UNC Biostats PhD Funding concern

[nj2704]

Hi,

 

I am an international applicant and just this Monday received a letter of acceptance to UNC's Biostatistics PhD (starting Fall 2013).

The letter stated that if offered funding I should be hearing from the program. 

My concern is that I saw someone's post on the results page that people have heard from UNC with a 22K funding offer. Does it come with the letter of acceptance or is it sent out later?

Should I be worried? Is there something I need to do from my end to make it happen?

 

Any help appreciated!

[Biostat_Assistant_Prof]

Has anyone else also received recent notification from UNC? I still haven't heard a thing since I applied back in December... It's nice knowing they are still sending out acceptances which gives me the smallest bit of hope... but I have another offer I'm ready to accept if officially rejected from UNC, but if by some miracle I'm accepted by UNC, I'd take their offer... Sorry, to kind of high jack your thread with another question, but does anyone know why UNC has waited so long to notify someone like me (I'm a domestic applicant too)?

[Shostakovich]

I'm also domestic. Acceptance letter was dated 12/20, and funding letter was via email on 3/7. I talked to people at the visit day event (mostly or all domestic applicants, maybe around 30 people) and sounded like UNC sent out a few waves of acceptances leading up to the event. According to one of the faculty that explained funding, applicants invited to the visit event have priority for funding. Of course a decent number of them (guessing maybe half or so of the 30 that attended) were planning on almost certainly declining the offer, in which case more funding would open up for other students. I also declined the offer around the same time I received the funding letter.

 

Noco, my guess is that the people who haven't heard back yet may be on an unofficial waitlist (or undecided list) and the department is waiting to hear from the priority guys before making additional offers (which may be funded or unfunded), so that they can control the program size/funding distribution somewhat. Hopefully they get back to you by 4/15 with a good news

 

Pretty sure international admissions didn't follow the same agenda and may even be working off different funding sources, but I do know that multiple 22K offers have been sent out internationally as well. As for what OP could do on his/her own end to receive funding, you could email some professors who run big research programs (the ones that employ or has employed many RAs in the past) and ask if working for them is a possibility, but other than that there probably isn't too much to do. Good luck!

Edited March 16, 2013 by Shostakovich

[Biostat_Assistant_Prof]

Thanks Shostakovich, I actually emailed them last Friday, but turns out this last week was their spring break which may be why I never received a response... I'd really like to know what the deal is, and if I am on a wait list of sorts, where I'm at on the list and when I should expect to hear, so I'll probably send another email on Monday... I just want to make my decision ASAP so I have the maximum amount of time to plan a move, find a roommate, get finances figured out given whatever funding I receive, etc.

[nj2704]

Thank you Shostakovich for your reply! I had sent an email to the person in charge of fielding questions on funding in the department and this was her response -

 

 We are currently looking for funding opportunities for admitted students.  The process is that we will make your CV available to the faculty and they can review to see if your skills match with their research.  If there is a match then a funding offer could be forthcoming.  As much as I would like to say that the process is a speedy one, I can’t but I can say that we will every effort to try to locate funding.  There is no guarantee of funding but we have been fairly successful in the past and hope to maintain that success.

 

I am not sure if this should give me hope or not. Anyway, fingers crossed!

[statsgirl8]

 

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Noco7, I am still waiting to hear from the UNC Biostatistics PhD program as well. It seems rather odd that we have not been notified as to whether or not we are on the waitlist.

[redevil]

Thank you Shostakovich for your reply! I had sent an email to the person in charge of fielding questions on funding in the department and this was her response -

 

 We are currently looking for funding opportunities for admitted students.  The process is that we will make your CV available to the faculty and they can review to see if your skills match with their research.  If there is a match then a funding offer could be forthcoming.  As much as I would like to say that the process is a speedy one, I can’t but I can say that we will every effort to try to locate funding.  There is no guarantee of funding but we have been fairly successful in the past and hope to maintain that success.

 

I am not sure if this should give me hope or not. Anyway, fingers crossed!

nj2704, can you tell me who did you send the email to? thanks!

[nj2704]

Hi Redevil, sorry for replying so late! I had sent an email to Melissa Hobgood (mhobgood@bios.unc.edu). Still no word on funding though

[redevil]

Hi Redevil, sorry for replying so late! I had sent an email to Melissa Hobgood (mhobgood@bios.unc.edu). Still no word on funding though

Thank you for the reply. Recently, I also got acceptted into UNC biostatistics phd program. no words on funding too.