wildernessgirl

Yeah, I got into their program. I initially accepted because they wanted an answer by March 23, but ended up rescinding my acceptance for Denver. It was a better program and location for me and my partner both personally and professionally.

It's late in the game, so I'm not sure how many people are still active in this thread, but I'll be putting down my deposit at University of Denver tomorrow. I'm waiting until the last minute because I still STILL haven't gotten an official answer from Portland State. The disorganization at that program is enough to make me not want to go there, even if I were to get accepted. They said they'd potentially have a decision for me by April 1. Contacted them then, no response. Then a week later, I called about five times before someone picked up. She didn't have an official answer, but after looking at my file said it looked like I probably wasn't going to be accepted to the program. Apparently my 28 months of full time experience doesn't match what they calculate as two plus years of full time experience. THEN two days later, I got an e-mail from financial aid at PSU saying I wasn't awarded any scholarships, it was a competitive year, blah blah blah, but here's the link to check out your financial aid offers. The next day I get another e-mail from financial aid that says "oops, we sent that in error." And here we are, April 13, with no official decision. So I'm acting under the presumption that I'm not getting in. It's been a stressful and disappointing week. I'm an Oregon resident, and my partner lives in Portland, so an acceptance there would have been really great for both of us. Thankfully DU gave me a great scholarship, Denver is my home-town so I have lots of friends and family there, and their program actually matches my needs and career development goals the best of all the schools I applied to. Wishing all of you luck in making your final decisions!

I don't know anything about CalArts, but I'll throw some info in here about UO. I'm getting my Master's in Musicology at UO, entering my final term here in order to graduate in June. I have full funding with a Teaching Fellowship, and it's pretty decent. The pay isn't great, but the union for the GTFs is incredible. We have fabulous health insurance and great support, and our pay is increasing because of a hard battle fought at the bargaining table this year that awarded pay increases to meet the living wage for Eugene as well as a fund to provide assistance in case of hardship or childbirth. Eugene has a surprisingly active music scene for the size of the city, and Portland is just a two hour drive or train ride away, so if you need to get to a bigger city it's really manageable. I've really enjoyed my time at UO and in Eugene, and that's considering the fact that I decided two terms in that Musicology and academia was not the place for me in the long-term. But the music faculty is really high quality, and you'll definitely get a great education. The nice thing about getting a GTF position, other than the obvious perk of tuition being paid as well as a stipend for living, is it gives you two years of teaching experience. So if you do want to end up teaching, you have that in your back pocket just coming out of your degree.

@jharper I had two schools that did that, it was so absurd! I remember the website saying they let advanced standing students know mid-march, and then they tell everyone else. It still doesn't make sense that it takes so long. Montana's application deadline was February 15, and they still got back to me quicker. The whole thing seems like a crapshoot sometimes. Congrats!

Thanks @earlycuyler! I lived in Montana when I was a little kid, I'm pretty excited at the idea of moving back. Everyone says amazing things about Missoula.

As you'll see from my signature below, Portland State is the last school to get back to me. I just heard back from Montana today, and their application deadline was two weeks after PSU's. I am getting anxious because PSU is my first choice. I currently live in Oregon and can get in-state tuition, and my partner lives and works in Portland. Although we will consider moving if necessary, getting into PSU would make everything a hell of a lot easier for us. I am particularly anxious today because I heard back from Montana. This is exciting, because if I don't get into PSU, Montana will be easiest for us. The other boss for my partner's company lives in Missoula, so transitioning there would be easy to negotiate. However, they want to hear back by March 23 because of a long wait-list. Portland State doesn't get back to people until April, it seems, and I'm not sure how to negotiate this situation. I e-mailed PSU today to let them know I was under some pressure, and curious to see what the anticipate their schedule to be. I think the next step is contacting Montana and asking for an extension. If there's no down-payment necessary, is it acceptable to accept at Montana and then potentially rescind that acceptance if I get into PSU next month? I'm not sure how to tread this situation, and it's causing me so much stress. Why does PSU take so long to decide?! I've heard from all of the other schools I applied to, this seems silly!

Just got my acceptance to Montana today. Very stoked about that. A little worried, though, because they want a response by March 23, and I'm still waiting on my last school to get back to me, Portland State, who says they will notify people no later than April 30. In past years people haven't heard until late April, and I don't want to say yes to Montana just because PSU hasn't even replied yet. Sent an e-mail to light a fire hopefully, and if that doesn't work I'll ask for an extension on confirming or denying at Montana. So much to consider.

I applied for the January 1 deadline.

I just discovered this forum and it's helped ease my obsessive email and mail checking to know when people have heard from certain schools! It's been neat to hear about other people's processes, as well. So far I've been accepted to University of Denver (with a hefty scholarship), Arizona State, and Colorado State. Rejected at UW, not surprised and not really bothered either. Still waiting on Portland State and Montana, which happen to be my first choices since my partner lives in Portland and could easily relocate to Missoula for his job. Hoping to hear soon!!! I'm finishing my MA in Musicology at UO right now, so it'll be great to know where I'm headed and start planning for the Fall.