pea-jay

If you have mostly personal stuff and clothing, you could rent a minivan or regular van one-way and load it up. The added bonus is you'd get to see the entire country. Doesnt work so well if you have furniture though. A friend of mine moved from PA to CA via Amtrak-8 large boxes shipped freight while he rode as a passenger. Decent savings that way, though there probably is only so much train food one could stand.

National Gallery

That would be cool if you could post that here. There's no way I'm making visiting day.

Wow that's cold. Especially nasty on April 1st... Surely if you were good enough to make the semifinals on the fellowship, you ought to be good enough for Wagner, especially since most never made the initial cut on the fellowship. Dunno what's up with that. Sorry to hear that.

horse whisperer

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Some second hand experience here. My wife did the cheaper, slower method for her certifications. It took 2 years but it worked real well given my lower wages at the time and her pregnancy and first year of having a newborn. She wound up getting 5K in grants and 12K in loans which helped fund the living and commuting expenses entailed from a 90 and 180 mile round trip commutes between two CSU campuses. Repayment terms have the loan at 110/month, very manageable. Another factor to consider is timing. Does he really want to enter the workforce next year when we will still face budgetary hangovers? Maybe two years would be better, in the meantime enjoy the lower cost and pressure. That said, a 6-8K differential isnt a lot of money. Hopefully that helps some.

dog lover

hyper active

grilled meat

That happened to me once in high school, but the all-nighter was entirely social in nature. Apparently the following afternoon I came home and dozed off before dinner. I woke up the next morning with absolutely NO memory of getting up from my "nap", eating dinner with my family and getting ready for bed again. Very freaky. During my undergrad years, I would routinely come home and take a nap after lunch. Served me very well.

chicken salad (so which one came first then? )

daily special

Wait a second...are we missing something here? I read on another thread and at one of my university's website, IF you go into public service you are eligible for repayments not to exceed 15% of your income and be totally forgiven after 10 years. Doesn't this turn the whole equation of getting into the expensive schools on it's head?? Or am I off base? Nevermind, I seem to get it now. But it is official that IBR and PSLF are options NOW, not in 2014?

It all depends on the landlord/agent. Some will work with you, via mail or fax. Others require an in-person visit. My experiences have ranged from driving 400 miles just to sign a lease to the landlord leaving the door unlocked with the keys and the lease in a kitchen drawer (to be slid under his door with the rent check the next day). Talk about laid back on the latter...

I feel for you guys on Wagner's unofficial wait list. I've known for several weeks now that I got in. Yet without the all-important financial information, I simply cannot accept or decline their offer. This seems to be a recurring issue with the school. Last year there were waves of acceptances, rejections and more acceptances again. It went well into April. I'd imagine after financial aide does their part, they will have more slots freed up.

Not holding my breath on that one... (Not that my other school is any better at getting this info out)

Try not to worry. Yeah, while the avg MPP student IS older, it isnt by a whole lot (though it does vary from school to school). There will be others your age/situation too, especially given the economy inducing/forcing UG graduates straight into Grad school. What is more important is the school itself. Is it a fulltime cohort-style program or is it more of a commuter school. The former will be easier to form friendships, the latter will be more difficult. My previous experience in grad school was at a commuter-style school and I never formed a single friendship. Of course I never plugged into the activities and only showed up at night at class time. But at least I was familiar with the city and had an unrelated social life. Bottom line, get involved. To hit other concerns, 1) You will probably have to work with fellow students on group work. (most MPP programs have some classes with a group component) So you can get to know fellow students in your group...offer/suggest going to a bar/cafe/whatever to relax after. 2) Married students arent necessarily unavailable or unwilling to socialize, they just have a more significant significant other. Yes that may make heading out for a late night drink more difficult, but that doesnt mean they'll ignore you either if you dont have a partner. 3) I'm in this category, probably a dozen years older than a graduating senior. So, I'll say some things from personal experience. Yes I have a family and all the obligations that go with it. It will make socialization with my cohort more difficult (this actually concerns me because, I will also be new to the school and city). But it doesnt mean I'm going to ignore someone younger either. It's always good to have a friend ten years older (or in another stage of life). It can help broaden your perspectives. One of the first friendships I had in Chicago was with my immediate supervisor. While he was only my supervisor for several months, we remained friends for more than a decade since (was in my wedding and when I took my family to Chicago for vacation, he offered to let us stay at his house). So sure, an older friend probably isnt going to hit the clubs with you on the spur of the moment thing on a thursday evening. I know I wont. But I'll hang out after class when I can. I'll respect you as an adult, just as I do with my cousins who are all in their early 20s. I'd even host a group study session, if time and space permit. So hopefully you can relax a bit. Good luck

Unlike my previous post in this thread, I now know what I am potentially looking at in terms of debt (assuming zero grants or assistantships). I figure I can count on around $28K or $65K in debt based on the respective tuition schedules of public (CUNY) or private (NYU) schools.

body language

I second this. I did grad school one year out of UG and was rather directionless and unsure how to get into the field. I dropped out 1/3 of the way through a Masters of Urban Planning program. After 4 years of unrelated and 8 years of related work experience, I finally feel like its the right time for a masters. This time the better fit is the MPA. Why? Because my non-urban planning experience working for a school district and a publicly regulated energy utility has broadened my horizons and resume to the point where I would consider non-planning jobs. Or hybrid roles. I wouldnt be able to do this had I gone straight through my Urban Planning masters right after graduation. 5-10 years in the workforce teaches many things you won't learn in school. Plus, unless you are a complete career changer, that experience AND a diploma will STILL put you infront of younger grad with the same degree as you but less work experience.

stop sign

toxic waste