Datatape

Oh my God, the first final decision! YAAAAAAAY!

I look a few years younger than my actual age, enough to where some of my students thought I was a fellow student until I walked up to the front of the classroom and started setting things up on my first day. I've had a few of them ask how old I am and I usually resort to one of two responses: 1.) Look off into the distance thoughtfully and say, "Well, it's been forty-one eons since I was belched forth from the primordial ooze, so..." 2.) Tilt my glasses down the bridge of my nose, stare unblinkingly over the top of them, and say, "Old enough to be the wisest person you will ever have the fortune to know."

I find I function best on about 22 hours of sleep a day. Doesn't really matter when.

May you all enjoy the rest of application season as much as a baby elephant playing in the surf.

28, will be 29 when I commence.

I have had that exact same feeling: ever since my one acceptance, it's been pretty much a parade of rejections, implicit and otherwise, and I often felt like it was just a mistake I got in at all. But you would not have gotten in somewhere (Penn State, no less!) if they didn't genuinely believe in you and want you there. They had plenty of choices besides you, but they picked you. You got this.

That would be the bourbon talking.

Oh, skybythelight. I know that awful feeling. Last year, I got rejected by UNC Chapel Hill and Maryland (two of my very top choices) within eight hours of each other. This process can really hurt deeply. The best thing you can do right now is just give yourself some alone time; if you need to cry, cry it out. Go for a walk if the weather's not terrible. If it is, watch some mindless crap on HGTV or Food Network. Do what you need to do, but try as much as you can not to focus on applications or your email right now. A rejection by these schools is not a rejection of you as a person, just as a fit this year. Let yourself grieve, but don't become consumed by it. You've put a lot of time, effort, and hope into these applications, so it's only natural that you be upset when they don't pan out. If you need to talk to someone who went through the same emotional roller-coaster last year, send me a PM.

Jeez, so many of you guys are absolutely killing it this year! This is gonna be some of you in late March/early April, with all the programs begging you to come:

Dear Dr. _____: My name is Katia-chan and I am an applicant to the University of BFE English Ph.D. program this year. I am sorry to bother you at what I'm sure is a very busy time, but I was wondering if you could advise me when I might expect to hear back from the admissions committee about my application? Thank you for your time. Katia-chan And leave it at that. If they get back to you, they get back to you, and if they don't, just let it be. One polite email would never tip the balance against you and if the DGS has a set schedule, that kind of email should only take a minute or two to respond to.

Dear Lord. I will never get anything done ever again.

I don't know. Lubbock is so expensive to fly to and I know if you get in TTU will fly you out to visit the campus on their dime, so I may hold off on that. Knoxville would be a lot more affordable and I could make it a one-day trip, but I have no idea how long the waitlist is and if I even have a shot of getting in there. I guess I'm just going to hold off for now; I think I have a pretty good chance of getting into at least one or two more schools that I'm waiting to hear from, so if I do end up having a couple acceptances, I may end up releasing my spot on the waitlists. Ugh. Too many variables.

I've only got the one acceptance, so I'm not worrying about that for now. Of my remaining schools, only one will probably notify before the end of February and the rest March. I'm going to do as best I can to visit as many schools as my budget allows, but I have no idea if any more offers are going to come in.

In the event of uncomfortable silence whilst talking with a POI, I advise the following:

It's no biggie. I was expecting it ever since interview invites went out and I didn't get one. So, you know.

I'm part of the Emory slaughter today. A (slightly) amusing note: their rejection letter is the exact same one they sent out last year.

Just paste the URL from YouTube into your message. The forum will automatically convert it.

I swear, I am eternally out of upvotes. CONGRATS to everyone with all of your good news! Imagine that I am doing this simultaneously to each one of you:

Last year, I had to email the DGS at Alabama in order to find out I was on the waitlist. I never received a general email or snail-mail letter from them stating I was on the waitlist, and only got a snail-mail "regrets, but we won't be able to accept you" letter in the last week before the April 15 deadline. Some of these schools don't automatically send out waitlist reminders, so yes, it's totally reasonable to send a polite email to the DGS or graduate secretary asking if they could update you as to your status. At least that way you'll know one way or the other.

And the flowers bloom like madness in the spring.

Until and unless I get "call me John/Mary/Edeltraud," it's "Dr. ____." That may just be me, but I'd rather not assume a closeness that didn't exist.

First off, congrats on the waitlist. It's meant to be a compliment and the fact that you are specifically stated to be high on the waitlist shows they have an interest in admitting you. The first thing you do should be to send a response email either to the DGS or graduate secretary (whoever said it would be appropriate to contact them) stating your interest in the program and how it is one of your top choices, which reinforces the fact that you would be a good choice for them to pull off the list. Don't ask questions about funding yet. Once you have the acceptance in hand, that will be the time to ask about funding. Do ask questions about the size of the cohort, possible classes that will be offered in your field in the fall, and about whether the DGS could put you in contact with a graduate student in your field so you can get some insight into the program. If they extend an invitation to visiting weekend, take it. You want to position yourself in the most attractive light possible to make it all the more likely they ultimately extend an offer to you.

Unless they specifically say "bring partners/spouses/etc." I would just assume you are the only one invited. Now, that certainly wouldn't preclude your partner from coming to the city with you and spending some time getting a feel for the locale and how they would feel about living there, but for all school-related activities, it's better to go solo.

To say nothing of The Waste Land. If ever there were a more appropriate quote for the application season than "April is the cruelest month," I've yet to find it.