u/PresentationBig332

Hello. I decided to turn down the offer for the History PhD program due to a lack of funding. I've already reached out to the Admissions Office through email twice, but there hasn't been any response from them. I'm already aware of the communications issue with them, but I still went through that route just in case. However, I'm wondering if there's any other way to let them know I am turning down their offer. Should I contact the department chair or the Grad School Dean? I don't want to keep trying to send email everyday just to have them charge me with something that I will have no part of. Any advice will help.

I was accepted into Howard's History PhD program last week, and while I was shocked and excited, I became anxious when considering the costs. I saw the financial aid package during the weekend, and saw that I only received loans and nothing else- no grants, scholarships, or even work study. Even with the loans, it still would not be enough to pay for this year.

With a heavy heart, I decided to defer to next year, because I'm hoping that I will have a better financial preparation and outcome. While I'm disappointed in making this decision, I'm trying to see the bright side of things, since I realized there are some things that I need to do while I defer and head to Howard next year instead.

Despite the deferment decision, there are some concerns I have. First and foremost, I'm worried that my deferment will not be accepted, and I will have to drop out instead. Second, I'm also worried that Howard's Admissions department will not respond to my deferment email since I know that their communication is not the best. With that, I'm wondering who I should reach out to instead of Admissions.

Despite these concerns, I also have some questions regarding preparation for the next year. I would like to know from those who deferred, especially current and former PhD students, what they did to get the finances in order. I already know about applying for the assistantships, which I am going to spend the summer preparing for, but I also want to any other access to funds, especially grants and scholarships. Also, I would like to know if there is anything I would have to do during the deferment to make myself a stronger applicant than the other candidates for next year. I'm looking into doing independent research, internships, and other possibilities to get some experience and enhance myself.

I really appreciate those who took the time to help me with this situation. Any advice and suggestions are taken into consideration.

I was accepted into Howard's History PhD program last week, and while I was shocked and excited, I became anxious when considering the costs. I saw the financial aid package during the weekend, and saw that I only received loans and nothing else- no grants, scholarships, or even work study. Even with the loans, it still would not be enough to pay for this year.

With a heavy heart, I decided to defer to next year, because I'm hoping that I will have a better financial preparation and outcome. While I'm disappointed in making this decision, I'm trying to see the bright side of things, since I realized there are some things that I need to do while I defer and head to Howard next year instead.

Despite the deferment decision, there are some concerns I have. First and foremost, I'm worried that my deferment will not be accepted, and I will have to drop out instead. Second, I'm also worried that Howard's Admissions department will not respond to my deferment email since I know that their communication is not the best. With that, I'm wondering who I should reach out to instead of Admissions.

Despite these concerns, I also have some questions regarding preparation for the next year. I would like to know from those who deferred, especially current and former PhD students, what they did to get the finances in order. I already know about applying for the assistantships, which I am going to spend the summer preparing for, but I also want to any other access to funds, especially grants and scholarships. Also, I would like to know if there is anything I would have to do during the deferment to make myself a stronger applicant than the other candidates for next year. I'm looking into doing independent research, internships, and other possibilities to get some experience and enhance myself.

I really appreciate those who took the time to help me with this situation. Any advice and suggestions are taken into consideration.

I apologize for the long post, but I really need some advice from fellow students and alumni who have gone through similar situations that I am going through.

I applied for the History PhD program on 2/13, and I received the acceptance email just yesterday, 5/13. This was just a shock to me because it was my only acceptance I got out of the 9 PhD applications I did for the Fall 26 cycle, and it was my first round. While this acceptance is great, life-changing even, it also made me extremely anxious once the shock wore off, particularly with the funding, because I truly did not expect to be accepted somewhere in my first round.

The letter stated that the acceptance does not mean guaranteed funding, which I expect, since I know that the History department will be the one to handle that. However, my anxiety began to kick in when I saw that the competitive assistantships were already closed because they were specified for priority applicants- the ones who turned in their applications around 11/15. This made me panic because I had sent my application to meet the regular 2/15 deadline instead, and just received my acceptance 5/13, which, in my opinion, is a little long and makes me a bit concerned. I know that the PhD programs usually cover the tuition cost for their students, provide stipends (they're supposed to imo) in exchange for the latter to work as teaching and research assistants. But I'm worried that I sent my application a bit too late to receive enough to cover the expenses.

I've looked through previous Reddit posts regarding Howard, and they have mentioned that there are plenty of issues with the university, specifically, a lack of communication when it comes to financial aid issues. But I also looked into other options from the same posts, and they mentioned looking for fellowships and scholarships, but it seems that they are limited, since once again, I did not expect to be accepted. So, because of this, I applied for FAFSA yesterday, even though it's not required for PhD applicants since the school is normally supposed to cover the expenses, but I really don't want it to be the case where I would have to use loans to cover them instead, due to my tardiness.

I don't know what else to do, and this caused me anxiety to the point of losing sleep over it. I would appreciate any advice on this issue, especially from current and alumni PhD students who have gone through something similar. Like, who should I reach out to? When should I reach out? What places should I apply for extra funding, particularly for fellowships and scholarships? I really don't want to defer because I feel this is my only chance to enter into my dream PhD program, and I may never get another chance, so any, ANY, suggestion would be helpful.

Thank you all for your advice and help, especially with my long post.

I apologize for the long post, but I really need some advice from fellow students and alumni who have gone through similar situations that I am going through.

I applied for the History PhD program on 2/13, and I received the acceptance email just yesterday, 5/13. This was just a shock to me because it was my only acceptance I got out of the 9 PhD applications I did for the Fall 26 cycle, and it was my first round. While this acceptance is great, life-changing even, it also made me extremely anxious once the shock wore off, particularly with the funding, because I truly did not expect to be accepted somewhere in my first round.

The letter stated that the acceptance does not mean guaranteed funding, which I expect, since I know that the History department will be the one to handle that. However, my anxiety began to kick in when I saw that the competitive assistantships were already closed because they were specified for priority applicants- the ones who turned in their applications around 11/15. This made me panic because I had sent my application to meet the regular 2/15 deadline instead, and just received my acceptance 5/13, which, in my opinion, is a little long and makes me a bit concerned. I know that the PhD programs usually cover the tuition cost for their students, provide stipends (they're supposed to imo) in exchange for the latter to work as teaching and research assistants. But I'm worried that I sent my application a bit too late to receive enough to cover the expenses.

I've looked through previous Reddit posts regarding Howard, and they have mentioned that there are plenty of issues with the university, specifically, a lack of communication when it comes to financial aid issues. But I also looked into other options from the same posts, and they mentioned looking for fellowships and scholarships, but it seems that they are limited, since once again, I did not expect to be accepted. So, because of this, I applied for FAFSA yesterday, even though it's not required for PhD applicants since the school is normally supposed to cover the expenses, but I really don't want it to be the case where I would have to use loans to cover them instead, due to my tardiness.

I don't know what else to do, and this caused me anxiety to the point of losing sleep over it. I would appreciate any advice on this issue, especially from current and alumni PhD students who have gone through something similar. Like, who should I reach out to? When should I reach out? What places should I apply for extra funding, particularly for fellowships and scholarships? I really don't want to defer because I feel this is my only chance to enter into my dream PhD program, and I may never get another chance, so any, ANY, suggestion would be helpful.

Thank you all for your advice and help, especially with my long post.

Hello. I wanted to provide an update on a post I made about my issue with a weight plateau I was struggling with over a month ago. Even though I received a few responses, they were extremely helpful because they made me realize I was overexercising and undereating, especially with the lack of protein. So thanks to their advice, I decided to enter a maintenance phase by toning down my exercise routine and focusing more on dieting, specifically by counting my calories and adding more protein with the Lose It app. I can say that the advice I received worked for me because for a little over a month, I went from 148.4 lbs to 143.1 lbs. Basically, I lost exactly 5.3 lbs following the advice, and now I am 8.1 lbs away from my goal of being 135 lbs. I want to share this little win because this would not have acheived this without the help of those who responded to my last post for help. All I hope is that I will be able to reach my weight goal during the summer, if I continue this phase. I wish everyone else good luck in their own weight loss journeys. Thank you all once again!

Hello. I wanted to provide an update on a post I made about my issue with a weight plateau I was struggling with over a month ago. Even though I received a few responses, they were extremely helpful because they made me realize I was overexercising and undereating, especially with the lack of protein. So thanks to their advice, I decided to enter a maintenance phase by toning down my exercise routine and focusing more on dieting, specifically by counting my calories and adding more protein with the Lose It app. I can say that the advice I received worked for me because for a little over a month, I went from 148.4 lbs to 143.1 lbs. Basically, I lost exactly 5.3 lbs following the advice, and now I am 8.1 lbs away from my goal of being 135 lbs. I want to share this little win because this would not have acheived this without the help of those who responded to my last post for help. All I hope is that I will be able to reach my weight goal during the summer, if I continue this phase. I wish everyone else good luck in their own weight loss journeys. Thank you all once again!