InHacSpeVivo

Raber at Ole Miss is a pioneer in the field, and the department is very big on Southern lit. ETA: Michigan State is huge on animal studies (they're the only program I've seen with a grad certificate in animal studies). If I'm remembering correctly, ecocriticism is also pretty big there.

I've had incredibly positive experiences with my grad coordinator. Have you contacted yours to see if he or she would be willing to vouch for you before the semester starts?

If you use a website like apartmentguide.com or apartments.com there are tons of complexes listed. Most, if not all, of them are on the OUT (local bus that serves campus) and they typically say how close they are to various shops and restaurants. You can also look on Google maps of the area; they show complexes on the map and their proximity to campus. Because I haven't yet moved to Oxford either, I don't know where the bus stops, but here's the city bus site: http://www.oxfordms.net/visitors/transit/bus-routes-a-schedules.html. So, if the apartment complex is on the bus route you should be able to go anywhere else the bus stops. Additionally, the UM housing website lists on-campus housing for grad students here: http://studenthousing.olemiss.edu/communities/. The site includes information on nearby off-campus housing as well. Also, it looks like the UM is looking for graduate student community directors if that is something you would be interested in: http://studenthousing.olemiss.edu/graduate-student-positions/. Good luck with your housing search!

Thanks for the correction, Academicat. I'm coming with a car, so I hadn't done tons of research into public transportation.

Is that rule specific to international students? As far as I knew, the on campus rule only applies to incoming freshman (there's not enough housing to support the entire student body). There are several off campus apartment complexes, most (if not all) are in walking distance or on the bus line. Campus Creek is one, but as I mentioned there are many (search apartment Oxford in Google and tons will come up). That being said, I'm not sure how easy it will be to avoid undergrads looking for off campus housing nearby; every complex I looked at had a section for parents, so I get the feeling there's heavy UG saturation. I believe there's a bus stop on/near campus, which most certainly would go to Memphis (it's about an hour away). Of course, if any current Oxford residents have information that contradicts this please chime in! I can only report what I know from my very brief visit and the research I've done.

Congrats, TOC! That's awesome news!!

I'm thinking it will be a few months, but month to month would be ideal for flexibility purposes. I actually started with the housing website. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to have much (maybe it's off cycle, as I assume most UGs have locked down housing at this point).

bbdd2: I was only there for a few days, but everyone seemed very welcoming and friendly. I'd definitely recommend living within walking distance of campus/the Square or on the campus bus line if you won't have a car. I'm also coming to Oxford! Does anyone have recommendations for short term rentals that allow dogs? My fiance and I would like to get a sense of the area/actually look at places before comitting to anything long-term. We're hoping we can move down sometime in July.

Thanks so much everyone for the kind words, and congratulations to the recent acceptees! So much excitement at the deadline!

Congrats to everyone!!!!!!!!! I know it's small potatoes compared to everyone on here, but... Mississippi came through with a fantastic supplemental fellowship, so I have officially accepted their offer.

Good luck, TOC! There's been a lot of movement in the past few days, it seems, so try not to be discouraged yet.

Congrats on Tennessee, Hannalore!!!!!

Awesome, Wyatts Torch!!!!!!! Congratulations!!!!!!!!

Thanks, Ashley, but I haven't heard. Were you WRAC, though? I'm English.

Sorry to hear that, squank.

Just turned down UNC Greensboro

Thanks so very much for the advice all; it is very much appreciated. I have ben considering. Emailing my POI to let them know, and given what's been said I think I'll do that. I also want to say, as someone who went through two app cycles without having the benefit of a decision, that I understand that this is a very good problem to have. I feel very, very fortunate in that I think I could ultimately be happy at either school. The worst part really is that the DGS at Ole Miss is really fantastic and I am excited about that program, so I feel terrible putting them off. Once again, thanks to everyone for their input. It's really a comfort in this stressful situation!

Thanks, ComeBackZinc, the thoughtfulness is much appreciated. Fortunately (or not), I've informed both DGSs about my other offers, so I'm not disclosing anything they don't already know about me. ETA: And I don't think I'm being mean to either school, which is why I felt comfortable using names. At least I hope it doesn't come across as mean in anyway. Obviously I love both programs or this wouldn't be an issue for me!

A big congrats to Ramus, and thanks so much to LCB!

This is juding by the programs where I applied; I could just be picking the only places that don't fund medical! (Many do subsidies of some kind.)

I am currently torn between two programs. I have inquiries out with more than a half dozen profs in my department, but I would greatly appreciate any insight the trememdously helpful and support 2015 GC cohort can provide. Here's the situation: I went to the Michigan State for the visit weekend in February. I loved the campus and the department and thought it would be a great fit. I had a chance to talk to my POI (one of the most fitting mentors of any of the schools to which I applied), and he mentioned that he was excited to work with me. Additionally, he has a tremendous track record of publishing/placing his advisees. MSU also houses the PCA journal (I study pop culture), and it is the only school that offers an Animal Studies concentration, which I'm really keen on. They also have a great part-time MBA program for my SO (or the option to go to nearby UMich). Basically, I was ready and willing to sign on the dotted line. The problem? They still haven't released funding information, and it's unlikely they will before April 15. If funding does happen, it would be a solid paackage because they have baselines set by the grad student union. However, funding is NOT a certainty. Fortunately, I came off Ole Miss's wait list on Monday. Since then, they've offered a five-year, competitive fellowship in addition to the stipend. (MSU's base funding package is slightly higher--if it happens.) There's no clearly standout POI for me there, but there are several people I'd love to work with. There's also not the same, explicit popular culture focus, though they have faculty that do a lot of work in film (especially film and gender). They have a very similar placement record to MSU, and they have an in-house journal with editorial opportunities. It seems like MSU is a better fit (or maybe it's just because I visited?), but is it worth putting off Ole Miss to hold out and hope for funding? If we're following USNews/NRC rankings, MSU is much higher (63/52 v. 91/72), but does it really matter at that point? Despite loving the program, these funding issues are giving me pause with MSU. Am I right to be concerned? Is Ole Miss a better choice regardless? Maybe I could still ask the MSU POI to be a reader at some later point? These are some of my many thoughts at the moment. Any guidance/insight/advice is much appreciated.

Ah! I'm so jealous! Congratulations!

BLeondard: If it's full medical coverage that is rare. Typically it's a subsidy at best.

zeno: Those are awesome options to be sure! I would suggest geography as the deciding factor all things being equal, but it seems like that isn't really a concern in your case. Is one program offering more money? A competitive fellowship? Better benefits? Does one have a POI who is of particular interest to you? Are there course offerings more in line with your areas of interest? More professors doing work in your area at one school? A great journal or track of study? If all these things are equal, my vote would be Stanford.

Congratulations, Kenna!