Dr. Old Bill

I suspect that wearing clothes is a good rule of thumb. That's mostly a "joke" comment...but seriously, dressing well even for a Skype interview is probably wise. Unlike non-interviewed candidates, presentation becomes a factor. Probably a very minor factor, but if you have a nosering, a mohawk, a swastika tattooed on your forehead, and are wearing a Bad Brains muscle shirt, you might not be quite as competitive a candidate.

Gah! Sorry, Hannalore! Yes, now that I have a rejection to my name, I have a feeling that things are going to be tense unless and until I get an acceptance. Madison was a fairly high choice for me anyhow, but part of my hopes were tied up in how early they report back. Had it been an acceptance, it would have been much less tense and stressful for the duration. Alas!

Looks like you and I are going to be acceptance / rejection buddies, Hesse! We both applied to 17 places, and there's a fair amount of overlap in our programs (though vastly different specializations, fortunately). Sorry to hear you missed the cut as well. I suppose there is some consolation in knowing that only 12% were made offers. Some consolation. Admittedly not much!

Just got an OFFICIAL rejection from UW-Madison.

That awkward moment when your S.O. suddenly starts freaking out about the possibility of rejection even more than you are...

Thank you for the much-needed dose of hope! It's like a drug...an opiate. A hopiate, if you will.

Yes, just plain English. I'd be curious to read the email, but then again, if I didn't get it, I clearly didn't get it for a reason. Not that anyone could know what that reason is, mind you...

Yeah, I've had to go back and look at a couple of applications for various reasons, and I've been pointedly ignoring the WS and SOP portions. Meep.

Knew it!

This statement in this thread is not valid without a .gif of Beverly Crusher. There you go. Incidentally, I've been making those same facial expressions for the past week.

I know there's a load of time left...but it's starting to get to me a little too. Waiting was fine when none of the places I applied to had reported yet. Now that UWM has, it's another story. Knowing that it could be anywhere from a day to ten weeks before I get an acceptance...yikes! I promise I'm not going to freak out (publicly, at least!) about every little acceptance / rejection...but yes. I'm with you, fellow octopus...

I didn't...

You guys are swell. I know it's not a rejection. I'm not really all that bummed out. I am, however, trying to console myself with the fact that in Wisconsin, there will be a lot of this:

Congrats to the UW-M admits! Looking like my chances for getting in there have taken a hit.

I think you just say that you're thrilled to be accepted, and that you look forward to making a decision after the process plays out. There's a strange and sudden balance of power that occurs once you get an acceptance -- you go from being at the mercy of adcomms to them being somewhat at the mercy of your ultimate decision (albeit on a smaller scale). Fortunately they understand that you likely have options. It's pretty rare for someone to accept an offer of admission immediately, and they know this. Just be grateful and appreciative, and make sure you'll let them know as soon as you can.

Welcome!

Way to go! Congrats!

They update their application system daily at 7:00 AM CST, which means that I check it at 8:01 EST every single day... Good luck to you!

Well, UW-Madison notified on the equivalent day last year (fourth Friday in January), so we'll see if that holds true for this year. I'm not holding my breath, but I'll be a little more on-edge than normal today, I think...

Looks like another accepted Ohio Stater (Statee? Statist? Statue?) just submitted his/her info on the results page.

Two or three of the schools I applied to require you to close out of all of your other browser windows / tabs etc. before it lets you access the site. A very minor thing...but annoying!

Yep, a lot of these stories and experiences resonate with me too. I've actually followed my wife three times now -- once when I immigrated and moved from Vancouver to D.C., once when she got a great job in Norfolk, VA, and then most recently when she transitioned back to D.C. again. It's why we live where we do -- I commute 100 miles to my campus, she commutes 50 miles (albeit in much heavier traffic) to work, and we both get to be about equally miserable with our living situation! As a result, I don't feel too bad about urging her to try to follow me wherever I wind up getting in (IF I get in, of course). LIkewise, she is on board with following me, so long as she can find a job in her field. That qualification might be the difficult sticking point, however, but for the last two or three weeks I've been mentally steeling myself for the possibility / probability that we will have to live apart for at least some of the time. Surprisingly enough, I find this doesn't make me hold closer schools in any higher esteem than they were before. I figure that our long-term goal as a couple (and future family) benefits the most by me attending the best program for me from a number of perspectives. In short, we'll just have to consider all of our options, assuming there are options to be considered...

Honestly, Stephen King was probably the first "adult author" I ever got into. I found my older sister's copy of Skeleton Crew when I was nine or ten, and was hooked. Maybe it's nostalgia speaking, but I think he gets a bad rep sometimes. Despite being a popular "horror" author, he's a very engaging writer. I haven't read anything he's written in the past twenty years, but when I first read some Flannery O'Connor some time ago, I couldn't help but notice a remarkable similarity in styles. I probably just offended 25,000 members of the literati by comparing King to O'Connor (don't worry, literati...O'Connor is better!), but that's my take and I'm sticking to it!

Getting a head start on reading Sherwood Anderson's Winesburg, Ohio for a class. So far, so good! I enjoy character sketches at the best of times (hence my love of E. A. Robinson...), so it's right up my alley.

Bumping this up one more time, since it's been hugely helpful for many folks (and myself personally!) over the past couple of years. Funding packages change from year to year, of course, but most of these should remain in the ballpark at least. (The link on the second post is of particular value...)