[Graduate Journalism Programs]

Awesome! Did you get your official acceptance yet? I got mine on Friday and am psyched! I only applied to four programs with no safeties as I figured if I was going to continue my education, I would only do it at a place I REALLY wanted to go. Anyway, here's my info:

Program Applied To: MA, MS

Schools Applied To: Columbia, UC Berkeley, USC, Syracuse

Schools Admitted To: Syracuse

Schools Rejected From: UC Berkeley

Still Waiting: Columbia (Wait Listed), USC (Haven't heard anything yet)

Undergraduate Institution: University of California, Irvine

Undergraduate GPA: 3.25

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable):

Undergraduate Major: Journalism and Film, Double Major

GRE Quantitative Score (Percentile): 380 (OUCH! I know!)

GRE Verbal Score (Percentile): 510 (Better, but still)

GRE AW Score: 5.0

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): 1 year

Years of Work Experience: 7 years

Describe Relevant Work Experience: Working on various publications both in school and outside of it. Aside from print publications I have also worked in radio, at a media center and as an English tutor. I have lots of other work experience, but these are the most relevant.

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): Really strong. I've always been a great writer and put a lot of effort into it. Hey, why try to be be modest, after all I didn't hide the fact that I suck at math:)

Strength of LORs (be honest, describe the process, etc): To the best of my knowledge really strong, but I waived my right to read them so nothing's positive. I know that the three people I got to write letters for me all knew me well and were three of the best people to write letters for me. I got one from the head of the journalism department, where I earned my degree in journalism, a respected teacher there and my supervisor at the best publication I worked for.

Thanks! I did hear from them and I was über excited. I shared your ideology and only applied to three. I didn't wanna waste money on a school that I really wasn't interested in attending. Congrats on your admits!

[Graduate Journalism Programs]

Just got accepted to Columbia. I checked the website, no e-mail yet!

Congrats! I didn't make it in but I'm happy for you. Are you gonna go?

[Graduate Journalism Programs]

I'm curious. What exactly do you mean you were informally accepted to Syracuse?

I spoke with a professor at Syracuse and was told that they'd love to have me. Since acceptances don't go out until the 15^th, though, it's just hearsay.

[Where to Apply? Where to Go?]

Deciding which school to apply to can be a big drag, and deciding which one to go to can be an even bigger drag. Here you can post 1.) the school(s) you applied to, 2.) the school(s) you were accepted to, and 3.) the school you plan on attending. It would be even more awesome if you could give a brief reason behind choosing the school you chose and/or the reason you didn't choose the others. This probably won't help me very much, but I'm sure it'll help future j-school applicants.

[Graduate Journalism Programs]

Program Applied To: MS, MA, MJ

Schools Applied To: Columbia University, Syracuse University, University of Maryland, College Park

Schools Admitted To: Syracuse University (informal), University of Maryland, College Park

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting: Columbia, Syracuse (formal)

Undergraduate Institution: Bowling Green State University

Undergraduate GPA: 3.3

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable): 3.3

Undergraduate Major: Interpersonal Communication

GRE Quantitative Score (Percentile): 630 (51^st)

GRE Verbal Score (Percentile): 620 (89^th)

GRE AW Score: 4.1

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable): ~ 6 months

Years of Work Experience: 4

Describe Relevant Work Experience: Editor, Parent Newsletter; Student Newspaper Club Volunteer

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc): I believe that my statements of purpose were very strong. I incorporated past and present experiences into my future goals. As someone who hasn't always taken grades seriously, I used my statements of purpose to define my strengths and minimize my weaknesses.

Strength of LORs (be honest, describe the process, etc): I had letters of recommendation from administrators of a high school that I volunteer with, past professors, and a past supervisor. I waived access to my LORs, but I do trust that my recommendation providers described me in a favorable light.

Other: I had a difficult time finding relevant information on schools outside of their Web sites. I often read that j-school is a pointless waste of time and money, but I believe otherwise. My first choice is the University of Maryland. Syracuse is my second first choice only because it's farther away from a big city than UMD or Columbia are. Columbia is -- you guessed it -- my dream school. Getting in there would be like breaking one of Da Vinci's codes. Hope this helps! If you have any questions regarding my application process, feel free to ask me!

[Graduate Journalism Programs]

After learning the hard way how difficult finding reliable/helpful/informative information regarding graduate journalism programs can be, I decided to dedicate a topic to the subject. I think that if those who've gone through the process can take a little time to share the details of their experience, others will benefit from the (hopefully) non-biased information. For continuity's sake, it would be helpful if you used the format below:

Program Applied To:

Schools Applied To:

Schools Admitted To:

Schools Rejected From:

Still Waiting:

Undergraduate Institution:

Undergraduate GPA:

Last 60 hours of Undergraduate GPA (if applicable):

Undergraduate Major:

GRE Quantitative Score (Percentile):

GRE Verbal Score (Percentile):

GRE AW Score:

Years Out of Undergrad (if applicable):

Years of Work Experience:

Describe Relevant Work Experience:

Strength of SOP (be honest, describe the process, etc):

Strength of LORs (be honest, describe the process, etc):

Other:

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I borrowed the format from the