<p>A number of schools I have applied to have not received my test scores and transcripts. This is especially confusing to me since I had the test scores sent out on Dec 2, and the transcripts in late November. </p>
<p>My optimistic thought is that since I only sent in the electronic applications on Dec 8, it might take the various institutions a couple of days to associate my scores and transcripts to my electronic file, even though they have in fact received them. </p>
<p>If this is not the case, I am basically screwed, since the deadlines are all on Dec 15, and ETS takes at least 5 business days to process and send out score reports. </p>
<p>Did you request your score reports on Dec 2? If so it will be mailed out Dec 8 at the earliest, I would actually call them to make sure that your reports have been mailed out. When I requested my scores in October, it literally took about 12 days from my online request to scores actually being mailed out, I had to call every couple of days to confirm it. The good thing is that some but not all of the schools now accept online score reports from ETS, so that may speed up the process a little bit. Yes, it would take time for each institution to associate incoming scores and transcripts with your file, from my experience, the wait ranges from a couple of days to two weeks.</p>
<p>In cases like this, programs will often take self-reported scores, as long as the report shows up to confirm the scores before too long. Call your programs and notify them of the situation and ask whether they will accept your self-reported scores until the reports arrive; my guess is that they will say yes, and then you can stop stressing.</p>
<p>To reiterate, this is not a reason to panic. Graduate programs deal with ETS all the time, and they are aware that sometimes test scores (or transcripts, or letters of recommendation) don't arrive by the deadline. This is not unusual, and it's not a problem as long as the material arrives eventually.</p>
<p>Mid December deadlines I think are terrible for the graduate schools, and for me as well. I'm applying to one school whose deadline is also the 15th which is amongst my finals week. Only one of my recommenders has submitted a statement as of yet, and I just took the GRE's last week also. If the department rejects my application simply because all the materials are not in hand on Monday then honestly, I wont care to go there anymore. They'll lose my fellowship moneys and my company's money for funding research to another more reasonable school. I'm sure there are other students in the same position so I think it would be unreasonable for the school to just completely cut everyone off at the published deadline.</p>