SAM311

Hi all! Hoping to get some guidance. I was accepted to a state school for my history MA. The director assured me that I was "at the top of the waitlist" for funding. April 15th has come and gone now, but I still haven't heard anything from the director. I have ever reached out once (on the 19th) and have yet to hear back. I know it's the end of the semester for them, so I don't want to be a pest. However, I really need to know whether or not I received funding because I hadn't planned on paying for the degree out of pocket (they reallllly assured me that I would likely get funding). Should I reach out again? Would there be anyone else in the department that typically would know about the waitlist?

Has anyone heard from UofM? My husband applied to the LSA Middle East Studies and hasn't heard anything. Have any of you heard of anyone else getting in/rejected? The anxiety is REAL.

Lmao. Okay. These are two completely different scenarios. I said "if anyone is thinking about passing" with a winky face, clearly not being serious. The other was a targeted approach to someone they knew got into the program. Get off your high horse.

Wow! Thank you for flagging this for me! Is it "unhealthy stalking" if we all want to be researchers? hahah!

Ooo! Good to know. Hopefully this week! The waiting game is becoming tiresome for us all, I believe!

Hi everyone! I am a history applicant, but my spouse is applying for PhD in religion at several places. Has anyone heard back from Harvard's religion department? It seems a little late for an ivy school!

Just heard from my last school (Duke) and got rejections all around for the PhD programs I applied to. Luckily, I applied to one MA program. I am accepted, but waitlisted for funding (anyone thinking of passing on NCSU, plz do ). Thank you for all of the advice, suggestions, and support from this forum. Hopefully I will be back in the next few years to report some acceptances! If rejections did anything, they showed me that a PhD is a serious goal of mine. So, see you later GradCafe.

Ah, this is great. I mean...not great because it looks like I am adding another rejection to the list but great to have the slightest feeling of closure. Alas, it's not over til it's over? ha. Thank you!

Jumping on the Duke bandwagon of questions to ask/plead/whine: has anyone heard anything from Duke? From conversations with my POI, decisions should have been made in December. They mentioned they typically waste no time and let people know early. Based on results from last year, it looks like that's typically the case.

I am in the same boat. No update from my end, but anxiously awaiting news. I saw something on the results page, but I have no clue beyond that. I am thinking about reaching out to my POI but don't want to be an annoyance.

That's fine. However, this was LITERALLY something that came directly from a professor at Duke. They mentioned that they are tired of seeing people who want to seek careers in the field directly because the careers are dwindling. Show them your passion and WHY you want to do this even if there isn't a job at the end of it - obviously not explicitly by saying "I don't expect a career."

I don't have a ton of advice to offer as this is my first application cycle as well, but I will say this: - If you get into a smaller school with good funding, that's wonderful. I haven't heard the "no point unless you get into a bigger school" but my philosophy in pursuing this PhD is to do so without the expectation of a career at the end of it. Yes, that's all of our goals. BUT I believe that you should do this because you're passionate about the subject and it brings you joy. For me, getting paid (even a small amount) to do something that's life-giving for 5 years is worth it...even if it's at a small school. That being said, the faculty and board that you'd be working with is far more important than school name (at least that's what I have been told at every stage of this process). - I am right there with you on the middle/high school teaching front. I used to teach middle school without licensure and it truly allowed me to bring my passion for history into my daily life which is so much more than many can say. I think this is a solid plan. I got into an MA program as well and am waitlisted for funding. If that funding comes through I think I will tack education onto my plan and get my licensure to teach bio/history (weird combo, double major in undergrad) it the high school level. - Jumping back up to the top of your post. We can all work on our SOP, for sure. However, you seem like an excellent candidate already. Don't beat yourself up about not being a great "fit" this year or even whether or not you displayed it in this year's SOP. I feel like this year is truly a combination of luck, chance, and random choice between top candidates (which I am sure you were in for a ton of schools). Hopefully next year will be better, but at the end of the day - your worth isn't defined by any of this. Nonetheless, it's WILDLY frustrating. I agree about trying once more and then maybe throwing in the towel. This is a tough GAME and I have been shown more than ever that this is truly a game of chance (my husband is top of his dept. at Duke and didn't get in #tears) Best of luck to you. It's not over til it's over, as they say!

Duke is my top pick and this waitlist on the results page is giving SO MUCH anxiety!

I have also been lurking, but figured it was time to make an account. I am a little surprised about not having heard from Duke, but I am thankful for your note on the dept. When I talked with my POI several months ago, they made it seem like we would have heard by now at least! I am so anxious, ha. I have heard back from one school and it was a rejection so I am hoping for good news this month.