No offers this cycle: What to do next / Getting over the disappointment

[Petal]

Hey everyone,

This year I applied to PhD programs in neuroscience, got two interviews (one at my first choice / dream school!), but didn’t wind up with any offers.

I’m particularly surprised by the rejection from my first choice, since I heard things from several of my interviewers along the lines of “I’m expressing my enthusiasm about your app to the committee; I hope we can get you here” etc. So I’m pretty bummed out to say the least.

I applied mostly to top US programs (Duke, Vanderbilt, HYP, NYU). Now I’m wondering if something went wrong in the interviews, or if the other applicants were simply really stellar in comparison.

I’ll definitely be applying again in the fall, but now I’m wondering what to do with the coming year, since I don’t have anything else lined up.

Last year I was a Fulbright Scholar in Europe and I’m considering going back to teach English or something, but I’m wondering if it would be better to find something research-related.

Any advice is appreciated!

 

P.S. I’m actually waitlisted at one school but unsure if I’d accept an offer, since I was really hoping for my first choice and might try again there.

 

 

[deshypothequiez]

If you had a good rapport with your interviewer, which it sounds like you did, it's worth reaching out to them to see if they're able to give you feedback or even advice on your next round. (Many schools have official policies against giving out feedback but individual faculty may be willing.) However, in many cases it is likely that you weren't a weak candidate so much as there were others who were simply better, or otherwise more preferable for whatever reason.