jmu

Phi Beta Kappa is legit and if you are going to join an honor society it is probably the best one you can. It is available only at certain schools which qualify for a chapter (something like 200 right now) and is only available to the top 10% of Arts and Sciences students at those schools. Even then, specific chapters have their own criteria for figuring out who to take so it's not just the top 10% GPAs. If you join they will likely give you a bit of history at their induction ceremony. As for whether it is worth joining, that is up to you. I joined because I was able to do so for free, I sent an email to the chapter secretary-treasurer letting her know that the fee was more than I was willing to pay and they were able to waive it thanks to donations from the local association. I've been told that it can be helpful in the application process but only minimally so. Given the competitive nature of applications it might be worth a shot and it certainly won't hurt you. In talking to the president of the local association he told me that it tends to be a great place to network and that a number of the people involved are older and more established. If your only concern is whether or not it is a scam honor society, it is not.

I think the equation is something like y=x^1.1 when you're trying to figure out how many top x schools there are.

Find the people you like and see what disciplines they are in. Think about which discipline you'd be happy teaching intro classes for. Depending on the type of social movements you're interested keep in mind that these aren't the only disciplines studying them. Anthropology, geography, environmental justice, and interdisciplinary programs may also have something to offer.

Go back to UK. Branch out to some other departments and try to meet people, go to some of the bars near campus or something, and don't worry about your ex. I was there for three days recently and I loved it. I was able to make a lot of great contacts and new friends in that short amount of time I was able to sneak away from the conference I was at. I'm sure you can do the same. Being from Miami I can understand the culture shock of a town like Lexington but at the same time I think it's a great city in itself with bigger cities nearby if you need to get away. I say stick it out there and seriously stop worrying about your ex. It's not worth trying to be friends if you're the only one putting in any effort.

Call and ask to confirm that everything was received. Reimbursement can take a long time.

For anyone interested in environmental anthro and cultural/political ecology who didn't get in or didn't get any funded offers this just showed up in my email: Dear HDGC members, Because of available grants and teaching assistantships, our department has a few more funded graduate student lines than we'd realized, and are thus reopening the graduate admission process. Between Anthropology and Geography, we've got a strong Land Change Science and Cultural/Political Ecology base here, which is also complemented by additional departments and Schools within Indiana University. Majed Akhter (starting in the fall, http://geography.arizona.edu/majed-akhter) Eduardo Brondizio (http://www.indiana.edu/~anthro/people/faculty/ebrondiz.shtml) Tom Evans (http://www.indiana.edu/~geog/people/evans.shtml) Shane Greene (http://www.indiana.edu/~anthro/people/faculty/lsgreene.shtml) Rebecca Lave (http://mypage.iu.edu/~rlave/index.html) Rinku Roy Chowdhury (http://www.indiana.edu/~geog/people/roychowdhury.shtml) Catherine Tucker (http://www.indiana.edu/~act/assoc-faculty/catherine-tucker.php) We guarantee two years of funding for MA students and four for Ph.D. students, and Bloomington is a fantastic place to live. If you have any bright undergrads or MA students who didn't have time to apply earlier, please send them our way, and don't hesitate to contact any of us for more info. Best, Rinku Rinku Roy Chowdhury Assistant Professor, Department of Geography, Indiana University 701 E. Kirkwood Avenue, Bloomington, IN 47405-7100, USA Phone: +1 812 855 3854; Fax: +1 812 855 1661; Email: rroychow@indiana.edu

There is on campus graduate and family housing that isn't terrible. There is also The Continuum which I think is worth looking into (http://www.thecontinuumforufgrads.com/). It has to be one of the most conveniently located grad specific housing areas in Gainesville.

I accidentally downvoted this post. My apologies.

Just replying here to clarify this for anyone searching in the future (hello from the past!) FIU has a late deadline but this year only had three funded offers to give initially. I have a feeling they split those up between the disciplines but I'm not sure. I applied on Jan. 14 and got one and I know the others went out around the same time I got mine (early/mid-March). Everyone else who was accepted was basically waitlisted for funding. Other schools with rolling admissions or late deadlines probably operate in a similar manner. If they get an applicant they really want and they know they are probably getting offers elsewhere they aren't going to sit around and wait.

Most people in Gainesville start looking around June for places to live in August. Every lease I've had began on August 1 and ended on July 31st. Some places will prorate the lease if you stay for a shorter or longer amount of time. Depending on your budget you should be alright as far as finding something in a good area for students but your options are going to be much more limited than they would be if you could go earlier. Another option would be to find a house/roomshare on craigslist or utilize graduate student housing for your first year. When I first moved there I rented two rooms (one from March-June and one from June-August) before my lease began on August 1 and I paid under $400/month including utilities for those places. You can find them with other graduate students which make the conditions much more tolerable. You could also contact some property management companies about your situation and see what they say. CMC and Paradigm are the two biggest but there are others as well. They would be able to tell you with better likelihood when you'll be able to start a lease and if the place is more popular among graduate students or undergrads. The problem may be, though, that some of the places they suggest will be more on the outskirts and thus a bit further away from direct-to-campus bus routes. UF students ride the bus for free and the campus routes run every 10-20 minutes though so transferring isn't really an issue in terms of cost, just convenience.

Some universities (not specific programs) use them to screen applicants. In my case the university checked my GRE scores to make sure they met minimum requirements before sending my application to the department.

I'm not sure how social psych programs work but in most cases it is agreed that you should be looking for and applying to outside funding as early as possible. I would take the offer and start looking around immediately for grants and fellowships that you can use to ease the burden you may feel.

I've been to one place in Hawthorne Reserve and it was really nice. That area is really convenient too if you will have a car. I've never heard of the Oaks Condominiums but anything with the word Oaks is usually around the mall and that area can be really hit or miss. I would suggest getting a good look at it before you put down any kind of deposit. In your price range you are really limited but if you can find a roommate you will be able to go nearly anywhere for the same money. Most places offer separate leases so if they get stuck or mess things up you won't get stuck with their mess.

Most places have a pool or allow you access to a pool at one of their other properties. The problem is that some places have massive pools and are known for their pool parties. In those situations the neighborhoods get loud and parking becomes near impossible. Spyglass has a pool and it stays pretty quiet and relaxed and there are a number of places like that. If you ask the property manager they will most likely let you know and may be able to make a suggestion for other places to look since most places are run by the same 2-3 companies. As for the specific ones you mentioned I only know of Towne Parc. I looked at them and I don't remember why but I decided against living there. The area that they are located has a lot of housing that is both undergrads and grads. My first apartment was actually about a block away in Countryside where I lived with 3 graduate students. Verdant Cove is really far from campus, and just about anything, but you won't have to worry about noise out there. The public transportation out there is limited but it does exist (the FHP office is nearby and I know it runs there, not sure about any further.) The other ones are in locations that a lot of undergrads would probably avoid so I would expect them to be reasonably quiet. Areas to watchout for, aside from the ones with big pools, would be midtown (the area directly north or east of campus) and the student ghettos. Checkout craigslist and contact some realtors in the area as well. There is a housing glut in Gainesville and it's almost impossible to accurately consider all your options.

This can still vary. If you start a PhD program right from undergrad the time you count toward candidacy could be different than if you start with an MA and are able to apply your MA credits.

I had one like that. He is good friends with one of my letter writers and I never heard anything from him except after an email I sent introducing myself.

I shared a townhouse in Spyglass when I lived there and if I were going back to Gainesville for grad school it is the first place I would look. Quiet neighborhood, nice place, and cheap. I also lived in Hidden Lake and really liked the apartment (it was a two bedroom villa with a backyard) but it got really noisy on the weekends and public transportation is bad on the north side of town. If you don't want a "nice" place but can tolerate something a little older and lived in then Sunrise Apartments on 23rd aren't terrible. I would avoid places with big fancy pools or that only offer 4 bedroom/individual leases. Places like Cabana Beach, The Polos, etc are good for undergrad housing but get pretty noisy. There are a lot of places available in Gainesville are many are open to negotiation so call around.

I didn't mention it but was asked later in a follow up email.

I think it's fine. I'd be curious as to how much original empirical research you'll be able to get done in a terminal masters program, but if you are comfortable with that then there is no reason not to. Most business or law people will tell you you are wasting your time if you aren't doing a professional degree. I stopped paying attention to them a while ago.

Everyone I talked to was excited for me regardless of where I chose. They understand that things happen and you have to take that into consideration. After telling the DGS at a school I was waitlisted at (where he was trying to get me off the waitlist) where I was going he started talking about how great of a place it is and how there are really exciting things happening there and that one of his undergrads was really interested in it. You don't have to worry about them being upset.

Gainesville has more opportunity for your degree.

I don't think you should be considering the drive from Tallahassee to Gainesville as a factor. As you said there are pluses and minuses to living in both. I can add another benefit to Gainesville if you'd like as well -- you can live in a quiter, safer part of town for the same price. Quiet housing in Tallahassee can get expensive and depending on your boyfriend's financial situation it may not work out to be that much cheaper in the long run, especially if you break up. It's a bit short notice but I would try to contact some students in the programs at both schools with your concerns about your experiences with the department at UF. Students are generally far more forthcoming with information than people in the department. UF obviously wants you considering they are offering you a scholarship. If you filed a FAFSA by the priority deadline you may be able to see if either school is offering you any need-based assistance as well and see how that factors into your decision. All that being said, I think UF is the better choice. Not just because of the ranking, but also because of the reason why it is ranked so high. There are a lot of opportunities for professionalization in your field in Gainesville that you won't have in Tallahassee.

Public across the board, including the one with the M.Ed. They are in Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee and one of them can also teach in Massachusetts and New Jersey.

Having a number of friends who are middle and high school teachers I can't think of any who have education degrees. (I do have one friend who is under contract with an M.Ed. but is not currently teaching.) Most states have a short certification process that you have to go through that may involve a few college level courses but do not require degrees in education. In Florida you have 2 years that you are allowed to teach while you work on that certification.

I take notes by hand on notebook paper. I then type them up later and use dropbox to sync them between devices. Nothing else has worked as far as retention for me.