rising_star

dafelker, why not go for a MA in poli sci?

Given the drought, I wouldn't worry too much about living in a floodplain. :wink: If you're seriously worried about flooding, do not park your car at the stadium. Ever. Its parking lots are notorious for flooding. But seriously, anything in the Gov Sq Mall area, Midtown, or Northeast will probably not flood. But it's all location dependent since if you live at the bottom of the hill it's much more likely... You know, common sense things. As far as walking to campus, yea, I would avoid that. I can't think of any nice places that are walking distance, not crawling with undergrads, and are affordable... But you could luck out maybe. Look for smaller complexes/privately-owned houses and you may find something. I hear Craig's List is getting better but you'll want to check the classified ads in the Democrat and just drive around town if you can. A bike could serve you well, depending on where you live. The downside is that Tallahassee has hills which can suck.

Congrats on Fordham!

just remember that you may have to pay student fees and stuff that are deducted from your paycheck

My worries are related to the fact that I visited four programs and decided to go to the one that I didn't visit. I picked it because I'll have a big-name advisor who i fabulous at helping his students publish, get external funding for fieldwork, and get jobs. He's a big name in the subfield really. And he wanted to work with me, which I found enticing. I chose against the highest ranked program that admitted me because I'd heard some fishy things about my potential MP. It came down to two schools (incidentally they have quiet a few connections. Former chair of Y is now chair of X). I realized that the school I didn't choose has a great postdoc program and that their postdocs have a record of getting hired as faculty there and elsewhere and I would like to work there. The advisor at Y doesn't have as strong of a track record. Oh, and I wanted someone more hands-on/involved (really bordering on pushy) to make sure I'm forced to be the best scholar and academic that I can be. Moving 1800 miles away to a place you've never visited is scary, either way. I think it'd be weird if I didn't have any fears...

yes, I felt regret instantaneously. I keep telling everyone that I'm happy with the decision but... I'm not.

I would estimate around 10% for federal taxes plus another pittance for state/city taxes, if applicable.

The appreciation angle makes sense but it's not something I'd be counting on. If you're lucky, you'll get a 3-4% annual increase in value. Will that outpace inflation? Would you do better saving extra money for retirement? With a mortgage you have to pay increased insurance costs plus taxes. I've never seen a case where renter's insurance was more expensive than homeowner's insurance. Condos are known for not appreciating as well as single-family homes. You have to wonder about how good the association is and whether you'll get saddled with an assessment. There are the association fees (I've seen $30-$250) to account for on top of whatever your payment is and the fact that you'll need insurance for the contents inside of your unit. I don't think I'd buy a condo, honestly. Even if the market does improve, you'll be lucky to get your money out, esp with closing costs and all that.

Are there any moving companies people would recommend?

The new airline baggage rules make moving much more complicated, at least for me. I remember the glory days (2003) when you could check 3 bags of up to 70lbs each on AirTran for no additional cost... By this summer, checking a second bag will cost $25 on most major US airlines. *sigh*

I'm going to fly out to scout for apartments sometime in May/June. I'm petrified of renting a place sight unseen. I don't think April/May is too early for a Sept 1 lease, particularly if they're used to dealing with students. I'm most worried about moving all of my stuff across the country.

You need to request a release from Florida State (in writing) before you can accept the offer from Purdue. you should email the Director of Graduate Studies there and ask to be released. After you receive a release, in writing, from FSU, you can accept the Purdue offer. Good luck!

I'd never do this but only because no one at my undergrad alumni association would care.

I know someone who got into SDSU for a social science PhD. Since this is a duplicate post, I'm going to lock this one. If you'd like to comment, please go here: viewtopic.php?f=29&t=14049

are any offering financial assistance?

Hahaha, congrats 17thscream. I'd try to take SEPTA out to Bryn Mawr if you can. That way you can read on the train.

This is what I have always heard. I spent as much time as I had to on my classes but poured myself into my research, putting a minimum of 20 hours a week into that. Why? Because I knew I needed to have a thesis close to finished and conference papers lined up before applying to PhD programs (I'm in a MA program right now). The best thing about conference papers is that the feedback you get can help you revise the paper into something publishable. So that's why, in general, I'm against working while in grad school. It's hypocritical because I work 8-12 hours a week at a part-time job off campus but I have additional expenses that I need to pay for (I help pay bills for my family so everyone can live). It works because I don't have a teaching assistantship...

Mod note: I decided to make this its own topic so it wouldn't get buried. That way it will be more useful to future applicants!

I'm in the same boat. I've never visited the program I'm going to in the fall. I asked current students questions about office space, collegiality, faculty-student relations, grad-undergrad relations, where students live, what they do outside of school, etc. They were extremely helpful. But, this could be a BAD time.

I have to disagree with both paragraphs of this. First of all, loving something does not make you the best at it. I love gymnastics but I'm terrible at it. One can love something that one hasn't done for very long. I love geography, a discipline I only found 3 years ago. It's difficult then to have learned everything that those who majored in geography as undergrads learned but that doesn't mean that you don't deserve admission or that the love is a misnomer. Abilities vary but that doesn't mean someone doesn't love what they study. Second, your statement about small colleges is absolutely ludicrous. The majority of the accredited institutions in the US are small colleges not major research institutions. These schools aren't diploma mills, which is what you seem to be asserting. And there are many that have teaching loads similar to those of research institutions (by which I mean 2-2 or 3-3) so you have time to work with undergrads, mentor them, help them write senior theses, etc. While you may consider all of this to be BS, a lot of us who have had those experiences with mentors look back on them fondly. There are academic political agendas at institutions of all levels, this is not limited to the smaller schools. In fact, that form of BS can be worse at larger institutions where the pressure is on you to secure external funding and kiss the behinds of senior faculty to keep your job (ie, get tenure and then get promoted to full professor). Furthermore, I think you grossly underestimate the education that can be a obtained at a lower-ranked program. Do you even take the time to question rankings? We in the social sciences ALWAYS question rankings because they are inherently flawed. For instance, the rankings in my field are more than 10 years old and EVERYONE thinks there will be a significant reshuffling of the top 10 when new rankings come out. When were the last rankings published? What's the methodology? Are there subfield considerations that the rankings don't consider? Is there a superstar advisor at a lower-ranked school? These are all factors that can completely trump whatever BS rankings are out there. (Full disclosure: I got into programs with a range of rankings and picked a lower-ranked program with a powerhouse/superstar advisor.) Perhaps the lower ranked program has THE perfect person to work with. Why go to a higher ranked school, in that case, and have a less capable/knowledgeable advisor? Seems silly to me. As a moderator, I will say this: You don't seem to have a realistic picture of the US education system so I'd appreciate it if you stopped making such ridiculously false assertions on this board. You do a disservice to everyone, particularly since it does not seem at all like you know what you are talking about. Your next post filled with outright lies like this one will result in a warning.

eh, in my experience the TA practicum is 1-2 credits so you take 9 hours of "real" classes along with it.

I'd be quite worried about 100K in debt. That's a house in some places! I would definitely consider what your salary might be and take that into consideration when deciding how much debt is acceptable. Personally, I'd go for the cheaper option because 50K is a lot and 100K is crazy. The payments on 100K at a decent interest rate will probably be in the vicinity of $700/month assuming a 20 year repayment. Will you be making enough in your job to afford that on top of rent and other living expenses? If it involves a bit of penny-pinching, that's fine. But if you'd have to rely on subsidized housing or food banks to make ends meet after graduation, I would be wary of taking out that much in loans.

any tips from winners to those of us applying in the fall?

It's possible that you're trying to do too much. I think showing them that you're working a good, semi-related job plus managing 6 grad hours is enough but law school is finicky. I'm not sure they'll care at all about your courses, you know? Your best bet is a good LSAT score, good writing things, etc. And bribery. :wink:

hahaha, geography is awesome. I encourage you to consider it when you finish your MA. But seriously, I'm looking for more training in African Studies and I was looking at Stanford, Yale, and UIUC pretty seriously before I decided to just take the plunge for the PhD. I'm hoping maybe I can do an exchange program or something where I go to one of those schools for a bit.