rising_star

I'm glad this has worked out for you!

I haven't figured out any of those things either! In fact, I've never been to Tucson...

Let us know how the program at Yale is! I'm very intrigued and would totally consider going if I knew I'd get funding for it.

Anybody headed to Tucson?

I'm going to the University of Arizona for a PhD in geography.

I'd take the former. You'll regret him/her and the decision if you take the latter.

not worth it. you can get faculty, family, and friends to do the same thing for free.

This doesn't help you but I'm rejecting offers right now. The point though is that others are probably doing the same. Keep your fingers (and toes) crossed!

I know some people that do 6 hours of class and work full-time. It's tough but they manage it. 9 hours would be a lot more difficult. Would you be willing to do 6 hours of coursework each term?

Agreed that the letters of rec could be problematic. Or that your project isn't well reasoned in your statements. What's your language training like? P.S. You should write to/call Houston ASAP to ask about funding.

The Gov Square Mall area is really nice. Adopt from the Tallahassee Animal Shelter if you can. The staff there are very friendly and it's always better to rescue a pet from death, imo. And yes, you will likely need a car. Many people can and do make do riding the bus but a lot depends on where you live. I used to ride the buses around town all the time before I got a car.

yep, i'm having a hard time turning down offers but that's because i haven't made up my mind since everyone has been so wonderful.

i'd pick the one with professors who are excellent and share my interests.

I would emphasize the professors and the program.

No specific input but I would check with grad students and young faculty to see where they would live or where they do live.

I still wouldn't choose NYU. Paying your tuition is nice but you still need to pay rent, eat, buy books, etc. Is NYU worth being $15K in debt for a year from now?

But full tuition at NYU doesn't even begin to touch on your living expenses...

Please don't post things in two different places. I'll link everyone to the other thread: viewtopic.php?f=15&t=13974

I think you'd be amazed. I can think of plenty of college towns (and cities) where you could buy something for less than $120K, particularly in the South. For example, Athens, GA, Tallahassee, FL, Atlanta, GA, Columbia, SC, Chapel Hill-Raleigh-Durham, NC, Bloomington, IN, Urbana-Champaign, IL, State College, PA...

email them!

Has anyone toyed with doing a 5/1 or 7/1 ARM to buy in graduate school rather than a traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage? Again, I'm not certain about buying but it seems like that would give you the house, you could pay extra towards principal, and most of your payment would be tax-deductible (assuming you make enough). Again, I'm not really pro-home buying unless there's someone else with a steady income that can contribute to the payments.

Could you take grad courses at a public university and apply again next year?

I think working with someone with your EXACT interests makes you too narrow. So I'd go for someone that can expose you to other things. For my MA, my advisor doesn't do anything like what I do but sometimes we ask questions in similar ways. That works because she can expose me to literatures that the committee member who has explicitly worked in the same area as me can not. But to each his/her own.

I would add to what jaw17 said by pointing out that with the low income of a grad stipend, you won't get much of a tax break from having a mortgage. I've toyed with it for a while but the association fees, insurance, and taxes always discourage me. The only way I would do it is if I found a fixer-upper in May, bought in June, and used July/August to fix it up (I can do lots of housework on my own and could bring my own Project Manager/General Contractor wherever since he's a family friend). Even then... we'll see.

My mom started her PhD at 33 and after having 3 kids. You'll be fine waiting a year. Unless... did you also post this on lj? because someone over there asked about CUNY and went into more details and got a quite different response...