Hopelessly_Neurotic

Do what you think is right, but I think informing the schools of this is unnecessary, especially since you wrote "submitted". I know many well respected researchers (in my field) who include publications that are in progress, in prep, and submitted on their CVs -- none of which have been peer reviewed. Yes, you will have to remove them if they aren't accepted, but the point is that it allows people to see what you are working on. I can see that some people feel differently about it, and their reasoning does make sense, but as I said, I know researchers in my field do this so I know that it is an accepted practice.

No problem. I know it's not much consolation now, but I think it will all work out in the end and you'll make the right choice because you are giving it a lot of serious thought!!

As long as you don't misrepresent what's been done (e.g., leaving it vague as to whether the poster or publication has been submitted or accepted) then I think it's totally acceptable and I don't think you need to update them (because they would have no expectation that what you submit will always be accepted). Academics list on their CV work in progress/in prep/in press/submitted all the time because they want people to know what they have in the pipeline.

Reading?? How can I read when I'm always on this site?? :shock: I used to read.

Okay, I see what you are saying. I guess my suggestion is just that you do what you have to in order to get a better sense of which program/field will allow you to do what you think you really want to do. I know that no one expects you to know what your dissertation will be about, but like you said, maybe you could think further about the topics you want to study and how, and see if that helps you to decide which school is a better fit. I may be coming from a different place because I left academia for a few years before deciding to go into a different subfield of the field I was in previously because of specific questions I had and wanted to pursue via my research. Aside from the above, I will just restate my gut feeling that you should seriously consider branching out, for your career's sake. Another poster mentioned this and the reasons why it would be to your benefit, and I think the points that person made are valid. Well, I hope you get funding for both so that it doesn't come down to a question of funding but rather a question of what will be the better fit for you. Good luck!

My idea of being "well funded" is having enough funding to live on and not having to be on a seriously tight budget. IvyHope, this school you were admitted to with zero funding, is it what you would call a top school/program? Most schools I applied to were proud to state that they offered full funding to all the students they admitted (although one of these schools said "most" of the students, not all...) and these schools were all decent. However, one program offered admission but no guaranteed funding, stating instead that I'd been nominated for a fellowship. This was a lower ranked school.

As long as you put "submitted" in brackets on the CV, then I think it is fine, and I don't think you need to give them an update. I put stuff that's "in progress", "in preparation", and "submitted".

I would suggest doing some research, reading, and discussing to figure out if the latter program is really a good fit with your interests and ambitions. I for one would find it hard to imagine myself applying to study in two different fields because I have a very clear sense of what I want to study. Perhaps I'm not getting the full picture because you have left out details for reasons I understand. So maybe I'm on the wrong track with this, but I think you really need to know what you wanna do when you grow up before you enter the program, and there is no other way to do this than to sit down and think and read and perhaps talk to others in your field who might be able to help you flesh out your ideas. Good luck!!! I'm sure you'll make the right choice.

I agree, getting professors' opinions about reputable programs is another great way to evaluate the quality of a program. But I wouldn't disregard the rankings completely -- the programs sure don't. When they are highly ranked on US News they sure don't miss the opportunity to toot their horn!! Anyway, that particular ranking is thought to be highly reliable because it is based on programs' perceptions concerning the quality of other programs. And it's recent (2009). That said, there is a certain school that is highly ranked for a particular subarea, but I know for a fact that they rarely offer funding to incoming students! The department itself is ranked much lower (in the 30s). Not sure if I would attend that one if given the choice between it and another one with a lower ranked subarea but higher ranked program... Another thing to keep in mind with the rankings is whether a program is consistently ranked across sources (US New and NRC, for example). Also, is it consistently ranked, year after year? There are ways to find that out (lots of google searches..) Word of mouth is also a good indicator (e.g., what students in your field are saying)

But isn't it reasonable to think that if one gets accepted to a top program that they will be well funded? Or is this naive?

Update...I was freaking out over absolutely nothing. She answered my question, and was very warm and helpful. Basically collaboration is an option but by no means is there any pressure in that direction. So relieved...

What area is educational psych most related to? Developmental?

Yep, here are the NRC and Gourman rankings: http://www.socialpsychology.org/ranking.htm How much was the subscription?? I only know about the top ten in my subarea..kinda curious to know what the next ten are!!

I tend to agree re: prioritizing subarea over department ranking. Which source do you think is most reliable? US News & World? The problem is that the subarea rankings only list the top ten. What if a program you are interested in is 11th? Hmmm, maybe if I pay for a subscription or something they'll let me see the whole list.. I found the Gourman rankings to be a little off and quite different from some of the other sources. The NRC ranking seems reliable but it's from more than 10 years ago... I tend to give the most weight to the US News & World rankings.

Hmmmm...Will there be an opportunity for you to meet with the people at school B again or to gain further insight into how it might be to work with these people? What about your research interests? Which school do you think would be better in terms of allowing you to explore and develop your own interests/ideas? If it were me (I wish..) I would be thinking a lot about that. I also think it may be important for your career to branch out a bit and not return to the same group you worked with as an undergrad.

For those of you who admit that the ranking of a program will be a factor in your decision process, what will you consider more, the ranking of the department or the ranking of your subarea? Sometimes the overall department is rated high, but the subarea is not, and then sometimes it's the other way around. All else being equal, which would you prefer and why?

I'm just curious about whether most/all schools use some form of wait list, or is it possible that some schools send out a batch of admissions, reject the rest, and hope for the best? Anyone wanna speculate?

Thanks for your input, guys. We'll see what her response is. I'm probably making it sound way worse than it is. I just asked you because I wanted your thoughts while I await her reply...

Oh man....thanks!! Now I'm really anxious!! :cry: But in your SOP you are making suggestions. I don't think they hold you to all of your ideas about what you would do if you were admitted into the program... You are right that I may change my tune once I'm there and learn more about the work people are doing. But I think in reality it is often the case that people's work is so specialized that collaboration is not as easy as it seems in theory... Anyway, part of me feels like it was worthwhile to raise this issue because really, it is something I'm concerned about. I wouldn't want to go there if people had certain expectations of me that I'm not prepared to meet. Anyone else have any thoughts?!?!

Hmmm, does the program usually offer full funding to incoming students? And a fellowship is something different from a regular funding package (i.e., stipend)? I would think that if you are up for a fellowship then they thought you were an exceptional candidate, so that even if you don't get the award then you are likely to be admitted. But I'm not sure if that is a fair assumption so don't take my word for it... I would think that in such a case they would have indicated to you that you were accepted and that you were being considered for a fellowship.

Okay, I feel that I am being neurotic about this, but yet I can't quite shake the feeling that I did something dumb. Help! I've been accepted into a program that is well regarded and I would be working with someone who's research I really like. The only problem is that I'm not too keen on anyone else's work in the department. I know this shouldn't be a really big deal, but on the school's website they talk a lot about fostering collaboration, etc, and when I spoke to my potential advisor on the phone she said that the door was "wide open" for me to collaborate and explore my interests. In my SOP I suggested that I saw opportunities for collaboration with other faculty members. However, upon thinking about this more seriously, I realized that I am not really very enthusiastic about the other work going on there. Don't get me wrong, it's interesting and important work, but I just don't see myself getting involved in it. So....I emailed my potential advisor to see what she thought about this (very carefully worded email). Now I'm wondering if I should have asked...part of me is thinking that she might think my concerns contradict what I suggested in my SOP about collaboration. I fear that maybe I was admitted because of this stated openness to collaboration?? Who knows?? Ugghh... In my own mind, I think it's a decent fit. I'm happy if I can work with one person who's work I really like, and be in a program that offers quality research training. It would be nice if there were more people who's work I was excited about, but there are many other variables that I have to consider along with this one (program quality, etc). Am I worrying about nothing??

What would we do without comic relief??? Seems like there is no shortage of people on this site who've been able to maintain a healthy sense of humor in the midst of all this application insanity...

I wouldn't get your hopes up. I've just been rejected (too ashamed to post it on the results board). Apparently I didn't use the word "banana" enough times in my SOP. 56 times would have probably got me admittance with guaranteed funding of 15K (in bananas, of course).

My view is that if these are your only options then go to the top tier school and do as well as you can, and hopefully secure some external funding. Will your husband support you financially? I wouldn't advocate going into serious debt in order to go to a top tier school unless you know that the education you receive will pay off. But I don't really think going to a mediocre school is an option either. You may get funding, but with the job market the way it is, what will this education do for you? But take what I say with a large grain (or two) of salt because I don't know anything about your field or your plans. All the best!

Hey my Canadian comrade.. I applied to a couple of Canadian schools, but mostly US (I'm a dual citizen). I heard from U of T, unofficially (my current boss would have been my advisor and she let me know that my application crossed her desk) but I declined because I already got positive responses from schools I was more interested in in the US. I also applied to UBC but hadn't heard anything and withdrew my app a couple of days ago. Good luck with your interviews!