coonskee

Is there a friend or family member who cna loan you the amount of money for the application fee? That way, you can sign over the reimbursement check ot them when you get it, and you'll probably get the acceptance faster Good luck!

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you!! Good luck

They know they're your top choice, right? If not, tell them

Same thing happened to me - I learned about 600 words the week before the test (yup, lots of cramming) and none of them were on the test. Yeesh!

At the program where I interviewed (only applied to one), during the interview weekend, they said to let them know whether you'd definitely attend if you were to be accepted, because that might bump you higher up the waitlist and get you in when you might otherwise have missed it by a spot or two. They didn't say anything about an essay - I think a simple statement of fact would be fine. eg, "Dear ______, I'm writing in response to my waitlist status. I just wanted to let you know that ______ is my top-choice school and, if i were fortunate enough to be accepted, I would definitely choose to attend. I'm extremely passionate about your program in particular, especially because ______. Thank you so much for your time, ______." (line breaks where appropriate ) Good luck!

No one else?!

I think that all of the test prep courses are a waste of time/money (no offense, psychgurl). To do well on quant (and verbal, really) you just need to do practice questions. That might mean a crap tonne of practice questions in some cases, but the great thing about the GRE is that the questions are short and, once you refresh on basic maths skills, you can "steal time" to do the questions - for example, when I was taking my test, I brought my practice question book to the lab where I'm working. The times when I'd have a reaction incubate for 2 min or 5min before the next step, I'd turn to my book and answer a question (or two) if I could. Instead of paying several hundred for a course, yo ucan spend $100-200 on books (if you buy LOTS of them) and get similar results. Also, don't bother buying flashcards if you have an iPhone/iPad/Android phone/tablet. you can get a Kaplan vocab flash card app for free. Good luck!

I keep planning on buying new things and saying that it's a present to myself for getting into my dream school. Coonskee, no one gets 100 presents for being accepted... sigh!!

There's a free Kaplan vocab app in the iTunes store (and probably the Android one as well) - I really liked using it. Good luck!

I would agree with the above suggestions - an extra letter form your Khun Kru could be a really nifty addition to your application that would make you stand out, but I think it would be detrimental to your application to forgo an academic reference letter in favour of one from him. Best of luck!

@paulio, I'm really curious where you're going to end up!! Obviously I want everyone to go to Columbia Congrats on all the amazing choices.

I'd say program > fellowship, if only because... Well, say youve been admitted to two programs. One is th best in the world; you'll be the worst student there, but you still beat out hundreds of people for your place. The other is the worst program in the world, but you'll be the best student there. Which would you pick? Obviously, this is taking the example to extremes, but that's the reason I'd go for the more prestigious program - obviously it's prestigious for a reason. I'd prefer the challenge of distinguishing myself from the students in the "better" program than coming into a program already on top. As for the Master's --> PhD thing for your third option -- I'd say, ask straight out if it's possible to join the PhD program after completing the MSc. then, take it from there Good luck and congrats on all of your acceptances!!

Currently imagining the job interview scene from Step Brothers....

Wheeee congrats! I'm very happy for you!

You could maybe ask if you'd be allowed to defer admission for a year and wait to see if some funds open up? I know taking a gap year isn't ideal, but maybe they'll be able to work with that. And I agree with the above - unfunded should be a last resort. I've spoken to numerous researchers and many say never to accept an unfunded offer - it's going to be very hard to pay off the debt. Good luck!

As long as you're not calling constantly (like, multiple times) then you should be OK. Just mention that you heard some people received admissions, and that you were wondering what your status is. If you find out that you're waitlisted, you can mention that TC is your top choice - that might help boost you up the list and get you an admission. Good luck!!

Hahah thanks And I know I will - Columbia's actually my alma mater; i'm completely in love with the school, in case you can't tell

goldenbuff - definitely email them and tell them you'll say yes if accepted. I was told at my interview weekend that, while this will not definitely get you in, it may bump you up enough places on the list that you'll be accepted when you mightn't have been otherwise. I'd make sure that you make sure it both doesn't sound desperate, AND that you make it sound like it's your top-choice program out of choice, not necessity (i.e. don't say "NO ONE ELSE WILL TAKE MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE :( :( " ) Good luck!! I have my fingers crossed for you

Well as long as you didn't do what was mentioned above, at least everyone did ok Good luck with the admissions! I didn't have any particular stories from my interview weekend... one guy left the "fun events" really abruptly and came off a bit rude, but it wasn't anything awful. Alas!

I don't know how much the rankings differ, but from what you stated, I'd definitely go for the funded one. You don't want to be hard on your pockets or those of your parents - and 40k is a lot of money! Congratulations on your acceptance!

I would ask your PI what he thinks first. You don't want to use his name without permission in negotiating and potentially get him in trouble. Good luck!

I applied December 5th (last day application was open) - heard back about an interview December 20th; interview was January 20th; received a departmental acceptance on February 10th and the official acceptance on February 14th. I know that admissions for the program are 'rolling' (send out a round of acceptances, wait to hear back, send out another round). Good luck!!

I've been told that, regardless of your plans for grad school (unless you're med/law), do not go into debt for graduate studies precisely because of what jbriar said: the debt you accrue will be really hard to pay off. A high school teacher of mine was out of school 20 years with a Master's and still working to pay off her debts from attending a US school. Will your career options be that different if you choose OSU over Vanderbilt? And is there any way you can mitigate the costs of the programs with scholarships, etc? Address these things very carefully. Especially considering the state of this economy and not knowing how the future will pan out in terms of the job market. Good luck and congrats on your acceptances!

Buy an xbox! But really - I'd suggest finding an activity (if you can) that takes you away from the computer - read something, play some video games, etc. The farther away you are from a computer, the less you'll be obsessively checking your app status. And if you can't, you can download an app my friends in college used to focus on their hw - SelfControl. They used it for facebook, etc, but you can probably use it for your application website - set it for a few hours so you can't refresh, and will therefore have to focus on something else. only downside is that you can't cancel the block until it expires, so if you get an email saying you can now check your app status, you'll be forced to wait it out

Oy... that's bad!! I have no advice to offer with dealing with the situation - I hope it turns out to be a mistake in your favour though! Good luck