2017-2018 Application Cycle

[S-Kyo]

Do we expect any acceptance/rejection on a weekend? 

[Dreamer109]

  On 2/17/2018 at 12:04 AM, CP_Religion said:

Do we expect any acceptance/rejection on a weekend? 

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I got a rejection from Northwestern on a Saturday. But I don't think anyone would send anything out on Sunday.

[spcgsw96]

Waitlisted at Cornell and finally got my Berkeley rejection 

Edited February 17, 2018 by cedfik

[izmir]

  On 2/17/2018 at 12:04 AM, CP_Religion said:

Do we expect any acceptance/rejection on a weekend? 

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You probably won’t receive anything formal but some POIs might email during the weekend to tell you got in.

[deutsch1997bw]

  On 2/16/2018 at 10:17 PM, komina12345 said:

Does anyone know if Indiana finished sending out acceptances or if I'm still in the game with them?

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I have said this before (I believe yesterday) and I will say it again. Per the graduate secretary at Indiana, acceptances will hopefully go out next week. I was told this on Monday. At that point, decisions were still being made.

[scarseed]

  On 2/17/2018 at 12:22 AM, izmir said:

You probably won’t receive anything formal but some POIs might email during the weekend to tell you got in.

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I got my MA acceptance at 11 pm on a Saturday from an email to check portal. I've seen others say same here. You never know.

[CambridgeHeismanLord]

  On 2/16/2018 at 10:09 PM, arctic_ice said:

Rejection from Cornell. It seems to me that this cycle is over for me. I've learned my lesson.While this experience is useful, it nonetheless has a bitter aftertaste. 
It is time to start preparing for the second attempt in upcoming autumn.
Congrats to those of you who did it! I wish you success in your future endeavors!
And yes, please, do not forget to share your experience at the very end of the cycle!

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Hey, don't lose hope! Prior to entering Harvard for political science, I actually struck out 3 years in a row on medical school. I figured that it wasn't worth it, and I went back to do my MA and got into a Ph.D. program off of that. What I'm saying is that there's always more to look forward to, and your past experiences can only help build up to an even stronger and taller version of you. At the very least, you still have the motivation which is great! I hope the best of luck for you next cycle!

[CandyCanes]

  On 2/17/2018 at 4:43 AM, CambridgeHeismanLord said:

Hey, don't lose hope! Prior to entering Harvard for political science, I actually struck out 3 years in a row on medical school. I figured that it wasn't worth it, and I went back to do my MA and got into a Ph.D. program off of that. What I'm saying is that there's always more to look forward to, and your past experiences can only help build up to an even stronger and taller version of you. At the very least, you still have the motivation which is great! I hope the best of luck for you next cycle!

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Wow! I guess as hard as it is to get into a PhD program, medical school much be much harder... How old were you when you started at Harvard, if you don't mind my asking?

[CambridgeHeismanLord]

  On 2/17/2018 at 5:31 AM, CandyCanes said:

Wow! I guess as hard as it is to get into a PhD program, medical school much be much harder... How old were you when you started at Harvard, if you don't mind my asking?

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I was 29 when I started. I had worked for a good while at a family friend's law firm at my hometown for a bit while also doing some research with a nearby university. I wouldn't say medical school is harder to get into than a Ph.D. program as much as it was the fact that my MCAT and my undergraduate GPA weren't too terribly high. I did far better on my GREs and had near perfect grades with my MA. My only regret is that I didn't approach my undergraduate pre-med with the same attitude as I did with my political science stuff. If I did, I have no doubt I would be in medical school.

[CandyCanes]

  On 2/17/2018 at 5:38 AM, CambridgeHeismanLord said:

I was 29 when I started. I had worked for a good while at a family friend's law firm at my hometown for a bit while also doing some research with a nearby university. I wouldn't say medical school is harder to get into than a Ph.D. program as much as it was the fact that my MCAT and my undergraduate GPA weren't too terribly high. I did far better on my GREs and had near perfect grades with my MA. My only regret is that I didn't approach my undergraduate pre-med with the same attitude as I did with my political science stuff. If I did, I have no doubt I would be in medical school.

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Is the MA really that helpful for getting into PhD programs? I've heard you're pretty much expected to have a 4.0 in a Master's program.

[ArcierePrudente]

  On 2/12/2018 at 5:40 PM, BobBobBob said:

Chicago's email came from Kathy in the department. Over 400 applications reviewed. Also highest stipend amount I've seen so far. high 20s.

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First, congratulations again!

Second, was it Kathy's name in the 'sender' line? I'm thinking of biting the bullet and checking my email this weekend, since a closer scrutiny of the results board reveals the other department I'd been waiting on sometimes doesn't notify until the tail end of the month.

...But since I haven't checked my email for about a week now, my inbox is bound to be pretty messy, and I'd like to expedite the process via the handy-dandy Search function. Do you mind me asking you for at least part of the sender's name, so I know what to look for? (I can't type 'Chicago'; having lived there, I still get too much crap from Groupon and Yelp.)

Edited February 17, 2018 by ArcierePrudente

[Sartori]

  On 2/17/2018 at 6:11 AM, ArcierePrudente said:

...But since I haven't checked my email for about a week now

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A gradcafe user who during the height of applications season hasn't checked their email in a week. I'm impressed and slightly jealous

Also, Kathy Anderson is the Chicago administrator and sender yep.

Edited February 17, 2018 by Sartori

[Dreamer109]

  On 2/17/2018 at 6:24 AM, Sartori said:

A gradcafe user who during the height of applications season hasn't checked their email in a week. I'm impressed and slightly jealous

Also, Kathy Anderson is the Chicago administrator and sender yep.

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Same. I check my email 4 times an hour minimum.

[skhann]

  On 2/16/2018 at 10:09 PM, arctic_ice said:

Rejection from Cornell. It seems to me that this cycle is over for me. I've learned my lesson.While this experience is useful, it nonetheless has a bitter aftertaste. 
It is time to start preparing for the second attempt in upcoming autumn.
Congrats to those of you who did it! I wish you success in your future endeavors!
And yes, please, do not forget to share your experience at the very end of the cycle!

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I'm in the same boat. Except I'm not sure whether I would be able to go the second cycle route. Tough luck I guess.

Congratulations to all the admits from my side as well.

[katieb93]

Like is it worth it to spend another $1,000 on applications?

i could have actually enjoyed my life with that money. 

Feels like a PHD is just that for me - a dream.

[possibleirphd]

  On 2/17/2018 at 2:35 PM, katieb93 said:

Like is it worth it to spend another $1,000 on applications?

i could have actually enjoyed my life with that money. 

Feels like a PHD is just that for me - a dream.

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Try and get waivers! I even emailed some schools saying “really wanna apply, don’t have money to, etc.” and got fee waivers that way. Another person on this thread mentioned not to be afraid to ask your school what they can do for you! I wouldn’t give up if this is what you want to do. 

Another thing that really helped was getting feedback from grad students at said programs to help with statements, how faculty are, etc. 

Plus, you have us! PM if you need help on that kinda stuff, can’t say I can help you get into the school of your dreams but I know a lot of people willing to help!

[Dreamer109]

  On 2/17/2018 at 2:35 PM, katieb93 said:

Like is it worth it to spend another $1,000 on applications?

i could have actually enjoyed my life with that money. 

Feels like a PHD is just that for me - a dream.

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I feel it. Even with waivers the price for multiple GRE tests and those who won't waive you is so expensive. I got into two of my safety schools this go around and might just take the hit and accept I'm probably not going to the schools of my dreams just to avoid the pain that was this past year. It is a rough call to jump back in a second time.

[skhann]

  On 2/17/2018 at 2:43 PM, possibleirphd said:

Try and get waivers! I even emailed some schools saying “really wanna apply, don’t have money to, etc.” and got fee waivers that way. Another person on this thread mentioned not to be afraid to ask your school what they can do for you! I wouldn’t give up if this is what you want to do. 

Another thing that really helped was getting feedback from grad students at said programs to help with statements, how faculty are, etc. 

Plus, you have us! PM if you need help on that kinda stuff, can’t say I can help you get into the school of your dreams but I know a lot of people willing to help!

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Good tips for domestic students. I am an international applicant though so the waivers don't work for me. Plus there's the TOEFL test fee and the application fees are also higher for international applicants. These expenses forced me to cut down on my applications and now I'm left with no options.

[Chuck Mangione]

  On 2/17/2018 at 10:20 AM, skhann said:

I'm in the same boat. Except I'm not sure whether I would be able to go the second cycle route. Tough luck I guess.

Congratulations to all the admits from my side as well.

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I really wish I could help you since you gave a lot of positivity towards my direction when I was despairing a few days ago. I know this doesn't mean much (and I'm not even sure if you're religious), but I'll be praying for your success!

[Albert01]

Just got a rejection from Northwestern which has been expected. 

[dr.strange]

Finally received a rejection from Northwestern. It is expected but i'm glad that the wait is over.

[izmir]

  On 2/17/2018 at 5:10 PM, dr.strange said:

Finally received a rejection from Northwestern. It is expected but i'm glad that the wait is over.

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It is so frustrating that they send rejections on weekends and one by one ? still waiting

[skhann]

  On 2/17/2018 at 3:55 PM, komina12345 said:

I really wish I could help you since you gave a lot of positivity towards my direction when I was despairing a few days ago. I know this doesn't mean much (and I'm not even sure if you're religious), but I'll be praying for your success!

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Thanks man. Means a lot to me. No I'm not in that much despair so no wandering in the forest for me 

I've been through much in my life so this is nothing comparatively. Just that I'm afraid about my prospects in the next cycle, especially all the emotional, logistical and, more importantly, financial hassle involved.

P.S. Good to know things turned around for you and wishing you the best for your future endeavors.

[Ambazonia]

  On 2/16/2018 at 2:09 PM, PoliSci-freak said:

Any Comparativists admitted to Maryland?

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Yeah, I got mine on the 16th to Maryland College Park, 18k RA/TA position + 5k for summer 

[Ambazonia]

  On 2/16/2018 at 10:04 PM, izmir said:

Can someone please ask the DGS of Northwestern when they will send the rejections? Need closure

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Got my rejection for Northwestern a few hours ago