jprufrock

Second post. --- Also, make sure to dress nice. Apparently, a lot of people go to these in sweatshirts and ragged jeans. Who are you going to accept: anxious2011 in professional attire, or unkempt candidateB with his greasy handshake and subtle smell of manure? I'd caution against being competitive, as it might leak other undesirable traits. Go prepared, confident and, most of all, friendly. People never give enough credit to smiles. That is, smiles are subconsciously more powerful than we think.

If it helps, I got the same e-mail and I did get accepted. So... based on my single data point, they're not one to make mistakes

I'd say go with Berkeley if you're leaning towards academia/professorship and with Princeton if you're leaning toward industry. Berkeley's prestige and diversity of fields will help increase the size of your net when you job search as an academic whereas Princeton seems like it would prepare you much better for specific industry jobs in your field. That said, I'm not in CS and I know nothing of the programs themselves. You probably can't go wrong either way. I will say that Berkeley has a better job market location though, so perhaps it's not so clear cut.

Question: Has anyone received any info about a campus visit? It would certainly help me get a better idea of attending. I haven't received my official letter/funding info, so maybe it'll come with that. For me, right now my acceptance at Berkeley is at the top of my list but that could change if UCLA offers a nice funding package. It could also change if Columbia and/or UPenn accept me and they don't traditionally accept/reject until late Feb/early March according to the results board.

From their website: http://english.uchicago.edu/prospective/phd-checklist-and-faq So anywhere between 12 to 36 acceptances. Since thegradcafe has been getting more popular and since our world is increasingly using the internet, I'm guessing that a lot more than 2 acceptances will show up on our results board. That said, it could go either way. I'm stubborn so I choose to believe that I have a chance until the very end when a rejection hits.

bump for 2011

Saw a Stanford acceptance on the board--Congrats!

Ditto for this--exact same situation except I'm attending and my girlfriend will be the stir-crazy job hunter.

Just got an e-mail! I am accepted to Berkeley too!!! but man is the funding situation dismal. Probably isn't as bad as it sounds on paper--and I bet there's a lot of opportunity for those who look for it--but I envision combing beaches just to scavenge for food. Mmm, delicious slimy mollusks.

Now three. Fess up, chosen ones. (and congrats!)

Agreed. Thank you for taking the time to reply in such an eloquent way.

I don't think so--I've been keeping a close eye on UChicago as well. There have only been 2 posts (both acceptances), neither with any additional info.

I filled out the FAFSA, but only last week so I doubt they have it. Are you, too, thinking the stipend might be too small to live in LA? It could be that you and I are competing for some invisible fellowships, as we were notified a bit earlier. I doubt that they would've told others the 18k/3k info. and not us unless there was this sort of reason.

Again, your overly long and pompous post does nothing but further evidence your ignorance of the humanities and their impact. I'd like to spell it out for you, but if you honestly think the fine arts are reduced to reading, writing and communication, then I doubt any rhetoric in the history of the world could convince you otherwise. EDIT: And I do not even believe the humanities exceed science--I'm firmly affixed to a middle where both are fundamentally and differently important. Your scientific metrics are simply insufficient and inapplicable to judge the humanities.

Mine says nothing as well. I e-mailed the grad department and got this in reply from Felicity Nussbaum: "We will be sending you a letter detailing our funding package sometime next week. We are still awaiting final approval of the package from the Graduate Division. Rest assured that you are admitted to our program, and that we look forward to meeting you."

What do you think of the funding? I seems a bit low for the LA area... so I initially thought that's what your heart attack was about. But it's probably from the happy shock of acceptance! Congrats to you!

I enjoy knowing when a school has responded, even if it implies a rejection for me. As long as the results board is kept honest and clean, I appreciate all entries.

So let's play hypothetical and ask a fundamental question without naming schools etc. This way, the thread will apply to everyone. Let's define money as the end result of financial offers after accounting for cost of living, etc. Let's define ranking and prestige as just that--how widely recognized and renowned a potential grad school is in your specific field. And for the sake of the thread, let's leave out questions of "fit" or "location" or any other variables that obviously have a significant impact. Just money vs. ranking. Let's also say that "more money" doesn't mean the other school will force you to live an impoverished lifestyle, just a lackluster one. Let's say that you'll be fully funded at both, regardless, and won't have to accrue any debt. Which one do you choose and why? <---probably a good idea to state your field, too. Do you go with more money because this economy is terrible (though getting better) and even if you graduate, a job might not come easily? Do you go with more money because it will make grad school that much easier, that much more comfortable? Do you go with higher ranking because it might lead to higher wealth in the long term? Is higher wealth in the long term a reality, or will having more money in the present make that more attainable? Will your higher ranking school make you more competitive for a job once you graduate? How much, if at all? Cite evidence or relay anecdotes, if possible. I'm sure this has been discussed before, but I searched 5 pages back and didn't find a satisfactory thread. Things are economically different here in 2011, as well.

This is perhaps the most contradictory statement about so-called 'respect' for English as a field as I've heard. Did you know that science, as you know it, was condemned to mostly bullshit and stones until literacy flourished? I am sure you're making a point for others and not necessarily yourself, saying that some 'general population' doesn't recognize the equality of fields, but if your goal is to counter such sentiment then your statement fails. Hard. English and the Humanities in general have applications just as varied, pressing and significant as the hard and soft sciences. Just because you know little about such fields and by extension are unable to see their effects, doesn't diminish their importance and prevalence.

I definitely played fast and loose with word count guidelines as well as writing sample guidelines. "Approximately 1000 words" turned into 1300 words. "15-20 pages dlb spaced" turned into 25. --- I figure if they like what they see then guidelines don't matter. If they are interested in what you wrote for the first 500 words, then they'll read through to the last and not penalize you for it. EDIT: I will say that for guidelines that left no ambiguity (e.g. "Absolutely no more than 20 pgs), I made changes, but most guidelines left at least a little room for ambiguity and I erred on the side of length.

I also got an acceptance, sent at 11:59PM last night. EDIT: Anyone know of the funding situation? EDIT: EDIT: Found it:

Don't give up hope. Only 1 acceptance has been posted which could mean a number of things. Firstly, often times applicants who are considered for university-wide fellowships are contacted ahead of the rest of the accepted pool. That is probably the case with the Berkeley acceptance and I wouldn't be surprised if that's the case for UChicago. Secondly, there was only 1 acceptance and it was posted after this thread "Gossip Re U Chicago" was created. Malicious intent may be involved since no other results entries have appeared. Lastly, barring the last two scenarios, UChicago may not send out acceptances all at once. Even if they do, wait-lists are always a possibility. Implicit rejections, in my opinion, are nothing but pessimism. Be proud of yourself and just take things as they come; that's the way to not panic.

Anyone going to the ALA in Ohio?