Fall 2016 Admissions Cycle

[coffeeandtravel]

Anyone else just scouring the forum from previous years in an attempt to allay anxiety? I know I submitted my apps in January, but it feels like a whole year ago. 

[shrimps]

44 minutes ago, coffeeandtravel said:

Anyone else just scouring the forum from previous years in an attempt to allay anxiety? I know I submitted my apps in January, but it feels like a whole year ago. 

Oh man, I hear you. I feel like I've now read all the past school-specific and wrap-up decision threads, and now I'm branching into other forums on GC jst to keep myself busy. Might I recommend this compilation of best quotes from the Results tab? Some of it is a little dark, but there are some true gems there. A+, would recommend.

Edited February 19, 2016 by shrimps

[coffeeandtravel]

11 minutes ago, shrimps said:

Oh man, I hear you. I feel like I've now read all the past school-specific and wrap-up decision threads, and now I'm branching into other forums on GC jst to keep myself busy. Might I recommend this compilation of best quotes from the Results tab? Some of it is a little dark, but there are some true gems there. A+, would recommend.

That's certainly an entertaining thread, haha! Much better than comparing myself to the stats on the results pages from previous years...

[quietman]

Conversely, I try not to read that type of stuff too much, as it causes me to overthink things that I can't control (such as whether my current quant score will ruin my chances at my top picks), which in turn heightens my admissions anxiety.

One thing I'm thankful for is that admissions aren't rolling at the schools I applied to--from my previous experiences I'll say that it's much tougher to stay calm when people who applied around the time you did are getting acceptances back and you've heard nothing.

Edited February 19, 2016 by quietman

[sp108]

27 minutes ago, quietman said:

Conversely, I try not to read that type of stuff too much, as it causes me to overthink things that I can't control (such as whether my current quant score will ruin my chances at my top picks), which in turn heightens my admissions anxiety.

One thing I'm thankful for is that admissions aren't rolling at the schools I applied to--from my previous experiences I'll say that it's much tougher to stay calm when people who applied around the time you did are getting acceptances back and you've heard nothing.

I get nervous so much that I kept looking back at all the essays I submitted which I definitely would not advise on doing.  Only a few more weeks to go

[quietman]

Just now, sp108 said:

I get nervous so much that I kept looking back at all the essays I submitted which I definitely would not advise on doing.  Only a few more weeks to go

I've been there too.....that feeling when you spot a typo in an essay you've submitted

[coffeeandtravel]

1 minute ago, sp108 said:

I get nervous so much that I kept looking back at all the essays I submitted which I definitely would not advise on doing.  Only a few more weeks to go

I did this once...went back in a panic thinking I had put the wrong school name in my SOP (which, of course, I didn't...it was fine). After that I told myself no more looking at any essays that I'd already submitted haha

[RCtheSS]

Just did my daily afternoon application portal check (no news, of course!). I probably won't remember to check again this evening--once it's past 5pm on a Friday, it's time to unwind with good beer and a video game. 

[Expedia]

With so many applications, I forgot to check my documents/recommendations/transcript update on a couple of programs. At this point I am too afraid to ask and check. 

[sp108]

1 hour ago, Expedia said:

With so many applications, I forgot to check my documents/recommendations/transcript update on a couple of programs. At this point I am too afraid to ask and check. 

Guilty here as well.  But I feel like they would notify you if the application is incomplete?

 

Edited February 19, 2016 by sp108
a word "applicable"

[Expedia]

8 minutes ago, sp108 said:

Guilty here as well.  But I feel like they would notify you if the applicable is incomplete?

 

One of them is University of British Columbia and I cannot check the status through the portal. I wrote them back a while ago but no reply. But what I hear from other forum members is that they are quite unresponsive regarding the emails. 

[aslabchu]

1 hour ago, sp108 said:

Guilty here as well.  But I feel like they would notify you if the applicable is incomplete?

 

Also, that doesn't always mean there's something you need to do. A school sent me an email saying my application was "incomplete", and I totally flipped out. But it turns out they just meant that they were still compiling it on their end, and weren't finished yet. There was no fire. But I certainly freaked out.

Edited February 19, 2016 by aslabchu

[Eyerlai]

My office sent me home today early because I'm sick. I had a nervous feeling right before I opened my mailbox based on past years' acceptance notification schedule, and sure enough, there it was. I got into USC's MPA program! Full tuition scholarship!!! Almost immediately burst into tears. Guess my decision is made!

[kasbah]

1 minute ago, Eyerlai said:

My office sent me home today early because I'm sick. I had a nervous feeling right before I opened my mailbox based on past years' acceptance notification schedule, and sure enough, there it was. I got into USC's MPA program! Full tuition scholarship!!! Almost immediately burst into tears. Guess my decision is made!

Yay! Congrats!

[quietman]

15 minutes ago, Eyerlai said:

My office sent me home today early because I'm sick. I had a nervous feeling right before I opened my mailbox based on past years' acceptance notification schedule, and sure enough, there it was. I got into USC's MPA program! Full tuition scholarship!!! Almost immediately burst into tears. Guess my decision is made!

Awesome!!

Oh, and get well soon

[MPAHurray]

26 minutes ago, Eyerlai said:

My office sent me home today early because I'm sick. I had a nervous feeling right before I opened my mailbox based on past years' acceptance notification schedule, and sure enough, there it was. I got into USC's MPA program! Full tuition scholarship!!! Almost immediately burst into tears. Guess my decision is made!

Congratulations! I'm actually waiting on USC myself. Would you mind posting your GPA, GRE, and what sort/amount of work experience you have?

We're all anxious, just want to get some more data points.

[sfe510]

44 minutes ago, Eyerlai said:

My office sent me home today early because I'm sick. I had a nervous feeling right before I opened my mailbox based on past years' acceptance notification schedule, and sure enough, there it was. I got into USC's MPA program! Full tuition scholarship!!! Almost immediately burst into tears. Guess my decision is made!

Congrats! Perhaps I will see you at Price next year.

[Eyerlai]

17 minutes ago, MPAHurray said:

Congratulations! I'm actually waiting on USC myself. Would you mind posting your GPA, GRE, and what sort/amount of work experience you have?

We're all anxious, just want to get some more data points.

Sure thing, I graduated in 2011 with a 3.5 from a large private Top 50 US university, 164v/156q/4.5aw, and five years of relevant work experience. Internship in federal government, then worked for two different economic development nonprofits. I was also accepted into UCLA's MPP program. Feel free to message me if you have any other questions.

[MPAHurray]

1 minute ago, Eyerlai said:

Sure thing, I graduated in 2011 with a 3.5 from a large private Top 50 US university, 164v/156q/4.5aw, and five years of relevant work experience. Internship in federal government, then worked for two different economic development nonprofits. I was also accepted into UCLA's MPP program. Feel free to message me if you have any other questions.

Awesome, and thanks! Congratulations again.

[happygomucky]

Congrats to all those who have admits! 

I'm managing my anxiety about school admissions pretty well but tearing my hair out about Fulbright (UK-US) - who I still haven't heard from! They tell me I'll find out early next week...can't wait! 

I also had a Skype interview for SAIS MIPP last week - it was an interesting experience as it was conducted  by a current student. Has anyone else been through this?

 

 

 

[MPAHurray]

Accepted to USC MPA by the online system. Received an email to check youSC at 1:45am 2/20. I had checked around 8pm 2/19 and it wasn't yet up.

Letter was dated 2/18. Still awaiting the mailed letter with information on funding.

Graduated 4 years ago from a top-5 public university. GPA was 3.5 (3.8 my senior year); GRE was 169v/163q. 4 years of work experience in state and local government.

[MPPant]

I'm dying here. I've reread all my apps several times, each time I feel completely differently as to how good my SoP's are and whether I even stand a change at ANY school. I've also read about every post in this forum since 2012 during the past month. None of the above relieves my anxiety whatsoever. I'm Israeli and I'm not sure whether I can count on admission committees to look at my 3+ years in the army as relevant work experience, as (1) it was after high school, that is, before starting university and (2) I served in an intelligence unit, whereas my professional goals are in public financial management. So reading through all the wrap-up threads, I can't really find circumstances similar to my own to extrapolate from. Conclusion: I'm both wasting my time AND exacerbating anxiety

[BrendonSW]

Has anyone heard from the University of Denver, by chance? I submitted on 1/13 and my application status is still "submitted". I saw that one person submitted 1/15 and heard back 2 weeks later and received a scholarship. I don't think I'll be going to Denver, but it would be nice to know so I can focus on NYU and U of Michigan. 

I called Denver on Monday and they said my application was at the tail end of the review process. But from what I've read on Denvee threads, your application status changes online from "submitted" to "complete" whenever they mail your decision out. I'm just freaking out and want answers! On a more positive note, I'm interviewing for a GSSA position this week. Here's hoping that seals the deal! 

[Danbrenn]

Got into LBJ today with a good fellowship.  Quick question: does anyone know if at LBJ you keep fellowship money that exceeds tuition?  My fellowship is significantly higher than my tuition because of veteran benefits.  Can I use the rest of the money for living expenses?

[RCtheSS]

30 minutes ago, Danbrenn said:

Got into LBJ today with a good fellowship.  Quick question: does anyone know if at LBJ you keep fellowship money that exceeds tuition?  My fellowship is significantly higher than my tuition because of veteran benefits.  Can I use the rest of the money for living expenses?

Firstly, congrats! Can you specify which program you were accepted into?

Secondly, I'm pretty sure that money is yours to keep, even after your immediate need (tuition and fees) is fulfilled. Double congrats.