maximus82

Congratulations to both of you. I was going through this same thing last year, and the year before! Once you have that first acceptance, everything seems so much better

The logic is not correct... Beck is targeting Piven for something she said, not for being a sociologist (which is the same as attacking her "not only for being a sociologist"). The point is, Beck is a douche and we know it... but this is not an attack on sociology, this is just an attack on reason.

What if you take the GRE again and do everything from scratch? I know it sounds horrible, but I did it after being rejected everywhere and I am really happy I waited... You've applied to a bunch of really good programs, most in the top 20 or 30, and you have to understand that most programs can't accept more than 10% of their applicants... so you have to present yourself as being in that top 5-10% to get the attention of the committee. Unlike most people here, I don't think getting a masters before you go to a PhD is the best idea. I don't think it is a bad idea, several people in my cohort came here with MA... but none of them did it because they couldn't get into a PhD program. If you have an MA in sociology from, say one of the UNCs, and transfer to a school like Indiana, chances are you'll have to do everything (except for a few stats classes) again. Do you really want to do that?

He's not attacking sociology. He's attacking a sociologists. those are two different things.

I've accepted their offer too (I'm Diego).

I emailed the DGS last night to decline their offer. I hope someone from the wait list gets in.

Waitlisted

I'm assuming you are asking this because you think both schools are a good fit. If so, here's what I would consider: 1. Funding. Do both schools guarantee funding? do any of the schools offer you 1 or more years as fellowships? 2. Placement. What's their placement like in past years? 3. Average number of years to complete. 4. Location. Are you ok with moving to either place? Maybe other people can say more, but those are some of the things I would consider.

I'm a nonbeliever. Most of the sociology programs that people have mentioned here are independent, and while some professors might have joint appointments, you're applying to the Soc program, not the Divinity program.

What other schools accepted you if you don't mind me asking? I knew about MAPSS but I think that's it. Is Indiana at the top of your list? Also, are you visiting your other schools? The problem with visiting Indiana is that I had to pay for my visit. But it was totally worth it. They have an incredible reputation. So, if you want to visit you should, even if you don't have an acceptance. Just email the DGS and tell her about your concerns. Also, I just found out that they were recently ranked in the top 4 generalist programs in the country by an external review group (that included top sociologists from other schools).

The faculty members are not only accessible to students, but everyone I talked to seemed to be working on something with someone. The four professors I met had more than one student helping them with something. Also, i don't know if anyone noticed this, but most faculty members at Indiana have been there for a big part of their career. I think that's a great sing. I really don't know what the chances are for people who got waitlisted. Not everyone who got accepted visited that same day, and I don't even know how many people they accepted. I remember someone saying that their ideal cohort would be 10 people, which is a little smaller than past years. Since I've been in the waitlist before, I promised myself I would inform every single school of my decision as soon as I make one. I hate the wait last year, so I know what you are going through.

congratulations to both of you! Did you guys feel like it was just a generic email and that everyone received the same thing, or was it personalized to some extent? I'm just curious. I don't know if I should give or keep hitting "refresh" every 5 minutes on my email.

You seem to have a pretty good chance at very good schools. I'm interested in Sociology of Religion too. My interests are mostly religion, transnationalism, and immigration (think Peggy Levitt and Carolyn Chen). I'm also interested in how religion and SES are related. Depending on what your interests are you might want to look at other schools. Indiana has Steensland and Robinson, both awesome. Notre Dame has a lot of people. You already know about Duke and Princeton, but I would also include Chicago in there. McRoberts does religion stuff (especially urban churches) and their religious studies department is the best in the country (I think).

I visited Indiana last week. I was very impressed with their program. Bloomington seems like a great place to live, and although it is rather small for my taste, there's plenty of stuff to do. the students did an awesome job in terms of scheduling meetings with faculty, a campus tour, and a couple other things. I also felt very welcome by the grad students. I would be quite happy with any of them as my friends/colleagues. also, Bloomington seems to be quite inexpensive in terms of rent. Most people I asked pay around $500 for a one bedroom (some people pay less). So, I still have to visit Northwestern and do the interview at Duke. I wanted to post this for anyone who wanted to know more about the program or wasn't able to visit.

I visited Indiana last week. I was very impressed with their program. Bloomington seems like a great place to live, and although it is rather small for my taste, there's plenty of stuff to do. the students did an awesome job in terms of scheduling meetings with faculty, a campus tour, and a couple other things. I also felt very welcome by the grad students. I would be quite happy with any of them as my friends/colleagues. also, Bloomington seems to be quite inexpensive in terms of rent. Most peolpe I asked pay around $500 for a one bedroom (some people pay less). So, I still have to visit Northwestern and do the interview at Duke. I wanted to post this for anyone who wanted to know more about the program or wasn't able to visit.

anybody want to claim the Dev Soc acceptances in the results page?

I just gave her/him a + since i think this is a very important question to ask! Also, I think that many people can benefit from this conversation and by everything that's been said about the rankings. I personally think rankings are not as important as placement (i understand that the two are related)... and by far, the most important thing will always be FIT! If you don't fit in a department, it can be the best freaking department in the world, but chances are you won't be as productive academically.

I think everyone here has provided very helpful advice. To avoid redundancy, I'll just say two things: 1. START EARLY! This is a stressful process, and you want to have as much time as you can. 2. Find a system that helps you keep track of everything. I used a spreadsheet with deadlines, app fees, LoRs, etc. it helped a lot. Staying organized was key during the most hectic times.

I was on two waits lists last year. I really hope you guys get accepted to your programs. Having been there, I know it isn't pretty. Best of luck.

I think that your story proves my point. You've overcome some pretty thought situations and you've beat the odds by working hard and finishing school. Are you privileged now? OF COURSE YOU ARE! you have (or you're about to get) a college degree, at your age, and with three kids. Do you know how many people get to do that? not many. I am sure it has been hard and you've had to work a lot to get to where you are. I got rejected from every single school I applied to last year. Instead of saying "Oh, education is for the privileged" I sat down, looked at my application and figured out what needed to be improved. And I worked on it, and I rewrote my personals statement 1000 times, and i talked to my professors about the LoRs, etc. and guess what? It worked. I am privileged because I worked to network and build a reasonable amount of cultural capital around me that I will be able to use throughout my career. anyway, I think any aspiring sociologist understands a little bit of privilege and know that there are ways to work around it. So you're not entirely wrong by saying that higher education is for a select few. But many of us in this forum are living proof that you can work around that system that benefits the privileged few. That's all I'm saying. Maybe Milkman needs to spend more time on his application, or he needs some research experience.

I am suffering a serious case of the impostor complex. I've had nightmares about my first day of classes and they all pretty much end the same way: the entire cohort looking at me and wondering how the crap I got in.

I just wanted to say that I have offers from two very competitive schools, and I'm waiting to hear from a third one. To say that I got in because I'm privileged is kind of offensive, and I would assume it offends other people too. I went to a school that wasn't prestigious at all but offered me scholarships. I have been working for the past four years to make sure I pay of my student loans. I have a 2 hour commute to that job I've had for almost four years, and it's made my life miserable, but I can't afford to live somewhere else and pay off my loans. I could keep going. The point is very simple: I've worked my ass off to get to where I am and do not think it is fair to say I'm here because of privilege.

So did anyone hear anything?

Congratulations! hope you can make it to the open house

I think the problem is that sociology as a discipline is having and identity crisis. There are so many people who try to hard to be "scientific" that they only look at the data. However, I know for a fact that theory is quite alive, just look at ASA's program and you'll see that not only does the theory section have plenty of activities, but there are also regular sessions that are completely theory-based. Anyone going to the Annual Meeting btw? I personally like theory that is supported by data, and data that supports a theory. I don't like the arm-chair scholar approach of just theorizing and thinking about the world as this abstract thing. Instead, I think there should be a dialogue between theory and data. You modify your theory of the data doesn't match, and not the other way around.