rj16 Posted February 28, 2014 Posted February 28, 2014 This waiting is atrocious!! I am checking here, my email, and the school websites constantly. And I absolutely cannot focus on school work which is a bit of a problem... Two of the schools I applied to don't seem to have sent out anything yet. The third sent out both acceptances and wait lists so my expectations are pretty low. Anybody have any tips? Or just want to commiserate?
Pennywise Posted February 28, 2014 Posted February 28, 2014 If your programs have already notified their accepted and wait listed students, it might be worth contacting them just so you can officially move on. I contacted one program because someone on here wrote that the admissions department told them that anybody who hasn't been notified yet is almost definitely rejected. I don't think it can hurt to ask. I emailed the dean of the one school that has already officially rejected me, and he actually wrote me a very long email of feedback about the process, which was very valuable in its own sad way lol. Alternately, you could go full throttle the other direction and download the GradCafe app for your phone. Just to streamline the obsessive checking process. I would do that except that I dropped my phone in a puddle on the one recruitment trip I took (which was clearly the gods telling me to chill the eff out). onehardtaco 1
rj16 Posted February 28, 2014 Author Posted February 28, 2014 I thought of doing that but as much as I want to know, getting a rejection at this point might be more than I could handle. I'm gonna give it a few more days... There's an app?!! This is either a really good or a really terrible thing!
rj16 Posted February 28, 2014 Author Posted February 28, 2014 School #3's website says that a decision has been made but not what it is! My nerves are shot.
Blackbloc Posted February 28, 2014 Posted February 28, 2014 School #3's website says that a decision has been made but not what it is! My nerves are shot. I feel ya!
Kaitri Posted February 28, 2014 Posted February 28, 2014 rj16, is school #3 U of T? My app status just changed to "decision made" today, but I haven't heard anything official. I'm assuming that it's a rejection since a round of acceptances went out earlier this month.
rj16 Posted February 28, 2014 Author Posted February 28, 2014 Yup! I'm assuming that too but I need something concrete already!
Kaitri Posted March 1, 2014 Posted March 1, 2014 Agreed! I checked my (real, not email) mailbox three times today after seeing that pop up on their application site. I assume the official rejection will arrive sometime next week.
breaks0 Posted March 1, 2014 Posted March 1, 2014 (edited) This waiting is atrocious!! I am checking here, my email, and the school websites constantly. And I absolutely cannot focus on school work which is a bit of a problem... Two of the schools I applied to don't seem to have sent out anything yet. The third sent out both acceptances and wait lists so my expectations are pretty low. Anybody have any tips? Or just want to commiserate? Finally a venting thread (partly @ least) ! Your post is understatement of the year, probably longer. I waited many years to apply to an MA program, am finally getting it now (!) in the mail in a few weeks. But having at last taken the plunge to try to get into Phd programs, yes the wait isn't atrocious, it's hell. I hate it, mainly b/c I've gotten no acceptances and this is the goal, let's be real, if you know you wanna have an academic career for part of your life (after school), know what you wanna study and who with (say several schools) and know you need and want this degree, even if you don't end up in an academic career later, this just sucks. Day after day of it. In my case, I have the added pressures of sallie mae breathing down my neck if I don't get in and precarious personal finances. I have no plan b, maybe that's my fault, but there's only so much you can do in this horrible anti-labor economy anyway. It's all or nothing and I damn sure don't wanna waste ANOTHER year waiting, wasting time doing something else. Maybe everyone else feels differently, fair enough but this is the way it is in my case. I wish I had tips for you, I guess the main one would be don't be like me, don't go nuts. Start on your plan b now if you haven't and/or haven't gotten in somewhere yet. Hopefully you do get in somewhere this (can we call it spring yet?), as do I, and refocus toward next year if it doesn't work out. There are hopefully things I can correct in next year's apps (GRE quant comes to mind, among other things, as much as I hate standardized tests!!) and I'm sure there are ones you can too. So in part, just redouble your efforts, focusing on your weaknesses. And if you don't know what those are, maybe try asking one or more of the programs you didn't get into or someone you trust to help you identify them and/or figure out how to improve/correct them. Buenos suerte! Edited March 1, 2014 by breaks0 onehardtaco 1
rj16 Posted March 1, 2014 Author Posted March 1, 2014 You don't think they will email us, Kaitri? They emailed the acceptances, why would they mail the rejections?
rj16 Posted March 1, 2014 Author Posted March 1, 2014 Oh tell me about breaks! The finances are the worst. I know I should be planning for the worst case scenario but I just can't bring myself to do that just yet...
Kaitri Posted March 1, 2014 Posted March 1, 2014 You don't think they will email us, Kaitri? They emailed the acceptances, why would they mail the rejections? According to the results page, they sent rejections out by mail last year. They may do it by email this year, but there's no way to be sure.
rj16 Posted March 1, 2014 Author Posted March 1, 2014 According to the results page, they sent rejections out by mail last year. They may do it by email this year, but there's no way to be sure. ugh... oh well...
Pennywise Posted March 2, 2014 Posted March 2, 2014 As far as going crazy, let's just say that the very last thing I did last night was check the results (going to bed with the thought "is the 'University of Columbia' the same as Columbia University?"), and the very first thing I did this morning was check the results. It has gotten a little out of control ever since I got my first rejection this week. I need to meditate or something.
rj16 Posted March 2, 2014 Author Posted March 2, 2014 I've been doing a little better these last two days. What helped me: - it's the weekend so I don't expect anything. - I've got the results/websites/email checking under control, only checking a couple times a day. I think that obsessing is a vicious cycle, the more you check, the more you obsess, the more you want to check. So for me, breaking that cycle was key. - I've also regained my focus a bit and kept busy with school work. - meditating when it got overwhelming. I'm still really anxious but it isn't interfering with my daily activities. I hope everyone else is doing ok
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