PhD_Soul

So this is a truth that some people have to accept. There's reality and then there's fiction. The poster is spot on here. I would NEVER hire someone with such a whiny attitude. I love critiques because they help my company to be better (Not to be cocky, but I'm kind of a big deal.....I'll leave it at that. If you find this offensive, please contact me for my credentials). But I don't need someone who just wants to blow off steam without a path forward or some intellectual basis for his/her concern. Again, there's reality and there's fiction. I'm just providing a dose of reality here. I suspect the following for most (or all) of the people who provided a negative reaction to this post: they don't actually have work experience. And if they do, they don't have actual leadership experience. Just sayin...

Congrats!

I've noticed a stark difference between schools on how they approach wait listed candidates. I literally had one professor (who happens to sit on the admissions committee) who told me: "I'm too busy to talk to you" (not necessarily in those words but in that same terse tone). As a working professional, I'm just as busy as he is, if not more so. There's no reason to take that tone with me. I've talked to other professors who were far more welcoming and enthusiastic. I've learned that the culture and impressions that programs give off are important. The programs that are enthusiastic and proactive in dealing with their applicants - both admitted and wait listed students - are more likely to give you the type of experience you deserve. Evaluate these programs appropriately. And good luck to all of you!

Going forward, I'd be interested in hearing if anybody (in any program) got off the waitlist. Or if they receive any updates from faculty members on how things are progressing. There doesn't appear to be a lot of historical data on this site regarding wait lists and applicants successfully getting admitted off wait lists.

Some programs still require GREs, but many schools are starting to waive the GRE requirement. (to the original author of this thread) If your GRE scores are low, it may be worth looking at schools that do not require GRE; Many top ranked programs do not require this. It's obviously too late this cycle but in case you want to try again next year

In fact, I'm surprised that some PhD committees released decisions as early as January! Wouldn't it be nice if all committees did that!

Students are putting their lives on hold until they receive an admission decision. I'm in the same boat. But I don't envy the admissions committees, either. PhD departments have hundreds of applicants to sort through. I agree that the process is frustrating. Some departments are more efficient and timely than others, though. I'll give you that.