happygolucky

oh, see. i didn't realize we were just talking about english programs (which i haven't really looked at, honestly). i thought we were talking about generally and generally i really haven't seen much internal funding for MA programs unless you're getting the MA en route to a PhD. i need to change my 'field interest' tag on my name because while I applied to two anthro programs last year, i'm not really into anthro really. it's just one of those programs without lots of walls and barriers to various interests and those are the sorts of programs i have looked into. the MAPSS and MAPH programs at U of Chicago seemed really awesome to me for even offering a little funding (but i'm not really into chicago or the programs themselves) so when i see people saying it's a rip off i think, "man! i'll tell you what's a rip off! the anthro MA program i got into at columbia. no money at all. no chance of money at all! and when I called to find out what kind of options they knew about it was a dead end." i wish MAPSS and MAPH were programs i could work and where I want to be but no dice. So that's where I'm coming from- in a thread talking about an interdisciplinary degree program i thought the conversation was looking at programs beyond English and literature.

at the MA level? list these schools, please because the good grad schools and most of their programs that I've looked at don't and my experience on these grad school sites have gathered that most of the people pay for their MA or find outside funding.

most people have to pay for most MA degrees no matter the school. it sounds like UChicago's MAPH program is no different from most MA degrees in terms of not offering much in funding. But you know, they could be considered more awesome for giving much of anything (like those 1/3 and 1/2 tuition remissions) while many schools give nothing at all.

and you know, after i posted i remembered their loan aid didn't fully cover my tuition expenses let alone any other expenses I may have needed/wanted the loans for (if I ever wanted loans. blech!). LUNASEA- do you know that your loans even cover more than tuition?? I would think that a reimbursement depended on the loans exceeding the amount required for tuition and all those other expenses required (health care, fees, etc.). Wouldn't you only get whatever is left over?? If that's the case, you might wanna make sure you've signed up for more loans than you needed for the expense of even attending columbia (let alone living to attend columbia). But maybe you've already thought about that and signed up for lots of loans.

going to a school where money will be that tight is brave. i decided not to go to columbia because i didn't get non-loan funding (external or internal) and it didn't seem worth the loans, for me. This, and I wouldn't have been cutting it quite as close as you seem to be willing to do (I'd be getting an income for rent and stuff by working and I have savings). GOOD LUCK.

I have had a few positions that have had "research" in the position title. For two places, I was the "Research Assistant." For one of those two places, I have become "Research Consultant." For another place, I was the "Research & Policy Intern." Question: What is research experience exactly? I worry that I'll look like a fool if I talk about something like it's research experience while it is, in fact, far from it. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to help write or lead the writing of any published reports besides fact sheets. The "Research Consultant" position is something I am currently involved in, and I may be able to write an informal analysis of what I would call qualitative data (I'm interviewing graduates of a program/department in order to asses the program/department). Before becoming this place's "Research Consultant" I was responsible for picking the methodological readings we did in order to prepare for the research we're doing. We would discuss the reading in order to select research methods we favored (feminist vs. objective positivism). I have also been highly involved in developing the questions for the interviews (in fact, most of the questions were generated by me) and I have been the primary interviewer. I feel this is probably most like the "research experiences" schools are looking as compared to the other research I've done but I don't know. For example, for the "Research & Policy Intern" position, I made some fact sheets that were used for lobbying and education. Much of the work consisted of condensing data that was already analyzed or just finding a few stats myself to support statements. There were a few instances where I got to confer some meaning and analysis, but not many. Can I still talk about this as serious research?? For the "Research Assistant" position, I just entered survey data into SPSS for my boss. Can I mention this experience as research? I mean, I'm not sure if all stages of research can be used as examples of my experience as a researcher and/or as evidence to my interest in becoming more of a researcher. thoughts? also, if anyone else is having trouble gauging the seriousness or viability of their "research" experience, feel free to ask here, too!

hey, did any of you round your gpa for the 3.5 cut off?

did anyone apply for the FLAS this year? i mean, it seemed like a competitive award and it's interesting if no one on the board applied.

applied for the MA back in March and I think that's why I knew by mid-April. I don't know the time frame for others/folks that applied for the later deadline.

Who applied? For what language? If you were granted it, what do you think helped you stand out? Any pointers? I'm going to be an anthro student with particular interests in Latin America. I applied for the FLAS and was not successful. As a guess, I'd say it was because I didn't mesh my intended use of the language (Portuguese) to both my future and career. I also think many researchers are moving "on" from Latin America and turning more attention to Africa and the Middle East, so people wanting to focus on those areas and the languages from them might be getting preferential treatment. How about others?

I decided I'd go part-time for at least a year (enrollling Fall 2009). I will transfer to a CUNY if I don't get any funding for the subsequent year(s). I figure getting exposed to Columbia's quality resources and expectations would be good for me. If I don't get funding, I'll transfer but still have my experience at Columbia in my background. I'm also switching fields (I studied political science and critical studies of race & ethnicity in undergrad) so I'll also probably find out whether anthropology is really for me from some of the best folks in the field, too. are you going?