CogSciRob

If there are only X number of spots available in area P, but X + Y people get all E's in area P, than Y people will be in this situation. I'm sure they then go by the internal scores that we don't see, but at that point you're just measuring noise and its entirely luck based. While its certainly not up to me, I would have preferred a fixed funding rather than fixed slot method, such that if 10% more people qualified, then funding would be shared and reduced by 10%, but there are certainly downsides to that too. Better yet, we need more NSF funding budgeted, but that's a whole different issue...

From what I understand, your z score for each reviewer is factored in, so a VG from someone who gave mostly Ps might be better for you than an E from a reviewer that mostly gave Es. As others have said, the shutdown seems to have made the process even more random.

I think this just demonstrates how's random the process is. If you need all Es to get an award, it's obviously much easier if you only have two reviewers. My only hope is that within each discipline they are the same. Im not sure if they award proportionally within each field, if it just goes by review score overall irrespective of field, or something inbetween. In applying to phd programs, I wasn't even considered for one of my top programs because my POI forgot to email the selection committee his interest in new students this year (with me being his top pick). Just goes to show how much is out of your control.

I also got only two reviews: E/E, E/E and I was offered an award for cognitive psychology as an undergraduate. The reviews are quite a bit more positive than I would have expected, and my jaw dropped at this line: "Your letters speak impossibly highly of your abilities, drive, and sense of purpose. You are described as the best undergraduate that these faculty have had the pleasure of working with and everything in your application materials reflects that to be true." While I'm honored, that seems a bit over the top >.< I'm currently 35, and my first attempts at community college right out of high school were quite unsuccessful for 6 years, with a GPA under 2.0. My family and friends are quite shocked that I'm graduating, let alone being accepted to Yale and winning this award. The moral: don't let failures from the past impede your successes in the future. ViewApplReview.pdf

I guess they didn't say what time on the 29th XD

I think tomorrow is the official day for you to be able to accept awards and see reviews. I'm not really sure why they have the delay between finding out if you won and seeing the reviews (or if that is the standard procedure or something unique to this cycle). And congrats on winning!

I'd recommend also asking the school, as I'd imagine you aren't the first in such a position and they would know exactly what steps to take. And I completely agree with your pay it forward attitude and assessment of the process. So much of both grants and grad school applications are luck based, and I think the most successful scientists also have the highest number of rejected papers and proposals. It's all about putting yourself out there, doing your best, and giving luck as much of an opportunity to find you as possible.

Cognitive psych here. Amazingly, of the 11 cognitive psych awards, 2 came from my lab at UCSD (me as an undergrad and one grad student)! I was pretty sure I wouldn't win, since I was applying to joint philosophy/ psychology programs (I'm going to Yale's joint program), and I was very clear in my application that I wanted to equally pursue both disciplines. I was worried that would turn off some reviewers. Plus, I don't have any publications other than abstracts and undergraduate journals, but I have a decent amount of conference presentations. I put a ton of work in my application (as I'm sure most on here did) and extensively reviewed previous winning essays, but I didn't get much outside help other than a couple visits to the school writing center. I do think my philosophy training did help my writing. Once I get the comments back, I'll post my essays, which will hopefully help others. I feel a little bad winning an award when Yale's program already gives many of the benefits anyway (High stipend, low TA requirements, department based funding). Of course, I didn't know which school I'd be accepted to when I applied. Every eligible student in my PI's lab has won an award for 17 years, so I'm at least happy not to break that streak. I think the best part about winning as an undergrad is that I won't need to stress over this application when grad school starts, as I know it will be a very strenuous program, and my daughter will be born a week before the Fall semester begins. Congrats to everyone else who was also fortunate enough to win!

I agree that funding ought not to be a deciding factor, but unfortunately many programs have funding limitations where external funding is expected. I've even heard of programs that will, for instance, fund 5 people for two years and then only 3 of the cohort for the remaining years. Some schools justify this by figuring an underfunded offer is better than no offer. Funding can also greatly impact your PhD experience if it frees you from programs with overly burdensome TA requirements, or gives you more freedom to work on the projects you want with the facalty you want. And I'm sure there are PIs that treat NSF funded students unequally, in terms of time, attention, and opportunity. I've been very fortunate to have been accepted to a program fully funded by the department with extremely limited TA requirements, but as an undergraduate NSF applicant I obviously didn't know which program I'd end up in when I applied. Personally, I'm stressing over it because every student in the lab i'm joining has won the NSF GRFP for 15+ years, and it would be great to have it in the bag before I start. Plus with a new baby on the way, it would be great to have the (extremely modest) boost in stipend. However, it is hard not to feel guilty about competing against other students who *need* external funding to continue their program. I wish everyone the best of luck!

Unfortunately, I think everyone recieves that "offer." Honestly, that they'd so brashly solicit a program that probably isn't in the best interest of most students makes me question NYU's priorities. But, since I got the same email, I might be biased ?

I don't have any direct experience with Leiter, but I found the PGR very useful in finding programs in my AOI (phil of cog sci). That said, I didn't only apply to the top programs blindly, but picked 6 of the top 15 that I felt were the best fit. And I think this is where all rankings are less helpful, as fit with the program and your interests are way more important than ranking. I got accepted to Yale and will accept it over higher ranked NYU because NYU's psychology department isn't researching what I'm interested in and doesn't have the level of collaboration I'm seeking. Thus, even though Yale's overall and AOI ranking is lower, I find the program a better fit for multiple reasons.

As others have said, it makes it difficult to tailor the application to the school, both for your recommenders and you. If your GPA is on the low end and the GRE is truly terrible (like under 50% scores) and you only applied to top programs, then they may have been addressing you applying to so many long shot schools. If your relationship is such that they are letter writers, perhaps you can feel comfortable directly asking what they mean and ask if they have any advice for you (either for now or applying next cycle if you need to)

Accepted at Yale's joint philosophy / psychology program. I originally applied through philosophy, but psych thought they would have an easier time admitting me (since they admit 5-6x more people), so they moved my application to there, after which philosophy also accepted me into the joint program. This was my top choice and I'm very humbled to have been selected. Im also wait listed at WashU and have a few other apps pending. I only applied to 6 schools (Yale, Pitt, NYU, Rutgers, WashU, UCSD), so I'm glad I got in!

Hello all! Recently I received two of the best items of news of my life. The second best being my admission to Yale's joint psychology and philosophy Ph.D. program; an offer I will almost certainly be accepting. Of course, the best news is that my fiancee is pregnant, with a due date of Aug 5th (orientation starts 17th) . I know the timing is a bit crazy, but conventional wisdom holds that there is no convenient time to start a family. Luckily, Yale offers a very generous 16 week paternity leave (with continued funding and stopped clock), however I'm not sure how this works for the first semester. I told my potential adviser during the interview, and he was very supportive, but has never had a grad-student with children. My fiancee and I want to have the baby here in California, which also leaves very little time to move. I'm wondering if anyone has any experience or advice for starting grad-school with a newborn. Thanks!

So I just got accepted to a program at Yale and I'm eager to inform all my letter writers and professors. What complicates this is that I applied to my current undergraduate institution (UCSD), meaning word would inevitably get back to the selection committee that I've been accepted to Yale and I'm afraid that might negatively influence their decision to accept me. I could just wait it out, but professors have asked me for updates, and who knows how long the decision process might take. I'm thinking of letting them know that I've been accepted, but to emphasize that I'm still very interested in UCSD for multiple reasons. Interested to know what everyone else thinks