MsDarjeeling

This was exactly what I was thinking. Other applicants probably took all the prereqs and had a bunch of extra coursework in related areas. Other than that I'd say more volunteer work where you're hands on in a social services environment couldn't hurt and maybe having your sop reviewed and revamped.

I've gone through more than one application cycle and each time I sat down and wrote up a back up plan. It was essentially a list of things I could do to improve next years application if I ended up in that boat. Once I sent out my applications I took a couple of weeks and just relaxed, then I got started on the back up plan anyway. Even though I didn't have a decision one way or the other it kept me busy and would give me something *new* to talk about if I made it to the interview stage.

Mentioning the year off in your SOP makes sense especially because it will come up at the interview stage and there's a noticeable difference in your gpa. I would keep it simple and say something like "unfortunately I experienced some health problems and it was necessary to take a year off to recover." Do not go into detail about what your health issues were as that is none of their business. Focus on the fact that you returned feeling better than ever and finished with much better grades.

Congrats on your upcoming program! I would say when considering e-books, think about your note taking style and how you like to read. I personally like to make notes on post its and stick them on the page I was reading, so an e-book would not work for me. I also don't want to spend more time staring at a screen than I already do. I have been using one e-book via adobe's reader and while its nice to not have to carry it around not taking notes the way I prefer is irritating. However if you have a gadget that allows you to highlight/take notes electronically and you like that style then e-books would work well for you. Also you wouldn't have to worry about the weight of all those textbooks =)

I guess I'm looking at this from a student perspective. As a student, if months later a TA emailed me just to say hi and see how I was doing as part of a mass email to the class I'd think it was odd. I get that they may have my email from when I was in their class, but if I didn't say sure contact me anytime or whatever I'd think it was weird and wonder why they didn't have other things to occupy their time lol. Considering all the students have your contact info from the class and could reach out to you at any time for a LOR or just to chat or whatever I think the burden is on them. I don't think it is necessary for you to reach out to say that you're available to them. If any of them wanted to get in touch they would have or they will in the future. Many of them may not do that simply because they don't want to and you'll just have to accept not having any updates about them. If you want you could tell the students you are in touch with to feel free to let the other students know they can contact you at any time, but I still think you should leave it up to the students to make the connection.

I think for this very circumstance many of my professors have waited until the last day and said that if any of us wanted to keep in touch regarding their projects or whatever to leave our emails to be added to their list. Then a few times a year we'd get an email with their news and could reply sharing whatever we desired. I don't see any reason a TA couldn't do something similar. Since some of your students contacted you on facebook I see nothing wrong with you reaching out to them, asking how they're doing, and letting them know you're happy to advise/support them however you can. For those that didn't do that and didn't provide you with their email I'd say you'll just have to hope they're doing well because it would be odd for you to reach out to them now.

Depends on the school, the program, and the professor. In my Master's program most of the professors don't do exams because they don't think they're necessary. Instead there are lots of research papers, response papers, and presentations. A few professors do short essay take home exams (which feels more like busy work than an actual exam) and a couple of professors do in class closed note short essay exams. The few exams I've had I would say are easier than ones I had in undergrad because they're non-cumulative and based off of the lectures. In undergrad I found exams were generally cumulative, based off the readings, and multiple choice which I hated. As for not wanting to just be graded on an exam I completely get that and desire the same thing. Again this is going to depend on the school, the program, and the professor. In my program attendance is a large chunk of your grade (usually 20-30%) because there are a number of in class group activities that can't be done if most people don't show. The midterm/final research papers are the largest chunk (anywhere from 40-60%). The few professors in my program that incorporate exams usually make them equal to a research paper as far as percent of your grade is concerned, but there are other assignments to do as well.

Community colleges in the United States do hire professors with just Master's degrees as their institutions are generally not research focused and the highest degree available is an Associate's. Some private four year Universities also hire professors with just Master's degrees as well, it really depends on the needs/goals of the department.

It is largely going to depend on where you want to apply and their requirements/expectations for entrance. You might want to contact them directly and inquire as I highly doubt you're the first ever student in this situation. Although I'm in a different field, my situation is similar and might help you. When I was doing my BA in Psychology a thesis wasn't an option. Two of my professors incorporated scaled down versions into their classes for those who wanted an extra challenge which I did, but I don't have *honors thesis* noted on any of my transcripts however. Now I'm in a Psychology Master's program that also doesn't have a thesis option. Before I enrolled in the Master's program I did some research into the PhD programs I was considering to make sure I wasn't about to waste a whole lot of time and money. What they told me was that without a thesis I'd need to have independent research experience and have an LOR from the professor that supervised me to discuss my ability to conduct research. They didn't say that having a thesis was better or that not having one was worse, just that their interest was in the research experience that I had. So now in my Master's program I'm working with a professor who has a multi year funded project and she carved out 2 projects (one lit review and one empirical study) for me to do independently. She's also going to help me prepare a poster or two for upcoming conferences nearby and has agreed to write me an LOR. It's a ton of work and may not give me the *thesis* notation on my transcripts, but if I do well then I'll have demonstrated the skills that the PhD programs are seeking.

Well neither of those options are great, but I understand they're the only 2 you have. If I were you I'd stay put. If your parents really can afford to help you a little (and you're one of those kids who won't stuff them in some horrible nursing home) then I think that's ok since you're doing something productive. You need to be on campus multiple times a day so the proximity just can't be beat. I get that its hot, but if the school won't do anything perhaps you can purchase an air conditioner, make do with fans, or find a nearby cafe to study. As for the spiders? I don't get why your school doesn't routinely have an exterminator come, but here's an organic method I use to kill them. I have a bunch of small glass jars that I fill halfway with white vinegar. Then I put them in the corners of each room and wait. This not a quick method, but I've found it very effective. I'm not sure why, but the spiders are attracted to the vinegar, crawl up the jars, and then stupidly fall in and drown. I empty them every couple of days, refill, and repeat.

I like to season stir fry with citrus, so I'll squeeze some fresh lemon or orange and add some ginger, garlic, and cilantro. Feel free to experiment with whatever citrus you like as I've also used lime, pomelo, grapefruit, and kumquat with yummy results. If I want the dish to be a little sweeter then a dash of honey is good.

I have some of that type of research experience as well and am listing it on my CV. I asked current professors about it and they said it won't hurt at all and it is viewed as being more basic, as in ok they can stay organized and can recognize commonly used documents. However, its not better than having experience doing independent research or RA experience with a professor.

Oh that's great thanks!

I don't understand the logic in turning down a funded phd program if you ultimately desire a phd. It sounds like school A was your second choice and school B was your first choice, but school B isn't offering you anything that you want. Sure you're able to afford an unfunded master's program and you'd *prefer* to get a phd from school B, but they aren't offering you a phd opportunity or a guarantee that their master's feeds into their phd. You'd still have to apply again and if they don't accept you what then? School A is offering you more and may be a better fit for you if you give them a shot. Have you been to the campus, met with professors, talked to students, etc? Also keep in mind deferring doesn't always mean your funding will be waiting for you. If you defer and then enroll you may have to compete for funding again or risk being partially funded/unfunded.

Well said and I second this. One of the things I love about this forum are the threads from people who got into phd programs without having a high gre score or gpa or the perfect sop or lor's. Yes these cases may be the exception, but it is still nice to know they exist. It is true that we here on this forum don't actually know what adcomm's want and should be contacting our schools of interest directly or seeking advice from our past/current professors that have already been there and done that. The advice on these forums can be helpful and stress relieving, but yes should be taken with a grain of salt.

Well it depends on who knows you better and can speak to your character and ability to succeed in a phd program. That's not really knowing you personally, but knowing you academically and professionally. Pondering both of your options..... Does the professor only know you from class? If so that isn't going to be a strong letter. Some professors refuse to write letters unless the student worked with them on a project or research outside of class because they feel like they don't know them very well. Sure you did well in their class, but they generally know nothing of your goals or research interests and can really only go on what you *tell* them. Now a professor that you worked with on a research project? They've worked with you one on one and observed how quickly (or not so quickly) you learned new skills, if you were proactive, your time management skills, your ability to weather challenges (unexpected results), etc. Did the lab PI observe you working on independent research projects or collaborative projects? Even if the tasks you conducted were basic those skills are still needed in order to take on more phd level research projects. When you say the lab PI observed you working do you mean they worked with you one on one, mentored you, and reviewed your results? If so that would provide them with a lot of information about your ability to handle more research, especially if you've been talking to them about your research interests and goals.

Yikes what a pickle. Before finishing my undergrad at a University I attended 2 community colleges and both of those grades/credits were accepted by the University and calculated into my University gpa. That happened before I was even allowed to enroll however, so it is odd to me that your school had so many hangups. I agree that you should go to the Ombudsman, but don't be surprised if they can't do much for you. If all of your advisors told you 3 years ago that its the registrars call and you have nothing in writing "guaranteeing" that your 3.97/summa cum laude was final and couldn't be changed then it is likely you'll have to accept the retraction. Like you said a 3.72 is nothing to frown about and it is great that it won't affect your intended graduate program.

If we register, will we be able to rewatch it for a few days? We west coasters will be getting off work and sitting in rush hour when this starts.

Wow it's so great to hear what everyone else does to stay on top of things. Quite a few ideas I'll be trying out myself. Ok so what do I do? Well it depends on the area of my life I'm working on. School: -Google Calendar for class days/times, school related meetings, exam/project/paper/homework deadlines, reminders to study/work/research, etc. I've also been using this to track how many hours I'm studying each day for the GRE. -Accordion file with a section for each class for the syllabus, handouts, homework/papers due, etc. -Paper notebook for lecture notes, one per class -Citation managers (mostly RefWorks, but sometimes EndNote or Mendeley) for organizing my research and keeping notes on each article. I'm trying my hardest to stop printing everything and handwriting my notes because its way to much paper. -Google Drive & a flash drive for backing up my work. Eventually I'd like to incorporate an external hard drive. -Post It Note task lists for when I have a study day and I need to work on several classes. I list stuff in order of importance and check them off as I go. -Pack lunch or dinner and snacks Home: -Google Calendar to track personal appts, exercise, bills, social events, volunteer hours, etc -Google Task List for things that I need to do, but have no fixed deadline or sense of urgency -Paper files for important documents, copies of receipts, etc. Back ups on hard drive and Google Drive. Eventually an external hard drive for this too. -Multitask chores and cooking. -Cook for about a week at a time, sometimes longer, and put ready sized portions in tupperware. -Stockpile my pantry and freezer. -Group errands and volunteer commitments to save on gas/time. Work: -Google Calendar to track projects, client hours, meetings, etc -Post It Note task lists and list stuff in order of importance. -Organizing trays for urgent stuff, pending stuff, stuff that can wait, etc

The experience you have is great and will definitely be favorable. However if you have the desire and time in your schedule to volunteer with a different population then I'd say go for it. There is no such thing as too much experience and differing experiences develop new skills, demonstrate an openness to the unknown, and expand cultural competency.

You need a rice cooker. Cooks things like pasta, rice, or soup much faster and you won't have tons of leftovers if you get a small one. I've even used the rice cooker just to make meat sauce, stew, or chili.

Potatoes. They bake in the microwave in just a few minutes and can be topped with anything.... veggies, cheese, tomato sauce, curry, fresh herbs, chili, tikka masala, salad dressing, etc.

I ran into this problem to and its kind of annoying. Half my schools state up to 2pgs while the other half state nothing. 2pgs sounds good to me. You can also contact the school and inquire.