surefire

To balance out possibly getting rejected from another uni, I've just found out that I've been awarded a fellowship from the University of Bristol that will pay all my fees and give me a stipend. :D They only awarded five of these fellowships to international students, so I'm over the moon!

I disagree with this where hard word limits are concerned. I've mentioned this in another thread, that I was the student rep on the admissions committee for my department, so I can speak from that context. Don't give an admissions committee ANY reason to throw out your application (or even to be annoyed with it!). Word count matters. I can only speak from my experience, but here's what happens in my department: the graduate secretary reviews all the applications to make sure there's nothing missing, AND she includes the exact SOP word count on a cover page for the ad comm. All pdf's or word doc's are easy to establish word count. One year, I sat on the committee with a prof who wanted to literally black out every single word beyond the limit with a sharpie marker before the application was evaluated. So yes. Word count really does matter! Why risk pissing people off simply because you think you're smart enough to fool them? It indicates a sense of arrogance on the part of the applicant.

surefire im taking your advice and using 12 size font. Currently chopping everything down so it fits on two pages

What is the phrasing pertaining to the SOP? Does it say 1000 words? 1000 is generally thought to be about two pages. Edit that thing until it is two pages WITH SIZE 12 FONT! I understand that you've made the font size 11 so it doesn't look longer, but you need to trust what that apprehension indicates... that is, that it's too long. General formatting is 1" margins all around, size 12 font, double-space. You should default to that where there are no alternative stipulations.

I've mentioned this elsewhere. I've been on an admissions committee. finknottle is right to point out that words are not counted by the adcomm; so if the guidelines said 1000 words and a paper was 1027, but still on two pages AND within the general formatting guidelines I've stipulated above, I wouldn't notice.

However, I DID notice if someone had done any of the following:
-messed with the margins
- messed with the line spacing
- messed with the font

Here's the thing, adcomms look at hundreds of these things, when there are a few that diverge, it's noticeable. I did not bounce anyone outright for going over the limit, there wasn't a "over the limit SOP - reject!" application pile. However, ones that were over the limit (and worse, those over the limit that tries to hide it in a sneaky way) were irritating (also, hard on the eyes). After reading SO MANY other SOPs, when you get to an over-limit one, you CAN'T HELP but think: who is this applicant who can't follow instructions, who thinks that they deserve more space and more of my time than other applicants. That was the biggest part for me: the committee takes great pains with guidelines to try and ensure that EVERY applicant gets a fair shake, when someone tries to alter the parameters of the application, it feels like they don't respect the committee, the process, or other applicants. It annoyed me, and WHY would you want an adcomm to be annoyed when reading your SOP, it's not a good introduction and it's just not worth it.

Edit the SOP. Every one else is performing in the alotted space, you can as well.



Good news for you here. Every line counts right? If you need that first line, (and IF there are no specific stipulations as to format) then just inbed the title/your name/page number in a header. That's what I did for mine. It ensures that your info is there, within generally acceptable formatting, but saves you space and is not obnoxious/hard to read.

I know that this was kind of a bad news/good news post, and probably not what you wanted to hear. But it's honest. You can totally do this, and when you get it within the 1000-word range, it's going to feel awesome; and when you send it in, you won't give yourself an ulcer worrying that you've miffed the committee. Good luck!

The object of the game is to get as drunk as possible so you don't really care once the rejection e-mails start to roll in.

Take a drink every time...

A science program shows up, and you remember that you are in the humanities.

Someone posts an "Other" about a mass e-mail.
...two drinks if you received that e-mail as well.

A school that you have applied to shows up, and even though it's not your program your heart skips a beat.

A school that you have applied to shows up, and even though it's not your program you check your e-mail/voice mail on reflex.

A school that you have applied to shows up, and even though it's not your program you run to your mailbox to check for snail mail.
...two drinks if it's Sunday.

A program that you have applied to shows up as a rejection, you have no new e-mails, and you just get even more nervous.

A program that you have applied to shows up as an acceptance, you have no new e-mails, and you want to die inside.

You bookmarked the RSS feed for just the programs you applied to.

You bookmarked the RSS feed for programs you wish you had applied to, so you can torture yourself if you Would Have Known earlier.

Someone posts a rejection with a note expressing bitterness.
...Two drinks if it's, "Their loss."

Someone posts that they received a notification a program is accepting only one applicant this year.

Someone posts a result from a program without rolling admissions whose deadline has not yet passed.

There is a forum post asking, "Who posted this result?"

There is a results search listing that asks, "Who posted this result?"
...Two drinks if it asks for GRE and GPA.

You are waitlisted at a program, and someone posts they were accepted there but are turning it down.

Someone posts a result for a subject you have never heard of.

Someone posts a result for a subject you are fairly sure does not actually exist.

Hi Looking4letters!

I shared my "thank-you e-mail" template in another thread not too long ago:

I wrote this in response to an informal interview that the prof. granted me right before the holiday season, so the gratitude is amplified. Even though the context is different, the format might help, feel free to use any of the phrasing at your leisure.

I'm a big proponent of "thank you" letters.
My partner, who's from the UK, read the post I've linked above and said: "You are the most Canadian thing I've ever seen", referring I suppose to my tendancy to err on the side of excessive politeness. Regardless, I maintain that, as long as you're genuine, the "thank you" sentiment is never wasted!

Good on you for maintaining decorum in the face of the hectic application season and making time to be considerate; good luck!

That does seem upsetting, especially if they worded it as if you were about to get everything you wanted. Generic advice would usually dictate that you should at least be grateful for having gotten in, but I sometimes get the feeling that for Masters degrees, schools can always "open up" an extra spot if they're making full tuition off of it.

It looks like you applied to plenty of other schools though! I'm sure you'll hear back some great things in the next couple of months. And a bit of advice that I always took to heart is that if you haven't gotten a couple of rejections at all, maybe you weren't aiming high enough anyway Keep your head up!

I'm going to dye my hair (or, at least, part of it) hot pink. Just because I will no longer have to keep up appearances for a 9-5 job.

Gellert! I feel obliged to inform you that a little gremlin of self-doubt seems to have taken up residence on your back. I think that he has been writing on your behalf of late...
I always read your posts and think that you sound very clever and self-possessed; you'd make a great addition to a grad program!

Let yourself have a little bit of whimsy and daydreams, don't let the little gremlin live there rent-free!

Gellert! I feel obliged to inform you that a little gremlin of self-doubt seems to have taken up residence on your back. I think that he has been writing on your behalf of late...
I always read your posts and think that you sound very clever and self-possessed; you'd make a great addition to a grad program!

Let yourself have a little bit of whimsy and daydreams, don't let the little gremlin live there rent-free!

Gellert! I feel obliged to inform you that a little gremlin of self-doubt seems to have taken up residence on your back. I think that he has been writing on your behalf of late...
I always read your posts and think that you sound very clever and self-possessed; you'd make a great addition to a grad program!

Let yourself have a little bit of whimsy and daydreams, don't let the little gremlin live there rent-free!

I agree with this. As possible world PhD-seeking Socrates says, "the unexamined application isn't worth sending," but the over-examined one is just as bad for your psychological health. Wow, that was terrible, but I'm sure you get the point. You can't really do anything about your GPA at this juncture, so it's not worth stressing out over. Besides, if other parts of your application are solid, then GPA won't matter as much, probably.

Here are some statements my friends and I made during the application process many moons ago:
"Omg, I got a B in biology my freshman year? It's over."
"No Phi Beta Kappa? That's not gonna look good. It's over."
"I put an area of interest in my SOP that no one cares about. It's over."
"Magna cum laude? How am I going to compete with those summa over-achievers? It's over."
"60th percentile quant? Damn engineers! It's SOOOO over."
"5AWA? I'm in the humanities! I write for a living. It's over."
"Yep, 3.0GPA because I couldn't adjust to college my first two years. Why even bother. It's over."
"500V? FFS, I'm throwing away my money on these applications. It's over."

All of the above people got into grad school. These little things rarely mean that it's over.

I recommend that you work on your empathy.

Or, at least, work ways to disguise your glaring contempt for those who will do jobs that you will not (or cannot) do.

1. you hear an outcome regarding your application (winning it, being waitlisted, losing) in april. no sooner. they promise early april and usually only actually send the letters in late april (meaning april 30, not april 16). my award letter from last year was dated may 5, 2011. so anyone hoping for anything in march or even the beginning of april can just calm down. it won't happen. you will, however, hear in february whether you were considered A list or B list. B list means you're out, A list means you still have a shot. if you're applying through your school, odds are you know this information already, but if you're applying directly, you don't hear until february.

2. students cannot really negotiate their awards. i applied directly to SSHRC as i was finishing a masters program in the US. i was accepted to the same school's PhD program (which was just a little more than a mere formality) but the SSHRC considered me to be not yet enrolled in any PhD program, so they offered me the CGS, which you can only hold while studying in canada, or the SSHRC. my choice. since i decided to stay in the US, i took the SSHRC, and that opened up a CGS for someone else who had only won the SSHRC. that, in turn, opened up a spot for someone on the waitlist to get an SSHRC. that is, i believe, the total extent of "negotiating" that one can do with the SSHRC. you can turn down awards, but you can't angle for anything better.

3. students have been able to negotiate admission to schools after receiving the SSHRC or CGS. if you're rejected from every school you can apply to, but then have this external source of funding, it would be a wise move to reach out to your dream school and let them know you'll be able to fund (or partially fund, depending on the tuition rate) yourself. particularly if you win a 4-year doctoral award but aren't admitted to any PhD programs, you can convince many schools (american and canadian) to take you on. however, if you're admitted to even one school and you win an award, just go to that school. keeping them on hold (way past the april 15 deadline to confirm your school acceptances) because you might win a SSHRC in early may which means you might convince harvard to take you after all is a waste of everyone's time and generally considered poor form. but again, if you win an award and are shut out of admissions (which does happen) then you can convince schools to bring you along. it might be possible to negotiate different funding packages with schools based on receiving a SSHRC, but be careful about how you approach that. if you're too demanding, the schools reserve the right to rescind their offer of admission.

A GPA cut off is really just a cut off. It's definitely not the most important part of your application. Your SOP, LORs and research experience could push someone with a 3.5 above someone with a 3.8. There's no "real cutoff"

I'm confused by your question. Are you talking about "upgrading" or "downgrading" (why would you WANT the latter)? I haven't read last year's thread, but in my experience, the amount of control that you have re: up/downgrading is minimal. While I HAVE heard about students who LEVERAGED an award with a university to positively change an admission offer/package, I don't often here about the onus for negotiating being on SSHRC. There are rules to holding a SSHRC award. A lot of rules. Having a SSHRC will affect your university's funding package (you will get less, remember that the attended institution issues part of the award), your ability to work (should be less than 450 hours for a 12-month period; you have to keep this in mind when looking at RA/TA offers) and your elegibility for other awards (including, most notably, OGS).

I suggest that you start with the SSHRC Award Holder's Guide

http://www.sshrc-crs...ements-eng.aspx

Next, take advantage of the fact that you're still attending your undergrad institution and start making contact with the career centre (they often have grad school planning documents and can point you in the direction of departmental advisers). If you apply for a SSHRC while you are still registered in your undergrad ( or, less than 13 months after your degree is conferred), then you HAVE to apply through your undergrad. Your undergrad has quotas and, often, will keep successful copies of SSHRC applications on file. Take advantage!

I applied for a SSHRC when entering the MA level and didn't get one (fingers crossed for this year!) One of the benefits of doing an application is that it forces you to specifically articulate a program plan and quantify your research interests in an uncomfortable verbatim and inadequate space. It's a great test of your mettle. It helps you determine IF you actually want to go this route (and WHY) and it makes ACTUAL grad applications down the road easier. When students/friends ask me how they can know if this is the right path for them, I encourage them to apply. If you get through the process and are STILL eager to attend, then that's a good indication (this is further affirmed when you get an acceptance with minimal funding, no SSHRC/OGS money and are still able to smile broadly and say "whatever, i'll make it work I'm going to grad school WHEEEEE!")

A little something from the Books of Adam blog to capture that emotion in cartoon form for you!





Also, I have joined the waiting crew today! Two apps in for York University! I've got two more due for February, but it feels really good to finally hit this topic thread, incomplete capacity or otherwise!

I've applied to a range of master's programs:

Carleton University: Sociology, NPSIA, and Political Science
uOttawa: Criminology
Waterloo: Sociology
U of T: Criminology
UOIT: Criminology

It is going to be a stressful couple of months! Good luck to everyone

A little something from the Books of Adam blog to capture that emotion in cartoon form for you!





Also, I have joined the waiting crew today! Two apps in for York University! I've got two more due for February, but it feels really good to finally hit this topic thread, incomplete capacity or otherwise!

I'm confused by your question. Are you talking about "upgrading" or "downgrading" (why would you WANT the latter)? I haven't read last year's thread, but in my experience, the amount of control that you have re: up/downgrading is minimal. While I HAVE heard about students who LEVERAGED an award with a university to positively change an admission offer/package, I don't often here about the onus for negotiating being on SSHRC. There are rules to holding a SSHRC award. A lot of rules. Having a SSHRC will affect your university's funding package (you will get less, remember that the attended institution issues part of the award), your ability to work (should be less than 450 hours for a 12-month period; you have to keep this in mind when looking at RA/TA offers) and your elegibility for other awards (including, most notably, OGS).

I suggest that you start with the SSHRC Award Holder's Guide

http://www.sshrc-crs...ements-eng.aspx

Next, take advantage of the fact that you're still attending your undergrad institution and start making contact with the career centre (they often have grad school planning documents and can point you in the direction of departmental advisers). If you apply for a SSHRC while you are still registered in your undergrad ( or, less than 13 months after your degree is conferred), then you HAVE to apply through your undergrad. Your undergrad has quotas and, often, will keep successful copies of SSHRC applications on file. Take advantage!

I applied for a SSHRC when entering the MA level and didn't get one (fingers crossed for this year!) One of the benefits of doing an application is that it forces you to specifically articulate a program plan and quantify your research interests in an uncomfortable verbatim and inadequate space. It's a great test of your mettle. It helps you determine IF you actually want to go this route (and WHY) and it makes ACTUAL grad applications down the road easier. When students/friends ask me how they can know if this is the right path for them, I encourage them to apply. If you get through the process and are STILL eager to attend, then that's a good indication (this is further affirmed when you get an acceptance with minimal funding, no SSHRC/OGS money and are still able to smile broadly and say "whatever, i'll make it work I'm going to grad school WHEEEEE!")

A little something from the Books of Adam blog to capture that emotion in cartoon form for you!





Also, I have joined the waiting crew today! Two apps in for York University! I've got two more due for February, but it feels really good to finally hit this topic thread, incomplete capacity or otherwise!

I kind of wish grad apps had a "live" status bar like the Domino's Pizza website. So it would say Prof. So-and-so reviewing! Prof. Such-and-such second review! etc.

Except for some reason, no matter what Domino's I order from, it's always some guy named Zack making my pizza.

I'm hoping that the anxiety/worst nightmare dreams hold off for at least a few more weeks while I finish all my submissions...

In the meantime, I had a kind of funny funding-related dream a few weeks ago, wherein my graduate advisor called me on the phone. The conversation went like this:

Advisor: You won all of the funding!
Me: That's amazing! Which ones?! (Some of the funding bodies I applied to have multiple categories of awards and won't let you hold some in tandem with others)
Advisor: All of them!!
Me: Wait...what?...
Advisor: ALL OF THE MONEYS!!!

And then I realized I was dreaming. My partner poked me and asked who I was talking to. I told him about the dream and now it's like a running joke:

Me: My advisor e-mailed me...
Loving partner: Is it about the moneys?

...

Me: I'm considering this project for one of the university's research centres, I'll have time for it if I have funding...
Funny partner: Don't worry! You're getting ALL OF THE FUNDING!

...

Yeah, I'm choosing to pretend that that dream was a good omen.
That, or I'm dwelling on funding prospects too much while reading the Hyperbole and a Half blog.

Variance is definitely more the rule, than the exeption. From what I can understand, the composition of admissions committees differs widely, not just from school to school, but program to program. Some will give you hints on their "Admissions" webpages, but by and large the number/identity of readers will be obscured.

I've mentioned elsewhere that I've been ON an admissions committee, as a student rep for my MA program. Speaking from that experience, there were about 6 profs, myself and a PhD student on the actual committee. Before we sat down with the apps, the Graduate Director and the Graduate Secretary went through all of them and removed the ones from the pool that were incomplete and/or didn't meet minimum admission requirements (and had no "good" - i.e., substantiated and appropriate - explanation of mitigating circumstances). So that's two sets of eyes looking at everyone, I think around 30 applicants (of 200-ish) were bounced at that stage. We split the committee into two, each side took half of the apps. We read the ENTIRE contents of these apps and (with the aid of department admin guidelines) each came up with a top ten (we were aiming to fill around 10 spots; ultimately, we made 15 offers and took 12 students). We came together, each with our top ten, and compared notes. We ranked, discussed, justified our choices and cut; then we repeated this process until we had an acceptance and wait list that we (mostly) agreed upon.
Again, this experience is context-specific, but if you were to break it down for MY program:
Sets of eyes looking at your app: between 2 and 10, depending on how far you get.
WHO is looking: Department and/or Graduate Head(s) and Secretary, profs (all from the department, though not all were on the faculty for the program), current student(s) from program

All that being said...



...I think that your anxiety is beyond the how-many-and-what-kind-of-people-am-I-prospectively-exposing-my-inadeqaute-asshattery-to?! nerves. I hope that knowing some of the details that I provided above puts you at ease, but I have a feeling that it won't; partly because everything is context-specific - accordingly, I would advise you to take my experience with a grain of salt - and partly because your question doesn't get to the heart of your doubt.

Everyone gets cold feet about their SOPs (although, for sanity's sake, I couldn't say whether or not it is better to be struck down by this doubt before or after app submission...). I'd caution against directing this concern to a excessive preoccupation with WHO will be reading your app, because you can't really find out nor can you control this element.

Focus instead, on what you can control and generally take care of. That is: create an SOP that displays competency without resorting to jargon (remember when I said that adcomm profs were in my department but NOT neccessarily faculty members in my program? keep that in mind, don't alienate anyone). As well, you would do well to convey FIT, ability to FINISH and capacity to CONTRIBUTE and to do this in a way that appeals to those who might not only work OVER you, but also alongside you.

Finally, you should have some more people read it before you submit it. And I mean different kinds of people. Those with an academic backround and otherwise. Not everyone is going to totally "get" it, but they should be able to tell you things like whether or not you are being clear, compelling and if your passion is shining through (the latter of these being a possible issue for you, I think, based on your post).

Good luck!

Yes. However, you might consider the advantages of altering slightly your perspective of the exercise. That is, do not just look at the guidance as helping you to write a better SoP and to improve your prospects as an applicant. Instead, also view the exercise as hands-on guidance on how to write more skillfully.