A Small Raven

MEEEEE. I've seen three waitlist notifications from UNC on the results page but absolutely no rejections or acceptances from them yet and I'm just like WHAT IS GOING ON

I really appreciate the kind words, thank you! I definitely wasn't anticipating such a crazy competitive cycle, and being that it's my first cycle, I wasn't prepared for it to be quite like this. But you're right - maybe it is for the best right now. I have an alternate plan in place if I don't get in anywhere this year, something to hold me over and even enjoy until the next admissions cycle, so I'm thankful for that. At this point I've come to terms with my slim chances of acceptance this year. My biggest fear is that it will be just as competitive, if not more so, next year. That, and schools potentially reinstating the GRE for the next admissions cycle. ?

Oh my goodness thank you so much for such a thorough response! I really appreciate it. This is my first PhD admissions cycle, and I don't think I was completely prepared for quite how competitive it would be honestly. I got my MA in England and the application process was very different than I think it is here. Definitely learning a lot this round for my PhD apps.

I did not look at Buffalo's program, but I definitely will now! I'd love to know more, are there any specific professors there who specialize in my area of interest that you could recommend looking into?

@Bopie5 I noticed that you applied to a range of different kinds of programs at different schools - I was just wondering what you experience, underlying motivation, and application strategies etc. was for applying to such different programs? How different was your application across the different programs, did you have different letters of recommendations when applying to an english program vs. american studies or communications, etc. ? What made you decide to apply to such a wide range of programs? Do you have one central research interest that is able to stretch into each of these programs/departments, or do you have multiple possible research proposals, that differ based on the program? I ask because, if I'm shut out this year (which I have a strong feeling is likely, at this point) I'm considering applying to more than just straight english programs next year, as I have a pretty unusual area of interest, and it could possibly stretch into a variety of different departments/programs. Just wondering the best way to go about this if it is what I end up doing next cycle. Also, congratulations on all your acceptances! That is so exciting for you!! ?

You had to appeal to apply? That doesn't make sense to me - you clearly like UConn, and the school obviously knows that too. And you obviously have the credentials to be admitted there. Why WOULDN'T they want you to apply??

ooooh okay! Thank you!! ?

Guys this might be a super dumb question, but what does it mean when there's a red diamond next to the admissions decision that someone posted on the results page??

HOLY SHIT CONGRATULATIONS!!! So happy for you!! ?

No acceptances for me yet - two rejections and one waitlist, though I don't hold much hope for the latter. This is my first cycle as well, but I've been out of academia for about three years since graduating from my MA, and forgot how severely anxiety-inducing the admissions process is. I'm waiting on three more programs (which happen to be my top three #stress). I wish I had applied to more programs, and if I get a full shutout this year, I'll probably apply to almost twice as many next year. I hope you get good news soon!

Honestly I don't really have a 'period' as such - the research I want to do kind of sits at the intersection between dream studies, cognitive neuroscience and literature/creative writing practices. A very unusual area, I know ? UNC is one of my top choices, they seem to have a lot of professors that kind of live in that realm of research between psychoanalysis, neuroscience, and literature. However, I also have a sinking feeling that my very odd niche might be the downfall of my applications this season. ?

I think UNC generally sends out decisions around the end of February, so unfortunately we might be waiting another couple weeks... if you don’t mind me asking, what’s your area of research interest? ☺️

I know a lot of my fellow applicants in here applied to Duke, but did anyone else apply to UNC Chapel Hill? I feel like I’m the only one in here! also, happy Monday my friends - hoping we all get good news this week!

Yup, I still haven't heard anything either. There's four acceptances up on the results page now. It's fine. I'm fine. EVERYTHING IS FINE. Congrats to those who got in! I agree, put us out of our misery and give us a swift death.

So, a number of students received decisions from University of Tennessee several days ago. But my application has just been sitting unchanged in the portal. I emailed my application coordinator today to ask about the status, and they said that my application's first review ( I assume by the graduate admissions office) was completed today and forwarded on to my program for their review and decision determination. I'm kind of concerned - if the program is already sending out waitlist and rejection notifications, doesn't that mean they've already made their acceptance decisions as well? I haven't seen or heard about any acceptances yet, but I assume that offers have been sent out, seeing as they're sending out waitlist notifications. Is this normal? Am I crazy, or did I just miss a chance at admission because my application was forwarded to the program later than other ones, when I submitted it all the way back in November... Soooooo stressed out.

This is just a post where I'm going to rave about UNH. I did my undergrad there and absolutely loved it. The faculty really does care about their students, and I give total credit to one of the poetry teachers there, who inspired me to fall in love with poetry (before taking her class, I couldn't STAND poetry), and is basically the whole reason I want to be a professor. I actually had her write a rec letter for my PhD applications this year. While I did my graduate studies elsewhere, I do know the UNH english department pretty well, so feel free to message me if you have any questions!

I haven't received an email yet and nothing on my portal has changed, so I assume I'm waitlisted or rejected and just haven't been notified yet. That being said, I haven't seen anyone report an acceptance yet, so I'm curious about that.

Is anyone else waiting on UT Knoxville? Looks like they sent out some rejections and waitlist notifications today, but I haven't seen anyone mention an acceptance on the results page or forums. I haven't gotten an email yet and my portal is still unchanged, so I assume I'm rejected or waitlisted.

Gotcha - I suppose it won't be that helpful for me because I'm applying to PhD programs, but thank you!

Okay I think I'm the only one on here who doesn't know about Draft haha. Someone please tell me what it is!

Based on the results page, it looks like UC Berkeley has started making decisions about the Comparative Literature PhD program, I wonder if they'll be releasing decisions on the regular English PhD program as well soon...

Hey there I noticed your profile says creative writing - I'm just curious what other programs you applied to? Creative Writing PhD programs are so few and far between it seems like, and I had trouble finding them in locations where I was actually willing to move. I applied to University of Denver and UT Knoxville's creative PhD programs, and the rest I applied to were for english/lit.

Hi! I'm new here too, as of a few days ago. I totally understand your anxiety - mine has skyrocketed so much over the last few days, I've been struggling with finding ways to cope. Personally, academic admissions has always been a weird struggle for me - despite being an excellent student and having good extracurriculars, varied interests and lots of passion and commitment, I have NEVER gotten into even the top three schools of my choice - not for undergrad, not for grad school, not even for high school! This forum has definitely helped me though, in finding a community of people who are going through the exact same stress and anxiety that I am! We just have to keep reminding ourselves that we're all in this together - even though admissions is technically "competitive," it shouldn't pit us against each other. Hope you hear good news soon!

How common is it for English PhD programs to conduct interviews? Does it generally vary depending on school to school? Does applying with an MA make a difference as to whether they conduct an interview, as opposed to applying directly out of undergrad? Naturally just freaking out with anxiety waiting to hear back (AKA checking my email every ten minutes) and wondering what's next. Applied to Boston College, UNC Chapel Hill, UC Berkeley, UC Santa Barbara, University of Denver and UT Knoxville.

Hey there! I also have an MA in creative writing with a focus in poetry! You said you're an international applicant - where did you get your MA? I'm applying to PhD programs this cycle as well, although a very different list from yours: University of Denver, Boston College, UT Knoxville, UNC Chapel Hill, UC Santa Barbara, and UC Berkeley. I'm VERY new to this site, but I have noticed that a lot of people in this particular forum seem to be applying for MA or MFAs. Would love to hear from the other Literature / Writing PhD applicants of this year! I'm currently in the fun phase of obsessively checking my email every ten minutes, even though we likely won't hear back for another month. Hope you get good news!