AdComm Insider

[Dwar]

Hey All, 

I know that this cycle is really picking up steam for some people, while for others it is starting to close down. Either way I know that most of us are facing some sort of rejection. I wanted to share this Reddit thread from last year where an AdComm professor in a social science field provides an in-depth analysis of the admissions process. The Professor discusses how and why students are accepted or rejected. They also answers a ton of questions in the comments section, so be sure to read below the initial post.

I'm hoping that this will be able to offer some insight into why rejections come and de-mystify some of the admissions process. I know that in face-value a rejection just seems like a label of failure, but many times it isn't the case. Often times it is internal department politics that we, as applicants, would have no way know knowing or foreseeing. 

AdComm Reddit Post

[Artifex_Archer]

Popping in to say that this is really great stuff, and, from what I've heard other adcomm members say, entirely true.

 

I really wish I'd stumbled upon all of these 'inside confessionals,' or what have you, after my first [unsuccessful] PhD application cycle. It probably wouldn't have dulled the pain entirely, but the sting of 'rejection' wouldn't have been quite so pronounced. Instead I did everything 'perfectly,' on paper, and still wound up feeling like there was something irredeemably wrong with me.

 

Thanks, @Dwar, for being such an awesome presence on these forums.

[LazarusRises]

Super interesting, and always good to hear about what goes on in the blackbox of the admissions office. Thanks @Dwar.

That post seems to be mostly about the PhD cycle though--I'm curious if anyone has any similar resources for Masters programs where working one-on-one with professors isn't as central a component.