sarab

Are you going to be working with Dr. Turner? If you are, she's great! I took a class with her, and it was super clear and interesting. I also had a melt-down in class once (due to personal reasons), and she took me in and was very caring and nice. I'm sure you'll love it. Atlanta is fantastic too!

Yay! Congrats!

Congrats! I did my undergrad there, and I loved it. The department is mostly drama-free, and most faculty is super supportive.

Visiting the programs definitely was a major factor that helped me decide. However, I wouldn't invest money on a program that I'm waitlisted at and would wait until I hear back. Emailing students is a good idea for sure.

It looks solid to me! Work on good statements and apply to programs that are a good fit (seems you have that figured out). Good luck!

Sure! If you have any questions about the program/department, feel free to ask.

I agree with everyone else. At this point, it won't really add to your application to contact them. I contacted my POIs early to see if they thought I was a good fit and to make sure they were taking students (advisees) and that way avoid applying to places where the POI was leaving or not taking students. Being so late in the application process, those inquiries are not as valid anymore.

Hi! I also do both ling anth and sociocultural anthropology. My main focus is linguistic anthropology, so in my applications I explained which ling anth professors I wanted to work with and which sociocultural professors have research that overlaps with my interests. Fortunately for me, the universities I applied to didn't ask me to select a subfield (at least not that I remember). Anyway, from what I understand, in many universities the SOP are given to the faculty mentioned , but the whole application process is so mystified that is really hard to know how each university does it. Definitely once you're in, you'll be able to meet and work with faculty that aren't necessarily in your subfield, so you'll be able to expand on your research. I think sociocultural sounds like a perfect pick in your case.

Don't know if anyone applied to UCSD, but the department is currently having all these job talks, so I'm assuming decisions might get delayed. Good luck everyone!

Laura Ogden at Darmouth does work in the everglades looking at gators and relations to glades-men. Other people that do multi-species work are: Eban Kirksey at CUNY in science studies... Stefan Helmreich at MIT anthropology, and Anna Tsing at UC Santa Cruz.

Would this be your first B.A. or do you want to get an additional one in Anthropology?

I think it's fine to do it. The schools want to know who the competition is, plus, I think it's always better to be honest.

It really depends on what your goals are. Is the language program going to be relevant for your research or interests? Or is the prestigious program going to provide you with the tools needed for your interests? I would recommend not choosing based on prestige but choosing based on how the program can prepare you for grad school and research.

Things are good! We have a quarter system here, so classes just started October 2nd, so I haven't even been to all my classes yet. But I'm very excited (and nervous, too). The cohort is nice: 2 lings, 2 bios, 2 archs, 4 psych, and 4 sociocultural. I'm still just getting to know them, but they seem like nice people! And San Diego is amazing! It's been very hot lately, and I'm really missing fall weather, but having the beach is always nice. I have to make a better update once I've at least been to all my classes!

I'm at UCSD, and I got funding! A few other people from my cohort also got funding, and the other ones are just TAing. biisis is right, you have to get California residency before your second year starts in order for your funding packet to cover your tuition; otherwise, you'll have to pay the difference. International students have to pay international tuition until they qualify. Once they qualify, they can get resident tuition for 9 consecutive quarters. UC Anthro programs don't have a ton of money, but look into the diversity fellowships and other options. But yes, funding is an option (for some).

Hi all, I thought I should post a topic to check in on everyone. We worried together and supported each other during the application cycle, and we seriously kept each other sane. So how is it going?! Do you like your cohorts? What classes are you taking? What's the new city like? Etc...

Hi and welcome! So a few things: Can't really tell you what to focus on for the GRE since it really depends what your strengths and weaknesses are. I recommend taking multiple practice exams to determine what area needs most work. I also recommend applying to both M.A and PhD programs due to the GPA situation. Definitely don't let that discourage you from applying anywhere (unless they specifically mention a required GPA), but getting into a masters program might be easier and would allow you to prepare for a PhD, but hopefully you'll get into a great PhD program! Writing an amazing thesis will definitely help. I suggest keeping it around 30 pages since that's usually the page limit for writing samples in applications. Also, UCSD has a really strong psychological anthro program, it's in the pacific, and there's a huge population of LDS here in San Diego. Good luck!

Some universities have GRE requirements... Sometimes this isn't even up to the departments. If you have time and money then you might want to retake it. I didn't have great GRE scores and got into a couple of good programs, so don't let that bring you down, but consider retaking it if you can. Good luck!

It's obviously better to have better scores, but I don't think it'll necessarily mean you won't get accepted anywhere. My GRE scores weren't the best, and I still got in and got offered fellowships at both places. In one case, I my advisor asked me for my thesis, so that he'd be able to show that I'm a good candidate for a fellowship regardless of my score, and I was able to get that fellowship. This is just from my experience though, and it definitely can change on an individual basis.

I received the email aboutt he orientation for the graduate students director from my department. I'm already here, so if you need anything, let me know!

Well, you could contact the program administrator or graduate coordinate from your deparment and ask them if they could get you in touch with other grad students. This is the link for subleasing apartments at UCSD, it might help, too: https://hdh.ucsd.edu/archsublease/

Have you contacted other grad students and see if you could room with them for a semester?

Hey all! I'm moving to San Diego in less than two weeks. I'm so excited! I start the competitive edge program on June 30th, I can't wait. How is everyone preparing themselves for the move and starting in the fall and everything else?

Oops! Thank you for pointing that out. I searched UCSD, but only really old topics came up. Thanks!

This is so, so helpful! I budgeted $200 a month for groceries (including toiletries), so it looks like that's a safe amount. I'm used to cooking for 4, so I really hope I can adjust and learn to cook for myself as to not waste any food. I'm a vegetarian, so beans, lentils, and rice can go a long way. Other vegetarian products can be a bit expensive, so I'll probably cut down on those. I really hope I can get good produce at a good price. My university has this cash card that gives you a 10% discount at whole foods, so I'll take advantage of that when I can. Also, I don't and can't drive, so I don't know if I'll be able to go to Costco (unless someone will be nice enough to give me a ride), and will get food that is easy to carry. Share any good budget-friendly recipes if you have them!