rising_star

I think that this might be an important difference between fields. In my area, undergraduate RAs are there to help you get research done. In my current position, supervising undergrad RAs doesn't count as service work, even though it is expected that we all do this. Consequently, I am selective about whom I hire because I know it's going to require extra work on my part with potentially no real payoff if they don't see the project through to completion (so data collection and analysis, maybe even helping with write-up for publication). If your undergrad RAs are supposed to help you actually get research done, rather than being there for you to teach and mentor, then you have to find a way to either make them more independent or to cut them loose politely.

The answer is definitely different, at least for me, based on the level of the student. I mean, I don't expect the sophomores I teach to fully understand how to use the library's resources so, I take them to the library and we have a session with a librarian. Have you thought about arranging a meeting between this pesky RA and one of the librarians to get them up to speed? In general though, I find that students who need a lot of handholding either don't last as RAs or they end up only ever doing basic tasks.

To give another example, phdthoughts, the topics I studied during my master's and my PhD are different but they're united by using a similar theoretical framework and methodological toolbox. So, you might want to think of sort of "big tent" topics which would use the same methods and theories you're interested in. Then, you could not only frame your specific research so it's clear how it fits into that but also potentially do side projects which also relate to the "big tent" area. Predicting what will be popular in 5-6 years is insanely hard. One of the most popular subfields in my discipline now was fledgling at best when I started my PhD. Had I known it would be the thing that everyone was searching for, I might have found a way to integrate it into what I do (again, by taking the big tent approach and doing a side project in a slightly different area) but, I didn't. I'm moving somewhat in that direction now but it'll never be what it could have been if I'd done it during my PhD. That's just something you have to accept, if that makes sense.

You definitely need a LOR from a professor with your application because you need someone who can attest to your ability to succeed in a graduate program in the classroom.

Can you put a desk in a closet? Just kidding, sort of. I think it's probably impossible unless you already have some space which is not heavily-trafficked that you could make into a writing space by rearranging furniture or something similar. Have you considered working primarily outside of the house, such as in the public library, a coffee shop, etc.?

Don't do it! It's way cliche and over done.

I think you missed my point. One semester of undergraduate research, even if it's for credit, isn't very much research experience. It's unlikely you'll do anything significant or anything that will make you stand out from other applicants. It's also the case that many students are involved in undergrad research beginning early in their academic career, some for credit and some because they have a work-study position for a professor or in a lab. In fact, some faculty prefer to hire/work with 1st/2nd year students because they'll spend more time in the lab and often have more flexible schedules. If it were me, and I were applying to a professional program like you are, I would try to get logged time shadowing someone working in the field, rather than doing research that may or may not be related to your target population or your interests. But, to each his/her own I suppose.

Your GPA and experience in economic analysis should help counteract your low quantitative GRE score to some degree. Alternately, if you are really concerned, you may want to do some intensive study and then take the test again, possibly in early December, to try to get a higher score. Have you looked up the average GRE scores of admitted students to those programs? If you're within the average, then I wouldn't worry about it so much personally. Good luck!

You definitely want to give the POI something to respond to, otherwise they may never reply! One question that is always good to ask is if they are or anticipate taking on new students in the upcoming academic year. You might also want to ask about current/recent research which may not yet be reflected in their publications or on their website.

My guess is that the MBA is the more widely recognized degree and one whose skills will allow you to pursue a variety of jobs post-graduation. The coursework is going to be broader and will likely emphasize the case study approach (as is the nature of many MBA programs). The 1 year master's is a much more specialized degree which may not open as many corporate doors for you in the long run. Have you tried emailing them to get placement statistics for graduates?

I think it's completely reasonable to ask someone for their timesheet or for a record of the number of hours they're putting in, regardless of whether they're being paid by the hour or not.

Syedahum, I don't think anyone will fault a someone for taking a paid research position in lieu of a volunteer one! If this PI does, then would you really want to study under him? I wouldn't freak out about this. As fuzzylogician has said, be prepared to talk about what has happened since you last met with him, including discussing your ongoing research projects, anything new/recent in the literature that you've read, and how those are shaping or have shaped your PhD research interests.

This totally depends on the person, the week, and how many comments you are getting or expect to get. So, for example, my MA advisor once returned a full draft of my thesis, with comments throughout, in under a week but that's because she'd scheduled time to read it in advance (similar to what TakeruK describes). My PhD advisor, by contrast, was harder to pin down to get edits from and rarely gave you line-by-line edits/comments on something. Some of it is really about advising style but some of it is also about the quality/caliber of your writing. To answer your second question, I'd say what's reasonable depends entirely on the length. If it's a 2 page extended abstract, then I'd say 10-14 days is more than enough time to get that back. If it's a 100 page thesis draft, then 2-3 weeks is reasonable.

summoner, please do send me a PM! If you know things that others in your field don't, that's an excellent opportunity for collaboration and one you should definitely pursue! At this point, don't be angry about what you would/could/should have done in the past. What's done is done. From now on, it's about moving forward. I'm not sure about public policy but, take a look at the CVs of recently hired assistant professors if you want to get a sense of how many publications are needed for academia. In my field, it depends largely on where you want to work. LACs typically want to see maybe 1 publication when you start your job, whereas research-intensive/doctoral universities want to see multiple publications even from folks who are ABD and applying for tenure-track jobs. How much you need to focus on publications depends in part on where you see yourself working in the future.

Where you should apply depends entirely on your specific research interests and who is doing that research.

I typically address letters to the Director of Graduate Studies or whomever is designated as the recipient of the application. If no single person is obvious, then I use something like "Dear Admissions Committee" or "Dear Fellowship Committee". Honestly, this is something I never worried (worry) about when applying for things because the people writing letters know what to do.

Well, the Oxford term hasn't started yet (see here) so the professor may not be checking their email regularly yet.

It would definitely not be application "suicide" (whatever that means!) to have this professor write one of your reference letters! It adds another dimension to your application and one which could be important if you want to be considered for TA positions as a PhD student.

Ummm... one typo is not going to be your downfall by any means. My PhD applications had typos in the SOPs and I was admitted with funding. I've gotten interviews for jobs where my cover letter had multiple typos in it. Obviously I'm not saying that you should make typos. I'm just saying that you're more likely to notice than anyone else. Good luck tomorrow!

loveor, is your thesis advisor in the UK/Australia? Because, if so, then lecturers are often the equivalent of an "assistant professor" in the US system. If that's the case, then it is entirely appropriate to get a recommendation letter from someone with that status, especially if they have a PhD.

I wouldn't assume that, actually. My PhD department (note: not the entire university in this case) had an exchange program with another PhD granting department. The most common time for people to do that program was during coursework because it allowed you to really benefit from the expertise in the other program. It was a 1-to-1 exchange but, you could take your funding with you if you were a TA (which then meant you were a TA in the other program). Honestly, even if it is technically possible, that doesn't make it a good idea. And I say this as someone who spent close to half of my PhD not in residence for various reasons. If you want to get good recommendation letters from the faculty, they're going to need to get to know you and your work. That is difficult if you only do a year of coursework there, show up for your exams, and then show up again to defend your dissertation. When I think about how I got to know my PhD supervisor, I think of our 1-on-1 meetings, our group meetings with all of his PhD students, conversations when I was his TA as we walked to/from the class, conversations in grad seminar, and conversations at happy hour or over dinner. If you read through that list, you'll see how few of those could have been (or were, speaking from experience) accomplished without physically being there. In fact, I can say that my relationship with my committee and my advisor was not as strong at the end of my PhD as it could have been precisely because I'd spent so much time away. Has that hurt me in my post-PhD career? Possibly. I mean, it's hard to say. Are there any programs at all in/near location X which you could attend? That to me seems like a better option than trying to minimize your time spent in residence at the university in location Y. I mean, if you're considering spending a year at Z university that's near your family, could you do your entire degree there by any chance?

Honestly, yea, I've been in a very similar boat. I did almost an entire extra year of coursework because people couldn't figure out how to count the stuff from my MA. But, I got over it by applying for grants to fund my dissertation research, diving head first into fieldwork and data collection, and writing an interesting dissertation in the end. The advice below is meant to be helpful. It may not help since I don't know what your field is but, I hope it does. Feel free to PM me if you want to talk about any of this in greater depth. Research/Publications: I know what it's like to be reliant on primary data to publish and also not to have anyone around you working on similar things. One thing you might want to do is consider who is working on even semi-related stuff that you could collaborate with on research/publications. These may be people outside your department/institution. A good way to find such people is at conferences. I would look for post-docs or junior faculty, as they're likely to have the time to put into whatever collaboration there is. Are there any secondary data sources you could use to write a paper? Would you consider writing and publishing a review article on an aspect of your research? If you do, then maybe that article could serve as all or part of the literature review for your dissertation. If you need primary data, is there any way that you could write and publish something in a lower-tier journal based on preliminary data collection or a selected sample? That would help you get something out sooner. I'll also add this. Depending on what you want to do and where you want to end up, then you may not need any publications under your belt when you graduate or when you're on the job market. For example, if you're interested in alt-ac stuff, then perhaps gaining statistical training or doing a summer internship is more important than trying to get a publication. Timeline: Everyone's timeline is different. I finished a year after many of the friends I started my PhD with for a variety of reasons both personal and professional. It doesn't really matter when you graduate, in many ways, especially if you have the funding to continue. I did, which is part of the reason I was there an extra year. In the end, it was fine and we all ended up with full-time, semi-permanent employment (aka, not adjuncting) around the same time. You have to do what works best for you and not worry about other people. I realize it's easier said than done. Job Experience: Get out there and get some! See if you can get a part-time job or internship in an area that interests you. You can check general employment websites like indeed.com and idealist.org, or use your university's career services department. You might also see if you could get a part-time or Graduate Assistant position on campus in an area of your interest. That may mean doing office work but it could also be something more interesting, depending on what's in your area. This is obviously easier if you're in a city or metropolitan area but it may still be possible regardless of your location. There are even virtual internships with federal government entities which you could do to gain experience (a friend of mine did one and, when the agency was hiring, they encouraged them to apply and ultimately hired them). Retaining Background Reading: Do you use a citation management program? If not, you totally should. I use Zotero and store my notes on what I've read there, along with the bibliographic information. It has been a lifesaver in the past and probably will continue to be in the future. Other options include EndNote, RefWorks FLOW, Mendeley, and Papers. It's never too late to start getting organized with your note-taking so do it now. Good luck!

There's no need to explain anything. If you're doing work/research related to your grad school interests during your gap year, then you may want to briefly talk about it in your SOP.

I've never heard of it before! It seems like such a good idea though. I hope others chime in with their experiences, as I'd love to read more about this.

I know Edinboro University has an accredited college counseling program, but I only know that because a friend went there. No idea about the funding situation.