Accepted but Waiting for Funding

[CIIP]

I'm in anthro too! What subfield are you interested in? I hope we get funding, it's going to be very hard without it!

Archaeology; primarily North American archaeology (complex societies) and a focus on ethics, US law and collaborative archaeology. How about you?

Here's hoping for getting funding soon. :wink:

[keepcalm]

Archaeology; primarily North American archaeology (complex societies) and a focus on ethics, US law and collaborative archaeology. How about you?

I'm interested in bioarchaeology. I don't yet have a region that I'm overly attached to, though I do prefer North American groups. I'm mostly interested in the application of chemical analysis to find out about diet and mobility of skeletal groups.

And it's another day waiting to see if I get funding . . . people keep asking me if I know where I'm going next year. It's frustrating to have no idea since funding is going to affect a lot!

[santana]

I applied to only one school (stupid move!), and luckily got accepted, but now I'm waiting for funding info... they said decisions might not be made until May. MAY! :cry:

I would not believe much whatever they say. The most likely case is that they are expecting some with funding to drop out. If that doesn't happen you will be left hanging.

[CIIP]

Yeah, I figured that was why they were saying decisions might be made so late. I'm not particularly worried about it, because they said they wouldn't start making funding decisions until late March. If I don't hear anything by mid-to-late April I'll assume I am waitlisted for funding, but as far as I know now, no one in the department has received notification of funding.

[santana]

I would not assume anything. They have funding decision already. They most likely budgeted everything already, this is a typical lie (as in "we do not know what funds we have"). Some will waitlist you with ranking and you could be the very 1st on the waitlist or just the 21st, and you would not know. For example I heard this is the case with University of Rochester (a specific program though). Some will not rank and will go through the list who is available (I had that experience with Virginia, I am a career student :mrgreen: ).

So don't count on anything. Secretaries won't tell anything they are not authorized to tell and usually do not know anything anyway, professors might tell something or nothing or they just lie. Until you get it on the paper, all talk is cheap.

[CIIP]

Thanks for the advice, but I've got it under control. I am not packing my bags to move to the school just yet, and I realize that waitlisting and no funding are real possibilities...

[keepcalm]

Ugh. I feel like I'm going to jump out of my skin! The longer I wait the more convinced I am that no funding is coming my way. I have a favorite, but I feel compelled to wait until I hear about funding.

Gross.

[rising_star]

Seriously, the wait for funding from my last three schools is KILLING me. Granted, it's also making me not want to go there...

[sashababie]

I'm also waiting on funding from a program, although they probably won't be able to match my current favorite, but they do have good faculty and placement so I'm not turning them down yet. I've written to no avail and called last Friday (international!), was put on hold for 3 mins, then told (very politely though) funding decisions will hopefully be out by the end of the month. I have to say, like rising_star, it's really making me not want to go :roll: .

[hopeful grad]

I feel the pain...I need to decide if I should start interviewing for full-time jobs, planning a move to get my degree, applying to every job at NYU with tuition remission, or what! I am going crazy here and just would like a solid idea of where I will be next year. Hopefully I will know by this weekend!!!

[whentostop]

Ok, I got a piece of mail from a financial aid department, my stomach lurched through my mouth, and I found a letter requesting I turn in some strange form I already sent to my department, where they asked me to send it the first time. I'm in favor of a ban on inconsequential correspondence before all life and death information has been disseminated. Maybe that is just me. They have to tell me soon, don't they? I can't take this much more. I have other things that need my attention. Sorry, needed to vent a bit.

[StudyMom]

Still waiting for funding.... Anyone else out there still waiting? I'm getting nervous now that it is so close to April 15th...

[ollie cromwell]

I'm hanging in there with you, Studymom. They told me they might not be able to offer anything until after the 15th.

Which is fine and good -- I'm still going to accept. I'm trying to get a hold of the grad coordinator to ask questions regarding deferral if funding isn't offered. Figure I have to work on residency anyways, and a strange job anywhere is going to pay the bills just as well as a strange job back home. I'm trying to view it more as a grand adventure until I actually hear back about funding. I'm also bracing myself for the reality of living in a city for a year without continuing my education.

Its a roll of the dice.

[StudyMom]

olliecromwell:

I called the person in charge of assistantships today and they are having huge budget issues but they said I should know by the end of the week. It's my 1st choice school but I am also on the waiting list for my 3rd choice so if the 1st doesn't work out perhaps the 3rd will...who knows? I also thought of deferring and moving to get a job and establish residency which could possibly help in getting assistantships next year. Again, who knows?! Best of luck.

StudyMom

[keepcalm]

I'm still waiting too! I've been offered funding by another school, but my top choice has not made a decision yet! When I e-mailed yesterday I was told they weren't sure when the decisions were going to be made! It's getting pretty intense!

[whentostop]

Would somebody talk to me about this deferral business...is it what it sounds like, that is see if they will defer your acceptance until next year while you bone up stats and hope for funding and work, maybe even saving a little cashola? Or is that way off?

[StudyMom]

keepcalm,

The way I understand it is that some schools allow you to defer admittance to the next year. That way you don't have to reapply but it means you may not get funding. You can use that year to establish residency and save money.

I am thinking of deferring only if I do not receive funding. Then I would move to the state my 1st choice school is in and establish residency and settle my family there. I would only do this if the Associate Dean thought it was a good idea and would increase my odds of financing in the next year. HOWEVER, I think the budget crunches are only going to get worse so, who knows?

Still, I am hoping that the funding comes through and I won't give up until I have to!

[keepcalm]

I'm kind of hoping that schools were just waiting to find out if students got NSF funding and now decisions will be made for the rest of us. It seems pretty unfair to keep us hanging such a long time! I know where I want to be, and I hope that I'll be able to be there next year, but without funding it will be difficult.

Good luck everyone!

[whentostop]

I was definitely not prepared for this roller coaster of emotions--well, really just one, anxiety. I emailed school x yesterday, because I had not heard a peep from them since applying way back when, and they sent back that I was on a waitlist. Okay, well that is not so bad. But the two schools that I have been accepted to, that are making decisions on funding, or were supposed to be, have, neither one, said a word about that and it is now the 2nd of April. Is it too early to wonder if I have been placed on a silent waitlist for funding at one or both of them? The silent waitlist! For funding! Oh the unseen obstacles! I just want everybody that got an acceptance with funding back in mid-Feb to know, you are suspect. :wink: Is anybody else having these experiences?

[StudyMom]

whentostop:

I have been waiting for funding from my first choice school since the first week in Feb. I finally called the person in charge of assistantships and support earlier this week because they said we should know by the end of March. It turns out there is a very big budget problem for many schools and they are trying how to fund the people they have accepted as well as the people already in the program. I think you should call and be polite and ask when they expect to notify you about assistantships and whether it will be e-mail or regular mail. They should be fine with it -- after all the deadline to accept etc. is less than two weeks away!

Best,

StudyMom

[CIIP]

1. If the school made clear (in my department acceptance letter) when the funding decisions would be made, and by what means (post), should I just wait, or should I contact someone? The letter said the dept. would start making decisions in late March, so of course I was hoping to hear right away!

2. Not a question, but more of an irritation is that everything is in the balance right now with me waiting for funding, but to make matters worse, I am watching people with funding in place make plans to move and all of the big prep stuff that comes with starting at a new school. Frustrating. It makes me feel inferior to them that I don't have any clue about funding, even though I know it's just a difference in the way our schools/programs are run.

[StudyMom]

I got funding! Finally! Woohoo! I'm going to Gainesville!

Good luck to you all.

StudyMom

[engguy]

Studymom:

Congrats!

Hearing good news about people I don't even know, but whose stories I've been following, is one of the few excuses I have for lingering on this forum.

CIIP:

I know you're waiting on SUNY, right? I think it's safe to contact them. Not going to affect the decision either way. And you shouldn't feel angsted out about the prospect of moving; it might seem late, but in reality it's not. It just seems that way because we're all torturing ourselves with this site!

best of luck to both of you--

[whentostop]

Congrats!

[keepcalm]

I got funding! Finally! Woohoo! I'm going to Gainesville!

Good luck to you all.

StudyMom

Congrats! That's great news, though I am a little jealous :wink:. Hopefully all our schools will come back with great offers!