eklavya

long line

violent reaction

padded chair

stop clock

see that

no out of bounds at all - this is actually how most of us start the application process - email profs you want to work with, find out if they are taking new students, and then decide. and yes, you should definitely attach a CV - make it short (1 page) yet complete enough to give a better/fuller picture of yours.

faithful not

being from a similar field, probably i can relate to your problem. so first off, are you planning on attending the phd program at the same school? if yes, then you can start the phd on a provision that you will pass that class another semester/year. if no, then it's little complicated. however, my experiences with most, if not all, grad level classes tell me that NO graduate student is given a failing grade as long as the student is putting effort to do whatever they can to learn the subject material. seriously, i've scored 50% in some of the tests during my MS, and ended up passing the class with an A-. the teachers understand how hard the subject material is, and pre-calculate how much effort they want from each student. as long as the student demonstrates hard work and showing satisfactory improvement, they will not fail the student. the degree of satisfaction varies between us students and the teachers - probably they are way more understanding and lenient when it comes to grading us students if the class is difficult/obnoxious. my advice is talk to your teacher, and explain your situation (which you are going to do tomorrow). i am sure the teacher will understand what's going on, and maybe grade you differently than your partner. ask the teacher how you can get a passing/better grade - extra work, presentation, and so on. most teachers are understanding, but if this teacher isn't willing to cooperate, talk to your MS advisor, and/or your department. something should work out. i really feel sorry for your situation. but i hope that you will get a good grade, and will be able to move on to your phd. my best wishes!

crazy woman

sports field

ok, seriosly, i wanted to shout 'heft hefty hefty heh' when i saw the word hefty.. lol hefty bags

ash licker

or, come to gradcafe whenever you need to commiserate. after all, we do have few thousand shoulders to lean on and sob!!

my $0.02 growing up (in our country), we are never taught to identify people by their race, because we are a multiethnic and not multiracial nation. people living in the south are darker (more resemblance to indian people), people living in the north are fairer (more resemblance to tibetan people) and those like me who are from the midddle part, we are fair. but compared to a white skin, we all are brown. so, there is no distinction based on one's race. whenever we see tourists back home (who are predominantly white), we ask them where they're from, and then call them by their nationality. therefore, needless to say, i never went through any of the experiences relating to my race until i came to the US. here in the US, it's different. i saw people of several races, several cultures and several mindsets. although i wasn't taught to shield off any act of racism back home, i knew/still know that i will be treated as a different race/minority here. however, thankfully, i haven't been treated differently because of my skin. i am sure there are people who don't like me because of my skin/ethnicity/culture, but those haven't crossed my path yet. i have dated women of all skins, and many nationalities, and they haven't cared at all what my skin color is. my cohort and professors do not treat me different either. if anything, because of my hardwork and the effort i put in, they highly value my work ethics and intelligence. so, in my opinion, it all depends on your surroundings. i have spent all these five years in a university, living in a university town, did internships with very bright group of scientists, and so on. as long as people around you/us are educated and think rationally, skin/race/culture becomes the least important element in relationship between you/us and them. so, i never had to protect myself from any racial treatments, as i haven't been through any. but inside, i always keep trying to as good as, and even better than, people around me. not because i was treated different, but with the fear of being treated different. for example, my spoken english was horrible when i came here. i practiced, roomed with native speakers and after a couple of years, picked up everything i could, and finally lost my native accent. i don't know if talking/clothing/living like the locals do has helped me, but it sure has boosted my confidence in terms of social interactions. like Tired above, i too take pride on my skin, culture and language skills. no matter where i go, i am asked where i am from, and i am glad to tell them that i live next to the Himalayas. although there have been some incidents (mainly in the buses, grocer stores, etc) where people come to me and start talking in hindi, spanish (mistaken for a latin american) or some weird east-european language. but i don't take these too seriously. those people are naive (and some ignorant) as they think i am one of them. most of these incidents however produce laughter afterward once they know the reality - and provide me great opportunities to socialize further. as long as you are among people who share the same level of knowledge and intelligence as you do, i don't think you should be self-injecting yourself with all the doubts. i don't know how it is in your field, but in almost all fields of science, people aren't deprecated based on their skin color. of course, there are stereotypical classifications (such as the famous 'asian people good in math' conviction), but i don't think they are invented and passed on to humiliate the minority. if the inferiority complex creeps in, try to think of your rich culture and heritage, and all that you have compared to others. in our culture, we have a saying that goes something along the line of 'if you raise doubts, and leave it unchecked, it will eat you up, regardless of what the reality is'. please don't let this happen to you. lastly, if anyone offends you, please choose not to be offended. there's a huge difference between being offended and choosing not to be. live happy!

it's hard to say, as the letter doesn't mention anything about tuition remission. but the norm these days (at least in the sciences) is that the tuition is paid for by the department, and on top of that, you are offered stipend. so my guess would be you don't have to pay tuition. however, it can only be confirmed by the department people. i hope you don't have to pay the tuition - it's back breaking! congrats on the acceptance!

creeper climber

bad sign

shake weight

i think i might have emailed 15, but most of these were backup profs, in case things didn't work out with my first choice profs. at the end, things did turn out with one of the professors i wanted to work with. so, life is good!

visual signal

i believe that's the day when they need to know of/receive your decision.

if you guys are going to be in india, may i suggest coming to Nepal (my country) as well? we are celebrating 2011 as tourism year, so i assure you will have fun. from the deepest gorge to the top of the world, one horned rhino to the almost extinct snow leopard, cities of temples to the uncharted lands beyond the himalays - and it just keeps getting better. i am going home this summer (april-may).. so if you guys want to give Nepal a shot, and get a guide (which would be me, and for free, of course!!), feel free to shoot me an email. personally, i am planning to hike up to about 5000m (300m shy of everest base camp) and do some white water rafting. sorry for sounding like a salesman here, you guys. and sorry neuro for obstructing the flow of the thread

deferred status

tongue skills

i totally agree with fellas above. i wouldn't mind throwing in an extra benjie in the expenditure pool if that finds me a nice place where i can live at peace, think at peace, and most important of all, sleep at peace. most stipends these days (at least in the sciences) are more than enough to live lavishly, and yet save some $$. so, go for the better apts. it is true that you will get what you pay for. more you pay, more likely that nicer the place will be.