Venting Thread 2021

[musicdegree4me]

On 2/16/2021 at 1:21 PM, ObamaIsGuiltyOfWarCrimes said:

I wonder how much my referees have to do with where I have gotten in so far. MSU has close relations with two of my four referees and it has been relayed that one of my referees and someone at Calgary are close personal friends. It makes me wonder if I am actually doing this on my own merits. I also wouldn't have applied to so many places if I could better gauge myself in the applicant pool given the pandemic. I think December/January broke me, mentally. Now I check my email four times an hour - check here, the results page, and Facebook about twice a day - and open all of the portals once or twice a day. My partner cannot stand it.

My standard for vouching for someone to a personal friend is higher than my standard for vouching for them to a stranger and I don't think that's unusual. If you earned their recommendation then you did so on your merits. 

[Gnothi_Seauton]

For anyone rejected by Rutgers: 

 

[ShadyCarnot]

12 hours ago, Gnothi_Seauton said:

For anyone rejected by Rutgers: 

 

This is super generous, but note the caveat before blasting Alexander with emails: 'particularly those who don't get in anywhere'.

[TodoRico]

I'm anticipating complete rejection this cycle. It's my first time applying and I chose 11 programs mostly within the T25 according to the PGR. I tried to look for potential advisors whose areas of specialization were more or less aligned with something I could envision myself doing. I also looked at departmental TT placement records and made my decisions from there. I wish I hadn't made my decision this way and I wish I was inspired enough to study under a specific person and not rely as much on the PGR.

What I hate about this whole process is that, at least at my UG, we were never reading any new philosophy by up-and-coming scholars. The "newest" philosophy we read was Martha Nussbaum and of course now she's a well-established professor emeritus at U Chicago. Anyone younger and it seemed like I wasn't interested in their work at all or they were at a uni with a poor placement record. I suspect my statements of purpose suffered because of this since they only gestured for a few sentences to some professors I have never read and suggested I would enjoy learning from them.

I tried not to delude myself about applications but my (predicted) wholesale rejection is acutely painful since I felt I had a strong application regardless and I can't envision myself doing anything other than academic philosophy.

[PHILOKEV]

3 hours ago, TodoRico said:

I'm anticipating complete rejection this cycle. It's my first time applying and I chose 11 programs mostly within the T25 according to the PGR. I tried to look for potential advisors whose areas of specialization were more or less aligned with something I could envision myself doing. I also looked at departmental TT placement records and made my decisions from there. I wish I hadn't made my decision this way and I wish I was inspired enough to study under a specific person and not rely as much on the PGR.

What I hate about this whole process is that, at least at my UG, we were never reading any new philosophy by up-and-coming scholars. The "newest" philosophy we read was Martha Nussbaum and of course now she's a well-established professor emeritus at U Chicago. Anyone younger and it seemed like I wasn't interested in their work at all or they were at a uni with a poor placement record. I suspect my statements of purpose suffered because of this since they only gestured for a few sentences to some professors I have never read and suggested I would enjoy learning from them.

I tried not to delude myself about applications but my (predicted) wholesale rejection is acutely painful since I felt I had a strong application regardless and I can't envision myself doing anything other than academic philosophy.

If you still have a few applications out there on waitlists, or even hidden waitlists, do not despair just yet.  I put in 8 applications last year, and believe it or not, #8 was the one that bit - and way out in late April, too!

However, if you do get shut out, I would advise that you try again next year, but this time, match each T25 application with a safety school.  You suggest that you wish to make a career of this; well, you are improving your chances by adding safety schools into the mix.

My advice is purely speculative, however.  Perhaps you are well suited for a T25 program and this year's uniquely high volume and limited number of spots are to blame for the results you have experienced thus far.  Nonetheless, even if this were the case, many T26-100 schools would bend over backwards to have you.  Don't give up! Best of luck! 

 

Edited March 15, 2021 by PHILOKEV

[Contingent]

Hi, if I don't hear back from UC Berkeley this week, I am actually going to go crazy. I don't understand why there have been no rejections yet. It is mid MARCH! I just want to know for sure that I have ben rejected (or maybe waitlisted), so that I can live peacefully. Not knowing is driving me insane. There have been no more acceptances or waitlists (reported) since the end of January--holding out on sending rejections is just cruel at this point. Thanks for listening to me rant. Anyone else in the same spot? If so, let's talk--misery loves company. 

[A_bad_philosopher]

2 hours ago, SmithM97 said:

Hi, if I don't hear back from UC Berkeley this week, I am actually going to go crazy. I don't understand why there have been no rejections yet. It is mid MARCH! I just want to know for sure that I have ben rejected (or maybe waitlisted), so that I can live peacefully. Not knowing is driving me insane. There have been no more acceptances or waitlists (reported) since the end of January--holding out on sending rejections is just cruel at this point. Thanks for listening to me rant. Anyone else in the same spot? If so, let's talk--misery loves company. 

Same here. I am assuming a rejection though, it seems like UC Berkeley has a history of just holding on to their rejections as long as possible and sending them out at the absolute last moment (i.e. April 15th-ish). So I doubt that they'll be sending out anything to the rejected applicants anytime soon. It sucks, I know.

[Contingent]

8 minutes ago, A_bad_philosopher said:

Same here. I am assuming a rejection though, it seems like UC Berkeley has a history of just holding on to their rejections as long as possible and sending them out at the absolute last moment (i.e. April 15th-ish). So I doubt that they'll be sending out anything to the rejected applicants anytime soon. It sucks, I know.

I wonder why. We can't all be on a hidden waitlist. If we are not in the top 30 applicants, just peace us out. I am also assuming a rejection, but that isn't stopping me from checking the portal 3 times a day.