jellyfish1

http://iwastesomuchtime.com/on/?i=87199 Something to remember when you're stressing out!

BU archaeology is sending out decisions at the end of February. But it is a totally separate dept from anthropology and I have no infor about anthro.

Sorry to hear that. It sounds like they had given you so many positive signals. That stinks. Good luck with your other apps!

Congrats to that person though!

Stanford arch interview, but not me, sadly.

I've heard nothing, but there's an anthro arch result on the board.

Does anyone want to claim the Northwestern interview? What subfield was it for? Thanks and congrats to those who got interviews!

Also, didn't you say in another thread that this school gave you some reimbursement for your visit? That, again, is an amazingly good sign. These departments do not offer money for visits if they are not seriously interested in the student. They do not have the kind of money to do that for everyone. Don't stress. We just have to try to stay calm and wait it out.

Oil filter

One of my POIs told me that at some schools, profs rank all the students that applied to work with them, and then a committee decides which of the top ranked students get offers. So if your poi ranked you highly, you would be being considered by other people but based on his recommendation. He would DEFINITELY have a great deal of say over who is admitted as his advisee. It wouldn't make any sense for him not to have a say.

Thanks all for the great advice! I grew up with a dog, and currently live with a roommate who has a cat. I would really love to be able to have a dog, and I'm not giving up all hope yet, but I'm definitely planning to wait a few months after starting school to decide if I can handle ANY pet. That being said, I'm 90% sure I'm going to end up getting a cat or two, (I know many cats do better in pairs, but some rescues have cats that are used to being the only pet, so I'll just have to see). Based on my experiences taking care of my roomie's cat, I'm pretty sure I'd be able to handle it. I will probably have to wait on the dog front until I have a partner I'm living with, but perhaps we'll see. Depending on where I go, I might be able to find somewhere to live that involves a roommate with a dog- all the perks, only some of the responsibilities, none of the costs! Thanks everyone for all the advice! I'm also hoping this thread will be helpful for others considering finding a furry friend during grad school!

It was really simple. I've had many craigslist roommates and they've all been fine. You just need to e-mail a bit and then meet in person at a public place before you decide to room together. I guarantee you that just as many crazy people lurk on other roommate finding sites. Craigslist can be a really great resource. Not only did I find this roommate on craigslist, I've found apartments and other roommates there too. I also furnished my whole apartment mostly using craigslist (just know how to check for bedbugs! I've never found any, but I've heard stories). I've never met anyone who was crazy and I use craigslist a TON. The few slightly questionable people I've come across usually made it abundantly clear within a few e-mails. You can also google search people that respond to your craigslist ad and see what comes up. Honestly, unless you're perusing the "casual encounters" section, more than likely you'll be totally fine. Just go check out the craigslist for the area you'll be living in and see what's there. The rooms/shares section is really good for finding roommates and people usually give detailed descriptions of themselves and who they are looking for. Just, like I said, meet in public first and NEVER meet someone for the first time at their apartment all alone. Craigslist has many more normal people than crazy ones, at least in the apts section, it seems.

I found my roommate on craigslist and she is seriously one of my favorite people in the world. She sometimes makes me breakfast and stuff and we get along so well! My advice (for ANY of those types of websites, Uloop and university ones included) is to get coffee at a very public place first. Crazies can go to grad school too, you never know.

Question: sometimes it says people are notified by email and sometimes by phone for the same program. Do some POI's call and others don't? Does it depend on your relationship with the POI? I wasn't able to visit anywhere before applying, but I had email exchanges with each POI. Do you only get phone calls if you've talked on the phone before? Any idea how this works? Just curious.

Congrats, Jump! That looks like such an awesome program. It's almost February! Trying to keep my hopes up, no news yet...

If you search "anthropology", it is the third result listed.

Oral History

This thread got super burried. Let's revive it! A question to get us started: Where did you do your field school? Are you still interested in that geographic area/period? My field school was on an imperial Roman villa. it was a great experience, but I later decided historical American archaeology fit my interests better. A pretty major focus shift! (Especially since classical archaeology is often in an entirely seperate department!)

i was told by the director of grad admissions at BU (for archaeology) that they will be notifying around the end of February. So still a month of waiting left. That was archaeology though, not anthro. At BU those two depts are completely seperate. Hope that helps!

I think so! I hope so. I just want to know.

I tend generally to be extremely reluctant to email POIs or departments at this point for pretty much any reason, although I see that I'm alone in that on this forum. They said they had it way back when, so I would just hope for the best and let it be. They are being inundated, I'm sure, with antsy applicants worrying about every little thing. Obviously we are ALL antsy and that is fine, but I would avoid letting the department see that. At this point in the game, we just have to wait. I'm sure they have your cv and writing sample. The thing is though, that although those things certainly matter, I'm not sure how influential they are. My understanding is that given the sheer volume of written pages in each app, you're lucky if they read every word of your SOP. Most schools say the SOP is the most important factor, and I'm guessing they only really look at your writing sample and cv if your SOP puts you in the top of the pack. But anyway, they are all busy and well into reading applications by now. Most schools have most likely already done a round of ranking and/or of culling. In my mind, the risk of sounding needy/demanding/difficult to work with in ANY way (something that can definitely prevent admission), is far greater than the reward of perhaps a little peace of mind. Challenging as it is, we just have to hang tight for a few more weeks. It will all be fine.

So I've been thinking of getting a pet when I go to grad school. I have done quite a bit of traveling in the past few years, so it wasn't feasible. Now, I will likely be in one location for several years and it seems like a good time. Right now my roommate has a cat, and I could seeing myself getting one of my own when I go to grad school. I like cats and they are (fairly) easy to take care of. I'd prefer a dog though. I know dogs are expensive, require a regular walk schedule, and limit the places you can live because many apts don't allow them. Current PhD students and/or current dog owners- I solicit your advice and experiences! Is it especially challenging to have a dog during a PhD program? Do you recommend it? Is it possible to fit pet-related costs into a graduate stipend budget? Do the hours make it impossible? I do not expect to have a partner and plan to live alone, although I may have to have a roommate, depending on the cost of living where I go. What are the pros/cons? If you are a PhD student with a dog, do you feel that it's been worth it or do you wish you'd waited until after finishing? Is there anything I should consider that I haven't discussed in this post?

Me too! I've been trying to do lots of reading, but I keep getting distracted by the internet. Alas! I'm currently reading Kavalier and Clay, though I've just started it. I also feel like I should make a dent into the stack of intense archaeo and anthro tomes I've collected... gah. May I ask where you are interviewing? Congrats on that and good luck!

Colorless- I know and I was worried. I met with a POI and asked about that. Apparently they've changed things and starting last year all accepted phd students get a guaranteed 5 years of funding. It's new, and really good news!!

That is really weird. It sounds though like a much better option than having heard nothing. If they thought you had zero chance of admittance, they wouldn't have e-mailed you at all. At least you've made the first cut, perhaps!