Reviewing submitted application

[katalytik]

How often do you guys catch yourself rechecking your submitted application? I do this a lot!!

1. I check to see if I made mistakes

2. Read on this forum about mistakes and positives, and try to make sure that I did the recommended things also.

3. Check the department website, as if something changed in the one day i did not check it.

Man, I am getting obsessed, possessed.........I am sure i can argue for either most of these days!

[piccgeek]

After my last LOR submitted, I checked the update status over and over again to make sure he really really HAD submitted it. I kept thinking I was going to log in and there would be a big "J/K ROFL no lor sry" or something.

[blah0016]

Yes, I do this for every one of my applications, and have found many mistakes. Once, I accidentally submitted the essay for another school to the wrong program, but managed to contact the secretary and change it before the application got sent to the adcom for review.

Edited January 25, 2010 by blah0016

[boxboss]

Yes, I do this for every one of my applications, and have found many mistakes. Once, I accidentally submitted the essay for another school to the wrong program, but managed to contact the secretary and change it before the application got sent to the adcom for review.

I did the exact same thing. Heart stopped for approximately 2.5 days.

[kismetcapitan]

of course I did this, I am a severe perfectionist. But to make sure I could look at everything objectively, I waited two weeks. I read all my supplementary short essays - exactly how I wanted them. My fellowship essay - couldn't have done any better, it's got 100% of my heart in it in it. Then the only really required essay - the SOP. What a mess! With 20 hours left before deadline, I had a 3500+ word draft that I had to pare down to 1500 words. I got in all my basic ideas...but the flow is completely screwed up and there is one grammatical error. If I could only get it back and add around 10-15 conjunctions that would at least clarify how one idea connects with another, and two key paragraph main idea sentences are nearly gibberish after being pared down to squeeze into the word count. The conclusions is sudden and abrupt - I had to take out about 150 words that tied the final body paragraphs to the conclusion and was far too sleep deprived to see straight enough to try and smooth them together. I was also afraid to touch it further; every time I cut something, I'd suddenly spit out 500 new words. The essay was like cutting heads off a hydra....

I have never cried over my writing before, but I did over this one. It's the writing equivalent of dad cutting your hair at home - the general shape is there, disregarding the fact that it was cut and hacked with a blunt axe! If this essay had come from one of my students I'd have drenched it in red ink. FML

[katalytik]

of course I did this, I am a severe perfectionist. But to make sure I could look at everything objectively, I waited two weeks. I read all my supplementary short essays - exactly how I wanted them. My fellowship essay - couldn't have done any better, it's got 100% of my heart in it in it. Then the only really required essay - the SOP. What a mess! With 20 hours left before deadline, I had a 3500+ word draft that I had to pare down to 1500 words. I got in all my basic ideas...but the flow is completely screwed up and there is one grammatical error. If I could only get it back and add around 10-15 conjunctions that would at least clarify how one idea connects with another, and two key paragraph main idea sentences are nearly gibberish after being pared down to squeeze into the word count. The conclusions is sudden and abrupt - I had to take out about 150 words that tied the final body paragraphs to the conclusion and was far too sleep deprived to see straight enough to try and smooth them together. I was also afraid to touch it further; every time I cut something, I'd suddenly spit out 500 new words. The essay was like cutting heads off a hydra....

I have never cried over my writing before, but I did over this one. It's the writing equivalent of dad cutting your hair at home - the general shape is there, disregarding the fact that it was cut and hacked with a blunt axe! If this essay had come from one of my students I'd have drenched it in red ink. FML

The frustration of writing my SOP would probably add up to most of my frustration I had at work for about a year...........i completely understand!

[tskinner]

I kept thinking I was going to log in and there would be a big "J/K ROFL no lor sry" or something.

lolz

i haz diz nitmare evry nite!

[wednesdaybythesea]

I was reading mine a few times a day following their respective deadlines. I've toned it down to reading one in particular probably about once every other day now. I had to start lying to my friends who - surprise - think I over-think things.

Friends: What are you up to?

Me: Oh... just reading the news / checking my email / reading a book / cleaning my kitchen / it goes on...

It's now laughable to me that I thought that I'd be able to breathe once my applications were all taken care of.