The team behind the community

“building the type of community we’ve always wanted to be a part of”

For too long, academia has meant isolation, overwhelm, and uncertainty. We were taught that meaningful research requires sacrificing community: that self-doubt and imposter syndrome are just part of the path.

With Accepted Society, we are seeking not only to rewrite that narrative but create a new form of education. An educational experience which prioritizes life-long learning and community-based knowledge over degrees and deadlines.

We are a community in pursuit of knowledge because we know that education should be for everyone.

Meet the team

Behind Accepted Society is a passionate team of scholars committed to making academic life more connected, supported, and sustainable.

Joining co-founders Kaelyn Grace Apple and Cait Murphy-Hurrell is a talented team of five, each on their own academic journey. From coaching and events design to marketing, community engagement, and platform management, our team works behind the scenes to keep the Society thriving.

Together, we bring a shared belief: that academic success doesn’t have to be lonely—and that everyone deserves a space to grow, collaborate, and be seen.

Kaelyn Grace APple

Kaelyn Grace Apple is a London-based entrepreneur, content creator, and sixth-year Ph.D. candidate in History and African American Studies at Yale University. Her research investigates the legal origins of matrilineal descent in the 17th-century English Atlantic, with a focus on how English Poor laws and child labor exploitation was intentionally transported to colonial Virginia. After nearly failing community college, she found her academic footing at UCLA, continued her studies at Oxford, and launched @KaelynGraceApple to support students navigating their own educational journeys.

Today, Kaelyn divides her time between running The Accepted Society with her business partner Cait and creating educational content across YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. While completing her dissertation, she also makes time for joy—spending time with her partner and dog Moo, horseback riding, and exploring London’s best bakeries every Saturday morning.

Cait Murphy-Hurrell

Co-Owner, CEO & Community Manager

Cait Murphy-Hurrell is a writer and passionate academic with a deep love for literature and the humanities. Original a legal professional at top banks and technology companies, Cait chose a non-traditional academic route and re-entered academia later on in life to pursue her research. She completed her undergraduate and Masters at Oxford and she is now a PhD student at Trinity College, Dublin, researching Renaissance literature, specifically The Faerie Queene, and the impact of literary images. Cait shares her journey back into academia through her Substack and YouTube channel, where she offers insights on navigating graduate life, academic success, and her personal experiences in higher education. Cait focuses her talents on helping others achieve their academic dreams as a co-owner and community director of Accepted Society.

Known for her dedication and empathy, Cait has helped countless students gain acceptance to their dream programs. Her content not only covers practical advice for re-entering academia but also her passion for books, reading, book collecting, and the history of literature. Combining a Renaissance mindset with a writer’s heart, Cait is committed to fostering a community of knowledge-seekers and literature lovers.

Founder, Co-Owner and CMO

  • Dr Polly Hember is a writer, researcher and visiting lecturer working on twentieth century literature and film. She completed her AHRC funded PhD at Royal Holloway, University of London in 2023 and currently teaches at Royal Holloway and the University of Bristol.  

    Her doctoral research explored the work of the modernist collective named ‘the POOL group’ and their queer affective network. Her work sits at the intersection of literary modernist studies, film, and the history of sexuality. She is working on a monograph, titled ‘The POOL Group: Literature, Film and Intimacy’, alongside her new research project, ‘Modernism’s Networks: The Shapes of Queer Texts and Lives’.  

    • 15+ years turning PhD dreams into PhD degrees

    • Recognized Social Justice Scholar

    • Specialty: Helping you find your voice while keeping your sanity

  • Amber Charles is an original scholar of Accepted Society. Having joined the Accepted team in 2023 as a Study Session Administrator, she currently hosts the recently revamped Writer’s Corner, originally known as the Writing Group. Having recently completed her Masters in English Literature, she plans to continue to expand on her research into literary resistance methods and the means to finding a conduit for healing within literature. Her academic interest also includes psychology and history as a means of storytelling and communal healing. When not working on her academic scholarship, Amber has over 10+ years in healthcare and case management. She also has experience with establishing community outreach programs with the Junior League organisation in order to provide supplementary resources to community members. She plans to continue to incorporate literature in to healing practices as she furthers her education. Her leisure interests include reading, creating, cooking, journaling, and planning.

  • Dr. Khalia Ii is a scholar, educator, and coach with over 15 years of leadership in higher education. She earned her Ph.D. in Leadership Studies from the University of San Diego, where her research explored the transformative power of digital letter-writing as a liberatory practice for Black women. Grounded in Black feminist and womanist traditions, her work centers on healing, reflection, and creating culturally affirming spaces.

    Dr. Ii’s professional experience spans student affairs, academic leadership, and teaching, with a focus on mentoring and developing equitable programs that empower underrepresented students and professionals. She was honored as a Contemplative Social Justice Scholar by the Center of Contemplative Mind in Society in recognition of her commitment to equity and inclusion.

    A passionate community builder and reflective practitioner, Dr. Ii integrates care-centered practices and storytelling into her coaching, helping doctoral students thrive and complete their degrees with intention and support.

    • Fresh from the PhD trenches (AHRC-funded, Royal Holloway, 2023)

    • Now: Turning dissertations from stuck to submitted

    • Specialty: Making complex academic writing actually happen

  • Katie Ibsen is an original member of the Accepted Team. Having collaborated with Kaelyn since 2020, Katie brings her enthusiastic personality and in-depth knowledge of the Accepted community to her role as the Community Organizer for Accepted Society. As a non-traditional student who transferred from community college to university, she has an intimate lived knowledge of the challenges facing non-traditional students, and aims to utilize that experience to make Accepted Society a platform supportive of the academic journeys that step outside the box.

    Katie holds a BA in Anthropology from UC Berkeley, and an MA in Fashion Studies from Parsons School of Design, and uses this education to inform a culturally sensitive approach to community organization at Accepted. Her current research centers around the use of clothing in dressing a political identity, and she plans to expand her research interests to include the use of dress in navigating neurodivergent experiences. In her other professional pursuits, Katie also works as the artifact manager at the Illinois State University Historic Fashion Collection where she acts as steward for the objects in the collection and educator for the students and researchers who utilize the collection.

    Outside of her academic work, Katie spends most of her free time knitting colorful clothes and creating hand spun yarn from fibers grown by local farmers, and making the occasional YouTube video.

  • Claudia Suarez is a second-year PhD student at the University of Florida studying ballet history during the Cold War. Drawing on her professional ballet background, her research explores the intersection of ballet and political ideologies in the Soviet Union and Cuba, with a particular focus on cultural exchanges, artistic migration, and acts of defection. She earned her Associate’s Degree while dancing professionally before transferring to Florida International University, where she completed both her BA and MA in History in 2023 and 2024, respectively.

    Claudia is the Digital Marketing Assistant for Accepted Society and has been an active member since 2021. Passionate about teaching and mentorship, she hopes to one day teach courses in Soviet and Latin American history, the Global Cold War, and—most importantly—the history of ballet, which remains her deepest passion.

    Outside of academia, Claudia still enjoys taking ballet classes, reading fiction, learning new languages, and taking long walks with her dog. A meticulous planner and theme park enthusiast, she embraces both structure and play in her daily life.

    Looking ahead, Claudia dreams of launching her own YouTube channel, where she’ll share her journey as a dancer turned academic and create video essays about ballet history. Through this platform, she hopes to engage a wider community, inspire new ballet watchers and lovers, and offer a candid look at everything ballet has taught her—the good, the bad, and the beautiful.