chadottir

Yes, I have a Master's in the field from an Ivy League in the U.S. but it did not require the number of undergrad courses that this Canadian Ph.D program does. Ridiculous! I guess the main issue is the difference between the Canadian and U.S. requirements. It sounds like the final word from both college and department but I'll have to find out more from tomorrow's conversation. I was going to try to argue for a conditional admission and will do so. I hadn't thought of a deferred admission so thanks for that. : )

I applied to a prestigious Canadian institution (though I'm American) for a PhD in the social sciences. It was my top choice, I was interviewed by the advisor I wanted to work with, got offers from two other programs, and waited. I thought I'd try to use my other acceptances as leverage for my top choice and emailed the professor and asked if I could expect to hear from them in the next couple of weeks. She emailed me back right away and informally offered me admission and let me know how much funding I'd get. I rejoiced, felt all my dreams had come true and figured I'd wait until I got the official letter before I turned the other offers down, which she also recommended. Two days later, the professor contacted me again to reiterate that her offer was merely informal and that the graduate college would have to approve my application, which they were now scrutinizing because I do not have enough undergraduate coursework in the chosen field (but do have a Master's degree in it). Just heard today that they cannot admit me because I am missing too much required undergraduate coursework. Professor said she was sorry and that it was an oversight on their part to informally offer me admission and that I should take one of my other offers. Will be Skyping with her tomorrow to discuss in detail. I'm pretty heartbroken. I'm trying to figure out how to approach our conversation tomorrow. This program remains my top choice and the advisor, despite her blunder, remains my top choice. Any thoughts or suggestions?