cunninlynguist

Supposedly, although it seems that we need to facilitate that process.

Happy to read that you've all successfully submitted your applications for recent deadlines! I was also anticipating feeling relief that another deadline had passed, but if you read my thread I posted a little while ago in this forum, you'll see why that isn't the case.

Today was the deadline for a program I applied to. This afternoon, I received an e-mail from the graduate director of said program. When I first glanced at the e-mail notification, I assumed it must be a verification of my application submission (and perhaps an estimate on when the timetable for decisions would be). It was, in fact, an e-mail to all applicants stating that the program will not accept incoming students and will reconfigure the program entirely -- their 2-year MA offering is now defunct. No specific reasons were disclosed. We received this e-mail today. Today, the day of the deadline. Today, months after I had pored over my writing sample, paid my application, GRE, and transcript fees, painstakingly crafted a tailored SOP and hassled my letter writers to submit on time. I had applied to 4 programs and now that number is 3; consequently, my odds of admission are now diminished. Has anyone heard of such a thing happening before? I'm beyond words.

There's no simple answer. If you're applying to a competitive, highly-ranked PhD program at an institution with many other excellent graduate programs, your GRE scores will be important for fellowships and other sources of funding at the school level. They'll be used to compare you -- in a somewhat objective manner -- against other candidates in different programs for the money offered by that school. For most MA programs, it's a threshold. As long as your scores are high enough to demonstrate some competency relative to the rigors of said program, your file will likely receive careful examination. Once you pass the barrier (and the admissions committee can reduce the numbers of applications), it won't be a critical piece of your application. Frankly, applicants seem to attach more weight to GRE scores than is warranted. We're not able to assess the strength of our qualitative application materials -- even though LORs, SOP, experience, etc. are generally more important -- so it's easier to gauge our value in numerical form.

E-mail is actually preferable in many circumstances, regardless of geographic location. You'll, most likely, be submitting their information (and e-mail address) in the applications themselves, and consequently your LOR writers will receive the prompt electronically. Furthermore, it's a major benefit to establish a running dialogue via e-mail, as you'll be reminding them of deadlines and potentially sending them supplementary materials (such as SOP draft, resume, etc.).

Renewal of my NBA League Pass subscription, a good book... and the knowledge that I'll be accepted somewhere. BTW -- if you're looking to deter squirrels from your bird feeders, try a baffle and/or a new type of seed. A high-quality, slippery baffle and safflower seed rather than an unobstructed feeder full of sunflower and millet will make a huge difference.

According to their FAQs, the average GPA and GRE for incoming students in the LSU program is 3.0 and 975, respectively. Given that there's no stipulated minimum GPA, a good GRE score could offset your GPA. I wouldn't recommend returning to undergrad -- an incremental improvement from 2.35 to 2.5 isn't significant enough, and it's another investment of time (and money) that could be spent acquiring relevant work experience. Your best course of action is the workforce, to distance yourself from your GPA while demonstrating your professional commitment. A year or two should be sufficient, and as long as you secure some solid LORs and do well on the GRE, your outlook should be improved.

I can say, with great relief, that my first application is officially submitted after my 3rd recommender uploaded his letter. How's everyone else doing today with their Dec. 15th deadline(s)?

Anyone else on the LOR tightrope? My first deadline is on Thursday and one of my letter writers hasn't yet submitted. I'm confident he will, and we've been in contact about it, but it's still a loose end for the time being.

Every morning? I don't know what could possibly warrant that -- and it tacitly signals to your LOR writers that you don't trust them and are positioning yourself above any other priorities they may have. The LOR process is stressful, and many of our writers are busy people. If you give them enough time and offer helpful reminders every 1-2 weeks with a clear deadline date, there's generally no cause for concern.

No use on expending any energy -- or anxiety -- on something that is now beyond your control. I'm sure you put in sufficient care and effort to craft a great SOP that conveys what you wanted it to. If a program is considering you, and you cleared the first round of cuts, all of your materials should get read. Although I'm speaking as a person who hasn't read a word of my statements (writing samples and diversity statements, too) since submitting my applications a month ago. This whole process is terrifying, but at some point it's done and you've got to retain the confidence you had when you finished it all up.

According to the concordance table, your score would be approximately 1210 - 1230 on the old scale. To put that in context, the average scores of admitted Harvard GSE students for their master's program in the last two years have been 1251 and 1260. For BC, I'd hazard a guess that you've got absolutely nothing to worry about. It's not a mediocre performance, BTW -- everyone here is pursuing something different. There are many PhD applicants who need high scores for funding and guaranteed consideration, and many international students in saturated fields that also need a near-perfect result.

You're applying to MA programs now, right? The Ph.D. ambition is later, so in that case, when admissions standards are even tighter and funding becomes more crucial, you would be able to re-take to get a more comfortable score. In the present, given the strength of your application in all other regards, do not let a standardized test erode your confidence. Your scores correlate to approximately 1100 on the old scale; hopefully that's sufficient to pass a "soft" threshold set by programs. Additionally, an underwhelming GRE performance can be viewed in better context when the applicant also has a high GPA, so you'll likely get some benefit of the doubt. Move on. Stay positive.

One word: Skyrim. Aside from that, I sympathize with you. The winter is my least favorite season, and while I love being outside during the rest of the year, I cannot stand cold weather sports or anything that celebrates the frigid temperatures. That's not wholly unexpected, though -- I spent my childhood in the south.

The internet can be a creepy place. BTW, I'd be happy to review your SOP if you're still looking.

It's probably not in my best interest to pursue this further, but I do feel it's deceptive to create another account in order to collect more evaluations -- or praise, or whatever; this person says they've been accepted to programs before -- regarding your qualifications. This forum is valuable because many of us are undertaking this daunting process and are able to share our input in a generally trustworthy manner. Many of us have also disclosed a good deal of personal information and/or describe our ambitions with clarity. Clay Made received a lot of assistance to a number of questions -- making a new account and feigning ignorance about it is saying that we wasted our time the first time around. http://talk.collegec...getown-sfs.html I'm not thrilled I spent some idle time doing this, but I knew something was off. There are plenty of other examples.

Aren't you Clay Made? I don't understand why it's productive to create another account.

You're aware that your scores, based on the concordance table, are equal to 650V and 740Q on the old scale, right? There is nothing bad about your scores, even if you're comparing them to your practice tests. I'd assume that the percentiles have now stabilized to a point that you're able to view unofficial scores rather than ranges of the old scoring system. After all, the new test has been in effect for over 3 months.

One of my LOR writers submitted hers very quickly. The other two... not so much. I have been in contact with them, however, and both confirmed that all of the notification e-mails were received. At some point it's out of your hands and their schedule dictates their timeliness. Given that your deadline is right around the corner, you may want to resend the e-mail directly from the system as jellybean suggested; that way they won't have to dig through older e-mails and it may prompt them to submit them immediately.

Perhaps she simply forgot her promise. In any case, it's her right not to show you, as you're aware, so while it would've been cool to see the letter beforehand I sincerely doubt it's worth worrying about. If you're confident about your performance under her supervision, then rest easy. Besides, she submitted it! You should be relieved that you won't need to hound her and that it's one more completed component of your applications.

That clarifies things a bit. Here's a potential faculty match at Cornell, in their Dept. of Natural Resources: http://dnr.cornell.e....cfm?netId=djd6 The Colorado State program looks fine -- given that your adviser suggested it directly, it's worth looking into.

Appears that we share somewhat common interests. Where is the Human Dimensions program? On the surface, Environmental Studies sounds a bit undefined, but nonetheless is transferable and practical; most employers don't regard it too much differently than similarly-titled environmental degrees. The Environmental Studies classification has been around for a while and is also a common undergraduate major. Schools just label their degrees differently. What exactly do you want to specialize in / what are your career goals? I'd recommend looking into the following programs that could suit you well: Wisconsin-Madison, Vermont, UMass-Amherst, and Ohio State. It's a complicated process -- there are many good environmental programs but also a lot of small variations (for instance, I'm going for policy, but the distinctions aren't made totally clear and the appropriate programs are not the same). Hope this helps.

This post, and thread, should be helpful: I'd also advise you to look into the MPA programs offered at the University of Maryland, Syracuse, and University of Washington. All are reputable, and all offer environment-oriented concentrations that would likely align with your interests. It's not at all necessary to pursue a dual degree, particularly if you're unsure about the MPP/MPA's utility in such a scenario. The MPA at Indiana permits you to take quite a bit of environmental coursework, for instance -- and for that matter, their MSES program isn't quite up to the level of the MPA. Furthermore, the MESM at UC Santa Barbara might suit you well: http://www.bren.ucsb...b_env_mgmt.asp. "EPE students acquire knowledge about interactions between the public sector and the private sector and about the impact of political processes on efforts to solve environmental problems. In the process, they learn how to identify and evaluate policy options and to communicate the results to policymakers and regulators in an effective manner. ... Students taking this specialization find employment with local, state, and national governments as well as with intergovernmental organizations, firms subject to environmental policies, and consulting groups dealing with the management of environmental resources."

I considered applying to Bard CEP. It appears to be a solid program that emphasizes interdisciplinary study coupled with internship experience. However, there is virtually no information on how it is perceived and seems relatively new -- Bard is a good school, but doesn't have many graduate offerings in the first place. Honestly, it looks like a good program built around a useful curriculum, but its unknown reputation (and no data on student/class profiles) is hard to ignore. The prerequisite requirements also dissuaded me from applying -- if you're coming from a social science, it would weigh you down initially.

Some of it probably dates back to SAT preparation and performance -- which is related to income and, I imagine, your social group emphasizing how important it is. Furthermore, if you aren't versed in the best study methods for standardized tests, you'll encounter more trouble than someone who had that opportunity. I learned, after taking the GRE, that I would've been better served to learn math strategies applicable to only this test rather than attempting to re-familiarize myself with the concepts themselves. I didn't study at all for the SAT and did fine. My GRE prep entailed reading through the Barron's book during the semester and taking the test itself during finals week. I thought it was sufficient, and my score will absolutely pass any threshold, but there are many posters here who are consumed with getting a high score. The appeal is understandable: funding concerns, unknown and scary "competition," and knowing exactly where that part of your application stands in numerical form (as opposed to the SOP, LORs, etc). As usual, Eigen is right on the money. There will be a point of diminishing returns. Do well enough and move on. A complete lack of regard for the test and its role in the admissions process is a bit irresponsible, but it is still only one component of your application.