Crucial BBQ

After awhile your hard drive starts to look like a messy closet with random stuff piled in random places; files start to appear in random places on your drive causing your OS to look for them in places other than where they are supposed to be because they are no longer where they are supposed to be. You can repair permissions and declutter your drive, too, which should speed things up.

I have been reading them, TakeruK and other GradCafe members claim to read them, I have read that some people prefer to read the theses/dissertation instead of conference papers, and online theses/dissertation guidelines from many graduate schools indicate that future employers may read them as well. I have also read that people do cite thesis/dissertation papers; I have. With a number hovering near 5% of Ph.D.s gaining tenure these days, the overwhelming majority of Ph.D.s are going to enter the non-academic job market. With the increased numbers of graduate degrees on the market and with the increasing prevalence of Google searches, employers are likely to come across and include the acknowledgment section as another tool in dissecting the candidate's profile for employment. Even if they don't, dancing like no one is watching in your professional life is a bad tactic--especially since every student these days should understand that anyone with an Internet connection has the ability to peek through the window without you knowing it. *edit: no, I am not an old curmudgeon.

My point is that there is a clear divide between now and then with ~2007 being point-of-change. Soon to be graduates in 1989 most likely did not have the foresight to see their thesis works published online. This realization was possibly seen by 1999, then becoming fully realized by 2005. So if the students in 1989 believed their works were to be filed away in some basement archieve never to be seen again, and those from 2014 knowing their works would be hosted online with granted free access to all, why is that students from 1989 wrote seemingly more professional acknowledgements with those from 2007 forward being more freewheeling? You can be personal and sincere in acknowledging those who lent a hand in your research, and in a professional manner at that. You can also show your personality while also remaining 100% professional. I have spent the morning looking at the acknowledgements from various disciplines at the same school mentioned in my OP. First, it seems that for Humanities, a simple and quick dedication is the order of the day. Acknowledgements mostly seem to be a thing for STEM. My same observation applies, however: those from the various STEM fields back in 1989 clearly wrote more precise, sincere, and well thought ackowldgements while those from 2013/2014 are following the "acceptance speech" approach. Not only that, but the current acknowledgements are just sloppy, period. It is not a matter of personal taste, it is as if the authors are shooting from the hip in the last moments before submission. By "greatest work" I meant something that years were spent on its creation; not necessarily the pinnacle of academic achievement up to that point.

Eh, well, they are a competitive bunch. This one is for University of Kansas, Audiology: "Got accepted via email! Very excited, one of my top two choices! No news about funding yet, hoping to hear with the written letter to follow!" Very excited to have been accepted via email? *edit to add: it does not take much to amuse me.

One of the programs I am interested in hosts every thesis submitted online going back to 1989. I have noticed a distinct change, or perhaps trend, in the acknowledgments and dedications. Up until the mid-2000s, the acknowledgements were concise and sincere. Around 2008, however, they changed in tone to something that more-or-less resembles an awards ceremony acceptance speech. In 2008 Facebook really became popular and in my opinion, the coming of age of the "share everything" generation. With one paper in particular the author "acknowledges" his drinking buddies, his parents for not asking too many questions about why it took him forever to finish, and how his research dug a financial hole close to the center of the Earth, of which was partially funded out of his own pocket. This guy even thanked his advisors for "quickly returning his drafts because they wanted to get me out the door as fast as possible". Seriously, why would you want this stuff in what could very well be the most significant piece work you have done to date? Not only is it (or it should be) an embarrassment to the advisors, school/program, and *yourself*, surely this dude knows that this document is accessible by anyone with an Internet connection....possibly forever. Future employers, perhaps? Another thanked So-and-So for reminding her that the countless hours they spent surfing together had no bearing what-so-ever on why it took her forever to graduate as well. One person seemed to thank every single person who lent a hand (there are about 50 names, one right after the other), another thanked someone for helping with data entry, a few who mentioned something about profs/advisors/mentors lighting the fire under their butts to get them moving and without them they would, by their seemingly admittance, be lazy sacks of nothing. Of course there are all of the countless thanks to family members, SOs, and friends for what appears to be no other reason than to just get their names in there. And so on. It amazes me that up until the early-mid 2000s, none of this was the case, it seems. Now it appears to be the norm. I have yet to be accepted into this program yet I feel embarrassed to even think that *these* people will be a part of my cohort. I have been trying to think of a word or phrase to describe this style of communication; pedestrian conversationalist, I suppose. The actual papers are fine, it just seems as if the recent trend with acknowledgements/dedications is more akin to a [long] text message to a friend. What happened to professionalism? Any thoughts? Or am I just too much of a stickler for convention?

For what it is worth, unless you are editing video or playing FPSs on high res, these specs are more than adequette. It might seem like the SSD is on the smaller side but unless you do not dump your entire music collection (assuming it is large), photo library, and/or some movies, you should be fine. Word docs and PDFs are surprisingly small (it has been estimated that you can fit roughly 6 million MS Word pages onto a 100GB drive).

Eh, give it a month or so. Not a fan of Mortal Kombat, I take it? Gallows humor is the best. Well, they let one of them in and he went on to complete the program and then write a book about it called The Idea Factory.

I have heard this happens from time to time, but never on such a large scale. In my opinion CMU should do the right thing and at least work with those applicants to see if they cannot come to some sort of agreement. A year's supply of Heinz ketchup would be nice. Or tickets to a Stillers game of their choosing. Or perhaps offering them a guaranteed spot during the next cycle.

Not sure about electrical engineering, but for marine sciences there are programs that have a hard deadline for funding (usually between Jan. 1. and Feb 1.) but with a final deadline up to May or June. Also, I know some schools do Fall and Spring admissions for many programs (Maryland, Delaware, and URI come to mind), but don't know if for EE.

I wanted to go straight into a Ph.D. program. When I got all rejects last year, I changed my focus towards Master's. Initially it was because I figured an MS degree was my best chance at graduate school and also because I did not want lose motivation by spending time in lab building my CV. I know myself and I know that after a few years working and not being in school I would not want to go back (to school). Life is so much easier when you just work. Lately I have been thinking that an MS would not be so bad in other ways. For one, my top choice program is a Master's program. Another is because it may turn out that I do not want to spend another 5+ years in school, I have no idea how I will feel about it two or three years from now. All I know from my experiences thus far in life is that what ever you think you think about your future has at least a 50% chance of changing to something else before what ever you originally thought would happen happens. For those not aware, I have zero interests with going into academia. In reality, a Master's is probably going to enough degree for what I want to do in terms of career. A big reason for doing a Master's first, however, is that it would maneuver me into a more competitive position for Ph.D. applications. So, doing a Master's first would give me the option to stop at an MS degree if I choose; would give me more time to think about Ph.D. programs, where I'd want to go, and so on, and; would help keep me motivated to stay in school.

It seems that for the majority (all?) of biological sciences an interview is a strong indication of the programs' intent (to accept you). Not sure about other programs.

The student was prepared to record the conversation, which sounds like a set-up to me--especially since it ends with "I'll be bringing this to your supervisors".

You do not file as independent or dependent. If you notice, the question asks Can someone claim you as a dependent on their tax return? You are still expected to file either way.

I dunno. Tax laws are not exactly easy reading. My understanding is that if you are 18 or older, you are independent. Then, there are a handful of ways that you can be claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return (they claim you as a dependent, you are still independent but lose your exemption if someone claims you). To add, if you are a college student under the age of 24 you are also a dependent, but independent, too. Did your parents claim you in the past? If so, talk to them and ask if they will claim you this year (er, last year).

You can buy special locknuts and/or axles for your wheels, making it difficult for thieves to remove them. I've had the same New York lock (Kryptonite) for like 15 years now. Fits in the back pocket, easy to handle in case you need to fend off some bad guys, too small for a pneumatic jack, and too small to "twist off".

If you are under the age of 24 and a student your parents can claim you as a dependent if they want. It has nothing to do with your wages or taxable income and your parents do not need your W-2s in order to claim you. If they claim you, they get the exemption. If they don't, even if they can, you get it. Even if they claim you, you are still likely to get a return of your own, but not as large. Your parents can claim the rent they paid on your apartment and/or the tuition they paid for you on their own return and you can still file as an "independent" if they do not claim you as a dependent. It is a gray area, really: you are simultaneously independent and dependent right now and as far as Uncle Sam is concerned which one you really are depends on your parents filing status. When I was in your situation I did not check the box next to Can someone claim you as a dependent on their tax return? and filed my taxes as normal.

The guy is Gallagher. Or his brother, also named Gallagher. It is a sad day when cultural references no longer mean a thing. One day you are going to say "meat suit" to some kid and he is going to be like WTF!? Lady Gaga nor Ed Gein will cross his mind (I suppose that would be a good thing).

If I had multiple TAs, I would email them all; partially to cover my own behind by leaving a paper trail (no one TA could claim to have "not received" the email) and partially because I would feel awkward if I only emailed one (I would be afraid of showing favortism). In terms of the OP, and why male students would email the female TA their sick leave notices, my guess is that it is because the male students are assuming that the female TA is going to be more "motherly" and understanding and granting the multiple days off okay. I can see the bias here and I only offer it as a possible reason, not an excuse. People are most likely to go to those who they feel will respond the most favorably. That seems logical enough, in particular when one is asking for a favor. The problem is that when assumptions and biases, knowingly or unknowingly, lead one to ask a particular person for the favor over another without question, but, problems also arise when one assumes that person's motives to be biased, too. The only way to erase gender bias is through honest discussion, which means uncomfortable conversations from all sides. We share ideas through communications, learn from our mistakes, and grow from our new understandings. If one cannot be allowed to speak their minds, no matter how much *you* disagree with them, then nothing will ever be accomplished. By all means counter thoughts and opinions and conventions with your own; challenging established norms is a good thing for society. Just be careful of falling into the trappings of dogma. By dismissing one's ideas as BS in an attempt to shut them down, in the end you wind up reinforcing those beliefs within them: both of you seeing the other as a crackpot. You don't change minds from bashing someone in the face with your message, or from repeatedly telling them they are stupid for not agreeing with your perspective. We could all stand to me more mindful of others. Myself surely included. If I were the male TA in this situation I would feel dejected over the lack of students emailing me. If I were in your situation, I would take my cue from the female colleague; the prof does not seem to care.

Rankings are hit or miss when it comes to grad programs; sometimes the topped ranked programs are at lower ranked schools. I think the phenomenon of applying to a wide-range of schools (which would include the so-called "safety") is rather new to grad school admissions and most likely comes from Millennials who did the "shotgun" effect for undergrad (because, you know, you never know where you might get in so you might as well apply to ten reaches!). I think conventional wisdom applies to the OP: 1. even if an applicant was accepted into a top-ranked program it is still possible they might go elsewhere, 2. if an applicant did their research and applied to programs based on "research interests and credentials" then the idea of a safety flies out the window. All applied-to programs in the case of #2 would be of equal interests to the applicant, meaning that #1 would apply. I have heard of undergrad admissions denying "top" students based on the likelihood of them not attending, but I don't think such tactics apply to grad school, and they might just be urban legends to begin with. It is in no program's best interests to deny an applicant simply because they are "too good for our cruddy program". With grad school you are expected to have a reason, and a desire, to attend. So, it is generally assumed that if one applies to a specific program than one would at least seriously consider the offer. I have heard of applicants being admitted to specific programs, but not to labs. In fact, with one of my programs applicants are admitted first even if they do not have a PI/lab lined up, then acquire advisors/mentors/PIs second. With this program students are not allowed to matriculate until they secure a mentor/PI, though. With another program I am applying to it is totally possible to be admitted into the "school" but not the program (applicants apply to both the school and the program). I am not sure what happens if the school says yes and the program says no, though.

I believe I already have everything I would need as I don't see much difference between what I would need for grad school vs what I already own/used from undergrad (usb drives, external drive, laptop, coffee maker, file cabinet, dry erase board, googles, tablet, external monitor, and so on). I am considering setting up my own cloud, which is basically an external drive hooked up to [my] wifi router that can be accessed from anywhere with an Internet connection. My dry erase board is small, roughly 3 1/2' x 2 1/2'. I want to get a larger one but am thinking about getting a "dry erase kit" from Home Depot instead. The kit really is just a specialty latex paint, so depending on if I can paint a wall or not will really be the determining factor. Other than that the only thing I believe I would truly need is a lab coat.

I agree with sharpie269; if this PI truly is that famous then competition for her mentorship will be fierce. You mention fit with this PI as often as you mention her prestige. And with your post above it seems as if you are most interested in the prestige than anything. As someone who has more years working in the real world than I care to admit, I can assure you that the only people who give a hoot about prestige are the young, the entitled, and frat boys. Full grown, mature, adults will not care. Speaking of NIH, they hire graduates from Joe's Podunk Hick College of the Sticks alongside those from Top 20s. They do the same jobs for the same pay. You will find it is like that in most professional working environments. When you do research, ultimately the institution that funds the research (or through the PI associated with the funding) owns the research. I would be weary of a researcher who not only has TV crews at the door but one who also states that the next grad student is going to be working on the same research in question (meaning, it will be her project and not yours). Likely, this PI is going to use your findings to further her prestige and not yours. Science is rife with PIs who do not give credit where credit is due. The Internet is full of horror stories from researchers who contributed to breakthrough research, if not making the breakthroughs themselves, only to find themselves not mentioned anywhere in the proceeding papers or banquets. Honestly, if its prestige you are after you will find better luck at UChicago. Take a cue from this "famous" PI, develop your own novel twists, and become your own rockstar scientist. Also, as an aside, there is no such thing as a "tad of micromanagement"

The majority of my family lives in or near Riverside, CA. $1800/month for two people is going to be cutting it rather close.

I am not sure that these figures are for living wages. I think they are just the numbers that are used to determine if a family can be considered in poverty or not and are used to help determine the financial need from Federal and/or State programs (free lunch, food stamps, Section 8, and so on).

Are you looking for a post-doc? I mean, you write your lab will hire "one Ph.D.". Since you are looking for someone with a particular skill set, I think the advice should be obvious. If you are looking for someone to help collect data for your research and this person needs to write well also, then select the top three who match closest to what you need and who can write well (SOP). Think of it this way; if your team needs a wide-receiver you can dismiss all of the point-guards amongst the applicant pool.

As someone who has many years experience working in the "real world", let me tell you the best thing you can do is to leave this employer in as a professional manner as you can. I also strongly suggest you give them a heads up about your grad school plans asap, but that is not really necessary as long as you put in your "two weeks" by their designated notice date. However, even if you give them the one-month notice on time, and they find out you are leaving for grad school, they will wonder why you did not have the common decency to let them know earlier (so they can prepare for the hiring of a new employee). If you don't, you run the risk of royally upsetting them. You may say that is not your problem, and really it is not, but it can make you life miserable in that they may give you a bad reference when need this employer for a reference in the future. At least you have a legit reason. Trying to explain to potential employer why you left your previous job is more difficult than writing an SOP in my opinion.