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Andean Pat

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  1. Upvote
    Andean Pat got a reaction from Sigaba in What's your specialization?   
    (ammmm didn't we all read these as undergrads?)
  2. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to Jrock4real in What size laptop do you use?   
    And there's no way I'll ever buy a 13" MBP. 15" is the sweet spot, and I have no issues with portability. The laptops of the 90s were bricks compared to what we have today. Sometimes, I don't even slip my MBP into its case before throwing it into my backpack, as I would any other textbook. It's that solid.
  3. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to TakeruK in Advice on credit cards?   
    One reward (or travel) mile per dollar spent is pretty good, but like biostatdude said, you don't get to fly 1 mile for each travel mile you have. For example, for Aeroplan miles (Air Canada), it costs about 26,000 reward points to get a free flight within North America (which is probably valued at $600-ish, if you fly from one end to another). For these types of rewards programs, you usually earn one mile per mile flown, and if you don't fly often, then this is probably the fastest way to ramp up miles. 
     
    For cards for fees, what I usually do is try to work out how much reward miles/points I could earn with this special card vs. a free card that also gives me points. I'll probably only sign up for a card with fees if the difference in benefits is worth at least twice the cost of the card. 
     
    For international students that might fly internationally a lot, the travel points might be worth more to them, since the long flights can be really expensive, or perhaps you can redeem a smaller number of miles/points to upgrade from economy to business class. I've heard of some people doing "Mileage Runs", where they fly around in a loop over the span of e.g. 24 hours for no reason other than gaining miles to be used later. This works best when they take advantage of cheap flights, and there are online communities devoted to this, e.g. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/mileage-run-deals-372/
     
    In addition, some credit cards also offer a large number of bonus miles for signing up and gives you stuff like free checked bags. So if you do this often, that could be a better deal than the free credit cards that also grant points.
     
    From considering a bunch of different free cards in Canada and the USA, I think, on average, if you trade in your reward miles or points for cash rewards (e.g. gift cards), you can get about $1 back per $100 you spend on the card. Many banks give you the option of getting "cash back", which ranges from 0.5% to 2% depending on the circumstances instead of earning reward points, so I think this is about equivalent.
  4. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to waitingtoexhale in cheating   
    Honestly and unfortunately, the OP is trying to make all international students look bad. I don't think there's anything else to call what s/he did but cheating. This case is not about forgetting to reference or cite a source properly. Rather, the student found some kind of instructor's manual online and straight up copied the answer for the assignment. And the OP writes about knowing full well that to be a 'direct copycat' is wrong at the university level. This isn't an issue of understanding cultural differences across nations or the challenges facing international students studying abroad. The reason OP is in such a predicament has little to do with being an international or domestic student, but because s/he is an unethical student who was caught cheating in a grossly blatant manner. While cultural differences and adjusting to studying stateside are valid and nuanced issues worthy of discussion (at least Nel and Jakrabite seem to be passionate about it), that's not what happened to the OP. What happened to the OP is that s/he got busted for cheating.
  5. Downvote
    Andean Pat reacted to doodtest in cheating   
    Thanks everybody for suggesting. I hope more people can help me.
    And I am not looking to escape anything, all I want to know from you guys is how best to face this awkward situation and what worst or normal can happen to me.

    I am already sorry for my foolish act ( But, a thief is one who caught stealing, not one who stole and was never caught)
  6. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to danieleWrites in Advice on credit cards?   
    In the US, you get a free credit report every 12 months from Equifax, Experian, and Transunion. There are a ton of "freecreditreport.com" type of dealios out there, but they're fake or they charge money for what should be free. I start here because I suck at bookmarking and I'm a bit paranoid: http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0155-free-credit-reports The is the page from the FTC that gives consumer information, including a link to the real free credit report website. I get one report every 4 months to keep on top of my identity and my credit. I get my W2s in, I order a credit report. I get memorial day poppies from the Legion, I order a credit report. Halloween decorations hit the stores, I get a credit report. Just how I remember.
  7. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to TeaGirl in Advice on credit cards?   
    I'm a complete newbie and ignoramus regarding credit cards. I never used a credit card before and always just used either my debit card or plain old cash.
     
    Any advice for students looking to build a good credit card history (how do you get that anyway)? Credit card recommendations, pitfalls, or warnings? How is it different to just using your debit card?
    I've been thinking of getting a credit card this time, but I'd like one without annual fees. I also assume that if you pay everything back on time you don't get charged interest.
  8. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to i.am.me in how much (or how little) academic prep do you plan on doing over the summer?   
    Oh noes...I didn't know I was supposed to plan to do something ('cept take care of moving plans, shopping for a new wardrobe, and my health) academic to get ready for graduate school....
     
    lol, i just plan on taking it easy...hahaha
  9. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to remenis in Fall 2014 Applicants   
    This is so true - my advisor, who did research on job placement rates for the AHA talked about this recently. He said in one year he'd looked at, 1070 phds were granted and only 270ish jobs were posted. But the competition for people in good programs isn't really that dire because some 600 people come from programs that are simply not competitive and whose students will never get jobs.
  10. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to Phoenix! in Best credit cards for international students in the US   
    I recently saw a post on a blog that mentioned two credit cards for students:
     
    Citi Dividend Platinum Select Visa Card for Students
    This card offers 0% intro APR for the first 7 months that you have the card. You'll get 1% cash back on all purchases with a $300 limit unless using retailers in the Citi Bonus Cash Back Center, in which there is no limit on how much you can earn, plus there will be bonus cash back in certain categories each quarter you enroll, like gas, movies, or grocery shopping, up to 5%. Enrollment is free each quarter. Also, there are no liability charges for unauthorized purchases. There is no annual fee and no overlimit fee
     
    Discover it Card for Students
    The Discover It card has an intro rate of 0% APR for the first 6 months. There is 1% cash back on all purchases, plus for certain categories each quarter you will earn 5% cash back with a $1,500 limit. There is no annual fee and no overlimit fee, plus for those students who are looking to study abroad, there is no foreign transaction fee, making it perfect to use in a different country. There is no late fee for your first payment, and if you do pay late, it won't affect your APR. Plus, you can use your rewards at Amazon.com to pay for whatever items you want, be it textbooks or something not school related.
  11. Upvote
    Andean Pat got a reaction from CageFree in Field Experience and Application Process   
    I agree with both responses. 
     
    I have 10 year teaching experience and got offers from several programs. Now, clearly I was not accepted because of my teaching experience, but I suppose it showed I can 'manage' deadlines, corrections, planning, and assessment quite effectively (at least in theory, hahaha ) 
  12. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to wildviolet in Collaboration and Competition   
    Hi Soul--I agree with everything that you said, especially about "leveling" with colleagues.
     
    So, all your comments have been fermenting in my head, and I've come to realize a few things:
     
    1. I had a gut/emotional reaction to the situation, and I'm glad that people here chimed in with their thoughts, especially if it was to say, "I don't see anything wrong with your friend's behavior." A reality check is always good.
     
    2. I don't want to get into a spiraling escalation of competition... like, "well, she did this much, so now I have to do more to show that I'm just as good or even better." Maybe it's about working smarter and not harder. Hard work by itself doesn't always get rewarded. Maybe I should start thinking more like a PI and less like a grad student.
     
    3. I'm not against hard work. But, I think there's a fine line between working hard and doing your best and stepping on the toes of others, especially in grad school when we're all trying to figure out our "academic niche."
  13. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to ak48 in You only hate grad school because you think you're supposed to.   
    Not having spent a single minute as an actual grad student (starting a PhD in September), I'd venture to say that like everything else in this world, the article has some correct points but also flaws.
     
    I do believe that framing and mindset have a very important role in how you perceive something. If everything you read/hear and everybody you know goes on about how bad X is, then you are probably also going to dislike X, or at the very least, evaluate things with reference to it.
     
    Also, the difference between a misfortune being "a setback to learn from" and "a miserable, experience-defining moment" is almost entirely attitude dependent. In this sense, I agree with the article.
     
    However, at the same time I think it is insultingly simplistic to say that the "only reason" one hates grad school life is because that impression exists among other people. For one, not everybody "hates" grad school. Second, I'm sure there are actual, objective drawbacks to it, like all jobs in life. Here is a quote from the end of the article
     
    "I assumed graduate school was supposed to be gratifying and therefore it largely became so. I was unaware that graduate school was supposed to be a dreary pool of loathing, and therefore it was not."
     
    This is an elementary school student's understanding of life and cause and effect.
  14. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to EloiseGC in New Graduate Student Fears   
    Are any of y'all nervous or anxious about the upcoming semester? Apprehensive about moving to a new city, worried about how you'll get along with your advisor, or nervous about how you'll compare to your fellow graduate students?
     
    I figured that this community could probably provide more effective support/reassurance than most others!
     
    So, if you're all like
     

     
    we can 
     

     
    and be
     

     
    because
     

     
     
     
     
     
  15. Upvote
    Andean Pat got a reaction from 1000Plateaus in The MA degree from HELL.   
    I agree! You are a very good writer! I hope in my response I can give you some hope and encourage you to fulfil your dreams! (I hope I come across as clear as I mean!)
     
    That said, I also agree with Eigen, there are many things that you have learned.
     
    1) To cope with stress, identify it and seek help. 
    2) You know what you want. No one can take that from you. You know what to do and what not to do in your PhD.
    3) Ambition is good so long you know your own boundaries. Clearly, the topic was too much for an MA thesis but maybe you can continue this path in your PhD?
    4) You have dealt with very harsh comments on your work. There is no way you can't take that personal, and yet, in spite everything, you are still writing. You have used this in your favour. 
     
    Now, here's my humble advice:
     
    * SEIZE THE DAY do not think in "I'd be in 2nd year in PhD by now". Well, you are not. And probably for the best. Embrace this unexpected change of plans. If you keep on thinking what you were supposed to be doing, you would probably get depressed. So, this is your reality today. You have done extensive work on your thesis, squeeze it and write papers!!! 
     
    * Do not allow this to happen again. It is a bad experience but it does not mean it is going to happen again. You have gained this experience, do not forget that. 
     
    * Take advantage of minor drawbacks. Now, easy said than done, I know. However, it seems to me that your advisor "forcing" you to finish before he leaves is actually a good thing, right?
     
    All the best, really!!! 
  16. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to zs3889 in F1 visa interview - Your opinion?   
    Well, I did not call anyone, just emails. Now that I was informed that my I-20 was mailed out last week, all I can do at this moment is simply wait for it to reach. The worst thing is that, it was mailed out by regular airmail, which has no tracking information available, and god knows when will I be receiving it.
     
     
     
    I did speak to the graduate coordinator from my department in the beginning, and then she directed me to the international office when I started asking about my official letter and I-20 questions. I think the international office is actually the one that should be in charge of these matters.
     
    At first, I was sending emails to a person from the international office. A few weeks later (after many times of telling me 'to be patient', and I was patient but I lost it finally), I started sending similar emails to several people from the international office. Guess what, same outcome. All I got was stuff like 'it is still in the process', 'we have many I-20's to process, yours is still in queue', 'you need to be more patient', 'we are trying everything we can'........
     
    It has been a week since it was mailed out to me, and I have not received it yet. I emailed to ask for a digital copy last night and I was told 'we can't send I-20 over email because it is not secure'. I mean what kind of cr*p is that? Sending through email is not secure, and the original copy of my I-20 being mailed out by regular airmail is considered secure?
     
    sorry for all the bragging, I am utterly disappointed and just trying to get some help over here.
  17. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to Arezoo in The MA degree from HELL.   
    I experienced the same situation when i was an MA student. I chose a topic that was beyond an MA thesis as described by the others, and i finished my studies after 4 years. I completely know how you feel, and this experience made me be stronger than before. I'm now in my 30s, but i decided to apply for PhD programs in the US with a GPA of 3.5. It made me be more ambitious than before. Don't let that experience depress you in any shape or form. Good Luck!
  18. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to St Andrews Lynx in Registration   
    I would check with an administrator or your advisor first. The information on the website might not be current, or else you might be an exception to some of the stated requirements. 
     
    Enrolling onto a course at a new school without consulting anyone could lead - in the worse-case scenario - to getting enrolled on the wrong courses and needing the administrators to do extra legwork to sort out the issue. That would count as getting off to a bad start!
  19. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to fuzzylogician in New US Immigration Entry procedures are effective immediately at all US Borders   
    We recently received the email below from our International Students Office. I know pretty much the same email went out to students at other schools; this is effective immediately and should also affect new students who are beginning their education in the Fall (of course you don't need the documents proving current enrollment that are mentioned below, if you're entering for the first time!).
     
    I don't think there is anything to worry about, but make travel plans accordingly: have any connections outside the US so you reach the US at your final destination, or leave enough time for a connection in the US. Remember that wherever you enter the US for the first time is where you have to go through immigration (also pick up and re-check your bags) and even without these new procedures it could take fairly long.
     
    FYI.
     
  20. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to aberrant in What about sports?   
    chances of ESPN playing rugby in the U.S. are slim. I would suggest you to stream sports events online. many websites are free -- you just need to have a flash player installed to watch it. However, if you are looking at major tennis tournament, then you can expect ESPN would play it. There are also other channels that play sports -- FOX Sports, FOX Soccer, Speed (Car racing), SPIKE (MMA), beIN Sport USA, etc.
     
    currently in my 6th year since I moved to the U.S., i'm not a huge fan of "American sports" per se. I do occasionally watch NFL, NCAAF, and a few NHL / MLB games on TV. I am, however, a basketball fan (both NBA and NCAAB), soccer (La Liga, Premiership, many others), MMA (Pride/Dream, UFC, etc.), car racing (F1, Nascar, Le Man, WRC), and many other sports.
     
    One good thing about staying in the U.S. is its time zone. Last year NBA season was shortened. I can wake up on Saturday and Sunday morning catch the first game of Premiership at 7:45 am EST, then the next couple games until 12-1 pm EST, when I switch to La Liga (or Serie A if there's a good match up) and watch all the games until 5:30-6:30 pm EST. THEN, I switch to watch NBA until  10:30 - 11:30 pm (sometimes 12:30 pm EST if there's a game starts at 10:30 pm EST).
     
    With the occasional featuring NASCAR, MLB, NFL, NCAAF, and NHL on TV.
     
    Since I'm here for grad school I attended all the home basketball game for the season -- but I'll stop attending given that the team is terrible. Also went to a football game (NCAAF) and tailgate with friends once.
  21. Upvote
    Andean Pat got a reaction from CageFree in reverse snobbery re: academic achievement   
    I only encountered this situation only once.
     
    An old man who owns a local archive is known for (I found out later) that he hates university students. I realized this when I went to his local shop to chat with him and see if I could have access to the archive (I needed material he had). The curious thing was that he was condescending with university students, apparently, because he has never finished primary school but he had accomplished something nobody else had: scholars, researchers an humble students like me needed his archive.
     
    Now, he disliked our "formal education" because he believed he had achieved the same or better education by self instruction/lots of reading (which I give him credit for). So in this case reading was a compensation for not having an official diploma. Thankfully, he got along really well with researchers that helped me, including my advisor, so I had no problem in accessing the archive.
  22. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to dynamicspartan in What are You Currently Reading?   
    Edward Rutherfurd is the man. If you like Sarum, read London. Also, he just released his newest, Paris.
  23. Downvote
    Andean Pat got a reaction from socatoa in Feeling Bullied   
    I am so sorry you are undergoing such a frustration and stress! I am not even in grad school yet but can understand what you mean! I agree with Fuzzy's suggestions and really hope that you ace your presentation tomorrow. Do not let this person shadow your work!!!! all the best!!!! 
  24. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to CageFree in reverse snobbery re: academic achievement   
    I think there are two separate issues here which keep getting conflated.
     
    1. "Snobbery" by STEM types who believe that the humanities and social sciences are inferior to their own fields.
     
    2. Negativity by people with less (or little) formal education, which can be due to anything from insecurity to a sense of "I accomplished X, Y and Z without your education." 
     
    For #1, I think one major issue is that *some* STEM majors did well in AP-level classes in high school (like US History) and maybe did ok in a survey class or two for general ed... so they think that they know what the "field" really is about and what it is that we do. That, combined with the stereotype that "humanities people are not good at math," makes them feel superior. Of course, those of us who majored in the humanities (and especially those who went on to grad school) know there are HUGE differences between high school history, survey classes, upper division work, and graduate work. And not all humanities people are bad at math.. I majored in a STEM field when I started college and HATED every second of it, which is why I switched out. 
     
    Note that I said *SOME.* My partner majored in a science field and now teaches math, and he will the the first to admit he can't write a paper to save his life. Our relationship works because he respects what I do and I respect what he does.
     
    For #2, there really isn't much you can do except deflect or avoid contact. My father didn't finish HS and to this day he still considers my education a waste of money (even though I went to a public university and he didn't pay a dime of it) because I switched to the humanities. My first marriage collapsed in part because my partner was very insecure about my education (and I only had a BA, and no plans to go to grad school). He kept shoving it in my face how I acted 'superior' because I had gone to college. He had only finished high school and joined the military, and even though this was not an issue for me, it clearly was a huge problem for him. (And clearly I picked a guy who was a lot like my father the first time around. Didn't make that mistake again).
     
    I would add that the educational emphasis at the high school level on "going to college" has created resentment in people whose skill set and abilities might not be suited for university but might do great in vocational or technical fields (a good mechanic is worth his or her weight in gold). Schools have eliminated vocational training in favor of college prep, and that has alienated a significant proportion of the population. You don't need to go to college to be successful or even to make money.Some type of education is generally a requirement, but high schools make it seem like if you are better at building houses than you are at chemistry, you're not "living up to your potential," which is BS.
     
    At the same time, we have a political culture that devalues education as "elitist" and "snobbish," and that combined with the fact that a college degree nowadays can't guarantee you a job at McDonald's, have emboldened people who chose not to pursue higher education (or were unable due to a variety of circumstances) to try to bring down those who have.
     
    I think it's just symptomatic of a larger issue in this country, which is class warfare promoted by politicians whereby people tear each other down to their "level" rather than demanding that living standards be better for everyone. Look at the backlash against public employee unions, for example. People in the private sector complain that "they don't have unions protecting them" so public employees (teachers, firefighters, etc.) shouldn't either. A better solution would be for private employees to demand collective bargaining rights, given that unions helped forge the middle class in this country and make it accessible to people who often did NOT have formal education beyond high school.
     
    And let's not even get started on this country's war on education (especially in the humanities), which is the reason why few people know why we have unions in the first place. 
  25. Upvote
    Andean Pat reacted to pears in reverse snobbery re: academic achievement   
    soul: whoa, cool the judgmental jets, there. i encounter this in my field of work and study, and i don't even have a degree beyond a B.S./B.A. right now- so, obviously, i don't expect any oohing or aahing. however, i expect everyone i work with to respect everyone else for what they bring to the table. none of us would have our jobs if we weren't qualified in our own special ways; i learn just as much from people with GEDs as i do from people with PhDs, as long as both ends of communication are open and respectful. there is a difference between not hearing the praise you think you deserve, and having people go out of their way to actively step on your toes and put you down. 
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