Does anyone ever decline a PhD acceptance to reapply next cycle?

[FishNerd]

@Hermenewtics Thank you so much for the clarification! That makes sense and I was thinking that something along those lines was what you meant, but I am completely ignorant about sports so I didn't know for sure. I think I have definitely seen programs in my field that seem to prefer BS applicants over MS but I always just thought that was because a lot of academics forwent the MS but maybe certain programs in my field are the same.

Also my statement about the value of Master's degrees (at least to scholars like me and my partner) was not a response of me assuming you thought they were unnecessary or anything. I just thought I would throw out my two cents in how beneficial they can be for many scholars. I feel like I was such a baby at the beginning of my Master's and I floundered for a while as I figured out how to manage my time and become a productive scientist. I had the room to do that in my Master's though, whereas I don't think I would have had that leeway in a PhD program.

[jrockford27]

I would say roughly 85% of the people in my program held MAs or MFAs when they were admitted.  BA only folks are definitely in the minority in mine. Obviously different programs have different particularities. Obviously if the program you want more than any other explicitly says they don't take MAs then don't do an MA, but all things being equal I can't imagine a world in which an MA will hurt you as long as you maintain a high level of academic achievement. I would do research on program's opinions toward MA applicants, and contact programs directly, rather than relying totally on what people here say.

@Warelin is certainly correct that an MA alone will not get you a better PhD admission. However, my argument is that being in a funded MA program will position you to do things that will improve your admission prospects. 

@punctilious's husband seems to have achieved a really impressive work-rate outside of a funded university setting. I know that during the two years I had between BA and grad (one because I didn't resolve to do grad school until after the deadlines my last year of undergrad; and the other because I was totally shut out), I couldn't have managed it. I would still suspect that your husband got into Harvard on the strength of his writing sample, proposed research, and letters of rec rather than the publications.

For what it's worth, I've been in an English PhD program for five years now, and have had a lot of conversations with my colleagues and even with faculty about admissions, and been on some hiring committees (though they aren't exactly the same), and been the grad rep on my department's graduate program advisory committee. The most important things for your application are your writing sample, a clearly defined SoP, and solid letters of recommendation. I cannot imagine a situation in which those things can be more advantageously improved by taking a gap year than by spending two funded years writing and doing research under the supervision of experienced graduate faculty. Nothing will help you clearly define your research goals like doing a ton of research. I think an MA program will put you in better position to get a peer reviewed scholarly article on your CV as well, if you decide to do so, as you will have faculty to help you develop one (many programs hold workshops and so forth).

Edited March 2, 2018 by jrockford27

[punctilious]

8 minutes ago, jrockford27 said:

@punctilious's husband seems to have achieved a really impressive work-rate outside of a funded university setting. I know that during the two years I had between BA and grad (one because I didn't resolve to do grad school until after the deadlines my last year of undergrad; and the other because I was totally shut out), I couldn't have managed it. I would still suspect that your husband got into Harvard on the strength of his writing sample, proposed research, and letters of rec than the publications.

I think the book review publication may have played a minor role, if only because Harvard is trying to move towards more public-facing writing and are encouraging students to engage in these kinds of publications. But yes, I think his package just seemed to fit well into Harvard's current needs (they're moving from a close reading/historical focus to more of a theory focus--husband's writing samples were close readings, background is in history, and theory is integrated into his research interests). One of the POIs who contacted him is Louis Menand, though, so it's possible that the book review in particular stood out to him. His other POI, David Alworth, is most likely into him because of his research focus (Thing Theory, Latour, Pynchon, etc.).

Husband specifically went for the job he has now because it offers a lot of flexibility (working from home and making your own schedule) so that he could have time to write.

There's no right answer, of course, but I would agree that it's a good idea to research programs to see whether they have a preference, because quite a few of them seem to one way or another.

[LibraryLivingJT]

On 2/20/2018 at 12:15 PM, jrockford27 said:

My father was not full of great life advice, but he had a few useful things he used to say frequently.  One of them was, "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush." That is, don't let go of what you've actually got for the outside chance you could get more of the same thing.

Admissions decisions can be very capricious. Those who are enjoying an embarrassment of acceptances this year may be doing so because there happened to be a lot of programs looking for talented folks in their subfield this year.  Those shut out may be shut out because people in their subfields happen to just not be on the adcoms this year. It is a very risky assumption to assume that you'll do better next year because these kinds of admissions criteria/variables can change wildly year over year.

ABSOLUTELY AGREED! Admissions are so incredibly unpredictable.

[havemybloodchild]

Bumping this because I feel like there's a lot of good advice and might be helpful to folks in the next month or so.

[Ironman1214]

On ‎3‎/‎2‎/‎2018 at 8:33 AM, jrockford27 said:

I would say roughly 85% of the people in my program held MAs or MFAs when they were admitted.  BA only folks are definitely in the minority in mine. Obviously different programs have different particularities. Obviously if the program you want more than any other explicitly says they don't take MAs then don't do an MA, but all things being equal I can't imagine a world in which an MA will hurt you as long as you maintain a high level of academic achievement. I would do research on program's opinions toward MA applicants, and contact programs directly, rather than relying totally on what people here say.

@Warelin is certainly correct that an MA alone will not get you a better PhD admission. However, my argument is that being in a funded MA program will position you to do things that will improve your admission prospects. 

@punctilious's husband seems to have achieved a really impressive work-rate outside of a funded university setting. I know that during the two years I had between BA and grad (one because I didn't resolve to do grad school until after the deadlines my last year of undergrad; and the other because I was totally shut out), I couldn't have managed it. I would still suspect that your husband got into Harvard on the strength of his writing sample, proposed research, and letters of rec rather than the publications.

For what it's worth, I've been in an English PhD program for five years now, and have had a lot of conversations with my colleagues and even with faculty about admissions, and been on some hiring committees (though they aren't exactly the same), and been the grad rep on my department's graduate program advisory committee. The most important things for your application are your writing sample, a clearly defined SoP, and solid letters of recommendation. I cannot imagine a situation in which those things can be more advantageously improved by taking a gap year than by spending two funded years writing and doing research under the supervision of experienced graduate faculty. Nothing will help you clearly define your research goals like doing a ton of research. I think an MA program will put you in better position to get a peer reviewed scholarly article on your CV as well, if you decide to do so, as you will have faculty to help you develop one (many programs hold workshops and so forth).

 

Could not agree more! Well said. 

[goldenbowl]

I realize I made a post in the "decisions" forum when I should have checked this thread first, but I won't repost that here. Having said that, I agree that this thread probably needs a bump as people consider their options. 

[Anonymouse124]

I took a gap year after my first round of applications (to MAs alone - none of which were even funded Good god) and got into my dream school. It’s a top ten and in the city I was living in at the time and it felt like everything was falling into place. I felt like I’d won the lottery; I spoke to professors, toured campus, bought the obligatory sweatshirt, listened to Heaven is a Place on Earth on a loop, but when it came time for me to take out my loans through FAFSA, I couldn’t do it. I was looking at paying back approximately $130k in loans and interest over the course of thirty years for an MA that would last one single year. I had been lucky enough to have been granted a full ride in undergrad and the realization of what the cost of the MA would be didn’t really hit until the night I was applying for loans. I spoke to my best friends, my family, and my professors. I cried a lot. My family thought I was being stupid, but my friends and professors supported me, convinced that I could get into the PhD programs I thought were out of my league. 

So I took the year off. I spoke with professors on skype and over email, I conducted independent research, wrote a whole new writing sample reflecting my new interests, developed a new personal statement, and it paid off. I would not have developed my current research interests if it hadn’t been for my previous application cycle. I learned so much and now have six acceptances to fully funded programs.  

All this to say, sometimes the first journey is practice for the next one, but also: if it’s not funded, don’t do it. 

(Edit: I didn’t even apply to the “dream school” in my second round because the fit was definitely not it. I wouldn’t have been in a position to make such a call in the first round.)

Edited March 6, 2019 by Anonymouse124

[Formershocker1919]

Great thread, I add myself to the list of people who declined an acceptance (offer was only partially funded unfortunately). It turned out for the best, I took a year to both adjunct and work with students in an adviser job (this helped me both replenish my bank account and fund this second round of applications). I actually re-applied to the same program and this time they were able to offer me full funding and I will be attending there in the fall. Sometimes things don't pan out exactly like you want them to, but if you keep at it you can make it work. The program I'm going to is a great fit for me and that extra year working will help me out a ton.