fox44

I understand the feeling. We don't want to let anyone down. Let me encourage you, though, by saying that it is a normal part of the application process for a school to make an offer and then have it declined. In all likelihood there are no hard feeling from the program you turned down. They understand that you may have really liked their school but found a position that fit you better somewhere else. In fact, they were probably quite pleased to have your decision this early. By letting them know that you will decline their offer ASAP, it gives them a better chance to land a top student. It sounds like you did everything right to me. If you feel confident that you made the right decision, then feel good about it--very, very good about it. Congrats on the admittances!

Don't give up quite yet. I was in the same position with my top choice. The results section was filled with people posting their acceptances/rejections, but I hadn't heard anything. I emailed them asking about my status and they said that I was being considered for the wait-list. Most likely, you weren't selected for their first round of acceptances; however, you weren't selected for their first round of rejections either. They are probably considering whether to put you on the wait-list or how high to put you on the wait-list.

Thanks for the info. Do you (or anyone) know if they rank their waitlist?

Some 20-30 people have already put up their admissions result for the Notre Dame doctoral program in philosophy. I, however, have yet to hear anything. Am I alone in this? Is this good news or bad news?