no thanks

Thanks everyone for sharing, especially those of you who have experienced this situation and have survived to tell the tale! A smorgasbord of good advice. Also, MadameNon, *so many points* for the fantastic metaphor extension. How perfectly crafted. I'm glad that using HP references to lighten the occasionally gloomy gradcafe mood is an idea that you can get behind, too.

I have a question about grad school culture that I'm hoping those wiser and more experienced than myself can answer. Here's the situation: I applied to 14 phd programs, and got a resounding "NO THANKS" from 13. They were all fantastic programs, and all "we regret to inform you...'s". But THEN, I got accepted to a place which, for the sake of anonymity, we'll call Hogwarts. THE Hogwarts. The HOLY CRAP an OWL just brought me a LETTER HOGWARTS. The Hogwarts where all the young Aurors graduate and get jobs, even though they aren't scientist and doctors, and there probably aren't any more dark wizards anyways, because Voldemort is toast. You get the picture. I was the happiest, most grateful no-longer-a-muggle on planet earth. Here's the question: I imagine that the majority of the other admits will probably be considering--and in many cases turning down-- several other offers before starting in the fall. Like Beauxbatons, for example. Is there a weird graduate school thing about sizing each other up r.e. other offers, etc? Should I be prepared for awkward moments when asked the where-else-did-you-get-in question? Has anyone ever been made to feel like second-class citizens for sneaking through the app process with a single, albeit glorious, offer? Should I be preparing myself for awkward moments? Thanks in advance for sharing any experiences.