coffeeplease

First of all, this draft is a vast improvement over what you had before. Secondly, writing the SOP is a process and many of us went through 23539845 drafts on the way to applying. Well, I did anyway. I've put my comments directly into the draft. I'm pretty nit-picky, but don't be put off by that. Like I said, this draft is better and you're headed in the right direction. I think you should take some time to think about your specific research questions. I know they can be hard to articulate; maybe look at old papers you've written, or articles you find interesting for inspiration. It's a very important element of the SOP, and I don't feel like I know what your exact interests and plans are after reading through the essay. Hope that helps -- keep at it! You're making good progress.

I second this....I'm in at a program that's being very evasive about funding. Maybe visiting will help clear that up....

Hey, we all feel your pain. There are a couple of things you can do: -Write to the school where you've been accepted for the MA and ask for an extension. They deal with situations like this all the time and will likely be understanding. -Write to the DGS at the school where you're waitlisted and ask for some kind of timeline. Likely they'll tell you that if you get off the waitlist, it will be late in the game, but it is probably good to keep them informed (also, it shows them that you're interested and willing to wait on their decision). Once you've done one or both of those things, go do something to distract yourself!

That was my logic in ordering things the way I did, but like I said, I have no idea if it made any sort of difference. This thread has inspired me to gut my CV....wherever I land, I'm going to get my butt to their professional development office and get this stuff in order.

This. It's a chance to mention all the things that didn't fit/weren't relevant to your SOP. I had a section called "teaching experience" -- everything educational or in some way related -- and "relevant experience," where I put a few key volunteer and leadership experiences. In retrospect, I wish I'd taken Trip's advice and "front loaded" it. I have half a page of academic awards and honors, and they are on the second page. That probably wasn't smart, but I doubt it made or broke my application.

I think you're off to a good start. My suggestion is that you make your interests more explicit and more specific. You mention the general questions that interested you when you began your studies (Why do economies grow? etc) and you mention general areas that interest you now (Development Econ and International Trade -- I am assuming here that you want to continue studying these topics, but you don't actually say this). But you don't say what questions about these areas interest you now. What specific questions or issues within these fields do you want to explore as a PhD student? And why?

Good luck! Let us know how it goes.

Indeed...when I was visiting a school, I had an amazing slice of cake called "The Peanut Butter Bomb" from a place in Brooklyn. I almost accepted right then and there. I mean, cuties come and go, but cake -- now THAT'S a serious matter!

Email the program administrator and/or DGS to the effect of, "I was wondering if you could tell me when I can expect a decision on my application. I've received an offer [you can name the program or not, your choice], and the school has asked me to respond by [deadline]. However, I remain very interested in [your program] and would like to be able to plan accordingly." You don't even have to add WHY you're asking if you don't want to, but it might help (ie, you're not just impatient). Also something to consider: if the schools indicate that they will let you know after School A's deadline, you might want to ask School A if they will extend the deadline, given the circumstances. (This is assuming that they aren't a signatory to the agreement that states they can't compel you to respond before April 15.) At any rate, they receive lots of emails inquiring about this, so it won't be a feather-ruffling matter!

Only English/Rhet Comp people? Or just generally? (I'm happy to let everyone know, but I doubt it will be terribly relevant to anyone active on this thread)

I'm in a similar situation with one school, so I don't have any advice (sorry!), but I would add one more question for anyone who might be able to answer -- is it okay to contact current grad students in the program? And should I get permission and/or give DGS a heads-up about that? Thanks (and thanks schonbier, for posting this).

My suggestion would be to think about your options and email her at the beginning of April if you're still interested in NYU. Just a gentle, professional note along the lines of, "I'm still interested in your program." It won't be irritating -- it's not like you're pestering her everyday with, "Have you decided yet? Have you decided yet? Have you decided yet?" As I said, they want to admit people who will end up there.

What I meant was: are you in a position where you will have to respond to other offers before you hear back from NYU?

I did the same as contiguous. I told my POI what the situation was and he put me in touch with the department administrator. They arranged for me to meet with all the faculty and have lunch with grad students. They know that this is a hectic time and seem very willing to accommodate prospective students. And they know that you need to do your due diligence in choosing schools. Don't be shy about emailing them!

I thought it would more accurately reflect the facepalm-moment I had when I found out I would have another month of waiting. Edit to add: I think all of us on the Crazy Stress Express should meet in the dining car for drinks.

We ARE in this together...even if it's the Crazy Train Express. Also, listen to your good angel. The ARE busy people, and most places are having midterms/spring break right now, which is a stressful time for everyone. Also, your comment reminded me of this, and how perfectly it captures what I wish I could convey to these places:

Ask WHY those people are leaving. If they're retiring, that's one thing, but if they're leaving due to the atmosphere in the department, that is definitely something you want to know. And be sure to ask the graduate students as well as the profs, as they might be willing to be a bit more candid. There was a department I was interested in and a professor mentioned something similar to me about them being "in transition." I later found out that that meant two professors left -- and it was because of tensions in the department. Another possibility is that there is a change in the availability of funding/grants: Are they changing the structure of their funding packages? Has the department's budget changed? (The last one I'd phrase more tactfully, of course). Also, if there are financial changes happening, how will that affect the future of the department? The program I mentioned above had additionally had budget issues, which caused tensions between them and the Graduate School. While they seem to be out of the woods for the moment, the fact that they'd been having such struggles meant that they had to admit fewer students this year -- all of which would certainly affect the graduate experience there, I would think.

I was just talking with one of my profs about this, and he said that expressing your interest certainly strengthens your application, as they don't want to admit people who then won't go. So an email expressing your continued enthusiasm wouldn't hurt. I'm a little unclear though -- do you mean that you have other offers that you need to respond to by April 15th? If that's the case, then maybe you could either ask her to be in touch during April, or you could send a follow-up email around the first week or so of April asking about your status.

I visted there last week (not for English), and had a similar impression. It also seems like many of the departments get along well with one another, and so students get to do lots of cross-disciplinary work, should they so choose. Also, I saw some of the classrooms -- they're really well set up, have computers and projectors -- I can imagine it'd be a really nice environment to TA in. Did anyone else apply for ICLS? I had a nice chat with the current DGS, so if anyone has any questions about that, feel free to PM me.

Oh, of course -- I wasn't trying to inspire guilt in anyone! I was just trying to gauge a) what to expect and b ) how I should act vis-a-vis the schools I'm admitted to. I also realize I should be notifying a couple of schools that they can take me off their wait lists, but I have no idea how to broach those emails (especially given that I haven't made a decision). And yes, I know -- there are far worse problems to have. Also, Trip, seeing your avatar every day (not that I have a Grad Cafe problem!) has inspired me to start reading Go Tell It On The Mountain.

I've only got two admits, and I am going to be narrowing it down between them after I visit the second one, but I just found out I am waitlisted at a school I could really see myself attending. However, they told me that I won't hear anything until the second week of April. They also don't have funds to arrange a visit, which means I would have to decide sight unseen, should I get in. The waiting never ends...

That's the idear.

Sorry to steer the conversation away from distinguished temples, but I need to ask: to those of you who are waitlisted but also have other offers, how are you handling this? Are you going to wait until the last minute to decide, in case you get admitted to another school? Is there basically going to be a massive domino effect happening around the second week of April?

I went with the least "pushy" sounding thing I could, and ended up with the non-answer above, so maybe your approach will yield better results. I'm in the same boat, though -- I have another offer I'd be happy to accept if this school can't fund me. I mean, wouldn't it waste their time and resources for me to get there and then find out there that it's not financially feasible for me to attend? Even if they are waiting on university-wide fellowships, I would much rather hear THAT than nothing.

Has anyone here been accepted but not told the details of their financial aid package? One of my programs wrote to me just after acceptance saying that it would take a few weeks to work out. That was over a month ago, and when I contacted them to ask when I could expect to hear, I was told that I should discuss that with DGS when I visit.