coffeem8

numoon, a lot of women's studies ph.d. programs aren't even old enough to have official placement rates yet, but I'd take into account things like how well you think you can work with your advisor and whether or not you'll get a lot of one-on-one time with faculty, rather than get lost in the mix. but go visit your programs and see! I think that's the most important.

oh wow! I didn't get an email, and my status on the website isn't updated. Hopefully this means we will all be hearing about our status there one way or another VERY SOON.

I'm pretty sure you're right about Emory and I'm almost 100% positive you're right about UCLA since their official admit visiting day is less than a month away. Rutgers usually notifies in late January or early March. Not sure about the other programs you asked about! Unfortunately, it's pretty common for rejection letters to come out MUCH later than acceptances. It's mean and really annoying, but pretty conventional.

Anytime between now and early March, I think.

WOW. What a pathetic, bitter, and sad comment, especially the original that you "edited out." Maybe Yale screens for pettiness.

Good luck to everyone on their impending decisions and interviews. I am now only waiting on Rutgers... not expecting to get in (because that would be way too lucky), but mostly just curious at this point.

Seriously! I wish I could have applied to one more school, instead of trying to increase my chances at Minnesota. And you're totally right about my acceptances-- both of which were UTTERLY unexpected-- but still, wtf Minnesota?

I'm only a little irritated because I talked to a lot of faculty there (a lot! over the phone! personally!) who all convinced me that the fit with their programs was excellent and that I should apply to THREE of their departments to increase my chances. I ended up only applying to two, but now I'm glad I didn't apply to the third one only to get rejected a third time. I wasn't too keen on Minnesota at first, but the faculty "sold" their institution to me, and it just seems like they were trying to garner more application fees now. I did write the grad directors asking for feedback on my application materials, so we'll see what, or if, they reply.

Well hopefully it's good news for you all! Mine was bad news, but I wouldn't go to Minnesota now if they paid me a million dollars.

Hey everyone-- Minnesota American Studies status was available online. I didn't get an email, just a random website check.

So, I called the American Studies Dept. at Minnesota and according to the person who answered the phone, all the acceptances have already gone out. The rest of us should be hearing by the end of the week. I have no idea who it was or if she knew what she was talking about, but that's what she claimed. So. Yeah. That's shitty news. Sorry everyone.

All I have to say is Minnesota needs to hurry up! Just give me my rejection letter already. Grr.

lol, that was me. They read this thread, and the email I got from the graduate administrator.

I really don't think people have gotten their decisions from Minnesota yet. It's not *that* exclusive a program, someone on this board will surely get accepted and post. I think they are just late this year. A lot of programs have more precarious funding situations this year compared to past years and are holding off on official notifications until they have funding in hand. That could be what's happening at Minnesota. Or, it could be the snowstorms slowing things down. Either way, I think we'll all hear soon.

I saw it too. Congrats to whoever that is!

Hi Sequi, I did not receive an "official" rejection from Emory, I am simply presuming I was not accepted, because to be considered for admission you must be invited for an interview. From that list of people they choose their admitted candidates, waitlisted candidates and they even reject a few they invite to interview. Since interview weekend was last weekend, it's probably safe to assume that if you weren't there you probably didn't make the cut (whatever their criteria is... I still don't really know). Or maybe it's just that we were so awesome we did not need interviews. Hahaha. I think people did apply to Penn State earlier on in the thread, but to my knowledge no one has posted any results for women's studies from Penn State just yet, so I wouldn't worry about them just yet.

EXACTLY. Listen to SusieQ. Also, I'll say it again: just sit tight! A lot of your schools haven't even released any decisions yet! Don't assume the worst yet. (Easier said than done, I know... A couple of weeks ago I was despairing about how I was going to get rejected across the board. My first notifications were REJECTIONS! So don't feel bad...) Try to take some time out and remember why you want this for yourself. Do something fun to take your mind off this horrible and stressful process. Go out with a friend and do something fun, or maybe just take a bubble bath and make some hot tea and then veg out! I've had to take a lot of "me" time just to get through this... I was exactly where you are a few weeks ago.

soulinmyfist, I don't think what you're feeling is unnatural at all, and I myself am actually extremely wary of academia, though I have chosen to engage with it in order to meet my goals-- but mostly as a means to an end. I really do think that the fields you want to work in-- gender, ethnic and area studies-- can be transformative and I've actually taken courses that required community-based learning (I really think this is the wave of the future)! I hear what you're saying about privilege, however. I am a not prvileged person attending a very privileged institution, and I get discouraged every day. But the one thing that keeps me going is that my work might make an impact in the future... I hope. Anyway, don't give up yet! You haven't even heard from anyone except UCSB at this point, so there's no reason to think you've been rejected across the board. I'm pretty sure all the admissions for now have been extended at UCLA, but you are still waiting on a bunch of schools!

In the humanities, it's rarer for interviews to be extended. I'm in the humanities and wasn't interviewed at either of the schools I was admitted to, except in a very unofficial capacity before I applied.

If you're more interested in academic work, definitely pursue a Ph.D. right away if you can.

I'm just going to second what SusieQ said. MA programs take way longer to respond to candidates than Ph.D. programs, and a lot of us are still waiting on Ph.D. responses! Hang in there. You should be hearing very soon.

don't worry dogbert, my first notifications were rejections... it doesn't mean anything.

People I know who have done this have generally contacted a POI (caveat: only if they had established contact prior to applying, and that contact had been substantial and/or positive. If you didn't speak to someone on the phone or exchange several emails, I wouldn't bother contacting a POI). If a POI isn't an option, then the DGS in the dept. would be the way to go. I would ask them who to contact about possibly receiving feedback if they aren't the right person to ask, also. They might direct you to someone higher up in the process, such as someone within the department of graduate admissions.

Welcome SusieQ! Is this the program's first year? I'd love to hear more about it! I'm still waiting to hear officially from Emory (though I am fairly positive it's a rejection), Rutgers, and another Minnesota program before I can make my decision...

Honestly, it could be legit. Sometimes, profs will email people early on basically saying they're accepted for all intents and purposes, but it's not official.