Mocha Earl

Just to sum up my experience; (maybe this information can be helpful to someone later!) I'm an international student graduating this June with BFA in Theatre Arts (with directing concentration) from US institution. (So I don't have any MA degree. Also I'm older than other undergraduates; I'm 27yrs old and engaged!). I applied to UCSD (PhD in Theatre), UCSB (MA/PHD in Theatre), UCI (PhD in Theatre), Northwestern (PhD in IPTD), UT Austin (MA in PPP) and U of Maryland (MA in Theatre and Performance Studies) I've done the interview with UCSD (Skype), Northwestern (in-persin applicant's week; and there were four other people for the final interview, and I heard there were two overseas applicants Skyping with the faculty the following week), UT Austin (Phone interview). I was wait-listed to UT Austin, UCSD, Northwestern then rejected from UCSD, Northwestern (for Northwestern, it was related to my potential advisor's sabbatical year). On March 10th, I got accepted to UMD without any funding package, but I visited the campus and full funding package came through on April 10th. On April 3rd, I got accepted to UT Austin off of the waitlist (Yay!) with a tiny funding package (in-state tuition and little scholarship), but April 16th, there were able to offer me a full-funding package. (Too bad it was too late! It was my first choice!) + (I visited the school and it might help the funding package to come through.) I got accepted to UCSB on April 7th with a very good funding package. I thought I would get rejected, since I didn't do the interview and I didn't hear back from them until I've contacted them in mid March. So it was very surprising. I've visited the school before the application season started, and they said that visit counted as an unofficial interview. But after I made the initial contact in mid March, they were very very kind, nice, communicative with me. Between UMD, UT Austin and UCSB, I ended up choosing UCSB because my finance's planning on applying to grad school next year, and for his option, California was better. On April 16th, UCI contacted me that I got accepted to their PhD program. I haven't got any contact from them, didn't do the interview, and when I contacted them on mid-March, early-April, and first & second week of April, they said they haven't any decision yet (and they didn't seem very nice for some reason!). So it was a complete surprise. But my mind was already made by 15th, so I said goodbye to the offer. I hope someone from this thread got the offer! Grad Cafe forum has been very very helpful, especially in terms of getting some timeline set up after submitting the application! (No one told me what to expect other than just wait! But via great deal of search on the result section here at grad cafe, I was able to get some timeline, which was very very helpful in maintain my daily life!) So I'm here to share my experience, especially in terms of how the timeline played out for me this time around. I know there has been some discussion about paid MA program; surprisingly, there's many! But I didn't know until I applied. I also heard from my friend who applied to the same program that OSU, UCSC are also ended up to be fully funded. Another great thing I didn't really expect was that everything happened to me in late March. I remember I was devastated in February (I got waitlisted to UCSD, and my top choice UT Austin) and early March (rejected from UCSD, haven't heard from UCI, UCSB, and waitlisted to NW, and had a very rough time.) Then the second week of March I got accepted to UMD (with no funding! And UMD was a very expensive option for me). Still I had little hope, but this thread has been helping me keeping myself positive and optimistic. (Since I heard Ladyebird got accepted off of the waitlist! That was a very celebratory moment for me!) During my current school's spring break, with alomst-given-up kind of mind, I visited UMD with a very light hope of funding package. Fortunately, funding came through, and then the rest good news (accepted off of the waitlist from UT Austin, and UCSB positively reviewing my application) happened all of a sudden during very last week of March. So no one knows how this race's going to be until the very end! Keep your hope and positivity! I'm heading to UCSB next academic year, and feel good about it! Hope this information can be helpful to anyone, someone, who will be going through this hectic process in following years! Crossing my fingers for you!

Ladyebird! Thank you for good wishes! I got accepted to UT Austin's MA in PPP program off of the waitlist, and I'm so happy about it! Have you accepted the offer? Did they give you full funding? I got in-state tuition + some scholarship(they say it'll be around $1000-3000). Maryland is figuring out the funding package for me at the moment(it seems like they can manage to give me full funding! I visited UMD two weeks ago), and UCSB should let me know the result by tomorrow! If I get into UCSB's MA program, it'll be a full funded one! I wonder whether I can make a deal with UT Austin about the funding package!

Seanpet: My pleasure! It was an email telling me that I was accepted + really nicely written letter attached! Hope this helps!!!!

LadyeBird! I'm so happy for you!!! That gives me so much hope! If you don't mind me asking, do you happen to know whether you were top of the waitlist? Mine says I'm high on the list(not "very high"), and I'm just curious to see what are some chances are! I'm planning to send an email to Dr. Rossen this thursday of so just to check to see whether any of other MA applicants has accepted their offer (Since it's been almost two weeks!) Hope you get a good funding package as well!!!! AHH This is so exciting!

Wow, thanks for sharing your victory! This certainly gives me some hope!

Oh wow! I saw someone got accepted to UT Austin's PPP PhD program off of the waitlist on the result page! LadyeBird, is that you? If so, congrats!!!! It certainly gives me some hope for my situation!

Bacchanalia: Thanks for the update! I haven't heard anything from UCSD after my interview, and now I can securely expecting a rejection letter from them than waiting anxiously about some faint hope. MintBrad, Seanpet: I got an acceptance letter via email from UMD today (funding is still up in the air). I applied to their MA program though. Maybe PhD's taking longer time? I hope so! Crossing fingers for you guys! I've given my hope for UCSB and UCI. I'm assuming they've already interviewed anyone they're interested to see.

Seanpet: Welcome Seanpet! Same here. Haven't heard anything from UMD yet! (I applied for their MA in TAPS) Mintbrad: Thank you! It all went well. Oh, and I also haven't heard anything from UCSD. I guess I'm also waitlisted as well?! Omidance: Welcome Omidance! But alas, I'm still in the waiting process. Hope the result comes sooner than later! How's everyone doing? I got so used to waiting that now I don't have any feeling left! I guess I got drained and it's a good thing? Still my fingers are crossed!

Oh god! I don't know why I never replied to this one! Hello asco! So great that we'll be able to meet in person this weekend!!! It almost feels unreal!!! Stay warm, bring heavy snow boots and water proof warm jacket! It was snowing heavily today. And I know we have to run to one place to another within a short period of time!

gingerandjazz Thank you very much for putting an effort to make an account to share the news. I was expecting it, since I didn't get to hear anything from them near the beginning of February. It gives me more relief than stress though! Thank you very much! Just for the curiosity, where did you go for your MA? DoctorTheatre2015, lets look on the bright side and try to keep our fingers crossed for what's left in the basket!!!! At least that's what I'm trying to do. I applied to 6 schools, got interview for three(UCSD, UT Austin, Northwestern that is coming) and I'm still waiting to hear back from other three(UCSB, UCI and UMD), but I feel like no luck is coming from at least UCSB and UCI(knowing that there should have been an interview process at the end of January if my application is considered for their selection). I'm officially waitlisted for UT Austin(got the interview), and I think I've got no luck from UCSD, since I haven't heard anything from my interview. It's hard to keep optimistic energy since I don't want to invest too much hope for the unknown. But!!!! I think that's what this thread is for, and I'm expressing all my fear and hope together as a mingled form! Still keep my fingers crossed for what's left!

I got waitlisted three days ago from my top choice school as well! Let makes this thread more alive and well! It gives me hope. Especially 2011 thread! Anxiousmess, does your waitlist says anything about your place in waitlist? Mine says I'm high on the waitlist, but my program accepts 2 students per year, and I have no idea what this "high" means. I've seen people posting on the result page that "top of waitlist" or "very high on waitlist". If mine says I'm "high on waitlist" does that mean I have at least 2 people ahead of me? Arg! It's killing me!

Thank you Bacchanalia! One more question, after getting an email from the director of admissions(saying that I'm waitlisted), do you follow up with an email? If so, what do you generally write in that body of email? I was going to thank them for the possible opportunity, ask them where I stand in the waitlist(but after reading about your post, I'm hesitant), and just let them know that they are my top choice. Also, regarding waitlist vocabulary: I've seen people posting on the result page that "top of waitlist" or "very high on waitlist". If mine says I'm "high on waitlist" does that mean I have at least 2 people ahead of me? It seems really over analytical move, but I'm trying to be realistic. POI I interviewed with said they have been very "conservative" with their new students acceptance for last couple of years(usually they accept 2 people), but this year, they're trying to be more "radical", though it's really all upto the funding department receive. So I'm guessing they have accepted at least 2 people and maybe maximum 3 this year, and would like to calculate where I stand, and to see if it's really silly for me to have any hope. Arg! I guess I'm over-analyzing. Is it okay for me to ask how many students they accepted this year? I'm dying to know! I don't know why everything is so ambiguous and hidden!

Thank you very much! LadyeBird! Question to everyone, how do you cope with waitlisted situation? If the email says "Students have been admitted off the wait list in the past, and you are high on our list," how do I make sense of where exactly am I on their list? UT Austin's my top choice, and I think they accept 2 MA students per year. Is it even realistically possible for me to keep any hope? Is it acceptable if I send an email back asking where I am on their list, since UT Austin's my top choice? Being waitlisted is a really tricky place, I think. I don't know how to make sense of it-is it realistically okay for me to keep any hope or should I rather given up on them? It's easy to keep hope, but later it'll be very hard for me to get over this mountain of expectation I'm building. Any advice? Anyone have gone through waitlist in the past? I would appreciate any advice. Also has anyone heard back from UCI, UCSB, or UMD? I've been waiting to hear anything back from them! Since the application submission, I haven't heard back anynthing from them. (I applied Ma/phD for UCSB, PhD for UCI, and MA for UMD). I'm assuming that I didn't pass any of their innitial round?! So expect to get a rejection letter?!

I also just got an email from professor Rossen that I'm waitlisted for UT Austin. LadyeBird, does yours says that you're high on their list as well? It gives me little hope. Ahhh UT Austin's top of my list, but I don't know whether those who admitted will choose to go to elsewhere. I guess I can keep my hopes up and should focus on my Northwestern interview coming next weekend. Crossing my finger for you as well LadyeBird!

Thank you MintBrad! I got an invitation to in-person interview to Northwestern! It seems like someone got a exceptionally good offer from CUNY! Hope it's from this thread! Whoever that is, congratulations!

Thank you very much for all your help LadyeBird!!!! I think my interview went well. Professor Bonin-Rodriguez was very friendly and welcoming. My interview was quite informal, and he asked me about two questions - one specific question about my research interest stated in my SOP, and another, why UT Austin. He also said last year, the result came about the third week of the February(he said it took this long because the department has to decide how much funding they can pull for the incoming students!) He said they were pretty conservative about accepting incoming students last year, but this year, they are hoping to be more radical(I'm not sure if this is the very word he used) about it this year! So my fingers are crossed for both of us! One fun thing: My phone call got cut off in the middle due to UT Austin's phone system replacement! So there were 10 mins of dramatic break in between my phone interview! But eventually, it all went well! Now the long running waiting game has started. I'll occasionally bring up some fun silly things to fill the void! Today's silliness: http://windosill.com

LadyeBird! Thank you very much for the kind offer! Hope you nailed the interview! It sounds like you did well. So congrats! And another month of waiting game!(Fingers crossed!) I have some questions: Did you talk to one person(Dr.Rossen)? Or was there other people waiting to jump in(like tele-conference) and talk to you? I got contacted by Prof. Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, so I'm assuming I'll be talking to him primarily. He told me it'll be about my research and goals + I get to ask questions as well. So I should expect something similar to your questions!(Thank you very much for sharing this info! Hope we'll ended up seeing each other in the same department!!!) Also, how long was your interview? The email said it'll be 30mins, and I'm surprised MA interviews are as long(if not longer) than my PhD interview with UCSD! (UCSD were really sharp about their time. I ended up running short with time, and didn't get to ask many questions as I wanted. I asked 1. How long does the course works(taking classes) be -they said it'll be 2 yrs and half, and usually students gets their course work done within 3 yrs. 2. Any opportunities such as research assistant or teaching? 3. Is there any translation related courses available upon request-this is more related to my goal- When I asked #2, the director of the admission committee said I can only ask one more question. So I wasn't even able to ask any publication specific questions!) Again, thank you very very much for your kind offer LadyeBird! I'll let you know how mine went tomorrow! I'm kind of excited and nervous, since I've never had a phone interview! Another question simply because I'm curious(and you don't have to answer this question if you feel uncomfortable about it!) What did you major for your MFA? It's very interesting that you used practice-based research! It seems like UT Austin is a really good fit for you! Are you waiting to hear back from any other schools as well? Bacchanalia!! Congrats!!!!!!!!! Ohhh!!!!! Congrats for full support!!!!! And very surprised to hear that you got to ask that many questions! My interview was sharply 25mins. How long was yours? Skype interview with the entire faculty sounds pretty hardcore(three was enough for me!), and Skype AUDIO interview with four people sounds horrifying. But you survived! Many congrats to you!!! I wonder when will they let me know about either I got waitlisted or rejected or what not! Just wanted to know and move on. MintBrad, thank you very much for the detailed answers! Funding is my big concern about NYU. So I can assume that I wouldn't be able to get any support package from the school?!(or maybe little?!) On top of living expenses in NY, I don't know whether I can afford it. Thank you very much for your opinion! Have you heard anything back from UCSD yet? I'll let you know when I hear back from them! Good luck and good vibe everyone in this thread!!!!! I know we need a lot of good energy and vibe to survive this brutal waiting game!

Ladyebird, good luck on your interview as well! Mine is 30min phone interview with Professor Paul Bonin-Rodriguez, and it's happening on thursday 2pm central time. When's your interview? (Crossing my fingers for both of us!) ​Bacchanalia, thank you very much! That's so nice of you! I'll ask you once I have some questions about Austin! Also thanks for letting me know when to expect the result from UCSD! Best of luck to us! Hahahaha I've been replaying every moment of the interview in my mind, and overtime I get to tell anyone about my interview process! MintBrad & Bacchanalia: Same here. I was a bit surprised to meet three professors instead of one professor I'd been corresponding to. Also, I've visited UCSD, and it seems like their grad conference rooms and classrooms are all located in the basement of a building which might have affected the internet connection. I used FaceTime, because I worried about Skype being flaky(I use FaceTime everyday), but even FaceTime connection wasn't that great. That threw me off a little bit. But sill, my fingers are crossed for all of us(as I heard from their grad advisor that 6 of their PhD students just graduated). MintBrad: I didn't get to go there either.(I live in Chicago by the way!) I applied there mainly because one professor I wanted to study with recently got tenure there (she used to teach at UIUC). So I contacted her, instead of going to open house. Hope we didn't miss anything! Also, I've decided to apply to NYU Ed theatre as well(MA program) ! I have a question for you! I'm interested in Arts programming in colleges(and that's the one I'm applying, for colleges and communities), are you generally satisfied with the education you got from the school? Is this program more tuned with pedagogy than theatre theories? Curriculum excites me, but I'm not quite sure about how the approach in drama in education different from just theatre education in higher educational institution.

Got my interview invite for UT Austin on last Saturday as well! I applied to MA though. Ladyebird, may I ask who contacted you? I was contact by Paul Bonin-Rodriguez(I applied for MA).

Hello there! Finally the conversation has started! I had my first Skype interview with UCSD yesterday as well! Same here about the interview. It don't know whether it went well or not), but it really geared me up for possible future interviews as well!!! I applied to UCSD, UCSB, UCI, Northwestern, UT Austin and U of Maryland. Best of luck everyone!!