"Recommended" Deadlines

[wuglife427]

I am applying for NYU's Linguistics PhD program, and under Application deadline it says "Recommended Deadline: 12/18, Final Deadline: 1/4." I have finals 12/15-12/18 and am driving home on 12/19, and a few other schools have final application deadlines in that period, so I am very tempted to put NYU on the back burner until all that is done with. That said, I'm not totally clear on why one date is "recommended." Is it just a suggestion of a date that will ensure they have all your application materials before they start reviewing? Or do they actually value applications differently based on which deadline they were submitted for? I'm inclined to think it's the former, since the adcom probably convenes after winter break, but I just wanted to see whether anyone had any insight into programs with similar deadline setups. I would hate for my chances to be messed up by something like this! Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[Crucial BBQ]

I have seen such deadlines as well.  

 

What it means is that shortly after 12/18 the adcoms will convene to begin the application review process.  The final deadline of 1/4 is just that, the absolute latest one can submit their application.  Various departments have various policies but in general, it seems based on my understanding of how this works, that the majority of admits will come from the by-12/18 stack with those from the 1/4 pile filling in slots as necessary.  

 

I could be wrong, though    That is just how I understand it.  

 

For the record, why can you not get in your applications early?  You have two months until the 12/18 deadline, you can send in your applications today if you like.  

 

 

*afterthought:  one of my programs has a deadline of 1/1 with a final deadline of 3/15.  Only those applicants who apply by the 1/1 deadline are eligible for fellowships, and perhaps most other forms of aid.  

Edited October 10, 2014 by Crucial BBQ

[TakeruK]

I think you would have to ask them to clarify whether applications submitted by 12/18 are given preference over applications submitted by 1/4. 

 

It might depend on field, but I would highly highly doubt any admission committee will convene in between 12/18 and 1/4. But I only have experience with a small number of schools, so who knows.

 

Here's my single experience with a dual deadline: At one school, international applicants are asked to submit by 12/1 while domestic deadline is 1/1. I decided to apply to this school at the end of November so I asked them how strict the 12/1 deadline is for international students and whether I could get an extra week if it's strict. They said it's not strict at all, however, the admission committee will start meeting in early January and since international students mean extra legwork for them (have to convert GPAs and verify degree equivalency etc.), they want international applications in early so that the admin staff can do this in December and then send all of the applications to the Admission Committee in early January (after doing the same for the domestic students). In the end I applied by 12/7 or so (with all my final documents submitted by 12/15) and nothing bad happened (I got an offer).

 

So, my interpretation of a "recommended" and "final" deadline would mean that they suggest you get the materials to them by the first date because that leaves time for slow things (e.g. LORs, mailed transcripts, GRE test scores and so on) to arrive in time or in case the admin staff notices a problem (maybe you entered the wrong GRE reg. number so they can't pull up your scores) and then they can fix it. If you wait until the final deadline, you might end up disadvantaged if a problem comes up and you can't get it sorted out prior to the committee meeting. However, I would not interpret it as the school will prioritize / de-prioritize application submitted after the "recommended deadline".

 

Also, my current program (different from above anecdote) states that the subject GRE score are "strongly recommended". Many students in my cohort did not even write the subject GRE and they were admitted with no problems. 

So, this leads me to believe that grad programs use the word "recommended" to mean "not required". It might be in your best interest to submit it early to avoid admin problems or to submit a subject GRE score if you want to prove your ability, but it is not required and simply not following the "recommendation" would not negatively affect your application. 

 

Of course, word meanings are subjective, I can only share the two experiences I've had here. I think the best thing to do is to just ask the program if your application will receive less consideration if it is not submitted until the second deadline.

[wuglife427]

Thank you both for your replies! TakeruK, your interpretation is more in line with my intuition, as I can't imagine this process starting over the holidays. But since there is difference between sounding true and being true, I think I will take your advice and ask them.

 

For the record, why can you not get in your applications early?  You have two months until the 12/18 deadline, you can send in your applications today if you like.  

 

I do actually hope to send it early, but since I am currently struggling to see light on the other side of the very busy tunnel that is midterms, I want to have a contingency plan. It would be helpful (and honestly a bit of a relief) to know whether I could delay it, even though as it stands I am aiming to get things done sooner.

[onzeheures30]

When I was applying to NYU, I submitted my application on the final deadline. I don't know what the exact purpose of the 'recommended' deadline is. Maybe to spread the administrative work a little bit. It is highly unlikely, though, that the adcomm will convene between the two deadlines, and it is even less likely that there is any actual preference given to those who applied earlier. But it never hurts to ask.

Edited October 11, 2014 by onzeheures30