Tall Chai Latte

This was exactly me. Now looking back, I basically asked nearly everyone I know for their opinion, and that's where my regret/guilt/whatever it is called came from. I had the gut to aim high when I applied, but I didn't have the gut to stand up for what my inner self was telling me. Hm, it's not the end of the world anyway. Maybe we will be praised for stepping out of our comfort zone...

Wow, it's a relief to know that I'm not alone in feeling this strange feeling. Yes I have been wallowed in depression since 4/15, I keep asking myself if this decision is what I want, and what if I still don't feel fine by the end of August. Will I stick it out for the next 5 years? Will I feel miserable if I do stick it out? Will I drop out with a master? I still contacted a few PIs for possible rotation opportunities though, but sometimes I feel my heart lies with School B and I'm throwing away experiences that School A couldn't provide, especially I had "meh" feeling after visiting School A. I heard that transferring at PhD level is more difficult than applying fresh, this nonchalant thought really scares me....

On April 14th, I finally committed to a PhD program after thinking and re-thinking for 3 months. But after I hit the button, I don't know... I felt terrible. I still feel terrible at the moment, and I'm really not sure what to say anymore. People were telling me "you should be happy! you are going to a good school!", but I can't seem to get over this feeling right now.. I'd still wake up in the middle of the night wondering about this. Is reverting a decision even possible?

Wow that sounds like me. During my undergrad days of freshman and sophomore years, I used to pull all-nighters, even with 8am lectures. There was a time when I only slept 24 hours a week to study for exams and finishing reports/assignments, crazy eh? Coffee used to keep me up through the quiet hours, but once I hit junior year (I was 21) and beyond, I can't stay awake pass 2am. My focus would start to drift and eventually I had to turn in. I'm an old lady... Speaking of all nighters, that was also when I had a ton of fun staying up with other friends. Good memories...

Agreeing with Yoshimoshi, you can check the ETS website for all these details. Registering March 31st after you already have an appointment on April 7th sounds a bit dangerous, I wouldn't do it because if you get caught, they can ban you from taking GRE again (you don't want that right?). If you specify four schools when asked, you can get those free. I actually decided to send scores later, and that costed me 7x20=140 bucks (I applied to 7 schools). The schools will see every GRE score you have, but which score they use in determining admission is entirely their decision. I'd say, try it out the first time, see how you do and then decide how much time you need to prepare for the next one. ETS says there's a risk of getting lower score if you take the GRE again, so proceed with caution. Just my two cents... Good luck! I took mine three times in total, with one score canceled. Hope that helps.

Judging from your location, you might be taking the computerized GRE right? So the rule in US is that once you take the GRE, you cannot register your next one until the next calendar month. This also applies even if you cancel the scores. The test is going to ask you to specify which four schools you want to send scores to BEFORE you even start the exam, but you don't have to say anything. If you decide the cancel the scores, you won't get to see how well/bad you do. Sending scores afterwards costs 20 dollars per school, and once you do decide to send your scores, scores from every GRE exam you've taken will be sent altogether. So do your best and good luck!

Hi guys, thanks to all of your replies. No, "waitlist" has just notified me that they will likely be not giving me offer by 4/15, and I should decide accordingly. Seems like I'm visiting Ann Arbor again sometimes next week or so..

Yea that's what I heard, except I didn't apply to their biochemistry program. Instead, I applied to pharmacology thinking that I might want to switch gear (I did undergrad in biochem), upon visiting I didn't find myself going crazy over their pharmacology research.. That came to me and people around me as surprise too, and people think I'm just too picky!

I think it's cool to call. In fact, I didn't know that I got waitlisted until I email the coordinator (sometimes they just don't tell you these things). Just be polite when you ask, they are busy at this time of the year.

I actually did, and my list tells me that the school I am waitlisted for is my best choice for me... That's why it's so confusing now.

Second to Neuronerd. My current boss did a post doc at Rockefeller and he is really good at what he does (he's an NMR spectroscopist). Go there for post doc..

I'm agonizing over two definitive choices. The problem here is that I don't feel enthusiastic enough towards any one of them to decide. Today I found out that I got waitlisted by a school I really like, now I have trouble deciding and am feeling confused at the same time. Does anyone have this experience and/or situation and how do you deal with it? Do you just make a decision by flip of a coin or re-apply next year?

I'm waiting on that too. Uhh the waiting is getting me...

I want to ask the same thing too. Let's go Hopkins!

I'm in the science field, so the situation might not apply to you... Just my two cents, I think it's okay if you didn't write to people because it may or may not help. My boss told me that, sometimes he gets emails from applicants whose research interests fit with our lab's, and he'd like to have them here, but from time to time the Graduate School rejects some of these students because of their GPA, GRE/TOEFL etc. Plus I didn't really write to anyone at the schools I'm admitted to, rather, it is the schools I wrote to put me on wait list (haven't heard a beep since Dec)... So.. I guess it's hard to say. I also heard a success story, where an applicant wrote to the program director expressing his interest in working with him, he was rejected at first but then admitted.

Three schools on my list, including my top choice, are keeping me on the hook! I am happy and feeling fortunate about having admits, but the fact that I can't decide since these three schools haven't replied me is getting me! Oh I just want it to be over with, I want to move on with my life and make the best out of the next 5+ years....

I get a little sad when I heard someone got an interview to my top choice. But 10 minutes later: so what? Life is too short for this..

I'm waiting to hear back from 3 schools too. After a while, I really want to get this whole process over with and move on with my life, but I can't without all of my options lined up. I'd be relieved too even if I heard rejections. I met a girl today at work, who is also applying to grad schools, said that she heard back from my top choice and "no you are not gonna hear back from them, because they offered me interview". However we didn't apply to the same program... So I didn't take her words. After being in school for so long, and will remain in school for the next 5 years, I just want to do something I like and get paid for it.

Hi there. I'm a domestic applicant, but one of my schools gave out phone interviews. Questions I got were somewhere along the lines of: Why this school?Tell me about yourself and your research/work.What do you want to achieve during your grad career?Have you done anything related to [insert field here]? Can you give me an example of that?Some specific questions regarding my research (this you have to react on the spot).Tell me how you come to be interested in your chosen field. These are just some of things that I got. But overall, you should be ready to talk about/explain your work and discuss your goals. There are other threads regarding interviews in general in "Waiting it out" section... might be helpful to you. Yea getting an interview means your chances are very darn big, you really have to work at it to screw it up... They just want to see if you are really as good as you are on paper. Hope this helps and good luck! Relax, you'll be fine.