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dagnabbit

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  1. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from reasonablepie in Welcome to the 2016-17 cycle!   
    @PoliticalOrder - This is a good post, but my point in responding to Yanaka was to encourage them not to freak out over their applications. I don't think that providing such a list on December 1st is going to do more than further stress out qualified applicants like @Monody, as it's a bit late to change most parts of our applications.
  2. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from knp in Fall 2017 Applicants   
    I'm popping in from the political science board to say that I think unræd is right - don't worry about the e-mail, they're just trying to make sure they get your app fee. I'm applying to Columbia this cycle, and I got the same e-mail, so it's certainly not related to any particular admissions committee. Still, you would think that schools would know better than to send this kind of stuff to hyper-stressed applicants during finals/app crunch time.
  3. Upvote
    dagnabbit reacted to unræd in Fall 2017 Applicants   
    Have you already paid the application fee?
    If not, my guess is that it's just an attempt on their part to make sure that people who start an application finish one -- no, they don't start considering applications until after the deadline, but it's in their financial interest to make sure that every app begun is an app paid for.
  4. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from resDQ in Welcome to the 2016-17 cycle!   
    All of my letter writers are professors in the political science department at my current undergraduate institution, so I still see them and speak with them all the time. I've already thanked them in person, so I don't think that I'll send formal thanks (I'm thinking handwritten cards, maybe?) until I've accepted an offer. I also plan to seek their advice if it so happens that I receive multiple offers this cycle, so I think it would be weird to send formal thanks before the process is totally over.
  5. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from KBPsych in Should I explain why I went to a lesser-ranked undergraduate program?   
    It's just not worth including. Your application file should highlight your strengths, and a statement about why one facet of your application isn't as strong as it could have been seems unnecessary. If you attended the first school because you were in a dire financial situation or something, maybe you could include a bit about that in a personal history statement if any of the programs you're applying to require one. Otherwise, don't worry - it sounds like you have a strong profile. Good luck!
  6. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from KBPsych in Should I explain why I went to a lesser-ranked undergraduate program?   
    Others may disagree, but I would say definitely don't mention it. Your stats and research/industry experience speak to your ability to succeed in grad school far more than the prestige of your undergrad institution, and plenty of people who kicked ass at no-name schools get accepted to top programs. If anything, the fact that you worked hard and transferred to a better school should reflect positively on you. Is Stanford the only program you're applying to?
  7. Upvote
    dagnabbit reacted to resDQ in Welcome to the 2016-17 cycle!   
    Just submitted my first app! Going to feel great once everything gets in!
  8. Upvote
    dagnabbit reacted to DBear in The Complicated Case of a Writing Sample & Co-Authorship   
    I'd go with writing a new paper. There are schools that will specifically tell you NOT to submit anything that's co authored but even if that's not the case, I see too much risk of running into an ethical issue. Even if the main idea originated with you, developing the idea, deciding what direction you are going to take it and how to actually write it wasn't all you. This is different from when you're writing something and you incorporate feedback. So best be on the safe side and go with a different paper
  9. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from hopefulPhD2017 in Welcome to the 2016-17 cycle!   
    I just submitted the first of my ten applications! I feel like I can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel...
    Now back to work on finishing my senior thesis... There truly has been no rest for the wicked this semester.
  10. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from resDQ in Application Questions   
    In regard to your third query, my understanding is that schools ask this question in order to keep tabs on who their main competitors are. I don't see a problem with answering honestly, though I do think that it would be more appropriate for schools to ask this question in a post-application survey than on the application which they know students will be stressing over.
     
  11. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from |SDH|-|PhD| in Waiting GRE Reports - Panicking + Thanksgiving!   
    I assume you took the computer-administered test, right? If so, you should definitely receive your score report before December 1st - this will tell you your AWA score as well as all of your rankings. My understanding is that most programs accept self-reported scores in order to begin processing the application, as long as they receive the official scores from ETS not long after the deadline. If a program's website says that they must have the official ETS report by the deadline, it's still worth reaching out to the DGS to see if they'll still look at your application.
    Oh, and make sure to check your ETS account daily to see if your scores are ready - for some reason, they didn't send me an e-mail notification about them until the day after I discovered they were ready. Good luck!
  12. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from DBear in Waiting GRE Reports - Panicking + Thanksgiving!   
    I assume you took the computer-administered test, right? If so, you should definitely receive your score report before December 1st - this will tell you your AWA score as well as all of your rankings. My understanding is that most programs accept self-reported scores in order to begin processing the application, as long as they receive the official scores from ETS not long after the deadline. If a program's website says that they must have the official ETS report by the deadline, it's still worth reaching out to the DGS to see if they'll still look at your application.
    Oh, and make sure to check your ETS account daily to see if your scores are ready - for some reason, they didn't send me an e-mail notification about them until the day after I discovered they were ready. Good luck!
  13. Upvote
    dagnabbit got a reaction from hopefulPhD2017 in Welcome to the 2016-17 cycle!   
    Hi all - longtime lurker, first time poster here. Like the rest of you, I'm currently putting the finishing touches on my file (writing fit paragraphs for SOPs, final writing sample edits), and I can't believe that in just a few months we will know the results of all our hard work.
    I have a question for other doctoral program applicants: if you don't get into one of your top choices this cycle, will you accept a lesser offer or will you go another round? While we are all anxious to begin pursuing our PhDs, and while the idea of another app cycle already seems painful, there is significant evidence that the "institutional prestige" of one's doctoral program affects one's entire career trajectory. In my case, there is a nontrivial difference in rank between the highest ranked program I applied to and the lowest. Both programs have plenty of faculty in my area of interest and both place their students in TT positions, it's just that the higher ranked one places students much better and more frequently. Would you be equally happy at any of the programs you applied to? Or would you be willing to wait a year for another shot at your first choice?
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