lnbee

I got accepted to Northwestern this morning. I'm beyond excited. And just an fyi for those waiting on Marquette, I'm emailing them now telling them to take me off the waitlist, so hopefully that helps some of you!

I was also waitlisted at my first choice, so I sent them an email explaining that I was still interested and would be willing to accept if I was offered admission. I've also heard advice that you should ask why you weren't accepted (i.e. low GPA, no experience) and if they tell you, respond with ways you are changing those situations (working harder on GPA, finding more volunteer opportunities, etc). It doesn't hurt to at least email them and tell them that you're still interested. But personally, I wouldn't email them more than twice, because otherwise you're going to annoy the heck out of them.

My decision isn't showing up on the application page either, so I'm guessing we're in the same boat. I'll probably send her an email at the end of the week just to make sure, but since a bunch of people already got acceptances/rejections a week ago, I figured that I was on the alternate list, also.

Ahh, April 20th?!?! That's so long away!! But thanks for checking for all of us who are still waiting!!

I'd say bring a car to St. Xavier's. Public transportation is doable out there, but the school is technically out in the suburbs, and public transportation takes a lot longer and is harder to use than further into the city.

This is slightly off-topic, but I've been thinking about Zipcar, and I have no idea how it works...do you have to pay for the service, and is there a schedule or something? I'm most likely going to leave my car at home, but then if I do get accepted to a city school and I have to make it out to the suburbs for externals, getting out there is going to suck.

No, I actually didn't see any of the "next step forms" when I checked a few nights ago, so maybe for those who did see that on their account, there may be good news coming your way!

I actually graduated a year early, so I moved back home for the time being until I get into graduate school, so basically I only have one address right now (my permanent address)...but I would guess that they would send it to your temporary address, right? Since that's logically where you would be right now? Sorry I can't really help with your question.

I'm in Chicago, so I'm only about 3 hours away from Milwaukee. I'm sure I got my letter before a lot of other people because I'm so close. Yours is probably still on the way!

Just an FYI for everyone waiting on Marquette, I got my letter through the mail today. They said they were unable to offer me admission now, but I've been put on the waitlist in case spots open up. Marquette wasn't really my first choice, but man, does it suck to get a rejected letter from the first school you hear from.

About St. Xavier's, nothing really in particular, but like I said, I do know faculty and graduates/friends from there, and they've always been extremely helpful and nice when I've worked with them on research. If I wasn't an out-of-field applicant, it would have been my first choice. I know of a lot of apartments around there, and I'm sure you could find something pretty affordable around the area. As for having your own car, all places have parking areas, and even street parking isn't that much of a hassle. Traffic can be a pain, but definitely not as bad as driving/parking in the downtown area or on the Northside. Having your own car, in my opinion, is way more convenient in that area, especially because when you want to drive to downtown for sightseeing and whatever else, it's only 20 minutes away (on good traffic days, of course ).

Just some info for those interested in St. Xav's, I've heard AWESOME things about the program (and I know some of the faculty there, and they're all extremely nice and helpful). However, if you're looking for a school that's IN the city, St. Xavier's is about as far southwest as you can go (some of their campus is technically out of city limits). I'm from around there and know a few people that went to the school specifically because the university said they were IN Chicago, and they were pretty disappointed when they saw how far away they were from downtown proper. The area around campus is pretty ok (think "very busy suburb" atmosphere), and there are trains to get places, but public transportation may be slow, so I'd recommend thinking about bringing a car down there. Rush, on the other hand, is much more in the downtown area, so it's easier to get around (though you have to be a little careful of some areas around the campus). Sorry for the long winded post...just thought it might be helpful.

Yeah. Even if everyone did get invited, it's one more chance to make your case to the committee. Better to go and be safe than sorry later.

I'm going to the Northwestern open house, too! But I'm not sure how to read the invite though...I was assuming that they asked people who were around the area to come and see the program (I'm in southern Chicagoland, so it's a pretty easy drive)--but now I just really don't know what to expect. Also: the date is about a month from now...which means that we probably won't find out until after, right? I'm reading the invite a dozen times and overanalyzing this way too much, but I can't help it! Why are they torturing us like this!!