SSHRC 2010

[Moustabill]

I'm still lurking around.

[Canuckonomist]

Just popping in to say I've heard nothing (of course, lol). I'm surprised things have been so quiet... I thought we'd finally be getting some good news! I still think I might try calling them at the end of the month, even if only to see if I can figure out how their waitlist processing works!

Yeah, someone has to prod them again soon. Again, I'm no longer allowed. They mailed me my restraining order last week.

[Phalène]

I called SSHRC (just couldn't wait), and they've changed how they do things slightly. The admin assistant took my name and number and someone is supposed to call me back (but given that I specified that my call was about the waitlist, they might decide to ignore me, hah).

If I actually do get through to someone I'm going to ask about the waitlist protocols more generally (as opposed to enquiring about my own status, where they definitely won't tell me anything). I'm hoping to find out if things are just moving very slowly, or if they've finished giving out the alternate awards at this time. Let's see if I hear back from anyone...

Edited October 14, 2010 by Phalène

[Amuna]

Blehg, I'm in the process of (re)writing another SSHRC application. I just popped in to check if there was a new thread going. =)

I'm not sure if I posted this before.. but my old mentor told me that she had a student hear back from SSHRC in January about receiving funding (bumped up from a recommended but not funded sort of situation). So I'm not sure exactly what the time line is, but yes.. I'm sorry, it can be that late..

I was 12th in line, so I'm not really too optimistic, haha .. I AM optimistic about this year though. Woot! Third time is a charm I hope! I am hoping to submit and wait until at least April this time before I start fretting and trolling through here again. =)

Good luck everyone! <3

[Phalène]

Bad news for me

They've merged all the subgroups' waitlists and ranked them by scores, which means I am no longer number one on my waitlist (and I think this is ridiculous given that we know that some committees score harder than others!). Apparently they did receive a few extra CGSs, but not enough that it would make a difference for most people. I've been told my chances of receiving a bump up are pretty slim, given this new situation.

So I'm pretty bummed. All that waiting and obsessing for nothing, heh.

I wasn't able to get any info about the SDF waitlist, other than if someone hasn't heard by now, they aren't likely to be receiving it (I am not sure if these waitlists have also been merged).

They are still giving out awards to people on the waiting list, but the new competition has started and that is their priority now. It could be over a month before people on the waitlist hear anything.

Sorry I don't have better news, guys...

[transboundary]

I wonder if that explains why I moved from 4 to 7 on the waitlist?

[Canuckonomist]

Bad news for me

They've merged all the subgroups' waitlists and ranked them by scores, which means I am no longer number one on my waitlist (and I think this is ridiculous given that we know that some committees score harder than others!). Apparently they did receive a few extra CGSs, but not enough that it would make a difference for most people. I've been told my chances of receiving a bump up are pretty slim, given this new situation.

So I'm pretty bummed. All that waiting and obsessing for nothing, heh.

I wasn't able to get any info about the SDF waitlist, other than if someone hasn't heard by now, they aren't likely to be receiving it (I am not sure if these waitlists have also been merged).

They are still giving out awards to people on the waiting list, but the new competition has started and that is their priority now. It could be over a month before people on the waitlist hear anything.

Sorry I don't have better news, guys...

Well, I imagine that's pretty craptacular news for all of us. Glad to know they've changed the game so late. If this is the case, I'll be royally miffed that someone didn't tell us earlier. 5 months of meaningless stress, if that's the case.

Canuck

Edited October 14, 2010 by Canuckonomist

[Canuckonomist]

I e-mailed MSP, but @ 4:25, so I will likely not hear until tomorrow, if at all, if she wants to tell me something. I've given up all hope already, and figure if she has good news, then I can be happy about this all over again. Defeatist, maybe. Realistic, more likely.

[ChanEcon]

I guess Phalene's post sort of ends the thread. I felt for Canuck and wrote to MSP, and she forwarded it to the general email address. Their answer was:

"Ont peux soumettre une offre a n'importe quel moment. Sauf, je vous suggere de concentrer sur le prochain concour"

"An offer can be made at any time. However, I recommend that you focus on the upcoming contest."

Please appreciate the horrible French... that's about all that there is to appreciate.

Good luck for next year!

Edited October 15, 2010 by ChanEcon

[Canuckonomist]

I guess Phalene's post sort of ends the thread. I felt for Canuck and wrote to MSP, and she forwarded it to the general email address. Their answer was:

"Ont peux soumettre une offre a n'importe quel moment. Sauf, je vous suggere de concentrer sur le prochain concour"

"An offer can be made at any time. However, I recommend that you focus on the upcoming contest."

Please appreciate the horrible French... that's about all that there is to appreciate.

Good luck for next year!

Thanks, mate. If she does that with my e-mail, I'll be disappointed. That, from someone who, in may, and for 4 months after told me to keep in touch, weekly, by phone or e-mail, and then suddenly said, "I'll let you know if you get one," is rather cruel. I figured if she knew something, she could at least put me out of my misery. It's the kind thing to do.

Canuck

[Canuckonomist]

I believe my e-mail met the same fate as ChanEcon's. It's been logged by the CAS system, and a reply will be rendered... eventually.

(I sense the imminent end to this thread.)

[Canuckonomist]

Good news for SDFers. MSP e-mailed me back, and said this:

"Yes, the groups were merged for the purposes of giving out CGS's (as some groups had run out of alternate CGS's), however this process is over now and all CGS offers have been sent. Your ranking within your subgroup in regards to our regular SSHRC doctoral award has not changed, you are still first on the list of alternates, and there is still the possibility that we may receive more funding in that envelope within the next few weeks."

I'm still thinking it's not likely, which to me is the better way to go, but there is still a faint glimpse of hope. Waiting through December, we'll set what happens. I'm glad she was willing to help me out.

Canuck

P.S: It's AAAAAAAAAAALIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIVEEEEEEEE! (The thread, that is.)

[ChanEcon]

"there is still the possibility that we may receive more funding" How many conditionals can you put in one sentence!

I'm just happy you reconciled with MSP. You should send her a Christmas card. She'll be there next year...

If they had settled the SDF before solving the CGS, there would have been a sub-committee in which students on the waitlist would have gotten CGS. Imagine that! Now, it's no longer possible.

[Canuckonomist]

"there is still the possibility that we may receive more funding" How many conditionals can you put in one sentence!

I'm just happy you reconciled with MSP. You should send her a Christmas card. She'll be there next year...

If they had settled the SDF before solving the CGS, there would have been a sub-committee in which students on the waitlist would have gotten CGS. Imagine that! Now, it's no longer possible.

Those conditionals are what has mostly dashed my hopes, but that's ok. It is interesting to know that that was the case for the CGSs. Crazy stuff.

[mudlark]

Sorry for the bad news, Phalene. That's royally shitty.

I'm glad that the subgroups weren't merged for SDF folks, or you econ boys would be screwed! Weren't winning econ scores generally two or three points lower than some other subgroups?

Ok now I'm really embarrassed that I remembered that.

[Canuckonomist]

Yeah, we didn't score as well. It's good news for me, no matter how slim the chances. We'll see what happens in the next few weeks. It does mean, too, that SpaceJump is still in the running, but I doubt ze wants to hear that. Further, it means that should someone drop out and have to repay in the first term, we might still see some more money. All I wanted to hear from them was that I was still first. It just means nothing has happened yet, for me (not that it's guarenteed to happen, anyhow).

I feel bad for Phalene that the CGSs were merged, but, (and I'm not sure if this helps, Phalene,) it would be unlikely that you would have received one in the original scheme. As I understand from MSP, they gave out CGSs like they usually did, but there was a subgroup or two that ran out of CGS alternates (They weren't going to give them to people who didn't have an SDF at that point already). As a result they had extra CGS awards left over from those subgroups,and merging was their fairest way to disperse them. Sadly, it's not a perfect system. What sucks, is that your subgroup never moved at all initially. That's the worst part of it -that you just happened to be in the wrong subgroup, in the wrong year.

I hope that makes you feel less like you were completely robbed of a CGSs, though probably no less agitated. If I don't win one at this point, I'll at least be content in the fact that they didn't lump ALL the SDF alternates together from the start, and that I lost out, like you did, falling victim to a stagnant waitlist. The good thing for you is, however, that you do at least have some kind of award. While there is a jump from $20,000-$35,000, I am currently sitting at $0, so you've got something!

Edited October 16, 2010 by Canuckonomist

[ChanEcon]

Yeah, we didn't score as well.

I talked to an econ prof at Queen's about SSHRC, and he said that econ students are generally disadvantaged, because it's very uncommon for students starting a PhD in economics to have a publication, while it's fairly normal for other disciplines. It might be partially due to the fact that most econ education is about solving problem sets and not writing essays, so it's harder to turn a good solution to a problem set into a publication than it is for a a term paper. It might also be because undergrad material has almost nothing to do with current research. All this to say that econ students generally don't get the +2 (random number) that is associated with a publication, so we're lacking behind. This is not as much a problem if we compare econ students with other econ students.

[mudlark]

That doesn't make much sense. I can see beginner PhDs in the social sciences having publications, but most humanities students are slow to publish. It's very rare for English PhDs to publish early. We had two profs who had served on the selection committee in years past come and talk to us, and they said they literally *never* saw an impressive publication on an application. They would have been judging the lit subgroup.

[Canuckonomist]

I can see Chan's point though, for the Social sciences group. PoliSci students, and other SocScis can publish early, and perhaps that counts for something. But then again, you used the word impressive, and that might be harder to find.

[SpaceJump]

It does mean, too, that SpaceJump is still in the running, but I doubt ze wants to hear that.

It's not that I don't want to hear it - it's good news! It's just that we've all been burned so many times by the whole "in the next few weeks" thing that I'm completely done holding my breath for this year's competition. If my situation changes and I get funding, great! If not, doesn't matter because I'm focused on next year. (Besides, I feel really good about my CV going into next year... 15 conference presentations and 2 publications, wooo!)

That said, I still check this thread about once a week just to see what's what.

[Canuckonomist]

It's not that I don't want to hear it - it's good news! It's just that we've all been burned so many times by the whole "in the next few weeks" thing that I'm completely done holding my breath for this year's competition. If my situation changes and I get funding, great! If not, doesn't matter because I'm focused on next year. (Besides, I feel really good about my CV going into next year... 15 conference presentations and 2 publications, wooo!)

That said, I still check this thread about once a week just to see what's what.

I'm feeling the same way as you about this year, but not as optimistic about next year's application. Economics sort of shafts you like that (the first year's marks are brutal).

[SpaceJump]

Um, guys? I got a SDF today. Like, just now. I really hope you all hear some good news too!!

[sshrchopeful]

CONGRATULATIONS SPACEJUMP!

What did the letter say? I assume it was email?

you must be SO excited! I got butterflies for you!

[SpaceJump]

It came by email, and just says:

"I am pleased to inform you that the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council is now in a position to offer you a SSHRC Doctoral Award.

Please let me know as soon as possible if you wish to accept or decline this offer. Upon acceptance, SSHRC will provide you with a Notice of Award to reflect this new award."

[sshrchopeful]

YAY for you!

this is fantastic! Great to see, after months and months of waiting, that someone deserving got bumped up!

I expect to hear from Canuck next... since I'm third on my waitlist, I'll be checking email about every 2.5 seconds until December.