Victoris

I need to take out the trash, but I don't feel like it. I wish I had a trash-shoot or something of that nature.

Congrats on everyone's acceptance. Will everyone have to spend at least 4 years pursuing his/her PhD?

Hello. Will someone provide some advice on how you are managing/have manage a full-time job; while pursuing a doctoral degree on a part-time basis. Oh, I'm looking for information regarding the first two years of coursework. I'm assuming it would be similar to the workload of a master's program. I don't plan to work while I'm working on my dissertation. Honestly, I don't want to have too much time on my hands when I could be increasing my bank account. Thanks.

The scholarship is your stipend; only for the fall and spring semester. No summer funding. This means that you will either have to apply for a summer GRA position, take on a part-time job, or seek additional funding elsewhere. I live 45mins. away from GMU and pay $1200 for a one bedroom. Graduate housing range from a studio ($1300) to three bedroom ($2200). They are located on the main campus (Fairfax, VA) and Prince William campus (Manassas, VA). Some students rent rooms or entire homes around the campus; owners will only rent to GMU students. But beware. Some of them are way too expensive; like you can have the master bedroom for $1100 a month. Majority of the students are commuters; traveling from different cities. The furthest I heard was 3 hours away. The parking decals range from one semester at $100 to $600 to park in the garage. Summer is always $60. There is a small percentage of us who do not mind walking in rain, sleet, or snow. We park off-campus and walk onto campus; it is literally a 2-3 mins. walk (given the pedestrian light comes on as you walk to the intersection. Since GMU is located within the Northern DC Metro area (northern VA, D.C., and southern MD), the costs of items are reasonably higher than in other areas.

Always, always sustain communication with your prospective programs. In your case, ask your mentor for a brief agenda of the Visit Day to allow you to prepare and dress accordingly. Since he/she is your mentor, you should receive a definite answer.

Jackie Robinson

I received my top acceptance in Dec., accepted the offer, and withdrew the rest of my applications the second week in Jan. Yes, we do put in a lot of "effort and money" into our applications, but consider your ultimate goal. Regardless of if you get acceptances or denials, you won't get any of your "effort and money" back, so that should not be a deciding factor. Those are the risks you take to reach your ultimate goal. Unless you are not 100 percent sure that you want to attend your top choice, then I am advising you to withdraw the remaining applications. Sometimes it is okay to humble ourselves for others; especially those who are in their second/third application cycles. Think positive and positive things will happen in your life. The same goes for thinking negative. One ounce of doubt may cause one to miss out on great opportunities.

Night light

Did you submit your application on time? Previously, did you apply for the Fall 15 session? Does this program have a waitlist or were you simply rejected? If your prospective program is considering you for a different session, have you thought to update your application in the meantime; to make it stronger? What was your reasoning behind appealing? Did you appeal in a professional and respectful manner? Due to the limited information you have provided, you will receive a better answer if you question your program. No one on GradCafe is aware of your competition nor the available slots for incoming students at your prospective school.

Submitting a longer SOP may imply that you are unable to follow simple directions. I was 'politely' informed that professors don't require a specific page/word limit for "giggles and ish". The content of your SOP must effectively illustrate your competence and goals to the admission committee; within the given page limit.

Has anyone taken the Certified in Public Health (CPH) Exam as a student? I was told that I could take it after my first year of doctoral school for free. Is it worth taking? Thanks.

Was your count at or close to the requirement? If not, I hope you was able to get your application in on time. Thanks for the update.

Cool. Yes. You will be fine. Don't stress it.

What does your school's graduate policy entail? Have you spoken with your advisor? Remember that your core courses in grad school are not the same as those undergrad general courses. Grad core courses relate to your field some type of way; meaning you will need to fall back on the information from that course in your future courses/papers/projects/internships (from my own view of my program's final thesis/capstone projects). In the end, if you school is okay with the C and you can bring up your GPA in the future, then don't stress it. Life happens. Be well-rounded, network, volunteer, join the grad club or something. Study/concentrate harder. Love the field of your masters. Before all things, make sure you read your school's graduate student policy. Per a future job or doctoral program, one C is not going to negatively affect your future. FYI: In my current masters program, if one makes a C, he or she has one chance to retake the course to get a higher grade. If he or she decides not to repeat the course and receives a C in a different course, that individual is kicked out of our program; for having two Cs. Also, be glad that you aren't in a program like mine, for you would be on probation for having a GPA close to a 3.0; the minimum to stay in my program (not to scare you).

From my understanding, if you are pasting your statement in an online text box then spaces are included within the character count. If you are uploading a Word document, spaces are not included in the count.