Warelin

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.

Due to someone deleting information, I had to roll the spreadsheet back to a version from a few days ago. Please do not delete information unless you're updating information for that school. If you added information in the past day or two, please feel free to re-add your information.

I think this is the first time I've read about an application being forwarded to a different department and getting funding from that department. Congratulations; that's absolutely terrific news!

By chance, did you e-mail PSU about this concern? Sometimes, departments only need two letters and are willing to overlook the third. Not all departments are willing to do so but some are happy to oblige as long as you have two letters submitted. In the past, Penn State required its MA applicants to reapply to continue to to PHD program.I think they mentioned that their acceptance rate for MA to PHD was 80-85 percent or so. The remaining spot or two would go to outside PHD applicants.

If I recall correctly, the UC system allows you to take classes at any nearby UC colleges that have a PHD program.

For whatever it is worth, PSU does rolling admissions. If it is not a ranked list, it is likely sorted by area of interest.

I think how universities decide how to respond to the job market will ultimately decide the success of a program. Different universities have responded in different ways. I think one of the best ways they can respond is by decreasing cohort sizes and increasing the number of resources they have to put everyone in the best possible position they can be in. Decreasing the sizes also allows for more time for committees to spend with each individual that they're trying to mentor.

There were Canadian Universities on the original list. I think someone deleted it because there was confusion on the stipend's overlap with the tuition payments. Feel free to re-add it.

There is indeed a cost of living column. It accounts for the living expenses of one person. It also doesn't account for taxes on stipends which might have a bigger cost of living impact on schools already significantly below "1". Two people might be slightly more. I think it's also important to consider opportunities within the city if you're moving with a significant other. Alternatively, one might also want to think about if they''re comfortable living with another person. Living with a roommate or two might be the norm in some cities. Full-time grad students are exempt from FICA taxes on their stipend. This article will help to explain it more: https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/gradhacker/why-it-matters-how-you-are-paid

I think most try to make visit dates roughly the same year to year. It can change based on university reservation space, faculty availability and other events happening around the same time.

Congrats to both of you!

Thanks for the updated info! To calculate the Living Wage Index: 1. Visit https://livingwage.mit.edu/ 2. Type in the name of the city 3. Look at the living wage under 0 children 4. In the living wage box, type in the following: Your Stipend amount/ (Living Wage/*2080) - The 2080 is the number of hours you'd work if you had a full-time job. MIT updates their numbers every year or so.

Congrats!

They might have an invisible WL?

Congratulations to the both of you! Perhaps, I'll be seeing both of you around in the future.

English Admissions Committee is meeting tomorrow to finalize their selection. I'm not sure if that means they'll be notifying tomorrow or if they'll wait until next week.

I think figuring out fit is very tricky despite how hard we try. Programs with large faculty might make it seem like most people are a fit. But some big names might not be taking on new students. Programs with a smaller faculty might make it seem like the fit isn't there even if it is. We also rarely ever know who's being hired at what time for any upcoming position which may also showcase what a university might be interested in.

Congrats to both of you!

Congrats! You also get the honor of starting the Acceptance Thread. The first English PHD acceptance has had that honor for a long time.

I would try not to worry about it. Programs are here to make you a better scholar and writer. If your SOP was perfect, you wouldn't need their training. I think most universities are interested in the ideas you have and your thought process behind the ideas. It might be a different story if there were a lot of typos or if there was a bad fit. However, I think an extra word or two won't be used against you.

I think it's also a good idea to consider how or if stipends increase on a yearly basis to account for cost of living adjustments. Some departments do adjust for these; others might not have revised stipends in a while. Some cities (Nashville and Austin come to mind) used to be cheap to live in but in recent years have faced increased demand and decreased vacancy rates which have caused prices to skyrocket. Depending on when you move might also be the difference of several hundred dollars of what rent will be. I'm currently on a stipend which pays ~$26,000 over 11 months. The University provides free transportation passes which gives you unlimited use of the buses and city trains which also give you access to other parts of the county. The University also pays for about 90 percent of health insurance and dental insurance costs. The overall cost of living here is very affordable. Due to some city initiatives, there are a lot of startups here. There are also a lot of nonprofits that call this home. My current stipend is enough to afford me to live in a ~1700 sqft house with my partner and a pet. We live about 1.5 miles away from the university. My stipend changes every year to adjust for cost of living which in the past has generally meant an increase of 3 percent or so per year. It was also enough to support us to pay all our expenses while my partner job searched. ( If I were living alone, I would still be able to afford the house here and be able to afford going out with my cohort twice a month or so. I do hangout with my cohort twice a month currently as our schedule allows; often we take turns between hosting and going out to eat elsewhere. I think everyone has had the cohort and their partners over at their house at least once. Most people live by themselves; some people in cohorts above us have chosen to live with each other by choice.I don't know anybody here who is struggling for money; but there are additional opportunities to teach both in other departments and at other colleges during the summer or school year if one wanted to. The first two years here require no teaching and the last year also doesn't require any service. Otherwise, the teaching load is 1-1 which means you either help with a course or teach a course per semester. Additional teaching opportunities also become available after year 3/4. Some people have taught at different departments; others have taught at nearby universities or have worked as tutors after they have completed their coursework.

Professors are often allowed to submit letters beyond the deadline. Schools understand that you don't have control of when professors submit letters. They also understand that professors have many things which demand their attention. I would try not to stress over this.