deipnosophistry

I faced this exact dilemma last year, and I picked Durham, albeit a little reluctantly. However, I'm six months into my first year and I ADORE Durham. I managed to purchase my first home in a great neighborhood, I get to experience enough wintry weather to get a taste for it but not hate half the year, and there is never a shortage of things to do in the area. Had I chosen Boston, I would have had at least one roommate, even with the generous stipend offered by the school there, and I would have become all too familiar with crap-tons of snow. That being said, I'd still love to live in Beantown some day. So, I guess my comment might not be that helpful. I just wanted you to know that Boston's a great city, but Durham has many charms too. And while it's hard to compare a city of ~250,000 with a metropolitan area of 4.5 million, I think Durham has a lot to offer.

I wrote an eligibility essay this go round and won an award, although my circumstances were a little different. I didn't switch fields, but I did start taking grad classes while an undergrad, so I had technically been enrolled in the graduate program for three full terms by the time I applied. I feel you should apply next year, write the eligibility essay and explain your situation. If they deem you ineligible, they'll inform you sometime in February. It can't hurt to try. Best of luck!

I haven't gotten anything either, so I think they might still be shipping them out. It sucks being patient!

Nope, I didn't express any urgency when I applied, nor have I been in contact with anyone since I sent off my application in November. Not sure if this helps. :|

Congrats! I've been following your story on both the GC and CC fora. I'm glad everything worked out, and best of luck!

Alrighty, I'm back and caffeinated. I applied last year and didn't get squat, largely because my personal statement failed to focus on broader impacts. After several months of work and some careful tweaking of my essays, I won one this year. For those of you who are eligible for future rounds, I'd be happy to answer any questions you might have regarding assembling a solid application, as I've learned a lot myself since 2008, so feel free to drop me a PM. My field is evolutionary bio, but my experience could be applied broadly, I'm sure. Best of luck to all who are still waiting!

I woke up this morning to an NSF award. I got a Ford fellowship not 12 hours ago. This is all too much to process. Need coffee.

Thanks, ChivPowers! I'm an evolutionary biologist, and I received the email just before 7 pm Central Standard Time.

I just received the following email from the Ford Foundation:

I had the same issue. I was deciding between Harvard and Duke for evolutionary biology programs. I adored Harvard and really liked the advisor I'd be working with, but her interests and background weren't an ideal fit with mine, although she would allow me considerable autonomy in my research. Duke, however, has a a PI who is right up my alley, and we seemed to feed off of each other when I interviewed. Durham is not exactly a bustling metropolis in the same way Boston/Cambridge is; it's not BFE, but it is pretty small, and this was something that concerned me. Ultimately, I chose to go with Duke, because although I could get a fantastic Ph.D. at either school, Duke is the better fit right now at this stage in my education and career, and I think that's an important distinction for people to make. It was tough turning down Harvard, but I just remind myself that I can always go there for a post-doc, especially since I'm still on good terms with my potential advisor there. Best of luck with your decision!

I just committed to Duke for a Ph.D. in evolutionary genomics through the Department of Biology.

I was really pessimistic about my chances of getting into any of my schools, and the fact that I didn't apply to any safeties really weighed on me in the intervening weeks between submitting applications and receiving notifications. It's been kind of an embarrassment of riches, though, and I've got one hell of a decision to make!

I'm 3 for 3 and trying to figure out my final decision.

I might be going for a Ph.D. in Evolutionary Biology. I'm headed up for a visit at the end of March.

Happy to help! I've battled pretty severe anxiety for most of my adult life, so I've gotten to the point where I can recognize when I'm acting a fool and letting my nerves get the best of me. It's good to keep in perspective that applying to grad school is like the ultimate masochistic endeavor: we pay people a crap-ton of money to judge us and effectively tell us if we're good enough according to some poorly defined rubric. Emotionally, it's akin to hiring the mean girls in high school to evaluate us. Only here, we actually value what adcoms have to say, and thus take it to heart when we're rejected. Add to this the fact that graduate school is an enormous commitment and that big changes are accompanied by the unknown, and you've got a great recipe for full-blown hysteria and histrionics. So, it's understandable that we feel the way we do. The important thing is to not let it affect us to the point of forfeiting an incredible opportunity out of the misguided fear that we're not good enough.

I'm so glad I found this topic! I spent the better part of two months thinking I wasn't going to get in ANYWHERE. Then I got two interview invites and I started to gain some confidence. Then decisions started coming...and I fell spectacularly to pieces. Last week, I got my first acceptance (from Harvard), and promptly lost my freaking mind. I went home and sobbed uncontrollably while on the phone with my parents. I may be the only person in the history of forever to cry tears of dread at a Harvard acceptance. Part of my meltdown was my difficulty in accepting the "next big step" in my life that had just become so suddenly and imminently real. The other major component was my irrational side, which decided to exacerbate things by adding a healthy dose of Impostor Syndrome-thinking a la "Oh my God, I've hornswoggled the entire adcom into accepting me, and they'll eventually find out that I'm a complete moron." All in all, it was an exhausting emotional release that was firmly rooted in my own long-standing insecurities about, oh, EVERYTHING. Now that I've heard back from all of my programs, I like to think that I'm developing a better handle on things. I tell myself that my prospective advisors all saw something in me worth cultivating, and no matter how clever I occasionally fancy myself, I'm neither sharp nor manipulative enough to con three universities into giving me money for the better part of the next decade. I'd be lying if I said I don't still battle my own "You're not good enough" demons, but I've at least gotten to the point where I can smile about my acceptances, and even indulge in a little fantasy apartment hunting. So, I say to all of you fellow IS victims, let us raise a glass to ourselves--we've earned it! (However, once you've downed your spirit of choice, feel free to resume enumerating the reasons you aren't worthy of X program. I know I will. )

Marry me.

For the results board poster inquiring about Harvard OEB, I was contacted today by my prospective advisor with an acceptance. There are 13 admits in total, with spots for 11 matriculating students. Funding is still being ironed out, but seems very generous.

One of my undergrad mentors--and major academic crushes--was a philosophy professor who was handsome, brilliant, and had that dry, sardonic wit that I eat up like candy. Naturally, he's happily married with four children, and his complete and utter devotion to his wife made me want him that much more! Gah! Although I teach undergrads now, I hope to one day be the hot female professor. Not that I'd act on it. I just want universal adoration.

My parents have been super supportive about my applications, even though it took them a little while to understand that an acceptance to a doctoral program in a biology field virtually guaranteed health insurance, tuition, and a living stipend. They were a little wary about the money sitch when I first began talking about graduate school, but they've warmed to it and now accept that I wouldn't be happy doing anything else. Before I had heard back from any schools, when I was in full-swing hysterics about not getting in ANYWHERE, my father would tell me that any of my schools would be idiots not to take me. Too bad my old man's not on any of the adcoms... Also, my dad's an engineer, so he approaches a Ph.D. like it's a three-year degree (which, in engineering, it usually is), when my schools have an average completion time of 6 years. :roll: As for my research, they try to understand it, and do quite well considering they're completely unfamiliar with the field. They're great about letting me geek out over the phone.

Sorry, I have no clue about any of your schools, but I just wanted to say it was cool to see another Bio person who earned a double degree in Philosophy! Did you have any specific concentrations? Best of luck with your interviews!

Duke just sent out invites for their two interview weekends. Notification was delayed because the Graduate School was late in distributing application materials to their respective departments.

I think things can get heated, especially when a professor wants a student and hasn't been allowed to take on a new student in the last few admissions cycles. One of my prospective advisors told me that she wasn't given any students last year, and as a result was going to demand one (i.e., me) this go round. I really hope she's as tenacious as she sounds, because I'd really like to work with her!

I only applied to three, and while I have a clear favorite, I think I'd make the best of whichever school I do end up attending. Fortunately, in my field, no school worth its salt will let you in without full funding. Of course, they practically own your soul for 4-7 years, but at least they pay for it!

Most days I've been listening to either Ryan Adams's entire oeuvre--including the Whiskeytown and "+ The Cardinals" years--or a metric crap-ton of bluegrass. The Ryan Adams keeps me mellow, whereas the bluegrass gets me all pumped for work in the lab. On days when I'm feeling especially optimistic (or foolishly hopeful) about my chances of receiving an acceptance or interview invite, I loop the finale of Mahler's Fifth, so even if I don't hear from anyone, at least I feel triumphant all day.