Ripper

Hey gang, just checked the applyyourself website and my status changed to "Acceptance Denied" or something like that, so you might want to check there (if your status hasn't changed, I'd hold out a little hope if I were you). While I'm a tad disappointed, I was well prepared for it and feel a little relieved just to have closure. Good luck to the rest of you, no matter if you get in or not. "There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, Than are dreamt of in your philosophy. "

It's also a sin to do the ol' assume game like I did, so no worries. I emailed Jill shortly thereafter to get some closure and got the same basic message, should know next week, still under consideration. To quote Tom Petty, "I can't decide which is worse," outright rejection or dangling on the line. I'm going to take it as good news but meanwhile I'll be developing a Plan E.

Dang. No email for me. I can't help but conclude I'm off the list 'cuz this whole experience has flipped me from optimist to pessimist. I'm going to still say I'm waitlisted because I haven't heard anything else, and it helps my soul. Good luck to the rest of you!

piccgeek, thanks for the info. At this point, any sliver of information is better than none. Since I haven't been rejected outright and there is no official waitlist, I'm going to tell myself (and anyone that asks) I was waitlisted at Purdue. That takes the sting out somewhat, if not completely truthful. :twisted:

Sigh. No wonder I'm paranoid. :shock: It was on the login page here: https://app.applyyourself.com/?id=PURDUEGRAD . Just a little note to the left of the login boxes. I really don't think it means anything, they might just be doing some server maintenance or something. But you never know.

Yeah, the website has had this message on it the past few days: Due to system maintenance, the Graduate School online application will be unavailable Thursday, April 2nd, from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. ET. It just sounds like a software update to me, but who knows? I just saw a rejection via snail mail in the results page. My rejection wasn't there yesterday, maybe today?

Maybe after they update the applyyourself website tomorrow all of our statuses will change? Probably not, I can't see how, but still? I vacillate between wanting an answer and closure and wanting to keep my tidbit of a sliver of hope alive.

Bowdoin, I haven't been waitlisted anywhere, so I'm not taking out any frustration on you. You simply stated that you had made up your mind 2 months ago and were feeling some anxiety about writing a rejection letter. I was just trying to help you act like a decent human being if you already knew your answer; if you don't, take all the time you need. Good luck.

For the love of Jeebus let them know right now if you know your choice! You're not going to hurt their feelings but you are killing your peers who are on their waitlists.

I got my MA in Clemson and lived there a year before that. It is a special little town, totally a college-town as EVERYTHING centers around the University; that's not a bad thing. It is a beautiful university, beautifully landscaped and meticulously maintained. I loved my time there. That being said, Clemson is undergoing some major funding issues right now including mandatory furloughs and whatnot. It is located in the South Carolina Upstate, about halfway between Atlanta and Charlotte, and the surrounding area is green and pretty as can be. The populace, however, is very conservative and there are a lot of rednecks; you will see the rebel flag regularly. I used to say you couldn't throw a rock in Clemson without hitting a church, an old person, or a dollar store. There is not a proper movie theater to speak of. Clemson is also under a push to achieve top 20 status and so there is some grade inflation going on. I would definitely recommend trying to get in touch with some grad students in your department. It really is a great place, but it has some problems. If you go, have a beer at Nick's for me.

I worked in downtown Milwaukee (I commuted from the Kenosha area) for over 5 years and loved it. I'm not much on big cities, but Milwaukee has enough small-town feel to make a hayseed like myself feel less anxious. Milwaukee is one of my favorite cities, and to add a little weight to that opinion I'll let you know that I'm a big Chicago Bears fan and I endured much taunting about it. While it is true that it is not as big of a beer town as it once was, it will never not-be a beer town. Head on over to the Sprecher Brewery and take the tour and try their beers, you'll be glad you did (you can even buy Sprecher in Miller Park). Milwaukee's beer heritage is visible nearly throughout the town, you just have to look for it. I assume the following places still operate, the Milwaukee Ale House located on the river (http://www.ale-house.com/alehouse/), Zafero's Pizza which I think is closer to the University and has a damn good pie, and the Safe House can provide you a good kitschy time (www.safe-house.com). Check out www.onmilwaukee.com for stuff around the town. Personally, I'm a big of the Milwaukee School of Engineering's radio station, WMSE (www.wmse.org) for cool music and info. The lakefront will provide you hours of fun in the summer and there are plenty of fests besides Summerfest (Irish Fest, Polish Fest, of course German Fest etc.) but they have varying degrees of actual fun attached to them. I personally have had no problem with The Rave/Eagles Ballroom but it appears others have. If I hadn't missed the deadline for UWM I would have applied myself and gladly lived in Milwaukee.

I applied to one school in 2006 and was rejected, but I received a nice letter that basically told me where I went wrong. I did not reapply until this year for boring reasons but I was accepted; however, no funding, so I won't be going. I think it's worth your while if you can get some feedback. I know that my SOP was MUCH better this time around. I think I actually used the old cliche of something like "Ever since I was young, I loved to read..." last time around; it's like saying you're a people-person in an interview...

I've never heard of such a thing. What a rip-off. Do you have offers at any other schools? Can you easily afford the 300$? I don't know what to tell you, but I empathize. I think that's just plain wrong.

I lived in the twin cities for 3 years and hated every minute of it. It snowed on October 1 and stayed until the beginning of May, no lie. The snow piled up so high that you could not see into an intersection and just sort of had to look for shadows and cross your fingers and go. Additionally, people are born, grow up, and never leave the town, so all the good press you are hearing about the twin cities are largely from homers; those homers have lifelong friends and have little reason to add you to their circle. I make friends everywhere I go and the only friends I could make in the twin cities were with other transplants. Plus, the vikings suck. West Lafayette is on the outermost edge of the lake effect and you will only have to deal with it once or twice a season. Being part of the prairie, you will get winds that whip up on you and plenty of weather; however, West Lafayette is approximately 8 hours south of the twin cities, so winter starts much later (typically middle of November) and ends much sooner (typically middle to the end of March). I lived parallel to West Lafayette for years so I know all about Midwestern winters. West Lafayette is a much smaller, college town so there will be less to do. If I never set foot in the twin cities again, it will be too soon.

I am 39 now, and will be 40 when I start my PhD (providing the funding goes through from my acceptance). I have never looked at the rankings for the schools I have applied to; I couldn't care a less about them. I applied to programs that are a good fit for my niche, period. My number of applications is small, 5 to be precise (and number 5 has just been taken off the table as I got accepted to #3, which is a smaller, less-known program than #4 but a better fit), but I made them all count and tailored each letter and application to the program. I have no idea if it will work beyond the one acceptance I have (still waiting for the other 4), but as Ziggy Marley sings, "I've got to be true to myself." I would strongly encourage you to start attending conferences that deal with your area and meeting the people that are presenting at them. You might find that some small program in (name obscure place here) has an up and coming faculty that is aligned with your interests and is worth your time and money. Heck, throw a presentation proposal at the conference and maybe add something to your CV and applications. Conferences are a great way to get your name out there and to learn about all the different programs that are out there. Good luck finding something that fits you!

I think a small thank you, either a handwritten card or letter, is appropriate, but I like the poster who suggested something they made, so as a homebrewer I think I'd like to give a 6 pack of something I've brewed. I know from personal experience that 2 out 3 are beer drinkers, so I think they might appreciate that. It's not bribery if you are a sincerely saying "thank you;" they did go a little extra for you and they deserve to be thanked for that.