Sizzle

Talk to your fiancé about it. While this woman's input may influence your life in that you might desire her approval and wished to reduce conflict, but she is not your mother, nor is she in a position to control your life. Perhaps you could demonstrate that you have a plan, solid ambitions, and a means of reaching them. You have earned her daughter's affection by the merits of your character, and she has accepted your goals. Though it may be brutal now, and seem to create hostility, now is not the time to set a precedent of letting her mother tread all over you. This is your life. Tell her, and don't let her emasculate and invalidate you. If she values you as a person, she will understand. If she doesn't, would you really sacrifice your entire life just to make a woman who doesn't accept you happy?

What they're really investigating is your intent to establish permanent residency in California. Visiting your family for short periods is one thing, but moving home for extended periods is quite another. Doing the latter would imply that your only reason for being in California is scholastic, and that violates the rules of California residency for tuition purposes. I would bet that having no summer lease and spending two months in Oregon, a hypothetical situation, would show you're not intent on staying. I would think about whether you're maintaining a record if residency (rent, utility bills, etc) if you're worried about it.

Have you tried contacting your program coordinator to attempt to link up with other grad students in the department?

Where are you going to school? The DFW area is huge, and you need to narrow it down before you can find housing.

I'm heading out there for Economics, but I'll be moving a lot earlier than that.

I went out there last weekend, and I looked at about a dozen apartments complexes in the Chapel Hill area, but I ended up settling on one in Carrboro. So, I can give you a little information. If you're looking for an apartment to fit with the UNC stipend, you probably want to look down in the $700 range or below. If you have some money of your own and want to spend it on a nicer place, look near the top of the list. Remember, in calculating your expenses, that you'll be paying a big chunk in utilities, especially if you don't find a roommate. I'd definitely recommend that. That will help you get a decent place. Plus, that allows you to share a living room and kitchen, meaning you get full use of those spaces at half the cost, essentially. Ashbrook Apartments: This was my final choice. The apartments have been renovated, and you get a pretty good amount of space, new washer dryer, and stainless appliances. They spent their renovation money inside the apartments, and it turned out pretty well. The prices are a bit above others with less amenities though (~$930 for a 1-bedroom, ~$1040 for a 2-bedroom). 1-bedrooms were pretty scarce. Also, there's a pool and a small fitness room that they're going to expand. Bridges at Chapel Hill: This was my second choice. Washer and dryer were included, and everything was pretty nice. The appliances were a little less nice, and some of the touches could have been done better (aesthetic and quality choices). They're prices were ~$850 for a 1-bedroom and about ~$960 for a 2-bedroom (~$100 less than Ashbrook). The Villages at Chapel Hill: Overall, the grounds were pretty nice, but the units were not really well done. They need some updating, because everything is very dated, and it seems like repairs are done a little sloppily (wood veneer cabinets from the 1970s or 1980s, ugly appliances, sloppy paint work). There is a washer and dryer room, but you'd have to provide your own or rent them at ~$40 a month. The layouts are just okay. Still, the clubhouse is nice, and there are some decent features, plus it's close. If you don't mind sacrificing some creature comforts. They have some cheaper studios, but they also seem to have a lot more undergrads. I think their studio prices were ~$750 a month. Poplar Place: Avoid this place. They don't take good care of the property, and it feels like a rundown version of The Villages. Their prices are about the same, and I guess it could be okay, but it was just rough to see just after visiting Ashbrook's renovated apartments. On the other side of Chapel Hill... Sagebrook: This place competes with Ashbrook on the price-point, but they spent all of their renovation money on the exterior. It shows. They tend to put paint and cheap laminate counters in order to make the buildings look more appealing. When I saw they do separate agreements to split rent with roommates, I realized they catered to undergrads, and I bailed. What I found was a good idea was to go on Google Maps, look at Chapel Hill and search for "Apartments". A lot of these places will show up with links to their websites for pictures and prices. I hope I don't sound conceited by choosing the more expensive place and talking down the others. Really though, find a roommate if you want to make ends meet. Alternatively, look on Craigslist for rooms to sublet.

For starters you should consider (in no particular order): - their placement record - the attrition rate - the primary causes of attrition - whether students feel supported by the program or fighting to simply prove themselves to the program - whether students seem to be in competition with each other or whether they work well together - any strategies students have acquired to succeed in each year - average/median completion time - any issues students have with progressing in a timely manner - reasons students have taken additional time, if applicable - any intradepartmental feuding - what students feel is/are the program's strength(s)/weakness(es) - what you could do between now and the start of the program to be best prepared - how involved students are in faculty research and how involved faculty members are with student projects - what responsibilities students have as TAs - whether students find the stipend sufficient - whether funding opportunities exist in the summer This is just my opinion and a rough list of some topics that helped me decide between programs, but it is by no means exhaustive.

Well, I was bummed, and I was wondering why they don't notify rejects when they've decided. My dreams of going out there were crushed. What is up with people posting stuff like "Jursumeha?"

Rank does not directly translate to acceptances and rejections. For instance, I got into UNC-Chapel Hill (~#32), but I was rejected from Texas A&M (~#42) as well as USC (~#48). Fit is also extremely important, and it even factors into the final decision. Personally, I'm considering picking a school that's on the verge of #60, instead of UNC, because I think the fit might be better.

To put it plainly, you have your three references post their recommendation letters eleven times (once per application). Not much modification is needed, if any.

Perhaps, she made that suggestion on the grounds of recreational Marijuana being legal in Colorado (at a state, not federal level).

Unless there's something that can be said in four letters, rather than three, the additional letter will not help your case. The search for good LORs is a search for quality, not quantity, and I would suggest that you decide which to exclude. If you need more of a nudge in that direction, certain schools will even state this in their application FAQ.

Sometimes, they return them a lot sooner. I took the exam on the 31st of October, and I received my scores just after midnight on November 8th.

Those scores roughly line up with the 78th percentile in the quantitative portion and the 73rd percentile in the verbal section. These percentiles are widely available, and, though they vary a bit from source to source, depending on available data, you can access them here: http://www.ets.org/s/gre/pdf/gre_guide_table1a.pdf

In order for people to provide any real advice, it might help to actually mention what you scored on the quantitative section. Saying that you scored the same as your previous attempt is pretty ambiguous, even though you could have mentioned it in some other thread. Now, as far as the verbal score, a 142 is pretty low. I think it's in the 15th percentile or so. Considering you're applying to engineering programs, and acknowledging that you're an international student, the low score is not absolutely unacceptable. Some programs may still have a cutoff, and you should investigate that. However, you could improve it by studying vocabulary and taking some practice exams. What's important is not selecting the correct answer, but determining the reasoning behind that conclusion. The nuances of western/American logic can be difficult for someone immersed in a different culture, but taking practice tests from companies like Kaplan can help. Once you answer the questions, they will not only provide you with the correct one, but they will explain the logic behind it. Moreover, you could study lists of high-frequency vocabulary words, because those can earn you quite a few points on test day. Now, your quantitative score is the most valuable component to someone in your desired field. If you consider yourself prepared, and you've scored equally well on each exam, you shouldn't be too concerned about a drop in that component. If you cannot afford to take the test, then the question is irrelevant. If you're just saying that to justify accepting your scores, I would reconsider. You could study. It make take time, but the GRE is a test that can be studied, and you can get a higher score. Good luck to you.