2014 Official Decision Thread

[Maleficent999]

Might be a bit early but I'm impatient  I'm sure some people already have an idea of where they'll be going even if they haven't officially accepted yet.

 

I'm 99% certain I'll be at UC Davis next year and I'm pretty excited about it.

[gingin6789]

OH YAY, MALEFICENT!!!!  I'm so happy for you!!!! Let's have a party here in the thread with cookies, cupcakes, and coffee!!   UC Davis is so fortunate to have you as one of their students!!!!

 

This time next week, I will likely be making my decision ... I still can't believe it ... 

 

Can't wait to see how this thread updates and develops! <3

[Darth.Vegan]

Just a quick note...

Sending in official acceptances early can hurt prospectives in funding negotiations. Programs want you to make a decision as early as possible so they can take folks off the waitlist, and this is definitely a kind and worthwhile thing to do. That said, you may end up with less funding if you make your decision too early in the process. Some programs offer the same funding package to everyone, others have bonuses they can throw in to entice prospective students into accepting their offer (such as summer funding, recruitment fellowships etc. ). What I did, was notify schools as soon as I knew for sure I would not be attending and held out on some programs that I was still considering until very late in the process. I didn't send in my decision to accept until April 14th and it paid off. That said, I did decline offers at 6 out of the 9 programs I was accepted to relatively early to make space for potential waitlisters and to free up funding offers for others. 

Edited February 25, 2014 by xdarthveganx

[SocGirl2013]

9 acceptances with funding? My god, you must be a genius.

[Darth.Vegan]

9 acceptances with funding? My god, you must be a genius.

 

 

Hardly. 4 of those were fully funded PhD programs and 5 were fully funded MA programs. I applied to 15 programs, and got rejected from all 3 of the programs in the top 20 I applied to. 

[Maleficent999]

Just a quick note...

Sending in official acceptances early can hurt prospectives in funding negotiations. Programs want you to make a decision as early as possible so they can take folks off the waitlist, and this is definitely a kind and worthwhile thing to do. That said, you may end up with less funding if you make your decision too early in the process. Some programs offer the same funding package to everyone, others have bonuses they can throw in to entice prospective students into accepting their offer (such as summer funding, recruitment fellowships etc. ). What I did, was notify schools as soon as I knew for sure I would not be attending and held out on some programs that I was still considering until very late in the process. I didn't send in my decision to accept until April 14th and it paid off. That said, I did decline offers at 6 out of the 9 programs I was accepted to relatively early to make space for potential waitlisters and to free up funding offers for others. 

I haven't officially accepted. I'm just pretty sure I will. There's only one program I'm still waiting to hear from that would make me change my mind, and I'm fairly certain I'm on the waitlist at best. I intend to heed your advice and wait until later in the process to formally accept though. I still need to attend the visiting day and that could potentially sway me as well.

[gretagarbo]

I haven't officially accepted. I'm just pretty sure I will. There's only one program I'm still waiting to hear from that would make me change my mind, and I'm fairly certain I'm on the waitlist at best. 

 

the same goes for me. I am 99% certain I will be attending Northwestern. But I still feel the need to hear more about the program, and since I won't be able to go to their Open House, it would be great if other possible or current Northwestern students shared some info or gave some advise. Please PM me!

[gingin6789]

I've been accepted two places out of three, so that makes the decision a little bit easier for me.  I haven't received anything in the way of a funding offer from University of Delaware, but I'll see what they have to offer at the recruitment conference this Sunday - Tuesday.

 

Lehigh's program is a terminal MA, and funding takes the form of a Teaching Assistantship with tuition waiver and a set stipend for all funded students.  Delaware's program is an MA on the way to a PhD with funding that I'm not sure about yet.

 

What I also have to consider for my decision is, not only AOI fit, but MA vs. PhD fit.  Originally, I was looking purely for terminal MAs because that's what fits my life situation at the moment.  However, I still want to see what Delaware has to offer because they have a great program that does have an MA!

 

DarthVegan, thank you for the advice!  I'm going to keep this in mind when I go to Delaware this weekend.

[cultsoc]

and just like last year, we have mr. darth hijacking a thread and spreading misinformation. as others have noted MANY times in the past, negotiating with sociology programs over funding doesn't work, unless you're a top candidate with multiple acceptances at really top programs, or in extremely rare cases where other factors are involved.

 

and no, ma programs at simon fraser and other mickey mouse universities don't count. 

 

if you are absolutely sure you won't be attending a program, decline the offer asap. if you're having a tough time deciding between multiple acceptances, then feel free to take your time. in either case, forget about "negoiating," programs are not businesses. i will guarantee you that you won't get a dime more than the offer you have already received.

 

go through last year's threads where darth's posted and read about the good negotiating did for him.

 

and darth, seriously, stop giving people wrong advice. 

Edited February 26, 2014 by cultsoc

[amlobo]

Despite what darth said, I just wanted to point out that there is nothing wrong with officially accepting earlier than April 14 or 15.  I turned down schools as soon as I knew I wouldn't attend, and I put in my official acceptance to my program two weeks before the deadline.  Once you've made a decision, you've made a decision.  Do what feels right to you   

[Darth.Vegan]

Definitely agree with amlobo's sentiment. Just wanted folks to know what their options are. 
 

For example many UC's have this: 
 

Graduate Dean's Recruitment Fellowship program is designed to supplement financial support packages of those prospective doctoral and M.F.A. students who have received competitive offers from other institutions

 

 

Source: http://www.grad.uci.edu/funding/fellowships-awards/internal/index.html

On top of that, in my case the department actually appealed to the dean's office to get some more funding, including summer funding. They also applied for another fellowship on my behalf that I didn't get but I really appreciated the effort and attention they gave me during recruitment and it made my decision easier. 


I decided to add my responses to this post as to save space for people actually posting decisons. 
 

and just like last year, we have mr. darth hijacking a thread and spreading misinformation. as others have noted MANY times in the past, negotiating with sociology programs over funding doesn't work, unless you're a top candidate with multiple acceptances at really top programs, or in extremely rare cases where other factors are involved.

 

and no, ma programs at simon fraser and other mickey mouse universities don't count. 

 

if you are absolutely sure you won't be attending a program, decline the offer asap. if you're having a tough time deciding between multiple acceptances, then feel free to take your time. in either case, forget about "negoiating," programs are not businesses. i will guarantee you that you won't get a dime more than the offer you have already received.

 

go through last year's threads where darth's posted and read about the good negotiating did for him.

 

and darth, seriously, stop giving people wrong advice. 

 

 

What the heck are you talking about? I got an increase of $9,000 from UCI in my first year, and UCSD offered me an extra 2 years of funding based on UCI's offer. How is that not successful? 

 

Also, in my first post I clearly outlined that this depends on the program
 

Some programs offer the same funding package to everyone, others have bonuses they can throw in to entice prospective students into accepting their offer (such as summer funding, recruitment fellowships etc. )

 

You're right, that's terrible advice. Stop trolling. 

 

 

and darth, would you please elaborate how you managed to get $9,000 added to your offer in your first year? was it your amazing quant score of 149 that did it? or are you counting "summer jobs" as a "bonus" for funding? i have been in two grad programs and am yet to see someone shmooze their way to a fellowship. heck, even fellowships at ivy programs are barely $5,000 or so more than the regular funding package.

 

and no, summer jobs, "recruitment bonuses" (what??), and other types of "opportunities" that are open to every tom dick and harry are not considered "negotiating". i know the truth, just like most people in these boards, so go ahead and negative rep and call me a troll all you want.

 

I really shouldn't oblige the troll bait, but I will this once for the sake of prospectives that might buy into your misinformation. 

at UCI, and many other UC's, the initial funding package of a 5 year guaranteed TA'ship (with 17k stipend) and healthcare is offered to everyone that is accepted. That was my initial funding offer. Upon informing UCI of my concerns over cost of living in Irvine, and my competing offers from other programs, I was offered the deans recruitment fellowship which has actually been increased to $6000. In addition, I was given $3000 for my first summer, with no work obligations whatsoever. Some students that accepted early, got no additional funding, others got even better offers than I did (as a result of competing offers from top 10 and top 20 programs), including funding for 3 summers, or full year long fellowships with no work obligations. 

This wasn't isolated to UCI, the other program I was seriously considering was UCSD. Their funding works a little differently in that they don't guarantee TA'ships like Irvine does, their funding offers typically come with little to no work requirements, but often fall short of the full 5 year guarantees that students have come to expect. My initial offer was only for 1 year, with no work requirements whatsoever. They say they can typically fund students through TA'ships, readerships and RA'ships through 5-7 years, but they don't guarantee work related funding. Upon informing them that I had a 4 year guarantee from Oregon, they got me another year of funding with no work requirements. After I got the funding offer from UCI, they offered me a third year with no work requirements. In the end, I decided that UCI's 5 year guarantee, their constant contact throughout the recruitment process, and their job placement made them the best choice. 

In regards to "Ivy Leauge" schools, my understanding is that many of those programs have fixed funding packages that can't be negotiated. As I mentioned earlier, this varies by program. Also, stop using "Ivy League" as a placeholder for prestige, last I checked, Brown is ranked the same as Irvine. 

Edited February 26, 2014 by xdarthveganx

[Maleficent999]

I think I owe it to Davis to at least let them know my concerns regarding funding. If they can't do anything more then they can't do anything. I don't think they're going to rescind my offer for asking questions.

[cultsoc]

you people and your bandwagon mentality of negative repping posts because you can't hack the truth...who said anything about davis rescinding your offer? all i said was it won't make any difference.

 

and darth, would you please elaborate how you managed to get $9,000 added to your offer in your first year? was it your amazing quant score of 149 that did it? or are you counting "summer jobs" as a "bonus" for funding? i have been in two grad programs and am yet to see someone shmooze their way to a fellowship. heck, even fellowships at ivy programs are barely $5,000 or so more than the regular funding package.

 

and no, summer jobs, "recruitment bonuses" (what??), and other types of "opportunities" that are open to every tom dick and harry are not considered "negotiating". i know the truth, just like most people in these boards, so go ahead and negative rep and call me a troll all you want.

Edited February 26, 2014 by cultsoc

[Beltenebros]

Thanks for the details Darth: It seems sensible to at least try and secure a better funding package.  If it flops, no harm done.

[mormlib]

Isn't this a thread for decisions?

[gingin6789]

Cultsoc, I don't think the downvotes are because we can't "hack the truth."  I think it's because your post came across as attacking another user who was trying to offer some sincere advice to graduate school applicants.  After that, you did offer some advice, but then closed your post with more attacks toward the same user.  You also referred to some grad school programs as "mickey mouse programs." I have no idea what that means because I had no idea that was a term, but I'm assuming it's pretty insulting.

 

Another user than posted their response, and you were rude to her, saying she had somehow hopped on a bandwagon in a thread of ... just a few users.  Hardly a bandwagon.

 

This is why you received downvotes and why your posts are not well-received, and why your advice is not being properly processed.  Advice gets lost when it's wedged within insults.

 

You could have private messaged Darth to let him know what you thought, then offered JUST your advice in this thread, or you could have phrased your sentiment in a less insulting way (e.g. "Darth, I don't think negotiation works in most cases; you have to be careful when doing so ... " etc.) You're absolutely right in that negotiation doesn't work in all cases. That advice was lost in your tirade against the first user, your backhanded comment toward another user, and the rest of our "bandwagon."

 

So ... can we keep this thread about decisions and decision-making advice instead of insulting folks?  

Edited February 26, 2014 by gingin6789

[cultsoc]

I sense a lot of butt-hurt from darth and all his bandwagon crew because I called his bs claim about negotiating. As expected.

[Sociolite]

I will say that Darth's comments are a bit Cali-centric, in that it worked for him because of the California state budget and how state schools operate with funding as a result. I would say that in a majority of cases this doesn't work, and when you talk to schools that accept you they are very upfront about their ability to add incentives like summer funding. However a lab partner of mine in undergrad managed to secure a fellowship as a result of negotiations on decision day a few years back at a state school so it is really not entirely false.

[SocGirl2013]

I sense a lot of butt-hurt from darth and all his bandwagon crew because I called his bs claim about negotiating. As expected.

As simply an observer, I only sense butt-hurtism eminating from one direction, and it's not coming from anyone else here. Maybe you are 100% right and negotiating doesn't help at all. What does one lose from trying? I think it is unfair to attack somebody for asking people to try, based on personal experience of success. 

 

I think our year on GC has come this far without much drama, completely supporting each other and I am only butting in because it pains me to watch it get hijacked for whatever unresolved bitterness lingers from 2013. If you don't have good advice to give us, please be respectful and let other people do so.

[Sociolite]

Oh and if my sig didn't give it away…I am attending the U of A and really couldn't be more excited. 

[Maleficent999]

As the creator of this thread, I'm just going to ask that we all move on from the topic of funding. This is a place to post decisions. Discussions relating to funding can be posted elsewhere, such as in The Bank or by bumping up an old thread.

 

Congrats, Sociolite! How do you like it?

Edited February 26, 2014 by Maleficent999

[gingin6789]

I agree, Maleficent =) 

 

Congratulations, Sociolite!!!!  I'm so excited for you!!!!! *celebrates with you, offering you a dessert and delicious beverage of your choice!!*

[Sociolite]

As the creator of this thread, I'm just going to ask that we all move on from the topic of funding. This is a place to post decisions. Discussions relating to funding can be posted elsewhere, such as in The Bank or by bumping up an old thread.

 

Congrats, Sociolite! How do you like it?

 

I'm actually with this application cycle so I haven't yet started, but it was a confident choice.

 

Thank you gingin, goodbye brutal northeast winters.

Edited February 26, 2014 by Sociolite

[gingin6789]

Of course, Sociolite! And I hear that the summers there are less humid as well =) I hope you enjoy your time there!!

[mightymaus]

I sense a lot of butt-hurt from darth and all his bandwagon crew because I called his bs claim about negotiating. As expected.

I expected more from sociologists.... The term "butthurt" at best indicates ignorance and at worst refers to homophobia and anal rape. Please don't use that term on these forums.