jmacnomad

So I'm in my office today in a cyber-meeting and suddenly my phone beeps. Since this application business has made me addicted to any sound of notification from my communication channels, of course I pick up my phone to see what's up. Low and behold, I see that "Congratulations" that I've been waiting for so long. I GOT OFF THE WAITLIST at a fantastic program that I would be thrilled to attend. I'm so very happy. Of course, I have no idea what happened in the last 15 minutes of that meeting. I think I said "Oh that's interesting" a lot while I read my acceptance and funding letters. 5 years of funding as a TA. Life is good. Good luck to all those waiting. It certainly happens and I'm sending good karma to all.

PMed you

http://www.dchostel.com/ Or google "dc hostels" for other options.

Thanks Farnsworth and Everygirl! I've been living vicariously through other people, so I'll be sure to spread the love if I get good news!

One of the schools I'm waitlisted at emailed me last night to see if I was still a "free agent." I wrote them back and said "yes, yes, yes!" They said they hope to go out to some waitlisted candidates in the next day or so....Oh I hope it's me! Remaining optimistic...

I love it! Best story yet. Congrats!

You're welcome--RPCVs have to stick together! I was in Morocco 03-05. Where were you?

I agree with you that a international development masters in DC is going to be more interested in your work experience than your research, but they are also very interested in fit and potential. One idea is to see what is hot off the presses at GW in terms of international development and see if you can connect to that.(Did a prof write a new book, speak at a conference, produce some research? Did the program start a new partnership, get a new internship, or expand in a new direction?) It doesn't necessarily add anything to your resume, but it shows you're on top of your game and that you are a good fit at GW for xyz reasons. Since you recently responded to them, I'd send that email right after their deadline for their first pics to respond.

I agree with this. I visited the school I was admitted to without funding. One of the students I met had just finished her dissertation and she estimated that she was about $110k in debt! (Granted, this is an expensive private school). She was also teaching 9 classes at local community colleges while finishing her dissertation. She is superwoman, but I am not! I can't, and won't, do that considering I won't make much more than I'm making now my first year out of a PhD.

I've noticed a few other forums and results of people getting off the waitlist! Someone got off the list at on of the programs I'm waiting on. I'm trying to keep the faith. I feel like I live vicariously through people who get in off the wait list and are overjoyed. It makes me happy to see others feel relieved and excited.

Short is good! Don't start booking your tickets, but at least scope out the rentals!

This post gives me the warm fuzzies. I'm on the waitlist at my top two programs. Congrats! I'm vicariously happy for a cyber-stranger! Thanks for spreading the love!

I noticed someone got of the waitlist at UW. I'm waiting on that myself and curious as to what concentration that person is? Let me know if you're out there!

Wahoo! Congrats!

I know this feeling! I did my FAFSA for my unfunded program and I only have federal loan options for half of what I'd need to study there (it's a private school). Geez. I'm trying so hard to stay optimistic!

11 days to go!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Good luck everyone!

Still waiting....Thanks to all those who have shared your success stories! I've read through posts back to 2009 about getting off the waitlist. I'm trying to stay positive by reading about other people's success. As the 15th approaches, I'm needing this more and more! Right now I have no funded admits and I'm just hoping that one still works out. Best of luck to all those out there still waiting.

This is 4-6 years of your life you are talking about. It's very important for you and your spouse to be in a place that makes you both happy.

Hurray! That's wonderful news even if you're pissy about it. I'm happy for you at least!

Thanks! Let me know what you end up deciding and good luck!

I agree with this statement and I would also look up the schools you are applying to on the results page to see what scores people who were accepted got. For example, I believe that NYU prefers above 600 on both parts of the test, but you'll have to check it out to see for sure.

I don't know how the waitlist works, but based on how some other programs work, here is my educated guess. The facts: They decided mid-feb on their first round of offers and they are currently waiting to hear back from a critical mass of those (someone on this forum said they went out with 12 offers). They rejected some candidates and left others in a pool to be decided on later. These two points are factual as far as I can tell. The guess: They will meet again in the next couple of weeks and go out with a second round of offers. They'll draw from the pool left over from the first round. The pool is unranked at the moment and who gets in will depend on who accepted from the first round. They'll want to make sure their cohort is diverse in terms of academic interests and backgrounds. Who knows, I may have missed the mark here. But, that's my attempt to make sense of the madness!

Hi Poj, I'm from the US and I've had to do some research to figure out the whole April 15th thing! From what people have said on this forum and other places, you first have to figure out what your top choices are. If Umass is your top choice, then its best to pick one of the other programs as back-up and notify the the third that you decline. Then, if you still haven't heard from Umass by the 15th, then you ask your second choice for a decision extension. This approach obviously only works if Umass is your first choice. If it isn't, then you don't have to wait and you can decide between your other two offers. Good luck figuring it out!

Bueller? It's been so quite around here it's eery. Anyone heard news (even gossip) from UMass?

Although the following idea would not work for everyone, it certainly proved to be a great option for me during my masters. I taught yoga, aerobic kickboxing, and karate and got paid between $20-30 an hour. What was great about that is that I got paid to do my workout. It's good stress relief for grad school and it provides a break from the computer that many other jobs don't. If you are athletic and coordinated, I'd recommend looking into certificate programs that would give you your foot in the door. I'm planning to work as a fitness/karate instructor during grad school whether I have a TA ship or not!