TXTiger2012

Were you accepted with funding? The interview could be to award fellowships, TA's, etc...Just an educated guess, this is the first I've heard of an interview post-acceptance. Or maybe to match you with a POI, if you aren't already? Since you're accepted it certainly shouldn't be a bad sign!

I can't answer for FoggyAnhinga, but one of the POI's I applied to said that they were specifically writing me in as a potential graduate student in their NSF grants. I didn't ask for details (and ultimately chose to not attend there, so I guess it doesn't matter), but I would assume they were asking for some combination of RA funds (should I not receive a fellowship) and money for supplies I would use during projects. So no, I didn't apply for funds outside of university scholarships and the GRFP, but once I'd reached the "serious" stage with each POI, they did start including me in their budgets for new proposals. Also, I think the competition in marine science programs is mostly dependent on your field. Of course, the "name" programs like WHOI and Scripps will always have an influx of applications, just like Harvard and Yale do. But (correct me if I'm wrong), the fields that deal with so-called charismatic megafauna are usually much more competitive than other oceanographic disciplines. I mean, plenty of kids grow up and go to college because they want to swim with dolphins/seals/sharks, but how many grew up wanting to study planktonic larvae or deep sea sediment? Not to knock those fields at all (!), they just don't usually hook people in elementary school Competition for funding, especially through a department or university, is definitely increasing though. Then again, it could all be the bad luck of 2008 and 2009 HS graduates. I graduated in '08 and seem to remember a news story that it was the largest graduating class in history, nationwide. For all I know, the numbers are still going up.

@nl03- I hope you really are joking about turning down this program should they admit you. While the people involved may be totally willing to accept their responsibility in this whole mess, in the form of kindly re-reviewing your application, they may not be too enthused to find that their good faith and efforts ultimately went unappreciated. I may be totally in the wrong here, so if everyone disagrees with me, please be kind! But personally, if I was involved in this situation (on the adcomm's end), I would assume that you've pursued resolving the problem because you would have enrolled if admitted. I understand that in some situations (this school doesn't offer you any funding, but another program does), turning them down makes sense. But if they aren't your top program, or at least in your top two, and you end up turning down an offer, this may end up working against you considering how small the academic community is. I want to emphasize that I want this to work out for the best for you! Just consider the long-term repercussions of your response to a final admissions decision, if you haven't already

Did the "main" Fastlane page do down last year when they posted results, or just the GRFP page? Because my main Fastlane is down, as well as the GRFP

DOWN Web Site Unavailability FastLane will be unavailable from 11:00 PM ET Thursday March 29th - 5:00 AM ET Friday, March 30th for scheduled maintenance. We apologize for any inconvenience. Thank you for visiting our site.

Yeah, exactly. There's a link to that on the GRFP log-in page. Its been labeled as the 2012 Award Offered List for at least a couple weeks, I can't remember exactly when they changed it.

You mean on the homepage, before you sign in? It's said "2012" for a while, just under the heading is an asterisk saying this year's list isn't available yet.

I'll "third" the advice already given. Regardless of who is in the wrong, you keeping a cool head and calm tone of voice (even when you feel like there's a volcano going off inside you!) is going to win you the respect and sympathetic ear that will hopefully get this resolved to your benefit. The higher ups handling this will definitely notice your maturity and professionalism in a situation that you could understandably fly off the handle over. Good luck!!

It sounds like your mind really is made up, based on the info you've given. I'm in the same place- pretty much picked a program but reluctant to send in paperwork. It may just be nerves over committing to what you think is such a huge decision in your life, and it is a big choice! I say take a deep breath, sign that contract to school A, and look forward to spending the next 5 years at a university that will make you happy

I think the OP is asking about souvenir type clothing from the campus bookstore, and not what to wear for the actual visit haha If this is the case, I recommend a t-shirt! Unless you're a hat person, then a ballcap works well too. Sweatshirts are so bulky, that if you have one you don't really need to take up space with a second, but that's simply my way of thinking

Y'all are either very bored or very crazy. And please, I don't mean that in a derisive way at all! More of a friendly, teasing, "My god, I wish I had the time to graph that all out" kind of way

If you had no one-on-one contact with professors, the short email to admissions is fine. But I agree that if you've had extended correspondence with one or two professors at an institution, its only polite to send them a more personal email letting them know your decision. It doesn't have to be long, just clearly sent to them alone. A simple "Thank you very much for the help you've been during this process. I've chosen to attend ABC University, but I very much hope to see you at conference/meetings/etc in the future. Best of luck with the rest of your semester..." There's no need to gush, and as others have said, unless you're a prodigy they probably aren't crushed you've chosen another university. But I feel safe in saying that they will remember a student they invested even a small amount of time in, and were then never informed of a decision, or thanked for their help.

I also thought about freaking out, before realizing how early that would be to announce fellows. However, for what its worth, I talked to a fellow applicant today and they said that DDIG has already been announced and GRFP usually is the next thing to put out. Just another tidbit to over analyze!

I always say Prof. or Dr. So-and-So until I'm explicitly told by them, preferably in person, that I should address them by their first name. Many professors may sign e-mails with their first name, or an abbreviated last name, out of habit or convenience and aren't necessarily aware that they're sending mixed signals about what you should call them. If they want to be called by their first name, they'll bring it up when you use their formal title, at least that has always been my experience. However, I would hope that 90-99% of professors would not make a big deal out of being addressed informally if they haven't yet told you you can.

@Neuropsychologist, I'm confused like virion. Its clear you're working in a lab, but your phrasing makes it sound like your supervisor is currently pursuing a PhD herself, instead of being faculty. Is that the case, or are your stats being misread?

As a heads up, USF has started rolling out decisions. Admits will get an e-mail with a PDF of the decision (plus any funding), along with a physical letter through the mail. Rejections are e-mail only. Good luck!

I have to side with Behavioral here. In the student handbooks I've encountered, they are very clear somewhere in the introductory sections that any information in it can be changed without notifying students, and before the next school year's edition is released, and that its the student's responsibility to consult a counselor/advisor/dean when they have questions. I can understand how upsetting this experience must have been, but I also doubt you are the first PhD student that has gone through this. Did you have any kind of calm conversation with your advisor or other committee members before meeting with the dean? While this may not be popular, I still want to throw out there that this desire to "punish" your committee for a (albeit heavy) criticism of your thesis may indicate that a PhD program isn't the path for you. Again, I totally understand how crushing it is to work very hard on a project/paper/presentation and have it picked apart by faculty, but in an academic environment that's how things operate and how you're expected to learn and improve. My best advice, whatever course of action you take, is to be reasonable and calm. Do not under any circumstances approach this in a combative manner, or from the standpoint of punishing anyone. This will only hurt your chances of being taken seriously and having this resolved. Good luck!

After I hit the "submit" button I promised myself I wouldn't look at the essays until decisions had been made, and so far I've succeeded! I'll only find more things to nitpick, which will make the waiting even worse. Definitely resist the temptation if you can, it'll keep you a little more sane!

To your first question, it depends. One school I have been accepted to specifically told me that any funding offers would be put forth in my official letter of admission (I've already gotten an unofficial e-mail). Another school only sends an acceptance letter, with funding handled separately since I applied for university-wide fellowships. If you aren't in a time crunch to notify any other schools about accepting/declining, my advice would be to wait until you get your official letter. If it has funding, then great (congrats)! If not, you have an acceptable springboard to contact your POI and ask about the timeline for notification of funding, if you're receiving it.

Has anyone else here applied to/heard from VIMS (marine sciences)?

For my most recent visit, I sent a quick thank you note to the POI I interviewed with, and the grad secretary (who was also really helpful during the application process). The e-mails were only a couple sentences, "thank you for having me...the weekend was really fun/informative/helpful/enjoyable/etc...I look forward to keeping in touch". I was aiming for appreciative, but not brown-nosing. I read a handful of my POI's most recent papers before the visit, just to get an idea of the direction he was headed. But I also skimmed papers of potential faculty during the application process. Don't ask questions about them just to impress the prof, but if there's something you're genuinely curious about then go ahead! Like coonskee said, everything else should be common sense. Please/thank you, chew with your mouth closed, and if there's alcohol present at an event you're attending with the "adults" keep it to one or two drinks. If the grads take you out you can have a little more fun, but don't get sloppy

I found gentle persistence, if that isn't an oxymoron, to be the best way to get in touch with faculty you're interested in working with. Oftentimes, they'll "ignore" your first request to get in touch just because so many applicants will send out blanket e-mails to any professor remotely connected to their field. Or they are genuinely too busy and your message got lost in the shuffle of daily correspondence. After a week-ish, if I hadn't gotten a reply I'd send a follow up restating that I was interested in learning more about their lab, if they had any openings for a graduate student, and offering to pass along any documents (transcript, resume) they'd like to see. That usually did the trick! And one rejection is definitely not the end of the world

I don't know how it would work with professors getting in touch with an applicant. I had established some kind of e-mail correspondence with POIs at all my schools before I applied, even if it was just to establish that they were open to taking on new students. So they already knew I was interested and vice versa. But like sansao said, don't automatically assume you're rejected! Especially since you're an international applicant, that process may be handled completely different from domestic students.

You aren't necessarily rejected from USF. I don't think all the professors who wanted to meet applicants got to invite them, for budgeting or other reasons. Official decisions should be sent out in the next week-ish, but if you're feeling impatient (which I don't blame you for haha), go ahead and e-mail them!

@Bionerd I applied to the Master's program, but there were plenty of PhD applicants at the recruitment weekend I was at too. I only applied to USF, TAMU, and VIMS. I can't speak for any other programs, but definitely e-mail the grad secretary, Dawna, at USF if you have questions about your application. She is incredibly nice, helpful, and usually quick to reply!