waitingitout

I don't know... I don't think it's not conscientious or detrimental to my "academic karma" to want what I paid my $50/$75 application fee for... a yes or a no. I haven't ruled anything out at this point.

Thanks for all the great advice--this forum is helping me keep my sanity in all this craziness. Who knew waiting could be so exhausting? I accepted the offer on Friday (deciding that if I do hear good news from the wait list for other schools I have every right to back out of my acceptance) but strangely there has been no response by the prof who demanded the deadline of me--who, btw, is not the DGS. I'm going to have to (I'm beginning to hate this word) wait until Monday and if I don't hear anything by then, e-mail the prof again... The schools I'm waitlisted for generally don't want to talk about what number I am on the waitlist... just that I'm "in a pile" that is waiting for funding...

How legally binding is that agreement? The program is a part of the April 15th agreement but when I mentioned that I only got the reply that it was "impossible" to grant me the extension... I know it sounds like bad news but it's the only offer I have...

I have applied to seven PhD programs in RhetComp. Rejected from three, accepted into one with funding, waitlisted for three. I've already been given two extensions to announce my decision by the program that has accepted to me. They have told me that it's "impossible" to grant me an extension until April 15th. It's hard for me to accept because my first choice has waitlisted me and I keep hoping that somehow I will magically be accepted before I commit myself to the other program. Now it's the deadline to commit myself and I'm wondering: how binding is an acceptance of an offer? I definitely don't want to go back on my word but, if the worst (or best?) case scenario happens and I'm taken off the wait list and accepted into my first choice program, would it be academic suicide to attempt to accept the other offer after I've already accepted the first one? Or another option: with times and the economy being as crazy as it is now, would it be absolutely unthinkable for me to not accept the program with funding and cross my fingers and hope for the best with the three I've been waitlisted for? I don't want to go through this whole applying/waiting process again. I'm just finding it very hard to push the "send" button and commit myself to a program when I have yet to hear from three others.