Philosophy Programs-March 15th

[Dorian]

During the application process I found that most schools said they would notify applicants by March 15th for Philosophy PhD programs. Do you all take this to be standard? I applied to 14 schools, it is March 6th and I still haven't heard from 9 of them. What is more, it seems that nobody has heard from many of them! I noticed from looking at posts from last year that some schools weren't sending rejection letters until well into April! I already got into some good programs, but I just wish that if the other schools are going to reject me they would let me know! It isn't very thoughtful of them to push it back until the last possible minute like this!!!

[daseinplushie]

I think it depends on the program. Some of the programs I applied to notified right away, while a couple of them have said not to expect an answer until mid-March. I have found that programs are pretty good about giving me a decisive answer when one has been made. I emailed a number of programs--two of them wrote back and told me I was rejected, one wrote back and told me that I was accepted, and three told me that decisions weren't yet made and that I could expect an answer in mid to late March.

[Dorian]

What schools told you they hadn't made decisions yet and when did you contact them?

[daseinplushie]

It looks like we've applied to some different programs, so I don't know if this is helpful to you or not, but I spoke to Marquette yesterday. They told me that my file was still under review, and that there are three possible categories for which I'm being considered: the funded PhD, the unfunded PhD and the MA. He told me if I call him by late next week, he should have a definite answer for me.

Duquesne told me when I applied that they make decisions in mid-March, but their deadline isn't even until Feb. 15, so that makes sense.

I emailed Fordham last week, and they told me they would start notifying by postal mail (both acceptances and rejections) in about a week.

[Dorian]

Good luck!

[trendytotebag]

I was hoping to hear from the rest of the schools by March 15. I got all excited on March 15, going out to the mailbox and hoping to find letters there from the 7 schools I still hadn't heard from. Acceptance, rejection, I didn't really care any more, I just wanted to know. No mail. No mail at all. I managed to find some of the info online, but I am still waiting on 3, and I'm waitlisted, so I'm slowly going insane as April 15 approaches.

[greenforestcat]

Some schools simply don't send out replies if you have been rejected. I would contact the ones that you haven't heard from, preferably by phone.

[daseinplushie]

Some schools simply don't send out replies if you have been rejected. I would contact the ones that you haven't heard from, preferably by phone.

As unprofessional as it may be, unfortunately that's the truth. There are also a couple of places that, as of a week or so ago, were still trying to decide (these are typically places with later deadlines). It's always a good idea to follow up, though. I contacted a lot of places by email, and most were pretty good about answering me with 48 hours--whether it was good news or bad.