lepisostidae

Does anyone have any idea what's going on with U Tennessee's bioanth/forensics program? There were some rejections posted mid-February, but I didn't receive one and haven't heard anything from the department. It seems like in past years they've given decisions pretty late in the game, but I'm curious as to what's going on and wondered if there was anyone who knew. I thought I'd check here before I emailed the department, since I feel a little strange about doing that. (I'm in somewhere else and very excited about it, but I'd kind of like to know what all my options are before I accept.)

I'm applying right out of undergrad to bio anth programs, and I seem to have done okay with acceptances. (I'm in three places - waiting to hear from a few more!) Obviously, I'm not sure exactly what helped me get in, but here's some advice that numerous undergrad advisors and research advisors told me that I used in my applications. 1. Grad programs are looking for people who are capable of doing independent research. If you have research experience, I've been told that it really helps to emphasize it in your SOP, and to connect that research to the project you're hoping to work on. It also helps to emphasize independent roles you had while doing research, whether it was designing your own experiment or organizing other students. 2. Make your SOP as focused as possible. When you're talking about research interests, make it specific, frame it in the context of current theories/debates in the field, and use details. A lot of people talk really broadly in this portion of their application, and I've been told that a lot of schools are looking for something very specific. It also helps to frame your SOP to the particular school you're looking at; I mentioned particular resources at each school that I thought would make it a great fit for the research I wanted to do and talked about specific people I thought that I could work well with. You're arguing to a committee not just that you want to go to grad school, but that you want to go to grad school there - out of all the places you could go to study, say, modern human variation, why is University X the best fit? Obviously, there are people here with a lot more experience than me, but maybe this will help as a jumping off point!

I've been sort of lurking, but I saw a couple of people asking about ASU. I'm definitely sorry to share what I think might not be great news, but it's probably better than waiting. I got admitted to physical anthropology and got called last Monday. They sent me my official letter and a fellowship offer via email this week, along with information about their recruiting weekend for all the anthro admits, which is March 3rd. I got the impression multiple programs had made decisions, but it's possible I'm off base with that. Also, I got admitted to OSU, but that's a little less clear - I got an acceptance letter from the graduate admissions officer of the college on Wednesday, but I haven't heard anything from the department, including info about funding. Also, to the person waiting to hear about UNM, I know EvAnth has gotten in touch with their accepted candidates, but I don't know about the other programs. I know everyone here is waiting, and I'm rooting for everyone! Here's hoping we'll all end up someplace that's a good fit for us!