CairoKid

Yay! I'm glad I'm not the only one from this past cycle who got "unceremoniously rejected" from all PhD programs and is reapplying for the next cycle! Well, what I mean is I'm glad I'm not alone -- not that I'm glad you got rejected everywhere. But my professors also assured me I would definitely get in somewhere, only to realize how very wrong they were and how much stronger my app could have been. But balledematch, I see you're going to LSE? I just got accepted on Friday to SOAS at University of London. Looks like we may be following similar paths: Unfortunate 2012 app cycle + Master's in London... and hopefully super successful 2013 app cycle!

Thanks! It definitely made my day.

^^ Thanks! =)

FINALLY!!! I got accepted to SOAS at the University of London. A very nice birthday present, indeed. =)

Congrats to everyone that has been granted a Fulbright so far! Though I don't expect to hear back about mine until May probably, I received word today that I was admitted to SOAS at the University of London! So, if I don't get the Fulbright, I finally at least have a fallback plan. =) Oh, and it's my birthday!

Thanks! haha. Though it's probably less impressive considering I go to somewhat of a small liberal arts college. We had a decent number of people apply though.

I didn't know about this ranking system either. But I know my advisers said I was the strongest candidate from my school, and I got a letter from the dean saying something about how they were endorsing me as the top candidate. I had no idea what that meant. I hope the U.S. Fulbright board felt similarly, and thus the Turkish commission, as well. =)

It is very sad and tragic. But I'm sure at least some of you are familiar with the story of Amy Biehl -- a Fulbright scholar in South Africa who was brutally murdered right before what would have been her return home. She was mistakenly seen as a symbol of oppression by whites, but was in fact in SA to study/promote the need for government reform and social equality: http://www.lindavergnani.com/amy-biehl-story.html

It all depends where you're applying. Of course if you have to be around for a summer orientation in DC, you may not want to wander too far. And like someone else said, you might not get your flight reimbursed if you arrive from somewhere else you were traveling to. I'll be working in Cairo most of the summer, but I plan to arrive back in the States in late August before I'd have to fly out to Ankara. But if I find out I don't get the grant, I'll just stay in Egypt and glare angrily toward Turkey. =P

Judging by the scores most people have (and I mean most people on gradcafe that are getting into really high-ranked programs), and predictions as to what the "new 1400" score is on the new scale, you want at least a 160 in each section. It seems as though the writing section means less, but most people have at least a 5.0. Generally, it's best to aim for 90th percentile or higher in all sections. You can find those exact scores on the ETS GRE site.

I think my SOP was probably the weakest part of my application, and I only realized more recently when others started posting theirs. Of course, the SOP is one of the more important parts of your application because you lay out why they should pay you to study at their school. I was given advice that I didn't need to be so specific about my interests and didn't need to cater my statements too much to the specific schools. So I stayed fairly broad in my interests and my paragraph about fit was easily adjusted to each school (like insert professors' names here, and school name there). I definitely did not do a good job of connecting my experiences to my interests. I did not explicitly state what kinds of questions I wanted to address in graduate school. I could have been more specific about what I hope to do in graduate school, and why that specific graduate school was the best fit. It was just all around not what grad schools wanted to see. So, in addition to fixing that huge problem, I should have higher GRE scores, a better writing sample (because my honors thesis will actually be done), and a better list of schools that fit my interests. My LORs will be the same (which were very strong), unless I go to a Master's program and then have one or more of my professors there write my LORs. It's unfortunate that I thought I did enough research to put together a strong application only to later realize all the things I could have done better. But I'm glad I now know what I know. I think I'll be a much stronger candidate the next time around. Learn from your mistakes. =)

Yeah, I'm studying for the GRE again, as well. Figure it can't hurt to boost my score a bit, especially Verbal. I've mostly reworked my SOP, but I'm sure it'll undergo more changes once I figure out what I'm doing next year. I also revised my CV/Resume. I'm pretty much ready to reapply and hear back from schools much sooner than reality actually allows. haha Edit: Oh, and I'm revising my list of schools to include a broader range of rankings; increasing the number of schools I'm applying to in general; and looking for departments that better suit my interests than some of the ones I previously applied to.

Thanks for creating the thread! Even though going through the application process again doesn't excite me, I look forward to sharing the experience with the wonderful people of gradcafe. =)

Same. I keep thinking it's weird when people talk about having done grad seminars and all this fancy stuff, and then I remember their schools have grad departments, and my liberals arts college does not.

I checked the Turkish Fulbright Commission's website, and then their Facebook page, in hopes that something would say, "Making our finals selections and hope to send decisions soon!" ... But alas, there is nothing useful.

I'm right there with ya! Let's do this! haha.

Thanks! And that's excellent! And very surprising considering their funding issues last year. I wish I knew how many people applied and how many they narrowed the pool down too after the first cut. P.S. I PMed you asking a few more questions. =)

Only one PhD program left to hear from, followed by what I expect to be several unfunded MA offers (or perhaps rejections). Let's hear it for Fulbright!!! (my only hope) Now, if only I didn't have to wait until May/June to find out.

Why does Turkey always take so long?!?!?! I don't want to have to find out AFTER graduation. I want to know what's happening next year!

Well I'm sorry you haven't gotten any offers, but there's still hope! You never know. Some people heard nothing from any of their schools and then got offers recently with GWU and Georgetown. You never know. =) On the other hand, it's semi-nice to know I won't be alone reapplying. Not that I'd ever be happy to see anyone else be unsuccessful. I'm glad I'm in good company, though. =)

Good to know, though I'm sure it'll be a rejection, or at best an unfunded offer.

Saw someone posted that they got a rejection from GWU on the website. I tried to log into my account, but it says there are technical errors. Hrmph. =(

Well good luck! I hope you find a great opportunity and wish you much happiness and success. Thanks for sticking around and being supportive. ------ Anyone else reapplying next cycle?

Thanks. I'm sorry to hear about yours, too. I do hope the Fulbright comes through, though I do have some potential Master's programs... so long as they get back to me with good news. Ehh. They'd have to be fully funded. But don't be too down on yourself. I know I'm pretty upset, and it doesn't help having my s.o. moving onto bigger and better things next year without me. But I hope you're planning on trying again next year. Do you have a game plan in the meantime?

I was just rejected, too. Even if Georgetown and GWU get back to me with good news, neither will be funded. Looks like I have to go through this all again next year.