xyz234

Second what high_hopes says. In general, methods courses are more valuable than content-based courses. PhD programs are largely designed to turn you into research producers, rather than consumers. Most of the coursework you will have in grad school is methods based for these reasons. Any opportunity you can get to give yourself a head start there will make you a great candidate. In addition, if there's any type of course you can take that gives you an option for an independent project, thesis, or even just original research paper you should do it. You will need a writing sample for your PhD application and in general this will show ad comms that you haven't just read sociology, but can actually practice it as well. Finally, take all opportunities to meet with faculty, go to office hours, etc. I was lucky enough to have a fantastic undergrad mentor this way and I got a job working as her research assistant after graduating. My relationship with her strengthened my application enormously, as it boosted my recommendations, my resume, and gave me more primary research opportunities. Sociology is also a small world. I got into my mentor's alma mater and other schools where she has a relationship, and I don't think that's a coincidence. It's not nepotism, but a recommendation means more if the ad comms know the person it's coming from.
Feel free to pm me if you want to talk in more detail. 

If you are interested in quantitative research, I suggest taking courses on statistics, data science, and possibly programming. While we often think of these as being topics for computer scientists; there is an increasing demand for these skills in sociology and computational social science. It can make you look like a very attractive candidate for certain graduate schools. 

To preface, I don't know the field of chemistry at all and it sounds like you have a tough decision between two great programs. Congratulations! I will, however, say that you should consider editing some of the more self-identifying information out of your post, especially since you say some not-so-flattering things about a potential advisor by name. I don't mean to sound condescending and I wish I could offer you more help on the decision itself, but I do think this is good practice on the internet in general.

Accepted Northeastern's offer. Glad this is all over and congratulations to everybody for surviving :).

Disco,
I just noticed the last line to your post, I can't help but wonder if there is something seriously wrong with the way you interpret language and other people. It seems you're not even making an effort to be accurate, or to even offer evidence to your analysis of my intentions. You're just rolling with what works, like a 5 year old child - they do that too. And btw Disco, where is your evidence of this sympathy and affirmation I crave? Where is this in my original response? I'm guessing you're going to have to do some stretching with your interpretation, but a little hard work and purposeful ignorance and mental gymnastics and you'll get there. Your interpretation of my motives had nothing to do with my question which was on ethics, and I have to ask: what are you doing on this website if you are only here to antagonize? You're barely even bothering to answer the question. Do you need to feel superior to others? Is that why you project, like you did just again? And like you did earlier? Putting yourself in my shoes and imagining that if it were you, you would undoubtedly be seeking sympathy and affirmation, rationalization and justification for all your deeds, even the ones you are responsible for? And I am responsible for accepting that decision letter, but I never made any claim to the contrary.
Finding out what is proper and what is not during the admissions process isn't easy, especially since you only apply once, and trying to determine if you were treated fairly (which I now know I was, because I asked) seems like a proper course of action. I'm finding out a good deal about you - this is both annoying and intriguing at the same time. Seriously, take a week off from whatever you do, look inward, and stop projecting your own weaknesses onto others. I thanked you for providing very little information, yet you still can't help yourself. Why? The bitterness inherent in the "boo hoo" led me to believe that it may be because you did not get into a program that you desired? Because someone got picked right over you? These are assumptions as well of course, but I can't help but wonder where your personal offense comes from; however, I do know you are an extremely insecure person to attack someone for very little. Sad, I will offer you sympathy and affirmation, because, quite simply, that is what YOU want. Not me, I just want a question answered about April 15th college deadlines and ethics.  Anyway, I really did intend to end it with the last message, but like a child, especially one who constantly seeks sympathy and affirmation, desires justification and rationalization to explain one's actions, you just couldn't help yourself in getting a last word. Seriously, there are a lot of boards online where people want nothing more than to treat each other horribly, can we keep this treatment off more serious websites such as this?

SAIS is a professional program. It explicitly does not prepare students for PhD, there is no required research component, and to my knowledge, you cannot do a thesis - honors are granted via an oral exam. Some people do go on to PhDs, mostly in public policy (which is a different field from political science), but they need to put in the extra legwork in getting the right preparation and research experience because again, this is not what the program is for. 
Columbia, on the other hand, is a cash cow. Rock and a hard place.
What specific weaknesses are you hoping to address in a master's? I would urge you to consider area studies programs if that weakness can be addressed in them because they are slightly better-funded. I would also urge you to apply in Canada. You can do just as well with a master's from a competitive Canadian institution, and you'll save $$.

28k for 5 years is as good as funding gets at cuny, you should go. 
 you also get access to all the faculty members in the greater NYC area. 

Can you elaborate more on your reason for choosing SUNY-Albany over WSU? I know you say ranking, but really the two are not substantially different in terms of ranking imo. Certainly not enough to pass up the fully funded offer. If you have an established relationship I think it's definitely worth inquiring about more funding, but I would not consider going into debt for SUNY-Albany at all, especially when you have a fully funded offer from what I believe most in sociology consider to be a peer institution.

I think you should think of the US News rankings as a rough gauge of perceived "prestige." On the rankings page you can click on the methodology section, but essentially US News sends out a survey questionnaire to professors in the field asking them to rate departments and then aggregates the results. So, what you see in the list isn't incredibly precise or scientific, but it does roughly show you how other faculty in the field view various departments. At the end of the day, these are the faculty that will be hiring you if you want a tenure track job in academia and academia is still a relatively prestige-focused place.
I don't think ranking is the be-all and end-all, and each person has to decide how much they value other factors like location, faculty fit, and finances. That said, it's disingenuous to act like ranking doesn't matter, especially if your goal is to get a tenure track job in academia. If it isn't then the calculation may change. Some schools may consistently outperform their ranking in terms of placing students in the job market and others may underperform, but in the grand scheme of things this is largely a wash. 
Funding is also something to consider. Does the program you're considering fully fund students? I can't imagine it would be worth it otherwise. I'm not going to tell you what your goals are or what aspects you value most in a program, and there is certainly plenty of room to achieve your goals at a huge range of schools. But I would encourage at least attempting to shoot as high as you can in the rankings and then see what happens.

You should be completely fine. I assume you'll be attending Howard, so you won't have to worry about a commute, and Howard is close to the Shaw/Howard metro stop. I've lived my entire life in DC without a car, so it is definitely doable.

You already have a masters? I can't see any way that getting another one will help you at all. The MA at Columbia is also largely just a cash cow for the university, so I don't think you should expect a level of quality significantly above the program at CUNY.
It also seems to me like the reasons you list for considering the MA at Columbia are not going to help with the weaker points of your profile. You already have great research experience, have presented at conferences, and have had the opportunity to network with/get recommendations from faculty (at CUNY). It sounds like you already do have fleshed out research interests from your MA thesis as well. You're ahead of me in all of these categories and I had a relatively successful application season, so I don't think you should be worried.
It does seem like your GRE would be the most immediate way you could make a tangible improvement. I don't think your scores are bad, but bumping up your quant and writing scores, paired with your research background, would make you a great applicant. One thing you haven't mentioned is your SoP. I don't think any of us on the forum is an expert in writing these, but maybe that's another area you could look to?
I think with a couple tweaks you could be a very strong applicant, so I would seriously advise against going into debt and doing the Columbia MA as a hail mary.

You already have a masters? I can't see any way that getting another one will help you at all. The MA at Columbia is also largely just a cash cow for the university, so I don't think you should expect a level of quality significantly above the program at CUNY.
It also seems to me like the reasons you list for considering the MA at Columbia are not going to help with the weaker points of your profile. You already have great research experience, have presented at conferences, and have had the opportunity to network with/get recommendations from faculty (at CUNY). It sounds like you already do have fleshed out research interests from your MA thesis as well. You're ahead of me in all of these categories and I had a relatively successful application season, so I don't think you should be worried.
It does seem like your GRE would be the most immediate way you could make a tangible improvement. I don't think your scores are bad, but bumping up your quant and writing scores, paired with your research background, would make you a great applicant. One thing you haven't mentioned is your SoP. I don't think any of us on the forum is an expert in writing these, but maybe that's another area you could look to?
I think with a couple tweaks you could be a very strong applicant, so I would seriously advise against going into debt and doing the Columbia MA as a hail mary.

I think you should think of the US News rankings as a rough gauge of perceived "prestige." On the rankings page you can click on the methodology section, but essentially US News sends out a survey questionnaire to professors in the field asking them to rate departments and then aggregates the results. So, what you see in the list isn't incredibly precise or scientific, but it does roughly show you how other faculty in the field view various departments. At the end of the day, these are the faculty that will be hiring you if you want a tenure track job in academia and academia is still a relatively prestige-focused place.
I don't think ranking is the be-all and end-all, and each person has to decide how much they value other factors like location, faculty fit, and finances. That said, it's disingenuous to act like ranking doesn't matter, especially if your goal is to get a tenure track job in academia. If it isn't then the calculation may change. Some schools may consistently outperform their ranking in terms of placing students in the job market and others may underperform, but in the grand scheme of things this is largely a wash. 
Funding is also something to consider. Does the program you're considering fully fund students? I can't imagine it would be worth it otherwise. I'm not going to tell you what your goals are or what aspects you value most in a program, and there is certainly plenty of room to achieve your goals at a huge range of schools. But I would encourage at least attempting to shoot as high as you can in the rankings and then see what happens.

Can the person who was rejected by Berkeley share where they found that info? When I logged in to the site, nothing came up and my application still says "submitted".
(Sorry to hear about your rejection )

@abenz, @syza, and @latemeg, I called the department this morning. I was told that there is no additional information on my application, and the decisions will be out in the next 1-2 weeks.

I don't think it matters either way, but I usually try to address people how they sign the email. All current PhD candidates I've talked to refer to those professors by first names too, so you're not being overly informal. That said, if you're worried about it, it absolutely can't hurt to be cautious and say Professor X or Dr. X.

It's counter-intuitive, but the number one mistake I've made when talking to professors from programs I've been accepted to is getting too detail-oriented. I want to know the specifics of each program of course, but my best experiences have been just having a conversation without as many pointed questions. These conversations often end up answering my questions anyway, and in going in a roundabout way give me more insight into the professors' philosophies and the overall vibe of the department.
The advice I'm trying to give myself is that I've already been accepted multiple places and to just relax and have a normal conversation.

It's counter-intuitive, but the number one mistake I've made when talking to professors from programs I've been accepted to is getting too detail-oriented. I want to know the specifics of each program of course, but my best experiences have been just having a conversation without as many pointed questions. These conversations often end up answering my questions anyway, and in going in a roundabout way give me more insight into the professors' philosophies and the overall vibe of the department.
The advice I'm trying to give myself is that I've already been accepted multiple places and to just relax and have a normal conversation.

I can claim one, received an email this morning. Have not been posting on the results board though because honestly I feel it just contributes to the anxiety and stress of this forum. Happy to answer any questions if that's helpful though.