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jpb2k5

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Everything posted by jpb2k5

  1. Well, I received an EXTREMELY nice and encouraging email from Purdue's DGS - he basically said that if there were more TA positions open, I would have been accepted a month or so ago and that I might not know anything until well after the April 15th deadline. But I did my usual website check today and saw "Application Denied" - This was my top choice so I am pretty bummed but I have another great offer. I'm just glad I know everything for sure now! I hope this information helps out others who are in limbo with Purude - Good luck guys!
  2. Just wondering if anyone has heard anything from Purdue, specifically for the MA program. I don't see a lot on the Results Search and they are the only school I haven't heard back from out of 8 total. Anyone?
  3. I'll be starting my MA in English this upcoming fall and I do plan on working part time once classes start. I'm going to work like hell full-time until August and try to save up as much money as I can but inevitably, some of my student loans are going to go to living expenses. I've been really stressed about doing this too but since I'll be taking 9 hours of courses and am looking at thousands of pages worth of reading a week, I'm pretty sure I won't be able to work any more than 20 hours per week. I work at Panera though so they're pretty flexible with hours and scheduling. I would definitely recommend saving as much as you can now and trying to work at least a little bit while in your program to offset some of those living expenses. Are you getting in-state or out-of-state tuition? I'll be getting in-state so I'm looking at about 7K a year in tuition in fees, and I'm thinking I'll need at least about 5K in addition to that for extra living expenses and whatnot. It really kills me that I'm going to be taking out (almost) the equivalent amount for living expenses as tuition itself. Maybe I'm crazy and making a bad decision. I just don't know how else to make it work. I'm really curious what other people think about this situation too.
  4. Nope, I just had to call in - found out I was waitlisted.
  5. After reading all these respones, I think all of you have some really valid points. Ultimately, it does seem to come down to the individual situation. In my case, without any undergraduate debt and the option to live at home rent-free for some period of time, all while mainting in-state tuition from a school I really like, I think it's a pretty viable option. That said, I know it's going to be a risk. And I do need to keep my debt to an absolute minimum. But I just don't think I can work another year in a coffee shop in Middle-Of-Nowhere-Missouri with only a vague hope of finding a funded MA program next year. I also should have mentioned that my undergrad GPA was pretty dismal due to the fact that I attempted a Business major for a while (big mistake), thus making it that much more difficult to obtain competitive TAships and fellowships. An MA now, even unfunded, at least offers me the opportunity to prove that I am able to do well in grad school - this, I hope, will pay off more in the future when it really matters.
  6. I simply wrote my recommenders handwritten thank-you notes after I finished applications. I'm going to inform them of my final decision via email but I definitely don't think you need to go into elaborate detail about how many schools accepted/rejected/waitlisted you. Focus on the positive and only say what you're comfortable saying! Like a previous poster mentioned, your professor is just going to be thrilled that you got that acceptance.
  7. That's a really good point Cactus Ed, and something I hadn't thought about. For some reason I feel like I'm missing out by not doing a TAship but you're right - there are a lot of benefits to not doing it! And I feel like getting a funded PhD offer like you mention is the most important thing - and my ultimate goal. I think that having an MA might also be beneficial in my future applications to PhD programs. Just hearing that others have been through the same thing makes me feel much better. Now I can finally be as excited about starting my grad school journey as I want to be!
  8. Thank you so much, proflorax! You offered some really great advice. Some of this I thought of, some I didn't. So this was definitely helpful. I don't think I'll need to take anything but federal loans since tuition is only going to be 15,000 or so a semester (and you can get around 20,000 from the Stafford loan, from what I've gathered) - my biggest concern is whether its worth it to take all 20,000 and use the excess for living expenses. For some reason I feel guilty doing this for a Masters in English, taking only 9 hours of lit. courses a semester but I just really want to focus on my studies without working too much. I have a bad habit of focusing on work more than school. But since I don't "technically" have any other student debt, I'm a bit more willing to do something like this as a means to an end - the end being a fully funded PhD, my ultimate goal. And I love Houston! I can't wait to get there. Let's just hope this all works out.
  9. I'm really hoping I can get some practical advice about this. I've finally heard back from all the MA programs I applied to and was accepted to a few but ultimately denied funding from all of them. I'm seriously considering accepting an unfunded offer from University of Houston, though. Here's why: - My entire family lives in Houston, I grew up there, and so I at least have a place to live for a while until I can earn enough money to get my own place. No stipend won't be as big of a deal if I'm not having to pay rent throughout my first semester or so. - Tuition at U of H is pretty affordable, especially since I will be able to re-establish residency (I currently still live in Missouri where I got my BA but plan on moving back to TX in a month or so) - I'm probably looking at about $15,000 a year in tuition and fees, but I'm thinking I might have to use some extra loan money to get me into an apartment since I probably won't have time for a 40 hr/week job. Is it really that bad to use loan money to cover living expenses while in grad school? - Here is the really important part. In a sense, I have no debt from my undergrad education - well, I do, but my parents have agreed to pay that off if as long as I take care of all my grad school debt. I'm very lucky for this, I know, but this also makes the thought of taking out 30-40K in student loans a little less scary. At least I wouldn't have undergrad loans to worry about on top of that. Is it foolish to think that this plan might work? Without a TAship, won't I be able to find a job that I can work, say, 20 hours a week at? That would at least be enough to cover some living expenses. Ultimately, I plan to get my PhD elsewhere in a couple years, once I've proved that I can excel in graduate level work. That is when I will REALLY be concerned about funding. But for now, I'm hoping this plan works. I really have my heart set on starting grad school, and I really like U of H. Anybody else in a similar situation? Let me know what you guys think. I need help!!
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