11/27 -- Accepted at Penn State. Nothing like waking up on Thanksgiving to find my first acceptance sitting in my e-mail inbox. The e-mail from Penn State was actually there on the 26th, but I was away from home and could only check my e-mail via my cell phone. It was a little surreal to read that on such a small screen.
Penn State and Oregon were my top realistic chances heading into this whole thing, but considering Oregon won't even begin reviewing applications until February, the Lions now have a leg up on the Ducks.
12/08 -- I'm still not sure if I'm going to apply to Syracuse. Having already been accepted to a higher-ranked -- and cheaper -- school makes it difficult to justify dropping the $70 on the application fee. That, and the topics for the optional scholarship essays are, um, silly. I feel like they're asking me to do their job for them.
12/10 -- Applied to Colorado. Not sure why I didn't apply sooner and I realize my chances are slim, but I felt I owed it to myself to at least try. I'd go there in a heartbeat, but I remain realistic about my chances.
12/12 -- Applied to DePaul. I wasn't really planning on applying, but it's hard to turn down a fee waiver from a school in Chicago, even if it's not Chicago or Northwestern. It's always nice to have choices.
12/12 -- Applied to American. So much for not wasting $70 on an application fee. Again, I realize my chances are far from great, but I'd probably always wonder if I didn't at least try. I may add another reach or two on Monday. I don't want to have any regrets at the end of this.
12/19 -- Application received at Colorado -- presumably. The only way I know that is because my online bank statement shows they cashed the check I sent them. After not hearing anything from anyone for nearly a month, even an "application complete" e-mail would be nice at this point.
1/10 -- Applied to George Mason. Hey, it was free. Cutting my personal statement down was heartbreaking, but what can you do? Also went complete at Colorado and American this week, which should lead to a nice trifecta of rejections some time in April.
1/15 -- Complete at George Mason, so unless a school I actually have a chance at getting into and would actually attend throws a waiver at me, I'm done applying. Now, I wait.
Because I'm bored, I'll throw out predictions for the rest of my cycle. These are based on nothing but my gut:
Penn State: Already in, could see maybe getting their $8k a year scholarhip. Maybe.
Oregon: In, maybe with a smidgen of money
Temple: WL, out.
Pitt: WL, in.
San Diego: I have no idea. Thought I'd already be in, but not hearing makes me wonder. I'll go with WL, in.
Colorado: Dreams die hard. Out.
DePaul: Honestly, I don't care.
American: Out. At least I can say I tried.
George Mason: Out. Ditto.
1/17 -- Accepted at DePaul. As noted, can't say I really care one way or the other. Aside from the seat deposit, there's nary a mention of money. That doesn't exactly endear them to me.
1/30 -- Accepted at Pitt. Didn't even need the waitlist, but wasn't offered, as far as I can tell, any money. That's not terribly surprising, but Penn State remains the cheaper option. Hmm, decisions decisons.
2/2 -- Waitlisted at American. Fully expected an outright rejection, but not entirely surprised after looking at numbers from previous years. I'll stay on it, though the prospect of paying full price there is terrifying.
2/5 -- Accepted at Temple. Found out via status checker. Didn't realize at first that it was part-time. Not really thrilled about that.
2/6 -- Rejected at George Mason. The only thing that surprised me about this was that I found out now. I figured it wouldn't be until April. Having expected it, I'm completely OK with it.
2/17 -- Officially withdrew from DePaul and was rejected at Colorado. Not at all surprised by the Colorado decision, but at least I can say wasted $50, I mean tried.
4/22 -- Finally withdrew from Oregon and Temple. Temple I simply forgot about, but I had a hard time bringing myself to withdraw from Oregon, even after having already submitted my deposit to Penn State. I feel like I'll be missing something by not going there. Oh well.
