.

Edit: I'm saying this from a Science/Engineering perspective where jobs are mainly industry vs. academia. I know almost nothing about pay in Social Science or Art fields.

There's no grand reason, there's no way to know. You aren't rejected yet; leave it at that. You could be accepted, or you could not. It depends on other people's decisions. I.e. the first people to get acceptances to accept or decline. As those people make their decisions, so will you all be able to know your status. There is no rhyme or reason, nothing to go by. Except the fact that you aren't rejected yet. You are in limbo, unable to have closure yet.

So go bug people on this forum who haven't made their decisions, to make them, so that wait-listers can know their fate (and no, I'm not kidding. The worst is when person A is on waitlist at school 1, school 2 has accepted them even though person b is on the waitlist at school 2 who wants to go there. So person C at school 1 has to accept/reject for Person A to make their decision to allow any information to be filtered to person B... and so it goes.)

Hi all,

I am Martizzle (nickname, not real one lol, I just love the sound of it), is there anyone from Africa coming out here this year? If so, for what?
I am studying/trying to study Operations Research/Math (wherever I am blessed to be accepted). I don't have a MS degree yet, so I am applying for the MS leading to PhD degree.

Hey guys. So as most of you know, I've been waitlisted at University of Rochester, which is currently my first choice. I'm just trying to get some idea as to what my chances will be at getting offered a spot (I'm first on the list currently). What I'm wondering is if there is anybody (and one person has PMed me letting me know this already) who was offered admission and has explicitly turned them down at this point? I know GradCafe isn't necesarilly the best representation of all applicants, but thought it at least wouldn't hurt to start this thread. Thanks!

I think that your story proves my point. You've overcome some pretty thought situations and you've beat the odds by working hard and finishing school. Are you privileged now? OF COURSE YOU ARE! you have (or you're about to get) a college degree, at your age, and with three kids. Do you know how many people get to do that? not many. I am sure it has been hard and you've had to work a lot to get to where you are.

I got rejected from every single school I applied to last year. Instead of saying "Oh, education is for the privileged" I sat down, looked at my application and figured out what needed to be improved. And I worked on it, and I rewrote my personals statement 1000 times, and i talked to my professors about the LoRs, etc. and guess what? It worked. I am privileged because I worked to network and build a reasonable amount of cultural capital around me that I will be able to use throughout my career.
anyway, I think any aspiring sociologist understands a little bit of privilege and know that there are ways to work around it. So you're not entirely wrong by saying that higher education is for a select few. But many of us in this forum are living proof that you can work around that system that benefits the privileged few. That's all I'm saying. Maybe Milkman needs to spend more time on his application, or he needs some research experience.

I'm no expert on this but I'd say you should email them, tell them they're your top choice, and say you'd really like to go there, BUT that other schools have made richer offers. Tell them that you've been in contact with other applicants at this school and learned that they received better offers. Tell them your improved stats. Of course, if they start shelling out money to you after that, you might be morally expected to go there... but if it's really your top choice, that shouldn't be a problem. Schools (especially relatively rich ones, like the top choices in your tag) can often find a little bit of extra money here or there. I wasn't planning on going to a school's visiting weekend (it'd be a 16 hour flight for two days and really expensive) and I told them, "Well, it's really expensive and I don't know if I can get the time off work." Their response was simply, "It'd be a shame if financial reasons were the only thing that kept you from coming. We'll work something out if you can make it work on your end" and ended up paying for the whole ticket, which was much more than I expected!

As a note, research has found that one of the aggravating factors of the male/female wage gap is, on the whole, women are more reluctant to ask for a raise. I'd say, there is no harm in bringing it up with the department. Rehearse the conversation first (or write it in a letter, probably better). That's my 1.47 euro cents, at least.

I've already e-mailed the graduate secretary at the first school I have been rejected to asking her if the faculty gives advice to rejected applicants about what went wrong, and what to improve upon for next round. I plan to do the same if I get rejected from the other school I applied to, because I guess at this point I am holding onto the attitude of "it's not over until I say it's over" for dear life, hoping that helps. Hoping to God that helps. This sucks, but I'd rather know how to fix things, improve things, or just that they didn't have the funding for me and normally I would have been accepted rather than wallowing in self-pity. Which I have done for a few days now and it sucks.

HAH! I was just about to post the exact same thing!

I wish I was more relaxed about grad apps. When I applied, I had insomnia for the first time ever in my life, and I broke down crying in a professor's office about how nobody would take me and I could never do this. Then everything turned out fine.

Things that will help you not panic:

1. Find someone knowledgeable and reliable who you trust to have a realistic talk about your chances.
2. Take all information with a grain of salt.
3. Take all information posted by strangers on the internet with a pound of salt.
4. Write down a list of good things you have accomplished, or good things about yourself, that have NOTHING to do with school.
5. Hang out with non-academics as much as humanly possible.

I care. I know what it feels like to be rejected so when I find out I feel bad for them. If I get an acceptance--which I haven't yet--I know I'll feel even more bad that I got in and they didn't. That's not to say I wish I didn't get in of course. None of my friends are applying to programs but if they were I'd of course want them to get in-I have to admit that I'd then also really want to get an admit somewhere too! Most people "I know" are other forumites who are pretty much strangers so I get where your "don't care" attitude comes from.

I agree with the above poster that I'm glad PhD admissions are selective. In a way I wish everyone (well, almost anyone) could get a PhD if they wanted. I see why it's impossible (funding, lack of one on one advising etc.) so I respect the competitive process. I also know that if EVERYone who wanted one got in then yes, we'd have more research done, but it wouldn't all be quality. It makes the application process more stressful but and the same time fun and more rewarding when that acceptance letter does arrive.

Nothing will help except an official admit with full funding.

A whole heap of GOOD LUCK to everyone!!!

On the other side of the coin:
No!! It can't be almost March! The article that I was supposed to be working on all during the month of Feb is due at the beginning of March! Curse you short month!

Never heard of the term "guide" being used.

"Supervisor" usually means who responsible for your paycheck. "Advisor" is the one who is monitoring your degree progress,and usually part of your PhD dissertation committee. Usually for those who are pursuing PhD full-time and doing RA work these two terms are the same thing. It is only different for those who are being paid doing something else (i.e. janitorial work) and only pursue PhD part-time.

Is it wrong to dismiss a program based on its lack of selectivity?

I was lucky to get acceptances at two very good programs. I have a classmate who also go accepted into the same university in an unrelated field (but still one they are very highly ranked for). The problem is that I do not believe this classmate is qualified at all; for example, he would routinely struggle with homework with classes in his major, and would always ask me if he could copy mine.

I feel like I'm being completely snobby, but the fact he got in really shakes my faith in the program's reputation. Am I wrong in thinking like this?

That's my point. Poppy, while I agree that it is possible to go to a >top-50 and have a rewarding career, it is not necessary to call anyone "pricks." This is especially true on the internet, where you really do not know anyone. We can discuss the merits of attending these programs and the different paths that we have all taken to this point in our lives, but let us keep it civil.

Having said that, I went to a non-ranked southern state school for my undergrad and MA, my GREs are not as good as many people here, I applied last year and was rejected by all places in the top 45 or so, and now I am currently in a >top-50 PhD program. The training here is terrible, and most of the faculty are either delusional or not active. This creates a terrible environment. The other students are not good peers, and most of them are absolutely clueless about the discipline and what it takes to land a TT job.

So, I am transferring (more or less starting over) to a <25 program. Having understood the process after my experience last year, I was in much better shape application-wise this time. I have won several awards since then, improved my GREs, and gotten much better recommendations and contacts. All of this led to my success this time. While this program is not top-10, it is well recognized as a strong program for my interests. Simply put, I worked hard, moved up, and I am making the most out of my situation. That is what most all of us here are doing. While some may have been dealt some sort of "royal flush" others were dealt "two pair" and have worked hard to get to where they are. I was dealt air, and I am attempting to still walk away from the table with some chips.

Go to whichever program you get into and are comfortable with. If that is the best that you can do, then make the most out of it. I do not think that people will look down upon you. One of my favorite mentors got his PhD at a >100 outfit, and I think he is brilliant and directly responsible for much of my success. You will have to work harder than some, but your program may be a fair amount easier and less stressful. There are always trade-offs. I wish you luck, and with hard work you can easily get a job. Some people do have snobby attitudes, and indeed I have experienced this first hand. The best way to show them off is to outwork and outpublish them and let them wonder how you are more successful than them. Other than that, name calling in anonymity does not improve the situation in the slightest.

Getting transcripts from my old community college, where I took a whopping 3 summer classes. The fastest they can mail them is with 7-10 business day processing time and normal snail mail. If you want rush processing, it's still 3 days, and you have to pick them up physically, and I live 500 miles away. Also, you have to mail or fax them a paper signed document authorizing the release of your transcript after you request and pay for it online, for Every. Single. One. Seriously? Get your act together and offer rush service! And stop making me print and fax things!

Previously I thought any application that had paper components (my Oregon schools) were annoying, but now that I'm in the waiting stage, I think these are my favorite. Once I put the application in the mail, I stopped thinking about it. There's nothing more I can do. They sent me an e-mail saying the app was complete, but there's no online site to check compulsively for months. Those other applications with beautiful, seamless online forms and uploads and status pages are incredible teases now. They haunt me in my dreams, and during the day it takes all my willpower not to check them 100 times per day. If they look at the number of times each applicant logs into the system, they'll probably think I'm insane.

I Skyped with a professor at one of the schools a few months ago. So obviously he saw a very pretty picture of me from a cousin's bar mitzvah.

The Adcoms: "Well, she does seem like a good fit for our department. But her GPA is... kind of low for a MA student. It's like 3.2, isn't it?"

Potential Advisor: "Um.... what? I talked with her a few months ago and she seems really bright! I want to give her a try."

The Adcoms: "But, dude, we've got stronger applicants who are just as bright... with a HIGHER GPA."

Potential Advisor: "So? She's really excited to come! Please, I really want her. She may not exactly be in my field but she's got great ideas that I'd like to explore with her."

The Adcoms: "Dude, you already have...what? 4 grad students? What do you need another one for? Even if her project idea does sound... compelling."

Potential Advisor: "Don't make me do this." *cringes in his seat*

The Adcoms: "Do what? You win or lose. There is no middle ground."

Potential Advisor: *flashes a picture of me* "Please? We need some beautiful women in the program!"

The Adcoms: "Whoa... she is beautiful..." *stammers* "I guess you get this one, Dude. She's accepted. I guess you can e-mail her."

(Potential Advisor walks out of the room)

Adcom #1: (calls after the Potential Advisor) "Yeah, don't forget to tell her that her advisor's going to f*ck her!"

Adcom #2: "Did we just pull a Legally Blonde moment here?"

Adcom #3: "He's a lucky dog. Let me look at her SOP again so I can figure out my chances of being on her committee!"

Adcom #4: (to Adcom #5) "I'm suspicious. We, historians, aren't that shallow, aren't we?"

Adcom #5: "No we aren't that shallow. Her SOP is a killer, really. I just felt like being a Simon Cowell to Dude."


(thanks for thread, I'm seriously laughing now! )

Go outside and play. Stop dwelling.