Warelin

Universities tend to set different dates for when they start accepting applications. Applications for Fall 2022 admission will likely open in August-October 2021.

There's also a possibility that the departmental culture is such that professors don't formally take students until after coursework is completed because your interests might change as well as who you'd like to serve on your committee. The humanities tend to accept cohorts based on the whole rather than having professors decide who they'd like to work with them in their lab. As a result, establishing a connection prior to applying might not be as important in this case.

I think it is important to note that different colleges have different expectations when it comes to graduate/faculty housing. Some graduate housing does not allow pets to live there. As a result, one may or may not qualify for living in graduate housing. Some units owned by colleges might also require you to have roommates. This might work well for some and might be a deal-breaker for others. Some housing might be assigned by lottery. This is just luck.

The answer will likely depend on the school or state and how they determine residency status for in-state tuition. It likely won't be a factor for private universities but might be for public universities. Most leases are for a set period of time. As such, it might be wise to have plans to avoid having to deal with a last minute rush when options might not exist.

I think it's also important to know that not every school offers deferrals and deferrals aren't guaranteed.

Congratulations to both of you on making your decision! Decision-making is a very exciting part of the year.

FWIW: I choose a program ranked "lower" than another by about 9 spots. The other program wasn't in a location I could see myself being happy in. I ended up choosing a program that was in a location I preferred and offered a decent stipend compared to the cost of living. I spend a fair amount on housing but that's because it's what I choose to "splurge" on. Our stipend increases yearly but I think it's also important to recognize that previous students also fought to make sure that stipends were fair. It wasn't long ago that (at other schools) students weren't guaranteed a stipend which created a lot of tension between the funded and unfunded students. One will never become rich from their stipend but I do think it's important to have a balance between security, placement, location and mental health. I think it's also important to understand that an acceptance to any school does not guarantee a job into schools they've previously placed in without the proper amount of work. If one is too tapped out, a program's money won't cure it all. If one fails out because they don't meet standards, it doesn't matter where one goes if they can't graduate or work to their best ability. In the end, it's up to you to decide how you manage your time though. I think there are brilliant scholars at multiple schools but think it's also important to realize that professors can leave at anytime for any reason. A scholar I was interested in at a different school is now working at another school. Another scholar I'm interested in working with is leaving a school ranked in the top 20 for English and moving here despite her having tenure over there. The professor will keep her tenure here but I think it's important to realize that professors can and sometimes do leave their previous positions for things other than retirment. Sometimes, the environment is equally as important to them and they might not always know how much students are being given as a stipend here. Another recently hired professor formerly taught at a school that is ranked in the 60s/70s and was offered the position over someone who taught at an HYP institution because the fit was better.

I'm sorry you didn't get in. It's possible that everyone didn't respond. Sometimes, schools with bigger cohorts accept 1.5 people per slot they have and waitlist an additional number of applicants. They do this with the understanding that more people will turn down their offer. It's likely that what happened is that a greater yield than they were expecting accepted their offer. It's also possible that you were first in a certain subfield but both people within that subfield accepted their offer. It's unfortunate but sadly it does happen. It doesn't reflect your ability and it does not mean your work is lesser than those accepted. I hope you reach a decision that makes you happy.

Some schools that make up the "top 20" will change every time the list is completed. A program in the top 20 might be there now, but might not be on the next list. A lot of the programs on the top 20 have been around for longer which helped them establish early presences in research-focused institutions. However, I think it's important to realize that your adviser is important and the "best" adviser for you might be at a school not in the top 20. There are some programs that aren't in the top 20 but are known for certain subfields. A top 20 might be given preferences at certain research institutions but that's not always the case. Placements might be the best indicator on where and how well a university places. I think it's equally as important to realize cohort size differences between colleges. More placements does not necessarily mean better if one cohort size is 4 and the other is 20.

I rejected a school ranked in the 20s for a school in the 30s. I think the difference is terms of rankings was also around 9? I felt the school ranked in the 30s was in a better location for me, had a better stipend, had faculty I was more interested in working with and their placements looked better to me. The school ranked in the 30s seemed was very open about their placement and the cohort vibe was ambitious and collegial.

This board also has some good resources on how to address canceled conferences in different formatting styles. I think from what I've been told is to be careful of using "Invited Presentations" or "Invited Conferences" because it implies that the organizer(s) actively solicited you and that you didn't submit to a call for papers.

According to https://cgsnet.org/april-15-resolution: Several CGS members have asked whether the April 15 Resolution will be changed to account for the impact of the coronavirus disruption on educational testing and student mobility issues. CGS’s position is that the April 15 deadline should continue to remain in effect for 2020. Because signatory institutions and programs may be affected differently by COVID-19, and may adjust their admissions and funding decision timelines accordingly, we believe that it is not feasible for the community to agree to a different deadline this year. We provide a few additional points of clarification based on questions we have received: If an offer of financial support is made prior to April 15, applicants have until April 15 to accept it and the program should honor that commitment through April 15. Extension of this deadline beyond April 15 is up to the individual program or institution. Programs and/or institutions are free to make offers of admission and of financial support after April 15 if they choose to do so. They may set any deadline for acceptance of the offer, as long as the deadline is after April 15. Programs and/or institutions may choose to offer conditional admission and offers of financial support to students with incomplete applications (e.g. lacking test scores) or to wait until all requirements can be satisfied.

I'm not sure if you have seen this article: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/06/coronavirus-university-of-washington-moves-all-classes-to-online.html It doesn't appear to be a permanent change to the UW but I wonder if part of this contributed to their decision to cancel their tour visits.

I think it's important to remember that you're applying to the program instead of individual professors. The sciences work differently because grants can be tied down to specific labs or professors. At most colleges, English doesn't expect you to talk beforehand with a professor. Talking with prospective students isn't an inconvenience. It's part of their job and I imagine most enjoy talking with potential students. There's a reason they accepted you over other qualified applicants. I think it's important to remember that most people have different topics they're interested in exploring. Progress for each person can look vastly different. Continuing to find ways to make each year better than your last is important. There are a lot of factors at play here. There might be a policy against mailing students who applied but are not currently admitted. Professors might have been on vacation. E-mail could have landed in spam because the e-mail address wasn't recognized. It could have gotten lost in a pile of other e-mails. Often, the DGS is a good starting point for e-mails since they can often make introductions. Would a hotel still be cheaper if your school requires or encourages participation in events outside of class time?

I looked over my previous SOPs. One of the schools I was accepted by no longer has my POI working there. At my current university, I've decided that other professors are better fitted for my project. One of the professors I'm interested most in working with previously taught at a "top 20" university. They start next semester. My current university also recently hired someone who I think would work very well with my interests. Grad School can see a lot of changes within a relatively short amount of time. Best of luck with making your decisions.