Help me decipher this email... am I reading too much into it???

[NatalieK]

Help me decipher this email... am I reading too much into it???

 

Greetings, I applied to the Public Relations and Technical Communication Graduate Program (Ph.D) at Colorado State University in January. I was already beginning to get anxious as I had not heard anything about my application status in weeks. Here are a couple of email correspondences I would love an opinion on (am I reading too much into these?)

1. First, back at the beginning of Feb. they sent me an email letting me know they had only received 2 out of my 3 reference letters. I immediately tracked down the third (missing) letter and had my reference resend it. I got another email thanking me for taking care of the issue so promptly and that my application was now final and ready for review…. (then, nothing for weeks!)

• My questions…
• Is it a good sign they even bothered to let me know one of my reference letters was missing?
• Or, were they simply doting the “I” and “T”s of the applications?

1. I just go this email on 2/26/13 - “I apologize for the delay in getting information to you about the status of your application for our PhD program. We are still making admission decisions, so there's no definitive news yet.”

• My questions…
• Why has it taken so long to only get this email?
• Can I take this email at face value, they actually mean there have been no ‘definitive’ decisions yet?
• Or, does this mean I am in the second choice (wait-listed) category and they are waiting on acceptance decisions from other applicants?

 

I am so nervous and would appreciate any insight into what this communication might mean… thanks!

[zecone13]

I don't think any of it means anything. The first one sounds like they just want to make sure people don't get tossed out because they forgot a letter or something, so they probably check with everyone to get all components of the application before even beginning to review. The second email sounds like a generic email to the whole applicant body, stating that they are taking longer than expected. I don't think either email means anything significant about your application in particular.

[fuzzylogician]

I wouldn't read too much into either email. The first one sounds like a routine email checking that all your documents are in order and was probably sent before anyone actually reviewed your file; the second one is telling you the process is still ongoing and there is no decision in your case -- perhaps there is an unofficial waitlist but it's also possible that only the first round of acceptances (to "definitely accept" applicants) went out and they're waiting with the second round of decisions (for the "maybe" pile).

[Andean Pat]

It does not mean anything, sorry. I got a personal e-mail from a POI asking me for the hard copy of my transcripts (they were not requested before) and did not get in there. Just go to gym, sleep a lot, and wait... good news are just around the corner!