Send me my damn rejection so I can get on with my life.

[Zues]

Just voicing my frustration that acceptances and wait listings have gone out for most of my potential programs yet I still haven't heard anything for days. Just send me my damn rejection notice so I can get on with my life. Anyone else share those sentiments? They must know who they intend to reject if they are admitting people. Don't they know that some of us have pulled ourselves out of poverty through our academic success and that this game is not funny. They should let people know of rejections as soon as they have completed the decision making process. A mass email only takes a few minutes to send out.

Perhaps I am beginning a good ol' fashioned rant so I will stop now before I really get going.

Cheers to those who got into the program they wanted.

Edited February 17, 2011 by Zues

[pocketcoffee]

Hear, hear!

Just voicing my frustration that acceptances and wait listings have gone out for most of my potential programs yet I still haven't heard anything for days. Just send me my damn rejection notice so I can get on with my life. Anyone else share those sentiments? They must know who they intend to reject if they are admitting people. Don't they know that some of us have pulled ourselves out of poverty through our academic success and that this game is not funny. They should let people know of rejections as soon as they have completed the decision making process. A mass email only takes a few minutes to send out.

Perhaps I am beginning a good ol' fashioned rant so I will stop now before I really get going.

Cheers to those who got into the program they wanted.

[kbirch]

My thoughts exactly!

[going crazy]

Damn right. I just want to get it over with and I feel like schools totally drag their asses on this.

[suerte]

it just makes me feel so...liminal.

[Paul Allen]

I echo those sentiments, I'm waiting to hear back from three and I know they've accepted and rejected people, so it makes no sense. Out with it already!

[davolicious]

I personally think that Michigan is making me suffer because I'm considering going to Ohio State.

[lexicana]

I completely agree. Even though it's safe to assume that one has been rejected after seeing others post acceptances, it's hard not have a little hope that maybe just maybe there is still a chance. It's like having a bandaid pull off little by little, thereby, maximing the pain. It would be easier to pull the bandaid off already and begin the healing process. Also when I tell friends and family that it's probably a rejection because other are receving offers they can't help but to tell me that I shouldn't assume that everyone gets accepted at the same time. Unfortunately, the pattern on this site proofs otherwise.

[kbirch]

I completely agree. Even though it's safe to assume that one has been rejected after seeing others post acceptances, it's hard not have a little hope that maybe just maybe there is still a chance. It's like having a bandaid pull off little by little, thereby, maximing the pain. It would be easier to pull the bandaid off already and begin the healing process. Also when I tell friends and family that it's probably a rejection because other are receving offers they can't help but to tell me that I shouldn't assume that everyone gets accepted at the same time. Unfortunately, the pattern on this site proofs otherwise.

This is so true... I was such a mess last night while I came to terms with the fact that I'm probably not in at my top-choice school, since others have received acceptances, and while I was wallowing in self-pity, people were like, "Why the hell are you upset? You haven't even heard anything yet. You have no reason to be upset yet."

[davolicious]

North Carolina is toying with me now. Not only have they not given me a peep regarding my application, but when I try to log on to the "application status" page, they redirect me to some random page, with no links whatsoever to what I'm interested in finding out. Yes, I get the hint, but why can't they just come out and say it? Is it really that hard to say "We're sorry, but you're not in. Have a good life"?

[joops]

I think their system is buggy. I'm getting the same page when I log in, but I managed to somehow direct myself to a page where it still tells me that my application is in review. I did email the gradsec over a week ago asking about my status and she has not responded.

I'm going to refrain from criticizing because I cannot be entirely sure how long this process takes or what bureaucratic hoops departments have to go through to contact applicants.

I do, however, wish this process were faster.

North Carolina is toying with me now. Not only have they not given me a peep regarding my application, but when I try to log on to the "application status" page, they redirect me to some random page, with no links whatsoever to what I'm interested in finding out. Yes, I get the hint, but why can't they just come out and say it? Is it really that hard to say "We're sorry, but you're not in. Have a good life"?

[cowboy8085]

I am extremely nervous...I haven't heard anything from any of the programs that I've applied to (7). Is it too much to ask for word on one of them-yay, nay, or waitlist??? I know for a fact that one of the programs that I applied to has accepted one of my friends and they're flying him out for a visit on their dime, and yet I hear nothing. I am happy for him, and everyone that has been accepted, but I just want to know something so I can move on. I can't check my mail enough...do you think it is a bad sign that I haven't heard anything from anybody other than all of your application materials have been received?

[tmor6]

I am extremely nervous...I haven't heard anything from any of the programs that I've applied to (7). Is it too much to ask for word on one of them-yay, nay, or waitlist??? I know for a fact that one of the programs that I applied to has accepted one of my friends and they're flying him out for a visit on their dime, and yet I hear nothing. I am happy for him, and everyone that has been accepted, but I just want to know something so I can move on. I can't check my mail enough...do you think it is a bad sign that I haven't heard anything from anybody other than all of your application materials have been received?

I was in the same boat you are in last year, and I completely sympathize. It's a tough position to be in. The best thing you can do now is be optimistic and hope for the best. Have you contacted the graduate director? If not, I would suggest you do that to check on the status of your application. Who knows, maybe the acceptance letters are on there way to you right now.

[Zouzax]

COMPLETELY agreed. This is really ridiculous to make us wait so long for a rejection. It's not even nice at this point. I've gone from feeling hopeful, to despair, to just plain ANGER

PS I wish something could be done to streamline this process. To have wait 2-4 months for a decision is crazy, no? If I have to do this all over again next year, I am DEFINITELY not going to jump the gun and send all my apps in November like I did this time. I'm going to wait until the last possible day and casually send everything in then.

[cowboy8085]

I was in the same boat you are in last year, and I completely sympathize. It's a tough position to be in. The best thing you can do now is be optimistic and hope for the best. Have you contacted the graduate director? If not, I would suggest you do that to check on the status of your application. Who knows, maybe the acceptance letters are on there way to you right now.

I am trying to stay optimistic and hope for the best, but the more you wait the more it seems like you are in the limbo positions at these schools...do you know what I mean? I fell like by not hearing anything I am not their first round daft choice, but at the same time by checking the admissions forum (the rejection forum), it seems as though I have missed the initial rejection letters/emails. It feels like their stance is, "we are interested in offering him if, so and so turns us down" I guess that's what I mean by in limbo. At this point i will be happy to just be accepted anywhere, and after that then letters (rejections, wait list, or whatever) come rolling in...I don't care I just need to know something.

As far as emailing the program graduate directors, I am a little unsure. I don't want to be that pesky person asking hey could you tell me if I have been accepted or rejected, because if I am truly in that limbo position that I believe I am in, then I feel like creating that feeling will hurt my chances of being accepted. What are some other peoples experience emailing graduate directors about admission status? But at this point I may just be over thinking everything.

Thanks for the responses...it is a little settling to know others struggles as well

[kbirch]

I am trying to stay optimistic and hope for the best, but the more you wait the more it seems like you are in the limbo positions at these schools...do you know what I mean? I fell like by not hearing anything I am not their first round daft choice, but at the same time by checking the admissions forum (the rejection forum), it seems as though I have missed the initial rejection letters/emails. It feels like their stance is, "we are interested in offering him if, so and so turns us down" I guess that's what I mean by in limbo. At this point i will be happy to just be accepted anywhere, and after that then letters (rejections, wait list, or whatever) come rolling in...I don't care I just need to know something.

As far as emailing the program graduate directors, I am a little unsure. I don't want to be that pesky person asking hey could you tell me if I have been accepted or rejected, because if I am truly in that limbo position that I believe I am in, then I feel like creating that feeling will hurt my chances of being accepted. What are some other peoples experience emailing graduate directors about admission status? But at this point I may just be over thinking everything.

Thanks for the responses...it is a little settling to know others struggles as well

I'm in exactly the same boat. I actually emailed on Thursday morning and still haven't heard back... I'm a teacher, so we have a 24-hour response policy with parent communication, so it's pretty foreign to me. I know there's way more applications than I have students, but I'm still way too far out of my comfort zone in grad school Purgatory!

[maximus82]

You guys have to remember that committees consist of faculty (and sometimes students) who have pretty busy lives, and they meet about once a week. How many 2 hour meetings do you think it takes to go through 300+ applications?

Also, once a committee makes decisions, these decisions have to go through the graduate school or the school of arts and sciences. so now you have all the departments sending in their decisions to those offices at the same time... this stuff takes time. Be patient. some times no news is good news.

[faculty]

As a faculty member, and one who serves on a grad admissions committee, I have got to chime in. While I don't agree fully with Maximus either, as most of the review of application materials occurs online and the multiple two hour meetings are for deciding on admittances, short lists, fellowship possibilities, etc., they're certainly correct that there's a lot going on behind the scenes and that it's not just committees or even departments that are involved.

For my own school, we have acceptances, a waitlist, an unofficial waitlist pool that we're not ready to reject yet, and those who got notifications that they'd been rejected outright.

Whether or not we draw on the waitlist or the waitlist pool depends on any number of factors that we can't predict and we feel that it's best to just let sleeping dogs lie (we're not sitting around devising ways to get students to stress out even more; believe it or not, we've all been on your side of the process) and not tell someone that they're rejected just to turn around in two weeks - when all of our potential gender students have turned us down and our gender scholars are hounding us about who will work with them next year - and call someone up, with our tail between our legs, and say "never mind what we said before, we'd like to make you an offer." As is clear from this board, there are a TON of great applicants out there this year (and most years) that we'd be thrilled to have. However, there is only so much funding, faculty, etc. to support those students, so it's a time-consuming and arduous process from our end too to figure out how to fill the exact number of slots we have, with diversity in areas to please the faculty. However, we feel it's only fair to "officially" waitlist those who, in past years, would likely make it into the program after that sorting. Who knows if this year will be different, or if we'll have to go really deep when it comes to gender or race or social movements? We don't, and so the unofficial waitlist is an important cushion to have so as not to get people's hopes up, but to leave open the possibility that we can make them an offer.

I know it's nerve-wracking now. Trust me, it's just a prelude to the hell that is applying for jobs once you're wrapping up grad school. But really what matters is what you have heard by April 15th. I mean, really, how would it change your actions now? Would you apply to different schools, scrap the idea of school all together? By all means, apply to other schools if you'd like, but I wouldn't close up shop or write off grad school until the deadline. There's lots of movement those last few weeks. In the meantime, hang in there.

[Phdnyc]

Thanks Faculty

As a faculty member, and one who serves on a grad admissions committee, I have got to chime in. While I don't agree fully with Maximus either, as most of the review of application materials occurs online and the multiple two hour meetings are for deciding on admittances, short lists, fellowship possibilities, etc., they're certainly correct that there's a lot going on behind the scenes and that it's not just committees or even departments that are involved.

For my own school, we have acceptances, a waitlist, an unofficial waitlist pool that we're not ready to reject yet, and those who got notifications that they'd been rejected outright.

Whether or not we draw on the waitlist or the waitlist pool depends on any number of factors that we can't predict and we feel that it's best to just let sleeping dogs lie (we're not sitting around devising ways to get students to stress out even more; believe it or not, we've all been on your side of the process) and not tell someone that they're rejected just to turn around in two weeks - when all of our potential gender students have turned us down and our gender scholars are hounding us about who will work with them next year - and call someone up, with our tail between our legs, and say "never mind what we said before, we'd like to make you an offer." As is clear from this board, there are a TON of great applicants out there this year (and most years) that we'd be thrilled to have. However, there is only so much funding, faculty, etc. to support those students, so it's a time-consuming and arduous process from our end too to figure out how to fill the exact number of slots we have, with diversity in areas to please the faculty. However, we feel it's only fair to "officially" waitlist those who, in past years, would likely make it into the program after that sorting. Who knows if this year will be different, or if we'll have to go really deep when it comes to gender or race or social movements? We don't, and so the unofficial waitlist is an important cushion to have so as not to get people's hopes up, but to leave open the possibility that we can make them an offer.

I know it's nerve-wracking now. Trust me, it's just a prelude to the hell that is applying for jobs once you're wrapping up grad school. But really what matters is what you have heard by April 15th. I mean, really, how would it change your actions now? Would you apply to different schools, scrap the idea of school all together? By all means, apply to other schools if you'd like, but I wouldn't close up shop or write off grad school until the deadline. There's lots of movement those last few weeks. In the meantime, hang in there.