STS Applicants - Fall 2016

[nevermind]

7 minutes ago, Neist said:

I wouldn't be as surprised if I didn't get into RPI. It's not as good of a fit compared to other programs. I knew that before applying, but I am getting a little bit antsy. Recent developments in Oklahoma's education budget means that even if I do get accepted into OU, I might not get funding, and Cornell is a bit of a long shot, even if I think myself a competitive applicant. I got accepted into Drexel, but it'd be very, very expensive to attend, and I'm guessing RPI probably isn't going to happen. 

I really liked BGSU's program, and I'd be more than happy to go there. Supposed to hear back from them in a couple weeks. If I don't get into BGSU, I'm going to be stuck between a rock and an expensive place.

@nevermind, do you have a job to keep you occupied for another year? I wouldn't mind waiting too much if I had something to keep me occupied, but it's slightly more terrifying if there's nothing holding you up for a year.

 

I freelance, and right now, I have contract work with a nightmare client. But I have a second interview for a research assistant job at a nearby (prestigious) school next Thursday...so at least I could hypothetically take more classes (for free) and get newer LORs for another cycle. It's not a bad backup option to have if it pans out. My interactions with my POI from UCSD were extremely positive and it's a solid program, so I'm hopeful that something will come out of that, as I'm just ready to start the long arduous process of doctoral work. I just really hoped I could finally write "accepted at my top choice!!!" but sometimes life doesn't work out that way. 

[anthrostudentcyn]

I'm in a slightly decent situation in that I'm only 21 and could do a master's/get a job/whatever else 21 year olds do for one or two years. But yeah I haven't heard anything except probably bad news from most of my programs and I'd just really like to enter accepted into the results search!

[A Librarian]

I hope the coming days and weeks will bring good news to everybody on this forum!

@nevermind hopefully the interview at UCSD will result in an offer. I think that if they're interviewing you it's a clear sign that they are seriously considering making an offer to you. I know some people who interviewed at UCSD in past years and the impression they gave me was that the interviews are "just to make sure you're a normal human being." I'm certainly rooting for you!

@Neist have you gotten in touch with anybody in the financial aid department at Drexel? I know you're still waiting to hear back from other places, but sometimes (once you're accepted) you can get the home department and the financial aid department to offer you more money. I know that Drexel will still be expensive (I will never escape the mountain of debt I have accrued at NYU) but they might be able to defray the cost a bit. Granted, hopefully you'll get a better offer soon.

Edited February 11, 2016 by A Librarian

[Neist]

1 minute ago, A Librarian said:

I hope the coming days and weeks will bring good news to everybody on this forum!

@nevermind hopefully the interview at UCSD will result in an offer. I think that if they're interviewing you it's a clear sign that they are seriously considering making an offer to you. For what it's worth: I'm certainly rooting for you!

@Neist have you gotten in touch with anybody in the financial aid department at Drexel? I know you're still waiting to hear back from other places, but sometimes (once you're accepted) you can get the home department and the financial aid department to offer you more money.

I have not, but I have talked to the home department after I was accepted. They told me that they do not give tuition waivers (or at least they are exceedingly rare). They did tell me that RA positions are common, but I'd imagine I'd have to eat at least a year of support before I built the relationships necessary to obtain a RA position. However, the tuition is the rough part. It's $1,157 a credit hour, which doesn't sound bad, but they operate on quarters. At Drexel you need 45 credit hours for a MA because a credit hour in a quarter system doesn't exactly a credit hour elsewhere. So before any living expenses or fees, I'd be paying $52,065 in tuition. 

Nine credit hours is a semester, so you could finish the program in just over a year, but I'd still have to eat maybe 20k in living expenses? It'd be rough. I'll contact the financial aid department though and see. They do have fellowships, and I got a fellowship, but it's only for $1,400 a quarter, or $5,600 a year if you attend all four quarters.

Very rough.

 

[nevermind]

49 minutes ago, A Librarian said:

I hope the coming days and weeks will bring good news to everybody on this forum!

@nevermind hopefully the interview at UCSD will result in an offer. I think that if they're interviewing you it's a clear sign that they are seriously considering making an offer to you. I know some people who interviewed at UCSD in past years and the impression they gave me was that the interviews are "just to make sure you're a normal human being." I'm certainly rooting for you!

Thanks! I'm pretty sure my POI just wanted to confirm my interest in the Science Studies program. I checked the box on the application to indicate "Science studies" but I also selected "Research areas" as Middle East and Jewish Studies (since my research involves both), so there was some confusion which track I was shooting for. Our two Skype conversations were extremely positive. I don't think they've made any final decisions, so I'm hopeful. I just hope the funding situation isn't completely dire.

I think two rejections in an hour kind of bruised my ego a bit. Madison's stung most because I thought it would've been the best research fit out of all my programs (working with Samer Alatout and William Cronon would've been a dream!). I'm trying to hold on to a little bit of hope for Harvard and Oregon (Oregon doesn't assign an adviser until after your first year, so it might be a bit more forgiving in the admissions process), as they are much better "fits" than Penn or Yale, but one of my POIs at Harvard is on academic leave, so I'm really not *that* hopeful. 

I can build a relatively strong committee at UCSD, I'm super pumped about the first year course load, my POI is really well known (in what I do) and connected, and there's a ton of rock climbing around (70 degrees all year anyone?)...so if it's the *only* place that gives me an offer, I'll be happy. Like I said, it's more of the disappointment of dealing with multiple rejections (after all the work I put in), when I thought I'd have my pick of places this time around. C'est la vie.  

Edited February 11, 2016 by nevermind

[Neist]

Ergh. Third RPI acceptance posted, and I've yet to hear anything. Pretty sure there's no hope for me in that program unless I'm wait listed. I sent an email a day or two ago and heard nothing but silence. All three results state they were emailed within a three day window, and I can't imagine their entering group is much larger than 4-5 (although that's just a guess).

Let's hope my other programs turn out better.

Edited February 12, 2016 by Neist
Typos.

[nevermind]

59 minutes ago, Neist said:

Let's hope my other programs turn out better.

I hope so @Neist!

This week was certainly eventful for me, but not the way I was hoping. I'm working from home today in case any last minute second-week-of-February acceptances/rejections come in. Otherwise, next week we should all be notified about something!

[ladyobscure]

I may have asked this before but did anyone here at all apply to Chicago's Conceptual and Historical Studies of Science program? Seems that there isn't anyone else on the internet that has...

[AmandaADomingues]

Dear STS colleagues,

I am an international STS student and I was informed this week that I am on the waitlist for GTech HSOC PhD.

Anyone can tell me if this is good or bad? Do I still have chances? And does this mean that I will get a definite answer only after 15th April?

 

Thanks for your help!!

[A Librarian]

Congratulations @Neist on the Bowling Green State acceptance!

On 2/13/2016 at 9:50 PM, ladyobscure said:

I may have asked this before but did anyone here at all apply to Chicago's Conceptual and Historical Studies of Science program? Seems that there isn't anyone else on the internet that has...

I don't think any of the folks regularly posting on this forum applied to that program (though it's certainly a good one). Maybe there are some people reading this forum from the shadows who can comment on that program? Anybody? Lurkers? Overall, I'd say that the results boards can be a little bit sparse when it comes to looking for info about STS (and STS style) programs (the entries about Cornell and Penn are sparse as well as rather old). I'll let you know if I hear anything about Chicago, but I'm not sure I know anybody who applied there this cycle. 

23 hours ago, AmandaADomingues said:

I am an international STS student and I was informed this week that I am on the waitlist for GTech HSOC PhD.

Anyone can tell me if this is good or bad? Do I still have chances? And does this mean that I will get a definite answer only after 15th April?

I'd say that being put on the waitlist isn't a bad thing at all. Most STS programs tend not to admit many people (3 or 4) so even being put on the waitlist means you're in the top bunch of applicants! I would guess that you still probably have a decent chance of getting in off the waitlist. I would imagine that you should have an answer from the program before the April 15th deadline. One of the current problems, in terms of waitlists, is that there are several STS programs which still haven't announced their final decisions (Cornell, Penn, UCSD Science Studies, and I'm sure there are others), or have sent out acceptances but haven't sent out fellowship information yet, so it may mean that there are people who have been accepted to GTech HSOC but who are waiting to see if they get in other places. I recognize that isn't the most helpful advice, but it seems to me like the best thing to do is just be patient for a while. If you still haven't heard anything more by the first week of March I'd recommend you contact the department. Good luck!

Here's hoping this next week brings good news for everybody!

[nevermind]

3 hours ago, A Librarian said:

Here's hoping this next week brings good news for everybody!

Me too! Either way, I should know where I stand with all my schools by the end of this week (officially or not), based on past decision notifications. :-)

 

[Neist]

5 hours ago, A Librarian said:

Congratulations @Neist on the Bowling Green State acceptance!

Thanks a bunch!  Having an affordable acceptance definitely makes the wait more endurable.

I still haven't heard from RPI, acceptance or rejection. I've assumed rejection, but they haven't updated my status. It's been 10 days since the first acceptance emails, so they are dragging their feet a little.

The only STS program I have left to hear from is Cornell, and I'm pretty sure we're all going to be waiting for that program for a while. It might be another month, even.

[ladyobscure]

For those of you applying to York STS, I just received an email from GPD saying that decisions will go out last week of February and first week of March. 

[ladyobscure]

On February 14, 2016 at 3:16 PM, A Librarian said:

I don't think any of the folks regularly posting on this forum applied to that program (though it's certainly a good one). Maybe there are some people reading this forum from the shadows who can comment on that program? Anybody? Lurkers? Overall, I'd say that the results boards can be a little bit sparse when it comes to looking for info about STS (and STS style) programs (the entries about Cornell and Penn are sparse as well as rather old). I'll let you know if I hear anything about Chicago, but I'm not sure I know anybody who applied there this cycle. 

Well, someone on the board got in and was notified Friday apparently! This makes me scared because the admin website shows nothing in terms of my application status other than the fact that it was "submitted"....there goes 1/6

[AmandaADomingues]

@Neist @sts4656 @RamyaS

anyone heard anything about MIT HASTS?

I know they have started interviews, but has anyone who was not interviewed received an answer?

I sent them an email but got nothing.

I've heard they do not admit many international candidates, is this true?

[Neist]

22 minutes ago, AmandaADomingues said:

@Neist @sts4656 @RamyaS

anyone heard anything about MIT HASTS?

I know they have started interviews, but has anyone who was not interviewed received an answer?

I sent them an email but got nothing.

I've heard they do not admit many international candidates, is this true?

I don't think anyone's heard back yet, but I could be wrong.

Considering previous years reported on Grad Cafe, the results might roll out anywhere between now and mid March.

It's hard to know anything with STS programs because the applicant pools are rather small.

[nevermind]

41 minutes ago, AmandaADomingues said:

@Neist @sts4656 @RamyaS

anyone heard anything about MIT HASTS?

I know they have started interviews, but has anyone who was not interviewed received an answer?

I sent them an email but got nothing.

I've heard they do not admit many international candidates, is this true?

I think it's a pretty common sentiment that if you don't get selected for an interview, chances of acceptance to the program are very small. I would start bracing myself for a rejection and be pleasantly surprised if this wasn't the case. (For example, I did not get an interview from Penn, so I believe it's going to lead to an eventual rejection.)

[A Librarian]

Congratulations @nevermind on being accepted to UCSD!

 

[nevermind]

15 minutes ago, A Librarian said:

Congratulations @nevermind on being accepted to UCSD!

 

Thanks! I'm still waiting to hear about funding (and an official acceptance from Science Studies), but I'm pretty excited about the offer. I'm not sure where UCSD falls in terms of your offers, but perhaps we'll be in the same (Science Studies) cohort!

Edited February 17, 2016 by nevermind

[Neist]

HASTS rejections are popping up in the results.

My condolences.  

Just got a response from RPI STS. Turns out they are still reviewing applications, so there's still hope. Whoo! To my understanding their adcom is fairly small. Maybe they have some sort of quasi rolling admissions and determine funding after all acceptances have been notified.

Edited February 18, 2016 by Neist
New info on RPI STS

[nevermind]

2 hours ago, Neist said:

HASTS rejections are popping up in the results.

My condolences.  

Just got a response from RPI STS. Turns out they are still reviewing applications, so there's still hope. Whoo! To my understanding their adcom is fairly small. Maybe they have some sort of quasi rolling admissions and determine funding after all acceptances have been notified.

That *is* good news! (The RPI part, not the HASTS part.) My fingers are crossed that it works out for you @Neist!

MIT HASTS is such a great program. I considered applying there, but it's so fierce that I just wanted to save my application fee. Congrats to everyone who got admitted (and my condolences to everyone who didn't). At least there's always post-doc opportunities, right?

[Neist]

Ergh.. 

So I obsessively looked up the day of the week that both of Cornell STS acceptances were notified in previous years. Both acceptances were on Fridays. One was Feb. 18 and the other was Feb. 20.

Yeah, totally isn't stressful. Not at all. The worst part is that you don't know if you haven't been accepted because, given the number of acceptances historically, no one here might get in, so there might not be any results posted. In 2014 and 2015 the acceptances were always posted first and later followed by a chunk of rejections days or weeks later.

[nevermind]

2 hours ago, Neist said:

Ergh.. 

So I obsessively looked up the day of the week that both of Cornell STS acceptances were notified in previous years. Both acceptances were on Fridays. One was Feb. 18 and the other was Feb. 20.

Yeah, totally isn't stressful. Not at all. The worst part is that you don't know if you haven't been accepted because, given the number of acceptances historically, no one here might get in, so there might not be any results posted. In 2014 and 2015 the acceptances were always posted first and later followed by a chunk of rejections days or weeks later.

Yeah. I hope you get in--but I wouldn't worry so much about the pressure of gaining admittance to a "career making" program. At the risk of sounding naive, I think it's the work you do that gets you where you want to be. I'd be lying if I didn't say I was a little nervous that my offer is ranked #30 in history (as a discipline), BUT I think it's one of the highest ranked Science Studies programs (after Cornell, Berkeley, Stanford...) which STS/HSS is such a weird field anyway. If you're not publishing / getting fellowships, you're not going to get an academic job (and even then, it's a little sparse these days anyway), regardless of what PhD program you attend.

If you don't get in this year, a funded Master's is a significant boost, so don't lose heart. What I learned this year is...when people say "research fit" they don't mean "find one or two professors" that do similar work that you do. It's equally important to apply to meet the "tone" of the department. I applied far too narrowly. I picked history of science programs with a couple people who do work on technology or env. history, but that's not what many of the department's are known for (like how Harvard has a lot of biology stuff, or Yale has a lot of medicine stuff). I think I would've been a lot more successful (I think) in doing environmental history with people who have ancillary interests in STS rather than History of Science.

*shrug* it's been a weird February.

 

[ladyobscure]

7 hours ago, Neist said:

Ergh.. 

So I obsessively looked up the day of the week that both of Cornell STS acceptances were notified in previous years. Both acceptances were on Fridays. One was Feb. 18 and the other was Feb. 20.

Yeah, totally isn't stressful. Not at all. The worst part is that you don't know if you haven't been accepted because, given the number of acceptances historically, no one here might get in, so there might not be any results posted. In 2014 and 2015 the acceptances were always posted first and later followed by a chunk of rejections days or weeks later.

And...someone got in...apparently. I'm no longer so hopeful at all.....

[Neist]

4 hours ago, nevermind said:

Yeah. I hope you get in--but I wouldn't worry so much about the pressure of gaining admittance to a "career making" program. At the risk of sounding naive, I think it's the work you do that gets you where you want to be. I'd be lying if I didn't say I was a little nervous that my offer is ranked #30 in history (as a discipline), BUT I think it's one of the highest ranked Science Studies programs (after Cornell, Berkeley, Stanford...) which STS/HSS is such a weird field anyway. If you're not publishing / getting fellowships, you're not going to get an academic job (and even then, it's a little sparse these days anyway), regardless of what PhD program you attend.

If you don't get in this year, a funded Master's is a significant boost, so don't lose heart. What I learned this year is...when people say "research fit" they don't mean "find one or two professors" that do similar work that you do. It's equally important to apply to meet the "tone" of the department. I applied far too narrowly. I picked history of science programs with a couple people who do work on technology or env. history, but that's not what many of the department's are known for (like how Harvard has a lot of biology stuff, or Yale has a lot of medicine stuff). I think I would've been a lot more successful (I think) in doing environmental history with people who have ancillary interests in STS rather than History of Science.

*shrug* it's been a weird February.

I appreciate the words of encouragement.  

I know I could get a masters and then move onto a PhD program, but I'm not getting any younger, and I'm not sure if I can ride out poverty for another 8-10 years while I support my family. One of the major reasons why I'm pursuing a graduate education is because I want to provide better for my family. I know it sounds strange wanting to go into academia to earn more money, but I don't make much money now, and because of health reasons, I physically cannot do anything that requires significant physical strain. An education is really the only path for any variety of success. Besides, my daughter would be a teenager by the time I finish if I'm not careful, and I would have spent the majority of her life incredibly busy and preoccupied with my education.

Nothing is concrete, but I have a lingering suspicion that if I don't get into a PhD program now, I might lose the opportunity to. I guess that's okay, but it's disappointing. Maybe I can pursue a PhD later in life, after my daughter is a bit older. If I was single, I wouldn't really care, but the moment I became a father my life and was the moment that my time wasn't exclusively my own.