5/6 - I withdrew from UVa today. This was a really difficult decision, but UVa was more expensive and farther from home than Pitt.
4/14 - I have withdrawn from Penn State, Drexel, and WashU, and I'm about 98% sure that I'll be going to Pitt. I'm still waiting on financial aid info, so if either Penn or UVa is generous, they might sway my decision. But the more I hear about Pitt, the more I absolutely love it and know it's the perfect school for me.
3/11 - Penn's status page has been updated, and I'm in! I think it's going to come down to a decision between Pitt and Penn (and WashU if they decide to give me the scholarship). Also...supposedly Penn will give 11 full-tuition scholaships this year. I'm anxiously awaiting the acceptance letter and hoping I'm one of them!
3/9 - Got an email from Pitt, one of my top choices!!! I think it's gonna come down to a decision between Pitt and Penn (provided I get into Penn...I should hear from them by Friday). I'm probably going to withdraw from two of my schools now, since I'd definitely prefer Pitt over them.
3/2 - Official bye-bye from Stanford. It's OK since I'm not a big fan of their Scholarly Concentrations program, and it's just not a good fit for me. Still waiting on Pitt and Penn.
1/20 - Rejected from Cornell and declining an interview from Tufts. The Cornell bit is a true shock because I'm a Cornell undergrad, and my stats are well above their averages. But Cornell wasn't a school I particularly wanted to go to. Their loss.
1/17 - Two bits of news today. An interview invite for Stanford, and an online status check for UCSD that said 'final decision letter sent 1/16.' I'm assuming that's a rejection because I was on pre-interview hold there, and you can't be accepted without an interview. It has to be the non-resident bit...and I knew from the start it would be a longshot. Still, first rejections hurt. I guess the good news kind of cancels out the bad, though. I'm flying to San Fran! Time to get some flowers for my hair. :)
11/20 - Got an interview invite for BU, but in all likelihood I will decline it. BU is not a school I am particularly interested in, given that I have acceptances at schools that are higher on my list. Also, I've heard too many negative comments about the interview itself. I can't ignore it when people post things like 'the way the interviewer questioned my character and made me feel very uncomfortable' and 'the interviewer lacks respect for me as a person' as well as 'this has to be the worst interview and administration i've seen so far...the admissions office people introduced themselves and proceeded to be the rudest people i have ever encountered. and my interviewer thought it would be cool to try to 'wear' me down' on SDN.
11/17 - Fourth acceptance (UVa)! I was really impressed with this school, and it's probably tied with Pitt for my first choice. It was the only school where I got that 'gut feeling' and I knew I would be happy for the next four years. It has no major weaknesses in areas that are important to me. However, it's very expensive for non-VA residents, and there's not much financial aid for middle-class white chicks. :( We'll see what happens...
11/13 - Accepted to WashU!!! I was really shocked because they're not supposed to let us know until November 15! I got a call from the Dean of Admissions who interviewed me. He also told me I should apply for scholarships (VERY cool). At any rate, I liked the school a lot but have also heard some negative things about it. I think I'll wait until financial info comes in and then see what happens.
11/6 - Just got my second acceptance!!! Drexel! This is a school that I really liked, despite the fact that it's not highly ranked or prestigious. Something about the IFM curriculum really fit my learning style well. If I don't get any other acceptances, I would be happy to go there!
11/5 - I've been accepted to one school (PSU) and invited to interview at 6 (5 down, 1 to go so far). No rejections yet, but one hold, which is essentially a nicer way of saying 'don't let the door hit your butt on the way out.' As for the 4 schools I haven't heard from (BU, CU, Tufts, and Stanford), I've been complete at all of them for at least 8 weeks (10 at Cornell!?). I have no clue what's taking them so long! Sometimes I feel like I applied to too few schools, but (1) I've missed a ton of classes for interviews already, and (2) I didn't apply to any schools where I knew I wouldn't be happy (based on location, cost, and reputation). I'm fairly confident about this whole process - getting that first acceptance made a great deal of difference.
