<p>yet more negativity!!</p>
<p>It’s free, that’s great, but at the same time…a little courtesy would be appreciated. There are those of us that have responsibilities over the summer that need to be dealt with. I’m grateful that they gave us this opportunity, but admissions decisions were originally supposed to be released in March, which is what many of us planned for. It’s just difficult to plan for, honestly, if they had told us up front that we wouldn’t know until now it would be fine, but they didn’t…</p>
<p>Vper -</p>
<p>This is a board where we all help/support/congratulate each other, get information out, release some energy with others in the same positions, and generally get moral support. We are all positive about the program and how wonderful it would be to be accepted. None of us would have applied if we didn’t believe that to be true.</p>
<p>Having said that, while the actual application was as intense and thorough as any college app I did this year, the selection process has been, shall we say, not nearly so streamlined. If you personally can wait and don’t have any anxiety about other plans or options, lucky you. I am a high school senior and must commit a non-refundable deposit to my college by May 1. Not all colleges offer automatic deferments, and mine is one where you must apply for a deferment. American Councils/NSLI should know that, and should care. They should respond to our requests for information on timing when there are issues like this in play. See the (non) response that Kendra received regarding this on Cultures Shocked. The gist:</p>
<p>Kendra: “When will we know?”
NSLI: “Chicken salad. Thanks for asking.”</p>
<p>I am being facetious, obviously. I don’t know where she is planning to go to college, but it sounds like she and I are in the same boat and the answer she received to a very polite email regarding the timing of notifications was ridiculous and a little rude.</p>
<p>Lots of people on this board have Rotary opportunities or other scholarships that DID complete their application reviews and notify on time. I don’t think it’s ungrateful for those of us who truly want to represent our countries abroad to ask that we get notice of this in a timely fashion. </p>
<p>I know they are not just trying to yank our collective chains, and I’m sure they are not sitting around eating doughnuts, reading these boards and laughing at our angst. They are grantees on a federal program, and let’s face it, the feds have enough trouble right now without breathing down the necks of American Councils to get the show on the road. </p>
<p>I still want to do this, desperately, passionately, completely. I hope I get the opportunity to do so. We’ve all been enthusiastic and excited until now. It’s just getting old, with people being told different things on the phone when they or their parents call for information. This thread is 30 pages long, and no one has had one bad thing to say until now. On the other boards, same thing - positive until now. We are tired. We are anxious. We have parents and colleges and high schools and summer schools and study abroad programs who want to know our plans. We just need to know.</p>
<p>All I would like to say jdhjdh is God bless you because I think you just summed up all my feelings about the subject!!!</p>
<p>Blanklives - Don’t give up hope on the alternate status. You never know who will end up unable to go. My guess is that there is quite a lot of movement in the lists once people start having to commit. Yes, the wait stinks, but at least you know you’re still being considered.</p>
<p>jdhjdh, thank you! </p>
<p>You’ve managed to sum up all of my feelings about this program. </p>
<p>And blanklives, on the bright side, there will be quite a few people that will have to back out because they were forced to make alternate commitments because of the late decisions (myself for instance)…</p>
<p>I am a 9th grader and can only imagine all of tour worries. Moving on though, I got accepted and was just curious if someone could give a detailed account of a typical day on the summer program. Thanks</p>
<p>where did you get accepted to?
I was in Russia last summer with NSLI-Y</p>
<p>To china but could you tell me what it was like in Russia for you?</p>
<p>As intensive swearing (and foul langauge in general) is prohibited from posts, I will quickly sum it up. I am POed at them for not sending rejections first. Seeing that my entire list has been crossed off, I have come to realizing that I did not get in. In the process, I also had to turn down a chance to perform in a prestigious festival in Germany, a chance to work/help in some of the best research labs, and many other things. I am fustrated and tired, and frankly, I am sad. Yes, i’ve been the optimist of the place, cheering people on and wishing them good luck, but as a human being, I secretly envy those who made it in, questioning if I could have gotten in had they not been there. I’m not trying to say I hate all of you guys and hope all of you simulateously combust, but I do wish I could have gone. Yes, there is still that magically slim chance, but I think it’s time for me to let go at this point and try to find something to fill up my summer. I’ll still be around to see who got in and all, so don’t cry after I leave running off into the digitally enhaced sunset. On the brighter side of things, I do hope everyone who got a chance to go will study hard and have a blast. If you don’t, expect to see a hotdog burst into flames and haunt you soon. -ranting over and out-</p>
<p>Aw Chewy, I’m sorry. You’re right though; it would have made a LOT more sense to send out rejections first, thus giving us more time to figure out something else to do.</p>
<p>Are we sure that all of the programs were notified? For example, people got into China, but maybe they only sent out acceptances for AFS and not iEARN or something?</p>
<p>…trying to find loopholes in impending rejection…?</p>
<p>Chewy - keep your head up! I don’t think all of the Korean spots have been sent out yet…</p>
<p>I agree with the frustrations of the other posters about the NSLI process. They bumped the deadline up two months and they still haven’t been able to notify in a timely manner. A couple of years ago some of the partner groups did their own interviewing and were then funded by NSLI. I went through that process and it was professional and efficient. In addition, by the time I was selected, I was familiar with the program directors etc. In addition, I was able to apply directly to the country I was interested in visiting, as opposed to simply applying for a language. In this scenario, one could apply for several different options, thereby increasing the chance for selection.</p>
<p>To the people who are criticizing others for being frustrated, I thought the point of these forums was to speak frankly about opinions and perspectives. Why is it necessary to bash posters who are being honest about what has been a less than stellar process? Maybe American Councils should hire some people from college admissions departments…somehow they seem to figure it out.</p>
<p>Chewy - Keep hoping. There’s plainly no rhyme or reason to how they are notifying, and it’s very possible that the hosting programs themselves are still sending out emails. On the three boards I’m watching, there are very few who have heard. </p>
<p>Still, I’m making a back up plan, and I would encourage anyone who is waiting to do the same. It looks increasingly likely that because they are taking their sweet time, I won’t know anything about semester or year programs until it is too late to request a deferment from my school. I told my parents that I would work to pay for the $800 non-refundable deposit if NSLI does come through and/or I will reapply to college (insert bad swear word here) next year if the deferment is not granted. I want this badly enough to do that, and I have convinced myself that it is worth it. I hope I’m right. </p>
<p>One other point that should be made here as well for those of us applying to gap year. I am currently holding a spot at a top 10 university, for which there are many thousands of rejected applicants and several hundred on a wait list. I am taking up a spot that could be offered to someone else who is waiting as impatiently for acceptance at this school as we are to this program. So this delay in notification is not just affecting NSLI applicants, it is affecting students across the country who are praying every day for an acceptance from their top college choice.</p>
<p>Congrats Hairydogeats! Now that’s a phrase that I never would have thought I would get to say in my life. I kinda like how it sounds! :)</p>
<p>I’m still waiting also for a notice from the China summer program. I don’t see no apparent reason though why the program would reject me; I mean, I’ve made top grades all throughout high school, have studied rigorously in many languages, am heavily involved with music and arts after school, and, no doubt, impressed my interviewer; and based on my acceptance to high ranking colleges in my state, I am pretty sure my NSLI-Y application is just as well as my college applications. I practically do not and will not lose confidence that NSLI-Y will accept me as a finalist to the China program. Therefore, if most of you feel the same about yourself as I do, I advise most of you not to feel like the only one to worry so much about getting rejected. Yesterday, I e-mailed NSLI-Y, and they simply were unable to tell the actual date when we will all get our notifications. </p>
<p>After looking through Google, I saw the NSLI-Y were able to give their semi-finalists a final date of notification on April the 17th through facebook. This year, though, there seems not to be any definite date as there was last year, and therefore, who knows whether if last week was supposed to be the actual date of notification.</p>
<p>Just keep your patience, because if it’s going to be anybody who is going to get pretty disappointed if they get rejected, it’s going to be me and a whole lot of other deserving people! Not a lot of people are getting acceptance letters yet, and if anybody got wait-listed, I’m pretty sure NSLI-Y only felt that they needed to be reviewed a bit more. I’m pretty sure NSLI-Y has had delays before with notifications, and I have the greatest feeling that this year’s notifications obviously will be one of the latest delays.</p>
<p>Well, that’ll be a hard record to break as deadlines go. They used to jus notify everyone at once, which was much easier than how they’re doing it this year. I’m well qualified and everything, but I see many others who are as if not better than me. It’s more of a lottery as far as I can see, and with no information by this point (and a streak of crappy luck), I don’t think I got in. Who knows. Those that still have a chance, have hope. If not, don’t curse the gods of cookies, as I’m planning to eat a few (cookies, not immortals) today.</p>
<p>someone in another forum found out about Turkey at 5:07 pm</p>
<p>If I am not mistaken, I believe that it is our very own prognosticator ~watchmesoar~ who posted on EC that she has been accepted for Turkish summer!!! Many many congrats to you.</p>