miratrix

I think this is really the kind of thing that will have a totally different answer in hindsight, when results are in. There are one or two schools I had trouble even convincing myself to apply to, due to less than inspiring conversations with faculty, and the fact that they're stretches, but applied to anyway because they are such "good schools." If I get into them with funding, and not into the places I'm more thrilled about, perhaps I'll change my mind. If I don't, I'll definitely regret it.

Um what happens Monday? (Or is it just that it's a Monday? I don't know. I work weekends. It's all the same to me.)

My plan B is to stay where I am and find a new and better job this spring or summer (I work in a semi-seasonal field, so winter is not the time for job hunting), probably doing evening courses toward a relevant certificate or MA. It's actually a pretty good plan B because I like where I live, and the thought of moving several states away to some of the schools, even one which has a great program, sometimes seems far less attractive than just staying where I am. I can see myself getting a graduate degree...and I can see myself not...and frankly, both are still on the table. I think having a Plan B you like is a good thing - it's just one more option, with pros and cons, that might be worth considering despite the amount of time and money you spent applying to grad school. We'll know what it's worth when we get decisions back.

They do make it much less transparent and much more difficult to predict than undergrad applications. I think it's unfortunate.

Ooh I have a new one, because it almost happened today! I got a phone call while I was at work from the department coordinator at one of my schools with a December 31 deadline, saying they're making decisions about fellowships next Monday morning but haven't received 2 of my letters, my transcripts, or my resume, and they needed them by 5 PM to consider me. I spent my lunch break on the phone and email and managed to send the coordinator my resume, get both of my recommenders to email copies of their letters to her, and get my undergrad to send an electronic copy of my transcript (which she said they'd be willing to use due to the situation). Except for my study abroad transcripts, which I simply couldn't get in one day, the department now has semi-official copies of everything. I'm SO glad that she called to give me a chance to get the materials in! And so glad that my undergrad, from the registrar to my professors, are accessible and helpful in a crunch. My nightmare is now that this is happening at all my other schools and they won't let me know, they'll just throw my application out. (So what happened? I sent out the transcripts and resume a few weeks ago, and I trust my recommenders, so I was like "does the post office actually have a 75% failure rate for priority mail, or is this the graduate school office's fault?" After work I checked my tracking number, and the package with my transcripts and resume was delivered, albeit during the school's Christmas break. So it's the graduate school administrative office's fault that the department was missing 75% of my application. *sigh*)

One of my recommenders asked me to email him reminders one week before each deadline, so he's not sending his out any sooner than a week before...this leads me to think it will probably be okay.

It depends where I end up. If I stay in my current city, I won't need one. If I move away, I probably will, much as I'd like to avoid the headache of buying a car...I'd just be living somewhere less urban, and it would be a lot harder to get around.

Haha, I'll take the gorgeous exchange student, thanks I know it's going to be a long wait for me. Half of my deadlines haven't even passed yet. Aaaaargh.

Nothing so dramatic...just waiting until late March or April to hear from all the schools, and winding up with a pile of rejections.

Not really worth thinking about, I think...admissions are generally so selective anyway that it won't make that much difference for most of us. If they're taking 4 rather than 5 people out of 100 at a program this year, the likelihood you were number 5 is pretty low. I did ask someone at one of the schools I'm applying to about this (someone I know not from an admissions-related context), and he said that despite being a state school with huge budget cuts schedule for the system, the department doesn't expect to lose any funding in the near future. So I'm sure it varies by school and department, anyway.

ETS hates us all and laughs as we fork over large sums of money. At 1%, they don't hate you THAT much though

Oh I KNOW! The one school I have left to apply to has a February 1 deadline, and I feel like I burned out juuuust a little to early. Haven't even started on SoP rewriting, even though my general one is 1000 words and this school wants at least 1500. (One of my schools has a March 1 deadline, but I'm done with that app and if I get in elsewhere with funding I probably won't wait to hear from them.)

Yeah, I failed at reading instructions on one of mine too - only noticed after I'd sent out forms with envelopes to my recommenders, addressed to the school, that it asked for every piece of the application to arrive in one package. So then I sent a package with my transcripts and resume with a note saying recommendations would arrive separately. THEN, once I'd finished writing and editing my SoP, I submitted the online application...and it was the only one of all my schools that didn't give you a way to submit the SoP as part of it. So I had to send them yet another package. They'll be getting five instead of one, I hope that doesn't cause them to toss my application but it's too late now! The only thing it makes me wonder is how many people actually do regularly screw up instructions.

I'll bet! I actually have the opposite challenge, almost - I'm happy with my SoP of about 1000 words, and my last application has a 2 part statement - 300 words and 1200 words. Time to find more to write....

This is sort of what I mean, although I don't think it's a matter of "playing it safe." I don't think the idea of picking a side that promises eternal reward or avoidance of eternal punishment as a safer bet than the alternative is something that has ever actually had any psychological appeal, because if you don't have a compelling belief in God than you probably don't have a compelling belief in his vengeance and reward system. I think agnostic theists are more motivated by what they gain in this life through personal growth, guidance from holy books and tradition, being part of community, ritual, etc., etc. ...but I also think this is really hard to categorize, because the line between your "agnostic theist" and my "healthily doubting and questioning theist" is hard to draw. The same person might apply either or both to himself based on his tradition, his social and educational background, or his mood on a particular day. "Belief" is a really fuzzy thing.

I'm feeling a little crazy over whether materials have been received because one of my schools has a deadline tomorrow, but their website still says I'm missing my transcripts. It also says "please wait 3 weeks for updates before calling about application materials," so it's quite possible they received them around winter break and haven't actually filed them yet...I hope that's the case, rather than their being lost in the mail, but I'm definitely nervous about that. Not a teacher here, but work does take your mind off it!

January is make me feel worse - now it's all "why haven't my professors sent in those last recommendations?" and "what do you MEAN my transcripts are missing? i sent them a month ago!" argh!

I'm referring to those agnostics who choose to take full part in rituals, confessions, and communities of faith despite not knowing, or not being convinced, of the total truth of the faith. This is only a possible stance if you define religiousness as including behavior and commitment, rather than exclusively as a matter of philsoophical & emotional certainty. This tends to be more of a point of contention with Christians and Muslims than Jews, Buddhists, or members of other faiths, in my experience, even though I think the line between "agnosticism" and "Christian doubt" really is pretty fine sometimes. Getting pretty off track here, but this is more interesting than that SoP I'm not working on

I probably should have worried more about this...but none of my schools gave length requirements, so I just sent in my best and most relevant paper, which was a REALLY clear choice in my case. It was 34 pages long, which may be too long, but I'd rather they had the whole thing to read if they wanted to than decide to remove the wrong sections myself (for example, I think the section on research methodology was pretty boring, but technically it's kind of important....) 22 pages doesn't sound unreasonable to me.

You have so much time to study hard and retake the GRE! Don't worry, just work hard And good luck!

That's totally the point, though! Miracles ARE completely absurd! That's what makes them stand out from the rest of the rational, scientifically explicable world! Ludicrous is an interesting word choice - in practical terms, they are ludicrous, but in poetic terms they sometimes are far from it. Anyway, I doubt anyone who believes in any miracles would try to convince you they're perfectly normal and believable, and I've only come across one or two religious people who've ever argued miracles follow laws of nature. What you're insisting on isn't so much intelligence, or rational thought, or education level, as much as adherence to philosophical materialism or naturalism...and I can't think of any intellectual disciplines apart from philosophy, philosophy of science, or theology in which it might even be necessary to hold a position on those schools of thought. (Also, "a space zombie"? I've never heard that one before. Where on earth did you come up with it?.) Oh and regarding the recent posts on agnosticism...I think in addition to holding agnosticism as a temporary or permanent philosophical stance and therefore opting out of religion, you can also be a religious agnostic. Most people seem to disagree, though.

It's hard to tell...there are two schools I visited before applying where I thought, after visiting, "gee, I shouldn't apply here" just due to discomfort and intimidation in meetings with professors. Afterwards I managed to convince myself I should apply anyway because they're doing things I want to do academically, and awkwardness at first meeting is probably curable. Who knows if that was a good idea or not, I guess I'll figure that out when admissions and funding decisions come back. I think the total number of schools you apply to has to do with how badly you want to go to grad school...if you don't want to go to grad school unless you get into one of two or three particular schools, your chances of acceptance are probably statistically lower, but you want the degree itself less than someone who's willing to go to one of 20 schools that might not be as wonderful fits. And that's a totally fine way to prioritize, given the time and money required for applications. (I'm applying to 7 schools. Actually had to cut the list down, I felt like any more was excessive but I was too interested in each of the seven to cut more.)

If you think there's no such thing as a religious intellectual, you might find Alister McGrath interesting as a highly educated, intelligent, scientifically trained and accomplished...non-intellectual. Arguing about religion is one way to while away the time waiting for results....

Who specified anything about Abrahamic religions vs. Buddhism, or "majority" vs. "exotic'? For all you know, I'm Hindu or Wiccan or Muslim (which is an Abrahamic religion that is a minority, considered exotic, and sometimes subject to persecution in Western countries). Or maybe I'm not religious at all. I'm annoyed by both "those elitist intellectuals!" and "uneducated religious morons!" attitudes because the world is full of religious intellectuals and nonreligious morons, so I couldn't keep my mouth shut about the "we're all educated people...." comment. (And yeah, I know it's all in jest...I'm just arguing for fun here myself!)

"Educated people" = having a BA = knowing religion is stupid? We didn't go over this in college!