weymiller

I am resisting having to get a student license for NVivo. I am using a Mac and I know there are some free alternatives. Has anyone tried and liked anything in particular?

My SO is also staying behind until we sell our house. It is so hard to leave and not know when I will see him next or when he can join me. It's nice to hear that others are doing the same and that I'm not crazy to leave him behind. Thankfully I do have family that I'm staying with in my new city, so I know someone and I'm not paying housing expenses for two places.

I was able to find old syllabi under old class websites. I just googled on the school's website for the class number. Some are from professor's who don't teach them anymore, but I just wanted a better grasp on the material that would be on it. I have also been able to find some of the readings for classes. I don't think this is necessary, but I've been out of school a couple of years and want to make sure I don't sound like an idiot when I arrive in classes. I also wanted to make sure none of the readings were over my head.

I know what class I'm TA and the schedule, but only because I had to email the department to find out. I have never even talked to the Professor. There is a TA training before classes start, but again I only knew about it from doing research on the school's webpage. Is it normal to not have any information ahead of time? I found the old webpage for last year's class and so I read a lot of the materials and readings, but only because I don't want to feel unprepared. Yet I do. Right now my class schedule is only Tuesdays and Thursdays. I have a really long commute to school and I worry that last minute they might change my schedule. Has anyone else heard anything about their classes.

I am going through the same process and have some helpful things to add. Most copiers can scan as pdf files and email the files out. I use this for a lot of old school works or book articles. I keep everything on Google Drive. You can pay for extra storage, but you get a lot of free storage. I use a scanner at work, but most if not all libraries have the same capabilities. Bathroom stuff: I find that I keep things for a lot longer than necessary and may be unsafe. I read recently that perfume goes bad after three years, makeup about 6 months, and other liquid stuff about a year. I used to work at Walgreens. The expiration dates are commonly listed in code form like shampoo and body wash. We would have to go through stuff often to throw out expired items. So, even if you haven't owned it for that long, it may have been on the shelf for longer than you think. I don't wear a lot of makeup, so I know that most of my stuff needs to be thrown out. In my move, I going to try to start from scratch and throw everything out. I have also started to date stuff when I buy it. You would be surprised how long a tube of face wash can last. DVDs/CDs: I threw out my plastic CD cases years ago and got rid of a lot of CDs this year. The time I would spend digitizing my music seems like a headache, so I just got one CD case and told myself everything had to fit in this one. I have now also thrown out my last few DVD cases. Most of my DVDs I got rid of because I never watched them, but the ones I kept I got rid of the cases. They take up a lot of space. I also got rid of all the video game cases. Board games and puzzles: Some games and puzzles I just can't get rid of. However, I have saved some space by getting rid of the boxes and downsizing to gallon bags. I just ripe off the cover to keep. It works for the puzzles and for some games. Also, combining games into one box works well. Books: I have lots and lots of books. Many I have "planned" to read. So, if I haven't read them by the time I leave, they are out the door. But I am keeping the titles saved in my Amazon Wish List or in Goodreads, so I have the option to pick them up later. Since getting a kindle, I have been able to part with my books a lot easier. A lot of books you can now get on ebook from the library for free! Camping or outdoor items: No hope! I find these things, mostly if not entirely, necessary. I have a garage where I store camping supplies and two kayaks. I will be relocating to a tiny basement apartment, so I have no idea what I will do with this stuff. Any other suggestions?

I was in the same situation. I have about 13k in undergrad loans with an offer for in-state tuition with a TA making 11k. So, I would add to my current loans. In the end, I decided to go to school. I felt the longer I delayed going to school (I originally applied for the first time Fall 2013), the less likely I was to make the plunge and do it. I figure the work experience and education I am getting will be worth it in the long run. To make myself feel better, I am planning to continue to pay on my undergrad loans while in grad school. I will be getting an extra job to make this happen. In the end, graduate school was something I thought about pretty much everyday and wanted it really bad. It depends on how much you want it. I heard a statistic that you should never take out more loans than your first year salary will be. I figure, as long as I'm under the mark, all will be well.

I finally accepted the loans and decided to not take out the max but to take out about 3000 extra per semester for the first year. I am hoping to also not need all of this and maybe decline some for the spring semester. My school schedule and TA schedule is only have me in school Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I'm hoping to work a weekend and/or night job for extra cash, but debt really freaks me out. The job market for what I want to do is good, but I won't ever be making a ton of money. My goal is to not ever take out more than my first year starting salary, which could vary from 35,000 to 45,000 or more if lucky. I have about 13,000 from undergrad and I took out 15,000 for my first year of my MS program. So, I have hoping to pay cash for my second year (if I sell my house this shouldn't be an issue). I am fairly lucky in that I have a house payment in Wisconsin, but will be going to school in Idaho where I will live with relatives. So, I only have housing expenses for one location.

I would look at a local bank or credit union. I find those rates are comparable to other private companies and may be easier to work with. I have looked into some because there variable rates are much lower than current federal rates, but the variable rates scare me. At my local credit union, variable rates are at 2.73% and fixed rates are 6.74%. However, the variable rates could go up as high as 9.5% depending on market rates and the rates change quarterly.

I am trying to determine my options for health insurance this fall. I am 26, so I cannot be covered by my parents while in graduate school. The school offers plans, but it is almost 900 per semester. For the fall semester, this would be about 200 a month. Spring semester includes the summer, so it is not as bad but still unaffordable for me. I am not sure if I can get on the exchange because the school offers insurance. I have to have some insurance because the school requires it. Any suggestions on what you have done?

I qualify for in-state tuition for my Master's program and I get a small stipend with a TA position. However, I will have to take out loans to pay for tuition. I am curious how much extra money people take out in loans. My tuition for a semester is about 4000, but I can take out 10,000 in loans. I can probably afford to live on the stipend, but it would be very tight and maybe too tight if unexpected expenses come up. I am currently trying to sell my house and my budget will differ depending on whether or not I am paying a mortgage every month. I was thinking possibly taking an extra month of expenses out in loans, in case of emergency. My other thought is that the current rates of students loans is 6.3%. I have some undergraduate loans that range from 4.5 to 6.8%. So I thought about maxing out the new loans to pay of the higher interest undergraduate loans. What have others done? Taking out loans for regular expenses or taking out loans to pay off other loans?

I would look at the schools more closely. Do the classes they offer sound like they are something you want to take and would align with your professional goals? Do the professers conduct research that align with research you may be interested in or again, align with your professional goals. Resource management and environmental policy can be kind of broad. If you don't know for sure what you want to do after a master's, then I would focus on funding. I also think about location. Would you want to live in the city or state for the next two or more years?

I am a masters applicant planning to get some type of funding for school. Many people apply specifically for a teaching or research assistantships. Many schools offer an out of state tuition waiver or full waiver when they offer funding and some offer health insurance. I have an offer from a school of an out of state tuition waiver with a teaching assistantship of $16.39 an hour for 20 hours a week. I wish it was more, but I happy to have at least one offer with funding on the table. After paying tuition and health insurance, I would be making about $200 a month. I'm still waiting to hear from two schools. I see people of this site get a wide variety of funding from 11,000 to 25,000. I don't know if all of those are PhDs. Personally, I won't go to a school without some offer of funding; I just can't offer too. Some schools say right on their websites that they don't offer funding for masters students. If they don't specifically state it, I email the department to find out. I applied last year and didn't ask about funding and ended up reapplying to schools this year that offer funding. I think it really depends of the school and the department, but if you are already set on a school, I would check on any funding the school may offer in that department, including TAs or tutoring or work-study. If looking for scholarships, I would look for professional organizations in your field that may offer scholarships to students. You may have to call the organization directly. Otherwise, I would check with your school's department or current students to see if they know of any graduate scholarships in that field.

I have been offered a position of about 1300 per month but I would still be paying in-state tuition and health insurance. The research is not exactly what I would pick as a first choice and I would have to start in May. I also have a potential offer from another school (my top choice), but the professor there is not sure of whether or not she will get funding yet. She says she may have to delay the position under next spring or fall. So, should I add another $20,000 to my student loans and leave my well-paying job or do I reapply again for next year and hope for a better offer? I like for my top choice to extend an amazing offer, but at this late in the game I am doubtful. I am freaking out about this decision and could use some advice. Thanks!

I told my mother I got a rejection letter from Vermont. Her response was "What about Madison?" I went to Madison for my undergraduate and did not apply there. She was confused and not really sensitive to the fact that I was rejected. My parents see graduate school as a way for me to escape having a "real job." So, I have stopped including them in my graduate school plans though they will support me in whatever I decide to do.

I was emailed by a professor today wondering if I was still interested in the program. She said she will not know if she has funding for another week or two and cannot offer any spots until she knows. I think the federal cuts may be delaying some funding for federal grant programs. I had given up any hope with this school because I applied over two months ago and emailed the department twice with no word. And this professor is different from the POI I listed in my application statement. So, to everyone out there still waiting...there is still hope. If many of the professors don't know they have funding, they can't let us know.