marxophile

Wow, well thanks for letting us know that you're turning down the offer. I'm keeping my fingers crossed...

bari, Did you solicit the e-mail telling you that you're waitlisted? I saw some rejections go out, and I'm still pending. Just curious...

Hey there, I'm somewhat local and know the area well. There is no on-campus housing at UMD for graduate students, but it tends to be fairly nice and affordable, and considering it's the DC metro area, everything is pretty close to the campus. I'd encourage you to check out this site for more information http://www.union.umd.edu/GH/basic_needs/graduate_housing.html Good luck on your decision!

crock, Can you specify what you mean? Are they finalizing an enrolled cohort, or finalizing last offers?

That is sound advice. But I submitted everything electronically, and the ASF confirms that, so I think I'm going to take a deep breath and just let the process run its course. Sincerest congratulations on your admit and funding. I think I missed the funding deadline (by a few days), but I'm local, so I'd still take an admit w/o funding. By the way, I LOVED your post on calculating chances.

buba, Try to hang in there. I know how you feel. But just remember that most graduate students apply to A LOT of schools, so it is highly unlikely that the first round of admissions are all people who hold UMD as their top choice. More admits are almost certain to come...

About 15 sounds right. I think they only enrolled 10 last year, which is about 2 or 3 less than usual, so they might accept a few more this year. The professor I've been in touch with also mentioned that funding might be more difficult, so I'm hoping at least that I'm in the second round. By the way, it sounds like you're saying you were offered admission, congratulations! It's honestly taking EVERYTHING I have to not call and check, but I don't want to be obnoxious. Anyone have any idea of how long it takes in between rounds of calls? Signed, Waiting to exhale... By the way, anyone have any advice on calling? I feel like it would probably just bother them, but the waiting is just driving me crazy...

ringo, Thanks for the info. I hadn't heard that, but there also don't seem to be many rejections coming down right now either, so the calls were probably to the top-tiered candidates. It seems unlikely that they will fill the slots from that first round though. UMCP averages 25-35 admits before they get a fully enrolled cohort. And I wasn't expecting to be in the first round of acceptances either, but I've been in contact with one of the professors there who said my chances looked good, so I'm hoping for at least a waitlist. (REALLY hoping... plus we're getting a snowstorm here that'll probably delay things a bit, and I feel like my head is going to explode). But anyway, to everyone who is in the same boat as me, just keep holding out... no news is good news. And realistically, acceptances could come up until March 1st or so.

Hey bari, You know, I just found out about the Testudo access recently, of course by obsessively reading posts in these fora. The usual story, however, seems to be that people were notified either directly on the phone, or by an e-mail directing them to check their application status via Testudo. This is all very odd, since anyone who has applied to UMCP knows that the application makes due mention of the fact that decisions are ONLY given by mail. Nonetheless, it's largely up to the GD to decide how to manage final admits. I would add that there is a new GD this year (Dr. Falk), so he may decide to follow decorum, but when I spoke to him last year about the program, he wasn't shy about asking me for stats and whatnot. So, I'd say check your e-mail often... (P.S.: If last year is taken to be any barometer of what this year's timeline will be: we should find out this week. Anyone else about ready to explode?)

Hey buba, I applied there too. In some cases, applying by the "priority deadline" will help you in the ranking system, but mostly it's to ensure that if you DO get accepted, you will be funded. The majority of people who apply do so in early January. The process of admission seems to be a hybrid: on the one hand, they say they have rolling admission, but they also use a competitive ranking system. From what I gleaned, if they REALLY want you, they'll decide to admit you automatically, otherwise you get thrown into the ranking pile, which isn't finalized until after the deadline passes. You should expect to get something in the mail by the first week of March, the latest. Try to relax, I know what it's like, and I'm freaking out too. But also don't get hung up on the "12 to 15" number. Remember, that they will always tend to admit around 40 people (max), assuming that some of the people they admit will accept offers elsewhere. Hang in there, and good luck.