Eigen

I'm pretty sure it's in proportion to who applies, but generally it's about 1/3, 1/3 and 1/3 from what I recall. As to your second question- picking the best school/lab fit for what you want to write is generally what I've seen people go with.

If she said yes, I don't see the problem. There's not much stronger for a letter of recommendation than one from a professor, in the department, in who's lab you've worked/want to work.

I would not go this route. It might be OK, but probably won't be. One possibility, though, would be getting his or her advisor to write you a letter- if you worked with the grad student, you worked for them- and I'm sure they'd be open to having this grad student help with the content of the letter. I know this might work for some undergraduates that have worked with me but had limited contact with my PI- he would be the one that would write the letter, but I know he'd get input from me since I'm the one that worked with them the most. Just a thought.

There's no such thing as switching majors in graduate school, unlike in undergrad. As an undergrad, you apply to a school, and the school accepts you. You can change directions within the institution that accepted you. For graduate school, you apply to a specific program for a specific degree, and they accept you. It's possible that if there are several tracks within that program that you might be able to switch, but even then, it's not assured. To switch programs in graduate school, you either finish and then apply to another program, apply to transfer to a new program/new school, or drop your current program and then re-apply in the new program. What are you wanting to switch to?

Ah, yeah, those points make a lot more sense. My guess is that between the first request and now (since you mention she's very new) she's gotten snowed under with her classes, etc. and doesn't have the time anymore.

If she offered and you declined, then got back to her later, it definitely comes across that she's second choice, but better than nothing. She probably wasn't offended when you said you had other reference writers who you thought would fit your choice of schools better- but then coming back to her was a bit much, especially if you didn't do it very carefully. That's not generally an impression you want to give anyone, much less someone you're asking to write you a recommendation. As to the mismatch between programs and your allusion that if she couldn't see it, she wouldn't write a good letter.... One of my best letters came from a Math professor (I'm in Chemistry). You would (supposedly) already have several writers talking about your math aptitude, not to mention your transcript. Your fitness for graduate study is something that someone in a closely related field can well attest to. I'm glad the next person down your list was able to help you. To expand on the point you were making: be careful how you talk to *everyone*. You never know who you might need help from in the future.

Pretty much what KitKat said. I'm not saying you won't find a place that offers summer chemistry courses at the graduate level, but I've personally never seen it. In addition, keep in mind that research faculty often view the summer as their "break" from teaching- most of them use it to travel, write grants, etc., and wouldn't be around full time to teach a graduate level course. The undergraduate courses that are usually offered are often not the normal faculty that would teach during the year.

Interestingly enough, I think the canceling classes/assigning extra assignments is the least worrisome of the above points- it was par for the course in a lot of my graduate classes. We were expected to be much more self directed in our learning and we were treated more as peers- including being understanding when something comes up that they need to cancel class for. We ended up having a lot of our classes shifted to another day/the weekend/night or being canceled outright because the teacher was at a conference/speaking engagement/etc. For the assignments, it depends if the notice for the assignments is enough time to complete them. If she, say, assigns one thing a week ahead of time, and then a few days later sends out an e-mail tacking something else on, that shouldn't really be a problem. If she's not sending out e-mails or is not giving enough time to complete the assignments, that's different. As to having favorites- it's a part of grad school, imo. You may all be taking the same class, but if another student is TAing or RAing for the teacher, or has asked them to be on their committee, etc. there *should* be a closer working relationship than with other students who are simply taking the class. If she was *grading* based on favorites, that would be one thing, but it seems like she simply has a few students who she's helping with professional development/planning more than the others. Have you gone to her and asked for her help on practicums, etc? Maybe the students she's helping out were the first/only ones that went to her and asked- or maybe they're just closer to her area, and she has more of a connection to helping them out. She's not the only professor in the department, I assume- maybe you should find some others to help you out in the same fashion.

I think that there are, indeed, people who did all they could to research graduate school and their program in advance, and still didn't find it to their liking. From what I've seen doing recruiting and meeting with prospective students, as well as helping first years settle in, those that properly did their research and for whom it still didn't work out are very much in the minority to those who just didn't research their programs, and are upset at things that were clearly stated and easily found before application. I'd also add that I find there's a benefit to "more mature" graduate students- whether they were non-traditional undergraduates, or worked some between undergrad and graduate school. There were several of my peers that really found it took them about 2 years to "settle in" to graduate school- and have wondered if they might have been more successful doing an MS or working for a few years before they applied. And, as StrangeLight said- people leave. If you really thought grad school would work for you, and it's not, a good program and a good advisor won't look down on you for leaving. I will caution that it's worth waiting before you decide, however- I see lots of posts (and hear from lots of people) who want to leave/think grad school isn't for them a few weeks or even a few months in. That's not really giving yourself time to acclimate to a new setting, a new set of priorities, etc. It's also not enough time to try multiple workstyles- maybe you work better early mornings, or late nights, or would work better if you took a nap every afternoon. Give yourself long enough to try these things and see if they work. Starting graduate school is a lot of new stuff pushed on you all at once- teaching, when many of us never taught before- research as a primary job, as opposed to something secondary or tertiary from undergrad- a new city, often away from family, friends and support network- and higher expectations in and out of classes. Adjusting to not only the pace but also the shifting priorities, while at the same time living more "alone" than many of us have before can be quite a system shock, and really takes a long time to fully adjust to. Not only that, but it's amazing how fast you can get accustomed to the new work pace- journal articles took me several hours to read my first semester, now I can get the same amount out of them in a 20 minute read with a few notes. You get into your area of research, you learn the techniques and the details and the major players, and suddenly it gets much easier. You get more efficient- you can do more with less time and energy commitment. Chances are, if this is something you've always wanted, it's something worth sticking to- just relax, take a deep breath, and give yourself some time to adjust properly.

I personally prefer to use the more professional approach with someone I haven't met, even if indications are that they're fairly relaxed about such things.

Your stats are great-they won't hold you back. What's more important at this stage is fit- exactly what kind of chemistry you want to do, and who you want to work with. Don't just pick a big name school, pick a research group or advisor that you really want to work with and who's research you're passionate about.

The IRS Publication on Scholarships and Fellowships says that fees, tuition, and "required" items are valid deductions. Required means it's actually required for the course. Books are the only usual things that count here.

You can make a good living wage as a plumber, electrician, welder, machinist, carpenter, mechanic, or even working construction. And there are more job openings than there are people to fill them, in most parts of the US. I can think of half a dozen or more positions I know personally for the above jobs that will pay more than $20 per hour on average. I was financially supporting myself working as a vet-tech out of highschool- sure, I had to get up at 3 or 4 in the morning, and it was physical work in the heat, but it was a good solid job. Actually, the majority of my friends were financially self-supporting coming out of highschool. See the recent NPR story on Newport, Iowa- the highschool there started offering welding certifications with weekend/afterschool classes, and they have waiting lists for their highschool graduates, starting at what is a very decent living wage. From the people I know that are on "loan forgiveness" plans (currently 25 years), it must be a pretty wide range of jobs, and they certainly aren't all public. Many college teaching positions (private or public) work as well. The figures I'm currently hearing are that even with the current 15%/25 year plan, most people end up paying somewhere around 10% of the amount of the loan they originally took out. Since it's a federal loan, and so is funded with taxpayer money, that leaves the other 90% being paid for by the rest of the taxpayers.

I thought I'd cross post this thread from the Chronicle of Higher Education, just because there are so many excellent course policies that make grading, student interaction, etc. all so much easier. http://chronicle.com.../topicseen.html Discuss! I'll reiterate that I really recommend starting to read the CHE forums as you progress through graduate school- the discussions of academia from the positions of faculty, administrators, etc. are all quite useful. Especially the discussions on the job market, how to sell yourself as a candidate, and so forth. There are regular posts from members of SCs on the do's and don'ts from their most recent batch of applications that can be quite informative to file away, whether you're going on the market next year or in 4 or 5 years.

I'll also add that some of this depends on University policy. At least at my school, you would be required to report the plagiarism to the University Honors Board, and they would decide the sanctions from there. Make sure your school policy will not in some way penalize you for not reporting it. Also, I'll say that this decision should come down to the professor you're TAing for. There's a reason you're TAing, and not the teacher of record. Let them handle and be responsible for the sticky decisions.

The definition of "lecturer" is a bit too broad to really be helpful here. That said, here are some suggestions, depending on circumstances. If you're going for a PhD, it would be best if all of your writers had at least that degree- otherwise, they can't really comment as accurately on your preparedness for that course of study. Ideally, they would also be someone who is/has been in the position of supervising doctoral students- but this isn't always an option. You skipped at least a rank in there, going from instructor to associate professor. I'd say most of the time an Assistant Professor is fine- they have the necessary qualifications. Assuming reasonable qualifications, you want to go for the faculty that have worked with you the closest. They are in the best position to write you a letter- see the above example by Runonsentence. A lot of it is also field dependent, and you didn't give us a field to work with.

Have you talked to the professor(s) for these classes? I'd just be honest, assuming you think they're decent people- ask if you can talk about the midterm, and lay out your worries. Mention that you haven't had a lot of similar material as an undergrad, and it just seems like you're having a hard time playing catch up in addition to learning the new material- and see what they say. They might have some helpful study suggestions for you, additional works that might bridge the gap- or they may say you're not failing according to how they're planning on grading at the end. If you want to PM me a bit more about the courses you're taking, I might have some suggestions. Some courses are just brutal overall.

There are people in my program that have been on "academic probation" for quite a while due to low grades. What it comes down to is the stuff outside of classes- if your coursework isn't up to par, but your research is good, you're on a lot better footing. Does your school have rotations? How are yours going? Also, from my coursework experience, the percent grades on all of our tests were bad. Really bad. Like 30-40 as an average bad. Have the professors talked at all about how they're going to end up assigning grades? How are other people doing? Studying with people from your cohort can really help- a lot of you are probably taking most of the same classes, so you can study together for more than one thing. The last thing I'll ask is how many classes you're taking- I think a lot of first semester students take too many, and in addition to teaching and research it really bogs them down.

I wouldn't put your GPA/class rank from highschool on your CV, no. I was more talking about things like nationally competitive awards, internships, summer research programs, etc.

I don't think it *ever* made sense to take out 50-300k for an English or Social Work or History BA as an investment, not when the earning potential has sat around 20-40k per year for either of those fields for quite some time. That's not to say it might not have been worth it personally to get those degrees, but as an investment? There have been studies out for years that have shown the opportunity cost of college, even with high paying jobs is usually not worth it- you will make more over your lifetime getting a solid blue collar job straight out of highschool and saving for 4 years than going into debt for college- a gap you can almost never make up. There are benefits in overall job stability and employability with a college degree- and those are still there. Even with high unemployment rates, the unemployment rate with a college degree is about half that without one. Either way- you made a financial decision to invest a set amount in your education- just like if you had invested it in anything else. I made a different decision. But now, legislation such as this will effectively erase the vast, vast majority of any money you sunk into your education, and shift the burden to everyone else to pay off the remainder. If this was just a stop-gap measure- letting people pay less on their loans until they could find a job- I'd be all for it. I have no problem with giving people a break in a really bad job market. But what's proposed isn't just to give people a break on their loans while the market is down- it's to give them a break for a while, and then completely let them off the hook. It's the second part I have a problem with. I'd personally propose temporarily dropping interest rates on such loans to 0%, assuming that the proposed 10% discretionary income payments are made. That gives someone struggling to find a job a break- their loans are essentially on hold, with payments going towards the principle- but doesn't absolve them of their debt altogether.

So in other words, people who decided to not go to expensive schools, work their way through schooling with lower grades/longer time to graduation, etc. to make a stable financial decision regarding their education now should have gone wherever they want, because no matter how much they racked up in debt, they only have to pay 10% of their "discretionary" income for 20 years and it all goes away. Kinda sounds like its rewarding people who made poor financial decisions, not really helping people who took out affordable loans, and effectively penalizing those who made it through without taking out loans- whether they went to a lower tier school they could afford, or something else. And in the end, you can't just make that money "go away". It's going to be part of all of our tax burdens to repay the amount that is "forgiven" after 20 years- and with those repayment terms, I'm guessing that will be quite a lot. I think income based repayment is great. I think it's a good idea to help people that are struggling because they can't find a job to pay off the hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans they took out for their education. But at the same time, it *was* their choice to take out hundreds of thousands of dollars in loans for a degree that may or may not be marketable. I know people that went down that road (several hundred thousand dollars for a BA in English? 200k for a degree in social work?)... And while I feel for them, I don't necessarily think they burden of paying back the majority of loans that they took out should come back and fall on my shoulders. Of course, part of the problem (and now something that is hopefully being curtailed) is the fact that people were able to get loans for way more than they would ever, realistically, be able to pay back. If loans were just about tuition, fees, and books, I could get behind this a lot more- but when they also include cost of living, housing, food, etc. for the time in college, I become less enthusiastic about shouldering that burden.

For reference, this is how mine looked- it's a slightly modified (shortened) version of the ACS style: (1) Kung, H.-C. et al. Deaths: Final Data for 2005, National Center for Health Statistics, 2008. (2) Nana-Sinkam, P.; Croce, C. M. Pharmacogenomics 2010, 11, 667-669. (3) Yumin, L. et al. Hematology 2010, 15, 215-221. (4) Davis, S. et al. Nucleic Acids Res. 2006, 34, 2294-2304. (5) Bourdoncle, A. et al. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 2006, 128, 11094-11105. (6) Guedin, A. et al. Nucleic Acids Res. 2010. (7) Guedin, A. et al. Nucleic Acids Res. 2009, 37, 5559-5567. (8) Huang, K. et al. Bioconjugate Chem. 2007, 18, 403-409. Again, all in 10pt font for about 5-6 lines of text. I had a friend that did something similar to what BlueRose recommends.

I think I dropped almost all of mine by my junior year of college or so. Unless you have some really outstanding stuff on there, I don't think I'd put it on a grad school application.

Also note that if you have a research or thesis based MS, you really should tell the advisor early. They'll be the ones deciding when you've done enough to graduate and you want to keep them happy. There was a grad student in my department who decided she wanted to finish with her MS and go to med school. She followed the requirements, did a year and a half of research and then told her PI, who promptly informed her that it would be at least another year before he thought she'd done enough to leave with her MS. Knowing her boss, I think she'd have been able to finish much earlier if she'd been honest. For you especially, Bimmerman, since you have external funding that can be used for an MS, you could probably tell earlier more easily. Three weeks isn't much time to make a decision, but if you're sure by the end of your first 6 mos or so, that's probably a good time to tell your PI that you're thinking of leaving with a MS. By that time, you'll know them better and also have had the opportunity to show them you're good in the lab, hardworking, etc.

No offense, but this is a really underhanded way to go about it. You're a quarter in, and you know you don't want to stay for a PhD, yet you will continue to take funding meant for a PhD student, as well as a spot in a research group that you don't want, but that someone else might. Not only that, but it's a risky game- you need the job recs from your advisor, but if they find out that you're stringing them along for a free MS, that will not go over well. I understand the allure of "gaming the system", but it's ethically shaky, as well as potentially risky.