TheJabberwock

I solicited and did not get a rejection O.o They told me I am not accepted/waitlisted but not rejected yet. My emphasis is not language though so maybe I will not be so lucky. Edit: Where else are you debating between?

This! I'm still waitlisted at my only options and it's really painful. I'm glad to go to work the next two days to help take my mind off of the wait.

I've seen a few declining of Rice, is anyone else planning on doing or has done so? Thank you to those who have so far!

Ahhh, one week left and it's getting more stressful every day! The anxiety is worsening. It sucks being waitlisted at two schools without another prospect but here's to hoping the dust settles in everyone's general favor this week!

This. This seems to be the biggest thing slowing down everyone else: people who were admitted into a bunch of 'higher' up schools wait a substantial amount of time before making decisions. Then things slowly start to trickle down. As people said before, those in the 5+ category should probably whittle down their choices well before April 10th. I am dreading to hear back on April 15 and be on stand by to accept an offer if one is extended. I was last year and it increased the level of anxiety more than just regular waiting.

I want to bump this thread. Mainly because I am torn between placement and location. Assuming fit is good between the two schools, and programs are 'ranked' similarly, I don't know which to choose. One school has a superb location in my opinion and seems really nice (good weather, pretty, closer to other cities). The other is in a hotter, muggier with nothing else really nearby that interests me (I like to go hiking and do not prefer flat land). However, the placement record of the better located school is not very good at all, the poorly located school has a decent placement and seems to prepare it students better for careers in academia. The other thing to mention is I am not set on working in academia after completion of a PhD, but I would like the option to at least pursue it. So which do you all think is more important? All of this is assuming I will be fortunate to make a choice anyway (I being a bit optimistic and prepared in case I need to make a decision).

Yes, but not to Kentucky. Of the twelve or so schools I applied to last year, I only applied to two of them again (Oregon and Rice). Last year I applied to more continental schools. This year, with the advice of a professor who works on Husserl/Heidegger, I was recommended to not apply to the sole continental schools (e.g. Duquesne, SUNY Stony Brook, Emory) since they will look at my analytic tendencies in a less positive light (oddly enough). I like both sides of the divide, and the Nietzsche scholars I focus on are the 'analytic' types. So, I applied to schools with split departments, places where they emphasize working across the divide, and schools with philosophy of mind departments that are sympathetic to German philosophy.

I know! Applying and attending is a risky business and everyone should be well aware of that. If I had a choice between schools, I would definitely look at placement, but since I am still sitting on the outside looking in, getting in seems to be the first step. Now whether or not the end goal should be tenure track positions coming out of a phd program is up for debate, but this is not a priority for me. Therefore, attending a program is my focus and priority.

Thank goodness I don't necessarily do just continental philosophy (writing sample was in phil of mind/epistemology)! That being said, if I am extended an offer I will be happy to be pursuing my PhD and to continue doing research that allows me to publish and continue attending conferences. On the other side of a PhD, I have fortunately experiences and qualifications to fall back on. If placement were the sole reason we were going into PhD programs, then I think many of us would have the wrong idea. Even the best of us, who have the best offers and attended the best programs (hoping they make it through), will still have difficulty getting placed in a tenure track position. That's the sad reality of this whole endeavor. First step however, regardless of any school's record in placement, is actually getting in a program in the first place (and not going into debt to attend one)!

I just got waitlisted at Kentucky, very high among alternates! Fingers crossed, this is one of my top choices!

Thank you for doing it so quickly! I appreciate it.

I see three Oregon rejections via email, I have not received an email and the status of my application is still pending. Should I give into the false sense of hope? Looks like in past years they have done all their rejections at once... AHHHHH I don't know what this means!

Congratulations! I wonder if Saint Louis is contacting those who they are accepting today as well?

Okay cool. If I were in your place I would wait until I had visited the other schools as well. Thank you for the information!

Thank you, that is very kind of you. She did not invite me to visit, but I asked her roughly the likelihood of an offer being made to me and she said that people have received offers in recent years in the spot I am located. So I am guessing middle of the waitlist maybe higher based on some of the positive feedback. She was being prudent not to give me false hope though, you never know if this year will be like recent ones or not. Do you know for sure yet if you are going to turn down an offer from Rice? I would say wait until you are fairly certain you are not going to attend. As much as I would appreciate moving up the list, I would also like for you to make the best decision. I will gladly wait. : )