EsseEstPoop

Well it seems incredibly likely that there will be more spots total next year versus this year, simply because I think a lot of those schools that closed their PhD applications will open up again, and so even if schools continue to have reduced admissions that would open up at least a few more spots. 
 
It also depends on whether GRE requirements are reinstituted since it looks like many more international students applied to US programs than normal because of this (though I got amazing GRE scores, there did not seem to be a correlation with the places I got into this year and the places that allowed me to submit my GRE scores, so my guess is most admissions committees are not taking them as seriously at all and probably will not again). Of course whether or not this makes it easier for YOU depends on all sorts of factors like your country of origin, test taking aptitude, etc. Overall it would be better in terms of accessibility to do away with GRE requirements all together, so even if it means more applicants overall I am strongly in favor of this route. 
 
There definitely will be people who got shut out this year applying, and anecdotally I get the sense that this number is higher than in most previous years, but not like 100s of people. I imagine a lot of people who got shut out of PhDs got into MAs so won’t be applying for two years, and then a lot of people who got shut out because they decided to apply on a whim probably won’t apply again. 
 
Applications also almost always go up in a recession (and even though getting a Philosophy PhD might be somewhat of a strange choice to make in a recession, it does seem like that played at least part of a role), so if the economy continues to improve and the US is doing well economically by the fall, then I imagine that would predict a decrease in applicants relative to this year. However, if other countries are still in a recession due to lagging vaccine rollout, etc., then there may still be an increase in applicants from international countries. 
So I guess if I was forced to take a guess, I would say it will ALMOST CERTAINLY not be AS bad as it was this year, MOST LIKELY will just be marginally better or around the same (slightly more spots, slightly fewer or around the same # of applicants overall), and COULD BE BUT PROBABLY WON’T be significantly easier (I think the only way this would happen is if all programs open up and returned to 2019 level of admissions combined with a thriving economy leading to 100s of fewer people applying).
So yeah overall I’d say brace yourself for about the same level of anxiety, maybe slightly less, as we collectively went through this year ?

I will be attending BU in the Fall! Has anyone else accepted a BU offer?

Thanks, folks!!
I totally agree with this, @Happybuddha. I'll begin reaching out to folks at UCI LPS and talking to them, among other things, about fit. The program has a tremendous academic placement record, which matters to me, as I want to be an academic. I also wish to keep industry doors open though (I truly think philosophy in AI is applied).
@Marcus_Aurelius I'm not fully sure about this myself TBH. I presume brand value matters quite a bit in keeping industry doors open. I don't know how a WashU or UCI would compare. I want to be in an interdiscplinary program, something like LPS/HPS (Stanford's symbolic systems track was my dream program).
@Mischief Thanks! Rookie question...what is an "ABD" student? Are they students who are beyond coursework who now just teach and research?

Accepted at Syracuse.

For folks not on the FB group: Cornell is confirmed, UoAlberta (PhD) is confirmed (direct report to me), Baylor is confirmed, and University of Missouri-St. Louis (MA) is confirmed. No news on Stanford with respect to direct claims.

Hey I understand the anxiety and a lot of people are in the same position, but this isn't really cool. Generally putting it out there for people to decline at a certain school is already a grey area, but asking a user directly if they can decline soon is an unfair position to put someone in and is crossing a boundary.
I don't want to sound mean because I totally understand the pressure and position you are in and no one will hold it against you, just a general note to everyone that as long as you are taking others into your considerations, everyone has the right to take the time and manage their decisions how they need to and it isn't fair or cool for anyone to be pressured to decide or make their move fast (especially asking a specific person directly).
I only say this because there are people gracious enough to share publicly their offers and where they stand which is some insight that is very useful for those anxiously waiting to hear back, but if people start getting targeted and asked to decide quickly then people will feel uncomfortable sharing this information and we won't have it anymore.
99% of people aren't jerks and know that there are people who will be affected by their decision and know to make their decision as soon as they are comfortable, so everyone deserves the time they need to be 100% sure and officially decline.

As a person experiencing the same anxiety about admissions, I understand what you might be feeling. I want to also illuminate the chain reaction/domino effect of this process. Those who have been admitted at one place, may also (most likely) be waitlisted at other places. Take for example, student A is on waitlist from school X. student B has been admitted to school X and waitlisted at school Y. And student C has been admitted at school Y and waitlisted at school Z. And so the connections continue. Therefore, each one of us is depending on other students to accept or decline offers. So it most likely is not as easy to conclude that student B can reasonably make a decision in haste about school X. 

It is UM, located in Florida.

Does anyone have any intel on Syracuse? They were predicted to announce almost a month ago! 

Waite listed in Miami.

Does anyone have any insight into the situation at the University of Miami? I made their waitlist. I am specifically looking for information about their waitlist. 

The schools where I've done it so far were both schools where I was told there is a pretty good chance of admit, and they told me I was welcome to reach out! Some other programs have acted like it is a bit premature, but everyone has said it's appropriate, so if there is someone you really want to chat with/network with at a school then now is a great time to do so! For me, I basically just emailed them letting them know I am currently waitlisted and am very interested in their work, and would love to chat with them sometime over the next month or so. In other cases, grad students that I've spoken to have offered to connect me to professors, which is always nice since it eliminates any awkwardness or potential of "why is this waitlisted student emailing me?!" But so far I have only had positive responses from the people that I've reached out to! 

This is something that @directingdirectionsposted a while back and has been passed along over the years:
 
On that note, here is a a list of potential questions to ask at visits and interviews (I would say most of these are for visits but some fit well for interviews). I recalled that this was posted to the forum last year (and the person who had posted it then had reposted it from someone from the year before..) so I thought (like them) i'd copy/paste it in case someones find it helpful...
Topics to ask grad schools:
(1) What is the climate for women/minorities like?
(2) Teacher accessibility
(3) Opportunities to teach (TA vs. teaching)
(4) Are grad students happy?
(5) Placement / prep for job market?
(6) Guaranteed 6th year of funding?
(7) How long does it take people to complete program?
(8) Teaching workload (how many students; grading help if a lot)
(9) Summer opportunities
(10) Transition from coursework to dissertation
(11) Opportunities to do Phil outside classroom
(12) Course selection
Questions to ask professors:
1. Are there opportunities to teach or only TA?
2. How does [school] prepare students for the job market?
3. What is financial support like beyond the fifth year?
4. How long does it take people to complete the program?
5. What is the teaching workload like? (How many students? Is there grading help (if a lot)? / How onerous is the teaching + grading load?)
6. What summer opportunities are available to students? What do students typically do over the summer?
7. How does [school] handle the transition from coursework to dissertation?
8. What opportunities are there to do philosophy outside f the classroom on campus? (E.g. reading groups, talks, philosophy society, school-sponsored philosophy conference, etc.)
9. How is the collection of the department library? How often is it updated?
10. Do all grad students /TAs get office space?
11. Links of the dept with professors in, e.g., linguistics, cognitive science, rhetoric, classics, etc.?
12. What do people typically do in winter and summer vacations?
13. People retiring in the next 2-3 years? New hirings planned in the next 1-2 years?
14. How many students is [professor] planning to take in the next few years?
15. Proto seminar- what is it like and what will it look like this fall semester?
16. Support for publishing in the initial years at _______ university?
17. Department fellowships which one can apply for later which can give time off teaching?
18. Your (professor's) current research interests and upcoming projects?
19. How often do the professors meet with students especially during the coursework stage?
20. Do professors come to reading groups and other department activity apart from colloquia?
21. What is the level of support available from the Department to attend conferences, workshops and seminars? How far does the stipend go in that area?
22. Is the funding 9 month or 12 month? What are the avenues for summer funding?
Questions to ask grad students:
1. How often do you meet with professors?
2. How often do you talk about philosophy with professors when you're not in meetings/classes? (To develop as a philosopher, it is very important to develop your in-person philosophy skills--thinking on your feet, asking good questions, responding to objections, etc.)
3. Do professors come to reading groups? (Or any departmental events that aren't colloquia?)
4. Do grad students ask questions at colloquia?
5. Do you feel comfortable talking in group settings? Have you felt comfortable talking in group settings since you first came? If not, when did you start feeling comfortable?
6. Do grad students share their work with one another/give feedback with one another?
7. How often are people around the department?
8. What do you like most about being here?
9. What do you like least about being here?
10. Do older grad students spend time around the department?
11. What kind of guidance do you get from your professors/advisor? (very important- you want faculty who really read your stuff carefully and make your papers better. if the faculty are mia or not very careful when they read your papers, you may not get this.)
12. Does the culture feel combative or one-up-y? Do you feel like you have to be "on" when you're in a philosophical setting?
13. Are the students here happy?
14. What are faculty and student working on in [area]? What is doing [area, e.g. metaphysics] like here?
Questions about climate:
1. Is there a MAP chapter? (You can usually find this out yourself)
1. If so, contact MAP coordinator
2. What is the climate like at [school]?
3. What has [school] done for women and minorities in philosophy?
4. What percentage of grad students are women?
5. Sexual harassment issues? [prob best to ask a grad student discretely]
 
And here is what @HomoLudens noted a few months ago: 
The interview is kinda brutal. Make sure you know literally everything that you wrote in your sample/statement by heart. Then be prepared for trick questions. I can't really remember what my questions were. My friend who got an interview last year said that they asked him what he thought about the "libertarian/Communitarian/Liberalism/communism debate". His area of focus was Lacanian psychoanalysis! The only reason they asked him was because he took a class with Michael Sandel at Harvard during undergrad. So get ready for them to ask anything. 
 
I know these don't quite map on to what you're asking (and without knowing which school the questions can vary I would imagine), but I would say that sometimes interviews are an additional opportunity to check for fit, see what folks are interested, make sure there are not red flags, and hear more about who you are as a philosopher.

Have you decided to accept an offer? If so, post the decision here.

Interview with Baylor

Echoing much here: definitely have had a hard time mustering up the emotional and psychological oomph to continue reading and writing philosophy, or do much else in life for that matter. Been rejected from all seven PhD programs I've applied to, cue all those thoughts: "Am I piece of shit?", "Terrible at philosophy," "Why do I try so hard?", "I just have to accept the level I'm at," "I should just buy a trailer and sell San Pedro cactuses instead."
But these all pass, and non of them are worth any real consideration. You're a bitchen good dude (gender neutral) whose found a great passion, and that's all that matters. If you feel like professional help would ease some stress, or if you feel like you just need to talk, go and find it. All it can do is help, and more power to you. 
And remember, don't buy a trailer and sell San Pedro cactuses. (Because I'd prefer to not have competition) 
  

Thank you. Maryland is up there for me too. Hope more ppl are able to do the same! 

@EsseEstPoop I was in the top 5, with a "high likelihood" of getting an offer.

Declined UC Davis, and withdrew from Maryland's waitlist. Hope this helps someone!

(First post.)