Warelin

today in surreal sentences: headed to UVA in the fall! 

Just accepted WUSTL's offer! Wheeeeeeee!!!
I won't be able to keep up with the congratulations due to all the GC'ers making decisions today, so... CONGRATULATIONS! 

Officially going to UVA!
Thanks to everyone who has helped with advice, information, and just generally making this community the supportive place it is. I've been here for 3 years now and I'm glad to be moving on to the next stage finally.

You can do this. I believe in you. You have this!

Eek! Accepted to WUSTL off the waitlist! 

Just got accepted off the Uconn MA waitlist! 

accepted off the waitlist at Virginia!!! screamed when I saw the email, to the horror of everyone else around me on the train...

That's awesome! Congrats!

I don't know if this is the place to say but omg I just won a Fellowship and I'm quaking 

FWIW: A number of universities accept twice as many applicants as they have spots for. Some universities also have waitlists that are determined by time periods. It's likely that 2 people in your time period will need to reject their offer before an offer from the waitlist could be made. It's also possible that the department could be buried under preparing for classes next semester. 

FWIW: A number of universities accept twice as many applicants as they have spots for. Some universities also have waitlists that are determined by time periods. It's likely that 2 people in your time period will need to reject their offer before an offer from the waitlist could be made. It's also possible that the department could be buried under preparing for classes next semester. 

FWIW: A number of universities accept twice as many applicants as they have spots for. Some universities also have waitlists that are determined by time periods. It's likely that 2 people in your time period will need to reject their offer before an offer from the waitlist could be made. It's also possible that the department could be buried under preparing for classes next semester. 

I couldn't have put it better myself. I just accepted my offer at Yale — see you in New Haven?  

Yale Comp Lit!

Congrats!
 
Congratulations!

Congrats!
 
Congratulations!

I just got a funding offer from Villanova!!! I'm crying this week has been so hard for me and finally something good has happened!!!  

I'm afraid we'll have to agree to disagree on this one. We don't know what the OP's end goal is. The OP did mention that being close to family is an allure to them. There are universities (like SMU) that have historically placed well in Texas. We also know that not all universities post their jobs (whether this be due to a sudden opening or because they choose not to) on the job market. Some do conduct more local-searches and being at a nearby city could be beneficial. Having family reside nearby could be a very positive impact. However, I don't think any college can guarantee that you'll be considered equally by all colleges because of the way they value different things. I also don't think that interviewing at a teaching college is any easier or harder than interviewing at a research-based college. Rather, I think it's easier about what you're most interested in and I think colleges can pick up on that. This is why you shouldn't try to feign interest in a specific topic if you're not genuinely interested in that subfield. I do think that the colleges you might be considered for might depend on where you go, but I don't think that any reasonable school will turn you down if you present a strong resume and if there is someone on your committee that they trust. This very well could be the reason why some schools prefer to skip the job market and prefer local candidates.

We're also not aware of how strong the #18 school is in the OP's subfield. There are programs outside the top 20 which have stronger placements in certain subfields than those in the top 20. It's also possible that the program could be deciding to move in a new direction and eliminate certain subfields. In recent years, Notre Dame stopped admitting people into their Ph.D. in Literature program.

I agree that stats about where students end up only tell part of the story. However, I would argue that students from "top programs" aren't the only ones getting multiple offers. It's very likely that a good candidate is likely to get multiple offers of differing types. Part of that might be based on their school. But it's also likely that certain candidates will get looked over by the hiring school if the hiring university has had a high turnover from that school. I think it's also important to note that not everyone's end goal is to be placed at a school which focuses heavily on research. And I think it's equally as important to remember that we often have very little choice of where we end up if we decide to go on the job market. Considering most schools are not research-focused, being open to non-R1 schools will broaden our chances of being placed.
As a side note, there are some fairly well-known colleges that do have a permanent teaching-track. This remains to be a viable option for a fair amount of people and I wouldn't consider people holding these positions to be less deserving of tenure than those on a research-track. Different departments have different needs at a time and it's possible that a person's specific subfield may never open up at the R-1 school they were hoping for.
Some students might also have no desire to leave their city. I can't remember how many people I spoke with doing their Ph.D. in NYC and Austin that said they had no desire to leave their city. They said they would rather adjunct than be placed elsewhere. Likewise, there are a number of candidates in my program who have made a decision to stay because they're ready to settle down and start a family. Many have started the process of buying a house. They don't plan on entering the job market but demand from local colleges for permanent positions have always been high here. Likewise, some have expressed interest in alt-ac jobs and have no interest in the job market.Those who put in the extra effort here tend to be well rewarded on the job market. This is not a top 10 program but there are a lot of resources offered to those who do seek it.
I agree with this so much. Funding is critical. You won't be rich at anytime during your program. But not having to worry about funding is important. Even if a program guarantees five years of funding, it might be worthwhile to ask what the average time-to-degree is. If there's a difference, it might also be wise to ask them how funding is determined for the additional years and whether you're responible for any additional fees.

Congratulations @Bopie5! Such wonderful news!

Just got an email that I got the tuition waiver + the stipend at Villanova! Will be confirming my acceptance of the offer tonight!

In a few weeks, you'll find out where you're accepted, rejected or waitlisted. By now, I'm sure you're experiencing all sorts of highs and lows. This is a very stressful process. Sometimes, all you want is some news because you're starting to feel down about the process.

Big News? You're alive.
-There are currently seven billion people alive today and the Population Reference Bureau estimates that about 107 billion people have ever lived.  -Having just a few coins makes you richer than most people on Earth.
-You are unique and nobody in the entire world is like you are
-The opportunity to attend school is something many people don’t have. (Which makes having a college degree even greater!)
-Most people lack a bed of their own to sleep in
-Many people on earth lack access to clean water.
-Cell phones make talking to loved ones easy.
-You have friends that will always have your back. (And if you don't, message me. Let's talk. And if you do, let's talk anyways)
-You can enjoy pizza. Or Ice Cream.
-There are people in your life who love you more than you could ever know -The Internet, n'uff said?   But in all seriousness, try not to compare yourself to others. We have a tendency to look at how great the lives of other people are going without realizing the stresses they're hiding. No matter where you get in or don't get in, please be proud of yourselves. You've worked incredibly hard to get to where you are. An acceptance doesn't determine who you are and a rejection doesn't make you lesser than. It just means not this year. You might realize that your passions change over the course of a year. And you might discover those new interests are really interesting when you do reapply. You might discover some universities that previously rejected you might accept you the following year and viceversa.   Lastly, a word on rankings:
USNews rankings for English are determined by 14 percent of respondents who were department heads or director of graduate studies. As such, it's hard to take rankings those seriously when a lot of the rankings are based on "name brand". Most departments are only paying attention to a few select schools and placements may vary considerably across specific interests. Follow your heart when making a decision. Happiness is the number one thing that will make you succeed in a program and that happiness will translate to the quality of work you produce.

Good luck all. You're going to do great!

I think that's a good strategy to have. I mention my earlier post because people in Literature often think that USNews rankings (and their response rate) extend to Rhet/Comp. It doesn't. I would also like to note here that some rhet/comp programs are considered to be "top" programs for Communication and/or Digital Media. I'd caution you here to carefully explore your journals to ensure that they're producing work that you're interested in. It does sound like this is something you've given thought to. As far as I'm aware, there is no "official" ranking list in Rhet/Comp but some programs are given more publicity through publications than others. This could be due to the size of a cohort, influenced by your adviser, or be driven by one's motivation to publish. Some universities might be more active in encouraging you to publish.
 
I don't think the MA has to be as focused on one very small area of study; I think the MA allows someone to gain a better understanding of what they're interested in so they could better focus on what they're interested in with a Ph.D.  It is always nice to have professors who are supportive in your pursuits though.
 
I think the results section is considerably more helpful for programs that place a heavy importance on test scores. I think it's more helpful in the humanities with providing when acceptances/rejections/waitlists have gone out in the humanities.

The OP mentioned that they were interested in Rhetoric/Composition in the title of their post. Those rankings differ from English rankings so it's quite possible that the OP is applying to some top rhet/comp programs. I agree though that the OP should apply to a wide variety of schools.
 
Some programs might weed out applicants and might have a preference for certain scores. However, I think most will look at the entire application process as long as the score isn't very low.  A high score alone won't be the reason someone is admitted to a university.
 
Depending on what you write, I'd see if there is anyone who's interested in either that or gender studies. If someone has a dual appointment, I'd heavily consider adding the school they teach at to your list.
 
Each grad school has a different way that they expect FYW to be taught. Some find it easier to train students with no prior experience; others find it preferable to have students with prior experience. Neither will make a difference if you don't fit within the department. What fit means to you might be different with what each department considers to be a fit.
 
I'm not sure if the results section represents an accurate representation of all results though. I think the sample we get often ends up being from a very specific crowd. 

I did not choose the "most prestigious" program I got accepted into last year. I chose to go somewhere where I felt I could grow and be happy. I chose the environment and department which I felt would allow me to grow my potential and one where I felt that there were several people that I would work very well with. In order to produce the best work, I felt there were several important factors to consider.

1) Living arrangements: Can I afford a 1 or 2 bedroom based on my stipend without needing to live with roommates?  How far/close do I want to be to campus?
2) Do I feel the campus/city is bikeable/walkable? 
3) How do I feel about the department as a whole? Are there multiple people I see myself being able to work with?
4) Are there additional opportunities outside the department?
5) Are the schools placing in schools you'd be happy in? Getting accepted into a highly ranked school might help your job prospects in some of the better known schools. However, 90 percent of schools aren't considered R1 schools. Schools that focus on teaching make up the majority of universities doing the hiring and they care more about your teaching record than they do about what school you graduated from or about your publication history. (This isn't to say that either group doesn't care about the other at all. Rather, they just weigh thinks differently. Some schools worry that graduates of "elite programs" will leave their school as soon as another opening happens elsewhere.)