jeanne

January rocked - first acceptance. February blew - two rejections (both today....awesome). March - hopefully one more acceptance. At least they've been leading me on with two visits to campus, four phone interviews (two different profs), and multiple emails all telling me how much they want me. But I know they don't meet until next week! (They being University of Wisconsin, my top choice and also the top ranked school in Ed Psych.)

OK, I got the rejection letter at 4:00. Oh well, I'm accepted to U of I and Wisconsin, which are both ranked better and have profs that I'd really like to work with anyway. Congrats to all who got in!

I'm applying to the Ed.D. program and haven't heard anything either way. Any idea what this means? Should I call?

I'm bumping this up. I saw at least one acceptance, one rejection on the results search page. I think they were all for Human Development and Education. Can anybody verify this? I haven't heard either way yet and I'm just ready to know!

I didn't apply to any of the UC schools, but I'm having similar thoughts about the University of Illinois. Currently the state owes them over $400 million. They say that historically they've funded all their students all the time (that means 25% - enough to get your tuition/fee waiver) and have given everybody who wants it up to 50%, and they'll continue that as much as they can, but they can't promise anything. Even living in a dirt-cheap little town like Champaign-Urbana, there's no way you can survive off the $6,700 salary a 25% position gives you.

Does anybody else think it's cruel that Girl Scout cookies just got delivered this week? As if I needed more temptation!

Good sign! It's not a definite acceptance, but it means he's interested. I agree with a previous poster that you should read up on his current research and see if it's something you're interested in. In a few of my phone interviews the prof seemed more interested in talking than asking questions of me. (I had good results at those schools, so don't worry if that happens to you.) But you should be able to talk intelligently about his research interest and how it can possibly overlap with yours.

I didn't contact any of the professors I mentioned in my SOP before hand. I didn't realize it was common to do so and I didn't want to appear needy or something. At two of the schools that I applied to I had different professors than those I mentioned in my SOP state that they thought I'd be a good match with them and contact me. I've also talked with the professors that I mentioned in my SOP after the application was submitted, but they initiated that contact. One of them is going on sabbatical next year, but I think she's still interested in me working with her after that. So based off my experience, I don't think you necessary hurt yourself, if there's another professor with a related research interest.

Many MEd's are a joke - and I'm saying this as somebody who paid lots of money to get one. I went to a program that is well thought of in the Chicago area. I didn't take the GRE but the Miller Analogy Test. And even if I failed that, I still would be accepted to the program and be in good standing as long as I kept a C average. I didn't have any SOP or LOR's. My final project for the class? I had to show my professor that I "grew as an individual." I played a solo on my clarinet. Other people showed off moves from their Latin dance class. We read books such as Middlesex and My Sister's Keeper and didn't crack open the textbooks at all (which we were required to buy.) I think when you look at PhD programs you're going to find a difference between areas. If somebody's going into a practical area - like educational leadership - then you'll probably get a lot of programs similar to the masters. People just want to get done. If you're going into a research area - like educational psychology - then you'll probably get more substantial programs.

Well, one of my visits was to Madison, WI and the other was to Champaign-Urbana, IL. I guess I did OK with the shoes. But then again, I'm a Chicago girl so I'm used to all this snow.

This isn't the only time I've heard of this happening. I think it happened to Northwestern's Kellogg school of business. Scary, huh?

I went business casual. I wore nice pants, a sweater, and heels. Guys were wearing mostly khakis and a button down or sweater. Some wore a jacket, but not a suit. Usually it's a grad student arranging these visits. You can always email them and ask what the dress code is.

I would say that you can't make the visitation day, but see if you can arrange a phone call with a professor and/or students. That way they know you're still interested, but you don't have to make the trip. If they really impress you on the phone, you can decide later about making an actual trip. If you're not impressed, then you haven't wasted any days off.

The only time I was asked this was by a professor as a last minute question before we ended a phone interview. She even said that if I'm not comfortable answering then I didn't have to. But I figured it was on my application anyway, so why not? I answered that I had applied to several schools but was seriously considering two (obviously one was hers) and told her which one (it's ranked #1 in that department). She sounded a little upset, as if her school couldn't compete (even though it's ranked #5). After visiting both schools I liked her school much better so I made sure to tell her how impressed I was and how much I wanted to go though, assuming funding worked out. I said it tactfully, of course. She seemed to like my honesty and just wanted to know for her own reasons, although she did tell the student taht i stayed with during the visit, which I thought was a little odd. But I think they're bff's, which is also odd.

I think it usually means that you've been accepted by your department, but the graduate school needs to make sure you've met all their specifications (min gpa, etc). You should be hearing soon!

The character of Dr. Temperance Brennan (on TV) is based off a character in Kathy Reichs' books, which is based off her own life as a forensic anthropologist. Although there is a HUGE difference between the books and shows, it was actually written by an academic. As a funny aside, in the show Dr. Brennan is also a famous author and her "fictional" character is called Kathy Reichs. Sorry - I watch way too much Bones. I went through the whole series this winter.

Does anybody else spend hours sifting through Craigslist, imagining where you would live if you got into one of your top schools? Or is that just me ... Besides that and gradcafe.com, the rest of my time is working at my full-time job.

I think it depends on what you want to do in the long run. I'm accepted to U of I (ranked #5) and hopeful for Wisconsin (ranked #1) but also looking into Harvard (ranked #15). Obviously Harvard has the name, but it doesn't beat the rankings of the state schools. Plus, I want to end up in Illinois after grad school so going to either Wisconsin or Illinois makes more sense. Do you think the profs at ASU will have connections with schools that you'd like to attend after you finish? Then that should be enough to get you set up after grad school.

I feel that location makes much more of a different to people from nice climates than people from places where it actually snows - and this is just totally my own opinion. I've never heard of somebody from Chicago being miserable in California because it's "too nice". I've heard them say they miss the winter, but not be miserable. However I know many people who are absolutely miserable in Chicago in the winter because it's "too cold, too snowy, too windy" etc. Related to location: I'm accepted at U of I and will probably get into Wisconsin. I love the atmosphere of Wisconsin because it's a bigger city, but cost of living is higher than in Champaign-Urbana. So location is closely tied to finances also. For me, both schools are equally good "fits" when considering research, course structure, professor interaction, etc. But at this point I've already unofficially accepted my offer of admissions to U of I because the finances are going to beat out Wisconsin since I'll be going into Educational Psychology - not a huge money maker after earning that PhD.

I've been on two visitation weekends - one for an interview and one after acceptance. For the first one (interview) there were lots of business casual to suits. For the second one it was business casual to dark jeans and a nice top. I wore nicer pants, comfy heels, and a sweater to both and felt totally fine. I wore the same thing to the reception at the dean's house. Both of these weekends were set up by a GA for the department. I actually emailed her and asked what attire was expected. She was very nice and told me business casual, so I felt perfectly prepared. I was already accepted to this department, so I wasn't as worried about making a "bad" impression. For the campus tour, I would not wear heels, but I think jeans are appropriate.

It seems you've already answered your own question, but I'll add my opinion anyway. If you're going to be spending 5 - 7 years working on this research, then you've got to love it. If you think you can, then go for it. I've had similar situations where the prof I wanted to work for is going on sabbatical for a year and so isn't accepting students for the fall. I was told that I would get put with somebody else (with somewhat related research) for the first year and then have a chance to possibly work with her the next year. She actually just contacted me today to set up a phone interview, so I'll find out more info about that. If it seems like that could really work, then I'll go for it. Otherwise, I don't think so.

I've gotten an acceptance and a rejection at 6 pm Friday. One was from a midwestern school, the other from a west coast school so they sent it at different local times. I don't think there's any solid rule.

I'm applying to PhD, but I've already gotten a Masters, although in a somewhat different area. I think the decision timeline is what makes it seem so much more heavily PhD.

Getting a professorship is definitely one of my possible goals, but I'd think it would be really cool to form my own primary school system. (I'll be in an ed psych program.)

You're clearly not doing Weight Watchers correctly if you're feeling food deprived. It's about eating healthier (fruits and veggies, lean meats, etc), not eating less. That being said, I understand if it's harder to get healthy food (which tends to be more expensive) while in grad school. That's one of my big worries.