Anyone else losing their damn mind?

[ohgoodness]

my professor sent me this after the princeton rejection: http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1saNa8/www.chaosmatrix.org/library/humor/reject.html

[amlobo]

What e-mail subject would they put for an acceptance?

 

"Congratulations" or "Offer" seem to be common inclusions...

[SLPjmar]

"Congratulations" or "Offer" seem to be common inclusions...

 

Just trying to prepare myself! Now I know    Although I am sorry you received that particular e-mail. 

[amlobo]

Just trying to prepare myself! Now I know    Although I am sorry you received that particular e-mail. 

 

No worries.  I was expecting it... sadly... lol.

[PhDreams]

 Thankfully, my acceptance from UNC came a few hours before my rejection from Berkeley.  I was (and still am) in such a state of euphoria, I was able to completely shrug it off. It's an IMMENSE relief to have gotten in somewhere!

 

CONGRATTTTTSSSSSSSSSSSS! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!

[TeaGirl]

If the email subject says "admissions decision," the decision is a rejection.  Lol.  Can't they just put "Rejected!", rip the bandaid right off...

 

Actually, I just today received an email from one of my schools with the subject saying "admission decision." I was accepted

You never know!

[amlobo]

I reached my quota of positive votes, lol.  Glad to know "admission decision" is not the kiss of death!  

[OhMySocks]

If the email subject says "admissions decision," the decision is a rejection.  Lol.  Can't they just put "Rejected!", rip the bandaid right off...

The only acceptance I've had so far, the subject line was "[school name] Application Status Update" and it was one of those generic pointer to the application website emails which had the actual acceptance. However, when I checked my email, I had that one and another one from the school which had arrived at the same time which read "[school name] graduate housing options" and my email setup shows me the first line of emails without opening them and it read "Congratulations on your acceptance to [school name]!" so the surprise was ruined.

[CP3]

I've spent 90% of my time over the last several months slaving away at the application process, so it's virtually impossible NOT to tell people

 

 

On a side note, I just received another email from a school that rejected my app last week. The department rejected me last week, the University sent me a "friendly" reminder that I was rejected by the department. Very unnecessary.

[Wemayet]

The department rejected me last week, the University sent me a "friendly" reminder that I was rejected by the department. Very unnecessary.

 

Damn, that's cold.  What next, a letter and a phone call?!?

 

Have an imaginary beer, my treat.

[pears]

On a side note, I just received another email from a school that rejected my app last week. The department rejected me last week, the University sent me a "friendly" reminder that I was rejected by the department. Very unnecessary.

 

woof. what the heck! i wonder what it is that prompts programs/schools to do that kind of thing? i'm envisioning some sort of horrible mishap in the past of somebody getting the wrong email, misreading an email, or something along those lines that would make them want to be very clear about their decision.. but it still sounds pretty unpleasant. i've heard a lot of horror stories about admissions email snafus, but i've never heard one that sounded like it was justified or handled well. 

[CP3]

Damn, that's cold.  What next, a letter and a phone call?!?

 

Have an imaginary beer, my treat.

Ha!! I should call them and ask if I've been accepted or not, just to irritate them!

 

I will have a REAL beer later, thanks:)

[emg28]

I've spent 90% of my time over the last several months slaving away at the application process, so it's virtually impossible NOT to tell people

 

 

On a side note, I just received another email from a school that rejected my app last week. The department rejected me last week, the University sent me a "friendly" reminder that I was rejected by the department. Very unnecessary.

 

Oh man..that's how I felt when I received my rejection letter via mail yesterday and then today an email notifying me that my application decision was available online. THANK YOU for rubbing it in UCLA.  

 

Beers for everyone! 

[alf10087]

Well, I was just notified from the Fellowship I was participating in. Out of over 250 candidates I was in the final 7, of which 3 were selected and 4 of us were left out. Now I'm competing for merit-based scholarships, where based on principle I should be in good shape (I guess).

 

It is a bittersweet feeling. Even though I didn't get into the podium, I feel a little comfort in the fact that I'm a competitive candidate. Just wanted to share that thought with you guys.

[SLPjmar]

I honestly feel so terrible for my boyfriend. I am a moody, anxious mess while waiting to hear back. Definitely no fun to be around. 

[GuitarSlayer]

Now Northwestern rejections are starting to come out, and eeeep. Ohio State also began acceptances/rejections, and radio silence.  Hurry up so I can move on with my life! XD

[CP3]

Oh man..that's how I felt when I received my rejection letter via mail yesterday and then today an email notifying me that my application decision was available online. THANK YOU for rubbing it in UCLA.  

 

Beers for everyone! 

Yeah, I'm sure I will receive a letter in the mail, which would make 3 rejections from one school. 

CONGRATS on all of your acceptances thus far!

[CP3]

I honestly feel so terrible for my boyfriend. I am a moody, anxious mess while waiting to hear back. Definitely no fun to be around. 

I can't even begin to express how similar I feel. My poor wife is getting depressed because of me, I feel terrible. I think I'm going to take her out to dinner tomorrow and NOT talk about my applications!!!

[aec09g]

aec, are you from HI originally? If not, I would take a rejection from UH with a grain of salt. There are some very interesting upper-level policies that make it tricky for non-residents/former locals to get in. 

 

Either way, I totally feel your pain! The first notification being a rejection does absolutely nothing for one's confidence!

 

Nope, I'd be out of state. I applied because one of my main recommendation letters (thesis adviser) went out of his way to talk to an instructor there about me, via email. And he was very adamant about me applying. It really is an amazing program. I understand why I wasn't accepted. Funding has got to be incredibly limited anyways. 

[gradorbust]

So I had my two interviews with one program about two weeks ago, they told me I wont hear anything until start of feburary.  Now I am stuck in this vortex of fear of contacting them about research stuff because I might come off as stupid and that might cause them to change their minds.

 

 

Also rejections dont mean much of anything in the scheme of things, especially for the non hard sciences.  In those situations it is more about fit.  You could get rejected from your safety and accepted by your number 1.(At least that is what I am preying for anyway, its the only thing that lets me sleep at night)

[sansao]

Yeah, I'm sure I will receive a letter in the mail, which would make 3 rejections from one school.  CONGRATS on all of your acceptances thus far!

Last year, I got an email from the department, the graduate college, a letter from each, and a phone call with a FIVE-MINUTE voicemail from the POI outlining the reasons for my rejection (asking me at the end to please call back and discuss further). At first, I was completely filled with hate (), but I did call, and they gave me some advice about presentation that may have helped with my much more positive experience this year. I didn't change much informational content, but I did reduce verbosity. I cut my statement from 1.5 pages to less than one, and poof: 3 interviews, a recruitment event, and two other schools with funding-contingent endorsements by my POIs (out of 7, I've heard back from 5, all positive, but nothing formal).

[OhMySocks]

I honestly feel so terrible for my boyfriend. I am a moody, anxious mess while waiting to hear back. Definitely no fun to be around. 

 

My boyfriend and I are both going through Ph.D. applications at the same time. While its nice that we can understand the process and relate to eachother, we are both incredibly stressed out and its not super fun. It doesn't help that admissions results will largely determine the future of our relationship, since depending on admission results we could end up living together in the same city, or we could end up 3,000 miles apart. 

[Catherine_Kiev]

Hey guys

Just wanted to talk to someone who understands the hardships of this admission process. I'm an international applicant, so it's even more difficult for me to get accepted to a program with funding. 

Only my mom and a close friend know that I'm applying this year. And both of them are sure that I will make it. However, I've been reading this forum for around 3 years now, and I know that I might get lucky or just as well might be left out in the cold. The deadlines for my programs are Feb 1st and 15th, so I know that I have at least one month of waiting ahead of me, and it's killing me already. I'm mentally preparing myself for another round of applications next year, but still trying to think positive (who knows, maybe it works when you're trying to imagine good things instead of bad? )

My mood changes drastically throughout the day: one minute I'm all self-confident, thinking that my chances are rather high, and the next I'm sure that nothing good will come out of this applications. I guess it's a common feature here

And yeah, congrats to everyone who's already been accepted!! 

[RubyBright]

I honestly feel so terrible for my boyfriend. I am a moody, anxious mess while waiting to hear back. Definitely no fun to be around. 

 

Grad school applications. Misery Fun for the whole family!

Edited February 1, 2013 by RubyBright

[hiroshiman]

aec09g -

 

If you manage to get into JET, it's a pretty fantastic back-up option. I spent 4 years over in Japan, in-between undergrad and masters, (the first 2 years on JET) and had the time of my life.