2017 Acceptances

[allywally]

3 minutes ago, Warelin said:

I think it's also important to note that the admissions committee also has responsibilities: In addition to being on the committee, other responsibilities may include: preparing lectures for class(es), grading essays, meeting with students outside class for help, develop new classes, supervise and evaluate graduate student teaching, evaluating teaching by colleagues up for tenure, attend department colloquia, write letters of recommendation for students on jobs, graduate schools, scholarships, and other programs, supervise graduate student research, read and evaluate Ph.D oral examinations, write grant proposals, monitor spending from grants, write papers for publication, read scholarly journals to stay current, edit academic journals,  participate in faculty meetings and committees, respond to information requests from college administrators, give public lectures, participate in or host faculty searches, give presentations to promote university, supervise independent studies or master's theses, guide student research. This is not an exhaustive list and they may be raising a family or have other family obligations in addition to this.

Yepp! My dad is in charge of the graduate education for his department (neuroscience/biochemistry) and its a lot. Not only do they have all these responsibilities, but the application process involves pleasing a lot of professors with strong personalities and differing opinions. And they don't even have 300 writing samples to read...

[piers_plowman]

Being on the adcom is considered by many profs to be the lowest of all possible grunt work. A DGS told me recently it's by far his least favorite committee. Think about it: you read through hundreds of apps, 95% of which you have to eventually reject and will never see again. Almost all your labor is negative, keeping things out rather than nurturing things already in. And, as others have said, they're not professionals. Undergrad admissions are a tight ship, with designated coordinators, recruitment officers, readers, even whole buildings at most schools. This is different, the always-already overworked department itself taking on extra work during one of the busiest times of the year (MLA, start of spring semester, etc.).

 

So just keep in mind that perspective: what for us is the end-all be-all is for them a minor but onerous chore. By that light the attention we do get is very kind.

[MadihaG]

Just now, KTF87 said:

holy crap!! that's f****** aweome!! congrats!!!!!!!
i have no idea how it is when it comes to MA funding (im an international student applyin for a PhD, but I can tell you it's about availability and waitlisting - maybe someone will reject their spot and their money will be yours!) I am not sure at all though, but fingers crossed that this would be the case!!!!!!!!

congrats again and keep the faith!

 

 

Thank you i just hope things work out. 

And good luck to you too.

 

PS: I am also a PHD applicant . The only masters program I applied to is NYU`s Near Eastern studies. 

[orphic_mel528]

All right, who got into Fordham?

[FeetInTheSky]

56 minutes ago, piers_plowman said:

And, as others have said, they're not professionals. Undergrad admissions are a tight ship, with designated coordinators, recruitment officers, readers, even whole buildings at most schools. This is different, the always-already overworked department itself taking on extra work one of the busiest times of the year (MLA, start of spring semester, etc.).

I just want to underscore this point with some concrete detail:

I currently work in undergraduate admissions. This year, I have about 500 applications assigned to me. I've been reading them since November and finished last week. 

The thing about these applications, though, is that none of them contain twenty-page writing samples. The Common App essay is 600 words and can be read by a normal person in a few minutes (if you don't totally space out while reading yet another story about a kid who got cut from her soccer team). I also don't have classes to teach or research to conduct. I also don't need to think about whether certain faculty can mentor the students in admitting, or if they're prepared for a TAship, or any of that stuff. The nuance isn't really there. If a student is qualified, we say yes. That's it. 

I have a staff of fifty students who I need to supervise, and that takes about 25% of my day. 

So I basically have 5-6 hours a day for four months to read 500 very short applications, and I still get stressed by the deadline. I cannot imagine how graduate adcoms process 200-300 applications that are probably at least eight to ten times as long, while also juggling departmental budget and political issues, while also also, you know, being a college professor. 

[RydraWong]

Not sure where the best place to put this was but I just declined a funded Literary Studies MA offer from University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It's a great program but I have some funded PhD offers at this point so I didn't want to keep them hanging. Best of luck to anyone who is on the waitlist for admission or funding!

[ProfessionalNerd]

3 minutes ago, RydraWong said:

Not sure where the best place to put this was but I just declined a funded Literary Studies MA offer from University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It's a great program but I have some funded PhD offers at this point so I didn't want to keep them hanging. Best of luck to anyone who is on the waitlist for admission or funding!

It might make sense to start a "Waitlist Movement" thread or something. Is that a normal thing to do on the grad cafe? 

[CrunchyMamademic]

This forum is seriously a great source of joy -- congratulations to all who have received good news over the last few days!

For those of you still waiting for some news, hang in there. As others have said before me, the professors on the admissions committee must be insanely busy. But there is going to be an end to the suffering eventually.  While I was waiting and attempting not to obsess, I started stalking the CFP board on UPenn and drafting some proposals. Of course, that leads to its own form of anxiety, as I was waiting on PhD programs and a response about my anthology chapter... 

[FeetInTheSky]

48 minutes ago, RydraWong said:

Not sure where the best place to put this was but I just declined a funded Literary Studies MA offer from University of Nebraska-Lincoln. It's a great program but I have some funded PhD offers at this point so I didn't want to keep them hanging. Best of luck to anyone who is on the waitlist for admission or funding!

As a person on that waitlist, I thank you! They said I'm number one on the list, so I really hope that in the MA program that lit funding can slide over to rhet/comp!

[tvethiopia]

heads up to any of the UMass Amherst folks who got that interview email before the actual acceptance: it looks like the online portal has been updated with acceptance info! log in and ease your worried mind!

[KikiDelivery]

I got into CU-Boulder's English PhD program! I want to cry, the amount of choices is getting overwhelming and I just feel so validated. 

[Straparlare]

Congratulations @KikiDelivery! I just finished by BA there. It's a really great school and campus

[JessicaLange]

I tried to post this like six times yesterday, but it wasn't working. I was accepted into Fordham's MA program. I applied for the PhD so that's kind of a bummer but....I received full funding and a stipend for two years! Which is way better than my last MA acceptance which gave no guaranteed funding.

[orphic_mel528]

14 minutes ago, KikiDelivery said:

I got into CU-Boulder's English PhD program! I want to cry, the amount of choices is getting overwhelming and I just feel so validated. 

Congratulations! One of my dearest friends is in her first year of that program and she loves it. 

18 minutes ago, tvethiopia said:

heads up to any of the UMass Amherst folks who got that interview email before the actual acceptance: it looks like the online portal has been updated with acceptance info! log in and ease your worried mind!

I saw this morning and it was like balm to my soul; I was so afraid that someone was going to be like, "Oops, we sent that out on accident!" 

Meanwhile, I'm seeing all kinds of wait listing from Fordham and no PhD acceptances. Out of curiosity, do they wait list their cohort until they have an idea of available funding and then take them off the wait list? I did a search for trends in years past and didn't really find anything.

[piers_plowman]

A fellow member of my current department got a phone call from Fordham's DGS a while ago (Feb 3rd, a Friday) with his PhD acceptance. He's not on GC so he wouldn't have posted, but it's possible acceptances have all gone out by now. I didn't apply there myself, so I don't have any other info. I'm sorry - I hope they contact you!

Edited February 15, 2017 by piers_plowman

[Straparlare]

6 minutes ago, JessicaLange said:

I tried to post this like six times yesterday, but it wasn't working. I was accepted into Fordham's MA program. I applied for the PhD so that's kind of a bummer but....I received full funding and a stipend for two years! Which is way better than my last MA acceptance which gave no guaranteed funding.

Congratulations! I bet you're over the moon!

[ccchezmereldaaa]

Got the thumbs up from Oklahoma State's Experimental Psych PhD program yesterday.

[orphic_mel528]

21 minutes ago, piers_plowman said:

A fellow member of my current department got a phone call from Fordham's DGS a while ago (Feb 3rd, a Friday) with his PhD acceptance. He's not on GC so he wouldn't have posted, but it's possible acceptances have all gone out by now. I didn't apply there myself, so I don't have any other info. I'm sorry - I hope they contact you!

No, no, no need to be sorry. I try to be very zen about all of this. I've done all I can in terms of the application and whether they choose to extend me an offer is out of my hands. Fordham is very selective due to their funding structure, so I considered it one of my reach-schools.

However, as Tom Petty says, "The waiting is the hardest part!" They'll get around to telling me no eventually  

[Yanaka]

21 minutes ago, ccchezmereldaaa said:

Got the thumbs up from Oklahoma State's Experimental Psych PhD program yesterday.

Congrats! But you're in the wrong sub-forum  

[ccchezmereldaaa]

9 minutes ago, Yanaka said:

Congrats! But you're in the wrong sub-forum  

yeah theres really not one for my area of study... i figured i'd mention it anyway in case someone has been waiting on an OSU grad program letter

[MadihaG]

Just now, KikiDelivery said:

I got into CU-Boulder's English PhD program! I want to cry, the amount of choices is getting overwhelming and I just feel so validated. 

Congratulations !!

I see you have been accepted to the MSU too. Have you received any funding offer  yet ? 

[FeetInTheSky]

42 minutes ago, ccchezmereldaaa said:

Got the thumbs up from Oklahoma State's Experimental Psych PhD program yesterday.

WOO!

[Scarlet A+]

3 hours ago, ProfessionalNerd said:

It might make sense to start a "Waitlist Movement" thread or something. Is that a normal thing to do on the grad cafe? 

I just created one (credit to your idea). Only time will tell if people actually use it, but it seems like a really good idea. 

[chamakay]

I saw someone was accepted to UC Santa Barbara; congratulations. Has anyone else heard from UCSB?

[JessicaLange]

4 minutes ago, chamakay said:

I saw someone was accepted to UC Santa Barbara; congratulations. Has anyone else heard from UCSB?

Wondering the same thing. My application portal hasn't changed.