Reasons for Rejection

[Karan_95]

Hello All,

I would like to know the exact reason for rejections from the universities that I applied to. Does mailing to the graduate department be of any help in this matter?

 

[palyndrone]

You can definitely ask how to improve your application or if there were specific reasons for rejection. Whether or not you get a response will probably depend on the size of the program/how many applicants they get. If you got to the interview stage, they're probably more likely to tell you something useful. 

[Sigaba]

I would find a way to ask the questions informally. I would keep the questions phrased in terms of being a more competitive applicant.

I would not expect specific answers to questions sent via email. Risk management is increasingly important. If Student A were told that his/her application materials for X, Y, and Z weren't up to standard, and later found out that other applicants had lower Xs, Ys, and Zs, there could be...controversy.

[palyndrone]

As Sigaba said --

you can try framing it like: "How could I improve my application in order to be more competitive in the next round" or "were there any outstanding weaknesses I could address to make my application stronger" etc. Questions like "how many more points do I need on my GRE scores to make the cut" are not likely to get answers.

[AP]

I second the previous responses. 

Allow me to highlight that in many cases, rejections do not have anything to do with your standalone application but as a part of an applicant pool. Sometimes your application is great but the AdComm evaluated that another candidate might be a better fit or something. By framing your questions as an opportunity to make your application stronger, you implicitly acknowledge that you don't have all the control in the decisions (alas, but don't we wish we did!)

[CarolynDenton]

My little sister got a rejection and it was a tragedy for her. We got no reply via the official channels regarding the reasons for this decision, but we managed to get some info during the personal conversation. So the informal channels work the best here.