MBEd
-
Posts
12 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by MBEd
-
-
Just now, Jleighski123 said:
Question about your rejection letter. Did they encourage you to apply again and stay connected? I'm wondering if the rejection letter is a standard template sent to everyone or if they took a bit of time to differentiate the rejections (even if they cut and paste different statements)? In the end, I know it does not matter much, everyone is talented who applied, but it might cheer me up a bit if they truly want me to apply again ?
Sorry to burst your bubble but this is a standard rejection template - but that doesn't mean you weren't really close to being admitted. I agree with @Physed14 - I think we would see more of us admitted in a regular application cycle. It will be really interesting to see the stats on this round. Well done to the few who got in, that's so awesome and I'm so excited for you! And for those of us who were rejected, I reckon this was a truly unusual round for everyone involved and it's cool we all had a go. I'm excited to see you in a future round of applications, or even - ? - on campus...
-
Yep, no for me too. Good luck in the 2021 round ?
-
On 7/30/2020 at 10:00 PM, Oden said:
Harvard College undergraduate admissions are very thorough, even though they get about 40,000 applications and only admit approx. 2000. For the the applicants that make it to the final phases of that review process, regional advocates argue why their selectees should be admitted. These reviewers check and analyze everything - often, with images of the undecided applicant’s narratives on a large screen for all to challenge. Sometimes, these harvard admission advocates will call the applicant during these final admission’s reviews to gain more insights, so they in turn can make a better case to the committee - a second contact in addition to the interview. This was the case with my admitted kids.
Obviously, Harvard College is undergrad and this is hgse grad school,
But, I bring this all up because I know hgse is normally thorough too. So, I was surprised at their decisions to not interview, not require the GRE, not go to links, and their comments in the webinar that admissions during this cycle are limited because it’s intended to fill an attendance gap due to COVID and aversion to online college.
My fear was that this all meant they are only going to give serious consideration to the most elite in the applicant pool - those that can be admitted absent the normal requirements: the one’s that are a no-brainer decisions, for whatever reason. And since space is limited, many of these elite may not be admitted.
I still applied, because I’m hoping I’m wrong. . . ?
Oden
That's so awesome to hear. I think you can be thorough with a 'less is more' attitude, too. Sometimes, being able to represent yourself succinctly/in fewer words/examples/less evidence is a skill in and of itself that might be considered important in this context. After all, from the postgraduate research I've done already, being able to convey complex ideas in a simple and persuasive way is key. What better test than to convey a something as complex as our entire lives and being in 20 or so pages?
Congratulations on your kids being admitted, that's incredible!
Either way, with all this conjecture, all it comes down to is the chips falling where they may for any of us. I think we are all worthy of this opportunity and there are so many factors playing into it that are outside the realm of whether we are 'good enough'. Hope you're all resting easy and prepared for whatever is ahead. -
Just now, JConan said:
OK - that is fair. And some of you clearly know more about this process than I do. Let me just borrow your insight a little more. Is it common for a faculty member who is an important part of the program I applied to, to in anyway influence this process? In other words, if you have had a positive interaction with them and they think you would be an excellent candidate, would it be common for them to have left a note for this admissions committee to keep an eye out for this application or something like that? Or would that be inappropriate?
I am assuming here, of course, that the admissions committee is different from faculty. This may be a sign of how little I know about the admissions process, but I thought the people who would review my application were the actual faculty?
A mentor of mine received an extremely lucrative fellowship for his PhD at another Ivy, and he indicated that a lot of the process can be influenced by faculty. Which makes a lot of sense - in postgrad, they're looking for a more complex mix of your ability, and your fit for the program. Fit for the program includes collaborative relationships with faculty and research interests. It's good pedagogy - andragogy - to factor relationships and mutual interests into a decision like this, as that will produce successful research and reputation for the institution at hand.
Of course, there are ethical questions there, as well. "A positive interaction" can mean any number of things I'm sure, and not all of them would be appropriate for consideration. The admissions committee are separate from faculty (as far as I know), but I imagine they will consult closely with each other, particularly given the cohort-style admissions process where applicants are not just evaluated based on their fit for the institution, but with each other, as well.
In short... it might, it might not. -
Just now, JConan said:
I admit that part of the reason I've been tracking my personal website stats is cos of anxiety/curiosity about finding out if they visited it. But at the same time, I am also disappointed/concerned that they didn't. This is because I am a visual arts person - having done a lot of work in film, media, illustration, virtual reality etc. This was a good component of my application proposal - so even from a holistic review perspective, I feel like they wouldn't get a true sense of me without reviewing such important elements of my submission, which are only found on my website/links that they clearly have not visited.
Is there anyone else on this forum who had links/websites as part of their CV or application, and who has seen/not seen views on it that could be attributed to Harvard? How do you feel about it?
I included links in my resume, but have no expectation for them to be visited at all. Having compassion for the admissions officers, it's a tough job and they do have to make a call on precisely what they see in front of them. I don't think they would have time, per applicant, to go looking elsewhere. Your work will be evident in your resume, accolades, subsequent opportunities, letters of recommendation, and statement of purpose. I imagine that proof document will be the only thing they read, particularly in such a short admissions cycle (just 3 weeks!).
Even just doing some basic pseudo-math, my application is 20 pages. Let's say a modest number apply in this round - 1000 applicants, maybe? That's 20,000 pages... not including LORs. They've had ~15 working days (not including weekends) to review. That's ~1,300 pages per day. Sure, most of those pages are light reading. Perhaps we can halve to 750 pages per day, not including your general admin pages.
I imagine each application will be read by more than one person, and then discussed. That's 70 applicants to discuss, per day (based on that estimate, and that's really just guessing based on prior numbers, but it could go either way - not accounting for GRE blowout). Just putting my teacher hat on, I know for my 150 students I have to have a rhythm and extraneous materials break that pretty quickly.
I wouldn't be disappointed. It's not personal, it's just the process. I'm sure your application - and your referees! - will represent the work you've done and the person you are, even if it's not the full technicolour experience. ? -
6 minutes ago, Oden said:
Has anyone had any hgse-likely visitors to their Linkedin page?
No, I haven't - have you?
-
3 hours ago, art229 said:
I very eagerly already started planning sample schedules haha...hopefully it won't go to waste!
Same. May or may not have put a spreadsheet together to calculate credits and combos. All of the courses look so interesting! It was hard to whittle it down to 32 credits. ?
-
"Frequently? What do you mean by 'frequently'?"
-
11 minutes ago, Jimmy54 said:
We will all find out this Friday! That's 3 more days to go. Thank you all for sharing and glad I was able to find your forum. Excited, nervous and somewhat scared. But we should all be proud that we've submitted the application despite the late notice. I've just found out I've been tracking and learning about HGSE since 2011! Shows this was a once in a lifetime chance. But I think they will continue to offer online degrees even after this year as a hybrid program to accommodate the working educators. Hope we can all share the good/bad news this Friday.
Love the positivity Jimmy54, I'd like to second your sentiments. I haven't been working towards this dream for as long - 5 years on my part, 2 years full time towards this particular part of The Dream - but everyone who submitted an application this round, as with all rounds, should be proud. We had a really quick turnaround and I'd say we did our best to seize an opportunity as it presented itself in this wacky, chaotic year. The days are definitely dragging by as we draw closer to Friday. I'm looking forward to celebrating (and commiserating) with all of you.
-
-
Hi everyone, so great to find other people in admissions purgatory (and sorry to jump on the thread from the Spring admissions crew).
I applied in the July round for the Mind, Brain, and Education program. I've got an undergrad GPA of 3.8 and postgrad 4.0. I'm a Teach for All fellow and Google Innovator. I have absolutely no idea what my chances are. Countdown on my phone says 5 days to go... sending good luck and calming thoughts to all of you!
HGSE 2024
in Education Forums
Posted
Hey everyone, I got into the EdM program at HGSE and I'm waiting as patiently as I can (!) to find out if I've got any financial aid. Does anyone know when Financial Aid sent their decision notices last year? Is it all in one go or a rolling award system based on need? Thanks in advance, congratulations to everyone who got in, and for everyone who didn't, I am sure your time will come 💛 I was rejected back in 2020 so delighted to have the opportunity to live my dream this year.