jennesy Posted April 12, 2006 Posted April 12, 2006 For those of you who haven't gotten accepted, or are waiting on the last few (most likely rejection) letters to trickle in, what are your plans? I know you're supposed to have a back up plan for if you don't get into grad school - how many people actually did? I'm still waiting on 2 schools, but I've resigned myself to thinking I'm not going next year - it's already April 12. As of now I have no concrete plans for next year, but I'm thinking of trying to find work in a lab somewhere, traveling/teaching English (depending on the financial situaiton...) or continuing to teach for another year. Obviously working in a lab for a year would be my best option if I'm going to reapply. So many things to think about!!
Guest staticdust Posted April 14, 2006 Posted April 14, 2006 i didnt really think much about back-up plans because i thought i had a pretty solid chance of getting in to a decent school. but so far i've only gotten in to one crappy master's program, and am still waiting for 3 more schools to which i applied for PhD programs. i really don't know what's gonna happen or what i'm gonna do. if one of those 3 okay schools accept me then i'm definitely going to attend, but that seems really far-fetched right now. if i don't get in then i have the options of either doing that master's degree program or continue working at my current job and re-apply next year. the latter seems like a better choice financially but i really dread the thought of re-applying to grad schools and re-living the whole process all over again. at least now i know if i'm ever applying again i'll apply to a lot more schools (it's a lot of money but could be worth it), and i'm gonna find someone in the department to sit down and talk to and seriously let me know how good my chances are of being accepted into their program before applying.
Guest Ms. Geology Posted April 14, 2006 Posted April 14, 2006 i didnt really think much about back-up plans because i thought i had a pretty solid chance of getting in to a decent school. but so far i've only gotten in to one crappy master's program, and am still waiting for 3 more schools to which i applied for PhD programs. i really don't know what's gonna happen or what i'm gonna do. if one of those 3 okay schools accept me then i'm definitely going to attend, but that seems really far-fetched right now. if i don't get in then i have the options of either doing that master's degree program or continue working at my current job and re-apply next year. the latter seems like a better choice financially but i really dread the thought of re-applying to grad schools and re-living the whole process all over again. at least now i know if i'm ever applying again i'll apply to a lot more schools (it's a lot of money but could be worth it), and i'm gonna find someone in the department to sit down and talk to and seriously let me know how good my chances are of being accepted into their program before applying. I think your best option for getting into a better program next time around would be to go to the "crappy Masters" program and improve whatever it is that needs improving. Not to sound mean, but whatever it is (bad grades, no prior research experience) that kept you from being accepted this time will likely happen all over again next year if you just stick with your same old job. Go with what you have been offered, it may surprise you, and at least you will be improving your skills that matter. In response to the original post, your plan of working in a lab (if you are science oriented, or if it is related to your field) is probably your best option in order to improve your chances for next year. I hope I have helped.
Guest Kate Posted April 18, 2006 Posted April 18, 2006 I got rejected by all the schools I applied to, not surprisingly, as they were all extremely competitive ones. So I had already started making back up plans. I will either take a gap year and do a working holiday in Australia, which would be a good experience I think, and re apply for the Fall 2007. Or I found 2 Masters programs that have Winter quarters, which I feel I have a much better chance of getting into, so I'm thinking of applying to those. If those don't work out either, I'll apply for Fall 07. Right now what's on my mind is how I'm going to break the rejection news to everyone. Ugh it's not a good feeling. Wish I could go back in time and have chosen the programs that I'm qualified for and not wasted all that money on application fees :? But oh well... I guess it was an experience I learnt loads from
the_communicator Posted April 21, 2007 Posted April 21, 2007 I think your best option for getting into a better program next time around would be to go to the "crappy Masters" program and improve whatever it is that needs improving. Not to sound mean, but whatever it is (bad grades, no prior research experience) that kept you from being accepted this time will likely happen all over again next year if you just stick with your same old job. Go with what you have been offered, it may surprise you, and at least you will be improving your skills that matter. Solid advice. IMHO the best way to get into a program (or job, for that matter) is to go out and show the world what you're capable of. Get published. Get recommendations. Get job experience. Whatever you're lacking in, just show them next year that you're a stronger candidate. Once you are into a M.A. program you have a lot more opportunities than outside of a program: regional conferences, collaborative opportunities, and ample opportunities for feedback.
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