2020 Acceptances

[tansy, rue, root, & seed]

10 minutes ago, meghan_sparkle said:

Congratulations! See you at visit days!!

Congrats as well on your amazing admissions success!! Looking forward to meeting you soon

[VincentH]

Wow!! I join the other lucky folx who have heard good news from Rutgers!!! One of my top programs and the email could not have been any lovelier! So personalized and thoughtful... I teared up a little bit reading it tbh. :') I suspect I got emailed instead of called because it's a Saturday, but we're setting up a time to chat on the phone soon! 

After a string of rejections (six in a row, oof), what a pleasant and unexpected surprise. Hearty congratulations to my fellow Rutgers peeps!

[meghan_sparkle]

Okay so there's an applicants thread and an acceptances thread. Where's the thread where someone tells me what to do.

[Rani13]

Oof I’m in at Princeton too. What is my life.

[Rrandle101]

@meghan_sparkle about to come out here like Jesus with the fishes and loaves in a couple of weeks for all the 20th-century people on the big boy waitlists

[Dogfish Head]

Just got into Syracuse! Hyped!

[SomethingWicked]

7 minutes ago, Dogfish Head said:

Just got into Syracuse! Hyped!

Ayeee!!! Congrats!

[Rrandle101]

9 minutes ago, Dogfish Head said:

Just got into Syracuse! Hyped!

BRO I'M SO HYPED FOR YOU CONGRATS!!!!

[meghan_sparkle]

On 2/23/2020 at 12:04 AM, meghan_sparkle said:

Okay so there's an applicants thread and an acceptances thread. Where's the thread where someone tells me what to do.

Just an update on this: I have been emailing/having coffees with all of the mentors of mine who're in the know about the state of the programs I applied to at the moment and they are ... all giving me completely contradictory advice lol! Also most of them know each other and it's gotten to the point where some are fighting behind the scenes about their advice to me. (I'm sure this will all be fine in the end, no one is totally right and no one is totally wrong, but just picture me, a person who always tries to please her teachers, good teacher's pet, sitting in a chair, trying to process all of this.)

A: Don't go to (x). There's no one for you to work with there.

B: Well, A doesn't know what she's talking about. Go to (x). 

C : Wait, actually I think (y) could be a perfect fit for you. Don't go to (z).

D : I've been talking to C and we both think you should go to (y). Go where you have multiple people you want to work with who have clout.

E: I know you like (y) a lot but eh ... I'm not crazy about [POI]. 

D : I've changed my mind; go to (k).

F (teacher of B ) : (x) is boring. (y) is also boring. Don't go to (x) or (y) under any circumstances. Also don't choose for advisors; all that can change. Go where you like the intellectual community best. More soon, bye.

B : Remember there are no jobs so don't expect that you'll get one. Kiss kiss!

[caffeinated applicant]

2 minutes ago, meghan_sparkle said:

B : Remember there are no jobs so don't expect that you'll get one. Kiss kiss!

I feel like the #1 thing underscored by this is just that there is no one single "correct answer" but instead many answers that are right in one way, wrong in others, and your future happiness/career (the thing the choice is supposed to be about!) is going to be so much more dictated by things that you can't foresee now than things that are discernible in the present.

But also idk I think that D has a great point maybe go with (k) ?

[Wimsey]

On 2/22/2020 at 7:04 PM, meghan_sparkle said:

Okay so there's an applicants thread and an acceptances thread. Where's the thread where someone tells me what to do.

I'm also starting to feel the stress of the decision-making process. As a feminist, I love embracing my agency, but in this context I kinda just want to be told which program to choose. ?

[MedievalIllusions]

46 minutes ago, Wimsey said:

I'm also starting to feel the stress of the decision-making process. As a feminist, I love embracing my agency, but in this context I kinda just want to be told which program to choose. ?

I feel this. I have three lovely acceptances, leaving towards one of them, but then got waitlisted at UVA and my nice settled plans went right out the window, and I can’t even choose between UVA and the other school I like, because I probably won’t get into UVA anyways? But then what if I do at the last minute and I haven’t even thought about it and have to make the decision in like 24 hours??? Absolute chaos. Reaching out to everyone I know and they’re all like “go with your heart” and I’m like wut

[The Hoosier Oxonian]

Sharing the deciding stress - on top of the acceptances I already have, I just got a very kind response from the DGS at Cornell about the waitlist indicating that the waitlist is very short and there's a good chance (though of course no certainty) that I could get an offer in early April. Cornell is a top choice for me, so now I'm tearing extra hair out at the prospect of potentially throwing it into the final decision mix as well.

[tinymica]

25 minutes ago, MedievalIllusions said:

I feel this. I have three lovely acceptances, leaving towards one of them, but then got waitlisted at UVA and my nice settled plans went right out the window, and I can’t even choose between UVA and the other school I like, because I probably won’t get into UVA anyways? But then what if I do at the last minute and I haven’t even thought about it and have to make the decision in like 24 hours??? Absolute chaos. Reaching out to everyone I know and they’re all like “go with your heart” and I’m like wut

You just struck absolute fear into my heart because I didn’t even realize this could happen! Time for a fetal position on the floor

[Warelin]

1 hour ago, meghan_sparkle said:

F (teacher of B ) : (x) is boring. (y) is also boring. Don't go to (x) or (y) under any circumstances. Also don't choose for advisors; all that can change. Go where you like the intellectual community best. More soon, bye.

I looked over my previous SOPs.

One of the schools I was accepted by no longer has my POI working there.
At my current university, I've decided that other professors are better fitted for my project.
One of the professors I'm interested most in working with previously taught at a "top 20" university. They start next semester.
My current university also recently hired someone who I think would work very well with my interests.

Grad School can see a lot of changes within a relatively short amount of time. Best of luck with making your decisions.

[MedievalIllusions]

Just now, tinymica said:

You just struck absolute fear into my heart because I didn’t even realize this could happen! Time for a fetal position on the floor

Whoops sorry  but like it’s comfy down here and I have cookies so there’s that 

[Wimsey]

31 minutes ago, MedievalIllusions said:

I feel this. I have three lovely acceptances, leaving towards one of them, but then got waitlisted at UVA and my nice settled plans went right out the window, and I can’t even choose between UVA and the other school I like, because I probably won’t get into UVA anyways? But then what if I do at the last minute and I haven’t even thought about it and have to make the decision in like 24 hours??? Absolute chaos. Reaching out to everyone I know and they’re all like “go with your heart” and I’m like wut

My position is very similar! The prospect of UVA or Rutgers taking me off the waitlist at the last minute is both terrifying and exciting (but mostly terrifying).

[Dogfish Head]

5 hours ago, SomethingWicked said:

Ayeee!!! Congrats!

 

4 hours ago, Rrandle101 said:

BRO I'M SO HYPED FOR YOU CONGRATS!!!!

Thank you and thank you! I was slowly but surely losing hope.

[WildeThing]

@MedievalIllusions @Wimsey @tinymica My understanding is that there was a lot of movement on the waitlist last year (which is not to say it will happen again). I believe 40% of the matriculating PhD cohort came off the waitlist. At least 3 of were informed of our acceptance in the last week of the decision period, and I personally was informed I had a spot on a Saturday before the deadline (which was Monday). So things CAN happen very quickly and I definitely would have felt more comfortable with more time and more opportunities to talk to people. Of course it would suck to get that info and then not get accepted, but feel free to PM if you DO want to ask stuff (even if it's an emergency PM on April 15th).

[MedievalIllusions]

12 minutes ago, WildeThing said:

@MedievalIllusions @Wimsey @tinymica My understanding is that there was a lot of movement on the waitlist last year (which is not to say it will happen again). I believe 40% of the matriculating PhD cohort came off the waitlist. At least 3 of were informed of our acceptance in the last week of the decision period, and I personally was informed I had a spot on a Saturday before the deadline (which was Monday). So things CAN happen very quickly and I definitely would have felt more comfortable with more time and more opportunities to talk to people. Of course it would suck to get that info and then not get accepted, but feel free to PM if you DO want to ask stuff (even if it's an emergency PM on April 15th).

Thank you so much! I may PM you with questions later..... and I may have to take you up on that emergency April 15th PM....

[Rani13]

Um, I'm in at Penn. Dead.

[onerepublic96]

11 minutes ago, Rani13 said:

Um, I'm in at Penn. Dead.

Congrats! 
 

off to check and recheck my email for a couple of hours now...

[tinymica]

45 minutes ago, WildeThing said:

@MedievalIllusions @Wimsey @tinymica My understanding is that there was a lot of movement on the waitlist last year (which is not to say it will happen again). I believe 40% of the matriculating PhD cohort came off the waitlist. At least 3 of were informed of our acceptance in the last week of the decision period, and I personally was informed I had a spot on a Saturday before the deadline (which was Monday). So things CAN happen very quickly and I definitely would have felt more comfortable with more time and more opportunities to talk to people. Of course it would suck to get that info and then not get accepted, but feel free to PM if you DO want to ask stuff (even if it's an emergency PM on April 15th).

Ah yes, I did hear about that! On the one hand, it gives me hope to know that such a significant portion of the cohort came from the waitlist, but on the other hand, I know that things change from year to year. I’m really hoping to get in, as I think it would be much better for me than my other offer, but I’ll have to wait and see.

Thank you for being so kind as to share this info and to offer your time! I also may be messaging you soon. 

[tinymica]

15 minutes ago, Rani13 said:

Um, I'm in at Penn. Dead.

Ahhhh congratulations!!! I’m so happy for you!

[Rani13]

Just now, onerepublic96 said:

Congrats! 
 

off to check and recheck my email for a couple of hours now...

Thank you. Hoping for the best for you!

 

Just now, tinymica said:

Ahhhh congratulations!!! I’m so happy for you!

Thanks a ton!