fall-11

Here are a few I know of that have funded MA programs:
Purdue
Delaware
Villanova
U of Connecticut
U of Maryland
U of Maine
U of Vermont
Illinois at Urbana Champaign
U of Washington
When I was applying to MA programs a few years back, I know these are some places that offered funding at the MA level, but things can change from one year to another, so definitely double-check. Good luck!

That's totally awesome

I remember you posting a while back that you were hoping not to get screwed over by undergrad transcripts issues that you had no control over. It's good to know that good programs judge candidates for what they're really worth, and not for things that happened 10 years ago, or that they had no control over. Congratulations again!

After going through all the blood and sweat and tears with everyone else on the board, it's so nice to be able to celebrate each other's successes. Yay! We rock!

Just to chime in with Tybalt, lyoness, and others, this is a truly wonderful community. It's just such a relief to be able to share the agony of waiting, uncertainty, etc. with a community of people who understand. And it's true that ideally we should get application advice from our profs, but profs are busy people and it's often hard to get hold of them, and I feel bad bothering them with every tiny detail. So having the GC community for advice and support has been wonderful. Another 'real life' resource is current PhD students, but since I'm sort of introverted, I haven't really gotten to know a whole lot of PhD students at my MA school. So again, the GC is great for those of us who are sort of socially phobic.

A funny thing is that when I visited a school where I was waitlisted, the first person I met was a Grad Cafe-er! She even opened the door for me when she saw me standing outside looking lost (Otherwise, I would have stood there nervously a little longer.) Eventually, I got in off the waitlist and will be going there in the fall (so will she, actually), but my first crossing of that threshold, and my first entry into the hallowed grounds of that department, was enabled by a fellow GC-er who graciously opened the door. So that's yet another reason why the Grad Cafe will remain close to my heart.

I hope we don't lose touch with each other now that the application season is over! I'd really like us to remain part of this community -- help next year's applicants, meet up at conferences, maybe open doors for each other, literally and metaphorically. I love you all!

Just to chime in with Tybalt, lyoness, and others, this is a truly wonderful community. It's just such a relief to be able to share the agony of waiting, uncertainty, etc. with a community of people who understand. And it's true that ideally we should get application advice from our profs, but profs are busy people and it's often hard to get hold of them, and I feel bad bothering them with every tiny detail. So having the GC community for advice and support has been wonderful. Another 'real life' resource is current PhD students, but since I'm sort of introverted, I haven't really gotten to know a whole lot of PhD students at my MA school. So again, the GC is great for those of us who are sort of socially phobic.

A funny thing is that when I visited a school where I was waitlisted, the first person I met was a Grad Cafe-er! She even opened the door for me when she saw me standing outside looking lost (Otherwise, I would have stood there nervously a little longer.) Eventually, I got in off the waitlist and will be going there in the fall (so will she, actually), but my first crossing of that threshold, and my first entry into the hallowed grounds of that department, was enabled by a fellow GC-er who graciously opened the door. So that's yet another reason why the Grad Cafe will remain close to my heart.

I hope we don't lose touch with each other now that the application season is over! I'd really like us to remain part of this community -- help next year's applicants, meet up at conferences, maybe open doors for each other, literally and metaphorically. I love you all!

Just to chime in with Tybalt, lyoness, and others, this is a truly wonderful community. It's just such a relief to be able to share the agony of waiting, uncertainty, etc. with a community of people who understand. And it's true that ideally we should get application advice from our profs, but profs are busy people and it's often hard to get hold of them, and I feel bad bothering them with every tiny detail. So having the GC community for advice and support has been wonderful. Another 'real life' resource is current PhD students, but since I'm sort of introverted, I haven't really gotten to know a whole lot of PhD students at my MA school. So again, the GC is great for those of us who are sort of socially phobic.

A funny thing is that when I visited a school where I was waitlisted, the first person I met was a Grad Cafe-er! She even opened the door for me when she saw me standing outside looking lost (Otherwise, I would have stood there nervously a little longer.) Eventually, I got in off the waitlist and will be going there in the fall (so will she, actually), but my first crossing of that threshold, and my first entry into the hallowed grounds of that department, was enabled by a fellow GC-er who graciously opened the door. So that's yet another reason why the Grad Cafe will remain close to my heart.

I hope we don't lose touch with each other now that the application season is over! I'd really like us to remain part of this community -- help next year's applicants, meet up at conferences, maybe open doors for each other, literally and metaphorically. I love you all!

Just to chime in with Tybalt, lyoness, and others, this is a truly wonderful community. It's just such a relief to be able to share the agony of waiting, uncertainty, etc. with a community of people who understand. And it's true that ideally we should get application advice from our profs, but profs are busy people and it's often hard to get hold of them, and I feel bad bothering them with every tiny detail. So having the GC community for advice and support has been wonderful. Another 'real life' resource is current PhD students, but since I'm sort of introverted, I haven't really gotten to know a whole lot of PhD students at my MA school. So again, the GC is great for those of us who are sort of socially phobic.

A funny thing is that when I visited a school where I was waitlisted, the first person I met was a Grad Cafe-er! She even opened the door for me when she saw me standing outside looking lost (Otherwise, I would have stood there nervously a little longer.) Eventually, I got in off the waitlist and will be going there in the fall (so will she, actually), but my first crossing of that threshold, and my first entry into the hallowed grounds of that department, was enabled by a fellow GC-er who graciously opened the door. So that's yet another reason why the Grad Cafe will remain close to my heart.

I hope we don't lose touch with each other now that the application season is over! I'd really like us to remain part of this community -- help next year's applicants, meet up at conferences, maybe open doors for each other, literally and metaphorically. I love you all!

Congratulations, Tybalt!! Woohoo!!

Folkloredude: I'm an old lady myself (all of 30), and I feel a special kinship with all the oldies: you, Tybalt, Medievalmaniac, etc.

I survived February only thanks to the "doom/unrest/insanity" thread

It's definitely not a good idea to go into debt, so I'd say wait and see if you end up getting a funded offer at either Buffalo or ASU. In case you don't end up getting a funded offer, I guess you'll have to decide whether or not to do an unfunded (or partially funded) MA. My own inclination would be to stay away from debt -- I'd rather wait a year and reapply to more programs and with a stronger set of materials than go into debt. Let's just hope either Buffalo or ASU ends up giving you a funded offer, and that'll solve the problem! I know it's nerve-wracking to be waitlisted, but definitely wait all the way till April 15 if necessary before making a decision. In the mean time, keep checking in with those programs and reminding them that you're very much interested in going there. Good luck!

I don't see why it has to be one or the other. If he really loves you, he should be okay with a long distance relationship for a few years, since afterwards you'll be together for the rest of your lives. I've been with my SO since 2005, and since fall 2009, we've been in grad school in different places (midwest and southeast), but we see each other whenever we have breaks or long weekends, and while that's not perfect, there's no question of breaking up just because grad school is keeping us physically distant for a few years. Grad school is only a few years, but the relationship is for life.

Editing to add: in case you're wondering, we did coordinate our grad school apps as much as possible, and applied to a lot of schools in the same cities/states, but unfortunately we ended up getting accepted in totally different places.

You might want to apply to MA programs, rather than PhD programs. That way, you can get your foot in the door, get experience with grad level English classes, and end up with a good writing sample and recommendation letters. Then you'll be in a much better position to apply to PhD programs. That's what I've done because I've been out of school for a few years, and also my undergrad was not in English. Also, if you apply after doing an MA, it will matter less that you've been out of school doing other stuff, because doing an MA will show your commitment to grad study.

I second what others have said about enrolling at a nearby university as a non-degree student (or taking online/correspondence classes). I actually took a couple of online classes (from UNC Chapel Hill and U Washington), and those profs became my recommenders when I applied to MA programs. I did the online route since I'm an international student and wasn't here in the US, but it's even better if you can enroll as a non-degree student at a local university.

I think you should wait until you hear from the others. Sometimes it's easy to get hyper-excited, and your emotions take over (like newly falling in love) and later you start realizing all the things you didn't notice because you were so starry-eyed. Just calm down and wait a few more weeks. Your dream school isn't going away anywhere, and they aren't going to rescind your acceptance just because you're taking your time saying "I do." Won't the "I do" be more meaningful when you're actually accepting them despite offers from a bunch of other places? Alternatively, maybe Harvard or some other dream school will scoop you up, and you'll be glad you hadn't committed prematurely. Good luck, and congrats!

Yeah, it's the last program I'm waiting to hear from as well, and even though I don't expect to get in, I'd like to get closure on it. I looked up their academic calendar and found that they're on spring break this week, which would explain why the DGA is away, but doesn't explain why the grad secretary was there when I called yesterday. Go figure. So basically, I think we probably won't hear anything until next Monday at the earliest, when they all come back from spring break. Hang in there!

So, I decided to be annoying and call them. I talked to the grad secretary, who seems really friendly, and she said she thinks all decisions should be made by mid to late March. Okay, so that isn't terribly specific for those of us waiting, but at least it's something. Just thought I'd pass it along.

ETA: she also mentioned that the DGA is away for a few days, which I'm guessing means we won't hear anything in the next few days.

So, I decided to be annoying and call them. I talked to the grad secretary, who seems really friendly, and she said she thinks all decisions should be made by mid to late March. Okay, so that isn't terribly specific for those of us waiting, but at least it's something. Just thought I'd pass it along.

ETA: she also mentioned that the DGA is away for a few days, which I'm guessing means we won't hear anything in the next few days.

I think you should wait until you hear from the others. Sometimes it's easy to get hyper-excited, and your emotions take over (like newly falling in love) and later you start realizing all the things you didn't notice because you were so starry-eyed. Just calm down and wait a few more weeks. Your dream school isn't going away anywhere, and they aren't going to rescind your acceptance just because you're taking your time saying "I do." Won't the "I do" be more meaningful when you're actually accepting them despite offers from a bunch of other places? Alternatively, maybe Harvard or some other dream school will scoop you up, and you'll be glad you hadn't committed prematurely. Good luck, and congrats!

Maybe ask the DGS at Indiana about how people waitlisted for first-year funding have fared in previous years? As in, did they end up getting the first year funding, or did it just not materialize at all? Like lyoness says, give it till April 14 to see if you get offered the funding. It seems strange that they would admit someone into the PhD without funding. Indiana is way too good to pass up, so keep telling them how interested you are in the program, and that you really want to attend and are hoping that they'll be able to fund you. Good luck, and congrats on getting into Indiana!

So, I decided to be annoying and call them. I talked to the grad secretary, who seems really friendly, and she said she thinks all decisions should be made by mid to late March. Okay, so that isn't terribly specific for those of us waiting, but at least it's something. Just thought I'd pass it along.

ETA: she also mentioned that the DGA is away for a few days, which I'm guessing means we won't hear anything in the next few days.

There is good in every situation.

No matter what happens over the next month or even the next week(s), remember that this hair-pulling, teeth-grinding, death-glaring-at-the-results-page experience isn't in vain - no matter what the outcome. So many people live their lives without taking chances, and as grad school applicants every single one of us has proven that we are courageous, driven, and willing to take (big) risks for (big) rewards. This whole process has been an exciting/nerve-wracking/humbling experience but interacting with all of you grad cafe users has shown me that the journey really is as important as the destination. Cheesy? Yes. True? You betcha.

Basically: Be proud of yourself for what you are doing. You're kind of awesome.

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Congrats newms! (Hey wait .. weren't you #1 in too? :-) with the same number of posts? Spooooky)

By the numbers

In total there were 9,541 posts made this month (8,545 in January 2010). There were 268,354 visits, 97,111 Unique Visitors and 1,633,510 Pageviews to the forum. Once again, thank you!

This project is dedicated to the GradCafe. Hopefully it will make you smile. We are all in this together! GO TEAM!!!

http://vimeo.com/20333132

(I tried to embed it, but it wouldn't work!)

I called USC today to find out when they're going to notify. The grad secretary said they'll start notifying at the end of this week or beginning of next week. So at least now we have a time frame. Keeping my fingers crossed!

That would be awesome!

Great song, thanks woolfie!

Here's another one, along the same lines, "Tubthumping" by Chumbawamba, that someone posted on Waiting It Out. The good old 90s! Reminded me of high school (that's where I was when this song first came out, and I used to watch it on TV).




"I get knocked down, but I get up again, you're never going to keep me down!"

REM -- "Everybody Hurts"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pudOFG5X6uA