No acceptances so far..

[artvandaley]

Hi, 

I thought I was bringing down the energy in the Acceptances / Rejections thread with my rants about being rejected. I have applied for 8 programs and been rejected by 3. implied rejection by another 4.

I applied this cycle primarily for Brown, but I have no mail. my test scores were not too bad (GRE: 164, 163 and TOEFL: 117). I had worked for months on my SOP to ensure "fit" etc., Now I don't know what I did wrong and can do better next time (if at all I apply again). There was just one thing tho: I had no publications but manuscripts which are being prepared and under review.

Anybody else in the same boat? Looking to rant about anything or seeking advice on re-applying. It IS too soon, but I also do feel that maybe I should move on to other things in life.. what do you think?

 

[TheBunny]

2 minutes ago, artvandaley said:

Hi, 

I thought I was bringing down the energy in the Acceptances / Rejections thread with my rants about being rejected. I have applied for 8 programs and been rejected by 3. implied rejection by another 4.

I applied this cycle primarily for Brown, but I have no mail. my test scores were not too bad (GRE: 164, 163 and TOEFL: 117). I had worked for months on my SOP to ensure "fit" etc., Now I don't know what I did wrong and can do better next time (if at all I apply again). There was just one thing tho: I had no publications but manuscripts which are being prepared and under review.

Anybody else in the same boat? Looking to rant about anything or seeking advice on re-applying. It IS too soon, but I also do feel that maybe I should move on to other things in life.. what do you think?

 

I am totally in the same boat for sociology programs and I am borderline depressed. Your test scores are way better than me for TOEFL and GRE Verbal. 

[artvandaley]

6 minutes ago, TheBunny said:

I am totally in the same boat for sociology programs and I am borderline depressed. Your test scores are way better than me for TOEFL and GRE Verbal. 

So sorry about this.. I understand how you might be feeling, I had plans to quit my terrible job around this time and read and prepare myself for the "Fall Semester" through summer.

Also, I wonder if international applicants with degrees outside the US are considered seriously by some Universities. If there is a limitation in terms of funding for int. students, that should be disclosed in the website imo (York University does this!)

Edited February 15, 2019 by artvandaley

[TheBunny]

Just now, artvandaley said:

So sorry about this.. I understand how you might be feeling, I had plans to quit my terrible job around this time and read and prepare myself for the "Fall Semester" through summer.

Also, I wonder if international applicants with degrees outside the US are considered seriously by some Universities. If there is a limitation in terms of funding, that should be disclosed in the website imo (York University does this!)

The first time I applied for Ph.D. programs was in 2016, and I applied for starting in Fall 2017. I got rejected from all programs, sociology, business administration, and political science. I even get rejected from a borderline for-profit university. It was a bad application in my part. I had very low GRE scores (V: 142, Q: 166, AWA: 3.00). I had a bachelor's degree from a country in Eastern Europe. In retrospect, I am happy that they all rejected me, but at that time, it crushed me and made me believe that I am just stupid. I got into a master program at the end in America and tried to make my profile stronger. I have three papers under review currently and I am very confident that they will all get published. I worked so much for the GRE so my scores can at least pass the stupid thresholds. My current scores are V:158, Q:166 and AWA:3.5. I tried to maintain a high GPA throughout my bachelor's and masters. It was always over 3.7. I presented in two conferences, one international. Yet, in the end, I did not get into my dream school for political science. I am getting rejected from all sociology programs I applied. I think the wrong part in this equation does not lie in you and me but in the system. 

[artvandaley]

So sorry about this.. Hope the other PolSci offers help you feel better!

Like how you built something else (the Master's and strengthening your profile) out of your rejections - gives me hope.

[socio_socio]

I'm in the same boat. I've got rejected from all programs, and it is truly hard to keep believing in myself... I think the worst part of my application was a writing sample, and honestly, I don't know how to make it better. sigh. 

[TheBunny]

5 minutes ago, socio_socio said:

I'm in the same boat. I've got rejected from all programs, and it is truly hard to keep believing in myself... I think the worst part of my application was a writing sample, and honestly, I don't know how to make it better. sigh. 

Try to get feedback on writing sample from a group of professors who are working on the same topic. You can try reading articles on the topic and try to make your writing sample look like those at least format-wise. The most important part is to get feedback tho.

[NYCStudent]

Nada for me either! One rejection, and waiting on two others but not super confident about my chances. Sigh.

[Grek]

Same place. 

An international student. BA from a very normal university in my home country. Two master degrees, one course-based and one research-based, in a "good" university I would say, but it is not in the US and western countries. (sociology ranked less than 50). I am working as RA after graduation. BA 3.62 and MA 3.65 for the GPA. TOEFL close to 110. GRE 158+164+3.5.

Lots of research experiences and strong quantitative analysis ability. I started doing research since BA. A couple of presentations at major conferences in sociology (ISA and ASA). Several work-in-progress manuscripts, one of which is my writing sample and it was submitted to one of the top journals in my field before the application. I received an R&R for it a few days ago. 3 or 4 letters from my teachers who all graduate from IVY schools.

Sure I am a good fit for some of the programs I have applied to. So what? Get rejected by 9 out of the 12 programs and no acceptance.

Cant be more down in my life and cant figure why. And now, I dont even bother thinking about it. Perhaps nationality counts? 

 

Edited February 16, 2019 by Grek

[TheBunny]

12 minutes ago, Grek said:

Same place. 

An international student. BA from a very normal university in my home country. Two master degrees, one course-based and one research-based, in a "good" university I would say, but it is not in the US and western countries. (sociology ranked less than 50). I am working as RA after graduation. BA 3.62 and MA 3.65 for the GPA. TOEFL close to 110. GRE 158+164+3.5.

Lots of research experiences and strong quantitative analysis ability. I started doing research since BA. A couple of presentations at major conferences in sociology (ISA and ASA). Several work-in-progress manuscripts, one of which is my writing sample and it was submitted to one of the top journals in my field before the application. I received an R&R for it a few days ago. 3 or 4 letters from my teachers who all graduate from IVY schools.

Sure I am a good fit for some of the programs I have applied to. So what? Get rejected by 9 out of the 12 programs and no acceptance.

Cant be more down in my life and cant figure why. And now, I dont even bother thinking about it. Perhaps nationality counts? 

 

It definitely is. Where are you from? I feel like I am one of the neighboring countries to your country. I had seven years of RA experience, 5 in bachelor and 2 in master. 

Edited February 16, 2019 by TheBunny

[Grek]

7 minutes ago, TheBunny said:

It definitely is. Where are you from? I feel like I am one of the neighboring countries to your country. I feel discriminated in sociology. I had seven years of RA experience, 5 in bachelor and 2 in master. 

East Asia. I kind of feel that your master degree in the US will weigh a lot and receive more recognition.

By the by, what's your plan next if the worst situation happens?

[TheBunny]

8 minutes ago, Grek said:

East Asia. I kind of feel that your master degree in the US will weigh a lot and receive more recognition.

By the by, what's your plan next if the worst situation happens?

I applied to different programs, and I have an admission so far. It is just not in sociology. However, if I did not have anything, the worst condition would be to search jobs and not find anything because, with my degree, I do not think that I can find a job outside of my country. 

[Grek]

Just now, TheBunny said:

I applied to different programs, and I have an admission so far. It is just not in sociology. However, if I did not have anything, the worst condition would be to search jobs and not find anything because, with my degree, I do not think that I can find a job outside of my country. 

good for you. I still have nothing XD

[artvandaley]

More strength to all of us..

I am trying to take these rejections constructively no matter how hard it is.. Either, something was awfully wrong about my SOP / LoRs or I am not meant to be here.

Do you think some of the PoIs can be approached to give feedback on our application? 

I still can't put a finger on what went wrong, but since I have not contacted them before applying.. this may come across as odd, is it?

[SocFresh]

3 minutes ago, artvandaley said:

More strength to all of us..

I am trying to take these rejections constructively no matter how hard it is.. Either, something was awfully wrong about my SOP / LoRs or I am not meant to be here.

Do you think some of the PoIs can be approached to give feedback on our application? 

I still can't put a finger on what went wrong, but since I have not contacted them before applying.. this may come across as odd, is it?

I always want to do so but actually I dare not to reach out to my POIs based on the information collected on this website, but I can't help but reading this website again and again although I might not really trust all the users...

I always think about several stupid questions like...Do my POIs know about Gradcafe? If I am trolled by some posts and then write to them to ask about my application result, will they consider me ''a stupid student who cannot carefully tell out rumors and real news''?

I feel extremely upset...I know maybe I shouldn't concern so much, and my POIs should definitely understand my situation. But I am...alas...sigh...

Plus: my only relief these days is a forum called 'sociology job market rumor'. I guess I might become like the users in that forum 5 or 6 yrs later. It's extremely interesting to browse the Gradcafe and the SJMR simultaneously. LMAO

[socio1251]

Same here. My background is not as strong as you guys tho. undergraduate in a extremely rare Eastern European language major in my home country, a MA degree in the US, no publications or conferences presentations. I don't even know how I can enrich my profile if I apply again in the upcoming circle, because there are no possibility to engage in research work in my current job, or even an academic job in my home country, given that I am a language major.

I am extremely down recently since I really need a PhD to get rid of my current work, and I really want to study in the US. 

I am from East Asia too. I guess the whole application things are harder for international students, and for students who don't have a quantitative background...

[Placebo]

I am an International student from India and have applied for the Ph.D. program in Chemical Engineering with a focus in drug delivery, nanomedicine and tissue engineering at MIT, University of Michigan, UPenn, UIUC, Cornell, JHU, UCLA. I have also applied for the Ph.D. program in Biomedical Engineering at Duke University and Materials Science and Engineering at the University of Wisconsin Madison. However, I have not heard back from any of the schools although many students have already received their admits. I am surprised that I have not received admit from any of the schools. Can anyone please help me with the same?

I have the below-mentioned profile:

B.E. (Chemical Engg): 8.72/10 (top tier university)

M. Tech (Chemical Engg): 9.88/ 10 (IIT Bombay, topper)

GRE: 323 (V: 153, Q: 170, AWA, 3.5) TOEFL (110)

Presently working in Tata Steel R&D

Research projects: 5 (1 junior year research project (published), Summer internship at IIT Kanpur (not published), B. Tech thesis (published), M. Tech thesis (published and patented), Tata Steel R&D project (Patented))

Journal publications: 1 first authored paper, 1 second authored paper, 1 first authored review paper, 1 first authored research paper under revision

Conferences attended: 4

Patents: 2

Awards: Silver Medalist (M. Tech), Best M. Tech thesis award, Ambuja Young Researcher's Award in India

Fellowships: SURGE Fellowship for Summer Internship at IIT Kanpur, GATE Fellowship for Master's Students

Teaching assistant for 3 semesters

LOR: Strong (From Institute Chair of the dept and HODs)

[artvandaley]

This thread is full of international applicants  and no doubt our profiles are competitive

I think this is partly to do with lack of social capital - we do not have enough friends / seniors in our dream Unis to consult with through the process.. secondly, there is a limitation in funding int. phD applicants which they conveniently do not disclose. and of course, there could be something not up to the mark in our SoPs..

Gradcafe, in that sense, is very useful. I wish i had started engaging here earlier.. 

@Placebo I can see that your profile is very strong, given that I'm indian..I'd suggest you connect with more people from gradcafe / current grads in your unis of choice to strengthen your SOP and re-apply.. so sorry about this year's results tho.

[socio1251]

26 minutes ago, artvandaley said:

This thread is full of international applicants  and no doubt our profiles are competitive

I think this is partly to do with lack of social capital - we do not have enough friends / seniors in our dream Unis to consult with through the process.. secondly, there is a limitation in funding int. phD applicants which they conveniently do not disclose. and of course, there could be something not up to the mark in our SoPs..

Gradcafe, in that sense, is very useful. I wish i had started engaging here earlier.. 

@Placebo I can see that your profile is very strong, given that I'm indian..I'd suggest you connect with more people from gradcafe / current grads in your unis of choice to strengthen your SOP and re-apply.. so sorry about this year's results tho.

The whole connection thing is exactly what I'm thinking about. I didn't have any friends/seniors in sociology field because of my weird language background and a one-year MA degree with only 4 cohorts ( and I am the only international student in that program). I did all the applications by myself without any person to seek advice.  My graduate program has history, literature and philosophy professors, but not really sociology professors. 

I actually found out Grad Cafe after I submitted all of my applications, so it's already too late to make any significant change. I regret not knowing this forum earlier and making friends in sociology field too. I used to resent any circle but now I wish I could at least be part of them to keep myself more informed. 

Will you apply again if this year's results didn't work out? I don't know if I can survive this whole exhausting and longly application process again anymore...

Edited February 16, 2019 by ALieNNatioN

[artvandaley]

I would love to give it a second shot rather than completely change my goals in life.. but I worked for almost two years to save what I used for my application cycle.

yet to make up my mind..if it is worth the money and time!

[ErikaFate]

I hope things turn around for those on this thread. I've noticed a trend that many schools are taking in fewer new students this year because of lowered funding. Also, even though some of us got in several schools, we can only accept one. So spots will open up. I also think it will be a good idea to ask people on the forum to review your SoP if you decide to apply again. Or you can ask a professor in another program... this statement doesn't have to show perfect knowledge in sociology, but it should claim boldly how hard you worked and how you know this dedication will help you accomplish goals in the graduate program. Also, make sure you apply to at least one lower-tier school, several middle-tier schools, and only one or two top-tier schools. There are over 4,000 universities in the US and so many are great in their own way. 

Sorry for rambling on! 

[HumanHeatSOC]

I have had sooo many temper tantrums. By nature I am impatient (I'm working on it) and incredibly anxious. Though I am not an international student (which I see a lot of people on this thread are) I just wanted to chime in and say I've been walking around feeling like the worst possible version of myself. Why does no one want me? On paper I've realized I'm not so amazing. I had no idea until I came to this site! I'm the top person in my masters program but also an older student because I took a ten year hiatus working like full blown Cappy and finishing a novel on the side. I wish we could all just feel good and wanted -as though our lives and the possibilities were endless. I hope none of us gives up even though the rejections were nothing I could have prepared for. 

1 hour ago, ErikaFate said:

I hope things turn around for those on this thread. I've noticed a trend that many schools are taking in fewer new students this year because of lowered funding. Also, even though some of us got in several schools, we can only accept one. So spots will open up. I also think it will be a good idea to ask people on the forum to review your SoP if you decide to apply again. Or you can ask a professor in another program... this statement doesn't have to show perfect knowledge in sociology, but it should claim boldly how hard you worked and how you know this dedication will help you accomplish goals in the graduate program. Also, make sure you apply to at least one lower-tier school, several middle-tier schools, and only one or two top-tier schools. There are over 4,000 universities in the US and so many are great in their own way. 

Sorry for rambling on! 

Thank you for this!

[artvandaley]

12 hours ago, ErikaFate said:

I hope things turn around for those on this thread. I've noticed a trend that many schools are taking in fewer new students this year because of lowered funding. Also, even though some of us got in several schools, we can only accept one. So spots will open up. I also think it will be a good idea to ask people on the forum to review your SoP if you decide to apply again. Or you can ask a professor in another program... this statement doesn't have to show perfect knowledge in sociology, but it should claim boldly how hard you worked and how you know this dedication will help you accomplish goals in the graduate program. Also, make sure you apply to at least one lower-tier school, several middle-tier schools, and only one or two top-tier schools. There are over 4,000 universities in the US and so many are great in their own way. 

Sorry for rambling on! 

Thank you, this is a very kind response..I have particularly learnt about my choice of programs could have been more distributed across ranks. 

If it is not too much to ask for, would you be willing to give me some feedback from my application this cycle?

[bandanajack]

@artvandaley  I feel you. My hope for making it this cycle is crumbling. (1 official rejection, 2 likely, 1 program is MIA/radio silence) My scores were decent (your's definitely better). Also no pubs, but working on that now. I've already begun the process of mentally accepting I won't get in. I think my SOP's were the problem. I kept them professional and well-worded, but did not focus on the "fit" aspect like I should have.

For you, all I can say is that you applied to extremely competitive programs so you may have been a fine candidate, just no luck this cycle. I wouldn't give up hope though. Obviously do what you want to in life, but if grad school is a dream or part of a dream then stay strong and apply next cycle. I know I will. I will just go back to the drawing board. I wish you the absolute best.

[artvandaley]

16 hours ago, HumanHeatSOC said:

I have had sooo many temper tantrums. By nature I am impatient (I'm working on it) and incredibly anxious. Though I am not an international student (which I see a lot of people on this thread are) I just wanted to chime in and say I've been walking around feeling like the worst possible version of myself. Why does no one want me? On paper I've realized I'm not so amazing. I had no idea until I came to this site! I'm the top person in my masters program but also an older student because I took a ten year hiatus working like full blown Cappy and finishing a novel on the side. I wish we could all just feel good and wanted -as though our lives and the possibilities were endless. I hope none of us gives up even though the rejections were nothing I could have prepared for. 

Thank you for this!

Hope you feel better soon! I totally feel like total bag of anxious and hot-headed garbage these days due to my results too. 

Sadly, I'm not that optimistic to believe that something good awaits us all. I guess life goes on even when the possibilities are closing down on you and I'm trying to cope by valuing me more than where my career is headed..