I got rejected from PhD program , now what ?

[Sarah :)]

Hey all

So I applied to PhD and got rejected . I know I made a mistake of applying to only one program , but I learnt my lesson now. 

So I am re-doing the whole process again . should I apply at the same program that rejeted me (smarter this time) , or should I just ignore them ?

should I send them email asking them about reasons ? or not ? Are they going to actually tell me ? or give me a vague answer ?

I will be applying at many programs , should I say at the interview that I am applying at different programs ? or should I shut up about it ? what if they ask me about it how can I answer ?

one more thing , if I apply at the program that once rejected me next year , what should I do ? act like nothing happened ? or acknowledge at the interview that I applied before ?

thanks

[_kita]

Remember, you need to be interviewing the schools as much as they are interviewing you.

If you are interested in that program still then yes. Apply again. Ask them how to make your application more competitive. If their answer is vague, noncommittal, or dismissive, they're not interested in you as a candidate right now. Apply elsewhere or you build your credentials so that they become more interested in you. You can talk to current students or read their bios to find out what their experiences are. You can also e-mail them and ask them about the program, their application experience, etc. As courtesy, I suggest reaching out to the school academic advisor as the liaison before talking directly to  the students. 

Every school assumes that you are applying to other schools. You don't need to mention it. In my experience, they don't ask. If they do ask you, answer them honestly that you have your options open. The same goes for talking about your previous application. I don't see why you would want to mention it in the main application and you want it to demonstrate professional growth and maturing into your field. If they bring it up in an interview, then sure, discuss the learning opportunity it presented to you.

[TakeruK]

44 minutes ago, Sarah said:

Hey all

So I applied to PhD and got rejected . I know I made a mistake of applying to only one program , but I learnt my lesson now. 

So I am re-doing the whole process again . should I apply at the same program that rejeted me (smarter this time) , or should I just ignore them ?

should I send them email asking them about reasons ? or not ? Are they going to actually tell me ? or give me a vague answer ?

After checking out all the other schools and deciding on which ones to apply to, if you are still interested in this school, then sure, apply again. 

Whether or not you apply to that school again, now is a good time to ask them about reasons, before the next school year begins. It would be helpful to know this information before applying again this fall/winter. I'd recommend to phrase it as looking for feedback instead of sounding like you need them to explain their decision to you.

46 minutes ago, Sarah said:

I will be applying at many programs , should I say at the interview that I am applying at different programs ? or should I shut up about it ? what if they ask me about it how can I answer ?

Almost everyone applies to many schools so everyone who asks this question expects you to name a couple other schools you're applying to. Be honest about the places you're applying to. But also be tactful, i.e. if you are interviewing with your #4 choice school, don't tell them that they are #4. My advice is to first answer their question honestly, (e.g. I am applying to schools X, Y, Z), have a brief pause for them to ask followup questions if they want to, but then switch the focus back onto their school. Just say something like, "I am excited to apply here because ..." or something like that.

49 minutes ago, Sarah said:

one more thing , if I apply at the program that once rejected me next year , what should I do ? act like nothing happened ? or acknowledge at the interview that I applied before ?

Basically, act like nothing happened. In the application form, they might ask if you have applied before, so answer that honestly. It's mostly an administrative question anyways, not like your answer will affect your application for this year. However, there's no point mentioning your previous application or referring to it during the application materials (CV, SOP etc.). If you do get asked about it during the interview, again, answer honestly. Be prepared to answer a question like, "What have you done since the last application?" with examples of how you have improved as a candidate from last year to this year.