Fall 2017 PhD Thread

[RoadtoPhD]

21 minutes ago, aml149 said:

I'll be very disappointed if there isn't one. I need to visit all 3 in order to make my decision :-/

Same here! Temple has a visiting weekend and Northeastern has their pre-admission so I'm hoping cincy has something so that I can get a better sense of where to go. I do remember the graduate director saying there was one for admitted students when we talked!

[AspiringScholar17]

@RoadtoPhD In the letter it says to notify them within 15 days of our admissions offer. Does that mean we have to accept the formal offer within 15 days, or that we accept our interest and have until April to make our final decision?

[aml149]

I'm emailing right now, will let you guys know what they say.

[AspiringScholar17]

3 minutes ago, aml149 said:

I'm emailing right now, will let you guys know what they say.

Could you also ask about campus visitations? Dates and if its happening?

THANKS A MILLION @aml149 !!

[wknd_worrier]

1 hour ago, RoadtoPhD said:

Just got into cincy full funding!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

 

43 minutes ago, aml149 said:

@AspiringScholar17 @RoadtoPhD Same here, accepted to Cincy with full funding!!! Congrats all!! Best day ever!!!

Also it was in my email for almost an HOUR before I checked, UGH!!! Could have had 60 minutes less anxiety!

 

1 hour ago, AspiringScholar17 said:

JUST GOT INTO CINCY TOO!!! Full funding! 

Congrats you guys that's amazing!!! Did all your emails come at about the same time? Been refreshing my email for days but nothing for me today it seems :/

[AspiringScholar17]

3 minutes ago, wknd_worrier said:

 

 

Congrats you guys that's amazing!!! Did all your emails come at about the same time? Been refreshing my email for days but nothing for me today it seems :/

I just got it this afternoon at around 2:06pm to be precise!
I wouldn't lose hope though, as there are many people with other offers that might choose other places!!

[aml149]

@wknd_worrier Mine came right after @AspiringScholar17 at 2:08pm. Just sent the email asking about the 15 days & campus visit. Will let you know when they respond.

[AspiringScholar17]

3 minutes ago, aml149 said:

@wknd_worrier Mine came right after @AspiringScholar17 at 2:08pm. Just sent the email asking about the 15 days & campus visit. Will let you know when they respond.

That's awesome. Thank you @aml149!

[PhDorBUST]

  @aml149  @AspiringScholar17  @RoadtoPhD

Sorry guys. Torn ACL and hangry make me a mean bitch. Congrats. I'm sure I'll get some good news soon.

Edited January 31, 2017 by PhDorBUST
I was being an ass.

[aml149]

7 minutes ago, PhDorBUST said:

Glad you guys have the money to visit multiple campuses must be nice

The schools pay for everything! No out of pocket costs!

[AspiringScholar17]

8 minutes ago, PhDorBUST said:

Glad you guys have the money to visit multiple campuses must be nice

The campus visitations are paid for by the schools normally -- I've only gotten two, so those are the only one's ill be visiting so far.

[Brooke2016]

I'd like to say something on behalf of both me and PhDorBUST. If I am speaking out of turn, PhD, please call me out. Everyone on this forum tho application season seems to be getting accepted and funded right off the bat. While it is great for most of you, for some of us who get acceptances but no funding, it stinks. I think a good analogy would be this: let's say you have 2 kids... on Christmas day, one of those kids gets everything s/he could have ever dreamt of. The other kid gets a sweater and has to watch while the other opens toy after toy after toy.

Is it a selfish emotion? Of course it is. But it is almost unavoidable. I wish you all the best and I'm sure there are good things in store for all of us. 

I'm posting this because I know what PhDorBUST is going through. It's not anger, it's jealousy and it's an ugly emotion, but it is an emotion just the same.

Again, if I'm totally wrong, tell me I suck and I'll be OK with that as well   

[Aarchangels]

I check out this thread very often per day and I found sometimes applicants here lack of some empathy for others. I'm not saying when you get acceptance you shouldn't express your excitement; I'm saying that please be in others' shoes. Obviously the pool is full and very competitive, we all know that. However, (maybe this thought comes from my cultural background) when you're happy with your acceptance, in the meantime, it also means someone fails. It's the reality and no one does anything wrong; no one should blame on anyone. But you could be low-key, which means paying some of your attention to those who fail. We're competitors here, not enemies, and in the future we will become cohort mates, even colleagues. Who knows! Keep some room to each other and keep a good communication/interaction doesn't hurt anyways.  

When my friend knew FSU accepted applicants BEFORE their announced application deadline, he was pissed off. Totally. It's understandable. It's like: ok it's fine if you want to accept outstanding applicants as soon as possible, but it's really unfair to those who are trying to do their best to submit a really good application so they haven't submitted yet.  Well, what I could comfort him was like "I'm sorry to hear this but you know these schools also are competitors to each other, so no wonder when they saw someone they really wanted to accept, they would do everything only for keeping him/her stay. It's like how you did any effort to beg your ex not leave you lol"

Again, sorry to hear the bad news for some of you here, and also congrats to those of you who got what you wanted!

[Brooke2016]

1 hour ago, Aarchangels said:

I check out this thread very often per day and I found sometimes applicants here lack of some empathy for others. I'm not saying when you get acceptance you shouldn't express your excitement; I'm saying that please be in others' shoes. Obviously the pool is full and very competitive, we all know that. However, (maybe this thought comes from my cultural background) when you're happy with your acceptance, in the meantime, it also means someone fails. It's the reality and no one does anything wrong; no one should blame on anyone. But you could be low-key, which means paying some of your attention to those who fail. We're competitors here, not enemies, and in the future we will become cohort mates, even colleagues. Who knows! Keep some room to each other and keep a good communication/interaction doesn't hurt anyways.  

When my friend knew FSU accepted applicants BEFORE their announced application deadline, he was pissed off. Totally. It's understandable. It's like: ok it's fine if you want to accept outstanding applicants as soon as possible, but it's really unfair to those who are trying to do their best to submit a really good application so they haven't submitted yet.  Well, what I could comfort him was like "I'm sorry to hear this but you know these schools also are competitors to each other, so no wonder when they saw someone they really wanted to accept, they would do everything only for keeping him/her stay. It's like how you did any effort to beg your ex not leave you lol"

Again, sorry to hear the bad news for some of you here, and also congrats to those of you who got what you wanted!

I agree with everything you said. Empathy is not taught, it is learned slowly over time. I am happy for all of you, But you also have to look up "humility" in the dictionary. Someday one of us may run into you with exciting new research. Do you want one of us to be the person we remember as "ME, ME, ME?"

To all of you accepted with funding: Congratulations.

To all of you accepted without funding: Hang in there. Good things are coming. 

[Square49]

Just to speak honestly, I don't know where this all came from. I do not think we have lacked empathy. We all congratulate each other when good news is received, and that is simply what this page is about. We post our results so that we may be congratulated, and in turn, we congratulate others who receive good news.But nobody has ever kicked anybody while they're down. I've been rejected as well. None of us would get accepted to every program with funding, assuming one of us did apply to every program. You may not be accepted to or get funding from every school you want, but I think we are all here to encourage everybody and give advice. I understand it may be difficult to stomach, but the purpose of this thread is to announce the decisions you receive, but not to necessarily rub it in anyone's face. 

 

Also, just to throw it out there, empathy may not be such a great thing according to Dr. Bloom of the psychology department at Yale.http://www.vox.com/conversations/2017/1/19/14266230/empathy-morality-ethics-psychology-science-compassion-paul-bloom

[PhDorBUST]

 @Brooke2016 @Aarchangels Thank you. I know we are all anxious, I know we have all worked incredibly hard to get where we are, and I know that a lot of this can simply be a roll of the dice. There's some stuff going on outside of this, mainly a torn ACL, that is not helping my mood. Yes, I am jealous. It was inappropriate of me to say what I did and how I did, and for that I apologize. I wish everyone success, and I hope we all get to meet and possibly work together in the future.

That being said, I think what @Brooke2016 and @Aarchangels and I are trying to express is that there is a way to give us your good news while being mindful of the many other people who are just as qualified and deserving, and want it just as much, if not more that haven't had good news yet. Similarly, a lot of schools I applied to have later admission notification dates; obviously no one's fault, but...and this is where empathy comes in...it makes it difficult to not experience jealousy.

We are happy for you; I think we can all agree that a little humility and empathy are not bad things. @Square49 his point is based off of this assumption that by feeling how someone else feels, that I cannot think and act logically. I disagree. My actions are (usually...at least I try) informed by both my heart and my mind. Why do they have to be mutually exclusive? (Note, they don't). Forgive me as I am coming from a psych and social work background, but in fact, I would argue that for those of us in criminology, criminal justice, and victimology empathy is what will keep us productive, it will keep us compassionate which is what Dr. Bloom wants to encourage us to replace for empathy. I argue that we are capable of utilizing both.

Besides, you've felt disappointment and jealousy, yes? You know it sucks. Is it really so hard to acknowledge that it sucks? Damn.

 

[Ilspflouz]

Wow, so it seems like this thread kind of exploded since I have been here last.

I get the sentiment that some of you are expressing. The last time I applied, I applied to 10 doctoral programs and I didn't get into a single one of them. No "waiting list." No "acceptance without funding." A complete shut out. Meanwhile, my co-workers and friends around me each got into multiple programs and each selected the program of their choice. Rejection sucks. Period. It's a tough pill to swallow and it makes you feel like crap. Especially when you have worked your butt off on building your application for months (or years for some of us) and writing all your app materials forever. For me, I tried really hard not to take any of my rejections personally or let it get to me, but it's next to impossible sometimes. So I get why some people are lashing out. To those of you who application season is not treating well right now, I just want you to know that even if things don't go your way this time - don't give up hope. If you dream of getting into a PhD program, you can. If you get shut out and decide you would rather do something else, that's fine and you can do that too. Rejections don't mean you are shut out forever, they just mean you might have a delay/setback to overcome. I hope that everyone hears good news soon who hasn't been hearing the best. & Please treat yourselves kindly - application season takes a toll on you. 

I do also want to say though that I also agree with Square. I don't think that anyone on this forum has been trying to do anything but express their statuses, celebrate their accomplishments, and hoping their info helps someone else who is eagerly looking for information about the programs they applied to. Can I see how people with multiple acceptances might come off as braggy? Sure. But I am also 100% sure that isn't their intention. We're all just excited and sharing it with people who have gone through the same process and therefore understand how big of a deal it is. Either way, thank you for letting us know that you have been put off by the way some of the acceptances have been being expressed. I will make sure to keep that in mind in the future.

TL;dr: This process is absolutely brutal, and this thread was created for support. That applies to acceptances AND to rejections/ acceptances without funding. Anyone who is experiencing a setback or who is frustrated by the whole process should feel free to post and express themselves! That is after all what this thread is supposed to be hear for.

[Ilspflouz]

To get onto another topic - am I the only one who thinks the idea of only funding certain applicants is kind of a shit move by schools that do so? I personally feel like if you like an applicant enough to accept them then why the heck are you not doing your damndest to get them funding? I may be biased because in my previous field the majority of schools didn't do the accept without funding thing - they only accepted you if they could also afford to provide some type of monetary assistance. 

Totally get if its just me but I just don't get it...the only exception I think for me is if a school accepts you without funding for the first year but kind of guarantees you get some later down the road if you got there (like in 2nd or 3rd year).

[Square49]

27 minutes ago, PhDorBUST said:

 @Brooke2016 @Aarchangels Thank you. I know we are all anxious, I know we have all worked incredibly hard to get where we are, and I know that a lot of this can simply be a roll of the dice. There's some stuff going on outside of this, mainly a torn ACL, that is not helping my mood. Yes, I am jealous. It was inappropriate of me to say what I did and how I did, and for that I apologize. I wish everyone success, and I hope we all get to meet and possibly work together in the future.

That being said, I think what @Brooke2016 and @Aarchangels and I are trying to express is that there is a way to give us your good news while being mindful of the many other people who are just as qualified and deserving, and want it just as much, if not more that haven't had good news yet. Similarly, a lot of schools I applied to have later admission notification dates; obviously no one's fault, but...and this is where empathy comes in...it makes it difficult to not experience jealousy.

We are happy for you; I think we can all agree that a little humility and empathy are not bad things. @Square49 his point is based off of this assumption that by feeling how someone else feels, that I cannot think and act logically. I disagree. My actions are (usually...at least I try) informed by both my heart and my mind. Why do they have to be mutually exclusive? (Note, they don't). Forgive me as I am coming from a psych and social work background, but in fact, I would argue that for those of us in criminology, criminal justice, and victimology empathy is what will keep us productive, it will keep us compassionate which is what Dr. Bloom wants to encourage us to replace for empathy. I argue that we are capable of utilizing both.

Besides, you've felt disappointment and jealousy, yes? You know it sucks. Is it really so hard to acknowledge that it sucks? Damn.

 

I simply do not agree that anybody here has displayed a lack of empathy. 

I mentioned Dr. Bloom as more of a side note, I thought it was it was interesting but it doesn't necessarily fit into the context of this conversation. But Dr. Bloom argues that empathy increases prejudice and discrimination because it is more or less is applied arbitrarily, people are more likely to empathize with people "like them". Something I think can be seen in segments of society in regards to the Syrian refugee crisis. He instead argues for using "rational compassion". So I don't understand how I'm making that assumption. But all of that is beside the point. 

 

I don't doubt that everybody here worked hard and is capable of fine scholarly work. I just don't know how accusations of lacking empathy and humility entered the equation. While I could see if you think that someone is being a little "braggy" or even somewhat arrogant would make you think they lack humility, I don't see how that's connected to empathy. Expressing your excitement about being admitted and feeling bad for someone who didn't get into their dream school are not mutually exclusive feelings. But again, I don't think anybody here was trying to show off per se. Rather, I think people are just joining the conversation and keeping it going because it is the thread where you post decisions. While I was certainly excited whenever I got an acceptance email or whatever, I joined this site with more of the intention to connect with other incoming PhD students, not to simply gloat. 

 

On a more sanguine note, I just want to express that just because you didn't get accepted into a school or offered funding doesn't make you less capable. Admissions is an imperfect process- full of politics, subjectivity, and ambiguity. And I agree with @HedgieLove, I wish funding was attached to admissions at all schools. All of this seems to be a big misunderstanding of intentions. Contentious definitions of the situation if you will. But, and I think I speak for everybody, nobody is rooting against anyone. It is not necessarily a zero sum game. And back to another previous point by @HedgieLove, if you want to vent it is totally fine. I think an expression of dismay or stress would be met with empathy from most people here. 

[PhDorBUST]

2 hours ago, Square49 said:

I simply do not agree that anybody here has displayed a lack of empathy. 

I mentioned Dr. Bloom as more of a side note, I thought it was it was interesting but it doesn't necessarily fit into the context of this conversation. But Dr. Bloom argues that empathy increases prejudice and discrimination because it is more or less is applied arbitrarily, people are more likely to empathize with people "like them". Something I think can be seen in segments of society in regards to the Syrian refugee crisis. He instead argues for using "rational compassion". So I don't understand how I'm making that assumption. But all of that is beside the point. 

 

I don't doubt that everybody here worked hard and is capable of fine scholarly work. I just don't know how accusations of lacking empathy and humility entered the equation. While I could see if you think that someone is being a little "braggy" or even somewhat arrogant would make you think they lack humility, I don't see how that's connected to empathy. Expressing your excitement about being admitted and feeling bad for someone who didn't get into their dream school are not mutually exclusive feelings. But again, I don't think anybody here was trying to show off per se. Rather, I think people are just joining the conversation and keeping it going because it is the thread where you post decisions. While I was certainly excited whenever I got an acceptance email or whatever, I joined this site with more of the intention to connect with other incoming PhD students, not to simply gloat. 

 

On a more sanguine note, I just want to express that just because you didn't get accepted into a school or offered funding doesn't make you less capable. Admissions is an imperfect process- full of politics, subjectivity, and ambiguity. And I agree with @HedgieLove, I wish funding was attached to admissions at all schools. All of this seems to be a big misunderstanding of intentions. Contentious definitions of the situation if you will. But, and I think I speak for everybody, nobody is rooting against anyone. It is not necessarily a zero sum game. And back to another previous point by @HedgieLove, if you want to vent it is totally fine. I think an expression of dismay or stress would be met with empathy from most people here. 

 

Do I think anyone meant to be braggy? Nope. Do I think people got wrapped up in their success and maybe forgot about those of us who are still waiting? Probably. Was it malicious? Of course not. 

By the way, I edited my response because when I went back, I realized that I overreacted and took my anxiety out in the wrong place. This was a great lesson in not posting with a torn ACL before taking my pain meds I apologized and tried to make light of it with a little self-deprecating humor. I know that I will end up in the program where I am supposed to be, as we all will.

While I love feeling like I'm so important that everyone gives 2 shits about what I think, can we drop this? If not, that's cool, but I'm out of it.

Like I said previously, my sincerest congratulations to those of you with acceptances with funding. I saw another person got into UC and truly think that is wonderful. 

 

 

[Ilspflouz]

1 hour ago, PhDorBUST said:

Do I think anyone meant to be braggy? Nope. Do I think people got wrapped up in their success and maybe forgot about those of us who are still waiting? Probably. Was it malicious? Of course not. 

By the way, I edited my response because when I went back, I realized that I overreacted and took my anxiety out in the wrong place. This was a great lesson in not posting with a torn ACL before taking my pain meds I apologized and tried to make light of it with a little self-deprecating humor. I know that I will end up in the program where I am supposed to be, as we all will.

While I love feeling like I'm so important that everyone gives 2 shits about what I think, can we drop this? If not, that's cool, but I'm out of it.

Like I said previously, my sincerest congratulations to those of you with acceptances with funding. I saw another person got into UC and truly think that is wonderful. 

 

 

Oh god, the dreaded torn ACL. On top of apps!!! That is ridiculous. Rest up and feel better! On a better note, looks like UIC has started sending out notifications in the 1st or 2nd week of Feb the past couple years. So hopefully you don't have long to wait for that school at least.

[PhDorBUST]

@HedgieLove Yes I am in agony. Essentially stuck in bed, in pain, waiting. I'm actually a bit concerned that I died, didn't know it, and I'm in hell.

 

Yeah, UIC and SHSU will be making decisions in the next week or two so...all the things are crossed  In the meantime I get to have surgery! The anesthesia is what I'm really looking foward to; basically the most restorative nap EVER 

[Ilspflouz]

20 minutes ago, PhDorBUST said:

@HedgieLove Yes I am in agony. Essentially stuck in bed, in pain, waiting. I'm actually a bit concerned that I died, didn't know it, and I'm in hell.

 

Yeah, UIC and SHSU will be making decisions in the next week or two so...all the things are crossed  In the meantime I get to have surgery! The anesthesia is what I'm really looking foward to; basically the most restorative nap EVER 

Ahhh!!! I really feel for you. I had an unexpected surgery during my last application cycle and it was ridiculous. At least you will be out of it for a few days and probably won't care about anything. Maybe it will be like a vacation from the stress. It was for me kind of. Lol. Good luck with the surgery and the apps!!!

[PhDorBUST]

1 hour ago, HedgieLove said:

Ahhh!!! I really feel for you. I had an unexpected surgery during my last application cycle and it was ridiculous. At least you will be out of it for a few days and probably won't care about anything. Maybe it will be like a vacation from the stress. It was for me kind of. Lol. Good luck with the surgery and the apps!!!

Oh man that's a great idea I probably won't worry about a thing for a good 2-3 days!

[wknd_worrier]

On 1/27/2017 at 11:03 PM, PhDorBUST said:

Hey guys, if a program director asks to set up a time to speak briefly over the phone with you...what do you prepare for? Like....how does one prepare for a conversation that you have no idea what it is about???

 

How did your conversation go? I'm supposed to talk to a grad director in a couple hours and have no idea what to expect!