2018-2019 Application Thread

[HanZero]

9 minutes ago, Ubah1 said:

Have you heard from UVA, thought you applied there?

Received a rejection from them in January....apparently they made no mistake with my application decision....!

[yubs89]

1 hour ago, Theory007 said:

What's the subfield of the newest UVA admit? Did you get off the waitlist?

Yeah...were you on the waiting list before? What is your subfield?

[Theory007]

2 hours ago, yubs89 said:

Yeah...were you on the waiting list before? What is your subfield?

Congrats! Theory. Yes waitlisted and really hoping it will work out!!

Edited February 23, 2019 by Theory007

[Ubah1]

6 hours ago, HanZero said:

Received a rejection from them in January....apparently they made no mistake with my application decision....!

Wow! I applied there and I'm yet to hear from them. Seems political science admit is getting hot. A friend of mine got a regret mail from Northern Illinois university, he has great GPA/GRE Score. I was shocked seeing a tier 2 university reject him. Safe schools are not safe again. 

[bawopsu]

I’m super new to this thread. But can anyone claim the Texas A&M acceptance/waitlist. It’s my top school and I still haven’t from them yet - super nervous to here. 

[Corsette]

On 2/20/2019 at 9:26 PM, morri081 said:

Have any of the Syracuse admits received their official letters yet?

I received my official letter last week and all the documents including the one for signature to accept assistantship a few days ago. 

[Corsette]

Is anyone else still "In Review" for McGill?

[IR1995]

I really thought we would have heard from Columbia by now

[pscwpv]

45 minutes ago, IR1995 said:

I really thought we would have heard from Columbia by now

Columbia and Yale are pretty unpredictable. I'd bet we hear in the next week but they both have a tendency to report late and unpredictably.

As far as their masters programs holding up decisions, I kinda doubt it. Columbia typically accepts, waitlists, rejects outright or tells people they've been rejected from the PhD but are being considered for the MA. A few people have previously reported that their rejection came with an MA acceptance, but it seems much more common to be told you're just being considered with the general MA applicants. I haven't seen Yale put people up for a masters, but to be fair, their application portal says PhD/Master's application, so maybe that's part of the delay.

I just think they're taking their time. Only strange thing will be campus visit days. I'd imagine they'll be in late March, but that's not very long to make arrangements, so it's a bit weird.

[upsy]

31 minutes ago, pscwpv said:

Columbia and Yale are pretty unpredictable. I'd bet we hear in the next week but they both have a tendency to report late and unpredictably.

As far as their masters programs holding up decisions, I kinda doubt it. Columbia typically accepts, waitlists, rejects outright or tells people they've been rejected from the PhD but are being considered for the MA. A few people have previously reported that their rejection came with an MA acceptance, but it seems much more common to be told you're just being considered with the general MA applicants. I haven't seen Yale put people up for a masters, but to be fair, their application portal says PhD/Master's application, so maybe that's part of the delay.

I just think they're taking their time. Only strange thing will be campus visit days. I'd imagine they'll be in late March, but that's not very long to make arrangements, so it's a bit weird.

Harvard said toward the second half of next week when I called on Friday. I'm thinking/hoping that the remaining Ivies might come out roughly together. I feel like delaying much past the end of Feb doesn't make much sense, given visits.

[MidnightSkywalker]

On 2/19/2019 at 10:31 PM, schuaust said:

Here's a bunch of stuff that probably isn't helpful or reassuring at all, but hopefully has the intended effect (to be reassuring and encouraging). 

Looking at where you applied it looks like there are really no mid-range programs other than Florida State (which is really well respected). It looks like you still have quite a few pending, so don't give up hope, and remember that it is a very idiosyncratic process. Most of these places have 10-50 applications for every one that they accept (for example, Washington-Seattle accepted 10 people and had over 160 people apply). At the 70-100 range the competition is a lot less, but obviously the career prospects aren't as 'good' (if by 'good' you mean becoming a tenured professor at an R1 institution).

I'm currently at an institution in the 90-100 range, and reapplied to programs because where I am does not have LGBT support ... at all ... and so in my second go-round with quite a bit of training and a massive data project under my belt I've gotten in only at a similarly ranked University, with a few still pending. So, it's kind of a brutal process that requires really solid applications all around, and even then, it's still luck of the draw (some people are exceptions and just stand above the rest). So don't give up hope, hopefully you get in at one of the schools you are waiting on a decision from (and fingers crossed we will see each other at UPenn, lol), but if it does require a second go-round remember that fit is the most important thing for getting in (beyond the strength of your applications) and to apply widely based on that. When you do, you'll see that it naturally constrains where you apply within each rank (so for me, that looks like --- Elite tier: Berkeley (UCLA, if I applied) -- High: Northwestern (haven't heard back), Minnesota, UPenn (UBC, if I applied) -- Mid-high: Washington-Seattle, Hopkins -- Mid-low: UC Santa Cruz -- Lower: Delaware, remain at home institution). Regardless, even at the lower institutions, a postdoc can really give you a better chance (we've had people get jobs at Kansas and South Carolina recently and are ranked pretty low). There's also a possible selection effect in some lower ranked Universities, at mine there are very few of us who want to be at research Unis, so most people are looking for teaching jobs at liberal arts colleges, or to work in the private sector. The people that have wanted research oriented jobs have generally been able to get them. I don't know how far that travels to other institutions. 

Thank you so much for your insightful comment. I do think I should have had some strategic plans instead of just applying to schools I want to attend. I didn't have enough time to research each school I applied to, and that's probably the cause of defeat. I will keep it in mind when I prepare for the next cycle! I wish you the best

[MidnightSkywalker]

On 2/19/2019 at 10:46 PM, e2e4 said:

I wouldn't lose hope just yet.

If you can't get feedback from schools you applied to about your application, you might have people who sit / have sat on admissions committees look over your statement if you have to reapply. They would probably be the best ones to ask if there is some glaring mistake. Apparently there is a certain formula and language of writing these things, which I was not totally aware of when I applied.

After polishing up my sop, I reached out to 3 professors who have been in the admission process for the past few decades; one in the English literature department and the other two in the political science department. With some minor suggestions, they all told me it was fantastic, so I got a little conceited.. As a non-native English speaker, it's took me almost 2 months to craft such a well-written essay. I'm just frustrated that it didn't work this time, but I am going to make sure to have more people read my essays. Thank you and have a wonderful weekend!

[MidnightSkywalker]

On 2/20/2019 at 10:30 AM, Tedmonkey said:

Don't give up hope until all schools have responded. However, if you do need to reapply next round I can let you know what I did for my second round that has been successful. I studied and retook the GRE to improve my scores, I personalized all of my SOPs with detailed information on my fit to each individual department, I also have been working on an independent research paper and submitted it to present at conference (and was accepted). One other thing I did was to create an Excel file of every PhD program in the country, and a few Canadian ones, where I created a formula that weighted different factors of fit. For example, since my research deals with the LGBTQ community, does the school contain a PhD, Master's, or Graduate Certificate in a field related to gender or sexuality studies or political science faculty that did research in this area. These columns were weighted at 3 times value, other things that are more wish list were weighted at 1 times value, and some between at 2. Then I sorted by the total of the weighted value and chose high, mid, and low ranked schools to apply to. Last year I applied to 11 schools and got 10 rejections and 1 wait list (that failed). This time I only applied to 5 schools and so far am at 2a/0w/1r/1p and 1 withdrawn application (back-up school and already got in somewhere I prefer more). The school I am thinking of going to, at this point, is ranked around 50 so a solidly mid-ranked school. Also, reevaluate your reference letter sources and see if you could have done better there.

Oh my research interests revolve around gender, sexuality, and racial politics! Nice to see someone pursuing a similar academic interest  That excel file sounds like a stellar idea. I should create one too! I am definitely going to look into the fit of each school this time, and re-take the GRE. Well, I will have to re-evaluate every part of my application to make sure I can make it next time. Thank you so much for your comment, and wish you have a wonderful weekend!

[MidnightSkywalker]

On 2/21/2019 at 7:43 AM, HanZero said:

My first post here. I had been following what people were saying, and attempting to shore up my deflated morale. Applied to Princeton, Harvard, Brown, UPenn, Johns Hopkins SAIS, Michigan Ann Arbor, UVA and McGill in CP. Had written to POIs at these places and they had written back saying they thought the proposal was a good one. GRE was ok V:168,Q:163, AW: 4.5, one joint published paper, but no conference work. I did have 5 years of work experience relevant to the field I was proposing my topic in; some POIs even highlighted this point as a strong part of my application.

Two months of intense tension later, I have rejects from Princeton, Brown, Ann Arbor, UVA and possibly McGill. Any attempt to email said POIs is returned by a ‘sorry we had too many applicants’ rather than how to improve the application. I am expecting rejections from the last three as well, Harvard was a bit of a stretch in any case. 

Thanks a lot to people like Tedmonkey, for putting out how to try and get back at this application process. I’m at a total loss right now, after having put in almost 8 months of concerted effort building every part of the application. I don’t know, at this point, what I can do to make it better...

In any case, if there are people like me here, who got wiped out this application cycle, and who are trying to get back on the application cycle, maybe we could create a separate thread and support each other over the next year, which I have all reason to believe, will be brutal.

 

Let's make it happen! It will be great to help out each other for the next cycle.

[HanZero]

8 hours ago, MidnightSkywalker said:

Let's make it happen! It will be great to help out each other for the next cycle.

I agree... this sense of utter confusion after this application cycle is best dealt with collectively...

[sandmoon]

From the other threads it looks like UCLA and OSU both admit people without funding (or waitlist them for funding).

[IcedCovfefe]

Alright fellow nervous wrecks: this is our week.

[Theoryboi]

2 hours ago, IcedCovfefe said:

Alright fellow nervous wrecks: this is our week.

Let's get this bread.

[DuBois]

3 hours ago, IcedCovfefe said:

Alright fellow nervous wrecks: this is our week.

All my eggs in the Yale Basket! 

(Thinking about the hope quote from Shawshank Redemption )

[Onwarrdz]

7 hours ago, IcedCovfefe said:

Alright fellow nervous wrecks: this is our week.

Certainly better be! I do not have it in me for a 'results will be out last week of feb to early march'. I think I'd actually die. My soul would just give up, and leave my body behind. 

[olieb0llen]

From the result page it seems like UPenn is making a move. Can anyone here claim the acceptances?

[martinn]

What programs are considered top-tier? Would Northwestern, UNC-Chapel Hill, or NYU be considered one? 

[sandmoon]

2 minutes ago, martinn said:

What programs are considered top-tier? Would Northwestern, UNC-Chapel Hill, or NYU be considered one? 

For comparative, NYU is definitely top 10 and has been placing students very well in the past few years.

Not so sure about Northwestern or UNC-Chapel Hill. I think they're stronger in American?

[humanpinata]

I applied to 10 schools this round, and I've been accepted to 1 and rejected from 6 so far. I'm waiting on 3 more decisions, but the chances aren't looking good for them. I have full funding at Wisconsin, and I'm wondering if Wisconsin is ranked high enough that I should accept their offer or wait a year to reapply to schools. I've never done this before, so if this is a dumb question, please don't attack me lol

[scdaaljobe]

Just now, humanpinata said:

I applied to 10 schools this round, and I've been accepted to 1 and rejected from 6 so far. I'm waiting on 3 more decisions, but the chances aren't looking good for them. I have full funding at Wisconsin, and I'm wondering if Wisconsin is ranked high enough that I should accept their offer or wait a year to reapply to schools. I've never done this before, so if this is a dumb question, please don't attack me lol

I'm in the same boat but with UC Davis and would love to hear what people think. (American Politics)