UT Austin

[lyonessrampant]

From what I understand, it's broken down by subfield and then each subfield has a group of waitlisted candidates that are not ranked. So if a ling/lang specialist focusing on diachronic phonology removes themselves from the applicant pool, another historical linguist takes their place, not a contemporary sociolinguist or something like that. I think they want to keep each subfield balanced so they don't end up with 10 people studying definite articles or something.

Then again I haven't received any official correspondence in regards to the waitlist, that's just what would make the most sense to me. Which may mean it's totally wrong. Thoughts anyone?

I was waitlisted last year and have a friend currently in the program who got in off the waitlist, and that is basically how we understood the waitlist to work. I couldn't get Lesser to email me back responding to questions, so I could be wrong about that. Good luck to everyone!

[antecedent]

First rejection up. I just want to know! I have been so on edge all day.

*gasp* you're right! I know what you mean, my focus is totally shot.

[IneluctableModality]

AHHHH. Thanks UT Austin for doing the same thing as Columbia... Why can't they send out all rejects at once like a good, old-fashioned admit committee?

[antecedent]

AHHHH. Thanks UT Austin for doing the same thing as Columbia... Why can't they send out all rejects at once like a good, old-fashioned admit committee?

I KNOW. Also, I love your user name, even though I'm not the biggest Joyce fan.

Is it sad that I'm replying to almost every post on here? Can you tell how often I'm checking grad cafe?

[antecedent]

...another rejected post on the board.

[Avalanched]

Is it just me, or does it look like they're doing wait lists in the morning and rejections in the afternoon? Only my shard of hope keeps me from despair.

[HaruNoKaze]

not me posting on the Results board; just checked the website and my app still says in review. going to leave in like a half hour though and won't be back till after 9pm, will probably check results board from my phone but i dunno if i'll be able to log in to the UTapplication check thing. i wonder if my touchpad can do it..

[antecedent]

Well, I haven't heard anything and they're nearing the end of the day, so I'm guessing it's over. Sigh.

On the bright side, I'm listening to a really good break up mix on grooveshark - I feel like I was dumped by Austin :s

[WendyMoira]

Keep your head up, guys (and girls--I've given up guessing). If I've learned one thing from stalking the results board, it's that it's just chaos. I'm one of the UT admits. It's my only acceptance so far (wait-listed at Pitt), but I promise I'll pull out ASAP if I decide not to take it. For now, I'm downright thrilled. I would love all of you to get in off the wait-list. Then I would feel like I already had friends...even though usually I just read all these conversations and never respond. ;-/ So here is me responding...ugh...I've been staring at this board too long.

[andsoitgoes161]

I might be exercising blind optimism, but I feel like UT's silence on our apps means we still stand a chance. Anyone else feel this way?

[Avalanched]

I do. I've heard nothing, and my app says it is still in review. I'm still hoping.

[antecedent]

Yeah mine is too. WTF Texas? You say "by the 24th" and then leave us all hanging! I'll try and remain optimistic you guys, but I'm really struggling :/

[andsoitgoes161]

Here is my take: some people have already gotten rejections, so they were definitely people Austin did not feel would fit well with a cohort this year. However, we were not immediately notified on our status (either positive or negative), and so our apps probably display some sort of potential for meshing well with what they're looking to build in an incoming class. Furthermore, someone mentioned something about the Rhetoric people not having yet been able to finalize offers because of funding, and I know that although the Rhetoric concentration is offered through the English PhD, the department is actually separate from the English department (though I assume integrated in the same manner in which the concentration falls beneath the PhD umbrella). Antecedent, I haven't done any research, but I can see how the linguistics concentration might also be dependent on a separate departmental wing, and so the English department might be waiting on decisions from a more streamlined language/linguistics AdCom group as they obviously have to have some say in the decision process. Same goes for final rhetoric offers/wait list announcements. This is all my own wild conjecture, but I intuitively feel that it makes sense and that it's what is happening, soooo I'm going with it.

Edited February 24, 2012 by andsoitgoes161

[ComeBackZinc]

It might be conjecture for UT specifically, but that is indeed a common situation at schools with rhet/comp programs. I can think of a half dozen schools like that. So it's not a bad thought.

[antecedent]

Here is my take: some people have already gotten rejections, so they were definitely people Austin did not feel would fit well with a cohort this year. However, we were not immediately notified on our status (either positive or negative), and so our apps probably display some sort of potential for meshing well with what they're looking to build in an incoming class. Furthermore, someone mentioned something about the Rhetoric people not having yet been able to finalize offers because of funding, and I know that although the Rhetoric concentration is offered through the English PhD, the department is actually separate from the English department (though I assume integrated in the same manner in which the concentration falls beneath the PhD umbrella). Antecedent, I haven't done any research, but I can see how the linguistics concentration might also be dependent on a separate departmental wing, and so the English department might be waiting on decisions from a more streamlined language/linguistics AdCom group as they obviously have to have some say in the decision process. This is all my own wild conjecture, but I intuitively feel that it makes sense and that it's what is happening. So I'm going with it.

Makes sense to me! If we both get in we are SO going out and getting shmammered together once we're in Austin. I can see several bottles of wine with andsoitgoes and antecedant written aaaaaall over them.

[andsoitgoes161]

Umm, obvi. And we're going to be BFF. And line dance. And have so much fun on Sixth Street. And study I guess. But definitely nerd out over sociolinguistics.

(I really want us to get into UT, I feel like just writing those things out acts a personal form of a vision board.)

[andsoitgoes161]

(But it also makes me sound a little whacky. Who am I kidding: totally whacky.)

Edited February 25, 2012 by andsoitgoes161

[antecedent]

(But it also makes me sound a little whacky. Who am I kidding: totally whacky.)

It's kind of like Wonderland over here in Grad Cafe; we're all mad here!

[andsoitgoes161]

Though, it would be so nice is something made sense for a change.

Ps. Don't even get me started on Alice quotes. I am way too obsessed.

[WendyMoira]

Though, it would be so nice is something made sense for a change.

Ps. Don't even get me started on Alice quotes. I am way too obsessed.

Andsoitgoes- you're not by chance another children's lit specialist, are you?

[antecedent]

Though, it would be so nice is something made sense for a change.

Ps. Don't even get me started on Alice quotes. I am way too obsessed.

I took a Victorian adaptation seminar in undergrad, and we read various drafts of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and then watched a bunch of film adaptations, it was awesome.

To be honest, if I didn't go the ling/lang route, I think I would have been a Victorianist. Or the only Orwell scholar since George Woodcock died

[andsoitgoes161]

Andsoitgoes- you're not by chance another children's lit specialist, are you?

No I'm not. I've just always loved anything Alice, and I think Lewis Carroll is a linguistic genius--the syntax/semantics he originates in the language of "nonsense" are fascinating, and I think writing children's lit within a "nonsensical" code is a brilliant attempt at providing a working exposition of the imaginative faculties of children. I also just really like the Disney animated movie because I think it's cool, haha.

I took a Victorian adaptation seminar in undergrad, and we read various drafts of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and then watched a bunch of film adaptations, it was awesome.

To be honest, if I didn't go the ling/lang route, I think I would have been a Victorianist. Or the only Orwell scholar since George Woodcock died

A class on the drafts of Alice?! So. Awesome. I wish I'd had an opportunity to take something like that, but my undergrad institution took a pretty conventional approach to literature, as well as to what literature we read--I've taken more analytically straightforward courses on Shakespeare and Medieval lit than I care to remember. I would totally be a Victorianist too--I think a lot of people would, even though many seem to voice disinterest in the period. I find that a lot of people buy into its stereotypical characterization of being a stifling or prude era and write it off prematurely, but I happen to think it was a culturally rich and innovative time that everyone should appreciate.

Edited February 25, 2012 by andsoitgoes161

[antecedent]

A class on the drafts of Alice?! So. Awesome. I wish I'd had an opportunity to take something like that, but my undergrad institution took a pretty conventional approach to literature, as well as to what literature we read--I've taken more analytically straightforward courses on Shakespeare and Medieval lit than I care to remember. I would totally be a Victorianist too--I think a lot of people would, even though many seem to voice disinterest in the period. I find that a lot of people buy into its stereotypical characterization of being a stifling or prude era and write it off prematurely, but I happen to think it was a culturally rich and innovative time that everyone should appreciate.

I really lucked out with my undergrad English department. I chose my undergrad institution based on it's foreign language programs (I originally wanted to major in French/linguistics - some things come full circle I guess!) but I was seduced by our honours program and it worked out really well. It ended up being a bit too lit heavy for my tastes (with almost no emphasis on language at all outside of a few rhetoric classes) but I loved it nonetheless. One of my favorite profs (and LOR writers) was a Victorianist and I tried to take as many classes with her as possible, so I read TONS of Regency, Victorian, and Edwardian/pre-modern literature, and very much share your view about it. Have you read The Heavenly Twins? Sara Grand is a little late for Victorian but that novel absolutely blew my mind - it was a bit of a slog, but a beautiful, beautiful slog. Much like Middlemarch, which we also had to read for that class.

Also, you had me so pumped with your rationale from earlier, but I'm starting to lose steam and sink into worry again. I really hope this works out for me/you/us all!

[jywayne]

I too haven't heard anything yet. What gives?

[antecedent]

I too haven't heard anything yet. What gives?

Right? Someone in another forum said just go ahead and rip the band aid off. Come on, UT Austin!