sunbabygirl

I am going to USC to pursue a PhD in Slavic Lang and Lit. I have heard that living around USC is not exactely safe. Where do most students live?

I think that it's not the program that makes you great, it's you and all your hard work. Where is the guarantee that the next year is going to be more successful? My main concern is whether or not you get funding from the program that accepted you. If you do, you should go there because in the end it's all not all about the titles and the prestige. It's about who you are and what you can do in that field. If you are a diamond, you'll shine through!

I don't think you should tell the school that you are having doubts about your decision. I would just have an interview with the your dream school and press them for a quick decision. If they come through, you can always decline another offer. If they don't, then your first school will not know that they were not your first choice. As for the people on the waitlist, well, you are kind of on the waitlist as well. So, I don't think there is any crime in trying to get what's best for you.

I have made my decision!!! I am going to school B without a visit. I have talked to their professors and some other people in the field. They all said it was the best choice. I am so happy and excited, life is great! Good luck to everyone - I wish you all the luck to get the funding and the place where you want to be. Again, thanks for everyone's help. This site is the best source of info I have had during these long and painful months of waiting.

I have the same question. I am waitlisted at one of my top choices, and I know that one accepted person has not replied to the department yet. I hope he/she won't!! I was told that I may get some news tomorrow. I do have other funded offers, however, their deadline is not tomorrow, so I may have a chance. Has anyone actually ever gotten an offer of acceptance as a wailisted person on April 15th???

I'd like to thank everyone for his/her help! It is so important to get a fresh perspective on a situation, especially when it's hard to step out of it and see it clearly. I decided to go ahead and visit school B. Even though it is going to be right before they are expecting my answer, I think it will be beneficial to get a better picture of what is awaiting for me there apart from a great stipend. I'll keep you posted, guys! And, of course, I welcome any further pieces of advice or suggestions.

I have two choices - school A offered me a 13,000 TA stipend and a tuition assistance (I will still have to pay about 1,200 a year), while school B offered me a comprehensive 5 year package with the 21,000 fellowship for the first and the fifth years and guaranteed TAships for other three years. School B is located in CA (more expensive), school A is in a less expensive state. I visited school A and loved it! I didn't visit school B but it seems nice from a distance. The research fit is a little better at school A. What would you choose? Thank you for your help!!

I am teaching a full load of classes at the university, and I find it extremely difficult to concentrate and do my job well. The job does help me to withdraw from the reality of some unfunded acceptanced and one funded waitlist, however, I am positively obsessed with this website! I check it a LOT, which makes me think that I should probably get more work. Sometimes the lack of good news makes it fairly difficult to be effective in the classroom and to respond to my students' needs. It's like one half of me is already gone towards my PhD, and the other half is still teaching. Whichever half wins by April 15th is still a big concern! :shock:

I was accepted by the Slavic Lit and Lang in January. Haven't heard anything about the funding yet. It looks from their website that I may get a good package since everyone has been getting the same thing, however, what if this year something has changed? :shock: So, I am still waiting for funding..

I truly think that if you just got out of college, not getting into grad school is not the end of the world. You may not want to be in academia three years down the road, and, in all honesty, how can you make an informed decision about your future when you have not worked in the real world after college? Therefore, there are lots of opportunities for you to try out and explore. There is also hope that you didn't get in for a reason, that there is something out there for you - bigger, better, and more special... However, if you have worked for 8 years after your BA, decided to go back with all your wonderful invaluable experience and still didn't get in - well, where is the hope there? Where is the purpose? You already know that what you have been doing is not satisfactory, and your attempt to change your life just didn't work out. What is there to go back to? The same repetitive routine that you wanted to get away from? :roll:

I was notified twice on Saturday through the website. However, these have been rather unfortunate "miracles" called rejections. Let's hope someone else gets luckier.

To zingara: Thanks for the info. I just called the comparative lit department and they told me that they are still finalizing their decisions, that they will not disclose anything over the phone or e-mail?, and that I will be getting an answer in about two weeks. So, there's still hope for us, comp lit, don't give up!

I have been admitted by three schools but haven't heard anything about funding yet. I keep researching these schools' websites and the info about funding. With the first school they seem to promise a very solid package to everyone they accept, however, it's been a month and a half since I got accepted there and I still haven't heard a word!It all feels unreal!

I got accepted last week but I don't have any info about funding. So, it all depends on the money issue... Otherwise, Austin is a fun and pleasant city to live in - I visited it a couple of times.

I applied to the Comparative Lit Department with a focus in Slavic Studies. Haven't heard anything yet. I truly hope they let us know ealier than in April.

I wrote to Northwestern just to check them out before applying anywhere. It seemed to me that they were not extremely welcoming to my proposals, so I decided not to apply there. However, I had no idea about the GRE factor, hmmm, that was a miscalculation on my part

I am Russian with some knowledge of Czech Primarily - in the beer area

Thanks! I do hope someone will get into both Yale and Brown and then choose Yale over Brown. However, I don't know my ranking on the waitlist. I agree with you - all the science majors get great funding, why do we have to fall behind?

to zolotoi: I didn't apply to Columbia. Did you apply to NYU or Chicago?

to andy76: Did you apply to NYU by any chance? I haven't heard anything from them. Also, even the schools I have been accepted to (UT Austin and USC) haven't said anything about funding yet. It has been awhile since I was accepted there, so I have no idea whether to be happy or sad. I just wanted to be accepted by one of those schools that give you full funding without questions or delays. Too much to ask?

Got rejected from Princeton via e-mail today. It was kind of expected. My research interests are not just focused on literature and criticism. So, I guess I was not a good fit for them. Oh maybe the other way around? To andy76: Brown was supposed to inform everyone on February the 13th or 16th regardless of the outcome. So, maybe you need to call them - your e-mail might have gotten lost. Also, what's your top choice? My was probably Brown :roll:

Yeah!! I am applying for a PhD in Slavic Lang and Lit! I am happy there is someone out in our field! I also applied to Princeton and haven't heard anything back yet. I am now waitlisted at Brown. As for Harvard, I didn't want to apply there because my preliminary research on their department showed complete contradiction of their teaching methods with my methodology. I've been accepted by UT Austin and USC. Where have you been accepted?

Thanks for your reply! It seems that we are the only ones here in this field. What's your area of interest? Good luck with your schools, btw!

I am the lucky one - in a complete limbo meaning waitlisted. The school only wanted me to write them an e-mail stating my interest in being on the waitlist. However, they have not asked for any additional information, and now I am thinking I should probably e-mail the professor whom I had my interview with and show more enthusiasm. Or should I just wait and let it happen naturally (may never happen )?

I just wish they would let us know without all these extra messages. We sent enough materials to these schools, now it's the time for them to give us some good news!