Interviews/Acceptances/Rejections Fall 2019

[thetrailblazers]

1 hour ago, SgtDonut said:

This cycle has been brutal. But are you excited about UC Davis?!

Definitely! Still have my eye on Washington though...

[Dorkface]

@thetrailblazers I received a rejection letter from UCSB about a week ago. So if you haven't heard from them, you might have a shot there still!! USC on the other hand, I was told that they "sent out their acceptance letters already" but I have not received a formal rejection, but it's implied. 

[MSilves]

Does anyone know when the University of Washington open house is? And if they have sent out any rejections yet? I haven't heard anything yet and am guessing it's not a good sign

Edited February 15, 2019 by MSilves

[MSilves]

On 1/31/2019 at 12:19 PM, socchi92 said:

Most if not all of the schools I got into offered to reimburse flights and provide lodging with a current graduate student. One (University of Washington) said they would "subsidize" travel. 

Hi - I was wondering when the UW open house is? 

[Soc-registered]

3 minutes ago, MSilves said:

Hi - I was wondering when the UW open house is? 

The open house is March 1st and 2nd.

[thetrailblazers]

1 hour ago, Dorkface said:

@thetrailblazers I received a rejection letter from UCSB about a week ago. So if you haven't heard from them, you might have a shot there still!! USC on the other hand, I was told that they "sent out their acceptance letters already" but I have not received a formal rejection, but it's implied. 

Sorry to hear about UCSB! Yea I saw that as well, but luckily for me it wasn’t one of my top choices

[jriveracal]

Cross-posting this here:

Does anyone know how this would work?

An institution notes: All students who receive funds from an outside source are required to accept the award in place of the award we are offering you. In such cases, students may be eligible to receive an award of up to $4,000 for each academic year of external funding secured.

The school is offering $35k/year. [30k academic year, 5k summer]

Let's say I apply for a ford foundation predoctoral fellowship and receive it. The stipend is $24,000/yr. +4,000 a year from the institution for securing an external fellowship=28,000/year
So if they replaced the fellowship they are offering me with the fellowship I received...it would be significantly lower. 

Am I missing something here? Am I supposed to only apply for fellowships that would offer me more than what the school is offering me or...?

[utley24]

25 minutes ago, jriveracal said:

Cross-posting this here:

Does anyone know how this would work?

An institution notes: All students who receive funds from an outside source are required to accept the award in place of the award we are offering you. In such cases, students may be eligible to receive an award of up to $4,000 for each academic year of external funding secured.

The school is offering $35k/year. [30k academic year, 5k summer]

Let's say I apply for a ford foundation predoctoral fellowship and receive it. The stipend is $24,000/yr. +4,000 a year from the institution for securing an external fellowship=28,000/year
So if they replaced the fellowship they are offering me with the fellowship I received...it would be significantly lower. 

Am I missing something here? Am I supposed to only apply for fellowships that would offer me more than what the school is offering me or...?

As far as I know, you're not missing anything: in this situation, you'd receive less money.

But that's mostly because $35k is an incredibly high stipend, especially for sociology...to be honest, that's significantly higher than anything I've ever heard of. Most packages I've seen/heard of are somewhere in the $24k-$28k range, with a few around $30k. 

PhD stipends also usually come with some work requirements, though, whereas most fellowships don't, so that often evens things out somewhat. 

EDIT: I also just thought of this: if Ford is just academic year, then maybe your school will treat it separate from summer? So that'd be $24k from Ford, plus $4k from your school for the academic year, plus $5k from your school for the summer, totaling at $33k. 

Edited February 16, 2019 by utley24

[high_hopes]

2 hours ago, jriveracal said:

Am I missing something here? Am I supposed to only apply for fellowships that would offer me more than what the school is offering me or...?

I think generally universities with these types of policies will pay the difference in funding if you receive an external award that is below their own guaranteed funding level. So in your example they would provide $11k - as the difference between $35k (guaranteed) and $24k (received externally). This might reduce the amount of TA or RA hours you are expected to complete if that was part of your funding offer.  

[Dorkface]

41 minutes ago, high_hopes said:

I think generally universities with these types of policies will pay the difference in funding if you receive an external award that is below their own guaranteed funding level. So in your example they would provide $11k - as the difference between $35k (guaranteed) and $24k (received externally). This might reduce the amount of TA or RA hours you are expected to complete if that was part of your funding offer.  

@jriveracal This! I received a fellowship. The schools will pay whatever is the highest amount. 

Congrats on all your acceptances! And good luck with the Ford Foundation too (I also applied). Fingers crossed!

[thedudeabides]

Word of the day: "Screed".

Didn't come across that one on any GRE word list. 

[Sercan_]

19 hours ago, awamba94 said:

I can claim one of Brown admissions! As far as I can tell, it was an automated email from the DGS. 

Congrats! ❤️

[gradgirrrl]

no news from Yale, yall? 

Edited February 16, 2019 by gradgirrrl

[NReken]

2 hours ago, gradgirrrl said:

no news from Yale, yall? 

Not yet

[AgumonIsAPokemon]

Applied to three schools. And got the AQR offer from NYU (rejected by the other two).

If there is anybody out there who also got the AQR offer + considering accepting it, please message me. Would like to discuss about it. 

Thanks!

P.S. I already have a Masters in Sociology (UK); hence, it is a bit complicated. 

Edited February 16, 2019 by AgumonIsAPokemon

[sociopolitic]

Anyone here planning to attend the Michigan, Duke, or NYU visit days?

[jriveracal]

3 hours ago, sociopolitic said:

Anyone here planning to attend the Michigan, Duke, or NYU visit days?

Congrats on NYU!

I'll be at Michigan for sure.

[NReken]

4 hours ago, sociopolitic said:

Anyone here planning to attend the Michigan, Duke, or NYU visit days?

I'll be at NYU! 

[socfeynman]

5 hours ago, sociopolitic said:

Anyone here planning to attend the Michigan, Duke, or NYU visit days?

I'll be at Michigan

[hardatwork]

Currently flopping around aimlessly because I still haven't heard from Columbia. GAH.

[markhame]

Happy Sunday evening!

[LCA_1350]

On 1/24/2019 at 9:10 AM, decolonizingdescendent said:

If you are a person of color or international student-- do NOT attend Syracuse University for sociology. I urge you not to be fooled by the Maxwell moniker and its neoliberal nods to citizenship. The department is getting flack for being racist because it is. The continual silencing of POC's in the department is not only antithetical to sociology, but is also just very negatively impactful to grad students' lives. Multiple chairs have been complicit in forms of suppression, and one the former director of graduate studies is a horrid racist who has repeatedly targeted students of color in classes and the dept at large.  I will say there are a few faculty that can be allies and support, but they come few and far between and are outnumbered. The department does not care for activism and will try their damndest to weed out "troublemakers" and frame students as "good and productive" or "bad and unfit." On the level of scholarship, there's a lot to be admired and critiqued. But on the ground in the everyday operations, the connections between theory and practice are nonexistent. Would say it's laughable if it wasn't so violent and traumatic.

If you do decide to go, read your contract to ensure how much funding you are actually getting-- this has been a huge problem in the past and I hope it's resolved now.

Side note: for folks who have been accepted to any PhD programs. Congratulations!!! It can be an isolating experience for a number of reasons, esp for folks of marginalized identities. I truly hope that you are able to carve out a space for yourself in ways that are productive to your personal growth and happiness. If you are waiting still, fingers crossed. And those receiving rejections-- I am sorry. Keep your head up. It is a part of the process and speaks nothing to your capabilities and competencies. Get a feel for the fit of the depts you are looking at to see if they support you, your intellectual work, and your politics. 

just want to keep people informed as the decision letters come in.

 

On 1/28/2019 at 12:09 AM, sociocritic said:

I want to emphasize the sentiments of this post! DO NOT BE FOOLED BY ANY “DIVERSITY” and “INCLUSION” RHETORIC COMING FROM THIS DEPTARTMENT. The sociology department at Syracuse University is racist. It also *highly* discourages and minziminzes activist scholars. As a whole the department is afraid of being critiqued and is violently opposed to those seeking to create meaningful, tangible change- particularly in regards to race. While this program may admit POC, it does a HORRENDOUS job of supporting them. Retention rates for students of color in this program are ABYSMAL (particularly within the past few years).

This department epitomizes the neoliberal white woman. It functions with her mind, basis decisions off her values, gives kindness to those who follow suit whilst strictly/passively punishing those who disrupt, and vehemently denies such thoughts and actions when confronted.

To be clear and as stated above, there are a few faculty members and colleagues that are allies and give genuine support. However, the department as a whole is toxic.

If you have plans to work with the Women and Gender Studies program at Syracuse University, know that such plans are greatly discouraged by the leadership within the sociology department. HOWEVER. Do NOT let this deter you from building relationships with WGS faulty and students. The WGS department can provide spaces that you will not find in the sociology program, spaces where students of color are centered. Not all WGS spaces will provide this, but the opportunity exists.

If you are are person of color and you decide to attend the sociology program at Syracuse University, go in informed, know/own/live why you are there, and be mindful of what that place may take from you mentally/emotionally/physically. Center yourself. Build your own community. And more power to you.

I'm hoping to get more information or opinions on the Syracuse Sociology PhD program.  On paper, it seemed like a good fit for my research interests (immigration / migration), and it appears it may be my only acceptance this cycle.  However, these posts about the program are extremely troubling, especially given my research interests.  I would rather keep working in the non-profit sector than be miserable for 5-7 years and come out with a degree that may be stigmatized (would this be the case? I'm not plugged into the Sociology academic world).  

I'm also worried about the funding situation - the email from the director of graduate studies said "At this time, we cannot provide funding to cover tuition and living expenses. We are working to try and secure funding for you. It usually takes a month or so before we will know whether we can offer funding to you. We can, however, assure you that we are diligently working on this!"  This wording seems suspect, and from the previous post, it sounds like funding has been an issue in the past.  I've always been told that a PhD program without full funding is a major red flag.

Living in upstate NY is also a concern.  My fiance is a STEM post-doc, and we were hoping to "hit" in the same general area - a PhD program for me and a TT job for him.  He's a finalist for a position at SUNY Cortland, and will probably get an offer, but during his visit he thought the lack of diversity was concerning, and the deep seated racism in upstate NY was very palpable (the faculty at SUNY Cortland apparently did not hide this).  We're both white, but living in a culturally diverse and accepting area of the country is very important to us.

Any thoughts/input/opinions on any of these issues would be very appreciated!

Edited February 18, 2019 by LCA_1350

[utley24]

38 minutes ago, LCA_1350 said:

 

I'm hoping to get more information or opinions on the Syracuse Sociology PhD program.  On paper, it seemed like a good fit for my research interests (immigration / migration), and it appears it may be my only acceptance this cycle.  However, these posts about the program are extremely troubling, especially given my research interests.  I would rather keep working in the non-profit sector than be miserable for 5-7 years and come out with a degree that may be stigmatized (would this be the case? I'm not plugged into the Sociology academic world).  

I'm also worried about the funding situation - the email from the director of graduate studies said "At this time, we cannot provide funding to cover tuition and living expenses. We are working to try and secure funding for you. It usually takes a month or so before we will know whether we can offer funding to you. We can, however, assure you that we are diligently working on this!"  This wording seems suspect, and from the previous post, it sounds like funding has been an issue in the past.  I've always been told that a PhD program without full funding is a major red flag.

Living in upstate NY is also a concern.  My fiance is a STEM post-doc, and we were hoping to "hit" in the same general area - a PhD program for me and a TT job for him.  He's a finalist for a position at SUNY Cortland, and will probably get an offer, but during his visit he thought the lack of diversity was concerning, and the deep seated racism in upstate NY was very palpable (the faculty at SUNY Cortland apparently did not hide this).  We're both white, but living in a culturally diverse and accepting area of the country is very important to us.

Any thoughts/input/opinions on any of these issues would be very appreciated!

"At this time, we cannot provide funding to cover tuition and living expenses. We are working to try and secure funding for you ..."

That's the only piece of information needed to make your decision. Don't go there. End of story.

[socchi92]

2 hours ago, LCA_1350 said:

 

I'm hoping to get more information or opinions on the Syracuse Sociology PhD program.  On paper, it seemed like a good fit for my research interests (immigration / migration), and it appears it may be my only acceptance this cycle.  However, these posts about the program are extremely troubling, especially given my research interests.  I would rather keep working in the non-profit sector than be miserable for 5-7 years and come out with a degree that may be stigmatized (would this be the case? I'm not plugged into the Sociology academic world).  

I'm also worried about the funding situation - the email from the director of graduate studies said "At this time, we cannot provide funding to cover tuition and living expenses. We are working to try and secure funding for you. It usually takes a month or so before we will know whether we can offer funding to you. We can, however, assure you that we are diligently working on this!"  This wording seems suspect, and from the previous post, it sounds like funding has been an issue in the past.  I've always been told that a PhD program without full funding is a major red flag.

Living in upstate NY is also a concern.  My fiance is a STEM post-doc, and we were hoping to "hit" in the same general area - a PhD program for me and a TT job for him.  He's a finalist for a position at SUNY Cortland, and will probably get an offer, but during his visit he thought the lack of diversity was concerning, and the deep seated racism in upstate NY was very palpable (the faculty at SUNY Cortland apparently did not hide this).  We're both white, but living in a culturally diverse and accepting area of the country is very important to us.

Any thoughts/input/opinions on any of these issues would be very appreciated!

Email current grad students there. Ask if any are willing to talk on the phone with you. 

[bandanajack]

What a dreadfully slow weekend.... Talk about all quiet on the application front.