phdmang

Hey there - sorry this is coming so late! I've had quite a busy few months, and I had to step away from GradCafe to keep myself sane and productive In the end, I had two offers and a waitlist, but I've chosen Cornell. I think it will be a great place for me to spend a few years and learn about the field. How have things worked out for you? Here's hoping that everyone has ended up wherever they're happiest!

I just heard that, indeed, Yale had made their decisions and decided to prioritize micro candidates this year. Best of luck to those who fit that profile!

Thanks, man! Yes, I sort of aimed high this year and things seem to be working out so far - the initial rejections stung, but the subsequent acceptances have more than made up for them. At least I know I'm going somewhere! All the best to you, too

To the waitlist question: my understanding is that waitlist notifications can occur as late as mid-March - schools often make a "first round of offers", give those people time to make their decisions, and then set up a waitlist. If their "first-choices" decline (which often occurs as late as April 1), then they draw on the waitlist they formalized a bit earlier. I know that other schools make their "offer" and "waitlist" lists in parallel, though, so I think the process is a bit idiosyncratic. In terms of interviewing, I've heard of this happening in a few ways so far: some schools (like Berkeley) interview a larger number of people initially, and that interview pool eventually leads to both the accepted and waitlisted groups. If you haven't been interviewed by THOSE schools yet, a rejection is likely on its way. I've also seen other schools "interview as they go", interviewing their top choices earlier on and waiting for them to decline before interviewing others. And I have: 2a/0w/3r/3p.

Congrats on the offer, though! That's a huge accomplishment. Re: following up with schools - I've also heard that it's poor form, but I've had success with the "two-week rule": if you had a good conversation with someone and haven't heard back in ~2 weeks, I think a polite follow up is worthwhile. I'll also say that I've had a few professors reach out to me after interviews to ask how "serious" I am about their program, so I think (tactfully) demonstrating commitment and interest is probably helpful.

So, I just got word from Cornell that they've only invited three people to interview and will be making one offer. They probably won't be inviting anyone else to interview this year. They're definitely top choice, though, so my fingers are crossed there... Ross (strategy) have also sent out invites as well! Apparently, if you haven't received one by Friday, you probably weren't short-listed.

Hi JigglyPuffy - no problem. I know the news may not be the most auspicious for you, but I feel like even bad news is better than no news at this point in the game, so I felt inclined to share... Thanks for the well-wishes, too! Cornell is probably my top choice right now and I think my interviews went well, so I'm hoping it works out. Here's hoping that all goes well for you this cycle, too!

Hi there, JigglyPuffy - I had my interviews at Cornell (Johnson) this week, and they will apparently be issuing decisions next week. I think they're sending out interview invites in waves, inviting 1-2 at a time and making offers before moving on to other interviews. If I get an offer, I will likely accept (fingers crossed!).

It looks like management results are starting to come in today...

One of my POIs just sent me a few of their recent papers to discuss in greater detail in the coming weeks. As a bit of context, we had a very general 45-min conversation last month about my background and interests as well as the PhD program at their school (I actually wasn't very optimistic about the impression I made). Has anyone else experienced anything similar? Should I be prepared for a formal critique?

Yes, here's to some (hopefully) good news! Judging by last year's posts, this coming week is going to be a big one.

Sorry, I'm machine-gun posting (there seems to be a near-perfect correlation between my level of anxiety and the time I spend on GradCafe), but I did learn some interesting news from Yale. Apparently, the Management group accepted more people than usual last year. As a result, the Dean's office doesn't want to allocate any funding for Management PhDs, but the group is petitioning for 1 or 2. So, this might just be a bad year for us at Yale...

I know this question wasn't directed at me, but I too contacted POIs at every school I applied to. In fact, the only notifications/interviews I've received thus far have been at the schools whose faculty I contacted before applying. It seems to be an unwritten prerequisite these days...

I'm not familiar with them, but I'm guessing you're on the micro side? I applied for Sorenson and Canales.

Worries: I only applied to top schools, and I don't think I don't think I spent enough time studying the "politics" of the departments I applied to. For example, the two faculty members at one of my top choices are both on sabbatical this year (and, of course, they both told me they would have accepted me if they were on campus this year when I spoke with them...), and my other two top choices are each only taking 1 candidate this year. I also think I may have applied for a subdiscipline for which I am only a marginally attractive candidate, and that I could have applied to another and had much better chances. As a final regret, I sent "stock" SOP to a school where a professor was the most excited about my profile, not discovering his profile until the last minute (and then really hitting it off with him over the phone). He gave me a "soft" offer and immediately recommended me for admission to the PhD director, but also told me that this was the first year he wasn't 100% in charge of admissions... Excitements: I'm proud of myself for following through, and I have put an incredible amount of effort into these applications: I've read about 3 dozen faculty papers, emailed each of them individually, and, in generally, written great applications. This process has also helped me to clarify where my own research interests lie. While there are things I could have done differently had I known better, I truly don't think I could have done "more". I also have LORs from Ivy League professors who think well enough of me to have submitted to this. Here's hoping that at least ONE of my eight applications works out!