nightfarmer

And after spending 2 years doing an MA in Ohio, I miss seeing real snow...

Snow days in the south are the worst... No one puts down enough salt on the roads to make it safe enough for me to go for a jog, or drive elsewhere to exercise, and there's not nearly enough snow for snow sports. Another day relentlessly sitting indoors by my email.

Yeah, that's what the rational/realistic part of my brain told me. I guess my only hope now is waiting list (if they have one this year). I applied last year, but not this year - kind of a frustrating story. I went to UNC for undergrad, then got my MA elsewhere to improve my application (relatively unimpressive undergrad GPA). So anyway, at some point last application season I corresponded with the POI at UNC and he said I should put in an application. I didn't get in. I saw him sometime later and asked him how I could improve my application for reapplying, and he just told me he couldn't have convinced the committee to take me since I did undergrad there. I guess they get so many applicants who check all the 'boxes' that they can rule people out based on that. So that sucked. I didn't throw away the money this year.

Well, to dogpile on this with everyone else, there are certain names (esp. the Ivies) that have a lot of cachet no matter what. But for the majority of programs the rank of the department as a whole is sort of second fiddle to how prominent your primary adviser is. As I've been told by numerous professors, you're known for much of your career as so-and-so's student - until, perhaps, you overshadow them So in summary fit and rank aren't really 2 sides of the spectrum here.

Ah - found one of you Duke admits. Now that it's been like 3 weeks since they sent out some admission letters (seriously WTF Duke), I feel less impatient and weird asking you this. Did you get any impression from the wording of their letter that there would be more people admitted, or did it sound more like they've made their picks? I know most likely you have no way of knowing, but as another native of NC this particular admission/rejection has a lot riding on it. Because the week after the first couple admissions showed up on gradcafe, I was expecting a decision either way any day. But now after 3 weeks it seems like maybe they're still debating who else to make offers to??? I'm sure I'm not the only Duke history applicant whose mind is running wild...

I created it in the German for the German audience:

Waking up this Monday morning, thinking "this is the week," AGAIN, is a lot like this handy meme I found.

All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.” ― J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring.

It's the weekend, aka the time when no admissions committees meet. To pass the time I'm going to watch the extended versions of all 3 LOTR movies.

Whoops - didn't ignore this, just saw it. I had to get off the email machine aka computer last night. Ended up watching spectre with a bottle of merlot.

It's always good to hear words of encouragement from people who actually know what this process is like. thanks

Well, after all my sitting around saying "I wish I'd hear something" I got the first official response and it was a rejection. Doesn't exactly make waiting on other programs any easier...

Applicants, yes. But professors on admissions committees need to stay awake and go into work.

I believe we have quorum, so let's just take a vote. Everyone in favor of fast forwarding through the rest of February? The yeas have it.

Is anyone else waiting on other decisions in addition to grad admissions right now? I also expect, in the next month, to hear back from a major conference, a major seminar and 2 jobs that I've applied to. My entire life is consumed by waiting right now. It's fun.

Yep. With several schools sending out decisions to all applicants early in the week I thought for sure I'd hear from one of mine by the end of the week. But no. Request for parole [from purgatorial waiting] denied.

Aaah, another late Friday morning without any news from any of the 5 schools I applied to. Time to watch a bad horror movie on netflix and turn off the computer.

Actually I'm a man and this is literally my situation right now.

I think I opened a whole can of worms here... sorry. I really didn't mean to come off as unfriendly or act like what you're asking was ridiculous or anything. (I'm really bad at conveying tone on electronic mediums) If I were a professor on the receiving end, I would never be annoyed by emails with CV updates or timeline questions. I personally find it helpful, when I'm in your position asking "should I email them," to have someone remind me that, while some things could go in a "couldn't hurt" column, I should do some thinking about whether it might instead go in the "couldn't help" column. Not the easiest advice to stomach, I know. But I use this forum as the therapy for not emailing admissions committees once a week. I think it's also a good attitude and approach to just want to do your work and not get hung up on your advisers. I've done an MA already, so I've seen lots of grad students with crabby advisers. The students who stay sane basically accept those people for who they are and just focus on their work. The ones who go crazy obsess over the lack of hand-holding and constantly get angry about a situation they can't change.

Yes, I totally agree and that is my opinion as well. Why would a simple email saying "where are we in the application process?" or "just an FYI, I was accepted to XYZ conference" be such a big deal? At this point in my life, I have pretty much only ever been on this side of the table. However, I am told by others that these kinds of things come off as impatient and make people seem weird and desperate. I totally agree with you, but I'm just telling you what I've been told by people who have been on the other side of the table - these things seem to be "you can only hurt your chances" situations unfortunately... And as for turning down a program based on that characteristic, you may not get a choice.

That really sucks. I don't have the exact same problem as you, but applying last year and reapplying this year almost exclusively to programs requiring me to move far away has, at this point, killed a relationship of 3 years. So, I am also being put in the difficult position of either pursuing my dreams or staying at home with no career prospects. All I can do is wait and hope the one local program comes through and maybe I can fix things. So that's adding to the stress of waiting... Again, I'm not actually married and it's not nearly the same problem, but I feel ya. Hang in there.

Since you already acted on this, I guess my advice is for other people reading this with a similar dilemma. I would advise against doing something like this. A grad conference, no offense, is not a big deal. I'd say there's almost no way it would make or break your application in the minds of an admissions committee - especially in mid-February. While not 100% of profs can be expected to react this way, contacting them with this kind of information may elicit the proverbial (or even literal) eye roll or 'so what' response from several of them. The thing is that every single applicant who can reasonably expect to be admitted to a competitive PhD program has a rapidly evolving CV. If you had won a Pulitzer, then maybe making sure they're aware would be beneficial. So again, I'd say it's best not to chance damaging a potentially good impression of you the "delicate geniuses" of the department may have in their mind. (Seinfeld anyone?) PS: I really hope this didn't come off abrasive or unfriendly, I have just had too many schools/jobs pass me over in recent years - some perhaps due to little mistakes I've made like this. I'm just trying to give people the advice that has been given to me after it was already too late.

I got an email last Thurs from a POI who told me I would be rejected. He offered his explanation of why they would have normally taken me, but didn't have enough resources this year for more than a few people (I inferred that quota from what he said). He said I should have already been notified - but I still haven't at this point. Even though I know with 99% certainty I won't get pleasantly surprised, there's still that part of me that's hoping for an email saying "oh, we changed our mind. welcome to our department, mr. nightfarmer." That'd be cool.

You're definitely not alone. And as a morning person it's hard because subconsciously (or maybe not) I equate how much I get done in the AM to my value as a human-type person. So I have to tell myself I'm sleeping in "for a good cause" but just starting the 2nd cup of coffee at 10:30 just doesn't seem right.

I woke up at like 5:15 today and knew immediately I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep. I will now approximate the first thoughts that went through my mind: oh crap, I woke up too early. That means I have at least like 5 hours before I could even possibly expect to hear from any schools. What am I going to do all morning... Ahhh, I love admissions season. Unfortunately I'm not in as good of running shape as I used to be, otherwise I'd run like 10 miles a day to burn some hours.