cquin

HAHA, yup, I just had a little freak out over that. But I'm confused--aren't we supposed to mail in our SOP as well?

Nook or Kindle?

All this talk of luck seems to have worked in my favor--one of my undergrad professors has agreed to write for me! Hooray! Now it's just a matter of contacting all of my schools and explaining the situation.

Thanks for the replies, everyone. Still no update from my current or undergrad professors, but I'm guessing that's because they're still wrapped up in the craziness of the holiday season. emmm, that's what I've been trying to tell myself to calm my nerves, but I have no idea when grad committees meet! Is it immediately after winter break? The first week of the semester? The second? Or is it like a month in? I think if I had some kind of a general time frame, I'd feel better.

The deadlines for most of my schools have passed already--I contacted their individual admissions departments and explained that one letter from [my professor's name] would be late (I didn't specify *how* late) and they said it wouldn't be a problem. I have five MA programs with upcoming deadlines, so I'm praying that I'll have this sorted out by then... Last I heard from my professor was about six days ago, when I sent him a reminder email with my list of schools. He basically just apologized for not keeping in touch with me and said things have been crazy on his end.

It is now December 27th and my professor still hasn't submitted his letter of recommendation. At this point, I'm going to assume he won't write one at all, so I'm frantically contacting two other professors who could possibly write for me. I'm wondering how I should explain this situation to my schools, and whether it will reflect poorly on me. I feel that I have a strong application otherwise, and I'm positive that my two other LORs speak highly of me, but I am petrified that this issue with my third letter will result in my immediate rejection from all programs. Does anyone have any experience whatsoever with this sort of situation? Any words of advice or reassurance? I've been moping around my house for the past few days, trying to get into the holiday cheer while contemplating what seems like my inevitable doom.

Thanks, pinkrobot. I think that clears it up. I retook the general but not subject, and I was submitting my subject scores to schools that require. So, based on your info, I'm guessing it says that the score recipient is not valid/active because my new general score is not available... Right? Yikes, I don't know, this is all so unnecessarily confusing and annoying.

Merry Christmas from ETS! When I log into my account, I see the name of one of my schools with two asterisks next to it. The asterisks indicate: ** Score recipient not valid/active So...does that mean they did not receive my scores? Even though I am POSITIVE I entered the correct school and department code.

That is so mind-numbingly stupid and absurd that I am actually laughing out of disbelief.

Uhhhmmm, still going crazy trying to cut down my SOP and WS for this one school (500 word SOP and 10 pages max for my sample). Would it look bad if I were to change the font size to 11 pt? I feel juvenile for asking this, but it is so difficult to pare this thing down.

I can't believe half of the shit ETS gets away with. This is awful and I'm really sorry. There must be some way for you to get a refund, or partial refund, or at least have the scores sent free of charge. What do the kind, tenderhearted folks at ETS have to say about this?

I am a second time applicant and while I greatly revised my list of schools, I am reapplying to three programs that rejected me last year. I contacted all three and explained my situation--none of them seemed judgmental or critical in the least bit, and they certainly did not dissuade me from trying again. One advisor went as far as to offer suggestions on strengthening my app and told me which professors shared my area of interest. So I wouldn't worry about it!

With the exception of one program that explicitly states, "MA applicants need not specify an area of interest," all of my MA programs seem to have the same requirements as the PhD program. So, I don't think you need to generalize your SOP.

Hmm, in what sense?

Oh, no, I have no intention of badmouthing him at all. I just think it may be in my best interest to contact another prof and put out some feelers. Oh god...bahaha.

Thanks, everyone. I finally heard back from him today--apparently there was a death in his family and he's been insanely busy (is it awful that I still have my doubts as to the veracity of that explanation?). He reassured me that he was still going to write my letter, and we agreed to meet up this Friday. I'm still feeling stressed, though, and I think I'll follow your advice, emmm, and reach out to another prof as a back up.

So. My professor fervently promised to write a glowing LOR for me a few months back. I've been struggling with him since, as he has been a bit slow to actually, y'know, write the damn thing. Last Tuesday was my last night of class so I spoke with him and emphasized how important it is that he please not flake out on me. He swore up and down that he'd come through, albeit a little late (I've already contacted my schools and explained that one of my letters would be late, so that's covered). Our conversation ended on a good note and we agreed to meet up sometime later that week. Except now I haven't heard from him since that night, despite sending an email AND calling his office and leaving a message. I understand the man is busy with end of the semester stuff, but this is ridiculous. I am literally losing sleep worrying about what I would do if he just doesn't write a letter for me. Will schools immediately disregard my application? Will this whole process be for naught? I've worked way too hard for this to be bust because of something out of my control. So, assuming he doesn't come through, wtf can I or should I do? Or is this a lost cause? I want to fucking break down and cry when I think of that. Ughhhhh.

What?? No way! I was genuinely thanking you for the link to that website, it looks really great! (I can't actually listen to it right now because I'm at work, but I definitely will when I get home tonight.)

Well, thank you for that link.

Ambient music works for me. Boards of Canada or Aphex Twin's "Selected Ambient Works" are my go-tos.

I know we've bitched about this in other threads, but I just need to say it here: 500 WORD SOPS ARE IMPOSSIBLE! So how did y'all manage to reduce your word count without turning your statement in a butchered mess?

164 verbal, which is like 93 percentile (I think?) Either way, I improved my score, so I'm very pleased! And for those who bemoan their quantitative scores, I've got you beat: My score was............are you ready................138. I never cease to amaze myself.

Ah, yes, partly. It's also my first initial and last name, so...there ya go

? Hm? Did I miss something, or is my brain just fried from retaking the GRE today...?

I didn't see the word "estimate" anywhere. The screen simply said "Here are your scores:" So I take that to mean, yes, these are the final scores.