Asian Studies 2010

[titaniasummer]

Sigh, I'm really bored of waiting for MEALAC now. I'm mailing them for a decision because Minnesota has offered me their Graduate Fellowship and will be calling me this week to chat. It's pointless for them to wait so long to reject/waitlist people. Someone on the forum seemed to have mailed them and got a negative response, I am following suit.

Haha, I forgot to write Dear Ms. Whatshername. The mail went as Dear <blank>

[kandeya]

That was me. I visited Berkeley last weekend, and their South/Southeast Studies department was so super friendly and awesome, that as soon as I got the rejection I accepted my offer from them. Funding still looks to be iffy, but they said there was a good chance I'd get a FLAS.

[FDT]

Sigh, I'm really bored of waiting for MEALAC now. I'm mailing them for a decision because Minnesota has offered me their Graduate Fellowship and will be calling me this week to chat. It's pointless for them to wait so long to reject/waitlist people. Someone on the forum seemed to have mailed them and got a negative response, I am following suit.

Haha, I forgot to write Dear Ms. Whatshername. The mail went as Dear <blank>

Hmmm... I am still waiting too. I wrote the person who I wanted to work with saying that I learnt that I was waitlisted and my top choice is still MEALAC, and he said let's hope for the best. I don't believe that was really helpful, but it was nice to hear that he still had a little bit of hope. I think you should talk to Minnesota, but do not write MEALAC yet. What if you are on the waitlist (and you get in later) and you blow it away with your email? Just be patient man. There are so many things out of our control. And I know that waiting is torturous but just wait.

[kandeya]

The problem, for me anyway, is that I would really rather be working with a department that wants me there instead of one that ignores me. Columbia's made its decisions, and if they kick someone off the waitlist just because they emailed asking for a status update, that would be unnecessarily cruel. titaniasummer also has another funded (a rare breed these days...) offer that she needs to consider. They explicitly say on their website that applicants with other offers are free to inquire about their status, so I can't imagine that their decision will change just because of an email.

Congratulations on the fellowship, also, titaniasummer! What's your impression been of Minnesota so far?

[titaniasummer]

That was me. I visited Berkeley last weekend, and their South/Southeast Studies department was so super friendly and awesome, that as soon as I got the rejection I accepted my offer from them. Funding still looks to be iffy, but they said there was a good chance I'd get a FLAS.

Congrats on Berkeley! I honestly think it's a better dept for South Asian studies than Columbia, so this is excellent for you. Did you get in for an MA or a PhD?

[kandeya]

I got in for the M.A/Ph.D program, so I guess both, really! (I only have a B.A). I'm rather excited about it, though it's a bit tempered by California's financial woes. Still, I imagine it will work out for the best. The faculty are great, and the students are friendly, and the campus is really something. It helped that it was a perfect spring day when I visited, so the scenery was really working to the nines.

[FDT]

The problem, for me anyway, is that I would really rather be working with a department that wants me there instead of one that ignores me. Columbia's made its decisions, and if they kick someone off the waitlist just because they emailed asking for a status update, that would be unnecessarily cruel. titaniasummer also has another funded (a rare breed these days...) offer that she needs to consider. They explicitly say on their website that applicants with other offers are free to inquire about their status, so I can't imagine that their decision will change just because of an email.

Congratulations on the fellowship, also, titaniasummer! What's your impression been of Minnesota so far?

When did they do that? Were you kicked off the waiting list? I talked to Mitchell and he told me I am on the wait-list and there are only 4 more people on it. But he never told me that since you have implied that you have other offers we'll kick you off the wait list. That is new to me, and indeed surprising. Berkeley is amazing. Congrats! My father studied Economics at Berkeley and he still loves it. Especially if your project is political, I believe you are in the right place. However, I think for South Asian Studies, Columbia is amazing as well. Partha Catterjee and Gayatri Spivak are more than enough to make a school amazing.

[kandeya]

No, I never said that. I wasn't kicked off of anything. But I thought you were telling titania to sit tight and not email Columbia because there was a chance she could be on the waitlist, and emailing them would ruin it. I probably misread what you were saying to titania. But at any rate, titania, my advice would be to go email them. Their decisions won't change, since they're already made, and you have decisions you need to make yourself. Don't worry FDT, nothing's going to happen to your waitlist spot. Columbia got an exceptionally high number of applications this year (double over last year, from what Mitchell told me in the rejection email), so you should be proud of yourself!

My "project"--or what half-baked notions I have of a "project", at this point--concerns vernacular and Anglophone literatures, and while Columbia has amazing people in the English/complit departments, MEALAC itself leans more towards history and politics than pure philology and literature.

Again, sorry for the misunderstanding. I had to wait a long while to get anything out of Columbia, and I suppose it made an impression, given how effusive Berkeley was in contacting me.

[FDT]

No, I never said that. I wasn't kicked off of anything. But I thought you were telling titania to sit tight and not email Columbia because there was a chance she could be on the waitlist, and emailing them would ruin it. I probably misread what you were saying to titania. But at any rate, titania, my advice would be to go email them. Their decisions won't change, since they're already made, and you have decisions you need to make yourself. Don't worry FDT, nothing's going to happen to your waitlist spot. Columbia got an exceptionally high number of applications this year (double over last year, from what Mitchell told me in the rejection email), so you should be proud of yourself!

My "project"--or what half-baked notions I have of a "project", at this point--concerns vernacular and Anglophone literatures, and while Columbia has amazing people in the English/complit departments, MEALAC itself leans more towards history and politics than pure philology and literature.

Again, sorry for the misunderstanding. I had to wait a long while to get anything out of Columbia, and I suppose it made an impression, given how effusive Berkeley was in contacting me.

Oh! OK. There is certainly a miscommunication. I thought that titiana wants to email them saying that she has made her decision not to go there. That is why I suggested not to do so. I wasn't worried at all about my spot. As you know, the wait-list does not work that way, since it is not ranked, and it is only divided by field. I am not working on South Asia, but on Mid-East so I am not worried that she will get my place in the wait list (too quick to pass a judgment, right?). What I was telling her was precisely the opposite. I was telling her earlier to just call Mitchell and ask, and also not to withdraw because she might be on the waitlist already and who knows if she stays she might as well get in—so I was worried that she is pissed off by them and wants to call to withdraw. I really think titiana should call Mitchell rather than emailing him. Calling them is faster and you get to ask Mitchell all your questions.d

[titaniasummer]

Oh! OK. There is certainly a miscommunication. I thought that titiana wants to email them saying that she has made her decision not to go there. That is why I suggested not to do so. I wasn't worried at all about my spot. As you know, the wait-list does not work that way, since it is not ranked, and it is only divided by field. I am not working on South Asia, but on Mid-East so I am not worried that she will get my place in the wait list (too quick to pass a judgment, right?). What I was telling her was precisely the opposite. I was telling her earlier to just call Mitchell and ask, and also not to withdraw because she might be on the waitlist already and who knows if she stays she might as well get in—so I was worried that she is pissed off by them and wants to call to withdraw. I really think titiana should call Mitchell rather than emailing him. Calling them is faster and you get to ask Mitchell all your questions.d

I wrote to Mitchell, I don't want to call him from London; its an unnecessary expense for me. I'm pretty sure those who are in have been informed already, the reason I want to be clear about things is that I'm expecting a call from my Minnesota POI and just want to tell her clearly where I stand with other offers and potentially accept hers. I am also sorry if I have contributed to the misunderstanding in any way!

[FDT]

I wrote to Mitchell, I don't want to call him from London; its an unnecessary expense for me. I'm pretty sure those who are in have been informed already, the reason I want to be clear about things is that I'm expecting a call from my Minnesota POI and just want to tell her clearly where I stand with other offers and potentially accept hers. I am also sorry if I have contributed to the misunderstanding in any way!

No big deal. It is totally fine. So you will be talking to Simona. She is so wonderful and nice. Her work is so interesting too. I am pretty sure you are right about Columbia, the people who are in have already gotten their invitations. Mitchell told me that by the end of this month they will send out their final decisions. I think the odds are pretty low that anybody turns their program down and the waiting is excruciating, but this is how it works and it is absolutely out of our hands now—at least this year.

[kandeya]

Good luck with your waitlist, FDT (I'll keep my fingers crossed), and let us know how the call with Minnesota goes, titania! Minneapolis-St.Paul is a really nice city--one of my friends is from there and loves it.

[SuperView]

Anyone else hear back from Stanford for the M.A.? I saw one acceptance on the results page...wondering if they're done sending them out...

[haowanr]

Anyone else hear back from Stanford for the M.A.? I saw one acceptance on the results page...wondering if they're done sending them out...

I was wondering the same thing...

[haowanr]

Anyone else hear back from Stanford for the M.A.? I saw one acceptance on the results page...wondering if they're done sending them out...

I just called and they said they would be sent out early next week by email...

[WaitingImpatiently]

I wrote my POI in the EALL dept (who had previously referred my app to the MA program) and she checked for me. Apparently there were 106 applicants and 4 received funding, she didn't say how many were accepted.

Best of luck! Hope we are classmates!

Chnsguy, did you ever hear from Yale?

[FDT]

Just received an offer from Columbia MEALAC.

[chnsguy]

Chnsguy, did you ever hear from Yale?

Hey Waldrop,

Yeah, I'm in at Yale for the MA! Totally stoked, and almost certainly going there. What are your languages/interests? I do Chinese (duh), and am looking toward a career in government. I know I should concentrate on polisci classes, but there are so many interesting (but less relevant to my career plans) classes to take, it's going to be hard to pick them ...

[WaitingImpatiently]

I'm in at Yale too and definitely going, so I guess that we will be classmates! I'm Chinese and really interested in Late Ming literature and culture. You're right! So many fascinating classes to choose from, I keep checking to see if they have posted next semester's classes, but so far nothing. I'm so excited!!! What profs are you thinking of working with? Did you get any funding? I don't think I did but I"m really hoping for the FLAS fellowship or a miracle! I'm so excited though!!! Sorry for the messy excitement, but I'm so thrilled!

[kandeya]

Congratulations FDT! I'm so happy for you!

[FDT]

Thanks Kandeya. I'm visiting campus on Tuesday. Exciting but also intimidating.

[Leafytea]

Hey congrats everyone! If anyone, like kandeya, is considering coming to Berkeley--let me know! I'm actually finishing up my MA here this spring.

[raeying]

Looking for ppl who's also been accepted to Duke's EAS program~

[JBrodsky]

Congratulations to everyone who's gotten in, and good luck to everyone who's waiting. I really appreciate how nice and supportive everyone has been on this thread. It really has been great. :-)

[FDT]

Yes I want to thank you all too. This thread really helped me stay calm during the excruciating wait time. Thanks.