PhDreams

Two days left and I'm done!!!! I've been looking forward to this day for the last month. Great that it coincides with New Years. I can ring in the New Year by celebrating and sending in my last apps. :/ I'm trying to put a positive spin on this...

If you ain't failin, you ain't tryin. LOL My friends and I laugh about this all the time. We all feel like frauds at least once a week, but then there are days when you are like, "Omg, I'm awesome. I completely get this sh*%! I'm the smartest one here!" I never thought I could read so much. I never thought that my best friend would be a highlighter. I never thought that I would get through my first semester... but it happens. You can do this. You will struggle. You will laugh. You will cry. But you will make it if you just don't quit. And that's guaranteed.

I'm mailing a copy of my fall grades to schools after they post. For others, you can include this info online. Yale has a space for it. Others might as well. I also think that grad coordinators will accept this info via email. I did this to one program last year.

Ouch. I'm sorry. I refuse to talk to my parents about grad school anymore. My parents are on the opposite spectrum. They think that grad school is this glorious walk in the park and that I must skip to school every day, my pig tails bouncing in the wind. And after classes, I sit pool side getting a tan sipping umbrella drinks ocassionally reading coursework. (Basically living in a fantasy world as a way to not get a "real job.") Well, this is what I would be doing...if I got into school in Cali. A girl can dream. Sigh....

That's really soon. I'm sort of in the same position. I'm not exactly sure what youre supposed to do in these situations.

Does anyone know whether it's too late to send in a revised writing sample?? I accidentally sent in a sample with errors in it (I inadventantly attributed a work to another person in one of my citations) for a few parapgraphs. As in So and So says, and it's clearly not so and so. D: Do you think it's more of a bother to email the coordinator at this point or are we more in the "it doesn't hurt to try" camp?

Yep. This is true. I'd take a look at that handbook quick because Straight C's might fall into academic probation territory. I'm sorry. Grad school is tough, but you made it through the first semester which is notoriously the hardest since you are still figuring everything out. Hopefully, you've figured out some strategies that work for you and are better equipped to deal with next semester. Hang in there! You can do this! It will all work out.

Me too. Terrible deadline, though. Jan 2. Gahhhh...

Awwwwww..... me too :/ I stayed at school during break to get some papers (and apps!) done and it's so so so sad. I waver between extreme stress and utter boredom.

Yep, that's true. MAPPS is pretty much a cashcow program for the school and everyone knows that. However, they have a really good rate of placing students into PhD programs upon graduation and they usually offer a standard 1/3 or 2/3 scholarship to attend the program. I've heard it's an intense and extremely rigorous year. It's a general liberal arts degree that can be specifically tailored to your interests, but I've heard of students not always getting a lot of guidance and faculty support. I know people who have hated it and others who thought it was a really great experience. I suppose it really depends on what you want out of it. If you don't get into PhD programs this year and get into MAPPS, I think it's a pretty good option instead of having a gap year. That is if you are willing to pay for it.

I've also been getting a lot of classics lately. My friends always come through. Friend: Which school is your number one? Me: Um... The one that lets me in. Friend: No, really.... Me: -________________- Yeah... really.

LOLOLOL I obviously don't understand how PhD's work then. Oh wow. Oh wow. Parents just have a knack for making things more stressful, huh? Mom: Why wouldn't you get in? You did everything you were supposed to, right? Me: Uh mom.... you don't just sign up for classes. It doesn't work that way. Just like Allouette, I refused to purchase anything school related on my visit last year. I couldn't bring myself to do it. But the second I got in, I purchased the sweatshirt though. Ahhh...and it felt good. Hopefully it will be your lucky charm

I think you just have to wait to see what they say first. Insha'Allah you will be here in Spring.

I'm not sure if you've seen the LOR threads but this is pretty common and schools seem to be pretty flexible about letters. Don't give up!!!!! I've had a professor flake out on me too and this was a BIG letter. But you have to move on and keep putting your best foot forward. You made it this far!! You're so close. DaisyAdair is right! You just have to try... You can do it!

It doesn't sound like you have gaps. However, you will have to include transcripts from every school you attended and they will be able to figure out that you were in school during that year that may look like a gap on your last transcript. It should be fine. The only time that you may need to explain it is when they ask if you've ever transferred or if you want to account for poor grades, etc.

But then... you'd... have.... to... do... that... research... lololololololol :facepalm:

I'm in the middle of rewriting my SOP ...again. >.< And there is one school where I feel like I have multiple fits and would be thrilled to work with many people in that department. In fact, the department is quite large and there are about 6 people that I could easily see myself working with. However, I was thinking of mentioning about 4 and then saying something like I think the whole department is great so as not to shut out possibilities to work with other people. Thoughts? Is that still too many? In my other SOP's I've only mentioned two max.

Anyone finally finished with apps? Heard anything promising from programs?

Harvard applicants- Any applying to History of Am Civ?

Seriously! I've gotten emails back from departments saying that they are on break until January 7! I could use those 5 days... so. much.

You can do this!!! OOOOO virtual hugs I still have two apps left and it's stressing me out. Why would schools make apps due on January 2?? There goes my NYE. I got a mini bottle of champagne and I'm going to pop it on New Years when I finally submit these last two apps. Breaking it into steps is the best advice. Also, get started on filling in the actual application portion. I've been doing this while watching Netflix. So, it feels kinda like a break and I also get to be productive. Just make sure to double check your work before you submit.

Awwww.... That's super cute. Yeah, this is the first semester that I've actually had amazing faculty support. It's really great to have people to talk to about this stuff when no one at home can understand what you are talking about. I thought the same thing! I've been reading the cohort bios and seeing if I fit in with those departments. One school accepted someone from my current program last year and it made me say YIPPPEEEEE! until I read her bio and she seems a million times more amazing than me. Where did all this self-doubt come from? Who am I?????

Maybe the sciences are a little different, but in Anthro the cohorts are so small (4-5) that there really aren't such things as back up schools. If you don't match, you don't match. The rank of the school really isn't that relevant. As in, I think that I could apply to lower ranked schools, but still get rejected because they're not really open to doing the kind of work that I'm into. Ahhh...thanks. You too! I'm also quite happy with my current grad program and am still asking myself why I chose to apply this year. It's been so stressful. This process would have been so much easier if I was only working. I would have so much more time available to do this. Apps on top of grad work, an assistantship, and orgs is kinda insane. I really feel like I could have done a better job with these apps. Maybe I should have waited... but then again, I don't know if I would be willing to go through this again if I didn't have support from profs.

Back up schools???? What are back up schools?! I just had a mini freak out when it finally sunk in that I was applying to get my PhD. Really? What possessed me to think I should do this? Why? What's wrong with me? What made me think I could get it? !!!

@ion_exchanger LOL Me tooooooo! Gahhh.... I just want decisions already. Just break my heart and be done with it, schools! I jump every time I get an email. It's so depressing. I've also been checking my apps and good thing I did! I noticed that somehow I did not attach a writing sample to one of my apps that required multiple essays. I must have skipped it since all of the supplementals got uploaded together in one section. There wasn't a dedicated space for it like in other apps. I hope they let me resubmit!!!!!!!!!! Or else... that one goes down the drain. :C !!!!!!!!