Having finished graduate school interviews up in February, I've been really excited to get the word back from all the programs so I could make my decision. My top choice by far was UCLA. They had the best program/faculty/resources for what I wanted to do, plus it's in So Cal so I wouldn't have to move that far and I could still be near my family and friends. I LOVED my experience there during the recruitment weekend, and I felt like all of my interviews went really well (something I couldn't say about all the schools I visited). One professor even seemed eager to advocate for me, saying he was going to email a couple of people on the admissions committee and tell them "they had to admit me." Suffice it to say, I was feeling very confident and had begun to make plans in my mind about what the next five years would be like in Los Angeles.
And then . . . I opened my email on Monday to receive A REJECTION. I was absolutely devastated. Here I had successfully gotten an interview at my dream school and come off of it feeling like I'd done a great job (and they told us 75% of the interviewees would be accepted so I had little reason to worry) and this happens. The past couple days I have been in a funk the likes of which I have never experienced before. On top of that I got sick, probably something I caught at the party over the weekend. So I'm home from work today trying to recover, both physically and mentally/emotionally. I am feeling a little better in all ways, though. I did get one acceptance (out of nine applications, geez) out of state. On the east coast. It's still a good school, just not quite as strong in the specific area I was interested in. I admit, the possibility of turning it down and reapplying to UCLA next year has crossed my mind. On the other hand, there's no guarantee I'd do any better next year, and I might not even get an interview (it's probably only going to get more competitive, especially in CA with all the budget cuts) I have a month to decide, so I have a lot of thinking to do. The thought of leaving my friends and family behind on the west coast pains me, but it might be good for me to get far out of my comfort zone. We'll see.
3 comments:
Sorry to hear that buddy! I hate rejections, especially from schools I had my heart set on. I can only think back to not getting into USC or UCLA for undergrad.
You sound like me- having a hard time leaving friends and family. Maybe a new start would be good.
Were those the only 2 schools you applied to?
Hopefully it all works out :-)
:-( *Hugs*
Rejection letters suck. But at least it's a rejection LETTER as opposed to a rejection EMAIL (which I've gotten before, I mean, wtf?!). What about the other 7 programs you applied to?
But yeah, definitely something to think through. You could possibly use that acceptance as "leverage" with UCLA to maybe swing their decision - and be like, I got accepted here, but I REALLY want to go to UCLA. I know people can and do that with med school, but grad school I don't know.
Best of luck deciding!
@Mike: Thanks. I applied to 9 schools. Rejected from 6, accepted to 1, still waiting on 1, and never heard anything from the other 1 (but interviews already passed so I'll count that one as a rejection).
@Aek: Actually, it WAS a rejection email, haha. As for the leverage idea: nope, unfortunately it doesn't work that way for PhD, at least these programs. They had a set number of people to offer acceptances to. I read a lot about the risks of getting a PhD (not a ticket to a good career like an MD is), so I'm wondering if maybe this is a sign that I'm barking up the wrong tree. I've got to do a lot of soul-searching in the next couple weeks.
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