Welcome to the 2013-2014 Cycle

[Targy]

Claiming the Penn State!

[TakeMyCoffeeBlack]

Claiming the Penn State!

 

You are just dancing across the acceptance table, huh? Congratulations!

[Poli92]

Claiming the Penn State!

 

You are on quite the roll thus far! I hope your luck continues!! Congrats!! 

[BigTenPoliSci]

 

As one who (loftily) aspires to someday teach at a well-regarded R1, shooting for a highly ranked program makes good career sense; having already determined that it's a pretty good fit makes it all the better. 

Getting a job at a well-regraded R1 is at least possible coming out of a top 10. It is very unlikely for those of us in the 11-25 range, but it does happen. If your PhD is from anything ranked lower it's just not too realistic.

[ajaxp91]

Congrats to the WUSTL admits and to the Penn State admit!!!!

 

I just checked. NYU acceptances were out last year today, at 4 pm Eastern, if my calculations are right?

 

Your calculations were correct. However, given that it is after 6PM EST, it looks as if the response I received from the DGS was valid.

 

It is further confirmation that next week will host a flurry of responses. 

[RWBG]

I'd definitely say that those two rankings are the most talked about. However, I think there is some value to checking out older rankings with vastly different methodologies:

1) McCormick & Rice (2001) - Graduate Training and Research Productivity in the 1990s: A Look at Who Publishes

2) Hix (2004) - A Global Ranking of Political Science Departments

3) Schmidt & Chingos (2007) - Ranking Doctoral Programs by Placement: A New Method

4) Oprisko (2013) - Honor, Prestige, and the Academy: A Portrait of Political Science Tenured and Tenure-Track Faculty in Ph.D.-Granting Institutions

 

As for the fit vs. rank discussion...in my opinion they're both incredibly important. Personally, I placed a great deal of emphasis on fit when choosing where to apply to lessen the possibility of the fit vs. rank dilemmas later on down the road. If I'm fortunate enough to have choices, I'll be able to focus upon rank and financial aid, resting assured that every choice is a swell fit.

 

As one who (loftily) aspires to someday teach at a well-regarded R1, shooting for a highly ranked program makes good career sense; having already determined that it's a pretty good fit makes it all the better. 

 

And making a decision based on fit entails more than one professor. That's my two cents.

The only one of these I wouldn't put too much stock in is the Hix ranking, which tends to be actively misleading. The rest all say something, though given the age of some of the data it can sometimes be a challenge to discern what exactly that is.

[TheGnome]

Claiming the Penn State!

 

Profit! for you

[wokeem]

Which programs do you think will notify next week? I really wish there was a national "release results" day, the wait is agonizing.

 

Earlier in this thread someone said they were 95% sure that UCLA would be announcing some decisions come Monday. Looking over the last couple years this seems pretty likely. Also, I was thinking that Berkeley, Michigan-Ann Arbor, and Chicago should all be coming soon. I think they all released some decisions starting this time last year, and continued to do so going into the next week. Please note that I have absolutely zero inside information, this is just speculation, but it seems likely to me at least. 

 

But yeah, I'm in some degree of agony as well. While I really want them to start making decisions, I dread the time when I see everyone else getting decisions and I conspicuously (w/c?) don't hear anything. Which is inevitably going to happen for a lot of the places I'm applying to, but I hope it's not too many. 

Edited February 1, 2014 by wokeem

[IRToni]

UCSD should be releasing soon as well, according to someone on here... NYU also said by next week!

[timeless90]

the thing is UCSD seems to have released rejections before acceptances...notification nonetheless tho! 

[sylark]

Well, it's almost midnight in Boulder.

 

So, am I the only one that hasn't recieved notification yet?

 

(I am wondering if this has anything to do with the controversy revolving around the philosophy department announced earlier today given the overlap of the two fields, hence "political philosophy.")

[TheGnome]

And a UCSD rejection.. Is it Trololololololol? If so, I wonder why UCSD is the troll favorite of the year..

 

Edited February 1, 2014 by TheGnome

[IRToni]

the thing is UCSD seems to have released rejections before acceptances...notification nonetheless tho! 

 

Last year, it released rejections before, the year before, admissions, so no discernible pattern, I think... Maybe they already released rejections, but none of us gradcae folk got any, bc we're all so awesome that we are admitted?

[IRToni]

And a UCSD rejection.. Is it Trololololololol? If so, I wonder why UCSD is the troll favorite of the year..

 

 

Anyone's guess? It seems quite elaborate for a troll, considering the info. On the other hand, if the GPA/GRE/research experience is right, I can't imagine UCSD saying it was just average (not to mention, where would that person have gotten this info from)?

 

Anyone willing to claim? If not, I'd say it's likely it's a troll...

[timeless90]

hahahaha omg 

it definitely is a troll, no doubt!! 

[steedyue]

Can you believe it? a man with 3.89 GPA and 170+167 GRE, several publications, got rejection? he must be applying to Space Warship College.

Edited February 1, 2014 by steedyue

[timeless90]

Can you believe it? a man with 3.89 GPA and 170+167 GRE, several publications, got rejection? he must be applying to Space Warship College.

 

And even funnier is that the adcom told the troll that his research experience was just 'average' (despite having 3 peer-reviewed pub!) 

[TakeMyCoffeeBlack]

Well, it's almost midnight in Boulder.

 

So, am I the only one that hasn't recieved notification yet?

 

(I am wondering if this has anything to do with the controversy revolving around the philosophy department announced earlier today given the overlap of the two fields, hence "political philosophy.")

 

I doubt it's connected. But that is odd, and I'm sorry you've been left hanging! I'd suggest getting in touch with the DGS.

[Zahar Berkut]

Definitely a troll-- how could they reject a Student Government President?

[TakeMyCoffeeBlack]

Definitely a troll-- how could they reject a Student Government President?

 

Although, I have met a few student government presidents with egos bigger than their brains. I would believe it if I found out the person inflated their stats significantly in the post, because to them being the student government president is equivalent to having those GREs, that GPA, those publications, etc. And s/he may have reached out for info, just to be told that her/his stats weren't good enough.

Edited February 1, 2014 by TakeMyCoffeeBlack

[xuejia]

Also, I heard that folks at Berkeley are finalizing decisions 'quite soon', which is rather vague, but hang in there.

 

Gnome: luv the troll vid!

Edited February 1, 2014 by xuejia

[jeudepaume]

Well, it's almost midnight in Boulder.

 

So, am I the only one that hasn't recieved notification yet?

 

(I am wondering if this has anything to do with the controversy revolving around the philosophy department announced earlier today given the overlap of the two fields, hence "political philosophy.")

 

Definitely get in touch with the DGS. At this point it's absolutely justified.

 

Sorry that you are experiencing such problems with it! 

 

Unfortunately, I got an impression it's not uncommon. Last year I had to call three schools to inquire my status, and thus learned that I was rejected. Out of curiosity I kept checking my online status for a certain Canadian school, and guess what—in September 2013 it still was "under review"! I stopped after that. I guess we're better be prepared for things of this sort.

 

Edit: I should correct myself right away and say that I did not mean to suggest that in your case it is a rejection at this point. My apologies if I sounded too pessimistic. There is always hope, plus I should correct myself and say that at least one of the aforementioned schools replied that if I had not heard any news by then it meant a wait list of some sort. That still didn't work out for me at the end, but I imagine for someone it did. 

Edited February 1, 2014 by jeudepaume

[jazzrap]

Also, I heard that folks at Berkeley are finalizing decisions 'quite soon', which is rather vague, but hang in there.

 

Gnome: luv the troll vid!

This kind of response sounds quite awkward. So it will take a very, very short time for them to move to the beginning stage of finalizing decisions I guess? 

[jeudepaume]

And a UCSD rejection.. Is it Trololololololol? If so, I wonder why UCSD is the troll favorite of the year..

 

 

Hey, that's Eduard Khil! 

 

P.S. I've spotted your reference to the Russian Winnie the Pooh earlier on this forum. I love it that you (1) somehow found this cartoon; (2) found it interesting.  

I figured you might also like couple of others:

1) Sort of a Tom&Jerry, but very Soviet and with wolf/rabbit in place of cat/mouse. www.youtube.com/watch?v=WV3hIdOcRLk

2) A series about a Soviet boy who decided to leave his parents and live on his own in a village, because he wasn't allowed to have pets (a cat). 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aamATyJa48  -- that's the first episode, there should be couple more of those on youtube.

Edited February 1, 2014 by jeudepaume

[xuejia]

This kind of response sounds quite awkward. So it will take a very, very short time for them to move to the beginning stage of finalizing decisions I guess? 

I'm still (totally) guessing that notification will occur the week of February 10-14, but I know there could be stragglers. Last year I got a gentler short-list rejection, but it took them until March 4 to make the final determination.