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oceanlover

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Everything posted by oceanlover

  1. So far second semester is starting off nice and easy, appreciate some low stress classes and some free time since I am still recovering from a really hard fall semester! On another note, I talked to my advisor yesterday about spring break plans and he said I can take the week with no classes off (aka no research obligations/stress to worry about) so I spontaneously booked myself a trip to Europe for 10 days!! Now I have something super awesome to look forward too, making these next couple months not seem that bad!!
  2. I had a skype interview last year for the graduate program I am in now. It was not at Columbia, but it is my understanding that skype interviews are pretty much the same. It is definitely good news, means that they are interested in you, and you should treat it as a regular interview. Make sure you are prepared for their questions, such as what you want to do, why Columbia specifically, why engineering, etc. Also make sure you do the Skype interview in a quiet room and let others know not to disturb you, I had my roommate walk into the background of mine (despite all the signs I posted around our dorm!) and it was a bit embarrassing. Nonetheless, just be prepared to answer some questions, have some questions to ask them, and relax! Good luck!
  3. I was wondering the same thing. weird how it was changed so last minute, considering the original deadline was today. feel bad because I was bombarding one of my writers yesterday about getting it in today since he was super busy and now he could have maybe used the extra 24hrs. oh well, just happy mines done!!
  4. I am in the process of registering for courses for the fall and was wondering how many classes/credits other students have taken for their first semester. My school requires to take at least 9 credits, and my advisor recommended signing up for the mandatory 3 intro courses (6 credits total) and 1 or 2 elections (which would put me at 9 or 12 credits). There are these two electives I'm really interested in, but am debating if I should take only one or both. It's my first semester so I don't want to be too overwhelmed, but I also don't want to save too many courses for next year when my research is in full swing. So I'm just wondering how many courses have other people taken for their first semester of grad school. How many credits did you find to be successful in, and how many were just too much?
  5. I'm insanely bored out of my mind!! Literally been spending my days netflix binging and counting down the days until I move into my new apartment. Its finally coming up later this week, and I'm sure I'll be more occupied then with settling in, buying last minute things for my place and exploring the area (plus the fact that wifi will take a week to get set up will force me to leave and find things to do!) I have about 2 weeks before classes once i move in, and i'm also hoping to get started on a consistent workout and eating healthy schedule that I can continue (hopefully) through the semester). Nonetheless, I can't wait for classes to start. But of course its always this way; when you have nothing to do you wish to be busy but as soon as your busy again you wish you had nothing to do!
  6. I'm starting grad school in the fall and had some questions about managing a relationship/getting time off. I've just recently began a long distant relationship, and although I know its going to be very hard and I won't have much time, me and my bf want to continue our relationship and give it a try. How exactly does time off work in grad school? We're far enough away that to visit would require a couple hundred dollar plane ticket, and we hope to see each other every 6-8 weeks, but it would have to be more than a 2 day weekend trip. For example, I know I have a 2 day fall break in October (giving me a 4 day weekend), would it be totally out of the question to take the remaining 3 days off or work from home? It would proabaly work better for me if he came to visit me, but i also hope to take time off somewhere and visit him for a week or so. or should i get this idea out of my mind now, for is it totally unreasonable to be able to dedicate this time to someone while also studying and doing research? Is there anyone currently in a long distant relationship who could shed some light on the situation? How do you juggle visiting your significant other? Any grad school relationship advice would be super helpful. thanks!
  7. I spent last summer studying for the GREs, and after wasting a couple weeks being unproductive my words of advice is to definitely start off with a practice test. This way you know where exactly to focus your efforts. My biggest weakness was vocab and I was okay with math, so after getting all my practice materials my daily schedule was to aim for 30-50 new words of vocab a day (on top of reviewing previous words) and getting through a chapter of math review every 3-4 days. It also depends on how much time you have; I had a full-time internship last summer so had to manage with an hour or two of GRE stuff a day, and dedicated most of my weekends. As I got closer, it definitely became more real and the pressure was on, motivating me to do more work. I know how easy it is to burn out, but try to remind yourself about why your doing it in the first place, and how badly you want to get into grad school! One last word of advice: make sure to practice the essays! I read all the tips and tricks and waited until about a week and a half before my GRE then tried to do a timed, practice essay a day. It proved to be very very helpful; it's easy to look at examples and be like oh yeah I could do this but it's completely different to try and brainstorm ideas on your own in a timed setting. I got a really good writing score, and its completely due to the fact that I practiced beforehand and knew what the graders wanted. Good luck!
  8. I've found a place to stay, completed required paperwork, and am now a month away from moving for grad school! Time has been passing painstakingly slow, any tips for surviving this last month? What are you guys doing to prepare in these last couple weeks? I'm getting super bored sitting at home and really anxious to start school!
  9. i was in cancun on spring break! i had my unofficial acceptance so to say, and was confident my official was coming. it was the only time during my trip that i had internet access and was able to check my email, and there it was! needless to say i celebrated extra that day
  10. I applied this fall for next fall, and started really preparing for grad school at the beginning of the semester. Looking back I wish I had more time, specifically for GRE studying and contacting professors. I really underestimated how time consuming contacting POIs would be, between searching for programs and waiting for replies. I wanted to be very thorough and made such I covered every school and every program, I didn't want to look back and have any regrets! Definitely spend a lot of time looking at schools and specifically the research being done, as well as working on your SOP. Being prepared and applying early definitely takes helps minimize the stress! Good luck!
  11. I've planned a trip for myself this summer; I've been wanting to visit Africa for as long as I can remember and finally made the commitment. One week after undergraduate graduation I am leaving to backpack through Africa for 5 weeks! Literally cannot wait, I've had internships the past 3 summers and can't wait to relaxed. I booked through a travel company and already put down the deposit so no backing out now!! Hopefully I get in somewhere for grad school though, I spent the majority of my savings on this trip and will have no plan AND no money if i get rejected.
  12. So last week the dean's office of a school contacted me about setting up an interview with a POI. I talked to my POI last week, and at the end of the conversation I asked when I should be hearing back from the school. He told me another student of his got her acceptance last week, and asked if when the dean's office contacted me did they offer me acceptance or just say we should talk. I said they told me that it was just about setting up a time to talk, and he said well they might be waiting to hear from him and he will contact them and I should hear next week. So obviously I took this as a very very good sign and started (maybe too preemptively) celebrating my unofficial acceptance. Now I just got contacted by the deans office again, who wants to set up another phone interview with them "as the last step before decision of my application" and to "chat about my interests in the program and my POI". Of course I'm now freaking out, hopefully its all just logistical and to tie up any lose ends, but I'm not sure what to expect from this phone conversation! Anyone else ever been interviewed by the deans office?? I think i'm stressing myself out about this haha
  13. I know getting an interview after submitting your application is a very positive thing, but I was wondering if a professor tends to interview a lot of people? I'm talking in terms of a school that does phone/skype interviews rather than flying down people for interview recruitment weekends. Can i be pretty confident that I have a good shot unless I totally mess it up and they want someone else, or do they tend to phone interview a lot of people?
  14. bombed my phone interview today at one school, but a few hours later was offered a interview at my top choice! when one door closes another one opens :)

    1. sarab

      sarab

      that's right!

    2. nugget

      nugget

      Consider it a practice run for the interview at your top school. Now you know what to except and you should do much better. Good luck!

  15. agree with the dexter recommendation! great show. Shameless is also awesome, as long as you don't mind crude humor. if your looking for something light and funny, definitely suggest Modern Family. haha i feel like i watched every single show ever over winter break to distract myself, and now that i'm back at school i have less time for tv but more time to worry lol
  16. i applied for a school back in December and still haven't heard back! i've been going crazy, especially all of last month, and then finally heard back from two schools today! the waiting game sucks, but no news is better than bad news right? best of luck!
  17. phone interview on wednesday!

  18. ahh the wait is horrible! my schools also notify in feb/march and its so discouraging to see people posting all these acceptances already haha makes me feel like i got rejected everywhere and i need to keep reminding myself to be patient
  19. I was just wondering if anyone knew if masters and phd programs (for the same department at the same school) notifications come out at the same or different times? do one tend to come out before the other? on the results page all i can find are some results for a phd program at the school i'm interested in for the previous years, and i'm not sure if this is a reliable indication (i applied for my masters) or if i should take acceptance/rejection dates lightly?
  20. the strenuous waiting game begins

  21. I do the same thing! haha literally three times a day im on the results page looking if people posted information today about the schools i applied to. not really sure why, i either see nothing and get upset that all acceptances have been already sent or see something and get upset that i haven't received anything yet hahah. everyones stats are so intimidating. on another note, does anyone know if masters vs phd programs have different dates for sending out acceptances/denials? on the results page someone posted last month that they were accepted in my department, but looking back at it it was for a phd and i'm applying for a masters. do they do both at once or do they come out at different times?
  22. got my first rejection today and totally in the same boat. all my negative thinking is killing me
  23. cry and cry some more. i have no backup plan because I decided to blow the majority of my money on a month long trip to africa this summer as a last hoorah before grad school, and i just got my first rejection today its hard to find a entry level job as a science major right out of college with only a bachelors, and i really really really don't want to end up just being a lab tech somewhere
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