Fiona Thunderpaws

Happy to help! I'll send you a PM.

What sort of information are you looking for? I went to SUNY Buffalo and still live in the area.

Don't be afraid to move somewhere else too if there's few opportunity in your university town or hometown either. I stayed in my hometown after I graduated thinking that it would be a smart, money saving move. But the job market in my particular corner of the country is so bad, there was really nothing for me. If grad school doesn't work out for me this fall, I know I'll have to move elsewhere.

So glad to here your visit went well, even though some of your POIs were off being professor-y! Maybe it's for the best the weather was bad when you went so it can't seduce you with its promises of sunshine and warmth. Of course, I'm sure sunshine and warmth is all the rage in Austin! I hope your visit to Austin is likewise awesome, and if you, me, and GuateAmfeminist all end up getting in, we'll have to meet up! I'll be the really small, furry one. EDIT: I missed your comment about Pitt somehow. That's not that strange. I was flat out rejected by Rutgers, but every time I see someone post in that thread, I sigh wistfully...

I guess it depends on your friend's personality, but I know for me I hate it when people bring up anything about my applications, but I like it when they listen to my ranting sympathetically. I hope somethings works out for her though--lack of funding is the very worst sort of evil.

Here's an old list I found elsewhere that might offer a few more options. Washington State University of Florida UW-Milwaukee University of Alabama Michigan State University University of Oregon University of Kansas Texas A&M University of Utah Binghamton University Miami University (Ohio) Purdue University University of Connecticut University of Delaware University of Georgia University of Kentucky University of Missouri University of Nebraska University of Oklahoma University of Tennessee Arizona State University University of New Mexico Villanova University Bowling Green State University I don't know how accurate it still is now though. I have a sneaking suspicion the funded MA is a vanishing animal.

Bucketsofrain: That is encouraging, thank you! We need hope to live here, like some sort of dysfunctional fish tank that thrives on emotions. I'm so happy things worked out for you.

University of the Scary Bovine Mascot Waitlist, Day 38 The gin is gone. As is the beer, the vodka, and my sanity. The stress eating has made me grow out of my pants, adding insult to injury. Three weeks remain. I don't know if I can make it. Someone please make it end. ...or that's the point I'm at, in any event. The closer it gets to the to the 15th, the more my stress mounts too. I think I'm a certifiably crazy person, and the young'uns (read: my highschool co-workers, for further insult) think I'm a borderline alcoholic. This is why I applied to the pastry shop, so I can eat my feelings more fully. EDIT: Trip, I don't know how helpful this is for you, but my friend who got off the waitlist you're on now was made an offer the first week of April, so it might not be three weeks!

Haha, nice! I noticed everyone was being cagey and witty too, but I think it's too late for me. Everyone knows my dark, terrible secret by now! It makes sense you feel less stressed now that you have a better idea... That's why two of my LOR writers have no idea what I'm up to, since I don't know myself. I've found that stating things with confidence and like you know exactly what you're you're doing and wouldn't be doing anything else goes a long way towards diffusing situations as well, which is easier to do when you actually know what you're doing too! Where do you think you'll go, if you don't mind my asking? You were jumping across puddles or trekking to winter wonderland, right? I've been rooting for you all these weeks too and you had some awesome choices! EDIT: I figured it out. Congratulations!!!

Antecedant, I like your new signature! I'm waiting until I know exactly what I'm doing before I tell my LOR writers much. But I told the professor I'm closest to about my waitlist when it happened (I'd heard back from the majority of schools at that point anyway) through email, which made things a little easier. I think email is going to be my friend, especially if things go not-as-well as I want them to.

Greg--we are all on the same boat of soaring hope and crushing uncertainty here. Though technically, I guess we're in the Lit/Comp/Rhet boat, but we're still sailing the same sea... I have no idea if being international or not helps, but good luck! GuateAmfeminist--Thunderpaws is my pen name, in fact, so they'll know EXACTLY who you're talking about. That's super exciting and somewhat terrifying you're visiting though! I think I'm going to shoot Lesser an email later that week to remind me that I'm in love with UTA and will do anything to live out my epic academic romance for real (however I might word it differently)!

Congrats Transcendental, and welcome to our dubious corner of TGC! I'll be pulling for you now too. On a totally unrelated note... I bought some nail polish the other day and realized it's called "Exceptionally Gifted." This has to be an omen that my waitlist school feels the same way about me, right? My offer's just a day or two away?

Likewise. And in the end, a job is something one does to make one's livelihood, and there's good days and bad days at the job. I love being a student, but doesn't mean I'm not basking my head on a desk in the library somewhere at least once a month. I think the backlash against humanities phds aspirants borders on vilification.

Siarabird, I'm sending you a PM!

Aeplo-- wow, you heard before you knew you were on it? That's pretty awesome! Best of luck with your decision making! And I still can't believe UTA's visiting weekend is so late... The stress is killing me. Even if they do offer me a spot, I'll probably be too far gone in my crazy place to accept by then, and my last words on TGC will be "I liek books." Anxious--that is super stressful. But in the end, I think your boss would understand if you left. While it might be awkward to tell him, I think it would pass. And I really wish we lived in the same place so we could grab that drink! You seem like you need it more than me today.

Hopefully I can, because that would be the best case scenario, but will I be punished for deferring at all somehow? I know very little about how deferring works, but I'm worried it'll make my interest rate spike or something. My loans are unsubsidized, so there is always interest always. *is assuredly not a finance major*

I really, really wish we could all grab some drinks together too! I feel like such a crazy person these days, and my friends are all sick of hearing me talk about my waitlist, because nothing has changed for WEEKS. But you all get it. Timshel--I've heard of people being made offers in early April before, but not so much March. Though Imogene gives me cause to wonder... Aside from being unconscious, I deal with the stress by watching Angel and drinking. Usually both at the same time. I never said I was a good example.

Urgh, yes. And I really, really don't want to defer them while I'm in school. What are other people doing about their loans?

Can I just say thank you to everyone for your kind and inspiring words? I've been in a bad place all weekend, and reading everyone's responses to the usual 'going to grad school will RUIN YOUR LIFE FOREVER' arguments has helped me feel a little bit better about the whole situation. This semester has been the first on in 17 years where I haven't been in school, and not having my academic support network while trudging through the nightmarish application season is really starting to get to me the closer to we move towards the 15th... But I have all of you lovely strangers here on TGC to keep me sane when I start drifting. So, thanks everyone!

I'm really starting to see the truth of this after bearing witness to all the other application experiences here. When I decided to apply to programs, I knew it would be competitive, but honestly, I'm beginning to think chance might be the biggest deciding factor in applications. Of course good grades, test scores, LORs, and writing samples matter... But I'm willing to bet there's only a small minority of applications who seriously lack in any of those areas. While I've worked hard for this, and I think I could make it in the field if given the opportunity, I'm considering not applying next year if I'm shut out because I feel like I'm gambling with my future. If I believed working really f***ing hard at this would bring me success eventually, I would keep reapplying. But I'm not entirely certain that's how it works. Couple that with the dubious futures of humanities PhDs in general, and I'm at a loss... I truly admire the abilities of people here who have applied multiple times, I really do, because I just don't know if I can justify it again personally...

So happy for you Lolo! If you're stressed, this is the place to be... At least we have less than a month now. I can't speak for everyone else, but I'm pretty sure I'll never be the same again after waiting this long, even if it does work out in the end.

I do too Thanks for letting us know, takethiswaltz!

That's amazing news, congratulations! I think if you like UTA more, you might as well bind your time on the waitlist still and see where things go. Unless someone has some sort of exceptional circumstance, I'm sure they except their first round admits to let them know by the 15th, and I imagine April 15th is the deadline at San Antonio as well. Things might be a little crazy and stressful the closer it gets to the 15th, but it sounds like you've got a solid offer even if UTA doesn't work out, so you win either way!

Yep, that's how I've been functioning too. My friend was over the other day, and she started a sentence with "Thunderpaws, I've got some bad news for you..." and seriously, I thought she was rejecting me off the waitlist for a moment!

I have had many shameful moments of despair, frustration, and failure these pasts few months, but I think I'm mostly in the "resigned boredom/anxiety" stage of waitlisting... I just want to know one way or the other at this point so I can move on.