iphi

Of course, this is the same way I ended up saying, "Mr. and Mrs. ______" (or if I'm honest, trying wordlessly to get their attention so I don't have to call them anything) to my SO (of 5 years!)'s parents!

I would say "Dr." or "Professor" until they specifically ask you to call them by their first name. It's always better to err on the side of being too polite than the other way around!

If you absolutely must mention it - i.e. the Adcomm will find out from your record or letters of rec somehow - then only mention the family reasons. The first two reasons you listed will not be looked upon favorably because you could have the same problem in their program. Good lucl!

That's great! I didn't think PhD schedules allowed for much work (not really a flexible schedule).

Well maybe if you told us what you're planning to make your future career we could help you better. At first glance, the FUNDED PhD where cost of living is actually affordable. Why wouldn't you do that?

Honestly, short of reapplying to PhD programs (funded).... no. Are your chances good of securing funding after your first year? Sounds stressful to do this every year.

I just emailed them thanking them again and letting them know where I chose to attend. They asked me to do so, so it seemed like a nice thing to follow up with them.

1) School websites. I made a list of the 50 states and ruled out any states where I absolutely could not live. Then I took the list of APA/NASP accredited PhD programs by state and went to the SP faculty pages for those schools to find out similarities in departmental/specific faculty research interests. 2) I only looked at schools which funded. Most public universities do, and lots put it on their website. "Historically all of our students have received funding..." etc. There's also a list in the general psych forum that lays out the kinds of offers people got from schools. I'll see if I can find it. I applied to 10 schools -all of whom offered some sort of funding - and was accepted to 7 (all PhD - no info from me on EdS) so I can give you a list of those if you want. Also, sometimes people include financial info in the Results Search page. What are your research interests? If you tell us, someone here might be able to lead you in the right direction in terms of profs/schools and funding.

I don't understand the problem. It's all the same school? You'll be accepted soon, the Graduate School acceptance is just a formality. So just enjoy yourself and chill! I accepted an offer already and paid no deposit and have no official letter. So I get the worrying thing, but freaking out is unnecessarily stressful! You'll be ok!

The first two have already happened for me, and I'm supposed to sign my contract in July.

You're lucky because West Lafayette is super cheap. I'd say rent, phone, car, car insurance, maybe healthcare depending on what the school offers. Then stuff like food, entertainment, etc. That's obviously flexible! A lot of this stuff is relative... I don't think anyone can give you a magic number. What are you willing to sacrifice? A car? A cell phone? Your morning Starbucks? Going to the movies once per week?

It depends, is it a Canadian uni? If yes, then an Honours (vs. regular) degree is often mandatory for graduate study. Can you explain this to the prof of your course and see if there is any extra work you can do?

No, it sounds like bragging. If I were reading your SoP I'd think, "ok... so go there!"

You can put "Your Name, M.A." (or other credentials). I've also seen PhDc for "candidate" as long as you've passed your comps.

Congrats!

Head! Tough decision, but I figure the short-term happiness is not worth ong-term suffering (debt)! Good luck!

Do you need prereqs that you don't have? Sometimes that's why you'll have summer admission. I would contact the department and call the graduate school. It sounds like a simple mix-up. Don't apply to change anything!

It is a real thing, and if you don't accept by April 15 it can be taken away! The legal deadline (for the schools that adhere to the agreement) is tomorrow and they have no obligation to hold the funding for you after that date without you accepting it. My advice is to accept, and then if you really really want to back out later... do. eta: Congrats!!!

I wouldn't tell them unless they ask for it. You can let them know it was a tough decision if you want though. E.g. "thank you very mch for your offer but after much deliberation I have decided to accept elsewhere".

Is the off-the-waitlist school UMass Boston? Because I just declined them. I hope you got my spot, it would make me feel so good to know that it is going to good use! I think option #2 is good... I wouldn't worry too much about being in a small cohort. The chances that you'll get super close are high, and if not you're still at a university and in a university town - there should be tons to do and plenty of people to meet even if you have to branch out of your department. As for the rest of the criteria, funding is always a good thing and I also think it's a good idea to try new things and get away from your support system. Then you'll feel even more accomplished and not wonder "what would have happened if I hadn't been to afraid to take risks?" Good luck and congrats!

I second the backpack. It may not look classy, but hauling around a shoulder bag all day really kills my back and shoulders. Apparently I am prematurely old.