snyegurachka Posted February 5, 2015 Posted February 5, 2015 I emailed the DGS at Berkeley and wish I hadn't. I read the email as positive, then negative, then annoyed, and overall feel just as bad or worse than I did before. Not worth the trouble/the feeling stupid and embarrassed afterwards.
mikers86 Posted February 5, 2015 Posted February 5, 2015 Late March is far more acceptable. I remember when I was doing this for MA applications and hadn't heard from 1 institution and the clock was ticking. Emailed asking if there was a projected timeline as I had 2 other offers waiting and within an hour they emailed to notify an acceptance. But this is so incredibly early in the season. You do not want to be marked as "that" student - the one who sends endless emails during application season. It will give off the wrong impression to the admin assistant/adcomm, and that can weigh against your application. They are less likely to accept a student who appears to need constant interaction/supervision. If you're applying to doctoral programs, that is not the impression you want to make on individuals who hold your fate in their hands. But if it's April 10th and you still haven't heard - email the crap out of that department, especially if you have other offers but this program that has yet to notify you is your "dream" school. Likewise - please make use of this list if a program who has accepted you is pressuring you for a response. It's in poor taste to potentially make funding conditional upon response by a certain date. http://www.cgsnet.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/CGSResolution_Rev2015.pdf ceaselessly 1
Ramus Posted February 5, 2015 Posted February 5, 2015 Likewise - please make use of this list if a program who has accepted you is pressuring you for a response. It's in poor taste to potentially make funding conditional upon response by a certain date. http://www.cgsnet.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/CGSResolution_Rev2015.pdf Thanks for posting this. Two cycles ago I received a tuition remission offer from Boston College for their MA program, which, at the time, was one of my top choices. But their DGS asked that I make a decision in a week. Considering he emailed me the third week of February, I thought the move unusual and unnecessarily pushy. Good to know now that that's not standard practice.
Put a cat on it Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Aaaaah, so much silence! Come on, schools. doc1 1
1Q84 Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Aaaaah, so much silence! Come on, schools. It's kind of funny to think that, as Wyatt mentioned, the folks who don't use TGC are probably blissfully going about their lives because they know that results tend not to come until mid-end of February. Ignorance is bliss indeed! I wish I just conveniently forgot about this place after I finished up with submitting apps.
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 It's kind of funny to think that, as Wyatt mentioned, the folks who don't use TGC are probably blissfully going about their lives because they know that results tend not to come until mid-end of February. Ignorance is bliss indeed! I wish I just conveniently forgot about this place after I finished up with submitting apps. I'm just here for the upvotes. 1Q84, Agnes P, echo449 and 1 other 4
Put a cat on it Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 It's kind of funny to think that, as Wyatt mentioned, the folks who don't use TGC are probably blissfully going about their lives because they know that results tend not to come until mid-end of February. Ignorance is bliss indeed! I wish I just conveniently forgot about this place after I finished up with submitting apps. Who are these people? How do they restrain themselves from Googling for intel?
kurayamino Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Who are these people? How do they restrain themselves from Googling for intel? I know right?! I found out about gradcafe a year ago when I was getting serious about applying. It just magically appeared on my radar. I think though, that I would have been just as anxious without gradcafe. Here at least there's a "we're all in this together" sort of vibe, rather than being isolated and constantly checking my email/making sure my phone ringer was on/etc.
jhefflol Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Who are these people? How do they restrain themselves from Googling for intel? I think we have more lurkers than we realize (hi, fellow CSULB friends )!
ceaselessly Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Likewise - please make use of this list if a program who has accepted you is pressuring you for a response. It's in poor taste to potentially make funding conditional upon response by a certain date. http://www.cgsnet.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/CGSResolution_Rev2015.pdf This is really helpful to see—thank you! I heard back from Purdue today (accepted!), but they asked for me to send them a decision by March 2. The chances are slim that I'll have heard back from all of my remaining six programs by then, so. mikers86 1
Radcafe Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Hey! Quick advice question: I've done a couple of academic-y things since I finished my apps (submitted a paper to journals and it's under consideration, helped begin a Literary Theory group for undergrads and grad students, am taking some new courses) and I'm wondering whether I could email department people at schools I haven't heard from yet to update them. Would that seem too desperate? I felt it might strengthen my case but would it seem too forward? Thanks!
fancypants09 Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 (edited) Alright, having a spaz-out moment RE: applications here. I was just checking my online application to my top choice, you know, just casually looking over the online application---first time since submitting it in December, mind you---when I notice that there is information in my biography section that I DID NOT PUT IN THERE, and that does not correlate to my information. For example, it provides a US State when my mailing address is CLEARLY not in the US, and gives me an international visa classification when I CLEARLY don't need one. Needless to say, going to call the department secretary (as annoying as this may seem, and as late as this may seem) to see if any other pieces have fallen apart here...everything else looks fine from my end but who knows, as those fields didn't contain that information about me shortly after I submitted everything in December! Not a good time to be having these freak outs when I'm also waiting for the decision letters...dear god... Edited February 6, 2015 by fancypants09
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Hey! Quick advice question: I've done a couple of academic-y things since I finished my apps (submitted a paper to journals and it's under consideration, helped begin a Literary Theory group for undergrads and grad students, am taking some new courses) and I'm wondering whether I could email department people at schools I haven't heard from yet to update them. Would that seem too desperate? I felt it might strengthen my case but would it seem too forward? Thanks! Basically a repeat of my last "I wouldn't" post in this thread. It's just too far along in the process, and frankly a paper "under consideration" and a theory group for undergrads aren't really things that will have much of an impact either way. Don't get me wrong -- they're great things for you personally, and for long term C.V. data points...but probably not all that compelling for an adcomm at this point. For what it's worth, I had a paper accepted to an academic journal a few weeks back (albeit an undergraduate journal), and I decided not to email my schools about it. I don't think one publication (or a publication under review, for that matter) will push an app over the edge. hypervodka and jazzyd 2
hypervodka Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Hey! Quick advice question: I've done a couple of academic-y things since I finished my apps (submitted a paper to journals and it's under consideration, helped begin a Literary Theory group for undergrads and grad students, am taking some new courses) and I'm wondering whether I could email department people at schools I haven't heard from yet to update them. Would that seem too desperate? I felt it might strengthen my case but would it seem too forward? Thanks! I agree with WT. I updated my application with a hugely altered writing sample this January, and the faculty at several schools (UMD and Emory) very obviously didn't read it, based on my interactions with them. UCLA didn't accept the update at all, and I was still accepted to the program. Any changes that you make will not tip the balance one way or the other, and it will just force you to be frantic.
hypervodka Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Also, all of the schools you applied to are well into the decision process. If you've already made it to the fourth round or what have you at this point, your updates really aren't going to make or break your application.
SilasWegg Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 It's officially eight weeks since I applied to UMD and OSU. I'm on the edge of my seat for some news... What do you think? Will it be today? TeaOverCoffee 1
Dr. Old Bill Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 On 2/6/2015 at 8:20 AM, morristr said: It's officially eight weeks since I applied to UMD and OSU. I'm on the edge of my seat for some news... What do you think? Will it be today? If only it worked like that! It's been five and a half months since I applied to UMD, and still no word here either! Having said that, it's getting to the time where WashU, UMD, UVA, and a few others traditionally notify. Given the relative quiet of the past couple of days, today could be a big one. Then again, I've said that every Friday, I think. Or maybe I say it every day... (this is probably a sign that I post too often...)
fancypants09 Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 OK guys, FWIW I spoke to the department secretary about my snafu and s/he reiterated what hypervodka said: It wouldn't matter at this stage because the admissions process is closed! Decision letters will be mailed out in a few weeks s/he said. No word about emails. My. God. It is all coming to an end.
Hannalore Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 (edited) The one or two acceptances posted from Georgia and Georgia State are making me feel ill. If those are "No"s for me then I have been rejected at 4 out of 5 schools and things are looking very bleak indeed. Edited February 6, 2015 by Hannalore Dr. Old Bill 1
1Q84 Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Lycidas, how did that Columbia interview go (if you don't mind me asking)? You also said the adcomm was making decisions today, right? Eep. :/ bgt28 1
LCB Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 The one or two acceptances posted from Georgia and Georgia State are making me feel ill. If those are "No"s for me then I have been rejected at 4 out of 5 schools and things are looking very bleak indeed. Don't count yourself out yet! A lot of schools send out fellowship notifications early, or notify people they know they want to attend, but have second and third waves of acceptances even before waitlisting people. Some schools accept around the same amount of people every year (so they do all their admissions in one swoop), but others have to wait for funding information to know exactly how many they can admit. So they notify one or two (the fellowships and maybe a few others) and then sit on the rest until they get a better picture of money. All of that to say... just because a few people have been accepted doesn't mean you've been rejected (or even waitlisted). doc1 1
bgt28 Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Lycidas, how did that Columbia interview go (if you don't mind me asking)? You also said the adcomm was making decisions today, right? Eep. :/ I have the same queries...but one especially. We each may have applied to Columbia English, but don't we have different adcom compositions based on our interests and ws/sop? Wouldn't this also mean we'd each get notified at different times? I'm so confused by all this it's insane. Xx
Lycidas Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 Lycidas, how did that Columbia interview go (if you don't mind me asking)? You also said the adcomm was making decisions today, right? Eep. :/ I have the same queries...but one especially. We each may have applied to Columbia English, but don't we have different adcom compositions based on our interests and ws/sop? Wouldn't this also mean we'd each get notified at different times? I'm so confused by all this it's insane. Xx "Interview" ended up being an a bit of an inaccurate term. We just had a conversation about my research, my writing sample, and Columbia's program in general; there wasn't much of an interrogative tone to it. I was told that final deliberations began today and would "end when they end," but likely no later than middle of next week. Final decisions are made by more or less the entire committee––members from different subfields "advocate" for their choices, but there isn't enough room for everyone, so it has to be whittled down to about 16 for the whole department. kurayamino and 1Q84 2
1Q84 Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 (edited) Thanks, Lycidas, for the detailed info. And, hey, can't be a bad thing for them to request a one-on-one talk with you, even if it was an informal talk! Edited February 6, 2015 by 1Q84 Lycidas 1
Childermass Posted February 6, 2015 Posted February 6, 2015 "Interview" ended up being an a bit of an inaccurate term. We just had a conversation about my research, my writing sample, and Columbia's program in general; there wasn't much of an interrogative tone to it. I was told that final deliberations began today and would "end when they end," but likely no later than middle of next week. Final decisions are made by more or less the entire committee––members from different subfields "advocate" for their choices, but there isn't enough room for everyone, so it has to be whittled down to about 16 for the whole department. Did you get the sense that all potential candidates were being interviewed? Or just some?
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