SirGhostus

Thank you!!!

ACCEPTED OFF THE WAITLIST ON RUTGERS GOD BLESS NEW JERSEY

Thank you! I'm sure you'll thrive at your offer and wish you the best of luck. I'm not feeling too confident about Rutgers at this point, so I'm grateful to have another off as well. I thought my shutout seasons were painful, but somehow the process has been even more taxing this year. Relieved it's almost over.

I apologize if I'm parsing your question wrong and giving irrelevant info in my answer. I had two graduate students reach out to me yesterday offering to answer any questions I had about the program. I've been kinda hesitant scheduling calls with people from Rutgers just because I'd rather no increase my heartbreak if it doesn't work out. So I replied to their emails with just some vague, general questions and received very open, helpful replies.

I am receiving emails from faculty and graduate students at my waitlist school offering to talk with me about the program etc., but the lack of an actual acceptance makes this feel like medieval torture. I cannot wait to never have to repeat this process again. For now, I will keep posting through the pain.

I just got off the phone with the Graduate Admissions Director, and the situation there is this. There are four accepted students who still have not given an answer on whether or not they're going to accept the offer. She expects to hear from one of them today and thinks it's likely they will accept. Two of the other accepted students she expects to hear from tomorrow and is honestly unsure of whether they'll accept or decline. The final student has said that they will not be providing an answer until Friday, and she feels that this student will decline. If one of these students declines, I will be accepted. Beyond that, I'm not sure what will happen. The situation seems a bit hectic there since they've never had this many students wait this late to give an answer. How to interpret that, I'm not sure, but I'm crossing my fingers for all of us here!

I'm fortunate that the school I've received an offer from is one I'm currently an MA student at, and I know for a fact that there's no one on the waitlist at that point. Fortunate in the sense that the only emotion I have to deal with right now is anxiety, not anxiety about a waitlist and guilt that I'm going to wait until 11:59:59PM on Friday night to accept my offer if need be. That said, as long as you've communicated like tacitus178 suggests, I don't think there's any reason to feel about waiting as late as you need to. Unless, of course, the school whose offer you're sitting on is the one I'm on the waitlist for. In which case, decline immediately ? (That's a joke, I promise.)

Waitlist school continues to await replies from decision dawdlers. My cardiac system remains threatened. Every buzz of my phone provokes panic. I am writing my member of congress to see if we can outlaw everyone not associated with this school from emailing me until next week.

I received an (unprompted) courtesy email from the graduate admissions director of the school I'm currently waitlisted at letting me know that while the process has been slow this year, they're going to "again" nudge decision dawdlers. More importantly, she said that "it’s still quite possible" they'll be able to make me an offer and will email me Monday with any news. Now, I am not a religious or spiritual man. But if there are any astrologers, divinators, or people who think they talk to God on the phone, would you be able to get in contact with your higher power and ask them how good of a sign this is? Oh and doctors. If there are any doctors here, what's a good method for avoiding having a heart attack over the weekend?

Anyone hear anything from Rutgers yet? ?

Thank you, that's very kind of you. Congrats again--I hope you're enjoying your victory lap!

Congrats on those offers! Sorry to pry, but am I correct that you were accepted to Rutgers as well? If so, did you turn down their offer? Again, I apologize for being nosy; I'm on the waitlist there, and we seem to have fairly similar research interests!

I'm on the waitlist too. No idea what's up with the dearth of acceptances on the results board this year!

Apology accepted, the best of luck to you and yours as well.

The issue is that what you're saying is absolutely obvious to everyone here, yet you insist on using this insufferably condescending middle-class savior tone. No one thinks they're "any different from the folks five years ago." They know they're in the same situation, accepting the same risks, resigned to the likelihood that a PhD will not be profitable because they've heard the warnings already. And they'll still do it despite the risk because, like young people for centuries, they have an ideal and inner drive they want to play out in all of its drama instead of taking the practically-optimized route. (And yes, before you say it, they know--I know--that it will probably end in disappointment and burden them with some regrets, but that's life.) The reason I and others roll our eyes--not scoff, which is a self-congratulatory way to imagine the negative reactions to your post--is because you have not figured out something unique, you have reenacted the most predictable plot in the world. Most people who have advice stemming from an extremely common experience simply give that advice in brief and move on instead of, yes, proselytizing and being dramatic when they are not immediately met with applause and effusive thanks for their effort. So, here is my own patronizing advice to you: try being more like those people who say their piece and then move on instead of the whole performance you're doing here.