plethora

I would echo the forward-looking advice by voxanonyma and just add that it's a tough numbers game. A prof at a top program (Harvard/Yale/Princeton) told me that this year they got 150 applications for 4 spots. And I doubt they will need to go deep into their waitlist, if at all. Assume that the majority of those applications satisfy the basic requirements in languages and other preparation; assume that the majority of those have glowing recommendations, great stats, etc. I truly think it comes down to program fit and some intangibles, as well as the brutal fact that there are simply not enough spots for the number of qualified applicants. I know all the generic rejection letters say this (and I've gotten my share of them), and it can be painful to hear and to accept, but it is sadly the truth. In any given year, the top programs could fill their cohorts several times over with qualified applicants. The good news is that there absolutely are strategies to improve one's application and to apply to programs with a good fit, as noted by other posters. I'm mostly a lurker but wanted to post to hopefully help with the coping and looking to the future!

Sitting in the train station in New Haven right now. My interview was okay. I thought my interviewers were incredibly nice (Peter Halley and Will I-forgot-his-last-name) and asked good questions....not sure how great my answers were though. Peter isn't even on the admissions committee and just wanted to be a part of the interview process. He was quite candid- since I just graduated, he said that taking additional time might be beneficial to me. He also recommended re-applying should I not succeed this time, as well as applying to West Coast schools. Weirdly, I was not nervous at all- I almost wish I had been, I think I might have done better.

I'm in a similar position, I have to respond to UIowa's funding by April 1, but I have an interview at Yale later this week. I spoke to UIowa and they told me they could extend the deadline somewhat, but told me that Yale's notification date is too late. So I'm going to speak to Yale about whether it's at all possible to hear notification earlier (doubt it, but worth a shot). I'd recommend calling CMU and asking for an extension, even of a few days, and also calling CalArts and UCSD to push them a bit on funding notification. Definitely also ask RISD whether they can tell you asap. Don't know why schools make life this difficult....there should be a standard notification and response deadline, just like for undergraduate colleges.

I heard from them about three weeks ago, they called to offer an acceptance. No interview beforehand.

I'm relatively new posting here. I am anxiously awaiting to hear from RISD and Columbia about interviews...as well as from UPenn on final decisions. The thing is, my old phone died and I had to replace it with a new phone and completely new phone number this past week. Do you guys think it is worth updating with individual schools just in case? congrats to those accepted and invited today!