JordanJames

Received my rejection today as well. I'm trying to get out of the Chicago area anyways, so it's really a blessing in disguise (not really, I like Evanston). Anyways good luck to those of you still waiting.

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Thanks for the info. I haven't spoken to anyone at the department at all actually. I just received the email pdf file, and then the letter with the same info. I don't know why, but I guess I just figured since the info didn't say anything, the was no official visitation day. I guess I was wrong; do you know if they're reimbursing us for all or a portion of our expenses (which I guess isn't much of a trip for you)?

Thanks for posting that silencio, I didn't realize the NRC had UCR ranked that high, interesting...

I've thought about it, but I'm too worried that they'll say sorry, we meant to reject you a week ago.

I'm considering an offer from UC - Riverside's Poli Sci department. I know it's not the greatest place to live, and I've heard about the pollution, but how expensive is it to live there. I mean is it affordable (and I don't mean CA affordable). I have a 16k stipend that will need to support 2 people for at least a couple of months. What's the job market like there? Is there anything I should know about Riverside, the university or the department? Any help would be much appreciated.

If the Barbizan School of Hair Design is where I get in, then the Barbizan School of Hair Design is where I will go. It's not Harvard, but I'm willing to settle.

You're right, but making an impact on tv is hard. Getting interviewed by Wolf Blitzer for a minute and a half isn't going to do it, you need to constantly be on tv to get people's attention. But, I do like your enthusiasm and optimism, so I'm not going to argue with you. More power to you, and you're right, academics should be conveying messages directly to the people when they are qualified to discuss an issue. As for me, I was on television once and nearly fell out of my chair. I don't think I'll ever do it again.

I applied to FSU late (around February 8) but Professor Maestas informed me that I would be considered for funding anyways. I agree, she is extremely friendly and definently helped me out a lot (she let me fax over unofficial transcripts and app materials). I got my acceptance letter in the mail on Friday (dated February 14), but I guess I won't know if I'll be visiting until I hear something about funding. If I do visit, I'll probably go to the second visitation weekend.

There's no problem with aiming high. But, I'd like to see you reach the ranks of those you named without being self-righteous or pretentious. Now that would be a great accomplishment.

I just wanted to point out that our National Security Advisor at the time the war was launched was a poli sci professor. Anyways, Peter, I see your point, but don't think that a person with a PhD is more qualified to take a position of power than others. We gain knowledge that is deep and narrow in a specific field, but we are not necessarily adept at handling a broad range of issues, delgating duties and managing others. Also, the reason the media doesn't pay much attention to what professors say is because the majority of America finds academics to be boring. Media outlets will get better ratings with people who are well known, generals, and pundits who've been associated with people who are well known. So just because a professor would like to speak out about an issue doesn't mean he'll be given a forum with which to communicate his message. And even when he is given the forum he seeks, he won't have his soundbytes aired on media outlets all week, or month, or year.

So far I've gotten in at UC - Riverside and Florida State. If those are the only schools I get into, I'll be perfectly happy, and I guess I'll most likely choose Florida State. My potential mentor at UCR seems like he would be the greatest person to work with (the bio on his webpage talks about Woodstock and shoplifting as a child...he's also very accomplished), but their placement record worries me. They claim that they are up and coming, and from the looks of it, they're right, but I'd like to go to a school where I can feel comfortable in knowing that when I graduate I'll be able to find a job. Also, FSU's heavy quant emphasis suits me more. Whatever happens, I feel very lucky to be where I am considering my undergraduate record. I'm still waiting to hear from a few schools, but as I've said before, as long as I have a desk, a stipend and the luxury of dedicating my life to my mind, I'll be an extremely happy man. Quarex, one of my professors (not a poli sci professor) was talking to one of her friends (a poli sci professor) about me and asked her what schools I should consider. Her friend said ASU had a great program, and that I should consider applying there. I wanted to apply there, but I couldn't figure out how I could possibly make a case that any of the faculty members research interests fit mine. So, congrats on getting in there. By the way, ASU may top Illinois in the looks department.

Because I'm brilliant and the world will be lost without my ideas being published in journals with circulations less than the average high school newsletter. Obviously, I'm kidding. After talking to some of my professors and others, I realized that my place is in academia. So yeah, like most, I hope to land that sweet sweet tenure track job and dedicate the next 30-40 years doing research. If you would like to find a job outside of academia, it might be better for you to get an MPP or MPA. First of all, those degrees focus more on the practical than the theoretical. Second of all, MPP admissions (especially if you have good work experience) is a lot less competitive than PhD admissions. Third of all, you can finish your degree in 2 years, and at some schools, gain work experience while you study. Finally, more often your professors will be well connected in the areas you'd be most likely to enter. They have a lot of adjuncts who work in the field teaching, and many find jobs through them. But, there are positions in the private sector and politics working in advisory and policy consulting roles for those that graduate with a PhD in poli sci.

I would assume that UC - Riverside hasn't made all decisions yet. The email I got was on a different day then the other poster's. I think that the applications of some of the people who haven't been notified yet are in the hands of the grad div, some may be awaiting funding decisions, and some may be on hold for a second round of decisions. I can't help with UMass, but good luck.

They have monthly, weekly and I believe yearly passes. The train itself runs until about 2 am I believe and starts up again at 4 am, but I'm not sure about when the transportation from Princeton Junction to the campus ends. I would probably suggest New Brunswick as a good midway point because it's a fun town to live in, the express train to New York runs through it and rent isn't bad at all (also they have these fat sandwiches that are unreal). Also, checkout njtransit.com for more info.

There is an NJ Transit line that goes from NYC to to Trenton and stops at Princeton Junction. The ride is comfortable and not that long. I would recommend finding a place somewhere between New Brunswick and NYC that's on that NJ Transit line, and that way neither of your commutes will be too long. Even if you live in Princeton, her commute won't be that bad, especially since there are express lines that stop at Princeton. I took that train every day the summer before last, and it was a pretty comfortable and dependable ride.

You have a great offer, and I'm pretty sure Cornell wouldn't be accepting you if they didn't think you had great potential as a researcher. I don't know if you play hold'em poker, but I feel like the grad ap process in America is kind of like it. You can calculate the pot odds, know how to play each hand in what way and in which position, you can spot a bluff, and you can accurately read the other person's hand, but nevertheless, you could find yourself out of the tournament if you play a monster hand strong and it's broken by a worse hand. The point is, you do what you can do and you can be better than the people your competing against, but there is an element of luck involved. It seems like you have good cards to play with, but the board has been unkind. It happens, but the odds are generally in your favor, so you keep playing your hand. Don't judge your ability as a researcher based on how one round of apps went. Anyways, if that's the only acceptance you get, you should still be happy. That's a good school and a terrific stipend. There are plenty of people praying for the opportunity that you have at Cornell.

Also still waiting, but I think that they've already sent out their acceptances. I think they also rejected a bunch of people yesterday, so those of us who haven't heard are probably on a seldom utilized unofficial waitlist.

I'm sorry, that sucks. But, this board is filled with stories of people who were rejected from their safety and accepted at their top choice. You may not be what WashU is looking for, but you could be what the other schools are looking for. If your numbers are there and your recommendations are good, I'm sure you'll be competitive at all of those schools. And it's like my girlfriend said to me after I freaked out about my first rejection, if the worst thing that ever happens to you is not getting into graduate school, you're a very lucky person. By the way, funny story about the writing sample. I was out of the country and had my family send out my apps once transcripts got to my house. I sent them a file which I thought was the writing sample I wanted to use, but it was a similarly named 7 page paper that was terribly written and didn't require much citation or any formality in the citations (it was a closed universe paper using just the materials assigned in class). So now I'm pretty sure there is no way I'll get accepted at the 3 universities I'm waiting on that required or requested that we submit writing samples. Oh well.

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Thanks, I'm so hyped up right now. I needed this. I have to take the bar exam and haven't studied at all because all I can think about is whether I'm going to grad school next year or not. Good luck to the rest of you who haven't heard anything, I feel your pain.

I'm going to grad school, now I can relax. Accepted at UC - Riverside. It is my backup, but all I really care about is having the opportunity and freedom to conduct my own research, so as long as I have this 1 acceptance, I'm happy. They also gave me a $16,000 fellowship that requires no TAing or RAing. For anyone else who applied to Riverside, the email was sent from the Graduate Division's office.

I don't think they gained access to applicant information because the admissions application goes through the Embark website. I really hope I'm right.

Harvard Web site hacked, database on file-sharing site by Jeremy Kirk Feb 18, 2008 10:01 am One of Harvard University's Web sites appeared on Monday to have been hacked, with its contents appearing on the BitTorrent file-sharing network. A compressed 125 M-byte file claiming to be the database for the Web site of Harvard's Graduate School of Arts and Sciences is available via the BitTorrent P-to-P (peer to peer) network. The file is listed on The Pirate Bay, a Web site that indexes torrents, or small information files that coordinate the download of content from other users on BitTorrent. The Web site for the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences was offline on Monday. A note attached to the torrent claimed the file contained a backup of the site -- including some contacts files and other files associated with Joomla, an open-source content management system -- along with other various bits. It appears to be legitimate. The note's writer claims the stunt is intended to demonstrate the insecurity of Harvard's server. The writer also exposed what purport to be usernames and passwords belonging to two of the site's system administrators. "Stupid people, you don't use a secure password," read a note preceding the sensitive information. As of Monday afternoon, the compromised file was being distributed by 11 users -- known in file-sharing terminology as "seeders" -- and was being downloaded by nine "leechers," or those downloading the files. Harvard's media office was closed on Monday due to a national U.S. holiday. http://www.macworld.com/article/132143/ ... rvard.html

My brother goes to U of I, and I agree 100%. That lucky bastard, most of the people in my freshman dorm looked like they'd been force fed butter for 18 years. tidefan, McDs has the best coffee anywhere, so long as you drink the coffee with a McGriddle (the greatest idea since coitus interruptus).