Lessons from acceptances & rejections

[psylocybha]

By now, we have all heard news about most of our applications. In your view, what are the reasons for your successes? And failures?

Last year I applied to Chicago, Berkeley, Columbia and NYU for polisci PhD. Four rejections. This year I have had offers from WUSTL and Arizona, rejections from Stanford and Berkeley (again!) and Michigan is still outstanding (although I believe that their initial offers have gone out). Again, polisci PhD. Based on these experiences, as well as those of my friends, I have some clues about what seems to work.

Having contacts, or striking up a rapport with prospective profs seems to be crucial. The offers I got from Arizona and WUSTL came after very enthusiastic responses from a prof at each school, which in turn, stemmed from close research intersests and them knowing my master's supervisor. I have friends doing anthropology PhDs at Cambridge and Chicago who personally met the heads of their respective departments - through chance or a contact - before applying and struck up a rapport.

The first time I applied I hardly wrote to anyone (it seems crazy now!) and my SOP was very general. This time I wrote lots of emails, and used a tightly focussed SOP. I also consolidated my relationships with my referees by asking them if they felt they could write a decent letter as well as asking for specific schools / academics they would advise I look at.

My view is that if each prof in the adcom gets a few picks, they will surely pick people who (1) have decent enough stats, (2) seem to have an idea about what they want to study and how it fits in with the faculty and (3) are someone they've heard of / from.

Otherwise, this time around I improved my GRE's (from V630, Q720, A4.5 to V700, Q770, A5.5). I don't know how to convert my grades into a GPA, but I have a master's degree in political economy with distinction.

Thoughts?