ThePastelCalico

So, from what I've learned from my advisor is that you have to understand it less as a rejection of you and more that they couldn't find room for you in their program. I know right now that these two things seem very very similar, but there is so much that is beyond your control. You may have applied during a particularly competitive year and you can't help that; maybe they wanted to accept you but couldn't just based on funding and the availability of funds within the department; maybe the people you want to work with aren't accepting new students right now (that's the exact reason I didn't apply to Colorado-Boulder); maybe it came down to you and another student and they just happened to like their personal statement more. People are very fickle things - this is particularly true for academics. It's very scary, as I'm terrified I'll hear bad news from all of the programs I applied to and I'll be thinking the exact same thing - "Why don't they want me? What did I do wrong?" But the fact of the matter is that no one is the perfect candidate, as much as we'd like to believe we are, and there are a number of factors beyond your control that could have lead to these rejections. 
 
Keep your head up and realize that it's tough now, and you have the right to be upset. But grow from this - if you choose to apply again, look at your personal statement and your writing sample and see if there are ways to make those stronger to compensate for a low GRE. At the end of the day, we are worth so much more than a rejection letter. I wish you nothing but the best moving forward. 

So, from what I've learned from my advisor is that you have to understand it less as a rejection of you and more that they couldn't find room for you in their program. I know right now that these two things seem very very similar, but there is so much that is beyond your control. You may have applied during a particularly competitive year and you can't help that; maybe they wanted to accept you but couldn't just based on funding and the availability of funds within the department; maybe the people you want to work with aren't accepting new students right now (that's the exact reason I didn't apply to Colorado-Boulder); maybe it came down to you and another student and they just happened to like their personal statement more. People are very fickle things - this is particularly true for academics. It's very scary, as I'm terrified I'll hear bad news from all of the programs I applied to and I'll be thinking the exact same thing - "Why don't they want me? What did I do wrong?" But the fact of the matter is that no one is the perfect candidate, as much as we'd like to believe we are, and there are a number of factors beyond your control that could have lead to these rejections. 
 
Keep your head up and realize that it's tough now, and you have the right to be upset. But grow from this - if you choose to apply again, look at your personal statement and your writing sample and see if there are ways to make those stronger to compensate for a low GRE. At the end of the day, we are worth so much more than a rejection letter. I wish you nothing but the best moving forward. 

Y'all! I got accepted into Irvine!!! I can't believe it 

Long time since I've been to this board. Haven't been here since I got into my MS program in spring 2016, but I'm back and a hopeful candidate for a few schools. Really hoping for UW-Madison; my statement was strong and so were my letters, but I feel like my writing sample is weak when compared to the rest of my app. No telling though.
 
Hope everyone else is having a fun time waiting like I am. Also, any suggestions on other schools to apply to for environmental sociology? I don't feel comfortable with just four applications out there. 

That means you should have at most, one offer to decide on, right?

So, Vandy never got back to me, but I wanted to let you all know that I've officially committed to the University of Delaware!
This *might* free up a spot or funding at NC State, UC Davis, CU Boulder, and Rutgers (although probably not Rutgers; my offer was un-funded).

While certainly not as prestigious as some of the other programs people have been accepted to, I just got an admit to Auburn's rural sociology program. Waiting to hear back about funding, but it's such a relief because I've been admitted somewhere, and because Auburn is my top choice (great fit with the department). 
Good luck to everyone else waiting to hear back about their PhD programs!

While certainly not as prestigious as some of the other programs people have been accepted to, I just got an admit to Auburn's rural sociology program. Waiting to hear back about funding, but it's such a relief because I've been admitted somewhere, and because Auburn is my top choice (great fit with the department). 
Good luck to everyone else waiting to hear back about their PhD programs!

While certainly not as prestigious as some of the other programs people have been accepted to, I just got an admit to Auburn's rural sociology program. Waiting to hear back about funding, but it's such a relief because I've been admitted somewhere, and because Auburn is my top choice (great fit with the department). 
Good luck to everyone else waiting to hear back about their PhD programs!

Why did you apply to programs outside the top 10 if you aren't actually willing to attend them?

dude, dont listen to us. you need to be listening to the faculty in those departments. they are all similarly ranked so the best school for you is the best fit for you. also, we aren't even in grad school yet, let alone the profession. Why would we have any idea which program is best? we know nothing!!!

This was on CRTNET this morning.
 
Suzanne Enck, Suzanne.Enck@unt.edu
 
One Teaching Assistant Opening for Fall 2015
 
The Department of Communication Studies at the University of North Texas is able to offer one more teaching assistantship to begin this fall! 
 
Our graduate teaching assistants are assigned to teach a variety of courses. TAs most frequently teaching "Introduction to Communication" - COMM 1010 - during their first year and then adding additional teaching opportunities as students gain experience and confidence (other TA opportunities include guiding recitation sections for: Interpersonal Communication, Performance of Literature, Rhetoric & Argument, Communication Perspectives, Small Group Communication, Organizational Communication, Storytelling, and Communication & Praxis Capstone). Each semester, the assistantship provides a salary of $1,232.22 per month at
.50 HTE for 4.5 months. Under the terms of this program, TAs will receive a 6-hour tuition scholarship each fall and spring semester (currently valued at $2,502.05) that will be automatically applied to their graduate tuition (TAs are required to take 9 hours/semester to maintain full-time standing). 
 
UNT's master's-only program is designed to facilitate student mastery of theory and research in the field of Communication Studies, to develop student research capabilities, and to enhance student preparation for various career paths or further graduate study. UNT's Department of Communication Studies offers coursework in rhetorical/critical studies, performance studies, and social science traditions (interpersonal & organizational communication). Students are afforded opportunities to explore communication from applied and theoretical perspectives, using analytical, critical, quantitative, and qualitative methodologies. The graduate experience is enhanced by opportunities to engage in one-on-one research with faculty members, participate in regional and national professional conferences and performance festivals, and complete internships with corporations, social service organizations, and government agencies.
 
For information about our program and how to apply, please visit us:
http://communication.unt.edu/graduate-studies-overview
 
Application to this program involves TWO steps:
 
First, submit the following to the UNT Tolouse Graduate School:
http://tsgs.unt.edu/admissions/programs
 
--Online application (ApplyTexas) and $75 fee
 
--Official transcripts from ALL colleges attended
 
--Official GRE scores
 
 
TO:  Toulouse Graduate School
 
University of North Texas
 
1155 Union Circle #305459
 
Denton, TX 76203-5017
 
 
Second, send all additional application materials directly to the Department of Communication Studies:
 
--A signed application letter in which you address your purpose in undertaking graduate study in Communication. Please include professional aspirations, career goals, and areas of research interest as they relate to the UNT program in Communication Studies. Also indicate the semester and year you would like to enter the program.
 
-- Vita or resume highlighting relevant skills & achievements
 
-- 2 letters of recommendation (preferably both from faculty members who can attest to your abilities to succeed in a graduate program in Communication Studies)
 
-- An upper-division research writing sample
 
-- TA Application (from the UNT COMM website)
 
 
TO:  Graduate Standards Committee Chair
 
Department of Communication Studies
 
University of North Texas
 
1155 Union Circle #305268
 
Denton, TX 76203-5268
 
+++ Note, at UNT, we MEAN GREEN!  Feel free to e-mail these materials
directly to the department: COMMStudies@unt.edu
 
Review of applications are continuing until all positions are filled.
For questions about the graduate program, teaching assistantships, or how to apply, please contact me via email at suzanne.enck@unt.edu or Dr.
Brian Richardson (Director of Graduate Studies) via email at richardson@unt.edu.
 
All best,
 
Suzanne Enck
 
UNT Communication - Graduate Standards Committee

To "TheTruth1234":
 
This post is the worst brand of claptrap one could come across. Not only does it stink of elitism and cybernetics, but it is also grounded in fear and irrational projections regarding the future of individuals one has never met.
 
Where to begin? Well, first of all, to reduce the landscape of sociology programs to a mere "top 20" is completely rediculous. There are many more graduate programs out there beyond the "top 20", certainly offering many different specializations which are absent or merely touched upon at "top 20" schools , and thus are not necessary comparable to the "top 20" in some kind of academic litmus test. In other words, the "top 20" are only worth attending if they offer what you're looking for in terms of a specialization. If they don't offer what you want to pursue, then why the hell would you apply? Apply to a non "top 20" school! And if your answer is "ooooowoowowowowwowow the prestige, such prestige!!", then its likely that you're merely interested in accumulating status, which you think will lead to an accumulation of wealth. If that is the case, stay out of graduate school so those who actually want to develop and disseminate knowledge and critical insight may have a better chance at being accepted.
 
Second, if you think that the PhD's from the top 20 graduate programs in sociology are getting all the "good jobs" while the remaining PhD's languish in the "ok jobs", then clearly your measure of a "good job" is one dimensional at best. The prestige of a degree from the "top 20" may yield a higher rate of pay, and that is certainly important for "happiness" at some level, but I would rather accept a moderate rate of remuneration and enjoy teaching students at the state university I received my BA from. Theres no glitz, glamour or wealth to be found there, but I would appreciate the opportunity to give back to a community that supported me early on. If you don't mind selling your soul for a few extra thousand annually, be my guest.
 
I could go on and on, but I'll leave it here. You're free to support the elitist machine of academia. Your uncritical post already suggests that your an unquestioning bourgeois cheerleader...but don't impress your twisted perspective on the fledgling students who rely on this board for insight from others. This is a supportive community, not a divisive community. Perhaps that why your initial post was deleted....
 
And for those who think a PhD from outside of the "top 20" is a degree for teaching: If you think all of the research in sociology is completed by "top 20" PhDs, you're sadly mistaken. There are many non "top 20" PhD's who regularly publish, regularly engage in academic debates, and regularly work with communities to deal with current social problems.
 
I'm a graduate student in an unranked, newly established PhD program, and I already have two articles under review at two high impact journals, one which has recevied extremely positive feedback for an R&R, and I anticipate very good feedback for the other. I haven't even taken comprehensive exams yet! Aside from that, my program reimburses me for conference expenses every year, allowing me to present my work at ASA or any of the regionals I am interested in. Furthermore, my fellow graduate students and I throw a national research conference every year for graduate students who want to share their work with others. We usually get 100+ participants, which isn't bad for a small unranked program. The point of this anecdote: there are plenty of opportunities for non "top 20" folks.
 
What is this crap about non "top 20" programs being the kiss of death? Is everyone drinking the kool-aid? Pure ideological garbage.

Also, I might ask this question: If most of you believe or suspect that the working conditions in academia are eroding (and they are, that is true), then why don't you organize against this erosion? My campus is in the fledgingly stages of organizing graduate and adjunct labor....several other universities have already done this...
 
Academia is not a "natural" system. Lets be critical of this state of affairs.

It's difficult to say whether they'd give you a pass, but it certainly sounds like you won't do badly on the quant GRE anyway. It's basically the same math as the SAT. You just have to make sure you remember all that old stuff. You'll be fine. 

Have you tried Santa Monica Community College? I know it might be a bit of a trek for you... but Santa Monica or Long Beach is worlds better than the one's you have attended. 
 
The one thing you might take solace in is that you are at such a young stage in your career that it is very hard to mess up. I know that is hard to believe, but I graduated with a 3.05 GPA and am in a top 20 school in my field.  Your GPA isn't that far off from mine.
 
And quite honestly, I know UCLA might be your dream school, but are you sure that is the best place to help you with your needs? A bit pricer, and might cause you some debt, are the claremont colleges (small liberal arts schools) that are MUCH better in accommodating people with advanced disorders. As someone who now teaches in the UC system... In my  opinion its already and uphill batter for the undergrads. 
 
Another thing that will benefit you is that you are doing well now, so that when you do apply for whatever you want after college, you will have your lower CC grades, and then great grades at a 4 year school. That is very indicative of someone who will be successful in whatever they want. 
 
I know you obviously can't use any more negativity in your life, but the ultimate mark of successful people is their ability to persevere through adversity. To find ways to get what they want even when original doors may or may not have closed. 
 
If being a biopalentologist is something you really want, killing yourself will never get you that. Thats closing all the doors. Going to UCI/R  or one of the fine CSUs for the rest of your undergrad after CC is a fine choice. 
 
It's also important to note that there are very famous professors who got terrible grades in college. Jeff Erikson had a sub 2.5 GPA and is now a full tenured professor at a top 5 computer science department, with half of his students receiving tenure themselves. What is preventing you right now from being like him? Is UCLA really everything? 
 
I'm really glad that you reached out to someone, even if its the internet, about killing yourself. My best friend just left a note on his dresser and jumped off his balcony. He didn't give anyone the chance to stop him. What you are doing now is less selfish than you can even imagine.