djp2

Got mine too, thanks! A small relief, although now the real wait begins.

Has anyone applying independently or at a foreign school heard back from SSHRC about receipt of their application yet? I'm at the University of Michigan, and sent mine in Nov. 4th. I was expecting to at least get a notification that they had received it, but so far nothing.

Thanks, I'll let him know. That's unfortunate, but pretty much what I expected.

One of my referees is having trouble answering all of SSHRC's questions within the one-page limit for the Letter of Appraisal. He's wondering if he can append a second page or if that will incur wrath and fury. Unfortunately I think I have to tell him that no, he can't add a second page. Any insights on this?

Vancouver has excellent transit, so you can be pretty flexible when choosing a place to live. The cheapest apartments will be further out (New Westminster, Burnaby, Commercial Drive) but if you do choose to live out there, be sure to find a place near a Skytrain station. This will make all the difference. I lived downtown (in the West End) with two roommates during my first year and paid $725, but it was a cramped living situation. If I was doing it all again, I'd probably find an apartment somewhere along the Canada Line (which goes down Cambie Street). From Cambie, there are express buses that run to UBC along Broadway (9th Ave), 25th Ave, 41st Ave, 49th Ave, and (I believe) 70th Ave/Marine Drive. So almost anywhere along Cambie is convenient to UBC, but it's also very easy to get downtown from there. For me, it was the best of both worlds.

I managed to live on $17,500 during the second year of my MA at UBC. I had roommates and I had to be frugal, but it wasn't too bad. I assume you'll be working or applying for additional research grants for the summer months? 17k will be just enough for Sept. through April from my experience.

Would it be hard to find a nice Kerrytown apartment in late March? I've heard that sooner is better, but I won't be able to get to Ann Arbor until the end of the month. Aside from Kerrytown (which it seems everyone agrees is great for grad students) and maybe the Old West Side, are there other neighbourhoods I should be looking at? It's a bit confusing when just staring at a map. My needs are pretty modest, but I'd prefer a nicer studio or 1-bedroom with off street parking for no more than $1000. Is this realistic, assuming I also want to be close to shops and central campus? And if anyone happens to be moving next fall and is leaving behind a great place, I'd love to hear about it!

Congrats! I'll be crossing my fingers for you!

I heard unofficially from my POI this morning - no official e-mail yet though.

Ha I loved that one. My POI at the University of Pheonix was very encouraging but I still haven't heard anything from them

Yes, haha. More of a typo I guess.

I wonder where the Princeton admits are. Did they just reject everyone this year?

Glaring grammar mistake in the Princeton rejection letter - but alas, still a rejection.

A definitive "no" definitely feels better than endless uncertainty! Glad I could pass on a bit of info about Columbia's process, even if it's bad news.

Just got an informal rejection e-mail from my POI at Columbia. Sounds like all the acceptances have definitely gone out already.

Another Columbia admit just went up. Guess it's time to cross that one off the list. Two down, two to go..

Congrats to kdavid, catsandscarves, and everyone else who has heard good news so far!

Can I ask how you were notified of your acceptance? Was it an official email from administration or an unofficial email from your POI?

You and me both.

I hope you're right! I'd rather get all of this out of the way sooner rather than later, even if it's a disappointment!

Looking through last year's posts, it seems the first Thursday in February was a busy day for acceptances in 2013 (Columbia, Princeton and others) but it seems to be pretty quiet on the results board today. Wonder if the weather is having an effect. The waiting is driving me crazy.

Harvard does seem to be open today. Nothing on the results board from Harvard though (and nothing in my inbox...sob.) Wouldn't this be a bit early for them anyway?

I only applied to four, so I'm feeling pretty hopeless. I'm trying to convince myself that there's basically no chance. That way I can (theoretically) avoid disappointment.

My interview (which I forgot to upload to the results page) was very informal, and my POI indicated that professors have no input with the adcom beyond ranking the candidates in their field and submitting that list for consideration. The interviews aren't formally conducted by the adcom but are arranged at each professor's individual initiative. Or at least that's the impression I got. So your POI could have chosen not to conduct interviews for whatever reason. I wouldn't presume that if you haven't gotten an interview you're out of the running.

The precipitation in Vancouver is pretty seasonal -- winter is wet, spring and fall are mixed, and summers are about the driest and sunniest you'll find anywhere in Canada, except maybe Victoria. There are a lot of weather myths about Vancouver, in my experience. The biggest element of the climate is greyness. It's grey almost all the time in the winter and early spring. But summer is the opposite - very ideal weather, especially in July and August.