dazedandbemused

Yeah, I heard two as well. And there are so few entries on the results search for that program; I feel like I'm entering the uncharted territory of Unknowableness.

Well, I hope you hear some good news really soon. I don't know if this is your first cycle or not, but I think a lot of us here have been prime examples that second time's the charm. Good luck!

Congratulations!!! That is so amazing!!! You know, both of my acceptances came during times when I had taken a few hours off from constantly checking my email. Perhaps it proves that a watched pot never boils

Sucks; I'm sorry. How many schools are you still waiting on?

Looks like Michigan results are starting. Fingers crossed for all of you Language and Literature people! Hopefully English and Women's Studies will be out soon...

The question that you really need to ask yourself is what kind of job you hope to get when you graduate. Penn State is a really amazing program and their people tend to go on to teach at lower tier research Universities and well-known private schools. UConn graduates, as far as I can tell, go on to work at relatively unknown SLACs. As to the question of Penn State funding, they usually make it pretty explicit whether you're guaranteed the full six years of support or not. It is very unusual for anyone intending to finish the MA/PhD to not do so unless they fail to meet specific academic expectations. Penn State also considers itself a top ten program, so if that's important to you, I would consider it. I, personally, would take Penn State over UConn, because of the resources that Penn can offer you, but since you wish to remain close to the Yale Library, your decision may be different. The funding from UConn does sound amazing, but this is one of those instances where you have to decide whether financial considerations will tip the scales for you. As long as they give you enough to live on, there shouldn't be any problem.

Got mine from USC. Definite sad face happening right now.

FWIW, a lot of people haven't been putting their numbers on the board. I don't, not because I'm ashamed, but because I honestly don't remember them exactly and I don't feel like looking them up. I did, however get a 4.0 on the writing section and I got 89% on the verbal. Also, if anyone cares about the GRE, it's going to be the graduate school and they often get apps after the process is over. I have heard however, that it really is normal for people to start with the writing sample. In fact, it is entirely possible that your writing sample hasn't even been read fully; I was told by someone on an adcomm that they only read about five pages total; the first two and the last three. As for the SOP, it is very important to have a voice. And I don't mean voice like, jokey or "fun", but you don't want to sound like Mr. Generic Applicant either. So yeah, they probably aren't reading everything, but they are reading enough to get a general understanding of your voice as an applicant. It's in the later part of the process that they really do a thorough reading.

I am talking about Austin! I've heard amazing things about it, but my heart isn't really winning over my brain, which is screaming that I'll be too poor. Ok, so we'll call our options school A and school B and whichever one I choose, you choose! Will you be doing visits as well?

Blast! Did it have your decision status?

Have your schools offered you any travel reimbursement? I know my program is paying directly for the plane and hotel, so I don't have to dip into my credit and wait to be repaid.

Weird; I definitely have this list saved on my computer, and I know I got it off of the internet but I don't think it was from here. It has been immensely useful so far, though! greekdaph is a god.

I HAVE to visit my school because of how conflicted I am about my decision right now. I live basically on campus of one, while my other one is a thousand miles away. Unfortunately, the far distant one is the one I desperately wanted to get in to, but now that it's a reality and not a pipe dream, the difficulties of moving halfway across the country are starting to hit me. It doesn't help that the one nearby has been doing a really good job of convincing me to stay. I'm hoping that the visit will make me think either "Oh, I definitely have to come here" or "Yeah, there's no way I'm moving here".

Ok, rephrase; "the physical world."

Wait, do some of y'all know each other in real life? Sweet.

Oy, USC is sending rejections by mail? Guess I'll be mildly worried about that until I get home at nine. It doesn't help that I'm 99% certain that I'm not getting half of my mail, and the half that I do get is almost always bent/ripped. Damn you, USPS!

Oh, no need to apologize! It's just that acceptance letters often talk about "receiving x number of applications and accepting y number of applicants" or something else like that. I'm mostly just curious about when I'll finally hear something, that's all.

I think rejection letters might be my favorite literary genre. Especially the ones that go to great lengths to convince you that they desperately wanted to accept you, really they did, but they're just so poor! I mean come on, respect my intelligence, tell me no, and let me leave with my dignity.

Oh, well congrats anyway! Did you apply for the MA/PhD or the terminal masters? And did you get any info about the current state of notifications, like how many got in or if you were an early acceptance?

Here's some relaxing awesomeness for those of us who treat books like our numerous children: http://bookshelfporn.com/

I see UConn has one on the board. Anyone, anyone? Bueller?

I'm gonna call it. Time of death, 3:30 EST.

Dear God, do people still propose to "find themselves"?

Exactly, there are few options outside of crappy jobs right now; I just happened to be extremely lucky in having my gap year paid for by someone else. I've never heard anyone say you should take time to get married and have kids beforehand though! Everyone always says to get as much grad school out of the way as possible; there'll be time for children while you dissertate. Of course, this also assumes that you actually give a shit about love and baby-making. I'm always amazed by how many people have told me to be prepared for how difficult it is to raise kids during school. Nevermind that I don't actually want any, cause I'll definitely change my mind one day. There are just so many middle class assumptions behind that sort of thing.

Ha, you said "when". Thank you for that burst of hilarity and confidence