trolloped

I'm beginning to think this is my problem as well. I applied to 16 schools that felt like were a perfect fit, but it's looking like I am headed for a shutout...more than half the schools I applied to have notified acceptances, interviews or wait listings, and I've either gotten a rejection letter or heard nothing. I kept my interests specific, but I did not propose any "projects." I was advised by former professors and other grad students that since I just have a BA, a committee wouldn't be looking for anything specific beyond a definitive period and maybe some potential methods.

@WildeThing @Rrandle101 @asdf1123 Thank you, for the boost of support. That means a lot. I am still trying to hold out hope on the last six, but it's just existentially draining at times...but if age isn't a factor, I'm all in for next cycle! This is my dream. Two things I did not do: contact potential advisers or "propose a project" exactly. While I did name faculty in my SoPs whose interests and previous seminars matched my own, I wasn't exactly sure how to approach them personally via email (I was even advised not to do this by a couple of my undergrad advisers, so that added to it as well). As far as proposing a "project," I really just went into strict detail about my interests and how they relate to the research that I've previously done as an undergrad. Again, this was because my undergrad advisers suggested that committees would not expect me to have all of my research interests completely figured out after only 2 years of rigorous literary studies as an undergrad. Should I have leaned more into proposing a dissertation topic?

hi, all! I'm a long time lurker, first time poster, and this is my first time applying to PhD programs...and it is not going so well. I am starting to lose hope and I am struggling to come terms with the fact that it looks as though I am going to be shut out of all 16 schools that I applied to. I have received 4 rejection letters and I have another 6 implied rejections based upon what I have seen on the results board. I spent a year working on these applications, doing everything (that I thought) I could to make sure I chose the best schools with the best fit based upon my scholarly interests. I mostly applied to schools in the top 50 (based on US News) all over the country. A little bit about me. I received my BA last spring. I have a 4.0 GPA, a litany of academic honors, I am proficient in French, I have great letters of recommendation, and I have excellent GRE scores. My thesis chair as well as many professors pushed me into applying to top schools: I had roughly ten professors (as well as many others) look at my SoP and my writing sample (my revised thesis) and after revisions, we were all very comfortable with how I was going to be presenting myself. But obviously, something is not clicking and I'm at a total loss. Except... ...here's the kicker, and here's what I can't get out of my head: I am 39. I turn 40 in June. Am I just too freakin' old to be applying to funded PhD programs?