emburst

I would wager to say most programs don't care what your undergrad degree was in.

I've heard an array of opinions about recommendation letters. Some say all must be from writers/professors. Some say committees don't even read them, and, at best, they're used as a tie breaker. I think the important take away is ask people who you think will write you a good letter. Personally, all my letters were written by former professors. Two are English professors. The other one is from a different department BUT I'd worked with her closely on some projects and she knows me real well so that's why I asked her. I think it's a good idea to have a rough draft of your SOP done as soon as possible as well because the SOP was a major headache for me, more so than the writing sample. This may not be the case for you, seeing that you are going for nonfiction.

Well said, lagoon91. Congratulations to all, and good luck to those waiting or deciding what to do next. As for me, I have sealed the deal on one of my offers. Officially heading to the craziness that is grad school! It has been a trying few months to say the least, and I'm glad to be moving on to the next phase. Take care, everyone.

At this point, I think it's reasonable to reach out to them.

Sorry to hear about that, SarahWakes. Hang in there.

Because not all people gravitate towards the same kind of work. People will react to someone's writing in different ways. They have experiences and preferences and preconceived notions that shape the way they react. And people's moods change the way they read something. They're reading hundreds and hundreds of pages of writing. It's reasonable that they would tire of a certain subject / style if the past number of samples all just so happened to follow the same style / content. And then there is the space issue. If they accept 5, and the waitlist is 5, still, that is just 10. The top 10 of 500 (or more) applicants. It's also reasonable to believe that committees make their offers based on the likelihood of an applicant's chance of going to their school. It's reasonable, I think, for a school to pass over an excellent applicant for a lesser so applicant that is more likely to accept. So they are any number of reasons (didn't even touch on the SOP and LOR factors), one's we can probably never know, unless we are on one of these committees ourselves. Lesson I learned during this application season: Rejections don't invalidate my work. Also, acceptances don't necessarily validate my work either. I still have much to improve. Edit: Forgot to mention -- if anyone is waiting to hear from Vanderbilt, they are notifying applicants tomorrow!

Thanks, SarahWakes. Good to know.

Well, Iowa has been sending decisions snail mail, so make sure you check your mailbox. I wouldn't assume anything just yet. It's still early--though it doesn't feel like it to those waiting.

Thanks all. I guess I am happy about the wait list, but trying not to get my hopes up. BU notifies so late is because they had a March 1 application deadline, literary just a day ago...

Thanks, quentinc. It's a "very short" waiting list, according to the letter. Then it goes on to say: "In the past, it has sometimes been the case that applicants have been admitted from the waiting list." Not exactly a hope instilling statement.

Got waitlisted for Iowa, letter arrived today. Not sure how I feel about it.

Thanks for clarifying, HeyIowa.

Thanks, shoopster! Hopefully, it is not snail mail...

Nice. Do you have a game plan when you do (like what you want to find out, questions to ask, etc.)? I'm going to be visiting a place real soon and I feel like I should maximum my visit with more than just "playing it by ear." Wondering if anyone had any input.

Go to your settings then signature tab.