doctorwho

Yeah this one ought to be irrelevant to applicants. (I say "ought" because it obviously can add to the stress of the situation). If you're serious about applying to a PhD program, I don't see how this would affect you. It's not like you're going to do anything differently, right? Presumably you're already giving it your best shot, so I don't see how this is relevant news to serious applicants. I guess if you get in, you feel even better about yourself, and if you don't get in, at least you have some consolation that it was "one of those really tough years."

Hey Everyone, I was really feeling down this week about my chances and I just thought I'd share what helped get me through. No matter what happens here, just remember that when one door shuts, another one opens. You've probably heard other people say that, but I think it's true: You just have to find which door that is because it may not be immediately apparent. And if you don't get in where you really had hoped (or anywhere at all!), it doesn't mean that you're not good enough. It may be any number of things, including a poor fit which just means you've got to pick yourself up and move on to Plan B. So, chin up! Hang in there, and who knows? If you don't get in this year, then maybe you can find out what sunk you and turn in a stellar application next year. It hasn't always been fun, but at least the company was good. Thank you all for the good company.

Yeah I'd say it's pretty bad. But hey, it's not official until Monday, right? (See IRHopeful's post above). Maybe they still have a few more to notify...

Hey another Stanford admit on the board. Are they still calling folks?

Yeah, I thought something along those lines, too. Like maybe they came in and said, "Woah, this is a long list of acceptances. Well, better get started on making these calls early!" :roll:

It's crazy they made phone calls so early in the morning, if the time some of those were posted (7:45am?) was soon after they called. Maybe they're calling East Coasters first...

No Berkeley email in my inbox... too bad. Of course I'm disappointed, but it's also somewhat of a relief. Even liberating. Like now I don't have to hit "refresh" quite as often. Congratulations to all those who received acceptances! Jobs well done to be sure.

And how did you hear about Berkeley?

Wow!!! So exciting! Congratulations!!!

Couldn't have said it any better myself! My mother-in-law doesn't know I've applied and she's coming over to babysit today. This means either no checking the forum for results - or I have to sneak glances. But I'd be much happier if we had some news before she arrives in about an hour. Say, you think the DGS would be sympathetic and give me a sneak peek at results? Yeah right! :wink:

I agree. Not only that, but it seems reasonable that there may be more applications this year which could lengthen the process. But without inside knowledge, we gotta go on something!

Quiet before the storm, no doubt.

Awesome!! Congratulations.

Can't speak to Yale, but based on my dream last night (a completely reliable source, right?) I'd say today is THE day for Berkeley or Stanford. I dreamed that I was at an admitted students preview day, but I still didn't know if I was accepted! I had these stacks of papers to look through, and I kept looking for one that said "Congratulations!" but couldn't find one... so frustrating. For Stanford, since most acceptances seem to come via telephone call, shouldn't I be relieved if I have an empty inbox?? No email news is GOOD news, right??

Interesting discussion of family and how much prior experience matters in that linked thread. Noting that there are a wide variety of students enrolled in PhD programs, I think the only conclusion I can draw is that adcomms value a variety of qualifications. It was definitely heartening to hear about the department that kept statistics and concluded that people with my profile - i.e. "older" [30], with kid(s) - correlate with high success rates. Woohoo! Now to get accepted... :-)

Oh man, I know what you mean, PoliSci Guy! We've got a one-year-old and it is SO darned hard to actively put energy into Plan B without knowing one way or the other. Well, shouldn't be more than a week or few now.

1:30am?? They must do it on purpose just to keep us on edge for as much of the day as possible. Wow. Seems so cruel!

Because you mentioned it, PollyTheory, I'll come out of the woodwork, too. I discovered the forum just last week so I'm a late-comer (December and January waiting was easy. February, not so easy...) My interests are on the impact of new technology on democracy, the problem of organizing aggregate knowledge, and the efficacy of unelected bodies. I applied as a student of theory and comparative politics. I applied only to Berkeley and Stanford. My wife and I have done a lot of moving around in the past few years and I promised we'd stay put for the near future. Before you label me as overconfident (or at least overly optimistic), let me at least agree that both of these programs are long-shots for anyone, and me definitely included. We'll see what happens this year, and if another move becomes possible for us in the future then maybe I'll broaden my search in the next round. With all the waiting I find myself playing mind games like "Which would be worse? Continued waiting or discovering I didn't get in?" Sometimes I'm tempted to say just get it over with! But then I fool myself into thinking that the longer I wait, the higher my chances of acceptance are. Totally irrational, I know... back to refreshing the inbox and the results board... Good luck to everyone!

Huh - goes to show you what I get for checking out those other crappy "Who Got In"-type websites. Bad info! I figure any way I can legitimately fool myself into expecting to hear later is only a good thing... lowers the anxiety level.

It seems to me that this week may be early for Berkeley. Aren't they usually a week after Stanford? Stanford may run late this year since they haven't notified yet. Also, on Jan 20th UCB posted on the application site: Considering that one of the forum members was just contacted in the past few days about a late LOR, it seems like they are not that close to final decisions. I'm not saying it'll necessarily be the end of February, but considering schools may be dealing with 10 - 15% more applications this year, I wouldn't be surprised if many ran a week or so late with notifications. Anyone else notice that other schools are notifying later this year than previous years?

I totally agree, plisar. I sometimes find it's helpful to remind myself of the big picture: The vast majority of people who apply to these schools don't get in, and an even greater number of people don't ever apply at all. And you know what? Neither of those factors prevents one from still pursuing a fulfilling career or living a happy life... or applying again next year!

Wow, this is really late in the game to be hearing that kind of news. Makes me think that maybe they're still compiling their applications and haven't yet made any major decisions then. Could be a bit longer for Berkeley then. All of that says that it's not automatically bad news for you APDemon - why would they contact you about a missing letter just to reject you? The rest of your application must look pretty good. I don't want to raise hopes falsely, but that's what I'd be thinking.