rising_star

How much stuff are you moving? I'd think a Budget truck would be less than $2K...

Luckily, I did a quick Google search for us: http://www.yorku.ca/comcult/ It appears the program is a joint program with York U. "The programme is relatively new, having started in September 2000. This means that (1) as yet we have little experience of our graduates entering the job market, and (2) while the curriculum is still not fully in place, we have added new courses each year and the curriculum is constantly being reviewed."

Thought about it but I don't think being a Jayhawk is in my future. Have fun though!

If it helps, I used to party on Jackson Bluff all the time. Frenchtown really isn't that sketchy, depending on where you are. I've certainly never had any problems there. Visiting definitely helps since lots of apartments aren't advertised online...

I dunno. I wouldn't date someone you're teaching. But other than that... why not look at single faculty?

Go with whoever will give you the time and attention you want. Or whoever's working style is most compatible with yours. Or maybe... flip a coin? My MA advisor isn't well known but it hasn't hurt me when it comes to PhD acceptances.

Honestly, Tallahassee traffic is never really that bad. Honestly. It's really only bad at 8am, 5pm, and during FSU home football games. In "traffic", it takes me 23 minutes to get to the mall. When there's not traffic, it takes 12-16 minutes. That's really not that bad. I can't recall it ever taking me half an hour to get anywhere (aforementioned times excluded), even when I worked outside the city limits and drove through downtown around 6pm to get home. As for the "sketchy area", where exactly were you? The buses are pretty reliable and StarMetro has done a much better job than the city ever did with them.

I'm not in psych but I was emailed an acceptance last week.

Seriously, the wait for funding from my last three schools is KILLING me. Granted, it's also making me not want to go there...

Ummm.. Yale is definitely the bigger name. But theater isn't the career to go into debt doing.

Yea but Madison may also give less money because the cost of living in Madison, WI is lower than that in NYC or DC...

I think that depending on your stipend and living situation, it may not be possible to have money leftover to plan one's financial future. Furthermore, I would argue that being in graduate school IS taking a step towards long-term financial planning. A lot also depends on where one is in life. If the only way one could save money was by taking out a student loan, I wouldn't advise that and I doubt most financial planners would. Yes, it's important to save for retirement. Yes, every little bit helps. But if the choice is putting groceries on a credit card/student loan or saving that $50 for retirement, I'm always going to go for eating now. The future won't matter if you shortchange your diet and health now because you won't be around to see it. Another thing, most long-term bonds and CDs have a minimum investment of like $1K. When you're paid monthly, it can take a while to accumulate that sum just to enter into the investment. If you're saving it by not spending money on healthcare, good food, books you need to read/building up a library, or not going to conferences, I don't think that pays off in the long run. Investing in one's financial future is about more than just money.

Are the person who uses textspeak and one who comments about using textspeak the same? Nothing in historygirl's original comment says that they are. Given how you've railed against illiteracy, I suggest considering clauses when you read and noting that reinforcing an idea does not imply nor does it directly state that you used textspeak at any point. Again, where did historygirl directly accuse you of using textspeak? If that's your only defense, I'm afraid you are not comprehending something... It seems to me, pointedears, that you have a distinct problem with people judging you based on what you post. That's life. And, btw, I think that you think you can interview in torn jeans and get a job but, have you actually tried it? Have you talked to anyone that's tried it? Do you know of specific, recent examples? As for literacy, I think an important part of literacy is being able to adequately communicate your ideas with others. I realize this isn't included in most dictionary definitions (cf. Compact Oxford English Dictionary: "the ability to read and write") but I think most people would agree that having the ability to do something is great but if you cannot do so in a meaningful way, having the ability may be insufficient. As graduate students, being able to read, think, and then write about our ideas are the most important things that we can do. A successful career depends on being able to do these things in ways that render your thoughts and ideas comprehensible to others. If no one can understand what you wrote, it will not get published and will consequently have little impact on the field. An illiterate graduate student (literacy as I've specified it) will likely go nowhere quickly. If you cannot communicate with others successfully, your graduate career may be painfully short, which is one of the things Minnesotan pointed out pages ago. The point about textspeak that has been made by Minnesotan, historygirl, and others is that using textspeak affects your ability to communicate successfully with others.

I agree that these things are important but it's also important to consider which school offers more support to its students. It's great to have graduate student support but having faculty support is even better. I'm in a dept with few people of color but a decent number of women. The only person who would be honest with me about the lack of racial diversity in the dept and the field has been a white female professor who, in part due to the honesty and her understanding of some difficult situations, has become my advisor and been extremely helpful to me. Had I just looked at dept diversity, I would've gone elsewhere. And you know what? I doubt I would've found the support that I've gotten. Not to mention many universities have graduate school-wide programs for minority graduate students. These are a great opportunity to network with other minority graduate students and build a support network. I would sort of lean towards the up and coming school just because a lot of highly ranked schools are resting on past laurels...

Is the goal of doing your PhD to get a job in San Jose? If so, this may be very unrealistic. Like I said earlier, you need to take into consideration the job market and the desires of the people that graduated. If no one wanted to move to CA (which is becoming more common among academics because of low pay and high cost of living), then it's not surprising they haven't placed anyone there. You didn't ask the programs where people applied, you asked where they went. Something worth considering is that not everyone wants to move to CA, not everyone applies to jobs in CA, etc. Maybe ask if people tried to work in CA and failed or if they just didn't try. That information seems potentially much more useful to you.

pointed, This was a reference to your comments about textspeak, not your usage of it. To everyone: Since everyone has had so many productive things to add to this discussion, I think I'll go ahead and throw in my thoughts. I find it extremely aggravating when people specifically elect not to use proper English to the best of their abilities. Almost anyone typing "u" or "ur" can also type "you" or "your". Unless there's a compelling reason for not being able to do so (mind you if the "y" on the keyboard was broken I'd understand), then why not follow the general protocol here of spelling out your words? No, there isn't a rule saying that you have too but it is polite. I don't understand why being courteous is so difficult and has led to like 90 posts about why people should be allowed to use textspeak. No one is stopping you from using it. People are expressing how it makes them feel about what you say and they have a right to hold those opinions (even as others use analogies that are not actually analogous to disparage and denigrate their position) just as you have the right to use textspeak since that doesn't violate any forum rules. So the issue here isn't CAN you do something, it's SHOULD you do it. If you were communicating with fellow graduate students in an email, would you use textspeak? With professors? With graduate students you want to collaborate with at other schools? This forum includes your fellow graduate students, who are also your future colleagues. If you wouldn't send them an email or private message full of textspeak, why post for everyone to see using it? As the political science thread has made abundantly clear, there are professors reading and posting on this forum (again, we have no rule against this). So how would you feel about your future advisor seeing you communicate so poorly with others through textspeak and then attacking others for not liking that you chose to use textspeak? Personally, even when I call, email, or text message my advisor, I refrain from using textspeak or whatever you want to call it. A grandma using it in an Alltell commercial does not make it appropriate. Someone used a bad analog with a famous professor who wears shorts to conferences. Once you're famous/tenured/secure in your career, you can do whatever you want. But in graduate school? Ha! You are still trying to impress people, make connections, and prove yourself to those already in the field. They can wear shorts to present at a conference but you shouldn't. Why? Because that could be the one thing people remember about you when they're viewing your job application..."So and so? Didn't that kid give a paper in torn up jeans? Can't dress for a conference so why waste money bringing him to campus?" Do you want that to be you? The bottom line, to me, is that when you use textspeak, you are showing that 1) you do not respect the other users of this forum who have repeatedly shown their preference for proper English and 2) that you probably fail to consider that anything you post here is for public consumption and that your future colleagues base their opinions on what they know.

I'm locking this since it's a duplicate. Post here viewtopic.php?f=29&t=13645 if you'd like to reply.

I have some money set aside in a IRA. But I'm not investing my stipend in hopes of making more money each year or anything. I'm just extremely frugal. And yes, investing while you're young is great but no one should count on that while in grad school, imo.

Excel, I'll weigh in on this too as another moderator. First, I'd like to point out the hypocrisy of what you've asked bgk to do. You want to take away Minnesotan's ability to express his opinions (even those that may be directed at you) and retain your ability to attack other users of this forum. Would you be so kind as to explain why without being condescending, patronizing, or passive aggressive? I'm asking for a genuine answer. Second, what, if any, disciplinary action would you like to see? Everyone has been warned to stay on topic, not engage in individual attacks, and be courteous towards other users. Are you willing to spend several hours per day deleting spam, handling duplicate posts, moving posts to the correct forum, etc with no compensation and often many complaints about what you do and why? Third, if we as moderators are going to protect members of this forum from insults, we would need to protect them from yours too since you are also a member and have engaged insulted some, at least as far as I've understood things. How do you propose we handle this? Should we take away everyone's posting privileges until they write an apology letter? How do you expect us to protect users from potential insults? Should we delete posts? Should we threaten individual users (which would be a form of attack that you have already railed against)? Specifically, what would you like us to do? And I do mean specifically. I want specific suggestions and I'd like for you to keep in mind that if any action were to be taken, they would likely be taken against you quickly since you have repeatedly engaged in attacks throughout this topic. If you do not wish to answer these questions publicly, feel free to PM me your response.

It ALWAYS makes sense to do an assistantship. It's how you professionalize yourself academically in your discipline. As for the specifics, contact current grad students or the DGS.

1) Nothing in life is guaranteed. Your application in 2 years could look more attractive to them than your current stuff. 2) Profs move schools, your stats will change, you'll make connections, etc. Never rule out anything. 3) You can still bond with them at conferences and stuff. 4) Weather is important but so is getting the best career preparation you can.

I get paid monthly. I don't take out student loans. You budget your monthly stipend like you would budget a paycheck. It's not rocket science, really. And no, I don't invest my paycheck in mutual funds because I spend most of it, could need the rest of it, and am not willing to deal with the ups and downs of the stock market.

I agree on the go with your gut. I would also consider whether your spouse could find a job in the new city.

You'd definitely want to at least get the MA. You'd have to be careful not to burn any bridges since you'll need solid recommendations to complete your move. And, you may discover that moving up ain't all it's cracked up to be.

I wouldn't let diversity considerations really bug you. But I'm in a very white, very male discipline so I'd be in the minority regardless of where I went. Go with your gut feeling and you likely won't regret it. It isn't all about ranking; a lot is about not being miserable in your 5 years of grad school. P.S. Given the budget situation in CA, I wouldn't count on getting a higher ed job there (or anywhere else). It doesn't really matter that the school hasn't placed anyone in CA in years. That could be for a variety of reasons: students not applying to CA jobs, bad fit between job ad and students, etc. Many grad students I know avoid CA because the cost of living is so high and the pay at the associate level is often the same as in places with much lower cost of living. An ABD student in my program turned down a job in CA to continue living on a grad student stipend in GA because, with cost of living figured in, he was actually going to net less money...