rising_star

Timshel, I think you're confusing blunt with hostile/condescending. I'm a busy person so I don't tend to couch my advice in subtleties and niceties to avoid hurting people's feelings. But really, you're applying for a position as an instructor (if you want a TA position) and researcher. No one cares if you were the star in the school musical or joined a bunch of groups. If you held a leadership position then it might (emphasis on might) be worth listing in a CV. But, a CV is focused on one's academic accomplishments, not on one's interests and non-academic activities and pursuits. For example, I train capoeira. That is an activity I am committed to and involved in, including helping to plan events. That does not mean that I have or would ever list that on a CV. Listing a bunch of extracurricular clubs that you joined is padding. If you want to better understand what goes on a CV, search this forum for posts or search the web.

To show the admissions committee what, Timshel? That you have other interests? They *know* that already.

First, you should be submitting a CV, not a resume. Second, nothing you've listed should be included on a CV.

Do it a few weeks after classes there have started.

I have alerts set up through several major publishers to ensure that I receive the Table of Contents (and online advance issue articles) of journals relevant to my work. My work spans several disciplines so this is actually a lot of journals. I found it pretty easy to set these things up using ScienceDirect and InformaWorld. ScienceDirect lets you get the article titles and abstracts, which is nice. I also have keyword searches in ScienceDirect that send new articles to my inbox. I'll admit, I let these alerts and TOCs languish in my inbox for days then go through them all at once. But, it's the easiest thing for me. Also, you can be a good colleague by passing new, relevant articles along to your colleagues. I do this frequently and get many links and tips in return. The extra 30 seconds you spend forwarding an article to someone else will likely pay off in the long run.

Don't feel bad. It's not your fault. And, honestly, people switch sections frequently. Sometimes on the first day of classes! (Why yes, I have been in that situation before...) Just do your job and do it well.

I schedule things in. Fridays are a lost cause in my department because they're filled with meetings and then colloquium and happy hour. I go to capoeira 2-4 times per week, yoga twice a week, and work out at the gym at least 2 other times for weight lifting. All of these are things that I schedule in just like office hours and the class I TA for. I have a weird schedule, admittedly. I'll work on campus, work out, go home for lunch and a shower, then go work in the afternoon at a coffee shop, in the park, or at my house. Evenings I try to leave free for relaxation, capoeira, time with friends, etc.

I use both depending on what I'm doing. For reference, I commute on my bicycle to campus (bike is equipped with a front basket). The backpack I use is fairly small but decent for carrying what I need (pens, netbook, 2 water bottles, lunch, wallet, folder or two) to campus. I use it whenever it's not super hot. When it's hot or when I have less to carry, I use my messenger bag.

I would only work if it's a job that will help you have the career you want, whether that's academic or not.

I have several friends in grad school that go to the bar and don't drink. They get Shirley Temples, club soda, juice, water, etc. I'll often have just 2 drinks in a night out. It's really not about getting hammered all the time.

Honestly, you'll learn a lot more on the job than you will in business school.

Not random. This is a question that gets asked frequently around here. Here's the thing: even associate and full professors can move to another university. My advisor came to my university as a full professor, having left another top 10 program where he was a tenured full professor. He brought the junior graduate students (who wanted to come along) with him when he did this. If the person is reasonable, they will at least ask their graduate students if they want to stay behind or come to the new place. One thing that's important to consider. People are considered assistant professors for the first 5-7 years of their career. That's a long time. People in their fifth year are in a much different place than those in their first year. Keep that in mind when looking at CVs. I just want to respond to this. In my current department, you will basically not be admitted if you do not list specific faculty members. The reason is because these faculty members are then given the files of students who name them and get to share their thoughts with the admissions committee. If you don't have any faculty members willing to serve as your advisor, you are not admitted. Now, they might circulate your file among all those working in that general area, your best bet is to make sure your application gets in the hands of the person/people you want to work with, which is done by naming them. Also, almost all of the issues listed by Wesson (specifically, #2,4,5,8) could be found out by a diligent applicant. Again, faculty movement to another university is tricky. But you should already be in contact with people to know whether they are taking students, where their research is and is headed, etc. Intra-departmental politics you can never know about and, even once you're there, you may want to stay out of. Why wouldn't you want an assistant professor as a primary advisor? I had an assistant professor as my advisor during my MA program and it really wasn't a problem at all. She helped me network, was excellent when it came to my thesis, and helped me get into PhD programs. But, she was not a first year assistant professor. She was a fourth year assistant professor, meaning that she had a chance to get to know the department and was in a position to be helpful to her students. She was not so focused on tenure that she wasn't able to help me. FWIW, when you apply for job, you're going to have 3 letters, not one. And, regardless of where you go, it's likely that one or more of those three letters is going to come from an assistant professor. My current letter writers (I'm in a PhD program now) are a full professor, an associate professor, and an assistant professor.

gmensa1, I read what you posted. I get what *you* think. I'm trying to explain to you what those looking at your application materials will think. They are not going to view part-time work as an undergraduate as equivalent experience to working in an investment bank, think tank, consulting firm, etc. for two years on a full-time basis. To have the same amount of work experience as someone with 2-3 years of postundergraduate work experience (which, btw, would be in addition the work experience they gained as an undergraduate), you would need to have ~4000 (2 years) -6000 (3 years) hours of work experience. And that's just assuming an 8 hour work week. My friends in finance worked 10-12 hours per day for two years before going to business school, which means having at least 5000 hours of work experience. Have you gained this many hours as an undergraduate?

I agree with ZeChocMoose. Apply to more departments and see what acceptances you get.

Pinecone, would you be able to get a FLAS award for the summer program? I know the funding for that program is dicey now given all the Dept of Ed cuts but, that might help you with the expenses. You could also consider starting out by studying the language online... FWIW, I think that your class schedule sounds manageable. It sounds pretty much like the first year for many PhD students in my department.

Personally, I dislike most icebreakers so I tend to just have students introduce themselves. Especially with freshmen, I find it's fun to ask them not only what they want to study but why they've chosen that and what they see themselves doing in 10 years. You might try asking students what they would like to know about one another (make a list of 3-5 things on the board) then have them go around answering those things.

Just to clarify, not all shelter dogs are lots of work. I have had foster dogs from the shelter that were already housebroken and could be left uncrated without destroying anything. It's worth it to spend as much time as possible with a dog, whether you're adopting or fostering, before bringing it into your home. It's not fair to say that all shelter dogs come with problems or that fostering is impossible if you're in college. I fostered as a graduate student and scheduled time to train and play with the dogs into my day, the same way that I scheduled in office hours, going to the gym, and reading.

Did you work full-time for 2-3 years as an undergraduate? If not, then I don't understand how you could have the same work experience as someone with 2-3 years of postgraduate work experience.

Honestly, if you're not going to do the research, they may ask either for the money or for you to hand over the equipment and relinquish the rights to the money you have not yet spent.

eco_env, I think you're being premature here. My program funds people on a 9 month basis. If you budget, you can make that money last for 12 months. I successfully funded my own predissertation fieldwork by winning several small grants that paid for my expenses (and, btw, these might be higher than yours since my research site is not in the USA). Instead of just saying it's impossible to survive on a 9 month stipend, try to find out what other graduate students in your program (or on this site) do. As it stands, you just seem a bit whiny to me and not all that committed to the program you chose. If you're having second thoughts that severe, then defer your admission or just don't go.

It's a sign that I've been neglecting other things.

Honestly, the best I ever did as a grad student was when I was the busiest. And by busiest, I mean fostering two dogs that had never lived indoors before, writing a MA thesis, working a part-time job off campus, and visiting PhD programs that had accepted me. Treating graduate school like a job, wherein I work pretty diligently for 7-8 hours, in my case 9-12 and 2-6ish, has also served me well. It forces me to avoid surfing the web and focus and then, once that's done, I have time to watch TV or a movie, read a book, cook dinner, and do the activities I enjoy. Graduate school, just like work, is all about balance. It can consume your life if you let it. But don't let it.

Expensive doesn't always mean safer or better. Large complexes can be noisy and you may not want to live in a place where undergrads are partying until 3am every night of the week. Honestly, you need to get in touch with current grad students in your department and ask them where they would live and where they would avoid. That will help you narrow the search done. If where you're moving is anything like where I live now, you can arrive in early to mid-August (school starts last week of August) and easily find a nice place before the start of classes. A lot of people let incoming grads crash with them for a few days until they find a place. TBH, I had better luck finding a good place where I live now in August than I did when I came out in mid-June to apartment hunt.

I know lots of people that write their papers the night before, both faculty and grad students. This year marked the first time I showed up at the conference with my paper and presentation completely done and didn't edit them at all. Usually, I'm not that organized. To answer your question ZeeMore, I wouldn't worry about presenting something your first year unless it's going to be based on your master's work. Once you get your research up and running, then you can start checking out CFPs and presenting more broadly.

Yes, I meant the comment feature in the gradebook, which exists in BlackBoard and other platforms (we don't use BlackBoard at my institution). Often, I just cut and paste into the box because I find myself writing the same thing on every paper (ie, "Please remember to proofread for spelling and grammar before submitting your work. If you need assistance, contact the Writing Center on campus."). I used to do more careful editing of student papers until I realized that it's not really my job to teach them how to write (I'm not in the English department and I mostly teach classes for juniors and seniors who should know how to write already) and that the students got bogged down in all the little marks and missed the large points about their paper. I also grade MUCH faster on hard copy. I have students submit their work digitally to Turnitin and then I have them turn in paper copies, which are what I grade and return. This system works well for me, provided you have fewer than 75 students. Otherwise, the stacks of paper can get unwieldy.