2015 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[Usmivka]

If anyone applied to U Mass, my advisor contacted me today saying that they still are figuring out TA positions so funding isn't completely off the table yet

There are five UMass schools, 3 with geology departments. All make their decisions separately--which do you mean? I'm betting there are people on this thread applying to at least two of them.

[geographyrocks]

the many things boggling my mind about this whole process:

 

- i got a postcard in the mail from Utah telling me my financial aid information was incomplete (which it definitely isn't, they must want something random).  The card says as soon as I'm fully admitted to log on to the fin aid website to update my materials. Portal still says "in process."

I repeatedly received financial aid emails from one school that I applied to AFTER I was rejected.  I had to email the financial aid department to request that they stop sending the emails.  THEN I had to send PROOF that I was rejected.  Talk about being annoyed.  Just a little anecdote to show that financial aid emails, postcards, and letters don't normally mean much. 

 

The congratulations and your POI inquiry is a completely different story.  Have you contacted the DGS or front office to see if decisions have been made?  Maybe they mail out their notifications and yours is delayed/lost/etc. 

[fromchaos]

I repeatedly received financial aid emails from one school that I applied to AFTER I was rejected.  I had to email the financial aid department to request that they stop sending the emails.  THEN I had to send PROOF that I was rejected.  Talk about being annoyed.  Just a little anecdote to show that financial aid emails, postcards, and letters don't normally mean much. 

 

The congratulations and your POI inquiry is a completely different story.  Have you contacted the DGS or front office to see if decisions have been made?  Maybe they mail out their notifications and yours is delayed/lost/etc. 

I have been receiving financial aid letters from your school, where I was waitlisted.

[moochie]

Anyone have an idea what the chances of getting off the waitlist at Scripps for physical oceanography are? Do people ever really turn down Scripps?

[GeoDUDE!]

Anyone have an idea what the chances of getting off the waitlist at Scripps for physical oceanography are? Do people ever really turn down Scripps?

 

 

People turn down every school.  I think the schools that have good yield from their acceptances get about 70-80% of their applicants on average.  Schools that accept a huge amount of applicants tend to have lower yields as well. 

Edited March 26, 2015 by GeoDUDE!

[fromchaos]

Anyone have an idea what the chances of getting off the waitlist at Scripps for physical oceanography are? Do people ever really turn down Scripps?

20.8%...and yes

[mkd17]

I repeatedly received financial aid emails from one school that I applied to AFTER I was rejected.  I had to email the financial aid department to request that they stop sending the emails.  THEN I had to send PROOF that I was rejected.  Talk about being annoyed.  Just a little anecdote to show that financial aid emails, postcards, and letters don't normally mean much. 

 

The congratulations and your POI inquiry is a completely different story.  Have you contacted the DGS or front office to see if decisions have been made?  Maybe they mail out their notifications and yours is delayed/lost/etc. 

 

Yeah I am not assuming that I am on some admitted list and somehow haven't been told.  I'm just like, don't send this unless people are accepted.  All these instructions that are not applicable to me.  The one school that wanted a handwritten letter of my BS degree GAVE me the BS degree so that was definitely annoying. 

 

As for the other school, I visited and interviewed there and they are still in deliberations.  A number of people have told me I'm in, but they're still figuring out funding .  Just aggravated because all these apps were in before the new year.

[fromchaos]

Yeah I am not assuming that I am on some admitted list and somehow haven't been told.  I'm just like, don't send this unless people are accepted.  All these instructions that are not applicable to me.  The one school that wanted a handwritten letter of my BS degree GAVE me the BS degree so that was definitely annoying. 

 

As for the other school, I visited and interviewed there and they are still in deliberations.  A number of people have told me I'm in, but they're still figuring out funding .  Just aggravated because all these apps were in before the new year.

What do you plan on studying?

[mkd17]

What do you plan on studying?

 

Paleoenvironment, specifically East Africa

[columbia09]

There are five UMass schools, 3 with geology departments. All make their decisions separately--which do you mean? I'm betting there are people on this thread applying to at least two of them.

Amherst

[IamLorde]

Finally got tired of waiting so I emailed all of the departments I hadn't heard back from yet. Here is what I found out:

 

UW: "We are still reviewing applications and will let you know by mid April regarding our decision. Thank you for your patience."

 

OSU: "The decisions are still coming out but the 1st round is done a 2nd round is uncertain. You have until April 15th to respond to any funded offers, but if you have other offers in hand, you might want to proceed."

 

ASU: "We have already made offers of admission and are waiting to hear back from students before making decisions on the rest. Essentially, everyone else is on hold at this point. Hopefully we will start to give final answers within the next couple weeks, although sometimes we are still working through offers at the end of April." 

 

Duke: "The faculty is meeting on Monday to discuss the candidates and the remaining decisions will be made then."

 

So the waiting continues, but at least I know something now. 

[sjoh197]

Yeah... I emailed one department earlier this week and heard diddly squat. So...

[jjrockman]

I know there have been some rejections for geoscience PhD at Penn State but have you guys heard of anyone being accepted?  Haven't heard a thing.  

[idiochromatic]

Yes, I've heard of at least one PhD Penn State acceptance.

[talkcherty2me]

I know a couple people who have been accepted to Penn State. My POI reached out to me and essentially said I'm on a waitlist.

[sjoh197]

Another weekend is here. 

 

There's only 2 and a half weeks until april 15th. I think I might end up being out for the season. 

[AggieGradLoggerNeedMoScoo]

Man this waiting really blows if you catch my draft. Two puns in one sentence, pretty impressive I snow. Seriously though, this needs to end so I can focus on moving forward and have a normal life instead of this godawful purgatory. Or should I say inferno... Hopefully paradise awaits.

Edited March 28, 2015 by AggieGradLoggerNeedMoScoo

[MechRxn]

Perhaps you will receive second round offers. I applied to 7 schools and am unsure of my status for most of them. Few more weeks and it will all be over.

[virtua]

Guys, I have just thought of the following: as we know, students have right to answer to an offer made by the university till the April 15th,

let`s say a student gets an offer from university X (btw, what about other candidates? are they being 'waitlisted' or what? are they informed about such situation?)

1. let`s say the student declines it right on the 15th of April, how will the university manage this situation? do they simply make an offer to another student?

2a. let`s say the student accepts it before the April 15 (do other candidates automaticaly get rejection?) and then rejects it but before the April 15, how will the university manage this situation?

 

Can someone please expain the whole process how universities manage applications? What is 'waitlist'? 'second round of offers'?

[ssynny]

Guys, I have just thought of the following: as we know, students have right to answer to an offer made by the university till the April 15th,

let`s say a student gets an offer from university X (btw, what about other candidates? are they being 'waitlisted' or what? are they informed about such situation?)

1. let`s say the student declines it right on the 15th of April, how will the university manage this situation? do they simply make an offer to another student?

2a. let`s say the student accepts it before the April 15 (do other candidates automaticaly get rejection?) and then rejects it but before the April 15, how will the university manage this situation?

Can someone please expain the whole process how universities manage applications? What is 'waitlist'? 'second round of offers'?

That deadline is really only for first round candidates maybe even second. Most schools let people enroll for the fall until like July. If on the 15th, the person declines or chooses a different school, then in a lot of cases they just go down the waitlist. The deadline doesn't matter at that point.

[chateaulafitte]

1. let`s say the student declines it right on the 15th of April, how will the university manage this situation? do they simply make an offer to another student?

 

Not necessarily, since a department usually makes n + x initial offers for n spots.

[GeoDUDE!]

Not necessarily, since a department usually makes n + x initial offers for n spots.

 

It depends on the department, but  even departments that do n+x still might offer people spots. 

[Jcof]

Hi!

 

Has anyone heard anything from UC Davis - Hydrologic Sciences? 

[virtua]

Not necessarily, since a department usually makes n + x initial offers for n spots.

So when all n+x people accept it, what do they do? do they reject those x number of applicants??

[GeoDUDE!]

So when all n+x people accept it, what do they do? do they reject those x number of applicants??

 

This happened 2 years in a row in my dept, they basically have to use extra dept funds to fund all the TAs. It also means that the following years less people get accepted, at least for us.

 

but even the best depts rarely get 100% of acceptances to matriculate, most departments are probably at the 60% level with the better ones reaching 70-80% on average.