Donk

I would not want to live on campus as a grad student. If the only reason you are looking for on-campus is because of transportation, then I would definitely look into off campus. A&M has an excellent and reliable off-campus bus system that reaches a significant area around campus. During the day most routes have a bus every ten minutes at least. The bus routes are posted on transportation.tamu.edu. In fact, riding the bus often gets you closer to your class buildings than driving yourself would anyway (buses drop off in the middle of campus; most commuter student parking lots are a long walk from anywhere or require you to park and THEN catch a bus). If you really want to live on campus, look into the university apartments. Failing that, check out the modular dorms -- the rooms are bigger and they have private bathrooms. The single rooms in Hughes are ok too, as dorms go. There are some newly renovated dorms that are probably pretty nice too (Northside Hall). Look at http://reslife.tamu.edu/housing/default.asp for a helpful chart.

I used to get terrible upper back/neck pain and headaches from a full backpack. Just something about it, no matter what backpack or how it fit. Not to mention a gross sweaty back during the warmer months. I switched to a messenger bag and never looked back. My first and current one is from Fossil. If/when it comes time to replace, I will be looking for a ClaireChase computer bag (VERY expensive from the retailer, but much better prices on ebay). Factoring in the years it will last, and the heavy daily use I will get out of it, the cost per wear works out to be pennies. Definitely worth it. Fossil's leather quality is hit or miss, but all of the CC I have touched has been superb. No help to the OP, I realize, who wants leather alternatives -- I'm just a fan the way good quality leather wears. But anyway, I'm sure the asymmetric weight isn't GOOD for your back, but I switch sides pretty regularly and haven't had any significant issues.

It's hard to say without seeing the actual text of the e-mail. You might have a full scholarship, or they might simply be pointing out that most students have to take on some financial burden themselves, so you are lucky that yours has been reduced somewhat.

I remember one of the current students at this school mentioned working while going to school, so it's certainly doable, if miserable. Maybe have a chat with whoever you are assigned as an advisor (or just email one of the faculty, if you don't want to wait that long), and see if he/she thinks having a job would be worth the extra work for your circumstance. Of course, there's not really a lot of job options in this particular location anyway, so it might be a moot point. You could take my job if you want. I'm looking forward to quitting in the fall. Then again, I wouldn't really wish the heartburn it comes with on anyone. For comparison, it's the first "grown up job" I've had (sort of), and while I will have an RAship in the second year, I'm pretty weak on the experience part too. No out of state internships -- and certainly nothing related to D.C. -- or the like. It is what it is.

For sure. On the bright side, though, most people will not be able to randomly check up on you once they are no longer public record.

Hey, you know you might be able to get those tickets expunged/nondisclosed, right? It depends on the details and the laws of the state they happened in, but they are pretty routine. Check into it. Might be worth the money if they really worry you. Also, if you reached a petty officer rank or held any kind of leadership position at all while enlisted, focus on that. No need to go into why you enlisted rather than commissioned. Your GRE and GPA are great. Focus on the positives of your work experience rather than what else you might have done.

Sure, pm sent. I was very surprised. As I mentioned in my pm, my sense from the interview conference was that there were a number of HIGHLY qualified applicants who would be attractive to many IA programs. My sense after reading these boards is that the Bush School is often considered a lower tier program than some others. However, I am extremely pleased and feel that the Bush program is an exact fit for my career plans and aspirations, and offers precisely what I need out of a graduate program. Because of this, even if I were a competitive applicant for more well-known, prestigious programs (I'm not, based on my observations), I would still choose the Bush School and consider it my best option.

Actually, financial award info was mailed out on March 11 or 12. Depending on where someone lives, they may already have it -- I received mine yesterday. I was offered a Robertson Fellowship. Needless to say, I will accept.