After the acceptance letter....

[linden]

Well, I'm in. I got the envelope a few hours ago. (Much to my surprise, the acceptance did not come by email before arriving in the mail.)

I'm wondering what I should do now? The package contained general information about the program, forms to fill out, etc... Nevertheless, I am obviously waiting to hear from the other schools to which I applied. Do I need to contact the program that admitted me? (I am going for a master's degree.) What should be my next steps?

Perhaps these questions sound silly. I was just so convinced that I would not get in anywhere, that I had not bothered to find out what to do after the acceptance letter.

Thanks for any words of advice.

Linden

[Philmajor]

First of all, CONGRATULATIONS! Were you accepted at a school you're truly interested in attending? Did they provide any financial aid information?

If you're still waiting on other acceptance letters, just sit tight. I don't see any reason to contact the school - what would you say if you did. Thanks for the acceptance, I'll let you know?

[linden]

Philmajor:

Thanks for your response. The school I heard from is among my top choices. So, I was pretty excited about the acceptance. No word on funding, though...

I was just curious if I should at least confirm that I received their acceptance letter. I did not know what I was expected to do.

Linden

[Dreams]

Wait until they send you word on funding to make a move. By then you would have a better sense if you can even afford to attend the school.

[UKbound]

I sent both of the schools I was offered admission to a short email letting them know I would notify them of my decision shortly. Be sure to check for deadlines. Both of the programs that offered me spots had clear specifications about when I needed to accept their offer by. You may inadvertently lose your place if there are deadlines and you haven't acknowledged the offer.

[rising_star]

Philmajor:

Thanks for your response. The school I heard from is among my top choices. So, I was pretty excited about the acceptance. No word on funding, though...

I was just curious if I should at least confirm that I received their acceptance letter. I did not know what I was expected to do.

Linden

Honestly, it's not something I ever did. They'll contact you with additional information about funding, etc. Just as long as you reply before the deadline, you're fine. You might want to have additional conversations with the profs you want to work with in the coming months (and maybe arrange a visit if you haven't already) to make sure it's a good fit for you.

[Minnesotan]

I'm wondering what I should do now?

Have a very large stein of beer and play some mind-numbing, violent video games (or whatever your guilty pleasure might be). Celebrate and stop worrying for a day or two.

[miratrix]

Congratulations! You're going to grad school! Just wait and be happy

[linden]

Miratrix:

Thank you. I am trying to relax. I kept telling myself that I would be happy as soon as I scored one acceptance. After all, I only applied to well-ranked programs that I would be really excited to attend. And, all along, I thought I would not gain admission anywhere.

But, now that I have been accepted by one school, I am hopeful that maybe more acceptances will be forthcoming. So the passive acceptance of my fate--that I would fail to be admitted anywhere--has been perversely replaced by real hope tinged with anxiety.

Has anyone else experienced this? Or, I am the only nervous Nelly who feels more stress after securing one admission?

Linden

[Philmajor]

For me, I found the more acceptances I got the more I wanted Perhaps it's some sort of validation that all the years of hard work and the effort of writing applications was appreciated. I also was crushed when I received rejections even though I had acceptances - so be prepared.

[linden]

Philmajor:

Sigh. Well, at least I know I am not alone. Others feel the way I feel.

It will be a long wait until March.

Linden