dr_megaevil

So I got two rejections now and I have one more to hear back from. I have zero hopes of getting into the last one either... I am trying to stay optimistic about re-applying but I have to say I am very heartbroken and burnt out from investing so much time and energy with this whole application process and surviving mental torture!!! I dunno if it's my age (I just turned 36)... that I just don't have energy or tenacity anymore...? Or that my daughter just sucks all the energy outta me...lol Thinking about re-applying sounds daunting and hopeless.... Do I just give up my dream?? Sigh... It's just so effing hard!! I'm staying in my work office a little longer today to go through this thread. I don't get to have my alone moment when I am at home (where I have to put on a happy face for my daughter and it's so hard to do when I just want to curl up into a ball and sob!!) I did cry a couple of times and my daughter was all concerned for me. I felt so bad... a major failure. I want to get in touch with the school I got rejected from and ask about my application but I dunno.... is it worth it? I do want to know why I didn't make it in and find out how to improve myself BUT with so many applicants, will they even remember who I am??

First of all, congratulations on EVERYTHING!!! Omg!!! When it rains, IT RAINS doesn't it?? All your concerns are real and I was in a similar situation (with unexpected pregnancy and schooling) with my daughter and I survived! I agree with @MCH_Hopeful_2021 ! I am pretty sure that school will be able to help you navigate through your program. Because you've had complications with your previous pregnancy, try to not to stress yourself! Forget about the school for now and nurture your body and your little bean ? It's time to celebrate because you deserve it! Congrats again!! ❤️

Oh I'm glad you were able to do the waitlist! It's def worth it to sign up even for waitlist if you can! Daycare stuff is SUPER BAD in British Columbia... I signed up for multiple daycare spots for my daughter when I was SIX MONTHS PREGNANT. I got call back from those daycares FOUR YEARS LATER!!! Like wtf!! My daughter is no longer a baby, she's almost ready for kindergarten for god's sakes... ?

Thank you so much for your kind words!! You’re making me tear up ?

That is wonderful!!! Congratulations on the acceptance!!! ??? You are definitely not alone and I would love to keep in touch with all these strong and incredible mamas and papas!!

Sorry I haven’t been able to check this thread.... Been super depressed and my mental health is not doing so well right now... Received a rejection last Friday and today I got email saying “check your portal” and I’m too scared to check!!! F@ck why is this so hard!! But then I came here and saw your post, I had to laugh ? I’m sorry you tasted formula (and glad it wasn’t breast milk ?) but you gave me good chuckles!! Thank you for uplifting my mood. ??? Update: My laptop is still being fixed ? I miss my laptop..... ?

I’m too scared to check my portal....

Got my rejection today from UofT... ? Even though I tried to mentally prepare myself for this, still stings. It was one of my top choices and had a good conversation going with a POI throughout 2020 so I thought I had some chances... I have absolutely no confidence for this cycle... ?

As if it wasn't stressful enough to wait to hear back from the programs I have applied.... My daughter decided to play pretend cooking on my laptop WITH WATER!!!! ? It is now water damaged and I have to bring it in for a repair... ARGHHHHHH!!! All my school files, her pictures, tax info, MY LIFE is on there... ? Anyhow, how's everyone's week going?

We may actually have to go this route too... I’ll be turning 36 in a couple of weeks and also just found out that we may need to go through preimplantation genetic screening... ? Come join our “parenting” thread!

I’m so happy that others have joined and started to discuss on multiple issues that I personally had thought and worried about! It’s so difficult to plan and anticipate for anything when we don’t know what’s to come... especially when most of us are still waiting to hear back from the schools ? I did distance studies for my master’s program because I knew I wanted to keep working while I studied. So for doctorate programs I aimed to do the same - especially with a kid, I knew for sure I had to find a distance program somehow... BUT I was genuinely surprised how hard it was to find a suitable distance doctorate programs there are out there! You’d think that more and more schools are investing on distance studies already but surprisingly not. Obviously for some programs, it’s impossible to do distance but I feel there are so many other programs or courses where this should be possible!? This is sort of my third time applying anything for doctorate programs (last year I applied for scholarships only) so I really hope I get an acceptance somewhere this year. I only applied to three programs because it was difficult to find distance studies that were also related to my interest. I was looking at PhD programs and didn’t know about DrPH programs until I found the JHU one accidentally! I was happy that it was a mostly a distance program! It’s a hard reach program for me but I applied anyway ?‍♀️ Wouldn’t hurt to dream right? For those of you wondering about daycares while in school, I think universities usually have daycares within campuses. I’m not sure how easy it is for you to get your kids enrolled but I think it’s worth asking! Also, I think we should be able to talk about our family responsibilities during the interview but I can also understand if it feels like it could jeopardize your chance of getting accepted (similar to situations for job interviews where the employers may not prefer new hires who may leave on a mat leave right away, etc...). Last year I did a few zoom calls with a POI, I can’t remember if I mentioned that I had a young kid ? But honestly, if a doctorate program cannot accept students with kids, I’m not sure if I would really like that program/school. Students applying for doctorate programs are usually mature students soooo if they can’t anticipate their students of having multiple responsibilities, it’s like errr ? Human rights ftw! ?

Anyone else also having difficulties with your little ones during this pandemic?? My daughter has caught cold now so that means she has to stay home till she's symptoms free before she's allowed back in the daycare Argh!!! I try so hard to make sure she doesn't get sick but it's impossible ?

Okay I started the parenting thread!

Hi everyone! So I was in the PhD/DrPH 2021 Application thread and we started talking about pursuing doctorate studies while balancing family responsibilities, raising kids, and/or planning to start a family. It was very comforting to realize that so many of us on this forum were on the same boat as me, and to know that I was not crazy thinking perhaps I can work, raise a kid (and plan for more) and do doctorate all at the same time! ? Since it helped me feel a lot more positive and confident about my decision to keep chasing my dream, I thought I should start a thread in hopes that others may also feel empowered and encouraged to continue pursuing their academic endeavour whilst having a loving family at the same time. ☺️ I want this thread to be a friendly and supportive environment where we can help each other! ? To start, here is my experience so far with being a parent and schooling. My daughter was not planned and I had her two weeks before my final year of master's program started. I studied and worked on my assignments whenever she was sleeping. My days and nights were flipped, and my sleeps were no more than 3 hours at a time. I honestly don't know how I survived that year lol! It was super difficult but what helped me get through it was my daughter ☺️ I am so in love with her! I am so happy to be her mom. ? My daughter is 3.5 years old now and I am back at work part time. She loves her daycare so I am really grateful for that. I am so proud of my accomplishments so far but I really hope I can continue studying this coming academic year as a doctorate student!! Now if I can get the schools to give me ANYTHING at this point.... that would be great!! I am not good with the waiting games and schools being radio silent is not helping whatsoever!!

YES!!! And we rant on there and give each other virtual hugs!!