2020 Applicants

[SomethingWicked]

4 minutes ago, poeticdweller said:

posted this on the acceptances thread, but was just notified via email to check Duke's app portal and saw I was accepted! 

Congratulations!! That's a great start to the application season!

[digital_lime]

8 minutes ago, poeticdweller said:

posted this on the acceptances thread, but was just notified via email to check Duke's app portal and saw I was accepted! 

Congratulations! That's amazing news! 

[onerepublic96]

33 minutes ago, poeticdweller said:

posted this on the acceptances thread, but was just notified via email to check Duke's app portal and saw I was accepted! 

replied to your post in the acceptances thread, but congratulations again!! this is amazing and such a perfect start to the admissions cycle!

 

[onerepublic96]

just checked my own Duke portal in a fit of anxiety. nothing there yet but fingers crossed for some kind of news soon...

[digital_lime]

10 minutes ago, onerepublic96 said:

just checked my own Duke portal in a fit of anxiety. nothing there yet but fingers crossed for some kind of news soon...

Same! I've been refreshing manically, then stoically reminding myself that whatever will be will be, and that my application is now out of my control. Then checking my email again.

[caffeinated applicant]

1 hour ago, poeticdweller said:

posted this on the acceptances thread, but was just notified via email to check Duke's app portal and saw I was accepted! 

Congratulations!!! Truly the best first answer you can have!

[cruel optimism]

Thank you @caffeinated applicant @onerepublic96!! 

4 hours ago, Rani13 said:

Congrats! Is this for English or Literature?

Also, this is for Duke Lit! I think they've just started to roll out acceptances for English, so best of luck to everyone! 

[Brown_Bear]

16 hours ago, cruel optimism said:

Thank you @caffeinated applicant @onerepublic96!! 

Also, this is for Duke Lit! I think they've just started to roll out acceptances for English, so best of luck to everyone! 

Goodness; I am still clinging onto hope. All of my apps still indicate I'm in review. Let's all have good fortune this cycle.

[merry night wanderer]

Someone's reported a Stanford interview on results - it's affecting me more than I thought! I've basically dismissed all my chances with private schools (particularly ivies) as very chancy given my applicant profile, being older than the norm and from public schools etc, but it's weird how these things still get to you. 

Next week more results will start rolling in - it can't come soon enough. Congrats to the Duke acceptances, though! Excellent early news!

Edited January 23, 2020 by merry night wanderer

[urbanfarmer]

On 1/22/2020 at 11:42 AM, cruel optimism said:

Duke interview. Am freaking out. Any tips?
(I'm exceptionally horrible at interviews...) 

Here's some tips for people freaking out about interviews:

1. Know that they're trying to get you to talk about things, not trying to trip you up. As such, be prepared to talk about your research, but don't feel like it's a quiz.

2. As someone else said, feel free to admit that you haven't read something/don't know much about something. However, the best thing to do is not let that "I'm not sure, I haven't read that" end the conversation or question. Instead, try to turn the conversation back around into something you either DO know, or turn it into a relevant question. i.e. "You know, I actually haven't read much Foucault, so I don't think I'm confident speaking about his ideas of biopower. However, I have found myself really interested in X, who says Y-- and you're right that I should dive into Foucault to see what he can add to my thoughts about Z." Or, "I haven't read Frankenstein in a while, but I think you're right that it could open up an interesting question in my work. For instance, I'm really interested in... Thanks for the recommendation!" 

With the above, if someone asks you something that you REALLY know nothing about-- say they mention a theorist or author that you've never heard of-- ask for clarification! Say something like, "I don't know Jane Doe's work. What's her take on eco criticism?" Then, use their answer to similarly make connections like I said above. 

3. Don't feel like you need to have a definitive answer. Places where they ask you something that you haven't thought through yet are a great place to (1) say where you thinking IS at, but then follow that up by saying (2) this is why you want to be in a PhD program. Great phrasing would be something like, "I really do think that the relationship between gender and the publishing industry has had a huge impact on the reception of certain authors. I think to get to a definitive answer, however, I'll have to do some archival work, which I haven't had the time to do while in my M.A. That's one of the reasons I'm really excited about the prospect of being in your program-- you have such a great collection of early publishing records, and I love the work that Dr. X has done with them."

4. Have some questions prepared to ask them, if they give you the opening to do so. Even if you don't really have any questions, have some-- saying "I don't have any questions" can make you seen uninterested. These questions, though, should be higher-order questions about the program, and not nitty-gritty. i.e. DO ask about recent placement, but don't ask about specific stipend questions (unless they give you the space to do so). DO ask about the availability of funding for conference travel, but don't ask about how much. After you're admitted, you can ask about details, or about the city or housing or whatever. Right now, you're just trying to get in the door. 

5. The best advice-- for interviews, and for campus visits when y'all get to that stage-- is to fake it 'til ya make it. It's ok to say that you're nervous if you are! But also, act confident, sociable, and kind, no matter how you feel inside. I used to teach speech, and I'd tell my kids that everyone starts to feel nervous before public speaking. That's a normal, healthy, bodily response. The key is to turn those nerves into energy, rather than thinking that they mean you're going to fail, and letting them shut you up. 

[onerepublic96]

anyone had any more news from Duke? last night’s acceptances really tripped me up and now I can’t stop refreshing the portal...

[caffeinated applicant]

24 minutes ago, urbanfarmer said:

Here's some tips for people freaking out about interviews:

This is so, so helpful! A thousand thanks upon you! 

(Continuing fingers crossed that Duke/Chicago/Maryland are doing multiple rounds of interviews/that my lack of requests doesn't mean what it seems to mean... ) 

[meghan_sparkle]

How should you take it when an interview goes ... well? I have a lot of previous interview experience, but had one today and was really shocked by how friendly it was.

[xolo]

11 hours ago, meghan_sparkle said:

How should you take it when an interview goes ... well? I have a lot of previous interview experience, but had one today and was really shocked by how friendly it was.

You're in

[Indecisive Poet]

@urbanfarmer's interview tips are fantastic – I especially agree with their point about admitting what you don't know. I just want to add a few things that I desperately wish I had known before what I felt was quite a bad interview (that almost certainly squashed my chances at my dream school ?)

1. This may be obvious to you, but think of the interview as you pitching your work to the department. The point of the interview is to share your work with the faculty – both the past work you've done and future work you want to do – and to explain why you are excited to do that work at that particular program. I had no idea what kinds of questions to expect – did they want to get to know me better as a potential colleague? Did they want to hear about more ideas that didn't make it into my materials? Nope – they just wanted a better idea of how all of my interests fit together and some clarification of what I've done and what I want to do, research-wise. Our conversation never strayed from my SoP and WS. Talk about your past and future work in as specific terms as possible, rooted in arguments you have made and methods/avenues of research you want to pursue.

2. Review your statement of purpose and writing sample very carefully for at least a few days before the interview. Practice talking about them with confidence in very specific terms, and be able to explain how they link together. Do not waste time reviewing books/articles written by the faculty at that program. I spent far too much time doing this and didn't have a single opportunity to hint at my knowledge. I should have spent the time reviewing my own materials carefully.

3. As @urbanfarmer mentioned, do have questions prepared for your interviewers. But while questions about funding and placement may be welcome at some departments, I very much got the sense that my interviewers did not want to be asked about classes, placement, job support, teaching (whoops). They made it fairly clear at the end of the interview that I should have asked about the opportunities available to me within my specific field/subfield at the program, and what the work culture is like in those areas. I didn't think to ask about those things because I had already researched them well and I didn't want to seem like I hadn't, but in retrospect, I do not think it is necessarily a bad idea to ask questions you already know the answers to. For my next interview, I plan to begin the "question" section with "I'm really excited about University's program because of x opportunities in my Field. Would you mind talking a little bit about the opportunities and culture in Field at University so I can get a better sense of how I would fit in to your program?"

4. Similarly, when possible, throw in phrases reiterating that you are excited about and think you are a good fit for the program because of x. Only after my not very good interview did I realize I really just talked about me the whole time and made it seem like I didn't know or care about the program. I thought my understanding of the department's opportunities in my field and my fit with the department was evident from my statement of purpose, but in retrospect, I wish I had emphasized these things during the interview.

Edited January 24, 2020 by Indecisive Poet

[vondafkossum]

Does anyone want to claim the UW-Madison acceptance/waitlists from the results board? The last couple years notifications look staggered and then rejections come out a week or so later. I'm trying not to go crazy refreshing my email, but....

[S_C_789]

23 minutes ago, vondafkossum said:

Does anyone want to claim the UW-Madison acceptance/waitlists from the results board? The last couple years notifications look staggered and then rejections come out a week or so later. I'm trying not to go crazy refreshing my email, but....

From last year's notifications it seems as though UW-Madison sends out a couple of acceptances late January, and then several acceptances and some rejections towards the first-second week of February? Perhaps they accept candidates in two separate batches in the same cycle (while also accepting off their waitlist much later down the line).

Trying desperately to cling on to hope here!

Edited January 24, 2020 by SheCyborg

[Heidelberger]

Hi all,

I've been lurking here for the last couple of weeks while waiting to hear back from the different programs I've applied to. It is truly a grueling process!

For the sake of transparency—or, I suppose, as much transparency as we can hope for (...)—, I just wanted to let you all know that I've been accepted to Wisconsin (Literary Studies). Just added the result now.

Best of luck to everyone! 

[caffeinated applicant]

4 minutes ago, Heidelberger said:

For the sake of transparency—or, I suppose, as much transparency as we can hope for (...)—, I just wanted to let you all know that I've been accepted to Wisconsin (Literary Studies). Just added the result now.

Best of luck to everyone! 

Congratulations on Wisconsin! 

[Heidelberger]

7 minutes ago, caffeinated applicant said:

Congratulations on Wisconsin! 

Thank you!

[S_C_789]

18 minutes ago, Heidelberger said:

Hi all,

I've been lurking here for the last couple of weeks while waiting to hear back from the different programs I've applied to. It is truly a grueling process!

For the sake of transparency—or, I suppose, as much transparency as we can hope for (...)—, I just wanted to let you all know that I've been accepted to Wisconsin (Literary Studies). Just added the result now.

Best of luck to everyone! 

Congratulations, @Heidelberger!

[arbie]

Hey folks waiting for responses from UW-Madison!

I applied last year and heard nothing until the end of March, when I finally decided to reach out to ask because it seemed all acceptances, waitlists, and rejections went out around the same time in January. Turned out I was waitlisted, but their system lost my notification. I was ultimately accepted off of the waitlist. 

That‘s all to say that once everything seems to be in, and if you still haven’t heard anything, it’s okay to ask! I wish I would have asked sooner since I ended up having so little time to make a decision that I did it literally on April 15. I’m not sure how rare my situation was, but it’s clearly not impossible!

[S_C_789]

3 minutes ago, arbie said:

Hey folks waiting for responses from UW-Madison!

I applied last year and heard nothing until the end of March, when I finally decided to reach out to ask because it seemed all acceptances, waitlists, and rejections went out around the same time in January. Turned out I was waitlisted, but their system lost my notification. I was ultimately accepted off of the waitlist. 

That‘s all to say that once everything seems to be in, and if you still haven’t heard anything, it’s okay to ask! I wish I would have asked sooner since I ended up having so little time to make a decision that I did it literally on April 15. I’m not sure how rare my situation was, but it’s clearly not impossible!

Thanks, @arbie for being so helpful!

It's really comforting to know that an implied rejection need not necessarily be an actual one, till a real rejection email has reached one's inbox! I'm thinking of emailing end-Feb-ish if I still haven't heard back from them!

[Deleuze]

Hi everyone,

I have also been a lurker on this thread for a while. I was compelled to go ahead and post by @vondafkossum. (Sorry I am not sure how to directly reply to specific messages in the thread). Any who, I am claiming the first Wisconsin Acceptance to be posted on the leader board type thing. I was notified by UW-Madison via email at around 3:30 yesterday afternoon. Cheers and congrats to everyone who has heard back, solidarity with those still waiting.

Edited January 24, 2020 by Deleuze
Accidental early posting

[Deleuze]

Also: I am waiting to hear back from a horde of other schools. Has there been any updates on the Duke responses?

Edited January 24, 2020 by Deleuze