punctilious

Congratulations!!! Feel free to send us a PM if you have any questions about UVM or Burlington. Husband and I both went there.

Nope. His mind is pretty much made up at this point.

Congratulations!!! That is fantastic!!!

The DGS just let husband know that he’s on the “unofficial waitlist” for Brown. Her email was very kind, and it’s good to finally know!

It makes me feel better to hear that others are accepting before the visit, since we plan to do that. It's better than waiting it out for us since I'd like to apply for/look at housing while we are there. OH AND CONGRATULATIONS!!!

We still have to hear back from a few places, but I'm about 99% sure husband will formally accept Harvard once we get the funding letter in the mail.

THANK YOU, @Warelin and @Wall7213. Husband is nervous about heading to Harvard for his visit, so this is reassuring and helpful.

I think the book review publication may have played a minor role, if only because Harvard is trying to move towards more public-facing writing and are encouraging students to engage in these kinds of publications. But yes, I think his package just seemed to fit well into Harvard's current needs (they're moving from a close reading/historical focus to more of a theory focus--husband's writing samples were close readings, background is in history, and theory is integrated into his research interests). One of the POIs who contacted him is Louis Menand, though, so it's possible that the book review in particular stood out to him. His other POI, David Alworth, is most likely into him because of his research focus (Thing Theory, Latour, Pynchon, etc.). Husband specifically went for the job he has now because it offers a lot of flexibility (working from home and making your own schedule) so that he could have time to write. There's no right answer, of course, but I would agree that it's a good idea to research programs to see whether they have a preference, because quite a few of them seem to one way or another.

Do it!

I see one BU rejection on the board--I wonder if they have already sent acceptances or are going to soon? It seems like they've taken WAY longer this year.

I'm really sorry to hear that, @Crow T. Robot. You do have some seriously amazing programs that accepted you outright, however! I guess that's one program to put aside so you can focus on determining which of your current offers are the best choice for you. And it looks like that will be no easy feat, so one less thing to worry about!

@boopbop, take this with a grain of salt, as you always should with advice, but I have heard that in English lit, getting an MA can make you less likely to be accepted into certain programs. Just as not getting an MA can shut you out of certain programs. My husband had spent two years working as a background investigator and growing on his own. He has, in this time, published two book reviews and a short story, read a ton, and defined his research interests. It's entirely possible that he wouldn't have gotten into Harvard if he decided to accept his MA offer at Cambridge, Trinity College Dublin, or Edinburgh. I believe that a lot of Ivy/Ivy-ish schools prefer BA-only applicants, as do a whole lot of other programs (while on the other hand, plenty of programs we looked at required or preferred applicants with MAs). But I'm sure others could chime in with more info on that. (@Warelin?) So clearly I wouldn't have had it any other way, but that's just our experience. I don't think you can necessarily go wrong doing an MA or taking some time to work professionally and on oneself. In the end, it's truly up to you and what you'd rather do. As we all know, there isn't a guarantee of admission to a PhD no matter what you do!

Gahhhh what does "soon" mean though? We don't have anything from them yet.

That’s a great question... I’ll have to think about what color would look decent with yellow and green, since it’ll have to be like every other letter is the withdrawn color lol.

Husband took himself off of the waitlist for Tufts. Hopefully this helps someone out!

When I talked to the Brown grad manager last Wednesday, I told her my husband's name and she said it "should be a good thing" that we haven't heard yet, and that they do not have a wait list, but some applicants have been "set aside" and are "pending." She said we'd hear back in 1-2 weeks. It's such a strange situation.

As a designer, I have a bit of a visceral reaction to 'stuff falling down page' as it reminds me of the days when people would make snow/glitter/whatever the heck fall down their websites, alongside their funky cursors and auto-playing music. But yes, this was adorably executed.

The official acceptance in the application portal came through for the University of Delaware. There are yellow and blue digital streamers and confetti falling down the page. That was something new, I suppose. Lol.

I'd suggest giving the grad coordinator a call. Our call with Brown about a similar situation was somewhat illuminating.

Congratulations!!! That's so wonderful!

It really is! Everything is falling into place. Thank you so much!

The wait is over for you?! Well, congratulations on officially entering decision mode! That's so exciting! It's funny, I feel like you got all of your acceptances wicked early, then had to ride out the wave of rejection. This process is something else. Unpredictable. I'm sorry to hear about Harvard--but we'll deal with the Yalies on your behalf.

We'll add that to the list! He already owns We Have Never Been Modern and has been reading it (he was quoting it to me last night as I stared at him--I have zero clue what any of it means). Good to know that he's a "hot" philosopher -- maybe that helped him this cycle since he referenced "The Berlin Key" in his SOP?

The limbo... it's so frustrating. When I talked to the Brown grad manager last week, I told her my husband's name and she said it "should be a good thing" that we haven't heard yet, and that they do not have a wait list, but some applicants have been "set aside" and are "pending." Whatever all that means. GOOD LUCK!

Huh! Well, there goes my theory! Perhaps you are right.