Dr. Old Bill

Congratulations! Are you venting about this?

That's my going assumption! Then again, that was also my going assumption about UNC for several days...and then I got waitlisted. So I'm considering Yale an implied rejection for anyone who hasn't yet heard, but I suppose you never know until you know. For what it's worth, while I mentally cross "implied rejections" off my master brain list, I don't cross things off the physical list that sits pinned to the wall behind my computer until I get a definitive answer either way. I suppose that makes me a mental pessimist and a physical optimist? Hmm...

Yeah, it has been happening for this whole cycle for a whole host of programs. I've just been reporting them as spam every time I see them, and they're usually cleaned up pretty quickly. Still annoying though, I agree.

Oh wow! Congratulations!!! What fantastic news...and such a fantastic program to boot!

While it probably varies by program, it's usually the case that waitlist movement depends primarily on the rejection of offers. Some folks on GC have already gotten in off of waitlists...one of whom was notified a few hours after another admitted student said he rejected an offer from the same program. In other words, after someone rejects an offer, the next person on the waitlist (depending how the waitlist is structured) is typically notified shortly thereafter.

For what it's worth, I'm guessing (and be assured that it is JUST a guess) that UNC's waitlist is era / specialization-based. That's what I'm inferring from how the waitlist notification is worded...specifically the fact that it's an "unranked" waitlist. I might be wrong, but I can't think of how an unranked waitlist would work were it not governed by specific factors like era etc. Not sure this speculation is at all helpful, but...maybe it is? Good luck to you either way!

So I just got waitlisted at UNC... I really thought that I was "done" for this application cycle, but having two waitlist options in play might make things interesting...

All of this. You'll want to be careful with how you word your email to UNL (and you should indeed contact them). Be very polite, of course, but you'll want to ascertain why they are requesting a decision prior to April 15th. You may want to mention that you feel that you need more time to make an informed decision, and that while you are extremely interested in UNL's program, there are other options that you would like to explore. They should be understanding. This is a huge decision, of course. Bear in mind that they have their own agenda as well (I mean "agenda" in the most innocent sense of the word). They want to have the best idea of their numbers as possible as soon as they can, so creating their own deadline will help with that, even if it might not be "binding," per se. I'd be curious to read exactly how they worded their "decision by March 15th" request. I'm willing to bet that it's more of a formal request than a requirement.

(in perfect Canadian accent) Oh yah. No doot aboot it. (eats a Timbit)

And so it begins... Seriously, good luck to everyone applying in the next cycle! It's great to start thinking about this stuff now.

Anyone got the skinny on that UNC acceptance? Nothing like a Sunday post-midnight email to say "we want you," eh?

I was / am indeed! I'm not sure how their waitlist process works there (I was told it is a "small waiting list"), but I've been in contact with the DGS, and we've mutually agreed to let each other know if there's movement either way. I'm inclined to accept an offer from OSU, but there's a lot that I like about the Strode program, so I'm going to hold off as long as I reasonably can in the hopes that a slot opens at U of A and I have the opportunity to visit before April 15th. It sounds as though a visit in my situation would be arranged individually. Hard to say if the timing would work out, but here's hoping. And it's great to hear yet another person attest to the strong sense of community in the program.

Oh! I am SO SO happy for you!! I know how worried you were about being shutout, so getting an acceptance at this late stage is absolutely huge for you! I received some very disappointing news earlier today, and was feeling rather miserable, but hearing this makes me feel a lot better. Many congratulations to you -- very much deserved!!

This is a very petty vent, and not one intended to offend anyone here, but I'm always a little flummoxed when I see people on the results board express resentment or disappointment at a form rejection letter! I'm sure we'd all love to have deeply personalized, highly analytical accounts of the moment-by-moment transit of our application materials, but that's just not tenable when some of these programs are dealing with nearly 600 applications. I've personally been quite impressed by the wording of all of my form rejections so far -- they seem to acknowledge that rejection is not a reflection on the applicant so much as it is a necessary byproduct of a difficult process. While rejection is always tough to take, I can't help but think it's more prudent to (if I may channel Ice-T) hate the game, not the player.

Fourteen pages of posts and 28000 views says otherwise, unfortunately. Those who shout the loudest are always going to get the most attention. But there's always at least one solution:

Thanks to you both! Do either of you have opinions on Dublin and other areas in the Northwest? That's the area I seem to be circling when looking at properties etc. Call me crazy, but I actually like a bit of a commute (a twenty-minute drive is ideal), and want to be near the city, but not exactly in the city, if you know what I mean.

Will do!

Yes! I actually had another paragraph about "luck" that I decided to delete before I posted (since, as you say, it's out of the applicant's control...). Going back to the original question of this thread, one thing I wish I had done was contact POIs. I'm not convinced that it helps a great deal, and it always has the potential to annoy, but if I'd had more time, I certainly would have touched base with more professors. One of my friends in the Ph.D. program here swears by it, and it worked out well for her -- she'd established a rapport with her eventual mentor long before she was actually admitted. If the questions you ask are well-formed and on point, you can potentially stick out in a POI's mind, and that might help you when an adcom is convening. There's a lot of "might" here, of course, but it's one of my minor regrets regardless.

"Fit" is almost everything. No matter how often I've read this on GC over the years, I never fully internalized it until around halfway through this cycle. There's still a part of me that thinks that GRE scores are prized more highly than we'd like to admit, but by that same token, there's little question in my mind that having your interests mesh well with a program (specifically POIs) is the biggest factor in application success.

VM's not a guy. I think that if the mods are reluctant to actually close this thread, we should at least use it for topic-appropriate gifs and other images. Incidentally, typing "absurd Ponzi scheme" into Google images brings up the following gem. I don't know why, and I don't want to know why...but it feels oddly appropriate here...

Congratulations! May the funding be enough for you to not only afford to live there, but to be able to purchase a top hat, monocle, and ornate pipe!

I 100% agree with @eatthatbee. Getting the M.A. will make you a better candidate, guaranteed. Getting some graduate experience under your belt will help you develop as a scholar, and will add demonstrable success in the pressure-cooker that is grad school to your application. There's really no situation I can think of in which a funded M.A. wouldn't be a boon if your long-term objective is to get a Ph.D. It certainly happens that applicants with B.A.s get into Ph.D. programs (we have plenty of proof of that here on GC), but it's also quite clear that there is a general preference among many, if not most programs to accept applicants with an M.A.

Way to go! That's a very tough nut to crack!

Huzzah! Way to go!!