katerific

How has 2012 treated you guys? What things were awesome? What things sucked? Are you tired of Gangnam style yet?! More importantly, why hasn't a "grad school style" parody been made yet?!?! What things do you hope for in 2013? Personally, 2012 sucked for me, but I hope 2013 is better. And I'm a little tired of Gangnam style--well, all the videos of people doing the dance, really.

Have fun, my friends. I have attended for the past three years, but this year I won't be making it out there. I AM SO SAD. Please have a beer (or 60) in my honor.

Although I AM eyeing the ivory tower, here are some dream occupations that I have seriously considered if things work don't work out. Private investigator/detective Shepherd Absinthe-drinking artist/greeting card designer Surveyor Interior designer Personal assistant

Having so much fun working in the lab on a Saturday afternoon!

I actually disagree with some of the points made here. In my program, we have about a 50/50 split of MS and PhD. Granted, it's a tiny program, but still. MS is not considered solely a consolation prize here, and I'd say about 1/3 of the PhD candidates already have MS degrees. I think all of the physical oceanographers came from an engineering/CS/math related backgrounds, and they're primarily the ones with the MS degrees since they had 0 background in anything oceanography coming out of undergrad. IIRC, I think FSU, RSMAS, and Rutgers all accept (and in some cases totally fund) MS candidates. Non-US schools are also a lot better about offering that track, so I agree with all the schools already listed by others. That said, I think usmivka and rockbender made a lot of good points, too. For example, working as a lab technician might help you get more familiar with what oceanography is all about. Also: even though earth/ocean sciences may be relatively less competitive than other programs, don't switch to it thinking it's an easy ride, because it's still tough but it is super fun, I'd say

dudes, check out the beard on this monkey.

My commute during the summer: My commute during the school year:

I am THRILLED for all the undergrads to be back.

oh man. Did you infiltrate my brain and write this using my thoughts? I was basically in an identical situation. Well, still am. My old advisor was very cold and critical. His style was basically "here is the goal, now figure it out and write it up, k." Communication was very non-existent (except for "do you have those results/those calculations/etc?" I should note that I had to figure out a method that wasn't even known in my lab, so I was really on my own). It was a very, very intense and demanding environment, and I don't think we ever had a conversation about something other than the project (or letters of reference). My current advisor is much, much more hands on and is really invested in helping me develop as a scientist. He likes constant communication and likes to know exactly what I'm doing and how, not just the end product. When I started, I was freaking out because I was stuck in the old mindset. For example, he'd ask me for updates pretty often, and I interpreted that as "where are your results?" which lead to a lot of anxiety. But really, he just wanted a status update. Another issue I had was that I assumed the only reason he wanted updates was because I worked too slow. But really, he is detail-oriented and likes to make sure we use the best method possible. It's been a year and I still haven't full adjusted. The main things I've done is a) tell my advisor about what I'm used to and constantly remind myself that my current advisor is not at all the same as my old advisor. I am curious to hear about other strategies!

Last year, I did 7. Pros: Lots of options. Room to explore. Good to have alternatives and keep options open. Met a lot of awesome scientists. Cons: Expensive. Time consuming. Rampant disappointment and unbridled self-loathing (note: I suck and so did my apps, so results may vary).

I'm 23 and a spinster. I ain't even mad.

Geologists might make the bedrock, but the motion of the ocean makes the bed rock. Things get pretty wet with oceanographers. As for atmospheric people? One word: haboob.

Oh, I also forgot to mention this. I used to watch ZERO sports, despite doing my ugrad at a school VERY big on football (and other sports). Seriously, never cared, didn't want to, etc. As a graduate student, I actually have started following some sports. Two reasons: 1) it's been harder to meet people, and sports chit chat can really break the ice when meeting some people, and 2) I hang out with a ton of Europeans, so we always met up to watch the Euro Cup. It sure is interesting to watch some of the most polite, demure people go bonkers over a game. So yeah, sports on TV helped me socialize (???). I still actually don't care about sports, though.

He didn't even mention (Mg,Fe)7Si8O22(OH)2. Now THAT'S restraint.

I am so, so, SO happy this thread is still alive. My work lives on!

I have a 13" HP Folio and I loooove it. It's super light (~3 lb or something) and thin. I do plan on getting a bigger screen I can hook up to when I need to do some serious number crunching/writing, though.

I was one of 11+ for my incoming class (which is about the third of the grad student pop in my dept). I really like the people, but the size made it harder for me to socialize. I tend to be ridiculously shy, and I missed the boat when the mini-cliques formed within my cohort. It's been a year since I got here and I feel like I've finally found my niche... hanging out with postdocs (from all departments, not just my own). It is weird.

I actually watch more TV than I did as an undergrad. Granted, I used to never watch TV... but after using my brain for a bajillion hours straight, HELL YEAH I wanna watch some Hoarders. (That show in particular also helps motivate me to clean.) I do a lot of labwork, and sometimes I have to sit around babysitting my cute little vials for a while. If it's not a demanding task, I will pop on Netflix and watch a disgusting amount of Pretty Little Liars.

Shameless, waddle. Shame. less. Have an upvote anyway. I mean... a +1.

I haven't, but a ton of my friends have, and I know some of the professors who do the course. It's basically field trips and eating tons of pasta and drinking a lot of wine in a beautiful part of Italy. Oh, and the course with like lectures and stuff. The only complaint I ever heard was the price tag.

Tom Cruise!

No replies to this topic? It seems like it could be good insight on the different flavors on advisor-student relations... I'll bite. Previous advisor: super demanding and very cold. I did not work well with him in that he CRUSHED my self-esteem. However... I did produce some really cool results. To his credit, he always pressed me to do work. Even though I was miserable... well, I did produce. Out of fear, but still. Current advisor: I get along a lot better with him. He is very invested in my personal success. However, he is a micromanager and that kind of drives me insane. It definitely slows things down, but he does complement my style very well. and I am learning a lot from him.

Well, I have a nook (completely different, I know), but having some sort of tablet has been AWESOME. I can read almost any paper on-the-go... or at home. Super awesome and way better than hardcopies. Being able to lay back in bed and read/post on TGC and/or reddit is also pretty neat. Not quite the same with laptops....