amam

So sorry to read this.

Closing my time in applying by saying that I’m heading to Europe after Drew Theological School finally gave my application a boot.
best wishes to everyone in their academic journey.

hope everyone is dohp[eing well after a hellish cycle.  No go for me in any of my 5 choices but i found this very funny today, posted it on my twitter: 
2 1/2 months after receiving a rejection from the history department at Notre Dame I just received a rejection letter from the graduate school. LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLO Academia is definitely a functional institution.
    oh well back to the drawing board. best and solidarity to everyone

While I haven't heard from Drew where I am on the waiting list, I am now seriously considering KU Leuven in Belgium. This is because the university nominated me as one of 20 incoming students for the Flemish regional government Master Mind scholarship. I hope to get the scholarship, so I am currently working on uploading my documents for the scholarship program. Who knew that getting an Acrobat license would help me assemble a transcript portfolio? (Not an ad.)
I think that devoting my energies to applying for this scholarship is better than anxiously waiting for the Drew outcome at the moment, though after I finish my application, there will be a wait to hear about the outcome--late May or early June is when it happens. 

Well, I've officially accepted my offer of admission at UNC! It's been a pleasure getting to know everyone and braving this gruesome process together. I'm wishing you all, no matter where you've ended up, the very best of luck moving forward!

A HUGE congratulations to you!!!

Got in at UCLA! I had received 7 rejections and then heard that UCLA had already had an admitted students day, so I was already looking at outside jobs. Completely surprising but really exciting!
Thanks for all the support this application season! Best of luck to all of you going forward!

Got an unofficial waitlist notification from UCLA this week. They said they should know if they’ll have a spot for me on Monday.
I had made my peace with my lack of acceptances, so now I’m excited again, but if it comes back as another no, that won’t be fun. But still. I have more reason to be optimistic now than I have in over a month, so that’s good!

@adamchaya I promise it will all work out. If you don't end up attending this institution, you will take the year to reflect and research and find a school that does feel like a confident fit. If you do end up attending this institution, you will find goodness in the experience. At the very least, you will be challenged academically and socially, and emerge stronger, smarter, and clearer on who you are, what you stand for, and the types of environments and people you do/don't want to surround yourself with going forward. If you go, and it sucks, then you transfer! You are never stuck. Walk through the doors that open (if you feel moved to do so) and just embrace the adventure

The simpler, the better:
Thank you so much for your time, consideration, and generous offer. However, after much consideration, I've decided to accept an offer for a different program. Thank you again, and I hope my release of this offer will be a benefit to another deserving candidate. 

I think you should definitely let them know. You will have to submit the transcripts anyway. I have no idea how it would affect your admissions status since it is a Master's degree program, but comparing it to undergraduate work is it possible (although I am not sure how likely) that an offer can be rescinded based on a significant deterioration in performance in the latter half of one's senior year.
What was your GPA in the Master's program at the time you applied?

I applied to a grad school in fall and at the time of applying I was enrolled in another (not very relevant) master's program. In my application, I said that I will be completing that master's this year (as I was expecting at the time). I ended up withdrawing from that master's program (was not very interested and struggled with the online classes) but now I am very worried that my offer of admission will be rescinded when I send them the official transcripts that show my withdrawal and not so great GPA (3.25) for the master's they thought I would be getting. The program does not require having a master's to get in but it is a top school (#1 in my field).
 
Is that a likely scenario or am I overthinking it? Should I notify them of not completing the master's and explain the reasons? Or just send them the official transcripts (which I have to do) and see if they bring it up?

I am a current 2nd year PhD student at Columbia. The majority of grad students are currently on strike for a living wage, better healthcare, and protection from harassment and discrimination. I have been watching the process of our new graduate union try to bargain for our first contract for over two years. In these sessions, I have seen admin (and their sleazy lawyer, who charges $1,500/hr) do everything possible to stall negotiations, belittle us, and play down heartfelt testimonials that make clear why our demands are reasonable and necessary. Every time we've gotten a raise in the past, our Columbia rent magically goes up by a higher percentage. Our wages are not enough to live in NYC. There is no dental or vision coverage, and they recently removed the better health insurance plan option. The school has a terrible history with harassment and discrimination cases brought by both undergrads and grads (Google it), and at the moment they are doing everything possible to avoid meeting our contract demand about changing the investigation process to give more rights to the complainant (see link below).
We're entering the 3rd week of the strike, and Columbia has made very clear that they plan to not only doc our bi-weekly pay (which we receive for TA/RA work), but our academic stipends--yep, they are going to debit our student accounts, thereby jeopardizing course registration, degree progress, visas, and health insurance. We have a legal right to strike, but this later action constitutes illegal academic retaliation.
Long story short: I'm sure a lot of schools are as corrupt as Columbia, but I've just seen first hand how rotten this place is to the core. They only care about profit (their endowment grew $300 million during the pandemic alone), squeezing as much our of grad workers and adjuncts for as little pay as possible, sweeping bad press under the rug, and gentrifying Harlem with multi-million dollar campus expansions.
I encourage folks thinking about attending/applying to Columbia to express concerns to department chairs and administrators, and ask them why they insist on denying grad workers a fair contract: 
President Lee Bollinger officeofthepresident@columbia.edu, Phone: (212) 854-9970 Provost Ira Katznelson provost@columbia.edu,  +1 212 854 2404 GSAS Grad Admissions: gsas-admissions@columbia.edu  
https://gothamist.com/news/columbia-grad-students-strike-over-wages-and-harassment-policies-nyu-counterparts-vote-similar-actions

I am so sorry to hear that. But hope the right doors will open to you!

Thank you!  
I'm happy even though I had to reject two other schools, so it was bittersweet. 
I have a BA in Religious Studies, minor in history, and a Master of Theological Studies. Taking the Religious Studies route for the PhD would have been the ideal trajectory but after talking to faculty and grad students I realized that adding the PhD in Chicanx Studies from UCLA would only open up job opportunities within the humanities.  
 
 

Welp, I just committed to UCLA. 
 
 
Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! ?

I turned down Stanford, withdrew from Toronto, and turned down a waitlist position at Princeton's history department. Hope this helps! 

Just committed to Harvard's CSR PhD program! Good luck to all on waitlists and making a decision; hopefully this can cause some waitlist movement at other programs.

I'm an MDiv at Yale Divinity School now, happy to answer any questions. The answer really depends on what you will be studying as a PhD student specifically. If you want to study Catholic moral philosophy, for example, then you may study with professors at Notre Dame that carry more weight for the professors at the PhD programs to which you will apply. Vice versa if there's a specific professor with which you want to study at Yale. You definitely don't need to know that at this point, but if you intend to apply for PhD down the road, it's never to early to begin thinking about it. I would suggest thinking about your interests and making a decision based on which school has professors specializing in your interest as closely as possible.

FINALLY got an answer from BC - it was a rejection but dear me what a LONG PROCESS! Not sure what their deal was but I did the interview back in mid-January and they told me they would give me an answer no later than early early Feb. Really surprised - luckily I have accepted an offer at elsewhere in history of religions. Really excited about it since the faculty is wonderful and they are really doing great thing.
 

Thought y’all should know since we go way back to like January lol...Just received an admissions offer from Candler school of Theology (Emory) with 75% tuition funding! This was the only MTS program I applied to along with my 4 PhD apps.

My references are good, and didn't know about having a fourth. Honestly my GPA is not low but not high (3.6 range), so I kinda hope the publications can make up for that fact. Thank you for all this information! It will be helpful for next year

Very sorry to hear! I've been there. It's a cold comfort, but this application cycle was unparalleled in its competitiveness, and your results this cycle don't necessarily speak to your merits as a scholar.
I'm sure it doesn't hurt to have a publication in a respected journal. Without knowing much about your academic background, the only advice I can offer is to write a statement of purpose that is focused but not narrow. Be really specific about why you want to attend a particular program, though - make sure there is a direct link between your interests and the interests of faculty members. Strong letters of recommendation are a must - solicit four instead of three, if you can. Make sure your writing sample is the best possible demonstration of the work you would like to do.
Hope this helps, and good luck!

So, I was rejected by all my applied to schools this year. However I got a publication in a peer review journal 
(heythrop) after the fact. How much does a publication in a respected journal help with applications? Just trying to figure out plans for strengthening my profile for next year

Well, I just accepted my offer of admission to Fordham in Systematics. Declined my acceptance to Drew. Writing an email to my mentor at Drew was and is heartbreaking. These are such complicated decisions, decidedly not fun. Sigh.