PhD Waitlist for fall 2020

[Mvem]

I was Waitlisted since early April in one of the US schools for fall 2020 and I was told i will hear back on or before April 15th which never came,they were completely silent . In the month of May my POI contacted me citing Pandemic issues and asking if i am still interested in the PhD so that he can schedule a follow-up interview which i accepted but also never came(he failed to get back to me after i confirmed continued interest).

Should i still contact him asking for any latest info or do i have any hope at this time ?...Should i ask if Spring admit is feasible since the school grants Spring admit only if a student has a willing supervisor for an RA role...I am an International student

[Phoenix88]

Mvem, 

I'm sorry to hear that you were put into the back of the pile due to the pandemic. How often did you contact your POI after he asked for the follow up meeting? In my experience, many professors have had their workload significantly increase due to Covid, and your email may have gone unnoticed if you only reached out once. I am surprised you waited for this school in particular, was it the only one you applied for? 

At this point, it honestly depends on the professor. Some may tell you to reapply for next year, some may accept you with open arms for the spring (but may or may not be able to give you funding, remember that), and some may not reply. At this point, you may also want to contact the graduate advisor of the program and ask these questions to him or her. They may have a better understanding of why a decision based on your application was never finalized. With the trickiness of international admits right now, it may be extra hard for you as well. 

But overall, you won't know unless you ask! Do try, and the worst thing is that you get delayed a bit further in your studies. Best of luck to you! 

[Mvem]

On 8/27/2020 at 5:46 AM, Phoenix88 said:

Mvem, 

I'm sorry to hear that you were put into the back of the pile due to the pandemic. How often did you contact your POI after he asked for the follow up meeting? In my experience, many professors have had their workload significantly increase due to Covid, and your email may have gone unnoticed if you only reached out once. I am surprised you waited for this school in particular, was it the only one you applied for? 

At this point, it honestly depends on the professor. Some may tell you to reapply for next year, some may accept you with open arms for the spring (but may or may not be able to give you funding, remember that), and some may not reply. At this point, you may also want to contact the graduate advisor of the program and ask these questions to him or her. They may have a better understanding of why a decision based on your application was never finalized. With the trickiness of international admits right now, it may be extra hard for you as well. 

But overall, you won't know unless you ask! Do try, and the worst thing is that you get delayed a bit further in your studies. Best of luck to you! 

Thanks for the reply. I am just seeing this now for i haven't come on the platform for some time. It was not the only school i applied, i applied to about 5 which i was admitted by 1, waitlisted by another( Notre Dame) and rejected by others. This said school i am talking about is Uni of Notre Dame that waitlisted me(My most preferred).  For the POI, I contacted him immediately to show continued interest after asking if i am still interested in the program around May. There was no reply so i sent a reminder 2 days later and still no reply since May.  

I just emailed the graduate school inquiring of my status and if my application can be considered for Spring, the graduate school replied saying I should contact the Department if they will accept spring application if not they can make my application for fall 2021. Thanks

[Phoenix88]

I hope you've heard back at this point! Haven't been on the platform in a while either. 

Do know that things will work out in the end. I didn't end up with the advisor or the place I expected, but it still seems to be a good fit for me and what I want to do. You can make it work out somehow. 

If the POI can't answer your emails now, it would probably get worse later on (trust me, I've done research with those "too busy for anything" professors before). I know Notre Dame is rough to lose (I definitely was disappointed at my rejections as well), but maybe it's a sign better things are to come. 

But I hope that one way or another, you're able to start your grad school experience soon! Best wishes. 

[Mvem]

On 10/29/2020 at 6:22 PM, Phoenix88 said:

I hope you've heard back at this point! Haven't been on the platform in a while either. 

Do know that things will work out in the end. I didn't end up with the advisor or the place I expected, but it still seems to be a good fit for me and what I want to do. You can make it work out somehow. 

If the POI can't answer your emails now, it would probably get worse later on (trust me, I've done research with those "too busy for anything" professors before). I know Notre Dame is rough to lose (I definitely was disappointed at my rejections as well), but maybe it's a sign better things are to come. 

But I hope that one way or another, you're able to start your grad school experience soon! Best wishes. 

My POI who happens to be the DGS later replied last week apologizing of the lack of response due to Covid and the difficulties it posed. He told me he sent a note to Graduate School to have them copy my application for Spring 2021 and Fall 2021. He also remembered during our last interview, he questioned some C's in  1 or 2 courses and he said that's what actually gave him a "pause" on my application. I suppose that's why i was waitlisted. He asked if there is anything to address that for it would be useful. I actually replied him to show readiness 

2 days later i received a message from graduate school notifying me that my application has been moved for Spring 2021 and fall 2021

[Mvem]

On 10/29/2020 at 6:22 PM, Phoenix88 said:

I hope you've heard back at this point! Haven't been on the platform in a while either. 

Do know that things will work out in the end. I didn't end up with the advisor or the place I expected, but it still seems to be a good fit for me and what I want to do. You can make it work out somehow. 

If the POI can't answer your emails now, it would probably get worse later on (trust me, I've done research with those "too busy for anything" professors before). I know Notre Dame is rough to lose (I definitely was disappointed at my rejections as well), but maybe it's a sign better things are to come. 

But I hope that one way or another, you're able to start your grad school experience soon! Best wishes. 

Not bad for you. I understand very well