VMcJ

Can confirm, I got an offer of admission today with funding details, offer letter, accepted students weekend info. 

Wow! I'm sorry you had to go through this. It sounds like a really toxic department culture and like things really sucked. I haven't posted or visited this place in maybe 8 years since I was applying to grad school but this post made me want to share some thoughts. I've now finished my Ph.D. (at a top USNWR 5 place) and am now an assistant professor at a very nice place. Yes, I got very, very lucky and my experience is not representative of the typical applicant. But here are some thoughts:
1. I picked dissertation committee members based partly on their not being jerks. I did not work myself to the bone. Mostly, I worked the equivalent of 9 to 5 hours. Nine hours of real productivity and focus (i.e. with absolutely no internet, email, etc) is probably more than enough for most Ph.D. programs. The tough part is getting that focus. There are exceptions of course: when there was a tough game theory problem set due or the last frenzied two months of dissertation writing.
3. I made sure to give myself options. I came into grad school a qualitative scholar and left with some hard data science-type skills and I worked hard to hustle some consulting gigs. I don't really agree with the previous posts about consulting (at least after coursework is over).
4. I am not sure what field BigTenPoliSci is in, but to me the description of a star-focused job market sounds more like American politics and less like Comparative.
I wouldn't try to actively persuade anyone to go to graduate school, given the probabilities involved, but at the same time if you want a lottery ticket to the TT and you have a funded offer from a place in the USNWR top 10, you're probably not making a huge mistake.

Thanks for the information! It appears all my Schrödinger Applications are still alive, then.

Also, I think I just found a (somewhat) great meme for those who have sullied the good name of the results section...
 

I hope this horse can pronounce "admitted".  

I hope this horse can pronounce "admitted".  

I agree with @Comparativist that we should really refrain from calling to ask about decision dates. If the trolls know that they can get us to call departments simply by making a few fake posts, they're going to keep trolling because they'll understand that their trolling works. As others have said, I don't think any major program has ever released results without at least a few people claiming them on gradcafe. Don't feed the trolls, as they say.

No, they didn't release decisions and won't for another two weeks or so. I just called. I think @RevTheory1126 is right. If no one claims anything explicitly on this board, or you didn't get an email giving you the yay or nay, then don't take it seriously.
 
I'd also like to point out that frequenters of this board would be wise to look at the date of decisions from the previous two cycles for whatever school it is that you're worried about, and go off of that. For Berkeley, it sounds like decisions won't go out until the end of next week at the earliest.

I'll restate my policy: if no one claims it or can confirm it, I ain't buying it.

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Another week.... good luck everyone 

Me too. Received about 10 rejections for 2015-2016 cycle but wasn't really disheartened I must say. I wasn't in the right state of mind when I applied, which explains the sloppiness of my application and SOP. I also must add that this forum has been really helpful when I applied for the 2016-17 cycle and I hope I can really pay back soon upon news of acceptance. 

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Lovely story of resilience! Glad you are back, glad you have good news, and thank you for the well-wishes. The nerves are real, but doing my best to take heart in your example.

Hello, people.
I've been in this forum last cycle, when I got eight rejections and was devastated for some time. But I've got my act together and tried again this cycle (this time with a different academic purpose, 14 applications, new letters of recommendation, etc.). I was planning to come here in February, but what I didn't expect was that by now I'd be already admitted to Rice (!!!). So I decided to anticipate my return.
For everybody here anxious and nervous about everything: try to relax if possible. A handful of rejections does not mean you're not fit for doctoral studies, neither that you're not going to get what you want eventually. This is important and I almost let it slip when I was depressed about my results last year.
But the most important thing is this cycle is only beginning. I figured I'd be anxious by now, but Rice put an unexpected and premature end to my nervousness. Rice wasn't even my best fit and I didn't expect it so quickly. I am certain you will eventually be as thrilled as I am right now.
Best of luck for everybody!

Yale is over. I liked that they apparently sent all responses at once. Nice.
Now I am just waiting for the last confirmations for rejections from Columbia, Harvard and Georgetown. It is only a matter of time, really.
I'll be here next cycle, ladies and gentlemen. I expect and will work towards a happier ending for me. Never give up!
I am very happy for everyone who got admitted and extend my sympathies to those that have got an outcome like mine.
I think I will not post in this thread anymore, nor read it. If any of you need me for some reason, feel free to PM me.
Thanks a lot, everybody.

PROFILE:
Type of Undergrad Institution: Top 3 Canadian university
Major(s)/Minor(s): Political Science
Undergrad GPA: Between 3.82 and 3.92 depending on how you calculate it.
Type of Grad: Top 3 Canadian university (Political Science MA)
Grad GPA: None at time of application.
GRE: 168V 158Q 5.5AW
Any Special Courses:  
During undergrad: grad seminar in political psych, summer school on experimental methods. 
During MA: 2 PhD-level statistics courses, 2 independent studies on topics relevant to my substantive interests.
Letters of Recommendation: Apparently all very strong, from political scientists who know me well and work in fields relevant to my research interests.  Sent all four when possible, otherwise alternated #3 and #4 depending on who had better connections to the school.
1. Famous/respected senior scholar who co-supervised my Honours thesis. 
2. Rising star junior scholar who I am RAing for and co-authoring with during my MA. 
3. Untenured AP who co-supervised my Honours thesis and taught a seminar I took.
4. Tenured professor who I RAed for during undergrad and am currently co-authoring with. 
Research Experience: 
- Honours thesis (experiments, top grade in the thesis program)
- Several consecutive RAships spanning ~3 years
- 3 quantitative working papers with various faculty
- Research grant to conduct a survey at my undergrad institution
- Two undergrad publications
Teaching Experience: None
Subfield/Research Interests: Political psychology, political communication, experimental methods.
Other: former Editor-in-Chief of undergraduate journal, prestigious MA fellowship.

RESULTS:
Acceptances($$ or no $$): Harvard ($$), Michigan ($$), UCSD($$), NYU ($$), Northwestern ($$), Stony Brook ($), UPenn (*), Vanderbilt (*).
Waitlists: None
Rejections: Berkeley, Stanford, Princeton.
Pending: None
Going to: Will decide after visits.
 * Declined before they sent funding info
 
LESSONS LEARNED:
 
Many, have spent a long time thinking about this. 
 
While putting together your file:
 
-  Be strategic about your reference letters, if possible. If you have multiple people willing to recommend you, try to think about how they each bring something different to your file as well as have credibility with different groups you hope to reach.
 
- Not everyone will agree with me here but: de-politicize your file. I’m someone who has done a lot of activism and electoral politics in the recent past. I made a point to focus on my academic achievements in my file, and to try and make my google results more professional (to limited success). Why? Because (I’ve heard) ad comms are very wary of people pursuing graduate studies as a way to change the world who don’t understand what academia is like + because it's impossible to know who is on the committee and what they value/believe politically + because there’s already limited space in the application. 
 
- Do an MA. Whether this is a feasible option of course depends on where you are. In Canada, there are lots of well-respected & fully-funded MA programs, and I received a scholarship/RAship, which meant it wasn’t a sunk cost. Not only did my MA make me more competitive for PhD programs (by giving me way more research experience and methodological expertise) but it also was a great experience to spend a year working with new mentors. I wouldn’t have wanted to do my PhD at this school for myriad reasons, but I am very grateful to have had the chance to spend a year here to diversify my academic experiences, strengthen my application profile, and become that much more sure that I wanted to be an academic.
 
- Anticipate your weaknesses and try to counteract them. I knew that my methods background would be thin for a lot of top schools so, as much as possible, I spent the last 8 months before applications building up my stats chops. I think this helped in general, and I think it helped counteract my GRE Q. In addition - get your references to speak to your weaknesses in their letters. And, if your school doesn’t have an endemic of grade inflation, get them to mention that as well. N of 1, but I think this helped.
 
- If you have time, submit the January applications when you submit the December ones. This allows you to enjoy your winter holidays in peace instead of scampering last minute to remember how to do things. 
 
- Letters often do not come in on time. Don’t panic if your reviewers are a few days late, though of course send a gently-worded reminder.
 
- Start preparing early for both the GRE and the essays. The GRE sucks. Studying for the GRE sucks. If you do a little bit of studying every week over a long period of time, and take it early enough to allow a real take, you’ll save yourself so much anxiety. As for the SOP: it’s been said on previous versions of this thread but your first SOP will be total garbage. Start it (at least) the summer before graduating, and revisit every 2-4 weeks. Ask your letter writers to review it, and PhD students you trust. And - a mistake I made - don’t forget that it’s not just one long SOP. Some schools want a short one (~500 words). And some schools want a SOP that’s about research + a separate Personal Statement that’s about your personal journey. While I wouldn’t recommend sending out all 3 documents for frequent edits, you should draft all these separate documents early. 
 
While waiting for decisions:
 
- Personally, I don’t think its a good idea to cold-email POIs before getting a decision from the department. Every professor I talked to said they get hundreds of these e-mails and view them as a nuisance more than anything. There’s a good chance your POI isn’t even on the committee, and it’s unlikely that a professor will be willing to go to bat for you with the ad comm after just a few e-mails. If your letter writers know your POI, get them to e-introduce you or to just mention you to the POI (even so, this may have no effect besides making you feel more in control of your destiny). Otherwise, hold tight. 
 
- Limit your access to this site. I’m serious. This website is extremely useful during the pre-application process, as you put together your package. And while decisions are rolling out, it can be nice to commiserate with other applicants. However, so much of the information on these forums (and on the results page!) is simultaneously stressful and useless. Limiting your access to this site is the difference between getting an e-mail notification about your rejection (quick like a band-aid) versus agonizing for hours or days or even weeks over whether/when the rejection will come and if maybe, just maybe, you’re on a waitlist they didn’t tell you about yet. If I could do it all again, I would just look at these pages for tips while putting my application together, jot down rough timelines to hear decisions, and then never log in again. (Psst: https://selfcontrolapp.com/)
 
- When you inevitably ignore the above: try not to pay too much attention to when other people get their results. Sometimes other peoples’ results are a clue that bad (or good) news is coming. Sometimes they mean nothing at all. I was convinced I was rejected by Vanderbilt for several weeks, when it turned out they just didn’t feel the need to interview me. I got an interview by Stony Brook several weeks earlier than most people, but all of us got accepted at the same time. At my MA institution, I heard back 2 weeks later than the first round of admits because they were finalizing my scholarship. No news is not bad news - it’s no news. 
 
- Try to remember how idiosyncratic this process is. We have a tendency to assume everything is planned and down to an exact science. It’s not. Based on this site, I was worried my GRE scores would bar me from admission at CHYMPS, and then basically every professor I talked to said it depended who was on the committee. Similarly, some folks on this forum tried to predict the exact date admissions decisions would be released based on previous years. Realistically, the committees release decisions when they make them, and when they make them is based mostly on when they’re able to actually meet. Lower-ranked schools have an incentive to release early as to convince you early, whereas highly-ranked schools know they’ll fill their quotas no matter what so they can release whenever. Attempting to calculate the exact date of offers or the exact GRE scores you need to get in - these are futile exercises. All you can do is improve your file to the best of your ability and hope it works out.
 
 
SOP: Not comfortable sharing it but the structure was as so: opened with a vignette about becoming interested in political psych —>  discussed my general research interests —> discussed a specific set of questions I’d be interested in answering in my dissertation —> hinted at methodology I’d hope to use —> discussed my research experience and credentials chronologically —> discussed what drew me to the specific school including POIs, institutes/centres, and annual events —> ended with a line about intending to pursue an R1 TT position post-grad.
 
Good luck!

Claiming a Harvard admit

Yale is over. I liked that they apparently sent all responses at once. Nice.
Now I am just waiting for the last confirmations for rejections from Columbia, Harvard and Georgetown. It is only a matter of time, really.
I'll be here next cycle, ladies and gentlemen. I expect and will work towards a happier ending for me. Never give up!
I am very happy for everyone who got admitted and extend my sympathies to those that have got an outcome like mine.
I think I will not post in this thread anymore, nor read it. If any of you need me for some reason, feel free to PM me.
Thanks a lot, everybody.

Yale is over. I liked that they apparently sent all responses at once. Nice.
Now I am just waiting for the last confirmations for rejections from Columbia, Harvard and Georgetown. It is only a matter of time, really.
I'll be here next cycle, ladies and gentlemen. I expect and will work towards a happier ending for me. Never give up!
I am very happy for everyone who got admitted and extend my sympathies to those that have got an outcome like mine.
I think I will not post in this thread anymore, nor read it. If any of you need me for some reason, feel free to PM me.
Thanks a lot, everybody.