Linguistics 2013

[MissTrace]

There are 3 rejections on 14 March. It seems that some admitted students have accepted their offers.

I just saw one for linguistics. Super nervous now.

Hope you get into your dream program Afraymi. And best of luck for everyone waiting out there! I will keep all of my fingers and toes crossed.

[Phonolog]

Well, if anyone was on waiting lsit for UC Santa Cruz - go you! My offer was just rescinded. Oh yes, it can happen. I have never been more depressed, ripped open, or as completely internally destroyed in my life.

[MissTrace]

Well, if anyone was on waiting lsit for UC Santa Cruz - go you! My offer was just rescinded. Oh yes, it can happen. I have never been more depressed, ripped open, or as completely internally destroyed in my life.

How can this shit happen? Have u accepted the offer from UCSC and declined other offers? I would sue them if this is the situation! Definitely don't feel bad if you can still go elsewhere. It sucks!

[Omnium]

Well, if anyone was on waiting lsit for UC Santa Cruz - go you! My offer was just rescinded. Oh yes, it can happen. I have never been more depressed, ripped open, or as completely internally destroyed in my life.

 

This is outrageous. I'm very surprised that such thing can happen. Sorry.

[afraymi]

This is outrageous. I'm very surprised that such thing can happen. Sorry.

You should email the graduate director and discuss the situation. Even if you don't want to go there you should try to understand and resolve the issue because it shouldn't remain an unresolved concern for you.

 

 

 

I just saw one for linguistics. Super nervous now.

Hope you get into your dream program Afraymi. And best of luck for everyone waiting out there! I will keep all of my fingers and toes crossed.

You are right MissTrace. It was just one rejection the others where 14 Feb not 14 March, my mistake. I think (with probability 90%) i'm going to free a slot at UMass MissTrace in the next week. I'm inclined to Cornell and if i come out of waiting list at UWashington i'll go for that.

[Omnium]

I believe that this:

 

You should email the graduate director and discuss the situation. Even if you don't want to go there you should try to understand and resolve the issue because it shouldn't remain an unresolved concern for you.

 

is @phonolog.

[Phonolog]

How can this shit happen? Have u accepted the offer from UCSC and declined other offers? I would sue them if this is the situation! Definitely don't feel bad if you can still go elsewhere. It sucks!

I honestly don't understand how it could. I was called, notified I was admitted. Put on the department mailing list.

Received emails from the director "As you know, we have recommended you for admission to the graduate program. congratulations and welcome to UCSC" (Feb 5th)

emails from POI "we are so happy that we are able to admit you!". (Feb 7th)

More emails from manager "yes, your offer comes with full funding, the amount we aren't exactly sure of yet. But since we only reccomend students who we can fund, yes it is fully funded.". (Feb 9th)

Then there was the open house, for the accepted students. (Mar 7-10)

I couldn't go (health reasons), so I wrote "will this have any effect upon my offer?".

Program director: "No, this will not accept your admission status if you can't come, we understand".(Mar 7th)

So, on Monday, I write to ask about what I had missed, and no response .... I finally called today. The manager sounded very uncomfortable, wouldn't answer any questions. I asked to be put through, by telephone, to the director. She couldn't. Receive from director, about an hour later, the generic form rejection sent out to other UCSC applicants at the beginning of Feb. (I had been "accepted" the 5th of Feb.) When I asked for clarification I was told "the recommendations will be finalized next week and sent to the graduate division".

Note the discrepencies in bold - it wasn't rescinded by the graduate department, who didn't have the recommendations, but recalled by the department. And it is quite unambiguous that I was accepted right - I mean, nothing of the previous messages hints at anything like being "short-listed" or "final round".

 

I can't wrap my head around it - I had two interviews with them, the second because I have some dark spots on my record; I have a tricky medical condition. In the interview, I made it known it is now well managed. But, I declined the visit because it required me to do 72 hours of travel each direction - something I can't do with my health condition. I don't know if this is the reason - they think I'll have issues like that? Or they really just play fast and loose with words like "admitted" "recommended" "guaranteed funding" "admission not contingent upon attending the Open House". I'm baffled - depressed and disgusted.

 

I hadn't refused anywhere I didn't want to go - I didn't get adequate funding at either of my other admits (<$10,000/year). So, they were impossible for me anyway. My last hope is that someone declines UMich ... there's 6 admits, 3 on the waiting list. I'm one of those three. But look at my luck! The only damage I did was accept to do some international field work in June, and then was planning to head straight to California. So, I gave a notification of resignation already to my job. That's going to need some tidying up ... although I don't know if it will work.

 

But don't worry ANYBODY - I really think this could honestly ONLY happen to me. I don't know why, but don't start worrying about it.

[Colombo]

I am really sorry, Phonolog! I am definitely keeping my fingers crossed that something will work out for you!

[mq1]

I honestly don't understand how it could. I was called, notified I was admitted. Put on the department mailing list.

Received emails from the director "As you know, we have recommended you for admission to the graduate program. congratulations and welcome to UCSC" (Feb 5th)

emails from POI "we are so happy that we are able to admit you!". (Feb 7th)

More emails from manager "yes, your offer comes with full funding, the amount we aren't exactly sure of yet. But since we only reccomend students who we can fund, yes it is fully funded.". (Feb 9th)

Then there was the open house, for the accepted students. (Mar 7-10)

I couldn't go (health reasons), so I wrote "will this have any effect upon my offer?".

Program director: "No, this will not accept your admission status if you can't come, we understand".(Mar 7th)

So, on Monday, I write to ask about what I had missed, and no response .... I finally called today. The manager sounded very uncomfortable, wouldn't answer any questions. I asked to be put through, by telephone, to the director. She couldn't. Receive from director, about an hour later, the generic form rejection sent out to other UCSC applicants at the beginning of Feb. (I had been "accepted" the 5th of Feb.) When I asked for clarification I was told "the recommendations will be finalized next week and sent to the graduate division".

Note the discrepencies in bold - it wasn't rescinded by the graduate department, who didn't have the recommendations, but recalled by the department. And it is quite unambiguous that I was accepted right - I mean, nothing of the previous messages hints at anything like being "short-listed" or "final round".

 

I can't wrap my head around it - I had two interviews with them, the second because I have some dark spots on my record; I have a tricky medical condition. In the interview, I made it known it is now well managed. But, I declined the visit because it required me to do 72 hours of travel each direction - something I can't do with my health condition. I don't know if this is the reason - they think I'll have issues like that? Or they really just play fast and loose with words like "admitted" "recommended" "guaranteed funding" "admission not contingent upon attending the Open House". I'm baffled - depressed and disgusted.

 

I hadn't refused anywhere I didn't want to go - I didn't get adequate funding at either of my other admits (<$10,000/year). So, they were impossible for me anyway. My last hope is that someone declines UMich ... there's 6 admits, 3 on the waiting list. I'm one of those three. But look at my luck! The only damage I did was accept to do some international field work in June, and then was planning to head straight to California. So, I gave a notification of resignation already to my job. That's going to need some tidying up ... although I don't know if it will work.

 

But don't worry ANYBODY - I really think this could honestly ONLY happen to me. I don't know why, but don't start worrying about it.

I disrespect those pieces of trash in this case.

[mq1]

I just got my fourth flat-out rejection from UC Boulder

[goldheartmountaintop]

Blargh, I'm so sorry about this Phonolog. That's really terrible! Do you think you will still try to follow up/get some sort of reason? I feel like you deserve one, or at least an apology or some acknowledgement from the dept that they basically messed up in a huge way. I hope some good news come through for you soon.

 

 

Also, on another topic, to the posters who wanted to know about Georgetown Socio, my friend did end up accepting their offer (sorry this is so late).

[afraymi]

Phonolog, At least they should put you on top of the waiting list. You should seriously discuss this with them.

[Phonolog]

Yes, I do believe they owe me some sort of explanation, but I can see very clearly that my e-mails are being BCC`d and CC`d to administration - they know they messed up and are probably being advised to not say too much - sticking to last minute funding changes is all that they can say. Because I was told repeatedly I was admitted.

As far as their "waiting list" ... eesh, I don't think I'd want to go there now. What's truly upsetting is all my POI's who I held in such great esteem - I've lost so much respect from the blatant lack of respect they had shown me. Being a pessimist, I suppose I imagined this scenario. But I didn't think it would happen.

Fingers crossed for Mich.

[afraymi]

Yes, I do believe they owe me some sort of explanation, but I can see very clearly that my e-mails are being BCC`d and CC`d to administration - they know they messed up and are probably being advised to not say too much - sticking to last minute funding changes is all that they can say. Because I was told repeatedly I was admitted.

As far as their "waiting list" ... eesh, I don't think I'd want to go there now. What's truly upsetting is all my POI's who I held in such great esteem - I've lost so much respect from the blatant lack of respect they had shown me. Being a pessimist, I suppose I imagined this scenario. But I didn't think it would happen.

Fingers crossed for Mich.

I think you should not give up on your admission and you shouldn't loose your hope. I think there should be at list one admitted student who is not attending and they'll put you in at the end. In my opinion in any case you shouldn't tell them about your other options even if you admitted into UMich. I wish you the best.

[Phonolog]

But who would want to spend 5 years around people who direspected you and acted so irresponsibly and unethically towards you? I'm sour on it all right now

[fuzzylogician]

But who would want to spend 5 years around people who direspected you and acted so irresponsibly and unethically towards you? I'm sour on it all right now

 

Phonolog, this all sounds terrible, but I don't understand what happened exactly. The only way this makes any sense to me is if you're an international student. They've been having problems with funding for international students going at least as far back as when I applied (PM me if you want the details). It sounds like something like that has happened again, but they are handling it very poorly. The only other reason I can think of something like this happening is if the department accepted you but the graduate school at UCSC decided you don't meet the general university requirements. I think it's important to point out that this doesn't necessarily need to reflect badly on your POIs because they are probably powerless in the situation, but it definitely sounds like they are not being clear about what is going on. Even if you have already decided not to attend UCSC, for your own future peace of mind I would strongly encourage you to follow this through and find out what went wrong. The best way to get to the truth is to talk to someone on the phone - probably either Sandy Chung (the graduate program director) or Jaye Padgett (the department chair). I would encourage you not to take no for an answer. Regardless of how this plays out, in the future you'll feel better about knowing you didn't just let them rescind your offer without asking all the difficult questions.

 

Finally, I wish you luck with your last pending school!!  Such bad luck must be offset by a good amount of good luck, too.

[Phonolog]

Phonolog, this all sounds terrible, but I don't understand what happened exactly. The only way this makes any sense to me is if you're an international student. They've been having problems with funding for international students going at least as far back as when I applied (PM me if you want the details). It sounds like something like that has happened again, but they are handling it very poorly. The only other reason I can think of something like this happening is if the department accepted you but the graduate school at UCSC decided you don't meet the general university requirements. I think it's important to point out that this doesn't necessarily need to reflect badly on your POIs because they are probably powerless in the situation, but it definitely sounds like they are not being clear about what is going on. Even if you have already decided not to attend UCSC, for your own future peace of mind I would strongly encourage you to follow this through and find out what went wrong. The best way to get to the truth is to talk to someone on the phone - probably either Sandy Chung (the graduate program director) or Jaye Padgett (the department chair). I would encourage you not to take no for an answer. Regardless of how this plays out, in the future you'll feel better about knowing you didn't just let them rescind your offer without asking all the difficult questions.

 

Finally, I wish you luck with your last pending school!!  Such bad luck must be offset by a good amount of good luck, too.

I was hoping you might chime in on this. I live in Canada but I am a US Citizen, so I don't believe this would be a significant problem. Sandy Chung was the one who eventually broke the news, but now remains particularly evasive - some people received notifications of the sort "we were not able to obtain the fellowship we wanted for you", mine simply said "funding has been volatile this year".

The main point of contention being, I received an email "you have been recommended" but much later "recommendations have not yet been finalized". First: "happy we could admit you", then "we know now that we do not have enough funds to offer financial support to everyone who we had planned to recommend for admission." The closest I could get to an apology;

"Yes, the wording of [program manager's name] original email was incorrect.  It is not the case that recommendations were made to the Graduate Division for admission and then yours was rescinded.  In fact, the Department has not yet recommended to the Graduate Division that anyone be admitted, because we are still working on the recommended financial packages.

     I am really very sorry that this has happened and that it has been a difficult experience for you.  In the future the Department will do everything it can to make the situation clear from the outset, so that misunderstandings do not arise.

     Once again, I really feel bad about this --

 

None of it makes sense - "clear from the outset"? But "we now know" - from the outset they had given me incorrect information, or during the process funding became tight and they then knew that they couldn't admit all of us, but didn't notify us? What I don't see is "rejection" entries in the results page for Santa Cruz; so, I have no idea why I get to be the special one.

 

Simply put, for me, it is MUCH worse than a rejection. I was fully planning on accepting this offer as soon as the official paperwork was done - restructured my master's degree so that I didn't have to pay the extra semester of tuition and not receive the MA (Santa Cruz was fine with that), didnt renew my lease or health insurance ... I generally believe I was guaranteed to move on to big and better things. It's real ... well ... it's a public forum, I'll refrain from saying too much.

 

So, just a little reminder - if you don't want to go to Michigan, withdraw your app !

[MissTrace]

If I have any remaining luck with my other schools, let it go to you. I genuinely hope that you get into Michigan!

Although I agree with fuzzylogician that you should sort things out with UCSC, I suggest you do it carefully and never let them think that you are desperate because of the recalled offer. Show them that you are a mature and respectful scholar and make them feel (without telling them explicitly) that it is their lack of luck in not being able to admit you. The academia is so small, a few years later you will be dealing with these people again to get a position. If there's no hope getting into this department now, tell them you respect their decision, plus that you will be happy to work with them even if you study elsewhere. This is basically how I deal with my wait-list notification.

My impression with linguistics professors is that they are genially helpful and kind-hearted people. They might have some hard-to-mention reasons (especially if departmental politics is involved) in your case. So if they really can't offer you a good justification. Let them go.

Lastly, give them another chance and don't sue them this time :-)

Edited March 16, 2013 by MissTrace

[Phonolog]

If I have any remaining luck with my other schools, let it go to you. I genuinely hope that you get into Michigan!

Although I agree with fuzzylogician that you should sort things out with UCSC, I suggest you do it carefully and never let them think that you are desperate because of the recalled offer. Show them that you are a mature and respectful scholar and make them feel (without telling them explicitly) that it is their lack of luck in not being able to admit you. The academia is so small, a few years later you will be dealing with these people again to get a position. If there's no hope getting into this department now, tell them you respect their decision, plus that you will be happy to work with them even if you study elsewhere. This is basically how I deal with my wait-list notification.

My impression with linguistics professors is that they are genially helpful and kind-hearted people. They might have some hard-to-mention reasons (especially departmental politics) in your case. So if they really can't offer you a good justification. Let them go.

Lastly, give them another chance and don't sue them this time :-)

Yes, suing is out of the question. But, I am not going to completely "respectable" route either - because, truly, this has caused SEVERE problems in my life (lapse of health insurance, losing my apartment, early loan repayment I wasn't counting on, not finishing my master's) etc ... They definately all feel bad, on a personal level, which I am not trying to exploit. I do, however, believe that due to the level of damage caused, that i deserve full transparency. This is non-procedural ... not a rejection, not a wait-list; but something truly out of the norm where I was told repeatedly that it was all-go, then ripped with the rug under me. Not ever getting off a wait list is totally normal - but this is unnacceptable. I am eligible for all Santa Cruz graduate fellowships (I checked with the graduate division) - so this is, at best, an extremely irresponsible mistake on behalf of the department (assuming there was not a more sinister reason, which I'll not jump to conclusions on). In this case, I have made it very clear that:

1. I am not contesting this decision

2. I am not seeking damages

However, I do expect full transparency as to what happened, and not "I am very sorry about what happened" but rather "This is what happened, and I am sorry about it".

 

.

[AspiringLinguist]

Phono,

 

Very sorry to hear about that! Unbelievable. :\

 

I hope everything works out for you in the end.

[fuzzylogician]

I was hoping you might chime in on this. I live in Canada but I am a US Citizen, so I don't believe this would be a significant problem. Sandy Chung was the one who eventually broke the news, but now remains particularly evasive - some people received notifications of the sort "we were not able to obtain the fellowship we wanted for you", mine simply said "funding has been volatile this year".

 

PM sent.

 

If anyone knows of other applicants who went through a similar accepted-then-declined story with Santa Cruz, I'd be very interested in hearing about the details.

[mq1]

Has Michigan State University announced results? Has any one got an acceptance?

[MissTrace]

It seems that this board has been relatively quiet recently. Maybe everyone's busy with decisions. I have a question that bothers me for a while and would like to ask here. Hopefully someone can help me figure out the dilemma.

I've contacted some programs that put me on the waiting list and some of them told me that I had pretty good chances. However, they also told me that their decision could come after April 15. Having read too many stories about false good news, I am very cautious about whether or not I should wait after April 15 without accepting any offer at hand. Someone suggested to me that I could actually commit to an offer before April 15 and withdraw when I receive a better offer. I know that this can free most of the worries from me but I'm not sure if it is an advisable thing to do. Neither the person who offered the suggestion nor I is familiar with the U.S. system, so if this is something unethical, please pardon me.

[ladyling]

MissTrace, I think the better way to handle the situation would be to tell your other program (I assume this is Stony Brook) that you've been informed some of your decisions may come after April 15th, and ask for an extension on their decision deadline. They're doubtless aware that these situations arise, and will appreciate honesty over the potential loss of funding that might result should you accept-and-withdraw.

[Phonolog]

I didn't want to freak everyone out. I have good contacts with people on both ling adcoms and non-ling adcoms. This NEVER happens. This is a very particular situation where the offer is rescinded.

As far as April 15th, you might have noticed that some of your firm offers might be subtling pushing you towards a decision. They like to know sooner, rather than later. However, around April 8th or 10th, if your waiting lists haven't cleared yet, and you don't know, I have heard it is acceptable to ask a school who gave you a firm acceptance for a one or two day extension on your decision. Know, however, that you're getting involved in some sort of chain reaction. In an unprobable, but not impossible situation, We'll call you Trace. And we'll call some guy Mike. Mike was accepted to NYU, and waitlisted for Stony Brook. He wants to see about Stony Brook, but since Trace hasn't accepted it yet, she asks for an extension. Mike asks NYU for an extension. The 48 hours are up, no movement. It accomplished nothing, except make the adcom have headaches, and sit you in suspense for another two days. Alternatively, some people have managed to gracefully decline an offer they accepted after the 15th, when something came up. You'll have to do more research on the legality/acceptability/ethics of that decision, but I've seen it done.

 

HOWEVER! Do not accept an offer you're not sure about early to avoid my situation - it is so unlikely that my contacts who have sat on adcoms at different schools for 40+ years have NEVER heard of it. Make the best decision you can, and do not jump the gun because you're scared of losing it. You can lose nothing before 5PM, April 15th, Eastern Standard Time.