living_in_paradise

Just got off the phone with Anthony. Apparently mine was a real offer, which is heartening. He seemed to think that this was an isolated problem (not that that's any comfort to you, architect81). I really hope it is, because I would hate for this to happen to anyone else.

Wow. Not what I would expect from the SSRC. That's so devastating. Hope you're doing ok. My fear is that more of us might be in the same boat. I'll try to get some clarification from them this afternoon.

like - what happened? just emailed them and tried to reach anthony by phone (no luck). Did they contact you or did you contact them?

wait - what? should i call them about my email offer? thought it was too good to be true...

I received a fellowship offer from SSRC via email on Wednesday afternoon, as did someone else at my university. So there were definitely mutliple emails that went out on Wednesday, but I have no idea if that's the whole batch of acceptances (the email said that they had made 80 offers in total). We're supposed to accept or decline the fellowship by May 1, so there's a possibility that additional offers will go out after that date. Hope that helps, and best of luck to everyone.

I got my application in about 15 mins before the final (extended) deadline, so I don't think that's the issue. But they might very well be sending out transcript requests in batches or waves for some other reason. I'm not sure if this is at all accurate, but my understanding is that they do an initial review, cull about half of the applications, and then send the remainder on to the final round of reviews in April. I'm not sure if everyone who made the initial cut gets a transcript request though. Anyone have a better idea of how this works?

The email came from idrf@ssrc.org (under the name of "ssrc"). The email didn't really say anything beyond asking for transcripts - which they want by Feb 15. Good luck to all those who applied.

Just got a transcript request this afternoon (1/31) at about 2 pm EST. Not sure if they send them out all at once or what, but thought I'd share that. Correct me if I'm wrong, but the SSRC doesn't actually make final decisions about awards until late spring, right? So a transcript request doesn't really mean anything, just that you're still in the hunt (just trying to downplay expectations).

Hmmm... my guess is that no one on this forum will be able to give you good advice on this question. It's just too personal, and it all depends on what you want out of life, and what you would like to be doing 10, 20, or 30 years down the road. If your life's ambition is to be an academic and a sociologist, take the offer at Penn State and don't look back. If you're not sure, and have professional ambitions that this job will bring you a step closer to achieving, then take the job. Likewise if you have very pressing financial issues that the job would help resolve. Long story short, take the job if it's what you really want to do, or go to grad school if that's what you really want to do in life. If you're really truly unsure, I'd vote for the job. At least you could walk away with a pile of money if you decide it's not for you. But if you're leaning towards school, though, don't let the money tempt you into a career that's not really in line with what you hope to do with your life.

Any opinions on Hasbrouck Apartments? I won't be able to visit Ithaca before August, so perhaps grad housing on campus is a safer option than trying to find something off-campus over the internet. Seems a bit pricey, though, and pretty unspectacular for the money.

I'll be going to Cornell for Development Sociology. The deciding factors for me were funding and program fit. Best of luck to all as you make your decisions and/or wait to hear about waitlists and whatnot.

I'll probably be there as well, doing a PhD in Development Sociology. Just got my funding package, and I'm very excited. Thanks to psycholinguist for all the housing advice.

I just saw that someone posted a rejection on the results board. That's a shame, but I guess it means that they're beginning to notify. Has anyone else heard anything? From what I've heard, class size will be about the same this year (4 or 5 in the incoming cohort). Funding is, of course, tight. That's about all I know.

1 University of California--Berkeley 2 Stanford University 3a Cornell University 3b University of Wisconsin--Madison 5 Princeton University 6a Harvard University 6b Northwestern University 8 Columbia University 9a University of California--Los Angeles 9b University of Michigan--Ann Arbor Source: http://grad-schools.usnews.rankingsandr ... onomic_soc I think you have to pay or login or subscribe or something for the full list.

Hi. I would suggest emailing the Director of Graduate Studies and asking about your status. I did and found out that I was in (unofficially) and I think others found out that they had not been accepted in the same way. In my dealings with the department so far, people have been very nice and understanding, and I really don't think it hurts your application in any way to ask about your status, especially if you've got a job offer waiting. On funding, though, I have no idea. My impression is that the funding situation is a bit shaky for next year (but I'm not sure if it's better or worse than at other schools and departments) and they might be waiting to make offers until they know exactly what's available. I was told that they generally fund every incoming student, but that this year could be exceptional, and they might not be able to make funding guarantees until after April 15. Hope that helps!