bfat

Ha! J/K, just got my rejection too. Man, this week was brutal.

Can I just say again, officially, Buffalo, WTF? I know people have brought this up several times, but my status now reads "Under committee review--2/20/13." I've been assuming a rejection for like 3 weeks, but their cryptic website shenanigans are confusing as hell. Has anyone actually contacted them to see what's going on? By the number of admits on the website, I wouldn't think they have a wait-list too. But it looks like last year they had mailed out their official rejections by now...

Yeah, I totally forgot to include Letters of Rec on that list, but this will be connected, in some ways, to ugrad prestige--who your letters are from does matter, and "big names" mostly teach at "big schools," with a few exceptions, I'm sure.

The problem is, though, that it really requires a lot of those "survey" courses that undergrad English majors take. As I mentioned before, my BA was in film, so almost all of my English courses were heavy duty grad seminars where we studied 7-10 works very closely over the semester. I also studied my ass off, but for months, and I ended up with only a 77% ... Hint: study lots and lots of mythology. There was so much of it on the test I took, and that was an area I thought I was relatively strong in... Also, Romantic and Victorian poetry. These were my weakest spots, and I flubbed just about all of those questions. ETA: I'm talking abut the subject test, of course. The general GRE is much easier to study for.

Because cuts do happen because of numbers, I think saying that some things are "weighted" more in the application process can be misleading. As others have pointed out, bad GRE scores can keep you out, but they may be counterbalanced by another factor that is easy to judge quickly (like undergrad prestige). So if the factors in an application are: 1. GPA 2. GRE 3. Undergrad prestige 4. SOP 5. Writing Sample 6. Miscellaneous connections (w/POIs, adcom members, etc.) Having one thing out of this list that's not so great won't keep you out (unless maybe it's a crappy SOP), but it would need to be balanced by something really good in one of the other categories. So if you scored, say, a 70% in the verbal GRE and you went to an unranked program, you might get the boot. But if you went to a program with an average/good reputation, and you had a contact at the school, that 70% probably wouldn't get you cut. The process seems very dynamic, which is what makes it so hard on us, as applicants, trying to judge what will or won't get our applications read closely. (What's good? What's bad? How does my undergrad school affect my app? What if I mentioned a POI that the DGS hates?)

My background is in film (BA) and I have an interdisciplinary MA, and I was accepted into 1 good program and waitlisted at another, so it's possible. I emailed UMich to see if my non-English background would hurt me, and they were really nice (their website specifically asks for English backgrounds) and told me I should apply anyway. I'm really glad I did. Cornell, however, even though they say they accept all backgrounds, took a big ole crap on my dreams, despite 2 visits to the school and meeting with several profs. So it really is a toss up. But my degree is from a totally crap school that no one has ever heard of (must be worse than yours), so maybe that's why? I probably will never know, but a "humble" background in not-English isn't the end of the world.

Can I scrub my eyeballs with Clorox? And the part of my brain that will now forever hold this image?

Has anyone asked about more info on the Michigan waitlist? The email said it was short and that they often pull people from it, but I'm just curious about whether or not anyone got more info--is it ranked? How many is "short"? I might email to ask, but I already asked about visiting (they said they wouldn't pay for it unless I was admitted, which makes perfect sense).

This is an awesome idea. I will put her on the floor with my letters from each school, and whichever one she grabs and destroys first is the winner.

Thanks for this thread! Perfect timing! I just got waitlisted at U. Michigan, which was slightly higher on my "ranked" list than Penn State (where I've been admitted with a good package)... The letter from UM made me feel really good, even if I don't ultimately get accepted (though they said the waitlist is small and that many people do come in off of it)... but there are a lot of other "pros" at Penn State--like it's closer to my and my husband's family (kinda important--we have a 6-month-old). But, if I'm honest with myself, I'm way more excited about the idea of Michigan. So... dilemmas. What do I DOOOO?!?

Me too!! Wait list at Michigan!!!!

How has the 0% confidence thread turned into the "what do I do with a gazillion offers?" thread? Ugh, I'm sorry. Just really bitter with my gazillion rejections. This thread was kinda a refuge from the sense of total worthlessness induced by seeing people with lots of acceptances in other threads.

Aw, thanks! I am really excited about the idea of PSU next year. The more I think about it, the more I realize that it really should have been my first choice (especially after talking with a friend at Cornell who is struggling with the compressed time to degree and lack of support beyond the timeline). Maybe it's fate or something. As for all the nastiness.... Ugh. Does the scandal surrounding one man (and his admittedly horrible acts) really affect the reputation of the thousands of others on campus and in the town? I'm really disappointed in the number of people who have said to me, "Oh no! You can't go there! It's full of child molesters!" ... Really? State College has one of the lowest crime rates in the country and is at the top of many "best places to live" lists. Coming from Baltimore, that's important to me and my family.

So this thread begs the question, and I know it's been raised before--is there age discrimination in the admissions process? I know apps can't ask that straight up, but they can certainly see my old-ass transcript from my first semester in undergrad...

Goddamn, this thread makes me feel old as dirt. And for the record, I am old as dirt. And by that I mean I will be 30 next week. How the fuck did that happen?!?

Yes, thanks for all the nice words. And I swear to God, the only solution is a pint of rum mixed with pineapple juice. I feel so much better already. Also, I've moved to the "denial" state of grief, and I'm just pretending I didn't apply to any of those places that rejected me. It seems to be working. That and the rum.

I know I have 1 acceptance already, so I probably should just STFU, but the parade of rejections today is really just cripplingly painful. I have been crying all afternoon and I just hate everything ever. I feel totally unworthy of the 1 that I got because clearly I'm not good enough for anyone else. Ugh, somebody kill me.

Just kidding. This was an absolute lie. I now feel like I am dying inside and this is the worst day ever. That is all.

Yeah, I'm really starting to feel burnt out on application stress. I've gotten to the point where I'm like, "Oh, another school I applied to is notifying and I haven't heard anything? Meh." Of course, it probably helps that I got into my second/third choice (tied w/Michigan).

I looked again too, but I can't tell the difference... still says it hasn't been reviewed yet in 2 places though. On a similar note, I got my (expected) Pitt rejection today. Balls.

Penn State said they'd pay for a weekend visit to their program, even if it's not for the prospectives weekend (which I can't go to because of NeMLA)... and I want to go, I definitely do... but should I feel guilty that it is my only acceptance, and was my second choice and I'll definitely be going there unless (hahahaha, right) I get in to Michigan and they offer me $30k? The DGS seemed like he really wanted to convince me to come, which felt awesome, but I played it cool like I had tons of good offers--lol. I'm thrilled w/PSU--it's perfect for me and my family situation (which is totally awesome). But should I feel guilty about wanting to go up for the visit anyway, as if they need to "woo" me?

Yup. Pretty much. I'm waiting on 5 essentially definite rejections. It sucks.

srsly, WTF is up with Virginia? It seems like there just isn't enough up on the board for them...

ZOMG YAAAAAAAYYYY!!! I'm so unbelievably happy for you!! :D [edit: sorry the gif file f'd up, but still yaaaay!]