Fiona Thunderpaws

I second the above sentiment. Also, a fulbright and a debt-free MA would both help you become more polished academically, and help your career further down the road than the MA from a higher ranked school would alone.

FIFTY SHADES OF GREY! Just kidding. (Though a friend did dare me to read it, and it's so much worse than you could possbily imagine.) I admire everyone's abilities to stay on top of things. My summer reading list thus far is me reading whatever the hell I feel like reading, and most of these things are not-so-scholarly. I figure that for most of my program I'm going to have people/classes/my career dictating what I'm reading, so I'm trying to enjoy my last few months of totally unstructured reading time as much as I can. Though if you're looking for French theory Trip, I recommend The Wretched of the Earth if you haven't read it already, or Sartre's Search for a Method, which is interesting though not quite as enjoyable to read, in my opinion.

Personally, I would stick with University of Kansas for a few reasons. Firstly, while Georgetown may be able to offset your costs a little, I doubt whatever they could offer would hold a candle to $13,000 a year. That's REALLY good funding there. I'm guessing your ultimate goal is to end up in a PhD program, and the last thing you want when you're looking into PhD programs is massive debt. Secondly, backing out of Kansas' offer this late might lead to you burn some bridges with the people there. If Georgetown ends up being too expensive or unsuitable for another reason, you won't be able to go back to them, and things could become dire. Thirdly, if you admire Georgetown's placement record, bear in mind that the fact Kansas is willing to spend quite a bit of money on you for your MA will speak very highly to adcoms when you do apply to PhD programs. Many people can get into unfunded MA programs, but an MA program with funding is quite a rare thing and commands attention. This is just my $.02 here. Also--congratulations on getting another acceptance so late in the season!

Anytime!

I submitted my scores to the schools that required it, and those were the only schools that got it. I don't think I applied to any that recommended it. For me, all either did or did not want it. Also, the $20 extra it took me to send the scores times 5 or so just seemed like too much money--even if I had done better on it, I probably wouldn't have sent my scores for that reason. The school I'm going to (UT Austin) did require the scores.

I'm with Margarethale on the whole "don't read it after you sent it out" thing. Probably the worst thing about applications is that you're done in December roughly, and then you have two months or more to sit around and reflect on what you could have done better. Don't make waiting worse by going back and re-reading your stuff! Save your grad stuff on a flash drive and give it to your friend if you must. Not looking will make you much happier. As far as the sample itself goes, if page requirements are an issue, I recommend contacting the program and asking if it's okay if you send something slightly longer/shorter. I did this with one school, and they were fine with it. While it's good to meet the required length, sometimes there is just no possible way your 20 page paper can become 12 without some serious damage. If you've got the time, it helps to put your sample away for a few weeks and come back to it. When I did this, I found it was much easier to edit with a distanced perspective than when I was working on it 24/7. Since you 2013 people are way ahead of the game here, I recommend it. Especially if you've hit the point where you just don't even know what to do anymore.

I just want to echo Transcendental and congratulate everyone who survived the lit GRE! But I also want to echo her/his point that if you do poorly, it's not worth retaking. Think about it--we're all specialists here, so we all own one section of the test only to do terribly on the ones we don't know. I got below the 50th percentile and am going to a top 20 school this fall. Just celebrate you were wise and got one annoying requirement out of the way long before you have to get applications in!

I'd be glad to read SoPs! Also, if anyone wants to read mine, PM me and I'll send it to you via email or PM. I had friends let me read theirs, and it was helpful. I've mentioned so much of my personal details at this point, you all could find me if you wanted to. Then I'd bake you cookies and make mojitos, so really, finding me might be a fun idea!

I (as I'm sure many others) fully agree with Trip. From what I've seen it looks like this process is half skill, half luck. You've clearly got the skills for academia, and certainly the drive. Don't let anyone or anything make you feel like you can't do what you want to do.

Wow, really. Better late than never when it comes to notifying people, LSU! I bet you'll be an acceptance ninja next year, DT. You'll need to hire PR reps and body guards to keep the adcomms from swarming you.

I'll be the one covered in cat hair. I think UTA GFers should have a secret symbol so we'll all know. EDIT: Who am I kidding? All the 12 seasoners need a secret symbol and/or handshake so we'll recognize each other at conferences. CONFERENCES. We can get paid to go to them!

That is awesome advice Stately, thank you. I'm not freaking out about grad school/post grad school stuff, but it still seems really, really weird that I'm going. If someone had told me I would be doing this when I was 18, I would've laughed in disbelief. In theory I know I'm going, but I can't just wrap my mind around the actually going there part. It just feels so strange--in an awesome way--but still so strange!

I've channeled all my former momentum into trying to find a place to live for myself and the true Thunderpaws. I'm heading down in about two weeks to scope out the housing scene, and to lurk around the department. I also send my new-found momentum gleefully counting down the days until I can quit my server job. Putting in two weeks will have never felt so good!

This is like, the apex of all my fantasies.

This would be awesome! I'm crossing everything I can cross for you guys!

Good luck! That is awesome news. It's never over until it's over!

I wouldn't count yourself out. If the program is a really good match for you, they're not going to count you out based on grades/GPA alone. And at the risk of sounding like some sort of Disney fairy godmother, dreams can come true during the application season! I was either going to get into my top choice off the waitlist or be shut out this year, and the former prevailed. It's not over until it's over.

Kind of strange it's a second year thing, but it sounds pretty interesting as far as required classes go. Part of me does wish they had some sort class or seminar for first years though--it's be nice to get to know the whole cohort when we're all still new to the area.

I know how this goes. Does anyone know much about the graduate housing scene down there? I'd like to live where other grads live if possible, but it seems like there is an endless possibility of neighborhoods to pick from. I want to say it's three per semester, but don't hold me to that.

When do you have to register for it? I imagine I would be back in Buffalo for early January, and getting to Boston would be pretty easy for me. I'd be interested in going, if I could make it work!

While this moving business is pretty stressful, I'll take this stress ANY day over the agony of waiting to hear back from places. Maybe it's because I'm in off the waitlist last minute, but it hasn't sunk in yet. I feel like I'm making plans for someone else!

I can probably take her on a plane with me, but I'm just wary. I've heard horror stories of pets passing away underneath due to heat issues, and Thunderpaws is HUGE so I'm not sure if she'll fit in the cabin with me. She's also a rescue cat, and her past misfortunes have given her a personality best described as 'cantankerous.' I'll just have to look into it more, I suppose. Is anyone else more concerned about their pets' welfare than their own with this whole relocation thing?

I'm almost having the opposite problem! I managed to stay pretty positive throughout the whole waitlist nightmare, but I was pretty sure I would be reapplying. Now I'm like "What? I only have three months to find a place, move there, and start ALL the things?!" I don't think the true Thunderpaws will enjoy being put in a kitty carrier and shipped to Texas.

So this topic came up when I was talking to my DGS yesterday. He actually said that he didn't care what kind of jobs people worked during their time between schools. The adcom was looking for people who stayed engaging in academia during their time off. I know we kind of figured this anyway, but it was nice having it confirmed from someone who makes decisions based on this stuff!

I'm with Stately Plump on this. You guys are doing to kick some ass next year, or whenever people decide to apply! We all know everyone these boards is an academic BAMF, and I really think luck is the deciding factor. If anyone wants to look at my SOP as an example or is looking for an editor this summer, feel free to PM me or something. I only got through this process because people here kept me sane, and I want to return the favour if I can!