Ugh! I know, Kaybay! My schools are just around the corner, but I'm a little bit shocked at just how much I feel everyone else's pain. I wish a bunch of us could get together and go bowling or sledding or drinking or WHATEVER. Anything to get out of the chum-filled water.
It only takes one yes--and writing as a career is filled with nos--but it only takes ONE. I'm sorry to all whose yeses didn't come today.
Thanks for the pep talk, Kaybay. I didn't even apply to UT, but all these rejections make me feel disappointed on everyone else's behalf. :/ But like Kaybay said, getting rejected from such a super-selective school has no bearing on anyone's talent or skill. I hope some acceptances will come in this week to cheer us all up.
So I'm at the early end of the alphabet and a UT applicant. But I'm not going to check until tomorrow.
I've got the same anxious clawing feelings as everyone else, but I'm getting to resent them. So my little protest is not giving in. Instead of caving now, I'll wait until tomorrow, then I'll sit down, get my granola bar out, read some HuffPo celebrity gossip or peruse a "rate a hot beekeeper" feature, and only then check in on old UT. At that point I suppose some snow will slide off bamboo leaves, or I'll really understand the true beauty of a plum, and then I'll go about my day.
Excellent sledding conditions here in RI in the next couple of days, too. Maybe we should organize regional sledding (and bowling/drinking if you wish) gatherings. Or just all go out into an empty field somewhere and scream to get rid of all this pent-up anxious energy.
Is it weird that I'll look through this blog and see everyone else in the same high-panic state I'm in, and then go to class or something and be shocked that everyone around seems perfectly calm and levelheaded? Then I remind myself that, oh yeah, none of them applied to MFA programs, and I'm the only one in the room who's been having a months-long panic attack.
The good news is I have yet to be rejected from Michener. I am completely ignoring the fact that all the people rejected are from the beginning of the alphabet and keeping the faith.
Hi, I am in Australia and I feel completely disconnected from the whole application decision process, so this blog is great for convincing me that applications are actually being processed. As someone who applied to UT I was thinking that if rejections are being tabled surely some people must have been getting acceptances?
Not necessarily. If they are doing applications alphabetically, they may just be rejecting people as they review and putting maybes to the side. It's anyone's guess.
Since I have no good news this application season other than this, I'm posting it: I didn't get rejected from UT yet! (No, I was not accepted, just haven't gotten official rejection notice b/c I'm later in the alphabet.) I'm going to drink quickly now to celebrate my good news before they update my status. :-)
PS - after my last post, I'm envisioning the following rejection: "Dear Ms. L, thank you for your interest in University X. Unfortunately because of your gratuitous use of vague pronouns, we cannot admit you into our MFA program at this time. Regards, Professor Y."
Today is the first day I started feeling anxious, I guess because programs I applied to started accepting (not me) over the weekend. I should really force myself to go to some cabin without internet access for the next couple of weeks so I can stop torturing myself. :D
Ahh, Texas. I'm towards the beginning of the alphabet and didn't get my rejection yet.
I doubt that the chosen have been... chosen. At least I hope not 'cause my status says that I submitted all of the materials necessary but doesn't have that sentence about being sent for review.
My guess is that we're being read in batches by submission date [I probably flirted with the deadline as that's generally how I roll (but I can search my email if anyone really wants precision)] then rejected by last name.
Play "Roxanne" by the Police and drink whenever you hear "Roxanne". If you are with friends, split into teams. The other side drinks to "Red light". Not much strategy to this game and it goes by fast. Funnels and hosing help : - )
Thanks, @rosephase. But by "full funding" I mean no loans, no research assistantships, no teaching assistantships, no tiered funding, and no work study.
thanks for the congrats about wyoming, has anyone heard from montana? that's the other school I applied to and it would be a hard descision if by some crazy stroke of luck I got accepted there as well.
My last name obviously starts with a W and I haven't been rejected yet from Texas. If they are actually rejecting people in alphabetical order, I'm gonna laugh.
I seem to remember these same shenanigans taking place over the UT online status updates last year, too, though I wasn't an applicant and so only know about this from the outside. If I remember correctly, the online rejections kind of trickled in, and then the actual acceptances came much later by email (I think). So this might continue for a while. But who knows. I did apply this year, and no rejection as of yet, so here's to hoping!
I got my first rejection. OK it stung a bit, I wasn't even wait listed! I just wanted everyone to know it was for UCSD (fiction) A new program only in its second year, six people each in poetry and fiction. I understand its more experimental. That was quick though, February 8. Their deadline was December 2 BTW.
Oh boy - bracing myself for a rejection from American. Wondering though, since it's rolling admissions, could it be that we'll all hear at different times? No idea how that works.
@c.wink - Congratulations on Wyoming! I'm dying to know what's going to happen with Montana. If you've only applied to two schools and you get accepted at both, you will be A LEGEND.
@RugbyToy - Congratulations on FSU! You're IN! How good does that feel?! Doesn't the acceptance make all of the pain and application aggravation feel worth it?
Congrats to those accepted! Condolences to those not.
Got a question about loans...Does anyone know the deal about paying undergrad loans back (of the Sallie Mae persuasion) while in a grad program? Do they get deferred till you're out?
As far as I know, Sallie Mae will defer loans as long as you're in school--grad, undergrad, whatever. Your interest will still accrue, of course, but you shouldn't have to pay that either until you're officially in repayment. If you're worried about it, just call them and ask, but I'm almost positive they'll say yes.
They do get deferred, Andrew, as long as you're a full-time student. It's automatic, and all you have to do is prove it. (Which is easy.)
I believe (and someone correct me if I'm wrong) the reason paying them while you're in school is so appealing is that you're *actually reducing your debt* instead of defraying interest. A pretty cool opportunity (that your credit score will appreciate) if you can hack it.
re: student loans, it's sometimes a bit more complicated.
if you're more than half-time in a degree program, almost all subsidized student loans are deferred. unsubsidized stafford loans still accrue interest, however.
Aaaand ... if they've been sold to Sallie Mae, and you've ever been in repayment period before, Sallie Mae will often make you make payments during the summers when you're not officially 'in school'.
Most not all will automatically know from the national database if you're back in school, but some, especially those still owned by schools, will need a deferral form filled out before entering a programme, as it can take 30 days for them to verify your status.
I feel like I should have a grad degree in accounting for all the stuff I've learned about student loans over the years ... and ways to avoid paying them. :p
This process is getting 'real' for me because my students at school (I'm a high school teacher) have found out that I'm not coming back next year and so I've actually had to verbalize, many times in just the one day that the news has been 'out', exactly what it is I'm hoping to do.
I'll feel like such a terrible role model if I don't get in anywhere... follow your dreams kids!... oops... I mean, nevermind.
Oh man...my UT status was still up in the air last night, but I checked this morning and it's a rejection. My last name starts with a K, so maybe they ARE going in alphabetical order?
I have a snow day so I'm doing nothing but refreshing this blog and my Texas status! I got some blogging done (emilysletters.blogspot.com), I tried to read, and I went to the kitchen a couple of times...but I can't seem to let go of my computer... I just want to get my rejection from Texas over with so I can go back to normal life!!!
Last night I was all in a tizzy about the Texas updates, but now I'm amused at the ups and downs of the MFA application cycle (and the MFA applicant psyche). As soon as I sent in the Michener application I thought, "oh well, that was fun, guess I'll wait for my rejection to come in March." (Actually, I didn't think that until I remembered Dec. 15 was the postmark date, not the arrive-by date and could stop freaking out about it not getting there on time. It got there on Dec. 14.) But as soon as the rejections started going up, I had that little burst of hope--maybe a miracle will happen and I will get in! And, since I'm at the end of the alphabet, that hope gets to burn until sometime this afternoon when the hardworking administrative assistant or intern finally reaches W.
I'm tempted to agree that the rejections might be alphabetical. My last name starts with an "M," and my rejection via status update just came in sometime in the past 15 minutes. Best of luck to all Texas applicants who have not yet been rejected!
snow day here too! so my day's ... reading, reading and more reading; writing; laughing at the siamese who's chasing snowflakes; gazing at the longahired one who just sits around looking too cute.
and making sure my phone's charged, just in case 6 programs want to call me today. :p
I really don't think it's strict alphabetical. I'm inside A-M and haven't been updated.
Plus, would they really order the files before sending them to the committee...or after? I don't know, but I feel like we're grasping for some order in this ridiculous process.
You're probably right... in this whole process, all we can do is grasp and draw ridiculously baseless conclusions :)
@ everyone here
I want to read but my compulsivity won't let me leave the computer today... do you guys have blogs? Can you post or email me links to them so I can read them? (emcsims at gmail dot com)
@k: That's actually good news! If you aren't updated, it means they haven't reached a decision on your app yet (or hadn't when they sent a list of rejections to the office).
Take heart!
@Raine: Your last name begins with a W, eh? You wouldn't happen to be on The Office, would you? Exchanging an "n" for an "e" to throw us off? ;)
@ RugbyT - special congratulations, since I was here for some of your most special anxiety rants!
I'm using my fiction writing skills to imagine what it's like to get in!
Re UT: I'm a last name "B" and I'm still not rejected.
Thing is, my little blue bar still says:
"We've received all the items needed to review your application for admission."
Other people are talking about some message that says their app has been forwarded to the committee. Mine just says the above. So I probably haven't even been read yet. I'm in batch two, I suppose. Though I'm a little worried about the data technician who was going to update my status to rejected - what if he or she got so stoned on their break that they just wandered off, perhaps falling into Barton Springs where they were devoured by turtles? It is Austin, after all.
My MS, statement, etc., arrived on 12/10, if anybody's following the date.
Such Kremlinology to be had in discerning the mysterious will of Michie!
As all of these acceptances and rejections roll in, I just have to add that there are REALLY AMAZING WRITERS on this blog. If everyone's rants and raves weren't so entertaining, thought provoking, heartwrenching and amusing, we would only be checking TSE updates every day instead of tuning in here. Maybe Christopher Guest will make an MFA Waiting Game mockumentary ala "Best in Show." That would be hilarious--to about 2000 people, but still...
@Adam - I could be this year's celebrity applicant! Unfortunately, due to age and gender, the closest I could get would be as his kid sister. Or maybe his niece. (Rainn and Raine...sounds like a law firm. Or a detective agency!)
Nick's rejection has convinced me that the entire UT system is currently under attack from a transnational hacker consortium, probably with military grade software.
Oh God...and my last name starts with 'W'. If this alphabetical thing is tru... doesn't matter. I've already decided to loathe UT for the next couple of days (I love, tho, Michener. I think of you at nights )
As for Montana, I emailed to make sure they received my application, and they said yesterday that they should "hopefully" have decisions in mid or late March.
By the way, for those who decide to accept Wyoming's offer: if you get bored up there next year, Fort Collins, Boulder and Denver, CO are not terribly far away (I'm a Denverite :)).
That sounds like a silly offer now, but Denver will start to look like f*cking Dubai once you get settled in.
I'm looking for a good book to read to pass the time...who better to offer suggestions than potential MFA-ers?? I jut finished "The Help" and "Say You're One of Them"...loved them both.
I'm a last name "A," and my poetry rejection just came through in the past few minutes! I can say with some certainty, however, that this was alphabetical. A second wave of rejections may be in progress, folks!
Charles , Don't be so down on your waitlist offer. Most of us did not get that. Hundreds of us. Congrats on it, and don't let you nerves kill you. You're still in the game.
@ Charles - congrats! - don't worry, you'll make it - nobody wants to go to school with a bunch of rust belt yokels. Just ask Dreux. Seriously, though, what this says is that you're probably very near the top, so you've got good prospects overall. Plus, the trend is more people applying more places, so there will be more shuffling, so your odds are better than before, in my uneducated opinion.
I am actually so excited over the prospect of a snow day that I don't care about what the Mich thinks right now. Who the freak wants to go where they don't have snow days? What do they have in Texas, anyway...cow days?
@Andrew-- I loved Dybek's "I Sailed with Magellan," so I'll have to check out "The Coast of Chicago." I'll be so happy if Western Michigan accepts me and I get to work with him.
Just got word I've been accepted at Northern Michigan University (MFA program, by e-mail) in poetry!
I had previously been accepted to the MA program there, but the director asked me a week or so ago if I'd agree to be considered for the MFA instead. Obviously, I agreed!
@ Emily + Andrew - I'm really liking the new Sam Shepard short story collection Day Out of Days. I'm a big fan of all his fiction.
I also recently reread Pam Houston's Waltzing the Cat and enjoyed that, especially since I'm into the western outdoorsy activities she writes about. She's really awesome and if I were willing to move to the west coast I'd definitely have applied wherever she's teaching out there.
REJECTED FROM TEXAS. ugh. i hope that rejection wasn't the opening of the rejection floodgates. i know everyone really wanted to go there, but i really wanted to go there. roy was right. love hurts.
I think you've started a new catch phrase for sure :) And you may have listed this elsewhere and I apologize if so, but where did you apply and in which genre?
a friend just posted links to some of his newly recorded music on my FB today, and one of the songs is called 'patient time' ... how appropriate & unnerving for MFA applicants! :p
@ frankish, if you're Bizarro NM, does that mean you get rejected everywhere except UT?
Besides, being Bizzarro NM is better than being Evil NM, who uses his talents to enslave the world's peoples, or NM: The Revenge, who uses his talents only to win petty literary feuds against those he feels slighted him over the years.
@ Emily, I've checked my WI status at least 5 times today. I know it's not Friday, and I am aware their page says it's updated at 7 each morning (I checked the first time at 6:50 and then for the second time at 7:04). And yet this UT wave has hit me hard, and I'm afraid WI will inform the same way.
@Koru- I forgot about the blizzard there...thanks for the info. I live in a place that never closes for snow, ever.
@Farrah--I feel exactly the same way. I know my chances of getting into Wisconsin are basically zero, but until I know for sure, I'm still holding on to that thiny shred of hope....I think my number one choice out of all of my 17 schools I applied to is Wisconsin :/
OMG, if I got waitlisted at Syracuse, I would have a coronary...of JOY. Seriously, one foot in the door is a million times better than a cold slap of fish in the face.
I have heard nothing from them, so my tail is dragging through the mud, oh yes it is.
@Jamie - Yes, that is quite possible. Since I didn't apply to Michener, I may actually get rejected everywhere but UT. :P
Since we're talking about reading, if anyone needs a good book for the summer, I recommend Mr. Peanut, coming out in June I think. By way of disclosure, the author is one of my closest friends. With that said, I read the manuscript and it's best book I've read in years.
@ Emily (and any other WI applicant) . . . assuming 29 of the 629 applications were (in)complete and/or crap, each of our chances is about 1 in 100. Be grateful you have 16 other possiblities. I only have one. Maybe you've heard of it. Iowa?
I don't know if the Jaws theme or the Psycho music when Norman Bates pulls back the curtain is more appropriate as the soundtrack for my general state of being.
A little late here, but yes, I'm currently obsessed with The Room. No matter how many times I see certain scenes, it just keeps getting funnier. I haven't seen the movie in full, but it's playing near me on Friday night. I can't wait! This waiting to hear from schools thing is tearing me apart! Also, my fiance just saw Troll II. His description of it made that movie sound...stunning.
OK. For Sigma or anyone else who might care to know:
FSU received around 500+ applications for MFA and PhD spots in all genres; there are only 17 spots available, across the board, between both programs. I do not know the genre breakdown, but it does look like all MFA candidates will (probably) be fully-funded this year.
Thanks for all the congrats. I never *intended* on hating any of you.
ChatRoulette puts you face-to-face (via webcam) with worldwide strangers. You hit 'start,' your webcam turns on, and you come face-to-face with someone you likely have never met, never will meet, would never want to meet. Hit 'next' and the roulette 'spins' to a new stranger.
It's a weird blend of the adcom/applicant roles. Like the adcom, you flip through stacks of work (strangers) and must make quick decisions about quality and worth. Like the applicant, the stranger at the other end can (and often will) reject you.
This in mind, ChatRoulette is a good exercise in inurement to rejection! I've been 'nexted' by rooms of giggling teenage girls and masked masturbating men.
Did anyone else apply to the New School? I believe they should start accepting this week?
Also, does anyone actually know what the funding situation is like over there? I met with someone in admissions, and they basically told me that I could count on partial funding if I got in.
I teach a film class, and I used excerpts from The Room (only appropriate ones, of course) to illustrate poor examples of film-making techniques. Especially acting.
My favorite lines are:
Mark - "Leave your STUPID comments in your pocket!"
and
Lisa - "I miss you."
Mark - "Ugh, I just saw you. What are you talking about??"
I forgot about the "oh hi Mark" part. That's what really makes the quote. My girlfriend uses that line "I did naaaaaaaaht!" when accused of leaving the fridge door open, forgetting to call, etc.
I applied to the New School in play writing. I just exchanged e-mails with the department coordinator and she said that it looks like they will be sending out offers in late February not mid February. Don't know if that effects your department.
Chat roulette is INSANE. The internet is crazy. It makes me so uncomfortable, and I've seen the following: a dude in full ICP makeup jerking off, a 10 year old asking to see boobs, and a lady making a salad.
Just got a waitlist notification from Syracuse. I am actually really, really not unhappy at all about this. Sometimes I feel like I'm totally deluding myself by thinking I even have a chance at any of these places.
Oh, and said girlfriend is also a film studies minor--when we watched it together, she had quite a few things to say about this example of horrific filmmaking.
Also, I just heard from Temple via phone. I'm poetry. I picked up the phone and saw the Philly area code (I live in Philly) and didn't think anything of it, so it made for a pleasant surprise.
Hey non-rejected Michener folks: When did you get your materials in? I'm thinking the last name rule is applied in batches according to received-by dates. Maybe those of us who got our materials in early are the first to be rejected and the rejections go out alphabetically? Just a guess.
@Nick - Thanks! It's quite a confidence booster after having heard nothing from anyone (save a probable rejection at Syracuse) for so long. Congrats on your many successes.
I was rejected from Texas, but got my crap turned in at the eleventh hour. (It's not because I'm lazy -- I HOARD.) So I personally doubt that they're handing out rejections in the order in which applications were received.
@ Lucas - My materials were received 12/10, and my last name is a "B," and I'm still in Michener limbo.
That said, perhaps they're not posting a rejection for me because they seriously doubt my comprehension of the English language.
Also, there's this whole business of people saying their status read "forwarded to the grad committee." Mine just says "we have all your materials." Perhaps it's very passive aggressive, like "Did you like my writing sample?" "Uh...we definitely received it."
I sent in my FAFSA, and got a notice from Arizona State that I have to prove that I don't have to register for selected service. I literally have to print out their form, check the box that says I'm female, and then mail it back in. And that's it.
Also, I send in my UT materials in mid-October, and have not yet gotten my rejection notice.
Okay, has anyone heard from University of Arizona yet? The due date was January 1st, so I'm getting a bit antsy. (I did email them to confirm the receipt of my application, and they replied to say that they had and would "begin the evaluation." That was two weeks ago.)
I've got a spot in the fall at the New School (deferred admission from last year--long story). They offered $4,500 to everyone admitted.
That makes things tough given their tuition. I'm in NYC already, but would likely have to work full time and take out loans. Not sure I like that idea, though leaving Brooklyn seems as painful itself.
For those of you who are anxious to hear from George Mason's MFA program, here is an update.
I work with the director of the Creative Writing Program at Mason, and he asked me to write some "good news" emails based on the strength of the applications that have been read. This is the email that Black Water was referring to a few hundred comments back. Although we are snowed out of the office right now, the program faculty, who form the admissions committees, took home the applications in anticipation of the bad weather and are reading through them. Please rest assured that the admissions process is still underway despite the storms.
I want to wish you all the best for your writing (and for your nerves) during this time.
From what you know of the program, you figure that most/all of the students took out loans and/or have full-time jobs?
I applied to NS because they gave me a fee waiver, and they are the only school on my list that I know I probably cannot attend even if accepted. It's a shame. This whole thing with paying and stuff.
@ A. Astur - Is there any way to NOT shit your pants?
@ Emily (I believe it was) - Two of my favorite reads over the last six months have been "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer and "Last Night" by James Salter. The latter is a collection of short stories. Absolutely killer.
2,238 comments:
«Oldest ‹Older 401 – 600 of 2238 Newer› Newest»Ugh! I know, Kaybay! My schools are just around the corner, but I'm a little bit shocked at just how much I feel everyone else's pain. I wish a bunch of us could get together and go bowling or sledding or drinking or WHATEVER. Anything to get out of the chum-filled water.
It only takes one yes--and writing as a career is filled with nos--but it only takes ONE. I'm sorry to all whose yeses didn't come today.
I wanna go sledding!!! But I can't. Cause I live in Florida. And it doesn't snow here. Meah.
latter half of the alphabet here and still no word from UT-A.
hanging my head about syracuse right now.
In good 'ol WI we're expecting 5-14 inches in the next day and a half. Makes for excellent sledding conditions.
Thanks for the pep talk, Kaybay. I didn't even apply to UT, but all these rejections make me feel disappointed on everyone else's behalf. :/ But like Kaybay said, getting rejected from such a super-selective school has no bearing on anyone's talent or skill. I hope some acceptances will come in this week to cheer us all up.
I'm proud to say that I have not been rejected from UT Austin.
No, I'm not fantastic; I just didn't apply.
My condolences to those who heard bad news today.
BTW, when are we going to hear from Indiana in poetry?
My last name starts with a B as well, so the alphabetical order soup of rejection theory makes sense.
So I'm at the early end of the alphabet and a UT applicant. But I'm not going to check until tomorrow.
I've got the same anxious clawing feelings as everyone else, but I'm getting to resent them. So my little protest is not giving in. Instead of caving now, I'll wait until tomorrow, then I'll sit down, get my granola bar out, read some HuffPo celebrity gossip or peruse a "rate a hot beekeeper" feature, and only then check in on old UT. At that point I suppose some snow will slide off bamboo leaves, or I'll really understand the true beauty of a plum, and then I'll go about my day.
Excellent sledding conditions here in RI in the next couple of days, too. Maybe we should organize regional sledding (and bowling/drinking if you wish) gatherings. Or just all go out into an empty field somewhere and scream to get rid of all this pent-up anxious energy.
Is it weird that I'll look through this blog and see everyone else in the same high-panic state I'm in, and then go to class or something and be shocked that everyone around seems perfectly calm and levelheaded? Then I remind myself that, oh yeah, none of them applied to MFA programs, and I'm the only one in the room who's been having a months-long panic attack.
Well, I got rejected from American today. Suck.
The good news is I have yet to be rejected from Michener. I am completely ignoring the fact that all the people rejected are from the beginning of the alphabet and keeping the faith.
Sorry to hear about American...didn't even know had made decisions yet.
Congrats to whomever it was that got into Wyoming! Yay!
I still haven't heard a peep, not even a "your application is in committee" from UNCG. I feel like the invisible man.... :P
Cheers!
Hi,
I am in Australia and I feel completely disconnected from the whole application decision process, so this blog is great for convincing me that applications are actually being processed.
As someone who applied to UT I was thinking that if rejections are being tabled surely some people must have been getting acceptances?
Rejected from UT. My last name starts with K :( Sigh. Oh well. One down, nine to go!
Had a dream I was accepted to Alabama via video email by a guy dressed in camouflage. Can't this be true?!
When I asked the Magic 8 Ball if I will get into an MFA program this year, it responded, "Hmmmm...without a doubt." Hopeful? Maybe?
http://8ball.tridelphia.net/
Caitlin,
Not necessarily. If they are doing applications alphabetically, they may just be rejecting people as they review and putting maybes to the side. It's anyone's guess.
I have a feeling the TSE is going to be updated quite a bit this week. Time to drink intravenously.
@WT - New drinking game: chug every time someone posts a rejection.
That might interfere w my professional life, but I could use a sippy cup and some breath mints.
Since I have no good news this application season other than this, I'm posting it: I didn't get rejected from UT yet! (No, I was not accepted, just haven't gotten official rejection notice b/c I'm later in the alphabet.) I'm going to drink quickly now to celebrate my good news before they update my status. :-)
@Xataro
I'm eagerly awaiting Indiana poetry notification too - and the UCSD poetry notification. fiction acceptances have already gone out at both schools.
sorry about the rejections, Michener folks. good luck to those who are still left hanging.
PS - after my last post, I'm envisioning the following rejection: "Dear Ms. L, thank you for your interest in University X. Unfortunately because of your gratuitous use of vague pronouns, we cannot admit you into our MFA program at this time. Regards, Professor Y."
Today is the first day I started feeling anxious, I guess because programs I applied to started accepting (not me) over the weekend. I should really force myself to go to some cabin without internet access for the next couple of weeks so I can stop torturing myself. :D
Ok - so people are getting rejected from UT, but has anyone gotten in? Is there any GOOD UT news out there?
My last name is an "H" and I just got a UT rejection.
BUT (this is petty but it does make me feel better) - my online status said they never received my transcripts.
And now I'm off to eat an entire pie.
re: austin
they mail out accpetances, so for now all we know is who is getting rejected. Leaving the rest of us waiting.
Agh... rejected from UT. Last name is an H. And even though it's Texas, I'm still bummed. Oh well. Chin up.
Has anyone gotten rejected from UT in playwriting yet?
OK. accepted into poetry at FSU by phone.
this takes the sting out of the UT rejection, et. al. a little. i mean, it IS UT.
*whew*
Congrats RugbyToy! Love that program!
Cheers!
@ Monica
No word about play writing. Just that they have all my stuff. Where else did you apply?
@rosephase--Hello! I didn't apply anywhere else. I wanted all expenses paid or nothing. :)
Ahh, Texas. I'm towards the beginning of the alphabet and didn't get my rejection yet.
I doubt that the chosen have been... chosen. At least I hope not 'cause my status says that I submitted all of the materials necessary but doesn't have that sentence about being sent for review.
My guess is that we're being read in batches by submission date [I probably flirted with the deadline as that's generally how I roll (but I can search my email if anyone really wants precision)] then rejected by last name.
congrats on your acceptance, rugbytoy!!
Oh yay, congrats RugbyToy! I love hearing that people got in to programs that I didn't apply to! :)
Jamie,
Play "Roxanne" by the Police and drink whenever you hear "Roxanne". If you are with friends, split into teams. The other side drinks to "Red light". Not much strategy to this game and it goes by fast. Funnels and hosing help : - )
Congrats, RugbyToy!
does anybody know how many ppl get accepted to fsu for poetry historically?
@Monica
Well if you don't get in this year you should also apply to Yale and Brown next year they are full rides as well! Good luck!
Congratulations RugbyToy!!
congrats, RugbyToy!
Thanks, @rosephase. But by "full funding" I mean no loans, no research assistantships, no teaching assistantships, no tiered funding, and no work study.
re: UT
Last name with an H in poetry.
Haven't been rejected... yet.
@Monica
Last name P applying to UT for playwriting. No rejection yet, but tomorrow's another day.
thanks for the congrats about wyoming, has anyone heard from montana? that's the other school I applied to and it would be a hard descision if by some crazy stroke of luck I got accepted there as well.
@coughdrop: you heard from American? I haven't heard from them yet... what method of communication did they use? Did anyone else hear from them?
Thanks, Caitlin. My last name starts with B. Good luck to you :)
@Coreyann
I got it through the mail and I applied in fiction! Best of luck to you!
Maybe Texas is rejecting EVERYONE this year, just so they can take the crown for "most selective" back from Vanderbilt.
Just a theory.
Hi everyone,
Do you think that Wyoming has completed their approval/denial process?
I have heard nothing from them and there is no update on my profile.
My last name obviously starts with a W and I haven't been rejected yet from Texas. If they are actually rejecting people in alphabetical order, I'm gonna laugh.
Hi all,
Wyoming is telling me that they've sent out all their offers in all three genres -- and now waitlist notifications will go out this week.
Be well,
Seth
So long, Laramie, and thanks for all the fish. :P
@ c.wink & RugbyToy
Congratulations, friends.
@ UT applicants
I seem to remember these same shenanigans taking place over the UT online status updates last year, too, though I wasn't an applicant and so only know about this from the outside. If I remember correctly, the online rejections kind of trickled in, and then the actual acceptances came much later by email (I think). So this might continue for a while. But who knows. I did apply this year, and no rejection as of yet, so here's to hoping!
Good luck to all--competition included :)
NM
@SeeMoreGlass
Same. Latter half of the alphabet (no word from UT-A) and hanging my head about Syracuse.
congrats to those that've heard good news!
I got my first rejection. OK it stung a bit, I wasn't even wait listed! I just wanted everyone to know it was for UCSD (fiction) A new program only in its second year, six people each in poetry and fiction. I understand its more experimental. That was quick though, February 8. Their deadline was December 2 BTW.
@Word Shift
When did you hear? How?
I know some people here heard on Friday through email, as well as a friend of mine. Was yours today?
Rugby Toy: congrats!
Thanks, Seth. It's great that Wyoming has been so vocal about what is going on there. Congrats to everybody who made the cut!
Oh boy - bracing myself for a rejection from American. Wondering though, since it's rolling admissions, could it be that we'll all hear at different times? No idea how that works.
@RugbyToy C O N G R A T S ! ! ! ! that's awesome! nice to have some positive news
@c.wink i myself haven't heard anything from montana, no one on the blog has mentioned it yet..
new mantra is, Just One School. It's Still Early. Just One School. It's Still Early.........
@c.wink - Congratulations on Wyoming! I'm dying to know what's going to happen with Montana. If you've only applied to two schools and you get accepted at both, you will be A LEGEND.
@RugbyToy - Congratulations on FSU! You're IN! How good does that feel?! Doesn't the acceptance make all of the pain and application aggravation feel worth it?
Congratulations, RugbyToy!
Yay RugbyToy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Congratulations RugbyToy!
Congrats to those accepted! Condolences to those not.
Got a question about loans...Does anyone know the deal about paying undergrad loans back (of the Sallie Mae persuasion) while in a grad program? Do they get deferred till you're out?
@ Andrew
As far as I know, Sallie Mae will defer loans as long as you're in school--grad, undergrad, whatever. Your interest will still accrue, of course, but you shouldn't have to pay that either until you're officially in repayment. If you're worried about it, just call them and ask, but I'm almost positive they'll say yes.
Cheers!
NM
They do get deferred, Andrew, as long as you're a full-time student. It's automatic, and all you have to do is prove it. (Which is easy.)
I believe (and someone correct me if I'm wrong) the reason paying them while you're in school is so appealing is that you're *actually reducing your debt* instead of defraying interest. A pretty cool opportunity (that your credit score will appreciate) if you can hack it.
Good to know. Thanks, fellas.
re: student loans, it's sometimes a bit more complicated.
if you're more than half-time in a degree program, almost all subsidized student loans are deferred. unsubsidized stafford loans still accrue interest, however.
Aaaand ... if they've been sold to Sallie Mae, and you've ever been in repayment period before, Sallie Mae will often make you make payments during the summers when you're not officially 'in school'.
Most not all will automatically know from the national database if you're back in school, but some, especially those still owned by schools, will need a deferral form filled out before entering a programme, as it can take 30 days for them to verify your status.
I feel like I should have a grad degree in accounting for all the stuff I've learned about student loans over the years ... and ways to avoid paying them. :p
Congratulations, RugbyToy and c.wink! Sorry about Texas, guys...
Congratulations, RugbyToy! You deserve it!
Congratulations, RugbyToy and c.wink!!!
This process is getting 'real' for me because my students at school (I'm a high school teacher) have found out that I'm not coming back next year and so I've actually had to verbalize, many times in just the one day that the news has been 'out', exactly what it is I'm hoping to do.
I'll feel like such a terrible role model if I don't get in anywhere... follow your dreams kids!... oops... I mean, nevermind.
!!!
What is considered a good verbal score on the GRE?
Oh man...my UT status was still up in the air last night, but I checked this morning and it's a rejection. My last name starts with a K, so maybe they ARE going in alphabetical order?
And CONGRATULATIONS RugbyToy!
@um: To an MA program? Probably 85th percentile.
I believe an MFA program's preferred score is a great manuscript :)
I'm checking this blog about every five seconds to see if any new acceptances come in today....
@Emily
aren't we all????
I have a snow day so I'm doing nothing but refreshing this blog and my Texas status! I got some blogging done (emilysletters.blogspot.com), I tried to read, and I went to the kitchen a couple of times...but I can't seem to let go of my computer... I just want to get my rejection from Texas over with so I can go back to normal life!!!
Congrats Rugby!
And you were worried about all your friends getting in!
Look at you! I guess now you don't have to hate anyone on this blog. ;)
Last night I was all in a tizzy about the Texas updates, but now I'm amused at the ups and downs of the MFA application cycle (and the MFA applicant psyche). As soon as I sent in the Michener application I thought, "oh well, that was fun, guess I'll wait for my rejection to come in March." (Actually, I didn't think that until I remembered Dec. 15 was the postmark date, not the arrive-by date and could stop freaking out about it not getting there on time. It got there on Dec. 14.) But as soon as the rejections started going up, I had that little burst of hope--maybe a miracle will happen and I will get in! And, since I'm at the end of the alphabet, that hope gets to burn until sometime this afternoon when the hardworking administrative assistant or intern finally reaches W.
I'm tempted to agree that the rejections might be alphabetical. My last name starts with an "M," and my rejection via status update just came in sometime in the past 15 minutes. Best of luck to all Texas applicants who have not yet been rejected!
NM
@Emily S
snow day here too! so my day's ... reading, reading and more reading; writing; laughing at the siamese who's chasing snowflakes; gazing at the longahired one who just sits around looking too cute.
and making sure my phone's charged, just in case 6 programs want to call me today. :p
Oh, Texas. Sorry Nick (and everyone A-M who's been notified thus far!)
I'm watching Puppy Bowl clips on YouTube to relieve the stress. It's a snow day. What else am I going to do???
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEhTz-reOAA
@koru
My phone is charged and I've checked the volume level a dozen times in the last few hours to make sure it's not on silent!
I embrace the craziness.
@NM (and everyone else who's heard so far), I'm sorry about UT ... :-(
Re: Texas
I really don't think it's strict alphabetical. I'm inside A-M and haven't been updated.
Plus, would they really order the files before sending them to the committee...or after? I don't know, but I feel like we're grasping for some order in this ridiculous process.
@k
You're probably right... in this whole process, all we can do is grasp and draw ridiculously baseless conclusions :)
@ everyone here
I want to read but my compulsivity won't let me leave the computer today... do you guys have blogs? Can you post or email me links to them so I can read them? (emcsims at gmail dot com)
@k: That's actually good news! If you aren't updated, it means they haven't reached a decision on your app yet (or hadn't when they sent a list of rejections to the office).
Take heart!
@Raine: Your last name begins with a W, eh? You wouldn't happen to be on The Office, would you? Exchanging an "n" for an "e" to throw us off? ;)
@K:
Well, the hope is that they are only sending rejections, and everyone else is still in the running, right?
I'm an 'S' myself, so I get to refresh that damn status page for the next day or two.
@ c wink - Congratulations!
@ RugbyT - special congratulations, since I was here for some of your most special anxiety rants!
I'm using my fiction writing skills to imagine what it's like to get in!
Re UT: I'm a last name "B" and I'm still not rejected.
Thing is, my little blue bar still says:
"We've received all the items needed to review your application for admission."
Other people are talking about some message that says their app has been forwarded to the committee. Mine just says the above. So I probably haven't even been read yet. I'm in batch two, I suppose. Though I'm a little worried about the data technician who was going to update my status to rejected - what if he or she got so stoned on their break that they just wandered off, perhaps falling into Barton Springs where they were devoured by turtles? It is Austin, after all.
My MS, statement, etc., arrived on 12/10, if anybody's following the date.
Such Kremlinology to be had in discerning the mysterious will of Michie!
As all of these acceptances and rejections roll in, I just have to add that there are REALLY AMAZING WRITERS on this blog. If everyone's rants and raves weren't so entertaining, thought provoking, heartwrenching and amusing, we would only be checking TSE updates every day instead of tuning in here.
Maybe Christopher Guest will make an MFA Waiting Game mockumentary ala "Best in Show." That would be hilarious--to about 2000 people, but still...
WTF! Nobody rejects Nick McCrae!
@Jamie - Ha! I was thinking the exact same thing.
Those dirty bastages! :D
@Jamie
Your posts are cracking me up!
And that's exactly what I thought! WTF! Nobody rejects NM!!!
I agree with the conspiracy theorists who said that UT is rejecting everyone to get their most selective spot back from Vanderbilt!
@Adam - I could be this year's celebrity applicant! Unfortunately, due to age and gender, the closest I could get would be as his kid sister. Or maybe his niece. (Rainn and Raine...sounds like a law firm. Or a detective agency!)
Raine,
You know a detective agency is much cooler.
Nick's rejection has convinced me that the entire UT system is currently under attack from a transnational hacker consortium, probably with military grade software.
It's the only plausible explanation.
Definitely.
All I have to say is: Veronica Mars.
Oh God...and my last name starts with 'W'. If this alphabetical thing is tru... doesn't matter. I've already decided to loathe UT for the next couple of days (I love, tho, Michener. I think of you at nights )
My post above was in reply to Ashley Brooke, but it has a nice kind of absurd quality as a reply to Jamie.
Congrats RugbyToy and C. Wink!
As for Montana, I emailed to make sure they received my application, and they said yesterday that they should "hopefully" have decisions in mid or late March.
@ c wink: Yay!
@RugbyToy: Good for you!
Those are both lovely places to land.
By the way, for those who decide to accept Wyoming's offer: if you get bored up there next year, Fort Collins, Boulder and Denver, CO are not terribly far away (I'm a Denverite :)).
That sounds like a silly offer now, but Denver will start to look like f*cking Dubai once you get settled in.
I'm looking for a good book to read to pass the time...who better to offer suggestions than potential MFA-ers?? I jut finished "The Help" and "Say You're One of Them"...loved them both.
I'm a last name "A," and my poetry rejection just came through in the past few minutes! I can say with some certainty, however, that this was alphabetical. A second wave of rejections may be in progress, folks!
I'm surprisingly not too shaken :)
@Adam
Your last name isn't "Ant" by any chance?
@Adam
How do you have this certainty??
@Emily
Stuart Dybek's "The Coast of Chicago" is terrific--highly recommended. Alice Munro's "The Beggar Maid"--also great.
In other, have any fictioneers heard peep from Alabama?
Charles ,
Don't be so down on your waitlist offer. Most of us did not get that. Hundreds of us. Congrats on it, and don't let you nerves kill you. You're still in the game.
@ Jamie & Emily S.
The Earth's yellow sun cannot protect me from the rare shards of that green, extraterrestrial mineral known as Rejection.
;)
NM
Oh, and,
@ Charles
Congrats on the waitlist!
NM
Ditto: congratulations, Charles! If I turn Syracuse down I will let you know. :)
@ Charles - congrats! - don't worry, you'll make it - nobody wants to go to school with a bunch of rust belt yokels. Just ask Dreux. Seriously, though, what this says is that you're probably very near the top, so you've got good prospects overall. Plus, the trend is more people applying more places, so there will be more shuffling, so your odds are better than before, in my uneducated opinion.
I am actually so excited over the prospect of a snow day that I don't care about what the Mich thinks right now. Who the freak wants to go where they don't have snow days? What do they have in Texas, anyway...cow days?
congrats on the waitlist, charles!
@Andrew--
I loved Dybek's "I Sailed with Magellan," so I'll have to check out "The Coast of Chicago." I'll be so happy if Western Michigan accepts me and I get to work with him.
@franny
Funny you say that, I live in the middle-of-nowhere, Montana now, Laramie is going to seem like a metropolis, scary.
@Jessie: No, but my aunt actually has a shirt that says "Adam's Aunt." Not kidding.
@Emily S: Just from past years, friends who've applied and gone through UT's system, etc.
Just got word I've been accepted at Northern Michigan University (MFA program, by e-mail) in poetry!
I had previously been accepted to the MA program there, but the director asked me a week or so ago if I'd agree to be considered for the MFA instead. Obviously, I agreed!
Best of luck to any other NMU applicants!
NM
Congrats, Nick!!! You're really racking them up!
wow, nick - that's awesome. congrats!
@ Emily + Andrew - I'm really liking the new Sam Shepard short story collection Day Out of Days. I'm a big fan of all his fiction.
I also recently reread Pam Houston's Waltzing the Cat and enjoyed that, especially since I'm into the western outdoorsy activities she writes about. She's really awesome and if I were willing to move to the west coast I'd definitely have applied wherever she's teaching out there.
gentleviewer, I heard yesterday afternoon (Monday) by email.
Congrats, Nick!
Also:
Q: What's Wolverine's favorite New Wave band?
A: Adam Ant-ium!
*ba-dum-tish*
@Andrew
I haven't heard anything from Alabama. :( No news is good news?
Most of my schools aren't due to begin notifying until March... this is going to be a long month!
Go Nick!
@ Nick - awesome!
I'm sure future boards will talk about "doing a Nick McCrae/going all Nick McCrae on them" to describe an especially successful application round.
congrats Nick!
leave a space or two for the others, though! :p
@Ian
That's what I was thinking, too, but Alabama kind of dropped off the blog, so I figured it was time for resurrection.
And yup, looks like February is the longest month of the year for MFA applicants.
Good luck, everyone!
Congrats, Nick!
REJECTED FROM TEXAS. ugh. i hope that rejection wasn't the opening of the rejection floodgates. i know everyone really wanted to go there, but i really wanted to go there. roy was right. love hurts.
@Jamie
I think you've started a new catch phrase for sure :) And you may have listed this elsewhere and I apologize if so, but where did you apply and in which genre?
Sadly, I appear to be Bizarro Nick McRae....
Oh my, Jamie - 'cow days'? Ha! Major lolage.
Congrats, Nick and Charles! :) So excited for you guys... waitlist is not a bad!
a friend just posted links to some of his newly recorded music on my FB today, and one of the songs is called 'patient time' ... how appropriate & unnerving for MFA applicants! :p
Wisconsin app still says "pending." Friday is so far away. I really need to just turn off my computer and walk away but I can't!
@ frankish, if you're Bizarro NM, does that mean you get rejected everywhere except UT?
Besides, being Bizzarro NM is better than being Evil NM, who uses his talents to enslave the world's peoples, or NM: The Revenge, who uses his talents only to win petty literary feuds against those he feels slighted him over the years.
Malibu NM? Action Grip NM?
Also has anyone else heard anything at all from George Mason??
@emily,
GM is closed today, and expecting another 20" of snow this afternoon.
@ Emily, I've checked my WI status at least 5 times today. I know it's not Friday, and I am aware their page says it's updated at 7 each morning (I checked the first time at 6:50 and then for the second time at 7:04). And yet this UT wave has hit me hard, and I'm afraid WI will inform the same way.
@Koru- I forgot about the blizzard there...thanks for the info. I live in a place that never closes for snow, ever.
@Farrah--I feel exactly the same way. I know my chances of getting into Wisconsin are basically zero, but until I know for sure, I'm still holding on to that thiny shred of hope....I think my number one choice out of all of my 17 schools I applied to is Wisconsin :/
Yeah, much of the east coast is in for another snow bomb today, further disrupting campus operations at schools there.
@Charles,
OMG, if I got waitlisted at Syracuse, I would have a coronary...of JOY. Seriously, one foot in the door is a million times better than a cold slap of fish in the face.
I have heard nothing from them, so my tail is dragging through the mud, oh yes it is.
If you're feeling bad about your UT rejection, think of it like this:
There are 20+ people in each genre who will get rejected by UT and who will get into Iowa.
Same for Wisconsin. Both of these schools will have about 1% acceptance rates for fiction this year.
@Jamie - Yes, that is quite possible. Since I didn't apply to Michener, I may actually get rejected everywhere but UT. :P
Since we're talking about reading, if anyone needs a good book for the summer, I recommend Mr. Peanut, coming out in June I think. By way of disclosure, the author is one of my closest friends. With that said, I read the manuscript and it's best book I've read in years.
http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6893663-mr-peanut
Cheers!
@ Emily (and any other WI applicant) . . . assuming 29 of the 629 applications were (in)complete and/or crap, each of our chances is about 1 in 100. Be grateful you have 16 other possiblities. I only have one. Maybe you've heard of it. Iowa?
I don't know if the Jaws theme or the Psycho music when Norman Bates pulls back the curtain is more appropriate as the soundtrack for my general state of being.
That's 20+ rejected or didn't apply of course, re: my above.
I suppose everyone didn't apply to 15 schools...
@Farrah - Both of those would probably do the trick...or maybe something from The Omen. :-O
Personally, I feel like I'm stuck in an Elliott Smith song....
Oh Hi Kaybay,
A little late here, but yes, I'm currently obsessed with The Room. No matter how many times I see certain scenes, it just keeps getting funnier. I haven't seen the movie in full, but it's playing near me on Friday night. I can't wait! This waiting to hear from schools thing is tearing me apart! Also, my fiance just saw Troll II. His description of it made that movie sound...stunning.
OK. For Sigma or anyone else who might care to know:
FSU received around 500+ applications for MFA and PhD spots in all genres; there are only 17 spots available, across the board, between both programs. I do not know the genre breakdown, but it does look like all MFA candidates will (probably) be fully-funded this year.
Thanks for all the congrats. I never *intended* on hating any of you.
Just stay away from my boyfriend ...
@Elissa:
Johnny: I did not hit her! I did not do it! I DID NAAAAAAAAAAHT!
Everybody: WHAT KIND OF DRUGS DID YOU DO, DENNY?!
Denny: DRUGS!
Johnny: Oh hai little doggy!
Congratulations, Rugby and Nick!
Need a distraction? Try this site:
http://chatroulette.com/
ChatRoulette puts you face-to-face (via webcam) with worldwide strangers. You hit 'start,' your webcam turns on, and you come face-to-face with someone you likely have never met, never will meet, would never want to meet. Hit 'next' and the roulette 'spins' to a new stranger.
It's a weird blend of the adcom/applicant roles. Like the adcom, you flip through stacks of work (strangers) and must make quick decisions about quality and worth. Like the applicant, the stranger at the other end can (and often will) reject you.
This in mind, ChatRoulette is a good exercise in inurement to rejection! I've been 'nexted' by rooms of giggling teenage girls and masked masturbating men.
Humbling, thrilling, disgusting; sound familiar?
Oh Hi Jessie,
Thank you-- I'm sitting here cracking up!
In fact, I am the most obsessed with: "I did not hit her. I did naaaaaaht. Oh hi Mark."
Also: "What's bovering you?"
And: "You're a chicken! Cheep cheep cheep cheep!"
"I cannot take this world anymore!"
Did anyone else apply to the New School? I believe they should start accepting this week?
Also, does anyone actually know what the funding situation is like over there? I met with someone in admissions, and they basically told me that I could count on partial funding if I got in.
Ohhhhhhhhhh The Room is amazing!
I teach a film class, and I used excerpts from The Room (only appropriate ones, of course) to illustrate poor examples of film-making techniques. Especially acting.
My favorite lines are:
Mark - "Leave your STUPID comments in your pocket!"
and
Lisa - "I miss you."
Mark - "Ugh, I just saw you. What are you talking about??"
Elissa,
I forgot about the "oh hi Mark" part. That's what really makes the quote. My girlfriend uses that line "I did naaaaaaaaht!" when accused of leaving the fridge door open, forgetting to call, etc.
So... I've been playing free online games to distract myself from the anxiety of hearing from schools. I thought this one was pretty appropriate:
http://www.kongregate.com/games/Rete/dont-shit-your-pants
@umIrenic
I applied to the New School in play writing. I just exchanged e-mails with the department coordinator and she said that it looks like they will be sending out offers in late February not mid February. Don't know if that effects your department.
Chat roulette is INSANE. The internet is crazy. It makes me so uncomfortable, and I've seen the following: a dude in full ICP makeup jerking off, a 10 year old asking to see boobs, and a lady making a salad.
Just got a waitlist notification from Syracuse. I am actually really, really not unhappy at all about this. Sometimes I feel like I'm totally deluding myself by thinking I even have a chance at any of these places.
Oh, and said girlfriend is also a film studies minor--when we watched it together, she had quite a few things to say about this example of horrific filmmaking.
@ rosephase
thanks
@Ashley Brooke
Good to know ICP ninjas keep it Faygo (real disgusting) on things like ChatRoulette.
Any late-alphabet UTers have rejections yet? I'm having grade school anxieties about being the last in line (V-name).
congrats, rahkan. i would be thrilled to get a waitlist notification from syracuse. :)
Way to go Syracuse waitlisters! Congratulations!
@rahkan - Are you fiction or poetry?
Also, I just heard from Temple via phone. I'm poetry. I picked up the phone and saw the Philly area code (I live in Philly) and didn't think anything of it, so it made for a pleasant surprise.
Last name starts with G. Still no rejection from UT.
@ Mike
Congrats on Temple!
NM
Hey non-rejected Michener folks: When did you get your materials in? I'm thinking the last name rule is applied in batches according to received-by dates. Maybe those of us who got our materials in early are the first to be rejected and the rejections go out alphabetically? Just a guess.
Congratulations to all the acceptances and waitlists!
@Nick - Thanks! It's quite a confidence booster after having heard nothing from anyone (save a probable rejection at Syracuse) for so long. Congrats on your many successes.
Lucas,
It's possible, but I sent my stuff in by mid-october. My last name starts with N (maybe they haven't gotten to N yet?)
Mike,
Congrats on Temple! :)
Got an email from Admissions at Columbia...
Turns out that, in addition to the FAFSA form, they require a Need Access form (to be considered for financial aid). Another $28 fee. :/
So I have yet to hear from any school save to be asked to spend more money. :D
@Lucas,
I was rejected from Texas, but got my crap turned in at the eleventh hour. (It's not because I'm lazy -- I HOARD.) So I personally doubt that they're handing out rejections in the order in which applications were received.
@ Lucas - My materials were received 12/10, and my last name is a "B," and I'm still in Michener limbo.
That said, perhaps they're not posting a rejection for me because they seriously doubt my comprehension of the English language.
Also, there's this whole business of people saying their status read "forwarded to the grad committee." Mine just says "we have all your materials." Perhaps it's very passive aggressive, like "Did you like my writing sample?" "Uh...we definitely received it."
@Lucas
Occam's Razor in mind, this theory sounds too complex.
I sent in my FAFSA, and got a notice from Arizona State that I have to prove that I don't have to register for selected service. I literally have to print out their form, check the box that says I'm female, and then mail it back in. And that's it.
Also, I send in my UT materials in mid-October, and have not yet gotten my rejection notice.
congratulations, mike!
@ frankish - also got that Columbia email. Only Columbia would ask you to pay money...for a freaking financial aid form!!!
@ Rosie - I'm a hoarder too. I definitely understand. It was so painful giving up that precious little packet...
Congratulations to the folks recently accepted -- Jessie, RugbyToy, Nick, CWink... I might be missing some folks, but yay for you too!
Okay, has anyone heard from University of Arizona yet? The due date was January 1st, so I'm getting a bit antsy. (I did email them to confirm the receipt of my application, and they replied to say that they had and would "begin the evaluation." That was two weeks ago.)
Another Michener reject. THEIR HATRED ONLY MAKES ME STRONGER.
I wouldn't expect to hear anything from Arizona until March, going off of the response dates.
@ Rosie
I don't think University of Arizona typically notifies until the beginning of March.
Thanks Kat and Mike! And LOL @ Ruth! I CONCUR.
@umlrenic
I've got a spot in the fall at the New School (deferred admission from last year--long story). They offered $4,500 to everyone admitted.
That makes things tough given their tuition. I'm in NYC already, but would likely have to work full time and take out loans. Not sure I like that idea, though leaving Brooklyn seems as painful itself.
For those of you who are anxious to hear from George Mason's MFA program, here is an update.
I work with the director of the Creative Writing Program at Mason, and he asked me to write some "good news" emails based on the strength of the applications that have been read. This is the email that Black Water was referring to a few hundred comments back. Although we are snowed out of the office right now, the program faculty, who form the admissions committees, took home the applications in anticipation of the bad weather and are reading through them. Please rest assured that the admissions process is still underway despite the storms.
I want to wish you all the best for your writing (and for your nerves) during this time.
Hi J,
From what you know of the program, you figure that most/all of the students took out loans and/or have full-time jobs?
I applied to NS because they gave me a fee waiver, and they are the only school on my list that I know I probably cannot attend even if accepted. It's a shame. This whole thing with paying and stuff.
@ A. Astur - Is there any way to NOT shit your pants?
@ Emily (I believe it was) - Two of my favorite reads over the last six months have been "Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close" by Jonathan Safran Foer and "Last Night" by James Salter. The latter is a collection of short stories. Absolutely killer.
Huh.
@Blackwater - I ask myself that question daily.
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