Welcome to the 2012-2013 cycle

[eponine997]

Newbie question: are we supposed to make clear that we are faculty members?

Do so at your own risk  I'd imagine you've probably been reading for a while, so you probably know what those risks are.  1) everyone here is pretty nice and we are glad to have you; 2) if you make yourself available, you MIGHT get badgered with questions, though you obviously have the luxury of ignoring them; 3) Our current DGS hero of the thread is from a program that (to my knowledge) has already sent out ALL of their notifications - so you MIGHT want to be prepared for 300 people asking you "Are you guys done with admits yet!??!?! cuz I'm still waiting and it's driving me crazy!!!"  

 

All that said, early on in the process, I enjoyed reading the blog entry you wrote on the admissions/application process, it was very helpful, thank you

[balledematch]

Faculty alarm? Good idea. We eat brains. 

 

 

Do so at your own risk  I'd imagine you've probably been reading for a while, so you probably know what those risks are.  1) everyone here is pretty nice and we are glad to have you; 2) if you make yourself available, you MIGHT get badgered with questions, though you obviously have the luxury of ignoring them; 3) Our current DGS hero of the thread is from a program that (to my knowledge) has already sent out ALL of their notifications - so you MIGHT want to be prepared for 300 people asking you "Are you guys done with admits yet!??!?! cuz I'm still waiting and it's driving me crazy!!!"  

 

All that said, early on in the process, I enjoyed reading the blog entry you wrote on the admissions/application process, it was very helpful, thank you

 

I second everything eponine says. Love the Duck...especially the podcasts 

[Doorkeeper]

So what's going on with Harvard? Are acceptances trickling out?

 

Edit- Are they legit?

Edited March 4, 2013 by Doorkeeper

[dnexon]

These warnings all sound like par for the course. And no, I haven't been lurking for a long time. So, let's make this quick:

 

1) Yes, we've made our initial decisions;

2) As of this morning, not everyone on our wait list had been notified;

3) I oversee the process, but I don't directly make the decisions -- if you applied to us, there's a good chance that I've never seen your file;

4) As of now, I'm not in a position to tell you your status as it never works out well when I get ahead of our notification procedures; and

5) We've been working with some major adjustments to the way we do things this year, which is why everything is taking so #^!&* long. Sorry.

 

Feel free to contact me if you have specific questions.

 

PS: Thanks for the kind words -- I'll try to get the podcast process back up and running soon.

[raptureonfire]

Does anyone know the fields of the Georgetown admits?

 

Edit: Ah - all initial acceptances made at this point!

Edited March 4, 2013 by raptureonfire

[PoliSwede]

Anyone want to claim the Harvard admit?

I would want to...but I'd be lying.

[news2yous]

Edit - Just saw it.  ARGH!

Edited March 4, 2013 by news2yous

[dnexon]

Does anyone know the fields of the Georgetown admits?

 

Edit: Ah - all initial acceptances made at this point!

 

I should clarify: no, not all of our admits have been notified. When I say "wait list" I mean our "wait list" for funding. We do not have a "wait list" for admissions. 

 

Indeed, most of those on our "wait list" for funding have not been notified yet. This should be rectified very shortly. I will make sure that I post here when I have confirmation that everyone has been notified. My apologies for the confusion. 

 

Again, if you have any questions, feel free to email me. 

[GopherGrad]

I've often thought it would be a good idea for Grad Cafe to provide a verified handle to faculty members and admissions ambassadors, then sticky a thread in which (only) the verifieds can post when they start and finish giving out admissions offers. Grad Cafe gets more traffic, the phone lines of America's political science departments get less. The trolls get less food. Etc.

Edited March 4, 2013 by GopherGrad

[news2yous]

I should clarify: no, not all of our admits have been notified. When I say "wait list" I mean our "wait list" for funding. We do not have a "wait list" for admissions. 

 

Indeed, most of those on our "wait list" for funding have not been notified yet. This should be rectified very shortly. I will make sure that I post here when I have confirmation that everyone has been notified. My apologies for the confusion. 

 

Again, if you have any questions, feel free to email me. 

 

Thanks!  I really appreciate the effort you put out to inform us applicants.  Most of us are really lost, even here on GradCafe.

[irfannooruddin]

Hello fellow folks-that-need-a-legitimate-hobby! Long time lurker, first time poster.

 

Can anyone comment on the utility of these official visit weekends? I'm in a position where I could visit a school outside of the official visit weekend and not take any time off, or visit during the weekend and have to torture my schedule a bit. I'd be happy to go if it's going to be a more informative experience, but if I'm just missing going out to a bar with some other prospects, I'd rather not take time off.

 

I urge you to go for the official visit if you can make it work. This is especially (perhaps only) true if you're genuinely trying to decide between multiple plausible options. You're talking about spending 5-7 years of your life in this place and with these people. Getting to know them, and feeling the intangible "fit" from your end, is important. I recall as if it's yesterday my visit to Ann Arbor. The people I met that weekend clicked; it ended up being a very special cohort (16 of 19 finished their PhDs, which is an unheard-of completion rate), and I truly believe the seeds of that success were planted that recruitment weekend.

 

But, if going that weekend is a hassle, don't sweat it if you can't make it. Just try and go another time.

[irfannooruddin]

I just want to reiterate this point. The admissions process is a bit of a "salami factory." Committees work in a low-information environment and have to reject most of their pool. Not only can't you take your status personally, but you should always choose the program you want to attend -- regardless of whether you were admitted in the first round or off of a wait list. 

 

Couldn't have said it better myself. +1

[news2yous]

For those who have still not heard from Chicago:

 

- Admissions decisions are still not done.

- They will be done by the end of this week.  The hope is that they will be done by Wednesday, but that is not guaranteed.

- They were not able to comment on whether or not they are talking about the PhD program or if these decisions were just for CIR/MAPSS or both.

 

Hope that helps!

Edited March 4, 2013 by news2yous

[jabolcnipolz]

Thanks for the information about Georgetown!

 

If anyone else is waiting for news from SAIS (PhD), they said this afternoon that they would have all decisions out by Friday the 8th. Only a week late!

[BFB]

Faculty alarm? Good idea. We eat brains. 

 

That's just Drezner, really.

[news2yous]

To those who have not heard back from UCLA:

 

- If you haven't heard back yet, that means no decision has been made yet.

- The timeframe is mid-March.  You should hear by March 15 - some people might not heard back until March 23.

[Doorkeeper]

So is Harvard done? Anyone brave enough to call someone there about it? I see 3 acceptances and 2 rejections from people who called...with no waitlists.

[CGMJ]

To those who have not heard back from UCLA:

 

- If you haven't heard back yet, that means no decision has been made yet.

- The timeframe is mid-March.  You should hear by March 15 - some people might not heard back until March 23.

 

Thanks! This is what I was told as well. 

 

I would assume the remaining offers will have less funding than the first round (or be wait listed for funding), but if anyone has heard anything different, please do share!

[ThisGuyRiteHere]

Do schools still make admission/funding decisions during spring break? The rest of my schools start spring break next week...and wont be back till 3/18..less than a month before decision day 2013.

[PoliSwede]

The people I met that weekend clicked; it ended up being a very special cohort (16 of 19 finished their PhDs, which is an unheard-of completion rate)

That does sound like an insane completion rate. Any idea what average in the discipline is? Or at your current institution?

[BFB]

That does sound like an insane completion rate. Any idea what average in the discipline is? Or at your current institution?

 

In fact, yes. Bottom of the page.

[GopherGrad]

So is Harvard done? Anyone brave enough to call someone there about it? I see 3 acceptances and 2 rejections from people who called...with no waitlists.

 

As argued before w/r/t Yale, Princeton and Stanford, we have 15-20 regular posters who have been admitted to top programs. Some of our posters will be admitted to Harvard and claim the admission here when the real action starts.

[PoliSwede]

In fact, yes. http://polisci.osu.edu/graduate/placement/completion'>Bottom of the page.

Outstanding. Thanks!

[Doorkeeper]

As argued before w/r/t Yale, Princeton and Stanford, we have 15-20 regular posters who have been admitted to top programs. Some of our posters will be admitted to Harvard and claim the admission here when the real action starts.

 

Can you just be here the next 24-48 hours as I continually freak the fuck out about my life? haha.

 

Edit- I'll probably end up being the sacrificial lamb to find out what's going on.

 

Edit 2- As I write another acceptance got posted. Awesome.

Edited March 4, 2013 by Doorkeeper

[GopherGrad]

Can you just be here the next 24-48 hours as I continually freak the fuck out about my life? haha.

 

Anyone can be a Zen model for others; one just needs to find a group of individuals tweaked-out enough that one appears at peace.

 

Stop looking at the results posting. Wait until you see a claim here from an established handle, learn about the acceptance and then we can work backwards to see if we're close to done. If it's like most other schools, it will go dark relatively suddenly and there will be no question.