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2020-2021 Application Thread


Theory007

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49 minutes ago, Mad Scientist Malfrost said:

I didn't apply there but anyone claiming those UC Davis admits for the sanity of people who did apply there?

I've lurked this whole cycle, but I am unbelievably excited to claim a UC Davis admit, though I haven't posted it on the results page yet.  I am honestly in shock.  Davis is my top choice; it's an incredible program.  I will most likely accept.  If I get into Stanford or Berkeley (longshots given my stats, if you ask me), I'll certainly consider them, but I will probably be in Davis in the Fall.

This is my second cycle; I had one admit last cycle at a last choice school but my GRE score were terrible. I was rejected everywhere else. I did some practice tests and saw that I could significantly improve my scores in addition to spending another year honing my app and conducting more research.  It was a big risk, but I wanted to go to a better school and stay in California, so I thought it was worth it.  

I was feeling pretty confident until COVID happened and I saw how hard admissions were going to be.  On top of that, Davis didn't take GRE scores (which were going to make up for a Master's GPA that was quite lower than I wanted it to be as I worked a LOT - 2 or 3 jobs at times - during my master's).  

Still, I put my best foot forward on that application and worked my butt off on the off chance that I'd get in.  I am sure some element of luck played into it.  Congratulations to everyone who even put in an application!  This is a GRUELING process. 

 

Edited by notatomato
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2 minutes ago, notatomato said:

 

I've lurked this whole cycle, but I am unbelievably excited to claim a UC Davis admit, though I haven't posted it on the results page yet.  I am honestly in shock.  Davis is my top choice; it's an incredible program.  I will most likely accept.  If I get into Stanford or Berkeley (longshots given my stats, if you ask me), I'll certainly consider them, but I will probably be in Davis in the Fall.

This is my second cycle; I had one admit last cycle at a last choice school but my GRE score were terrible. I was rejected everywhere else. I did some practice tests and saw that I could significantly improve my scores in addition to spending another year honing my app and conducting more research.  It was a big risk, but I wanted to go to a better school and stay in California, so I thought it was worth it.  

I was feeling pretty confident until COVID happened and I saw how hard admissions were going to be.  On top of that, Davis didn't take GRE scores (which were going to make up for a Master's GPA that was quite lower than I wanted it to be as I worked a LOT - 2 or 3 jobs at times - during my master's).  

Still, I put my best foot forward on that application and worked my butt off on the off chance that I'd get in.  I am sure some element of luck played into it.  Congratulations to everyone who even put in an application!  This is a GRUELING process. 

 

I stand corrected. Congrats on the admit! It's good you didn't give up after your first cycle and your hard work has clearly paid off! 

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2 minutes ago, im_sleep_deprived said:

Claiming UC Davis Admit. Subfield: Political Theory

My safety school but I was unsure if I could get in during the covid cycle. I'm hoping to use this admission to get a better offer from UW Madison.

How often does this work? Are admitted students successful at hitting universities with price match guarantees?

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Just now, Crossed_fingers said:

How often does this work? Are admitted students successful at hitting universities with price match guarantees?

Good question. I don't really know. Here is the quote from the Madison email that I received: 

"As I work to craft the best possible offer I can for you, the university will sometimes ask me for the terms of any competitive offers that you will undoubtedly receive. If you are willing to share those with me, it will help me make my case."

It seems like if I share offers with them I can get a better stipend maybe. Idk.

 

 

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Just now, nivy25 said:

How are Davis admits coming at this time though? 

I definitely wasn't expecting to receive an offer outside of business hours, but I have personally found myself doing a lot of work at random times since WFH started.  I imagine it's probably the same thing! 

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12 minutes ago, notatomato said:

I definitely wasn't expecting to receive an offer outside of business hours, but I have personally found myself doing a lot of work at random times since WFH started.  I imagine it's probably the same thing! 

Congratulations. Hope I get to hear from them soon! 
 

Do you mind sharing your sub field? I know the other acceptance was PT.

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1 minute ago, TheNeonGod said:

Longtime lurker first time poster but I'm also claiming a UC Davis admit. The email came at 10pm EST on the dot. I was also waitlisted at Penn State today.

Congratulations! What subfield? 
 

Also, does Penn State usually waitlist before accepting? 

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1 minute ago, nivy25 said:

Congratulations! What subfield? 
 

Also, does Penn State usually waitlist before accepting? 

IR subfield. I do not know how PSU typically treats their waitlist, but in the email it says that I am on a "very short waitlist" that they hope they will be able to move through quickly, which makes me think they do offer acceptances off of their waitlist.

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Just now, TheNeonGod said:

IR subfield. I do not know how PSU typically treats their waitlist, but in the email it says that I am on a "very short waitlist" that they hope they will be able to move through quickly, which makes me think they do offer acceptances off of their waitlist.

Congrats! 
If I’m not wrong, PSU hasn’t reached out to students regarding direct acceptances yet right? 

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41 minutes ago, im_sleep_deprived said:

Good question. I don't really know. Here is the quote from the Madison email that I received: 

"As I work to craft the best possible offer I can for you, the university will sometimes ask me for the terms of any competitive offers that you will undoubtedly receive. If you are willing to share those with me, it will help me make my case."

It seems like if I share offers with them I can get a better stipend maybe. Idk.

 

 

Since I’m on the prospective student side of the equation, I sure hope that’s standard practice! 
 

Also, congratulations on your admits!

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41 minutes ago, im_sleep_deprived said:

How often does this work? Are admitted students successful at hitting universities with price match guarantees?

35 minutes ago, im_sleep_deprived said:

Good question. I don't really know. Here is the quote from the Madison email that I received: 

"As I work to craft the best possible offer I can for you, the university will sometimes ask me for the terms of any competitive offers that you will undoubtedly receive. If you are willing to share those with me, it will help me make my case."

It seems like if I share offers with them I can get a better stipend maybe. Idk.

 

 

In speaking with some grad students, it seems like there is some amount of negotiating power you have, mostly around summer funding or getting a program to match a year of fellowship support. Seems like stipends are more difficult to negotiate, but still worth mentioning. Definitely not a price match guarantee though. Otherwise people would just be applying to places where there is a high cost of living to get a higher stipend and use that to negotiate a better deal elsewhere. 

A line I've heard a lot when speaking to admissions faculty is that since they have put in a good amount of work to give you an offer in the first place and they would not want to lose you if you feel you wouldn't be able to support yourself financially in their program. 

 

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Congrats to everyone who got a Davis admit though and congrats to those who wake up in the morning with good news in their inbox! I am hoping for just SOME news from any school I applied to by the end of this week. Thankfully the Spring semester for me starts next week so I'll have something other than pending decisions to focus on then!

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I haven't heard from Duke (interviewed or not). Additionally, does Vanderbilt only email for interviews on Monday's? lol I feel like after that initial wave (which I think was only 2 or 3 people if I'm not mistaken), we haven't heard a peep. 

BOIL POT FFS.

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