FingersCrossedX

I found myself checking email and application statuses online at around 6am their time. What did I think I would find? Well I can tell you I found nothing. Mail comes at 4:30ish. I guess I'll have to keep myself busy with laundry until then.

I'm no expert, but from what I can tell one school's time line can be completely different than all of the others. I heard from one program in January, then one about a week ago. Of the two I have yet to hear from, it looks like one has told everyone else but me and the other has contacted no one. The results board shows that people are still getting accepted to programs so I don't think all is lost for you. Waiting sucks but it will all be over in April I guess.

Yo mama so old she brought a mainframe computer to grad school.

I applied to their PhD program but haven't heard back either. I applied to the Ed Psych program though.

I agree. When I say that I am nervous, or say "if I get in to grad school" My mom jumps in about how I don't believe in myself. I'm being realistic. Its competitive, and I'm not a shoe in. She's seriously convinced that I am depressed.

Oh, I applied to Hogwarts too.

Congrats! out of curiosity, did you have an interview?

I agree with the above posters. I see admissions as a holistic look at each applicant. You had a hiccup in your past, but the GRE scores show that you are a capable student. Also on every thread I've seen about the GRE people say that the scores don't matter unless you have a perfect score such as your 800Q. That is something to take notice of. In your SoP I'm sure you explained the hiccups in your transcripts. Life happens. Personally, I think that someone that can overcome adversity and show themselves to be a good student is actually a good candidate for admissions. There will be set backs in grad school and you have shown that you can overcome them. Now don't you wish I was on the admissions committee?

I think you have a point but I'm not sure I totally agree with you. Yes you will do significantly better without studying if you have been an avid reader your whole life because you learned the vocabulary in the context of those books. The vocab used in writing is different than in speech so an avid reader would have come across the words found on the verbal section of the GRE. However, if you do not have the vocabulary knowledge from reading you can study and learn the definitions of the words. The test can be learned. There is a reason its a multimillion dollar industry i.e. Kaplan, Princeton Review, etc.

I was thinking the same thing, but it's a President's Day. No Mail! Our letters of rejection will just have to wait.

Hey guys, I think this is a joke. Don't be so quick to hit the minus sign.

Since the discussion has moved towards the GRE, I do have a question. Is the writing portion taken into consideration? I ask because of two things. First, when schools give an average or cut off GRE score it doesn't include a writing score. Then when you apply you write a SoP that should let the admissions committee judge your writing abilities for themselves. So is the writing score of the GRE even evaluated?

The teaching profession is going through major changes right now, and getting ahead of the curve is a good move. It sounds like you want to move out of the classroom and into a curriculum or possibly administrative (not to say principal or school leader) role in the school. Do you know where you want to be? I found myself in a similar situation. I didn't want to be in the classroom. I'm much more driven by education reform and effective interventions in schools. I also thought I might want to be a school psychologist, but ultimately decided that I want to do research. Once I knew where I wanted to be all my questions were easier to answer. I'm sure you'll make great connections at Columbia, but I think you will also make great connections at UCONN, or another state school. The connections from Columbia will be NY connections. I know there is little distance, but it is a different state with different things happening in education there. Do you want to stay in CT? Its something you might take into consideration.

I am really excited to move on with my education and have a career instead of a job, but I am totally nervous. Its a huge undertaking. A lot of work ahead, another new city, getting back into school mode, studying, late nights or things I DON'T want to read followed by a day of classes and studying again. Its overwhelming. However, on the other hand, I'm so lucky to be able to put myself through this torture.

That's a good point. I think for me it was that my interests and skills weren't as good a fit at my "safety" school. I use quotes because I figured there was a chance I wouldn't get in anywhere, even that school.

I've been out of school for so long that I need to start reading journal articles again. I've been reading for fun for the last 4 years. I have to relearn to read dense dry research. And I wonder why I haven't gotten started on that.

Teacher's College is a fantastic program. I know some people who have gone there and they both taught 2-3 years. That being said I don't really have much knowledge as to what the admissions committee there is looking for. I don't think I could gauge your chances that well, but I'll still throw in my two cents. I think you should go for it, and I think you should apply for the EdD. The prestige of your universities shouldn't make or break you because you aren't applying with only educational experience. You've been in the classroom and that brings knowledge that you can't get at any university no matter the prestige. You have a story and you want the EdD for a thought out and good reason. Admissions is a strange game and reading these boards will show you just how often people think they have no chance and get in or have all the "right" credentials and get a rejection. You have gotten to this place in your life by working. You have experience and maturity that many other candidates won't have. In my experience the numbers and facts get you thought the first round of cuts, but the meat of who you are and why your applying decide if you get a rejection letter or acceptance packet. Apply to TC, but apply a few other places too. You might find that you don't like the program as much as you thought and the state school you would be a better fit for you. So my advice, apply and don't let yourself be intimidated by other people's credentials. You have some impressive ones of your own.

That's crazy guys. Good Luck!!! I really really hope its good news!

That really sucks. However, keep your spirits up! Look its possible to have any combination of rejections, acceptances and wait lists. Could you be rejected from every school? You could be rejected this one and have offers for funding from the rest. Remember, its often about fit. If you got rejected, maybe you wouldn't have been happy there. I say go out, get dinner and a drink or two, or three with a friend. You can vent and move on to the next one. Good luck!

At this point I've pretty well accepted that I'm not getting in to UCLA, however I still have an insatiable need to hear the official answer. So my question is this, has anyone heard officially that they got in?

We're all in the same boat. Everyone is sitting around pressing the refresh button on their email hoping to be accepted, hoping to be wanted. Its like a middle school dance and looking around this forum it seems we have reverted back to middle school behaviors. We are putting each other down for no reason but a glimmer of hope that we will feel superior and no longer rejected. All of us were dumb enough to spend hundreds of dollars in application fees for this torture. No one is better than anyone else. Let's all take a moment step back and realize that the broad range of our interests and studies isn't a hierarchy but diversity.

I know it sucks, but yes I do say wait. They know you are eager and I'm sure in the interview you expressed a strong desire to attend their school. If they haven't decided yet, I wouldn't want the last contact to be at all negative. Asking about the decision could be a negative. If they have made the decision they'll let you know. I had an interview where the POI said I'd get an email from the department in two weeks. I got a package in the mail in 3. Waiting is the worst, but its my advice. Anyway you choose, Good Luck!!!

Congrats!!

I've seen a few people around that are applying to Ed Psych programs. I was just wondering who all is applying to PhD programs? Waiting. Is. Killing. Me.

I am not the person that claimed the admit earlier, but I did get in. I got notification two weeks ago. However, the professor I talked to seemed to say that each admitted student had to be basically chosen by their advisor. The professor's funding helps fund each Phd's tuition so maybe some professors were faster at choosing their grad students? I'm not sure.