NOWAYNOHOW

AW! Chin up.  Sorry dude.
 
 
 
Nope, UPenn hasn't moved yet.  Or at least I don't think so.  But I haven't heard anything online or off, and I know their stated deadline was flexible according to admissions, so maybe they are just running behind.

I have to say this is patently untrue for many programs.  I know for a fact that a lot of faculty are against this very practice (throwing out applications because of cutoffs) and that in their departments they make sure that all applications are considered holistically by the committee, even if it is only a brief consideration.  Maybe this is an issue directly related to funding and the size of the program, or it has to do with growing resistance in humanities and social science to ETS, but it is safe to say that not all programs have someone sifting through files and chucking ones with low GRE and GPA. 

Fringe is SO good, if only I could watch it again for the first time. I really like research shows/movies - any film where there's a strong element of problem solving...
 
Recently been watching:
Annika Bengtzon: Crime Reporter
The Bletchley Circle
Dirk Gently (Amazon prime)
 
Old standbys that I return to include: STTNG; Stargate SG-1, Atlantis; ST: Voyager; Doctor Who; Sherlock
 
And keeping up with the new episodes of AHS: Coven

Hahah I like this idea. I have been rewating the West Wing for like the 3rd time. Before that I watched Alias again from start to finish

I binge-watched The Wire in the first two weeks of the year. It's pretty much ruined television for me - I just can't take anything else seriously after that. Fringe was fantastic though.

Which school meets on the 31st?  Gotta get that gossip going.

Which school meets on the 31st?  Gotta get that gossip going.

Which school meets on the 31st?  Gotta get that gossip going.

I've seen the rubric sheets given to faculty during the committee meetings and the knowledge of how things are ranked has haunted me ever since.  Sure, it makes me feel better that my most glaring weakness is not generally an issue for my discipline, but that doesn't make the whole process any less terrifying.
 
I'm prone to anxiety, but I have to remind myself that I am my harshest critic.  I think the same goes for most applicants, at least those with decent self-knowledge and similarly anxious tendencies.  We will always fixate on the things we've done wrong, but not give nearly enough weight to our successes.  So, yeah, the committee is going to frown upon my Q GRE, and probably notice I'm missing two punctuation marks in my SOP, but I have to also hope that they will be impressed by my accomplishments and inspired by my proposal. 
 
So don't beat yourself up during these imaginary committee meetings.  No matter what you think, your imaginary committee is probably a lot less forgiving than the ones your applications will face in real life.

I have to say this is patently untrue for many programs.  I know for a fact that a lot of faculty are against this very practice (throwing out applications because of cutoffs) and that in their departments they make sure that all applications are considered holistically by the committee, even if it is only a brief consideration.  Maybe this is an issue directly related to funding and the size of the program, or it has to do with growing resistance in humanities and social science to ETS, but it is safe to say that not all programs have someone sifting through files and chucking ones with low GRE and GPA. 

I have to assume many schools like Yale, NYU, Columbia are making up for a day or two lost, but even so, we aren't historically going to hear until later. The last couple years on the results page have the bulk of notifications going out in mid-February until mid-March, so it is still quite early. Interview requests usually don't go out until, earliest, late-January, and that was really just Emory and Duke last year...
 
Not that I have been looking this stuff up.  I totally have other stuff to do.

I will first swear quite a bit. 

I can't speak to all of your questions, but the advice I got always boiled down to looking forward.  Don't focus on what you should or could have taken; instead, briefly highlight your relevant course and work experience after presenting a cohesive and engaging research plan.  If your proposal demonstrates that you understand the field, and where your work might fit into the field, then committees will focus on what you know, not what you don't know. Develop your plan for graduate school, and don't dwell too much on undergraduate regrets. 
 
I also wouldn't say this seems like you're coming to the discipline late in your academic career.  If you aren't in grad school yet, then it is rather early in your career!  Anyway, I'm several years out of undergrad, and I'm about the average age of people in my MA program applying for the PhD.  I know people in their 40s applying too!  I don't think you need to explain why you are coming to these interests late, but perhaps why you are coming to them at all.  Is there a significant need for further scholarship on your subject?  Does your topic advance research in similar areas of interest?  etc...
 
Hope that helps!

Oh, I think rereading is a horrible habit.  I reread my SOP and found a missing comma in an in-text citation AND a missing quotation mark.  On one hand, how could I have not noticed?  On the other, how could my THREE readers not notice?  This process is the WORST.

Oh, I think rereading is a horrible habit.  I reread my SOP and found a missing comma in an in-text citation AND a missing quotation mark.  On one hand, how could I have not noticed?  On the other, how could my THREE readers not notice?  This process is the WORST.

I can't speak to all of your questions, but the advice I got always boiled down to looking forward.  Don't focus on what you should or could have taken; instead, briefly highlight your relevant course and work experience after presenting a cohesive and engaging research plan.  If your proposal demonstrates that you understand the field, and where your work might fit into the field, then committees will focus on what you know, not what you don't know. Develop your plan for graduate school, and don't dwell too much on undergraduate regrets. 
 
I also wouldn't say this seems like you're coming to the discipline late in your academic career.  If you aren't in grad school yet, then it is rather early in your career!  Anyway, I'm several years out of undergrad, and I'm about the average age of people in my MA program applying for the PhD.  I know people in their 40s applying too!  I don't think you need to explain why you are coming to these interests late, but perhaps why you are coming to them at all.  Is there a significant need for further scholarship on your subject?  Does your topic advance research in similar areas of interest?  etc...
 
Hope that helps!

I have a lot on my spreadsheet -- over 15, but I know I have to cut some off the list.  I'm concerned because I am geographically limited and also coming from outside the discipline, so I feel like I have to apply to ALL the schools within a reasonable distance.  I am going to try and cut it down to 12, because I'm not sure about fit and my ability to juggle so many apps!  Still, I don't think 12 is excessive.  With funding being the way it is, and schools taking very few students from large applicant pools, why take a chance on 5 when you can increase your odds with 12?  It costs more to apply, but if your goal (like mine) is to be SOMEWHERE by fall, then it might take that many applications...

here is mine:
 
Undergrad Institution: Western Illinois University
Major(s): Anthropology w/ physical emphasis
Minor(s): Zoology/ Law Enforcement and Justice Administration
GPA in Major: 4.0
Overall GPA: 3.99
Length of Degree: Community College = Jan ‘08 – May ‘10      University = Aug ‘10 – Dec ‘12
Position in Class: Top 7 %
Type of Student: Domestic/male/white (33 yrs old)

GRE Scores:
Q: 141
V: 150
W: 4.0

Research Experience:
Archeological Field School – Orendorf site in Canton IL
Study Abroad London England for Criminal Justice
Study trip at UT Knoxville Forensic Anthropology Center

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY – Macomb, IL
Designed and created a former professor’s website, 2012 Acceptance in the “Who’s Who Among Students In America’s Colleges and Universities” national recognition program for scholarship, leadership, and service, 2012 College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s list (semester honors), 2010-2013 Law Enforcement & Justice Administration Academic Excellence Award for 4.0 GPA, 2011 COLLEGE OF DUPAGE – Glen Ellyn, IL
Invited speaker at the foundation board meeting regarding my honors and scholarships, 2010 Student essay contest winner – 3rd place, 2010 President/Webmaster of the Academy of Law & Criminal Justice club, 2008-2010 Student Activities Certificate of Excellence Award – for leadership and dedication while serving as President of the Academy of Law & Criminal Justice, 2009 and 2010 Invited speaker at the Career and Technology Center in Addison, IL by Professor Deborah Klein, it was to address Criminal Justice high school students about my career goals in forensics, 2008  
SCHOLARSHIPS/FELLOWSHIPS_____________________________________________________________________________
 
UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA - LINCOLN, Lincoln, NE
Graduate Teaching Assistantship Tuition Waiver/Stipend – UNL Anthropology Department, 2013 Edgren Graduate Tuition Fellowship – UNL Anthropology Department, 2013 WESTERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY – Macomb, IL
Mellinger Foundation Academic Scholarship – Edward Arthur Mellinger Educational Foundation, 2012 Summer School Academic Scholarship – WIU Financial Aid, 2012 Civil Service Employee's Dependent Scholarship (President’s Choice) – WIU Human Resources, 2012 SGA Academic Scholarship – WIU Student Government Association, 2012 International Association for Identification (IAI) Forensic Academic Scholarship – Johnson-Whyte Memorial Foundation, 2010/2011/2012 Academic Excellence Undergraduate Transfer Scholarship – WIU Foundation, 2010-2012 COLLEGE OF DUPAGE – Glen Ellyn, IL
Achievers Academic Excellence Scholarship – COD Foundation, 2009-2010 Donald J. Craft Criminal Justice Memorial Scholarship – COD Foundation, 2009 Michael Browning Criminal Justice Memorial Scholarship – COD Foundation, 2009
Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
Study trip at UT Knoxville Forensic Anthropology Center
Archeological Field School - Orendorf site in Canton IL

Thanks for your responses! 
 
Dal PhDer, Uromastyx, since I'm looking at these opportunities as chances to refine my presentations and get better at publicly speaking about my work, I suppose participating can't hurt.  I also want to add more academic work to my CV (now it is mostly cool and irrelevant professional experience from a former career) so a graduate conference here and there will hopefully show I'm comitted and ambitious. 
 
I am always on the lookout for bigger conferences, but I'm not always a great fit for the conference theme (oddball topic in a small field) and not sure I'm capable of succesfully presenting at that level yet anyway.  I hope practice makes perfect!

I don't want to get TOO specific, but I applied to program X and program X has already sent out all of their notifications, including rejections and wait list information.

I hadn't heard anything, so I figured that maybe they were staggering notifications. I emailed someone in admissions and that person informed me my file was still under review, which struck me as odd considering I know the majority of decisions had already been made. I shrugged it off.

The next day, I saw a post on another blog from a fellow applicant to program X saying that someone in the department had called offering a spot in the program, and had apologized for the delay as they had misplaced a stack of applications and only noticed they had missed these until after all notifications had gone out. They said this would be the final admitted applicant.

I didn't want to assume I was in that stack of misplaced applications, so I politely emailed the person who contacted the other applicant requesting a status update and received no response. When I followed up with my contact in admissions (they had promised to make an inquiry to the department on my behalf) I was informed that they hadn't responded to the initial request. At this point, I have to assume my file is one of the ones that was overlooked during the initial admissions process and is only being reviewed now.

Of course I expect that since program X has already admitted the new class, I will be rejected regardless of the quality of my work. Still, no one will admit to me that yes, my application was misplaced.

Am I jumping to conclusions? Or am I right to ask for my application fee back if I am rejected next week with no explanation or admission of guilt on the program's part?

Normally I wouldn't make a big deal about something like this, but I only applied to this program and am totally qualified to attend! I made it clear to the program that if offered a spot, I will accept...but now I'm stuck in limbo! Help!

I don't want to get TOO specific, but I applied to program X and program X has already sent out all of their notifications, including rejections and wait list information.

I hadn't heard anything, so I figured that maybe they were staggering notifications. I emailed someone in admissions and that person informed me my file was still under review, which struck me as odd considering I know the majority of decisions had already been made. I shrugged it off.

The next day, I saw a post on another blog from a fellow applicant to program X saying that someone in the department had called offering a spot in the program, and had apologized for the delay as they had misplaced a stack of applications and only noticed they had missed these until after all notifications had gone out. They said this would be the final admitted applicant.

I didn't want to assume I was in that stack of misplaced applications, so I politely emailed the person who contacted the other applicant requesting a status update and received no response. When I followed up with my contact in admissions (they had promised to make an inquiry to the department on my behalf) I was informed that they hadn't responded to the initial request. At this point, I have to assume my file is one of the ones that was overlooked during the initial admissions process and is only being reviewed now.

Of course I expect that since program X has already admitted the new class, I will be rejected regardless of the quality of my work. Still, no one will admit to me that yes, my application was misplaced.

Am I jumping to conclusions? Or am I right to ask for my application fee back if I am rejected next week with no explanation or admission of guilt on the program's part?

Normally I wouldn't make a big deal about something like this, but I only applied to this program and am totally qualified to attend! I made it clear to the program that if offered a spot, I will accept...but now I'm stuck in limbo! Help!