Let’s just TALK about it...

[LolJustAdmitMe]

20 hours ago, lookingfortheson said:

I love this idea! I am fairly sure that my family is ready to put a muzzle on me.

I applied to one program and one program only.

Harvard's Ed.L.D. for System-Level leadership. They only accept 25 applicants so of course, it's a long shot. 

That's always how I've moved through life though, with long-shots.

It means so much to me because it would give me the opportunity to revolutionize the preK-12 education system in the US. The thing is, I plan to do this either way. The program would simply make the journey much easier. 

I applied to this program because it blends my passions and strengths. Education, Policy, Business and really Design. I've looked to see if there is anything similar, but there is not.

I'm also in the perfect spot right now in terms of my own life. I have a very supportive significant other who wants this as badly as I do. I feel that I've gone as far as I would like to go on my current trajectory with education. To be honest, the next step would be administration but I already have a masters and do not want to spend 2 years in school for a job that I am not passionate about. In my current situation, I have been able to have more influence as a classroom teacher on my school and in my district that I would have been able to as an administrator. The scene for administrators is very political and that's not a game that I am wanting to play. Nor do I think I can play it well.

I haven't thought too much about a back-up plan. I'll cross that bridge when and if I have to come to it. Right now, my soul focus has been on getting into the program. Long-shot and all.

I love how goal oriented and unapologetic you are about your academic endeavors! I hope to hear good news from you (and Harvard!) within the next coming months! Definitely keep us updated!!

[Oli150]

On 12/26/2017 at 3:17 PM, basketballfrost said:

Hey Oli150, I do understand the waiting anxiety. Unfortunately I can't tell you whether you'll be accepted or not. But if this is something you truly want try again later. Your low gpa will not be a problem if you show the admission office GRE subject tests, or at list with other great things on your application it will not have a bad weight on it. Don't worry too much on your application, whatever they decide on, does not reflect your own qualities as a person/researcher. 

You worked hard either way, and there is always compensation for hard work

Thank you so much for this

[khigh]

I keep poking my application, trying to justify why I'm not getting in, even though admits are notified around January 20th and rejects around February 10th. Are my grades good enough? My GRE? My SOP? Writing sample? What if my recommenders really don't like me and wrote something horrible? Should I have done 3 academic recommendations instead of two plus the university president (we worked on committees together for 2 years)? Do I have enough languages (history PhD)? Did I travel enough in undergrad? Do I fit in?  There's nothing I can do about any of it now, but dreams are dreams until they are reality.

[menalta17]

I got my first waitlist notification. I'm scared I'll receive 12 more and be left in limbo while watching everyone receive their decisions. This is crazy to say but I think waitlisted may be worse than rejection because most of the time you're given hope only to get let down months later. I'd rather know months later 'yes' or 'no'.

Edited December 29, 2017 by menalta17

[CHBE_M]

I did two interviews and they went ok, both professors seemed interested and are impressed with my Master's research but they still don't know all the details about my academic history, so I am still soo worried. I have very good research experience during my Master's degree and I'm submitting a first author paper soon, but my GPA and GRE are very low its embarrassing to mention. I have external funding  for Ph.D up to 5 years (tuitions+stipend), which is my only hope to get admitted.

[bluebird8]

14 hours ago, khigh said:

I keep poking my application, trying to justify why I'm not getting in, even though admits are notified around January 20th and rejects around February 10th. Are my grades good enough? My GRE? My SOP? Writing sample? What if my recommenders really don't like me and wrote something horrible? Should I have done 3 academic recommendations instead of two plus the university president (we worked on committees together for 2 years)? Do I have enough languages (history PhD)? Did I travel enough in undergrad? Do I fit in?  There's nothing I can do about any of it now, but dreams are dreams until they are reality.

Same! I know my GPA is good, but my GRE scores are just...average. I got a lot of advice about SOPs but I still don't know if mine were good enough...I think my letters are good, but how do I really know that? How do others compare to me? All this waiting is making me question all my applications. I just wish I had at least one answer.

[AP]

On 12/20/2017 at 3:11 PM, LolJustAdmitMe said:

People always urge others to find hobbies or things to keep them busy as they wait for their admissions results BUT what if we treated the process like therapy and talked about??? What if you were allowed to get those thoughts out? Maybe you’d be less inclined to think about it every 10 min (if you’re anything like me, my friends and family are TIRED of talking about it w/me). I say we give it a try and make a thread dedicated to talking about what schools we want to get into, why, why it *MEANS* so much, our worries, or really whatever comes to mind during the application process...shamelessly(I can think of a million times where I held back on a thread b/c I was scared my emotions were overkill lol).  Anybody???

Yes, of course. 

Just be careful not to generate a collective feeling of (more) anxiety unnecessary at this point. 

[khigh]

1 hour ago, bluebird8 said:

Same! I know my GPA is good, but my GRE scores are just...average. I got a lot of advice about SOPs but I still don't know if mine were good enough...I think my letters are good, but how do I really know that? How do others compare to me? All this waiting is making me question all my applications. I just wish I had at least one answer.

My GPA was around 3.5. GRE was 161V 147Q and 5.0AW (humanities, so Q doesn't count for much). My SOPs are solid if they like a "leadership and initiative" SOP.  I got one from the advisor I worked with for 4 years, including an independent research project, who also went to the one university I applied to and the POI I want to work with was on his dissertation committee.  One rec was from the department chair, who I worked with extensively for all 4 years.  The last one is the one I'm worried about. It's from the University President.  I was Student Government Vice President and then President, so two years of being on committees and working with the President and administration.  It's not a research rec, though, which really worries me. On top of that, I found some typos in my writing sample, PLUS I sent the wrong draft, so some of the translations are missing or the original is in text instead of footnotes.  

I just want to KNOW.

[bluebird8]

8 minutes ago, khigh said:

My GPA was around 3.5. GRE was 161V 147Q and 5.0AW (humanities, so Q doesn't count for much). My SOPs are solid if they like a "leadership and initiative" SOP.  I got one from the advisor I worked with for 4 years, including an independent research project, who also went to the one university I applied to and the POI I want to work with was on his dissertation committee.  One rec was from the department chair, who I worked with extensively for all 4 years.  The last one is the one I'm worried about. It's from the University President.  I was Student Government Vice President and then President, so two years of being on committees and working with the President and administration.  It's not a research rec, though, which really worries me. On top of that, I found some typos in my writing sample, PLUS I sent the wrong draft, so some of the translations are missing or the original is in text instead of footnotes.  

I just want to KNOW.

Oh no, the wrong draft thing is the worst!  My undergraduate GPA is 3.75 with a 3.82 major GPA, but my highest GRE scores (I took it twice) was 155V 157Q 4.5AW. Very average, not competitive scores. I have over two years of research experience, I wrote an undergraduate thesis, applied for my own research grants, and went to 4 local conferences to present my research. However, I did not publish my work and I feel that plus my GRE scores set me back from everyone else in Biology. All of my LoRs are from professors I have become close to, one being my undergraduate research advisor. I think the University President rec you have should be fine, because he/she can still vouch for your work ethic and personality. I have told myself not to look at my applications that I have already submitted because I'm sure I will find mistakes. But yes, I just want to KNOW! What freaks me out is the fact that someone I know, who applied for the same program at the same school as me, got an interview invitation last week and I got nothing.

Edited December 29, 2017 by bluebird8

[LolJustAdmitMe]

5 hours ago, AP said:

Yes, of course. 

Just be careful not to generate a collective feeling of (more) anxiety unnecessary at this point. 

Lol I hear your concerns and appreciate them but: 1) My background’s psychology and I’m currently working as a therapist. I would’ve steered clear if it seemed like THAT bad of an idea. 2) It’s just a space for people to vent, especially if they have no where else to vent or anyone to understand them. The point is to give people a space to let it out. Holding it in only heightens the emotions someone may be feeling. I’m just trying to give people a platform to clear their mind for the time being. 

I appreciate your concerns but...you could apply that theory to the forum as a whole lol

[lookingfortheson]

On 12/27/2017 at 9:43 AM, LolJustAdmitMe said:

I love how goal oriented and unapologetic you are about your academic endeavors! I hope to hear good news from you (and Harvard!) within the next coming months! Definitely keep us updated!!

Thank you so much! Your kind words really encouraged me today.

I'll be on this thread frequently. I keep trying to 'forget' but let's be honest, that is not happening!

What is the timeline for you to hear something back? 

[khigh]

5 hours ago, LolJustAdmitMe said:

Lol I hear your concerns and appreciate them but: 1) My background’s psychology and I’m currently working as a therapist. I would’ve steered clear if it seemed like THAT bad of an idea. 2) It’s just a space for people to vent, especially if they have no where else to vent or anyone to understand them. The point is to give people a space to let it out. Holding it in only heightens the emotions someone may be feeling. I’m just trying to give people a platform to clear their mind for the time being. 

I appreciate your concerns but...you could apply that theory to the forum as a whole lol

This thread makes me feel not alone. Sure, my boyfriend has his PhD, but he got his years ago, so he has forgotten how hard the wait is. No one else really gets it. 

[ShewantsthePhD101]

It freaks me out a little that so many people have heard back already when I'm still filling out applications. I know we're different disciplines, but still...

[khigh]

37 minutes ago, ShewantsthePhD101 said:

It freaks me out a little that so many people have heard back already when I'm still filling out applications. I know we're different disciplines, but still...

It does make me feel better to know that the people hearing back are usually in fields that require interviews, meaning they have one more step than us in the humanities.

[ShewantsthePhD101]

6 hours ago, khigh said:

It does make me feel better to know that the people hearing back are usually in fields that require interviews, meaning they have one more step than us in the humanities.

Is that not something we'll have? This is my first time applying for PhDs so I'm still not sure how everything works.

[Warelin]

21 minutes ago, ShewantsthePhD101 said:

Is that not something we'll have? This is my first time applying for PhDs so I'm still not sure how everything works.

There are some programs within the humanities that have interviews. However, I can only think of 2-3 in English that do.

The sciences tend to have an earlier deadline to allow for interviews. The interviews hold faculty determine who they'd like in their labs. Sometimes, funding in the sciences come from the grants a professor has won. And since they'll be working closely together, they want to make sure that the fit is right.

Generally, the order of notices go like this: Natural Sciences, Social Sciences, Humanities. 

Usually the first results from the humanities, comes sometime in mid-January. Most seem to come in February though.

[menalta17]

At this point I've seen 4/6 schools I've applied to post interviews. Hard not to feel defeated right now but I feel extremely down on my luck and depressed. I wish I was one of those people that lost weight when they got depressed but I'll probably end up binge eating my feelings and moping around work the next 3 months until I strike out on all of my apps. This really sucks. My family thinks I'll get in somewhere so it's gonna be pretty hard to talk to them about it without them becoming motivational speakers. Maybe I'll just avoid it. They'll figure it out.

Edited January 1, 2018 by menalta17

[Fiain]

I'm.. beyond nervous. Which.. is dumb. And my boyfriend thinks I'm being silly.. I haven't really talked to people much lately cause I feel like I'm annoying them about this, hah.

 

I was offered a position at Cambridge University for my PhD. The PI seems great, kind, supportive. The lab's hours would fit with my other needs - I've got a few health things I need to be aware of and need time to manage. This would allow it. It... seems great, right? Except.. It's an industry lab. I want to teach! I've had great professors and bad ones and seen the affect it's had on my classmates and I want to be able to help inspire students - Especially since I'm a chemistry major, so a lot of folks think it's too hard for them when likely, someone's been trying to teach them the wrong way, or hasn't connected it for them.. (I've tutored and seen how different approaches can make a huge difference.) So... while it sounds great? I... I want to go to my top pick. And I'm not even sure I'm accepted at Cambridge technically, only that the professor wanted me. And I know the degrees over there are different, and.. I'll have a US bachelors - and when I put it through the conversion it said it equaled a masters at Cambridge so I should be.. fine.. I think... Oh god I hope I didn't screw that up, too.

 

My top pick is Northwestern. I've worked there for a PI who wrote one of my letters of rec and he's very well known in his field... And I see Northwestern acceptances popping up in the results page going, Oh... What about me? Will they pass me over? I did really poorly on the chemistry GRE (33rd percentile), but my mentors say that it's one of the only bad things about my application and since I'm going into physical sciences, it doesn't matter much, if at all. But.. what happens if they reject my application because of it? My GPA is high, lots of research.. good general GRE scores... But.. I don't have a backup. I haven't heard from any other of the 7 schools I applied to, but.. with family issues, going home for a year isn't an option, and I'm not sure I could get a job that'd let me afford rent where I live with only a bachelors.. 

 

Since you guys are going through it too.. Can I ask what your thoughts are? I mean.. I don't know. I know I've a tendency towards panic and anxiety so it's.. hard to see clearly about the whole situation. I called Northwestern and they said they'd start releasing decisions starting after Christmas and to mid Jan, which is.. good, I suppose, since Cambridge prof wants to know ASAP so he can make sure to get funding to cover the international fees. I don't want to bug my professor (again, I've already asked him to ask for me over there) and I'm really unsure if calling again is wise. So... Just.. waiting it out? Just killing me to wait for Northwestern and seeing acceptances when.. I want this so badly.

 

Thanks for making the thread. I kinda feel better after saying all this and I'm pretty sure y'all will understand where I'm coming from, hah.

[Ilikekitties]

This is my 3rd application round. I hate waiting!

Edited January 2, 2018 by GameofLoans16

[ShewantsthePhD101]

@Fiain, it sounds like you're in a good spot. You've already got an excellent acceptance to fall back on if your top choice doesn't come through. I know this may be easier said than done, but it watching notifications of others receiving interviews is distressing, maybe try unplugging for a few days? Give yourself a chance to breath. <3 This is hard on all of us. And we all sound insane. Know that you're not alone, and it's gonna be ok.  (I say this knowing someone will have to say the same things to me in a month)

[khigh]

I’m starting to get in a groove to distract myself as the anticipated release date for admissions draws near. I’m rewriting a paper on the influence of the American West on the rules of baseball from 1890-1908 because there is a call for papers next month for the 19th Century Baseball Conference in Cooperstown in 2019. Boyfriend and I have also started research for an article to co-write on the experiences of women in Berlin in 1945. Not my area of expertise, but his, and that’s okay. 

[Libraryschoolhereicome]

This is such a great idea! All of my documents for my first choice school were finally received yesterday, so now I'm just sweating and Netflixing and trying to motivate myself through the final stages of my other applications. I think I'm stressing more about this because the degree (particularly University of Toronto's) lines up *perfectly* with what I'm passionate about and dream of doing. It's a dream I've been developing for years, though it wasn't until last January that I finally found a way to achieve it. Here's hoping! Until then, I'm trying to relax and enjoy the shows/hobbies/outings with friends that will be more difficult should I begin grad school this fall.

My best friend is also applying to all the same programs, though with different focuses, so I'm trying to help him get through applications currently. We make a good team: he keeps me calm, I keep him focused--I'll be truly sad if we wind up at different schools. Either way, all we can do is hope for the best possible outcome! The anxiety is SO REAL though! I saw a mistake I made on my Toronto application and I'm scared it'll take me out of the running! At least I know what to look for when finishing my second application though, so... Silver lining? haha

 

I am LOVING reading how passionate everyone is here! Let's keep the positivity and excitement coming, and best of luck to all of you!

[GCBrittany]

Well, I too am here! I applied to nine schools, and my program uses the match, which means I don't find out until April 27th. Most of my schools send for interviews late Feb. So I have a whole two months to patiently wait for invites.

We're currently training my replacement at my lab, and I'm unclear if I get to stay if I don't get it in. Puts a bit of pressure on the situation. I just hope I get in and can afford to relocate!

In the meantime, I started a new part time job and I joined a gym. My "resolution" was to tidy up my house and organize a bit better, so we'll see how much I can throw away to hopefully prepare for a move! Then if I don't get in, at least I'll have a clutter-free house

Stay positive everyone! We will get this done when the time is right!

[Jamesvsteel]

On 12/24/2017 at 4:33 PM, LookingforMM said:

I feel that everything is against me in the more selective departments I'm applying to.  My undergrad was several years ago, I majored in fields different from the one I'm going into, and on top of that I was a semi-underperforming student (four C grades, CGPA between 3.0 and 3.5, but with general upward trend).  Even though my GRE scores are great (V 99%, Q 76%, AW 98%), I have a lot to prove.  Putting in the application fee for Columbia felt like throwing money away...

On top of all that, I'm not going to hear back from any of these schools until February!  At least I got into a master's program at my safety school already.

I could have written this post myself, right down the to the GRE percentiles but minus the safety school part. Hang in there! I'm lucky to have a few years of somewhat relevant work experienceafter undergrad which I'm hoping helps my application, but only time will tell at this point. My major concerns have always been GPA and funding, but I'm hoping the stars align somehow. 

[PsychedSloth]

I'm struggling with impostor syndrome over here because I'm a first-generation student and I'm on my own in terms of paying my way through school and applications. I applied to one related MA program, one unrelated MHS program (related to my research experience), one MPH program with the option of doing research related to what I'm currently doing, and several post-baccalaureate programs out of fear of not getting into anything. I was accepted to the MHS program, but it is unfunded and I'm not certain I can see myself pursuing careers in that field so I'm hoping something else works out. I asked about the other two graduate programs and I won't find out until March or April, so it's a bit stressful on my end because I'm resisting the temptation to go over the mistakes in my applications.