First Rejection

[chemmefatale]

Does anyone already have a rejection letter?

Is this the only information you have received on your applications so far?

How are you coping? I have to be at work so I am obviously distracted at the moment, but very worried at the same time.

Edited February 2, 2010 by chemmefatale

[chocker]

not yet. but 3 of my schools have given admission for the first round. I lost hope for those( as the statistic shows they give rejection at the end).

be strong. this is not the end of the world.

[LateAntique]

Got my first rejection today.

[tarski]

No, but one of mine has called their first admits so I'm guessing I'm out.

Whee...

[alexis]

Yup, I have one rejection, no admits.

I've moved past it more quickly than I thought I would. Hopefully it will be the same for you. I've just written that program off in my mind (and removed any trace of it, including my internet bookmarks)--and think, okay, now I'm competing at 4 programs.

I definitely sucks to get a rejection and then have a long wait to hear anything else. Gives you a lot of time to think about your plan B...

[Tam]

Got mine. Fortunately I got my first acceptance last week, so it wasn't as bad as it would have been. It was still a bit of a bummer.

[ma7eb4i]

I have gotten 3 official rejections, 1 unofficial rejection, and I have gotten no interview invitations (kiss of death for neuroscience programs). It looks like I got rejected across the board.

How I am dealing with it: ice cream, work, some TV (I almost never watch TV), A LOT of hiking. Just keep on going. Do the things you like and have fun with. It hurts, but life goes on.

Good luck to you!

[RockEater]

Go to Alcohol. Go directly to Alcohol. Do not pass Liquor Cabinet, do not collect 200$.

[modernity]

Go to Alcohol. Go directly to Alcohol. Do not pass Liquor Cabinet, do not collect 200$.

Unless you're broke from the application process and need the $200 for purchasing the alcohol.

[TMP]

Friends are free!

I think I got my unofficial rejection and I spent like half hour just talking to a friend while sitting in the hallway, waiting for a class to be out for our organization's meeting.

Felt MUCH better.

[LateAntique]

I just broke it down like this: I got rejected. It's either a numbers issue (my GPA is 3.9, but my GRE isn't great) or a fit issue. I can work on one in the next year (numbers), I can't work on fit. I contacted the DGS and politely asked what parts of my application weren't up to snuff. If she says "numbers", I can improve them and try again (assuming I don't get into another school this year) - if she says "fit", then I won't reapply.

I was bummed for about 15 minutes, but I'm totally Type A, so I saw a problem and addressed how to fix it. Moping takes way too much energy and I've got Archilochus to translate!

[Crystalizedjade]

Got my first rejection on January 15th from my first choice, Ann Arbor. Ouch. I don't mind so much being rejected from my first choice, what bothered me more was that was my FIRST reply, lol.

[kobe36]

awww i just got my first rejection letter too from Loyola U - Chicago...that was one of the school I really wanted to go to too.... ... so sad ... i think I am gonna go drown myself in food now.... :(

[rockayu]

No rej yet. But I only applied for three grad schools, 2of them have admitted me, Purdue & Dayton. Now i'm just waiting for UMN, which I applied for the direct PhD program, hoping to get some fund.

Edited February 3, 2010 by rockayu

[piccgeek]

My first rejection letter last round, I cried and yelled at my boyfriend for a while, and being a good friend he put up with it calmly and took me out for ice cream as soon as I was fit to be in public. Friends/SOs + food and or alcohol = coping. Of course it still sucked, but I felt a lot better after an indulgent emotional sobfest, and it was easier to move on after that. (of course, I'm the type that can never bottle ANYTHING, so I feel like people like that can't help but allow themselves an indulgent sobfest...)

[JerryLandis]

Ooh, "rej," I like that. "Yeah, I got rejjed by my top choice." I'm likely to get rejjed by my top choice sometime next week, great. And since one of my other programs seems to have already sent out invites to a recruitment weekend, my chances there aren't looking so good either.

[chemmefatale]

Well...I feel weird posting this and getting accepted somewhere in the same day. It makes me feel a lot better to know that I am going somewhere now. As far as responses go, I like LateAntique's the best. Figuring out what you did incorrectly is definitely half the battle.

[pea-jay]

No responses either way for me but one of my schools *DID* notify me that my app was going to "be reviewed at the next scheduled admissions committee meeting." Showtime baby...

[Timothy Vallier]

I'm sitting on my first rejection from Jan 15. It stinks having only negative feedback but I am optimistic after the initial shockwave of doubt.

[kobe36]

here is a question for all you fellow applicants: after u get rejected, is it okay/appropriate to call the school you got rejected from to see why and what ways to improve your applications for next year??. I am tempted to call loyola to see what went wrong with my apps but don't know if they will tell me ??

[katalytik]

here is a question for all you fellow applicants: after u get rejected, is it okay/appropriate to call the school you got rejected from to see why and what ways to improve your applications for next year??. I am tempted to call loyola to see what went wrong with my apps but don't know if they will tell me ??

You know it would be nice if they would provide feedback, but I am not sure if any of the programs would tell you. I would like to know about mine also.

[Crystalizedjade]

Man, I WISH they would tell us why. But, I think *right now* it's not a good idea. IF you are going to email anyone, do it after April once all the application drama is over. Then they would be probably be more willing to respond, if they would respond at all.

[johndiligent]

I'm just hoping that I get an acceptance before I get a rejection, just to cushion the blow a little bit.

[waiting2009]

You know it would be nice if they would provide feedback, but I am not sure if any of the programs would tell you. I would like to know about mine also.

I think it's ok and appropriate to ask. Just be careful about how you ask. Tell them that you're planning to apply again and want some feedback to improve your credentials. But be prepared for generic-but-true answers.

This year has been specially hard. I know that some of the schools I applied to have received more applications than usual. A professor at one of them told me that they received 50% more applications than their previous record (not even 50% more than the previous year!). They have 2 or 3 spots max so they have a pool of very good applicants competing for very few spots.

Good luck!

[Makhdumi]

I prepared my Fav. Pasta and turned on a movie...unluckily, just checked my email in between to get the first Reject! This Pasta tastes funny, and I hate Movies! UGHHHHHHH!