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Looks like two Yale Comp Lit acceptances just rolled in...soooo that's that.

Hi Quell! Just FYI, I sent you a private/direct message on here with a question or two about Brown -- they're one of my top choices, yet I haven't gotten any kind of decision yet. I even got an e-mail from Gerhard Richter on February 8th (four days before you posted your acceptance on February 12th) ,and he made it seem like I didn't have a great shot. He said all applicants would be informed soon, after going into a short spiel about how 'difficult decisions were' and how rigorously/thoroughly applications are read. I'm wondering if, after that brief exchange, he decided to move me into a kind of implied waitlist. Sigh. Anyone else get an answer from Brown yet?? I'm dying here! PS I got rejected from Cornell Comp. Lit. today (not heartbroken, I would be the first to jump in a Gorge) but I had listed their German Dept. as a second option. I know German already sent out decisions, so I hope this doesn't mean I got passed over there, as well. I'm so confused this season...I usually have a fairly good grasp of what's going on, and have a sense for how my app is being perceived/my audience. But right now I'm really going crazy. Also, no JHU German news, right? Someone give me some kinda deets! My life is a mess. This is how I feel about my applications/rejections:

Someone just got into Princeton Comp. Lit. per the results board. I'd sob and grumble but who can pretend to be entitled to acceptance to that program? So far 3-4 implied rejections, but not a single *actual* rejection. Hrmph.

Anyone wanna claim the Cornell Comp. Lit. acceptance? Hoping they are rolling out acceptances/waitlist notifications this week. Definitely expecting a rejection at this point now though...

In the spirit of positive thinking and making small daily lists for things I am grateful for, I want us to take a moment and be thankful that none of the "Top" programs (though of course this depends on what you want to study, etc.) seem to have notified in any way. The second I see any decision info on Yale, Penn, Princeton, Cornell, Harvard, etc. I will know that the apocalypse is upon us. Also still waiting on JHU and Brown German Ph.D. decisions, though I got this rather terse- and serious-sounding e-mail from the Chair and recent contact/POI at Brown: "Thank you for your inquiry. As far as I know, the Admissions Committee's process is not complete yet, so applicants will have to wait a little while longer to be notified of decisions. I do know, however, that the Committee takes its difficult work very seriously and tries hard to make the most judicious recommendations to the Graduate School. Since there are always many more highly qualified applicants than the Department has slots available, the Committee's decisions are always enormously difficult to reach and represent the result of extensive deliberation and review, which take into account a variety of different factors. Please rest assured that every applicant will hear from Brown just as soon as the process is complete." I'm not crazy, right? Like, this is definitely an implied rejection? Every other interaction and e-mail previously was very positive, but this super formal change in tone, to me, moves the dial away from "50-60% likelihood of acceptance" (based on previous convos) to "95% likelihood of rejection". Sigh. Has anyone gotten one of these e-mails from a program that eventually accepted them? I think not.

Hi Fingolfin!! So I am convinced I won't get in because I have a less-than-desirable GPA and educational history (I did do a year of doctoral work at Harvard, but left precipitously -- I try to spin it in my PS, but I'm afraid it comes off as a red flag, especially because I was not a 4.0 student there). I have gotten the impression, more and more, that a lot of these programs love the recent LAC-grad 'Spring Chicken' types from Wesleyan or Pomona College. I also haven't heard from any of my schools in a few weeks, despite having written with a question/update. IDK, I guess if I get one or two acceptances I'll be about the most surprised I've ever been in my life. I've also seen that so-called 'back-up' schools, if they accept, are generally the first to do so (as a strategic move), yet I haven't heard a thing. Sigh. The silence is deafening, but I still prefer it to an early rejection blitz. I just want some good news! (Also I'm applying for jobs and am getting decisions this week and next, not ideal timing). Where did you get your acceptance, if you don't mind me asking?

Hi! So it seems like German applicants (as with German scholars/professors) are few in number, yet we manage to make ourselves known I applied to three German programs (Columbia, Brown, JHU) and three Comp. Lit. programs (Cornell, Princeton, Yale) and while I actually visited Princeton, Yale and Brown (and continued dialoguing with Profs via e-mail the weeks following) I feel 100% convinced at this point that I will get no acceptances. 0. Academic life = never gonna happen. Sweet. How's everyone holding up? Anyone hear/know anything about JHU or Brown decisions?

Hi guys, anyone applying to Top 10 Ph.D. programs? I applied to a mix of German and Comp. Lit. and I'm starting to get a bit neurotic -- it looks from past years that a few of these programs (Yale, Cornell, Johns Hopkins) have interviewed or informed applicants within the first two weeks of February, though it seems to change from year to year. Also, anyone want to claim the Cornell interview from Monday? I haven't heard anything from their program. Finally, if you'll indulge a little word vomit: I'm trying to be logical here, and the more I look over my applications in retrospect, the more proud I am of how they turned out (Ivy League undergrad, solid GRE scores, theoretically-rigorous yet clear and reasoned writing sample, etc.). However, I have this overwhelming, immutable conviction in recent days that I will be rejected from all 6 of my schools, with maybe one or two waitlists at lower-ranked programs. This is despite the positive, in-person conversations and e-mail interactions I've had with faculty at top schools. I just sincerely don't see this going my way. Anyone else in this boat? Sincerely, Müde in Manhattan.

sweet, good to hear if you have any particular insight, can you PM me? I'm going to have to live with him and the rest of the department for the next 5-7 years, for better or worse, so anything would help. have any other schools on the table as of yet?

Harvard German, they did their admissions somewhat staggered, but I believe they're pretty much done. Are you waiting on Comp. Lit. decisions?

Yup, this. I applied to 6 schools and I got into one at the top of the list, and one at the bottom. I got into Harvard but got rejections from Princeton, Yale, Stanford and Columbia. Northwestern's acceptance was great, and by officially getting two funded offers from top-10 universities I have to count myself among an extremely rare group of applicants, for which I feel totally unworthy. But I can't help but think how effed up the system is if I didn't even get waitlisted at any of those schools and yet was directly admitted to Harvard with full funding. I keep having to repeat it to myself because a little part of my brain actually wants to waste time wimpering about my rejections. After all this, how do we just get on with life? For awhile it seemed to be dragging on, and then suddenly the *entire* game was over. Poof. Back to teaching English (I'm in Germany) and streaming episodes of The Big Bang Theory I guess?

I got into Harvard Looks like we could be in seminar together, Ontolome and Marrochino...I can't believe this hell is over. However, I didn't sing and dance when Peter Burgard told me over Skype. I'm actually terrified. Anyone have this with any of their acceptances? And congrats on getting into a great school Coffeeplease!

Thanks QG - yea, I thought I was well-prepared for the program, and noticed more than a few professors whose work really interested me. But I do have some shortcomings in my application that I can't change, and which I'm sure some programs won't be able to overlook, despite my last two years of hard work. I also know one of the assistant profs in the department, and he didn't read my file, but said that I am such a "textualist" that something like Yale or Northwestern (Nägele or Fenves) would be a better fit for me, so I trust that the rejection was mutually beneficial (I would hate to agonize over turning down Princeton if I visited but found out it wasn't the program I thought). I'm sure Princeton has an admitted students weekend, and that they'll give you more information in the coming weeks (which should be easy to attend given your proximity). But you're in, so I'm sure it wouldn't be inappropriate to e-mail Peter Jennings (or whomever the contact person is, Wegmann perhaps), with any questions. Congrats again!

I'm in the German Literature/Theory pool, but I totally agree with Antecedent's sentiments. I got accepted right off the bat to a great program, but the excitement lasted one night; then I was back to agonizing. I got a rejection yesterday from Princeton, and it was sad but it was a euphoric rush nonetheless...it happened! I applied and a decision was made! I won't be in this hellish limbo forever! I can't wait to be bored as shit and trolling the bars again come April