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I don't know about the other places, but I know that Leipzig is great for German Idealism!

The reasons why the probability of securing a doctoral degree within 3 years is high are 1) you have to have an MA degree to even start with the doctoral studies (do you have that?), and 2) because it is very difficult to find any funding after 3 years and so people have a lot of pressure to finish within that time frame.
 
With "that" I mainly meant applying for the teaching/assistant position - it is not hard to find a professor who will advise you on your dissertation, as long as you bring the money yourself. Almost anyone can find a professor to do that if they don't ask for money. The difficult part is to find a source of money that is somehow connected to your dissertation (i.e. not just working in a coffee shop).
 
But don't take my input as the last word, maybe there's people who see it in a more optimistic light :-). By the way, Zurich pays way more than the other two because it is in Switzerland.

Yes, and it sounds like you are the kind of person who is good in getting the relevant information and preparing well, so it should work out somehow, I'm sure! Good luck!

I also come from an immigrant background (though not necessarily poor). My being a second-generation immigrant (who lived abroad for a number of years) definitely caused disadvantages, and it's clear to me that other people had similar experiences. I had a prejudiced guidance counselor in high school who told me I should try vocational school instead of aiming for university because she thought that Spanish-speaking=stupid. I didn't know about the SAT... the first time I took it I'd only been in the country for a year and no one told me what it was for. I had to educate myself (and this was before the internet!). My parents were not college educated and didn't know the system. I am a lot of "firsts" in my family... and my siblings are now following in my footsteps.  
 
I don't say this out of self-pity... on the contrary, I say this because I can look back at that f***ing @#$% and think... I proved her wrong. I am VERY proud of my heritage, and of what I've been able to accomplish despite people occasionally trying to get in my way. I look at my background as an asset, not an obstacle... just like you do. I was also lucky to have people who did believe in me (parents, teachers, professors, employers). My parents worked really, really hard to provide for us, and my mother was (and still is) very supportive of me through everything I've accomplished.
 
Other people aren't so lucky. There's nothing wrong with acknowledging that the system is set up for people who fit a particular mold, and that people who don't fit that mold have to overcome more obstacles than people who do. While I definitely understand what you're saying and also get upset when people make certain assumptions about me, I think that it's a little mean-spirited to go after other people who are simply sharing their experiences in dealing with a system that wasn't ready for their particular brand of awesomeness.
 
 
Perhaps if you stopped judging and started reading with an open mind, you'd see that you have more in common than you think with a lot of the people who posted before you. These experiences are not simply those of "minorities." They are the experiences of people who've had to work a little (a lot?) harder to fit into the mold. That's all.

Hi everyone,
 
I have found a wonderful spot in a wonderful PhD program, starting in fall. I am really excited about it and can't wait to start. And I really mean the "can't wait": I am still finishing up my MA stuff at the moment and have a really hard time motivating myself to do the work. I will have my final exams end of May. The outcome of my exams won't have any impact on my future, even if I fail, but I still would like to do somewhat well on them...
 
Is/Was anybody in a similar situation and what do/did you do to motivate yourself?

Well, then let's start a shame campaign for the same reason against UCLA. They did the same, and it costs $100 for international students to apply to their school ($80 for US people I think). Schools like that just make the chaos around April 15th even worse than it would already be.

(I guess it's not exactly the same as with Vanderbilt, but in no way better: they just didn't respond at all until yesterday. When I solicited an answer earlier, it took me 5 emails and more than two weeks, just to get the answer "you're not rejected, but also not accepted at this point of time").

UCLA has an awesome program though, so let's keep the shame campaign to their admissions procedures.