pelevinfan

Unfortunately, no. At least that is a plain Slavic PhD, so they can't pull a move like that and not accept any students...let's just hope that the acceptances are us! I'll post it up as soon as I get a reply to the email I sent to the department; hopefully they get back to me sooner rather than later.

Wow, that just really sucks. Had many different scenarios playing out in my head, but that was certainly never one of them.

No word here either, starting to get a little antsy...

I'm a bit of a lurker on this forum, as I've only applied to one Comp Lit-ish program, but I just wanted to say that this is great advice! These are all the things that were recommended to me, and which I did. The one interview that I had resulted in an acceptance. So, follow this and you should be good!

Hey guys - Since Slavic departments are so small, does anyone know if they generally do admitted student days? I'd really like to go check out the school before I commit (though I'm 99% sure I'll be committing anyway). If anyone has any information, please let me know. Thanks! Also, lslavic: I literally JUST finished writing the section of my honors thesis on Omon Ra earlier today. Such an interesting work. My interests generally lie in the same vein as Pelevin (I also do Soviet sci fi/fantasy). I've also done a bit with Shukshin, whom you obviously know since you're into Russian village prose!

Let's hope so! I have to say though, I just got my first acceptance and though it would be lovely to have to choose between that and NYU, the pressure feels just a liittle bit lessened :-)

I think I remember them telling me that they usually have 1-2 students a year, so maybe not a cohort so much as a 'hey you, loner! come do research here.' Obviously not sure though (this was a conversation that took place in August.) Ack, hating this process more and more every day!

Yay, she wrote you back! Glad to see that they haven't forgotten about us. Not to be a total downer, but I'm a little worried now. If we're hearing from the Comp Lit department, shouldn't we theoretically be hearing at the same time as all the other non-ISR applicants? I desperately want to believe that the answer to that is a resounding 'no! we're in a separate category!' but based on Prof. Lounsbery's email, it sounds like the Slavic department has little to do with it...if I don't hear by the end of the next week, I think I'll just assume rejection :-\

Hi lslavic! Yep, this waiting is the absolute worst. I don't know about you, but all of my professors also keep asking me if I've heard back, and are invariably shocked when I say no. So, Polish! Very cool. I've dipped my toes in every Slavic language our department offers EXCEPT Polish. Oops. Are you focused in Polish language, or literature? If the latter, what are your research interests?

Love this. I say yes. Just tell them, we know you want it to be a huuuge surprise, but guess what?!? We know! Cat's out of the bag, offer us our awesome funding packages now. :-)

AGREED. C'mon, don't they want to enlarge the program? Everyone knows schools should all be funneling funds towards Slavic studies...

I met with an adviser/one of my recommenders today. I mentioned to her that I had only interviewed at one school. She paused, then said 'well, you can always hope for a spot on the waitlist!'

If/when you find out, please do let us know! Good luck :-)

Nope, no separate application! I just had contact exclusively with Slavic department professors, who all said that I should just indicate right in my SOP that I was solely interested in the ISR. I obviously would not get accepted to the Comp Lit department without ISR, as I'm not actually a Comp Lit person. In fact, the more I talk about it, the stupider I feel for having even applied...

Ablukhov - do you think that we ISR applicants will hear at the same time as the straight Comp Lit applicants? I'm not sure how the process works; does our application get forwarded to the Slavic department for review as well, and who should we expect to hear from? I'm so full of questions today, sorry!

No, I'm actually applying to Slavic PhD programs. NYU doesn't have a Slavic PhD program, though they do have one of the best scholars in my field in their department. So while I'm not Comp Lit, I decided to apply to the Interdisciplinary Specialization in Russian program. But yeah, I'm hoping Yale comes through - would love to be there! Anyway, thanks for the information, and I hope you continue to get good news!

Did you get an email from NYU? I'm waiting on the Comp Lit program there, sort of (interdisciplinary PhD through the Comp Lit department), and I'm eager to hear back! Sorry, that was INCREDIBLY rude of me. Congratulations!! Quite an accomplishment :-)

Thank you, bellefast. I had an interview that went well at a program that I really like, so I am hoping that that works out. In the end, you're right: though it would be nice to have a multitude of choices, in the end, all you need is one 'yes' in a sea of 'no's' and you'll succeed. Good luck to you as well! I understand the pessimism, as I feel that way about myself as an applicant. But I have faith in you!

I've been struggling with this, but for a very different reason. My friend is applying to the same programs as me, and so it actually does have a direct bearing. It kills me when I hear about her getting interviews at all of my top choices, when I just get total silence. In particular, she put up a status on Facebook about an interview she had at my dream school. The school had actually even told me I would have an interview in January when I contacted my POI back in October, but I haven't. I just keep telling myself that I'm trying to be as happy as possible for her/my other friends going through this, but that I also know that if the situation were reversed, they would probably be struggling with the same things. Honestly, our friends will end up in a program that is good for them, and we'll end up somewhere that is good for us. That's probably the only thing getting me through this.

I will actually most likely be attending again this summer, so I suppose we'll meet in person! 1) My favorite part of the program was really just speaking in Russian 100% of the time. I can't even tell you how much my Russian improved. It was really exciting to actually feel progress being made literally EVERY day. I came in at a pretty low level, and left being able to carry on a conversation. 2) I guess my previous response answers that. To put it in perspective though, I officially skipped a year of college Russian, and then breezed through my third year class. 3) If I attend this summer, it will be my second one. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me. I feel uncomfortable giving out too many personal details on a public forum, but would be happy to tell you more about the program.

Anybody else sort of relieved it is the weekend? For me, at least, it'll be a welcome respite from the constant vigilance of checking my email approximately 10,000 times a day.

I attended Middlebury for Russian. I don't really know what you mean by 'discuss your experiences' - can you ask something more specific? If you're just asking for confirmation that it is exciting and awesome and worth it, it is.

I heard from Yale, I'm having my interview in the next couple of days. Have heard of Harvard interviews going out, but I didn't get one - guess that's it for me and Harvard. Kind of a huge bummer, since Harvard was my first choice. But, I'm super excited to talk to Yale! I like their program a lot as well, and if I'm being totally honest with myself, it is probably better for my specialty. Keep on keeping on, Ablukhov! I'm sure you'll start to hear soon!

Also received a rejection today. If it had to be any school, I'm glad it was this one (my last choice), but it stings nonetheless. Coming right out of undergrad, I'm extremely nervous that PhD programs will instantly write me off as unqualified. I'm hoping that this decision isn't indicative of things to come, but that doesn't really help the mounting dread I feel. Rejection always, always, ALWAYS sucks - it isn't something I've gotten used to yet, and I doubt I ever will!

Rejected from Berkeley...here's to hoping for better news in the future.