Theory007

Let's get this thread going! I am more analytically oriented I think and ultimately have some interests in methodology in political theory. If normative positions conflict, maybe a shift in methodological approach can alleviate that conflict. That's quite abstract but can be explored though a variety of questions, including by drawing from democratic theory.

I am hoping to use this thread to bring aspiring political theorists together to discuss admissions results from 2019.

I love this idea! What do you study within PT?

I am hoping to use this thread to bring aspiring political theorists together to discuss admissions results from 2019.

Is Brown just completely off the rails?

Also, for the friends in theory subfield, I was accepted to UC San Diego's political theory program and declined their offer. So chances are high that they will offer a place to another theorist.

It’s a no brainer for me - I’d go for UWM.

Wish you all the best! Good luck!

Mine said the same and was equally short

In at Princeton!!!  I’m completely shocked, still can’t believe it.  CP/IR. 

Congrats to all the Duke admits. I don't see any theory folks listed on the results page. I'm certain I didn't get in but I am wondering where my theory peeps are at.

I agree nobody should be pressured into withdrawing an application, and certainly it would rarely make sense to withdraw an application to a place that competes with the current preferred acceptance, whether in terms of rank, $, etc. I say "rarely" because there are situations in which withdrawing an application could have highly tangible benefits, and these might be comparable, or greater, in value to a candidate than either leveraging a new offer or gaining the satisfaction of seeing the application play out with a decision. The problem is that these possible benefits are often not known in advance. This was true for me, but my risk was very low. In my case (which I discuss in the post that someone linked earlier), I knew I wasn't going to prefer the schools from which I withdrew (one where I had already been admitted, one where my app was still pending). I also knew that the potential stipend from the pending school was very unlikely to be competitive with two offers I already had. My advisor suggested withdrawing my applications was thus reasonable (in his mind also advisable), and I agreed. But I place little value on learning the decision of a non-preferred school, whereas someone else might place a high value on this (despite the risk that the decision will be a rejection, while the prevailing assumption would be that the withdrawn application would surely be an admit). As an unexpected bonus, many benefits have accrued from my decision to do what some people are viewing as altruistic (i.e., I have received very positive attention from the DGS at each school - including an offer of coffee at MPSA with one - and other applicants and wait-listers appear to be grateful). My post was meant not to shame anyone but to call attention to an alternative accounting that some people might overlook when deciding whether to withdraw an application (or to decline a visit). As a side note, it seems like those with many early high-ranking admits and strong prospects are most bothered by the suggestion that withdrawing an application COULD BE beneficial for all, while those who are feeling more anxious about their prospects seem to appreciate the sentiment. This makes absolute sense, but I would argue that those with existing strong acceptances should be cautious about rejecting the idea outright and might instead consider altering their calculus ever so slightly. In essence, I am submitting that $75 dollars "wasted" on an application might not compare to the possible (tangible) benefits that could emerge from withdrawing an application. I should have been more clear in my original post. I had no idea this would become such a heated topic. Best of luck to all! 

Well, I disagree with you. I am not pressuring or guilting anyone into anything, but simply encouraging a very worthy UNC admit to chose the best option available to him (it is clear that he agrees that UNC is the best option by reading his original post). The post that I linked to my original post explains the upside of withdrawing, and I clearly made my suggestion in good faith (while celebrating his acceptance) because I feel it is the respectable thing to do (and the admit appears to agree with this).

My advise to FL407 is based on the assumptions that he 1. has a funding offer hand and 2. that none of the remaining schools compare in ranking and quality to UNC making it unlikely that UNC will add to its offer.

No interview was necessary.  I received a long, personalized email from a member in the department congratulating me with a few mentions from details of my packet.  They did offer to set-up a phone call to chat further but did not make it seem like my acceptance was contingent upon it.

Well, I disagree with you. I am not pressuring or guilting anyone into anything, but simply encouraging a very worthy UNC admit to chose the best option available to him (it is clear that he agrees that UNC is the best option by reading his original post). The post that I linked to my original post explains the upside of withdrawing, and I clearly made my suggestion in good faith (while celebrating his acceptance) because I feel it is the respectable thing to do (and the admit appears to agree with this).

Congratulations - wonderful news! You've gotten into a world-class department and I'm sure you have a bright future ahead of you. But I urge you to withdraw your applications from the remaining schools, see the posted link for some inspiration. There are a lot of waitlisted folks out there (and folks who will be waitlisted) who feel exactly the way you did after being rejected from Arizona. I applied as a theorist so none of this applies to me. Now go celebrate your amazing UNC acceptance!!!
 
 
 

Thanks for the info and I will definitely do this later today ?

I'm sure this is a more complicated topic than presented here, so I look forward to hearing about the drawbacks of withdrawing an application. That said...
I had a very enlightening, and ultimately incredibly rewarding (read on), talk with my advisor yesterday that resulted in withdrawing two of my applications to places that definitely rank lower for me than others to which I have been accepted (one school that has yet to make decisions and one school where I am accepted). I wasn’t sure about the recommended practice in such cases. When I see that someone has been accepted to both Princeton and Berkeley, and yet he [please forgive gender pronouns] seems to be eagerly anticipating a decision from UNC, Davis, Boulder, etc., I think that’s kind of strange, but then again I understand it. My advisor called such students “affirmation junkies” and warned me about the drawbacks of being one of them. He also advised me on the possible benefits of not being one of them (more on this in a sec). He said that I cannot use lower ranked acceptances in negotiations, and that withdrawing an application from a pending school would leave the impression to existing schools (if it comes up) that I would have been accepted. He did not demand that I withdraw any applications, but he did more or less forbid me from going on any visit to a school I knew I would not attend. He said that faculty at the schools where he has taught (poli sci, top 10-15 [Ivy] and top 25 [public R1]) end up doing some eye rolling every year over students who show up for the visit – on the stretched budget of the department - who are clearly going to attend a school that dominates. He did acknowledge that there are some cases in which students have irregular preferences (relating to geography, family, interdisciplinary interests, etc.) but that these are much more rare than are students who present these as important factors, and he claims that the difference is usually very obvious to faculty (who, btw, in the long run often come back into contact with said candidates via conferences, journal reviews, and the job market). This freaked me out enough to do some real soul-searching about why I still had applications at one pending school and one where I was accepted that (if honest with myself) I know I won’t be attending. So I (reluctantly and maybe awkwardly) emailed the DGS at each of the schools where I decided to withdraw, and guess what? Within an hour, in each case, I received a very appreciative email, thanking me and (more or less) commending my conscientious, collegial behavior! At the school where my application was still pending, the DGS was full of gratitude and said that they can spend upward of 3 or 4 hours (or more) putting together funding packages for EACH student because packages are tailored to student characteristics (I imagine this relates to subfield and/or institutional fellowships), and so it can save the department a lot of work when a student does as I have. Both emails indicated the DGS looked forward to meeting me in the future, and one was even specific about this (we are getting coffee at MPSA in April!). I feel so grateful for my advisor’s advice and wanted to pass it on, in case anyone else is dealing with similar decisions. Of course, it might not pan out for you exactly as it did for me, but I don’t see how anyone could feel anything but content after withdrawing an application to a place he definitely knows he will not attend. I felt such relief, even before receiving the great email responses. I will admit that, yes, you withdrawing an application could conceivably benefit me. But, given the schools to which I have been admitted already, this isn’t highly likely, so this message isn’t exactly self-serving. More likely, withdrawing will help someone (or more than one person) at a slightly lower-ranked school than where you will end up. My advisor also said that leaving decisions until April 15 is a very poor practice, for any school, even those that are top ranked. He said, as soon as I have had all of my visits, and my offers are all finalized (clearly no more negotiation on funding, etc.), I should make my decision as soon as possible, because it’s very unusual for most schools (especially top schools) to be able to bring in a funded student after 4/15. So far, all of my visits are before the last week of March, and I aim to make my decision as soon as I feel my offers are squared away. Hope this helps someone! Best of luck to all!