Warelin

FWIW: A few years ago, there was a candidate that got rejected from all schools (including those outside the top 50). They were accepted into one program: Berkeley.

Today, I found myself extremely bored. As a result, I complied a list of when schools typically notify for first-round acceptances using data from the results page. After, I rearranged things in order by  when programs typically notify.

Michigan State-Dec 10? (Writing, Rhetoric, and American Cultures)
OSU-Jan 25
Wisconsin- Jan 28
Duke- Jan 29
WashU- Jan 31-Feb 2
Northwestern-Jan 31-Feb 2
Berkeley- Jan 31-Feb 2
Chicago- Feb 1/2
Minnesota-Feb 2
Vanderbilt - Feb 2/3
Texas- Feb 3/4
Indiana-Feb 3/4
Purdue-Feb 3-5
UCLA- Feb 4/5
Johns Hopkins- Feb 5
Davis-Feb 5/6
Penn State- Feb 5/6
Pittsburgh-Feb 5/6
Nebraska-Feb 5-7
NYU-Feb 6/7
Maryland-Feb 7-9
Rochester-Feb 8/9
Emory- Feb 8-9
Irvine-Feb 8-9
Illinois- Feb 9-12
Brown-Feb 10-12
LSU-Feb 11
Rice- Feb 12
Buffalo-Feb 12
Missouri- Feb 12-14
Delaware-Feb 12-14
Kansas-Feb 14
Carnegie Mellon- Feb 14/15
Alabama-Feb 14-16
Cornell- Feb 15/16
Miami University-Feb 15/16
Michigan-Feb 16
Connecticut-Feb 16
CUNY-Feb 16/17
Santa Barbara-Feb 17-19
Stanford- Feb 17-Feb 20
Princeton-Feb 17-20
UVA- Feb 19/20
Rutgers-Feb 19/20
Harvard- Feb 20-Feb 22
Columbia- Feb 20-22
Penn- Feb 20-22
Utah-Feb 22
Notre Dame-Feb 23
Yale- Feb 24/25
Washington-Feb 25
Syracuse-Feb 26
Chapel Hill-Feb 26/27
Oregon-Feb 27-28
Iowa-March 2-5
Florida State-March 4-7
Mississippi- March 5-7

Bumping this thread up to try to gain fresh perspectives while acceptances are new.

Bumping this thread up to try to gain fresh perspectives while acceptances are new.

Bumping this thread up to try to gain fresh perspectives while acceptances are new.

I'm obviously new to this whole "accepted" thing, so I can't say anything for certain, but I can at least weigh in on my application vis-a-vis my acceptance. 

I haven't heard directly from OSU yet, but from what I understand from a current student there, accepted students will likely receive a call from the DGS within the next week, talking about funding and other aspects (likely including fellowship options). I know that my combined GRE percentages aren't good enough to garner me the plum university-wide fellowships, so take that as you will. One unique thing about OSU's application is that you add all of your English-related courses to an additional page on your C.V. It's likely an easy way for them to see how genre-focused or diverse your studies were. I think my background was a solid mix. There's a clear line of early modern interest that goes back to my first semester at a 4-year college (in fact, I'm not sure I've had a semester without an early modern course), but I've also taken quite a few 20th century literature courses (fun fact: I just looked at my OSU C.V. and saw I listed "American Literature 1012 - 1960" -- oops!), and at least one course in virtually every literary period (with the odd exception of Victorian fiction -- go figure). 

As for languages, I have four semesters of Spanish, but those were taken during my first year-and-a-half at a community college...and Spanish isn't particularly relevant to my field. OSU seems to be quite forgiving when it comes to language requirements (reading knowledge of one language), so I doubt that was a factor in my application. My undergrad and graduate GPAs are both quite high, so perhaps that balanced out my good-but-not-great GRE scores.

Not sure if any of this is helpful to anyone. My gut feeling is that it really was my SOP and WS that sealed the deal for me. There are two hand-in-glove POI fits for me at OSU, and at least one of them was likely on the adcom, due to his sizable role in the program. I could be completely wrong, and hindsight is 20/20, but I suspect that the matching interests (i.e. "fit") is what ultimately netted me the acceptance, more than any other factors. 

I'd hate to kill this theory but I think @Ashley828 is in rhet/comp.
 
I think it's me that you're referring to here. I'm not sure if we knew this about OSU before this cycle but it is very possible that is the case. It might also be that fellowship offers went out or that "guessing" an MAs ability to succeed at the grad level was easier to assess. What might be interesting to see is if at the MA level they prefer people who focused all their class electives in one field or if they prefer a more-mixed applicant and see if there's a correlation to accepted BA applicants? Might also be interesting to see if learned languages play a role.

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

I just checked OSU's website.


I GOT IN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
"Congratulations - you have been offered admission! Use the link on the main page of the Applicant Center to accept or decline. Please click the Application Requirements tab above to see what items, if any, are still needed. Items with a status of 'Incomplete' are still required, 'Received' are currently being processed, and 'Completed' have fulfilled the requirement."

I can't believe it. Utter shock and joy right now.

I keep worrying that I'm going to refresh and it's going to go away...

 

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

Bumping this thread for this season's applicants.
 
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1H7d9iuwSL8ZWE-DmFo2013lpF2cL7hDidWcDt4mic0Q/edit#gid=0

Enough time on this website has taught me that if you're sure of yourself, you're delusional. 
I mentioned this on the "waiting it out" board, but whenever I start to freak out I work on my "what if I don't get in plan." Rather than sitting at home and thinking about it, I actually have like a physical document of which steps to take, what jobs to apply for, which summer programs to consider, etc. So if the worst happens, I have an "in case of emergency break glass" document  
I'm one of those colossal dweebs who finds solace in productivity, and so it makes me feel better to work on something that will remedy the very thing that I'm freaking out about. 

Haha yeah I guess people have different ways of dealing.
I'm definitely NOT suggesting that anyone beat themselves up over anything admissions-related. It's just that, for me personally, it was really, really hard to get past my self-doubt and go through with the application process; the only way i could bring myself to do it was by treating it as an exercise in failure. I told myself that the object of the process wasn't to get in somewhere, but rather to summon the courage to put myself out there, knowing that the likely outcome would be rejection, given the hyper-competitive and arbitrary nature of phd admissions.
I'm already ridiculously proud of myself for all the work I did to apply. Anything that comes after is just super delicious icing on an empowerment cake.
Everyone on these boards should be proud of themselves for applying! Plenty of people quit before they even take the GRE.  

Out of upvotes for the last few, but yes...YES! We're definitely all in the same boat in this regard. With so many intangibles involved, it's impossible to be confident with one's application, but it IS possible to be confident in how effectively you prepared your own application (a subtle, yet crucial distinction). It might be the most amazing application in the world, and still not get you one of the rare slots, just because of factors you cannot possibly know. In other words, @angel_kaye13's infectious positivity rings the most true here. Whether any of us or all of us get in or not, most of us can take solace in the strength of our applications.

It's a grueling process -- one that, like @Caien says, most people just don't understand. There's a lot of attrition along the way, and in a way it's just nutty that anyone even goes down this path in the first place. But we do, and that's something.

Personally, every time I think I'm a sure bet to get accepted, I begin a sequence of self-flagellation and bathing in vinegar while reading Heidegger. Works like a charm.

You guys are weird/a hoot!  (Meant in the teasing way between friends "weird," not in any actual mean or name-calling way.) I actually like that my husband thinks the sun shines out my rear - he tells me all the time that I'll get in, but we both equally and simultaneously agree that, if I don't? Well, then I get to be with him (we're military) and work and build up my resume. (And, personally, I like to think that maybe there are adventures I can't see yet, because I want my PhD so much...Life has twists and turns, yeah?)

All that to say, whether you like to beat yourself up or preen under praise, this was a hoot. And, to all of us, just...eternal ray of optimism: grad applications don't decide our worth. ^^ <3 Best of luck, to all!

Chin up, friend; it's early, and (this goes for everyone) your worth isn't decided by whatever decisions are made in the coming months. 'Twil be alright, one way or the other.

Yes. Here's another easy way to get involved, I sent my emails yesterday:
http://www.nhalliance.org/help_us_nip_efforts_to_defund_neh_in_the_bud?utm_campaign=blueprint_alert&utm_medium=email&utm_source=nhalliance

According to the results page from 2013 (last presidential year), Jan 24th was the earliest OSU accepted. But anything can happen.
Please save me.

Similar. My post wasn't meant to be a "check your privilege" but rather a "there are good things happening to you". /shrug

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.
-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. -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. There may even be people looking at you and saying, isn't it great that Shaun or Rachel is taking chances to pursue what they want no matter the cost? They don't realize that you're refreshing your e-mail every minute waiting for news.