Venting Thread

[SteveZissou]

  On 2/19/2017 at 2:53 AM, humeanerror said:

I knew pedigree mattered, but boy does it seem to matter. Seriously, is there anyone who has gotten into a T20 who did not also go somewhere Leiter-ranked (or highly ranked)?

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I know this is anecdotal, but I do know one person at a T10 who went to a pretty unknown (and unranked) cal state school. It does happen!

Edited February 19, 2017 by SteveZissou

[goss]

  On 2/19/2017 at 2:53 AM, humeanerror said:

I knew pedigree mattered, but boy does it seem to matter. Seriously, is there anyone who has gotten into a T20 who did not also go somewhere Leiter-ranked (or highly ranked)?

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I think this is why I am leaning more towards completing a terminal MA first and then re-applying after (unless I get in somewhere this season). I'm finishing my undergraduate at a school that has a fantastic graduate program (Top 15 PGR), but the undergraduate program is just so-so when it comes to pedigree. I think an additional two years at a very highly ranked MA would make it much easier to get accepted into top PGR schools, plus having experience taking graduate level courses is never a bad thing.

[Big Ariana]

  On 2/19/2017 at 2:53 AM, humeanerror said:

I knew pedigree mattered, but boy does it seem to matter. Seriously, is there anyone who has gotten into a T20 who did not also go somewhere Leiter-ranked (or highly ranked)?

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my partner went to a small state school in the south and got into a T10 the other week (their application cycle = why I'm lurking as a 3rd year PhD student). they did get an MA from a good-not-great philosophy MA program though. and there's somebody in my cohort at a T10 program with an undergrad degree from a cal state system school and no MA in philosophy. it can be done! but then again over half of my cohort when I entered was Ivy/Oxbridge. 

it might be helpful to parse apart the reasons why pedigree has such a big hold, since some are not insurmountable. the insurmountable ones are since you can show you already got into an elite university, you don't have to dazzle the adcom with stellar GREs, possibly. more to the point, it means your letter writers are more likely to be taken seriously in the profession, which can go a long way. it also means your grades will be more impressive, whatever they are (wow, they got an A in David Lewis's metaphysics class!). 

but getting a letter from a professor at a nearby school might not be impossible, if more prestigious schools nearby exist (audit a class or two, ask them to read your paper). or if you're considering the MA route, consider MAs near good PhD programs and insert yourself into classes there. some programs will even have official ways for you to take classes at nearby PhD granting institutions. this can be a great way to get a couple of grades from a big-name professor and possibly a letter. a lot of the folks i know who broke into T20s from unknown undergrads have done this or something like it in some way shape or form. 

all to say, the lack of prestige will be a disadvantage, but some of the other disadvantages coming from going to an unknown or unranked undergraduate program are not insurmountable. 

Edited February 19, 2017 by Big Ariana
added more detail

[753982]

It sucks because you start to feel kind of hypocritical for caring about going to a prestigious program while also wishing those programs didn't care about your not going to a prestigious undergraduate institution. But of course, one who's applying to graduate programs in philosophy almost has to care about prestige insofar as it affects one's chances of ever securing TT employment (although there are NYU grads who are still looking for TT jobs).

[necessaryandsufficient]

I go to a regional nonelite state school and so far I have been admitted to a T10 (according to the updated rankings, at least) and one that's just outside T20 (both of these are also public schools). 

It's also worth noting that I've had the opportunity to do some intensive philosophical work at elite institutions through a summer program and through studying abroad, and I sought out both of those experiences in part because I knew I would be at a disadvantage applying from a school like mine. But I agree, it's really frustrating to see my peers from non-prestigious schools struggle when I know it would have been much easier for them had they gone to a prestigious undergraduate institution. 

Edited February 19, 2017 by necessaryandsufficient

[Glasperlenspieler]

I'm hoping Brown sends out rejections today so I can put that one to rest.

[goss]

  On 2/20/2017 at 12:37 PM, Glasperlenspieler said:

I'm hoping Brown sends out rejections today so I can put that one to rest.

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I'm hoping Brown sends out a second wave of acceptances today so you can add another to the acceptance column.

[Glasperlenspieler]

  On 2/20/2017 at 4:47 PM, goss said:

I'm hoping Brown sends out a second wave of acceptances today so you can add another to the acceptance column.

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Haha thanks! I'd certainly be OK with that result! But honestly, now that I have a few great offers, I really just want a definitive answer from the rest of the programs so that I can get down to making a decision. 

[TruthInFiction]

When will this hellish roller coaster of excitement and disappointment finally come to an end...

[maxhgns]

  On 2/20/2017 at 5:57 PM, TruthInFiction said:

When will this hellish roller coaster of excitement and disappointment finally come to an end...

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It never really ends, it just lies low for a while. Applying for jobs is exactly the same way, and the publishing process isn't all that different either. 

[sleepingsusurrus]

There's was one posted acceptance to Stony Brook awhile back but quiet since, where are the rest?! 

[majorshake]

  On 2/20/2017 at 6:03 PM, maxhgns said:

It never really ends, it just lies low for a while. Applying for jobs is exactly the same way, and the publishing process isn't all that different either. 

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The publishing process is more fun, I reckon. At least you (usually) get told why you didn't get in

[To φ or not to φ]

Come on, Indiana 

[Dialectica]

  On 2/20/2017 at 8:54 PM, To φ or not to φ said:

Come on, Indiana 

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What is going on?!

[Dialectica]

Also, where are the waitlists?? Many programs that have released acceptances *usually* release their waitlists a day or two after the acceptances. But for a good handful it has been a week or so, and nothing still. 

[hrburke]

Anyone have any news from Chapel Hill? I saw a few waitlist decisions go up on GradCafe a while back, but nothing else. Anyone know when they might plan to let others know....?? 

[mano]

  On 2/21/2017 at 9:02 PM, hrburke said:

Anyone have any news from Chapel Hill? I saw a few waitlist decisions go up on GradCafe a while back, but nothing else. Anyone know when they might plan to let others know....?? 

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I think they also sent out few acceptances

[FEB]

To add to the existing Academia.edu anecdotes, I had a profile view by someone from UCLA in late January, and I was accepted to UCLA last week!

[necessaryandsufficient]

  On 2/21/2017 at 9:20 PM, FEB said:

To add to the existing Academia.edu anecdotes, I had a profile view by someone from UCLA in late January, and I was accepted to UCLA last week!

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I have hidden LinkedIn views from someone with the title "University Professor." Hmm...

[eigenname]

  On 2/21/2017 at 9:20 PM, FEB said:

To add to the existing Academia.edu anecdotes, I had a profile view by someone from UCLA in late January, and I was accepted to UCLA last week!

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To add a more pessimistic anecdote: I had a paper view by someone from UCSD 2 weeks ago, but didn't get the acceptance or (purported?) wait-list (yet?), so I'd advise people to be cautiously optimistic  

[Schopenhauerfanboy]

  On 2/21/2017 at 9:20 PM, FEB said:

To add to the existing Academia.edu anecdotes, I had a profile view by someone from UCLA in late January, and I was accepted to UCLA last week!

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Same thing happened for me at Western Ontario. Does anybody pay to get the premium features? I wonder if they are worth it. 

[majorshake]

  On 2/21/2017 at 9:20 PM, FEB said:

To add to the existing Academia.edu anecdotes, I had a profile view by someone from UCLA in late January, and I was accepted to UCLA last week!

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  On 2/21/2017 at 9:50 PM, eigenname said:

To add a more pessimistic anecdote: I had a paper view by someone from UCSD 2 weeks ago, but didn't get the acceptance or (purported?) wait-list (yet?), so I'd advise people to be cautiously optimistic  

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  On 2/21/2017 at 11:48 PM, Schopenhauerfanboy said:

Same thing happened for me at Western Ontario. Does anybody pay to get the premium features? I wonder if they are worth it. 

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McGill visited me last year. McGill rejected me last year

[Glasperlenspieler]

  On 2/21/2017 at 11:48 PM, Schopenhauerfanboy said:

Does anybody pay to get the premium features? I wonder if they are worth it. 

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Somebody posted this article in the history forum, which I found interesting: http://www.forbes.com/sites/drsarahbond/2017/01/23/dear-scholars-delete-your-account-at-academia-edu/#26fedab62ee0

Not sure whether the costs outweigh the benefits, but certainly something to consider.

[majorshake]

  On 2/21/2017 at 11:48 PM, Schopenhauerfanboy said:

 Does anybody pay to get the premium features? I wonder if they are worth it. 

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I do - my motivation was the thing with McGill that happened last year, and I figured that if something similar happened I'd need to have more info to calm my mind. It didn't help, mostly because my academia account is pretty dead - the few new things I can put on it I'm not allowed to for a little while longer.. 

 

Overall, I don't think they're worth it. I intend to cancel my subscription as soon as I get the last rejection

[Dialectica]

How has nothing happened yet? This is ridiculous. 

Anyone willing to act as a liaison for us? One could contact programs and ask when they plan to release decisions (whether that be acceptances, waitlists, or rejections).