BrownSugar

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

I and some friends got admitted to some schools after an MPP or an MPA last year, I definitely don't think a policy-oriented master's degree plays against you!

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

Congrats! I’ve been obsessively checking my email and the Madison application portal since I saw that people are getting interviews! 
Did you get an email about it today?
Also, if you can, please let us know how it goes, and what kinds of question they ask you! I’m sure a lot other people (including me) would find such information super helpful! 
Good luck!!

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

I just got my first decision - a rejection. Not feeling as badly as I thought, but a bit of a sour note to start off ? 
 
Edit - it’s a uni in the UK (only one I applied to there)

In my case I didn’t reach out at all, and all the current PhD students (a lot at top 10) I know never reached out either. 
 
I think reaching out is only a good idea if you have something useful or productive to share/discuss. Don’t overthink it too much! 

That's what I'm focusing on. I applied to 8 and I think 6 of them are reach schools, one safety, and one realistic. I just need one school to give me an offer + funding. I'm worried about some schools I applied to having double the number of applicants but I have made peace with my choice of schools and number of applications.

I'm on winter break until mid-February, so I keep having a heart attack every time I hear the notification sound for my email. It's supposed to be my time to relax but PhD admissions are consuming it. ?

According to what has been posted in GradCafe, they don't seem to interview applicants (https://martindevaux.com/2020/11/political-science-phd-admission-decisions/). My impression is that interviews are not common in poli sci admissions, but I may be wrong. Any thoughts on this? 

In my case I didn’t reach out at all, and all the current PhD students (a lot at top 10) I know never reached out either. 
 
I think reaching out is only a good idea if you have something useful or productive to share/discuss. Don’t overthink it too much! 

In my case I didn’t reach out at all, and all the current PhD students (a lot at top 10) I know never reached out either. 
 
I think reaching out is only a good idea if you have something useful or productive to share/discuss. Don’t overthink it too much! 

Thanks for sharing! I hope it is the case. Even though I know I won’t receive anything yet, I can’t help but constantly refresh my email as well. Best of luck! 

I am starting this thread out of fear and anxiety and impatience! But I’m sure many of you might be in the same boat as me- revisiting grad school application portals, and constantly checking results on grad cafe to see if schools have started rolling out decisions.
I know that gradcafe has a space wherein you can submit your results and write a little bit about it, but I feel like there is never enough information about it. I often wonder about the profile of the person who got rejected/accepted and I always want to know more.
So maybe we could use this thread to discuss all things related to decisions, and engage in open dialogue! 

I did not submit any scores either for this cycle. I noticed that about half of the schools I applied to were GRE-optional but also wouldn't even consider GRE scores as part of an application even when submitted.

I’ve applied to 11, 8 in the US and 3 in UK/EU. I think it is definitely a good number and array of schools, but most of them can’t be considered “safeties” which worries me a little. 
 
Edit: most were suggested by my professors so fit is good and if they feel like I have a chance, I suppose I do (trying to be positive) 

You are giving them a tool that will induce stress. And yet you tell them not to stress too much.

I'd noticed a few people in other political science threads mentioned they were compulsively checking the results page -- this app at least gives people a timeline to expect to hear back. I know it helped me when I'd seen it shared previously in other threads. The app creator himself mentioned similar behavior since he didn't know when he'd hear back, which is why he created it.

Hi all,
Just wanted to plug this app by Martin Devaux (https://martindevaux.com/2020/11/political-science-phd-admission-decisions/) where you can check past admissions decisions over the years in a more organized fashion, so you can have an idea of when to expect releases for this year, COVID disruptions notwithstanding.
Good luck and don't stress too much!

That last bit is crucial. Most universities across the globe don’t have the GRE or an equivalent requirement so I assume a page will be taken from their books in terms of making judgements? 
 
I for one have applied to universities outside the US as well, and have only gone to universities outside the US thus far, despite being American. So I’m more used to systems without standardized tests. 

Here is the link - the GRE in the times of COVID discussion is around the 56:40 mark. 
 

I imagine that most candidates submitted “test at home” scores this year. Either way, I don’t believe that the GRE will be a decisive factor for any applications.