msocean

I got my first credit card last year. I've had an account with the bank since I was 14. So they have been offering me a student credit card for a while. It's important not to use your debit card for places where identity theft risk is high like online purchases or iTunes, etc. The credit card has better protection, the theft of your debit card data could empty your checking account as well as any savings accounts that are linked. My parents taught me to save the receipts from credit card purchases and enter them into my Quicken check register (just like writing a check), deducting them from the balance. When the bill comes at the end of the month, the money has already been deducted as I went along (no overspending) and I pay off the card in full, reconcile the line items in the register just like when my checking statement comes. I name the payee on the register for my card, ie Visa, AmEx, whatever. Then all I have to do is run a report for that payee for the month, check them off. It's a good way to be sure that all of the charges on your statement are yours and correct. I had one coffee shop run my card twice. When I called them to correct it, they gave me a free drink!

We have gone 2500 miles with our cats. I suggest you put an old towel in the crate(s), there will probably be accidents. Having extra towels to change out helps. Thrift shops have large supplies of them, cheap. I just threw away the used ones along the way. Our cats wouldn't use the litter box while in the car. But each nightwe would stop at a hotel, put the cats and the litter box in the bathroom (figured if they overshot the box or refused to use it, the tile floor was easier to clean than carpet) and we didn't have any problems. We also closed them in the bathroom at night to prevent any mishaps. The worst part of the trip was the summer heat in a vehicle without AC...the moving truck. Hopefully yours comes with AC. We ended up purchasing a bag of ice at each gas stop and putting the ice bag under the crates so the cats were laying on a cool surface. Never, ever open a vehicle door until the cats have harnesses and leashes attached. Good luck!

I've been searching online and that has been difficult. I've narrowed down my choices and called them to ask basic questions. I'm going to try out a studio apartment first, to avoid the room mate drama. If I meet someone to room with after a few months they said I could move up to a 2 br apartment in the complex.

Check with the prospective insurance company you are considering. They all seem to interpret things differently. If you are going from one group policy to another group policy, I am confident that the proof of continuous coverage is sufficient. However, I am not sure if it works with private policies...until 2014.

YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!!! I don't know how to be a grad student either. The school I accepted at is not as helpful as the other school I applied to. Some schools and programs have awesome websites that walk you through everything, others...not so much. So, once I made the decision I contacted my PI by email. I let him know that I had returned my official acceptance letter and that I was needing some transitional assistance. He provided me with the emails of 3 current grad students and all of them have been helpful with anything I've sent them. In addition, one of the students friended me on the FB grad student page for the department I am joining. I could see that they are a very active group, socially, academically, and in the community. Lastly, I've applied for a summer job, both on campus (in the PI's lab) and a few other jobs in town. I'm considering making my move the middle of June so that I can start work July1. This will give me some time to figure out how to use the shuttles, where things are in town (groceries, post office, bank...) before classes start in August. I'm still not quite clear about my academic plan or my research, but my PI said he would be around most of the summer and invited me to set up an appointment to talk.

Humidity will bring bugs and spoil food. I have visited many times. My friends in FL keep one of those little hand-held vacuum cleaners on a charger to suck up the bugs instead of squishing/crunching them! I think it's a great idea. Bugs are everywhere. You may find it works to keep things like flour and sugar in sealed containers. Think Ikea! I have always kept excess food in the freezer, like bread. Food left out does not last long. So most fruits and veggies will go in the fridge to last longer. Take a cooler along to the grocery if you can, especially on hot days. Frozen foods won't make it out of the parking lot without melting. You...melting...always keep a water bottle with you. Drink and refill often. Rain will melt you. Have several umbrellas...one in your office, one in the car, one in your bag, a couple at home. It rains a lot, especially if you come from a desert climate like us. It rains every day sometimes. Have good tires on your car if you will be driving. On the same note, find info about hurricanes and make it your business to put together a survival kit with water, food, cash, ... You will probably find the need to change up a few personal care products for your hair, soap, moisturizers. Don't plan too much for the first few weeks until you get acclimated. Moving is stressful enough and we all have tons of obligations upon arriving. I'm planning my move to a coastal state a month before I'm expected so I can acclimate. I have too many non-school things to take care of...register the car, change car/renters insurance, change drivers license, find a vet for my dog, get started with filling the pantry, buy a bed (won't fit in my SUV for the move and I don't want a used one), figure out the university shuttle service and pucblic transportation in town, ....I have a huge list.

Some of you must have some pretty awesome stipends! After rent and utilities, I will have about $300 left for everything else, unless I want to dip into savings every month. I'm planning to use monetary gifts from UG graduation to fund the initial pantry stocking and getting started with other household purchases. I too, eat very little meat. But as an undergrad I get by with about $125-150 per month for all of my groceries. We do not live in a high cost of living area, but neither is it the cheapest place. I watch what and where I buy, read the grocery flyer ads before shopping, limit eating out, and never waste food (freezing stuff has worked well for me too). When I treat myself to a meal out with friends it is usually a local pho/noodle place where you get a bathtub of soup very cheap or we split meals amongst those attending.

Ask others you know who have graduated with debt...how long it took to pay off, opportunities they passed by because of the debt responsibility, the emotional side of living with debt. I know plenty of people who have not been able to buy a house or a new car or accept a job offer, because it would have impacted their ability to meet their student loan payoff responsibility. I also know plenty of graduates who have room mates or moved back home with their first jobs so they can afford their loan payments. You may land a more prestigious job out of UC-Boulder with better pay, but they also know that you have loans to pay off so they have to offer Boulder students more. On the other hand, you may be able to be more seletive about where you WANT to work if you have no debt, even if the pay is less but the job would make you happier.

I agree with selecttext. In either case, stop after masters or go on for PhD, I see no reason to accept an unfunded program. The current economy is not rigged in our favor to pay off student debt. You can never discharge that debt, even through bankruptcy. If you can't afford to pay as you go (in the sciences) then you should look elsewhere. I intend to stop after a masters as well. I am going to aim for doing the best I can in the program, attend conferences/seminars to network, make the most of some volunteer opportunities in the city I will be living in (career related), and get the most out of the grad school experiene. All too soon we will have much greater responsibilities without the umbrella of school. Ihave no intentin of sabotaging my future goals and limiting future choices with debt dictating my direction.

After reading a few more of the posts... A LOT is out of our control. You can do everything in your power...write a great SOP, have fantastic LOR's, a respectable GPA, research experience...but you are who you are and there will always be someone better than you. And there is never enough funding for everyone, especially this year. I went to visit each of my potential schools, PI's, and their current staffs. So meeting people can be a positive or a negative. We all know people who look great on paper but you wouldn't want to work with them once you've met them. So that can work in an applicant's favor...or not. But I was able to narrow my application list by eliminating the schools/staff that were not a good fit for me. I was surprised at how outdated and rundown some research facilities are. And I surprised myself by knowing that there turned out to be certain locations where I could not picture myself living. If I had to do it again (and I won't...WOOOHOOOOOO!!!!) I would have started earlier on my application materials, studied sooner and longer for the GRE (I underestimated the difficulty as I tend to be an excellent test taker with little effort in the past), thought deeper about my ultimate career goals since grad school can help that process down the road, and I would have looked deeper into myself about what I really want...not what everybody else wants for me. I have accepted at a school that will make me happy for an MSc. And I realize that I have a bit of academic fatigue so I think I will be stopping for a while (maybe forever) after a masters. I'm happy to have found a home at a smaller school in a smaller environment that suits me. My particular situation is not about the most prestigious university or the most recognized in my field. I found those programs to be too pretentious for me. But I found that out when I was touring UG schools. I could have had a full ride at Stanford but chose a smaller state school for my own personal reasons. And it worked out well for me. It pays to know yourself and what makes you happy. I just recently saw a quote..."You have to turn your back on the audience to conduct an orchestra." I feel that defines my views on my education...you have to go with your gut on what feels right, no matter what other people may think is right for you.

There are tons of people applying for those positions. My experience has been that the professors always have students who need work to meet their cost of living expenses. So the professors I know will always try to help those students first. Another avenue to try is the university job board. Some departments also have their own job board on the university website. You may also want to see if there are any Facebook sites for the university grad students or departments as they can be a wealth of information.

Be sure your meningitis vaccine is up to date in the last 5 years. I had one school email me 2 days before the deadline because mine wasn't. So it was $95 for the vaccination and $45 to FedEx the certificate to meet the application deadline. Overall I spent GRE $185 x2 (took the test twice) GRE study guide $45 Sending GRE scores $50 (I wanted to see them first, so I didn't choose the free option at time of test) Applications were $65 each Transcripts were $16 each LOR's...priceless!!! Be sure to figure in a little gift for your LOR writers after the process is complete. I budgeted $20 each. My biggest expense was visiting the campuses the summer before applying. My trip cost about $1500 suing every budget-friendly resource I could find. But the trip was well worth it. The school I thought would be my first choice was completely eliminated after the trip afer I visited. I just could not see myself living there, ever, not even for just two years. Meeting the PI's and their current grad students was very helpful when making my choices about who I want to work with during my graduate years. You definitely want to feel comfortable with your living arrangements as well as feel that you have a connection with your co-horts.

Some differences between group coverage (university) and private polies that you need to consider. Group policies have to take you no matter what past medical problems you may have, with no upcharge for covering you for those conditions. Remember things such as asthma, parents with heart problems, any genetic problems are all covered under group health. If you choose to purchase a private policy, the insurance company underwriters can advise that your premium be rated higher for past medical issues or family history of heritable disorders. Also, most private policies that I've seen lately have pre-existing clauses. So if you have been treated for something in the past, let's say kidney stones, you will have to wait usually one year after paying premiums until they will cover you for kidney stones. If you saw your doctor last year for allergies and now that you have a private policy insurance coverage, the doctor wants to do a CT of your sinuses, the insurance company is probably deny payment until you wait for at least one year. Also many inexpensive private policies have low maximum lifetime coverage. I saw one policy that had an annual limit of $10,000. Honestly, in today's market that's not much. It may not even cover a complicated ER visit in full. Neighbor had kidney stones a few years ago, no surgery just the laser thing to break up the stones, overnight in the hospital, $60, 000. Also look at the lifetime maximum carefully. If anything catastrophic should happen and you can't ever change policies (now you are basically uninsurable because the underwriters are going to only ofer you coverage at a price you can't afford), stuck with this current policy for a long time...you want the lifetime max to be more than $50,000 - $100,000. Be an informed consumer, read the policies carefully, ask lots of questions, know what you are paying for.

At College Station?

I've never had a smart phone and survived fine without it. Since I spend most of my time on campus as an UG, I canuse free wifi there. I have an unlimited texting plan on a used phone (actually bought it new in box from Craigslist) and pay $25 on AT&T. I also deposit some extra funds on my phone in case i need to make/receive a voice call. I use Skype for long distance calls. I don't think I would feel safe without a phone, especially for travel emergencies (if the car breaks down I want to stay in my locked car and call for help especially at night) or if I have a medical emergency.

I figured out that moving cross country is expensive if I take the furniture that my parents have offered. So for me it has to fit in my SUV... 1. Kitchen stuff...pots, pans, utensils, towels, travel mugs/water bottles, my favorite tea/mugs/tea pot, ... getting new dishes when I get there 2. Bathroom...shower mat, shower curtain, pocket holder for back of door for all the small stuff to keep it off the vanity, towels, extra bottles of my favorite shampoo 3. Bedroom...favorite comforters (bought vacuum seal, "suck out the air" bags), sheets, night stand, alarm clock/iPod dock, lamp...buying new bed 4. vacuum cleaner, limited myself to one box of "my favorite things", laptop, bike, lots of sunscreen, first aid essentials packed by my mom (ibuprofen, bandaids, thermometer, instant gatorade and instant soup,) 5. I'M TAKING MY DOG!!!!!!! I've been looking at apartments online so far and most of them accept small dogs and cats. My parents have also offered to get me a Costco gift card since I have decided not to break the bank with moving expenses. That will help get me started with groceries, paper products, dog food. And I'm hoping that any graduation gifts I get will be in the form of Visa gift cards...would love to buy some household stuff online since there isn't much in the way of shopping where I'm going, and I really dont have room for much more in my car. And it's worthwhile to beg for any Bed, Bath Beyond coupons. Instead of the usual 20% off entire purchase, they do it off each item in August. You can order online and pickup in the store nearest to your new location. But friends have told me it's good to have a coupon for each item if you want to maximize your savings.

One would provide a very nice medical plan at a very reasonable cost. The other offers nothing. However, the one with the better medical accepted very few students this year due to funding. So it's nice for the very few who got it. I would compare the cost of health care offered and the cost to your parents to keep you on their policy until you are 26. Be sure to compare things like routine office visit costs, prescriptions, and availability of in-network providers for both policies...especially if you are moving out-of-state from your parents.

If I understood correctly some correspondence from a current grad student, TAMUCC marine bio offered to 3 students this year. Not sure how many accepted.

I was glad that I took the time and money to visit all of the schools last summer that I was considering. It definitely eliminated one (couldn't see myself living there) and gave me the opportunity to meet PI's and grad students face to face. Some PI's blew off meetings, offering a grad student to give me a tour. I was a bit surprised at how confident they were in August of 2012 about funding (or were they just blowing sunshine?) that did not turn out to be as forthcoming in the end. At the end I was surprised how long it took to get answers.

I applied to TAMUCC and received my official letter via postal mail last Saturday. My PI had contacted me by email a few weeks ago to let me know it would be on the way. I haven't received my official offer of a TA-ship yet but my PI was confident it is just a matter of time for that notification as well.

Anyone? I will be attending Fall 2013. Looking for housing ideas, off campus, away from undergrads, small dog friendly.

It depends on the whole package. What are they doing about tuition? Do they cover your tuition? My TA for a MS program will cover my living expenses and will allow me to pay in-state tuition. Other universities that I applied to had RA positions that was more like a lump sum, but they doled it out monthly in the form of a paycheck, and they waived all tuition in addition to offering medical insurance. Living near Stanford is not cheap. Ask as many questions as you can. I found my best information came from current students working for my PI. I just asked him for some contacts when I accepted my offer, mainly so I could get some advice on housing in the area. It has worked out well.

If it is a very small field (as mine is) the PI at one school may already be aware of the offer from the other school. Staff and students from all of the school I applied to, and my current UG program, attended the same conference a few weeks ago. I'm sure they had a lot to talk about! I know that my UG advisor did a lot of campaigning on my behalf for which I am grateful. But again, it came down to funding. I just can't imagine going into debt for my MS with the job market the way it is.

Just ask your lab advisors. Every one of mine, At UG and the grad schools I applied to, have received reduced federal funding this year...and had to wait longer for the decisions. By my calculations, they took about a 13% decrease this year. Doesn't sound like much but that might be one person's position in the lab.

I would take the funded MA offer this year. With funding cuts all over, I would take the bird in the hand and hope that funding loosens up over the next tow years, then try to apply for the PhD program. Would you consider staying at your MA school for a PhD?