<p>So Duke was going to grant me an extension to get my application in to them and I thought, "forget it, I'm just done with this!" As much as I want to go to grad school, paying their $75 application fee for a chance at admission and then an even slimmer chance at substantial financial aid (necessary for me) doesn't compute. Hassling professors I haven't seen for four years for LORs that I can't even read, paying to send transcripts, paying to send GRE scores. Then the whole waiting game and admissions anxiety, "what if I spent all this time and hassle for nothing!" I put together two applications at two different schools and I'm done. I'm just gonna sit back and hope I get in to one of the two reasonably priced schools I applied to and not come out of grad school with $100,000+ mortgage and no house. Kudos to all you who send up 6, 7, 8, 20 applications. I got two and I'm good with that, that's all the pain I can handle.</p>
<p>Sorry I just had to vent...anyone else with me here?</p>
<p>I think the process for both undergrad applications and graduate is just insane. You go through so much suffering, time and trouble, when you can very well just end up disappointed. I applied to like 10 schools in my Senior year of HS and got in about 4. It's rough out there. I never knew how tedious and hard it is getting all the paperwork together let alone getting in the school you want.</p>
<p>For me the torture was hassling recommendation providers to submit letters to 5-6 schools, some of them online, some of them on paper, and sending them reminders. I felt so rude and annoying! But I will send them all personalized thank you cards after this is all done, no matter the admissions results. </p>
<p>I'm also not looking forward to the waiting. Pretty much no one on this forum seems to be in my field, so I'm sort of going it alone, which makes it even tougher! But the prospect of getting into any of the schools I applied to keeps me going. </p>
<p>I wish everyone the best of luck, and good luck to professors sorting through all the applications!</p>
<p>yes! I know exactly what you mean. But remember that patience and persistence will eventually pay off in the future (its a nice outlook to a crappy process)</p>
<p>The process is very intimidating, but granted that you get your ducks in a row, things smooth out from one application to the next. I am unfortunate in that the requirements are so different from program to program. For example, I had to write up 4 essays in addition to my 5 SOPS. </p>
<p>A word of advice: Google Docs is a lifesaver for those like myself who travel frequently for work. Having all of my materials (including scans of my transcript and GRE score report) in one centralized location really helps. </p>
<p>I also have a spreadsheet with links to each of the applications and checkboxes for the specific requirements. yes, I am OC, then again, I go all loopy for that kind of stuff. :)</p>
<p>I couldn't gush enough about google docs. It was completely necessary for me to ever function and before it existed, I traveled with a backpack full of floppy disks. </p>
<p>Its unfortunate that if you were going to the effort of getting recs, taking tests, writing personal statements, ordering transcripts etc that you didn't apply to more places. You only have to hassle letter writers once per writer. You can submit multiple addresses to the old registrar office for transcripts to be sent to. The effort of applying to 8 places wouldn't have been any different than applying to 4.</p>
<p>Kudos, to the programs that offer free application fees, that is pretty forward thinking.</p>
<p>I think it would help if universities and other organizations used better online application systems. I mean, they really are horrible. And there's a lot of duplicated effort. The worst part is the system for gathering recommendation letters.</p>
<p>Here Here to everything that has been said!!</p>
<p>I have been following these graduate forums from September and I have never felt more compelled to write a post until now. This process sucks royally. Too much work for ultimately no reward. As an international student it's even worst. And it's even more painful in my case, especially considering that I won't get into even 1 of the programs I applied to. Anyway, getting the Recs was definitely the hardest. I had to grill and pester my former professors everyday. </p>
<p>I am with JRabas24 on this one. Sit back and hope it plays in your favour.</p>
<p>It's just a part of the process. You pay your dues when you are young, smart, and energetic, and you will find yourself on the other side of the fence later on :)</p>
<p>I have been having some problems with Brandeis, which is surprising given their reputation for excellence. I submitted the application that had to be done in one sitting (pretty rinky-dink compared to the application accounts that could be started at one time and finished at another that was available for every other school to which I applied). Then they took a week just to send the forms to my recommenders. One of my recommenders couldn't access the form with the username and password they emailed him, and when I wrote my admissions contact to let them know, she just emailed back and told him to email it to the general grad admissions mailbox. Grrrrrrr...</p>
<p>No! I live for the application process! Next year, i'm going to fill out new supplements for different schools just to keep me busy! So fun!!!!!!!!!! I love writing and being stressed out! Best years of my life!</p>
<p>Thanks Sheelo! I certainly wouldn't push Brandeis up or down the list based on my experience in the application process. What I've heard from students there is that it really is an excellent school.</p>
<p>i haven't even completed a single application and I am already stressed out. Entering in professor information a million times for recs, SOPs, and so on. I'm applying to 7 schools. If don't get into one of them I will kill myself.</p>
<p>Joel I definitely agree and I hope everything works out for you eventually :) Euler yeah I have only submitted two applications so far and the other three dont need to be submitted till next week- which buys me enough time.. right?? ;)</p>
<p>I actually enjoy the process except for the LORs. One night before an application is due and 2/3 teachers haven't even submitted, even though I gave a reminder a week before its due.</p>
<p>As long as I'm in control, I'm fine. But when a part of the app is in someone else's hands, it freaks me out.</p>
<p>And you know what I noticed? The one non-tenured professor I asked for an LOR from filled it out within a couple days--way before the due date. The two tenured professors just take their sweet time. Seriously, I hate it!!</p>
<p>And what **es me off even more is that when one of my now tenured professors was up for tenure, the department contacted **me to ask if I would write a student LOR for his tenure. It was done in confidence, so he had no idea I was asked. I wrote him a glowing, well thought out letter and handed it in within a week. He has no idea. I almost feel like letting him know about it, but it just doesn't seem appropriate. So frustrating.</p>
<p>The process has be relatively painless for me; my referees were (mostly) prompt, the essays were so similar that a little cutting and pasting did the trick, and that FAFSA was the simplest I've done in years. No parental tax returns to look up :)</p>
<p>One exception: McGill University. Practically every week I receive an email from the admissions secretary about some complication. First it was [paraphrased] "You have too many hours of AP credit. We don't trust your university, so we need documentation of the test results." I obligingly dug up my old AP student number and paid the $20 to send a fresh report to them. A week later it was "One of your referees sent a letter, but he referred to you by first name only. We know it's yours, but please ask him to resend a letter with your last name included, just to be sure."</p>
<p>Then just yesterday I received another from the same person: "Another referee sent a letter without a signature. Please have her email to explain that she forgot to sign it. By the way, we noticed that this letter, like the last one, was mailed by you. Letters should come directly from the professors--students should not read them! I do not know if the admissions committee with consider this negatively if we decide to offer you admission."</p>
<p>(a) This referee is overseas and did not want to mail the letter internationally (and McGill doesn't accept emailed recs), so the department secretary over here printed and mailed them instead.
(b) These letters appeared to have been sent by me because I provided the stamped, addressed envelopes. I'm sure no other student has done that before. It isn't common courtesy or anything. Naturally, letters that come in envelopes with a student's return address on them /must/ have been read by them--it couldn't be because the student felt she should be responsible for the safe delivery of the letters. One of the suspect letters had an official department stamp over the flap, for heaven's sake.</p>
<p>If I'm admitted to McGill, I will take great satisfaction in turning them down.</p>