jujubea

This topic has been written on on this forum already - within the past few months even. That might be why no one's answering - because many of us already have (lots of people do this don't worry; the search function stinks anyway). My two cents: I was told by one school that one of the reasons they liked me (and ultimately accepted me) was because of a piece I had published last year, that is not even related to the major... perhaps only mildly tangentially, in the same way studying dogs is like studying cats: sure they're totally different creature, but they are both animals and domesticated pets... I think that a publication shows you have writing and thinking skills which are acknowledged/recognized by an entity outside of yourself and the school.

Can anyone on here claim the UCSB admit with funding? I was accepted for an entirely different program, and am nominated for certain funding packages, but they can't say any amounts yet. I'm trying to get a feel for what UCSB usually offers in its central fellowships in the humanities .... anyone?

I called them on the phone nearly hyperventilating, "I got in! I got in to XYZ school!" Sending something seems so distant/impersonal! You wouldn't just call them and tell them? Or is this not immediate family? I guess there's a difference between getting accepted somewhere, period, and deciding which place you're actually going to go. For the former, I did phone calls of excitement, or texts if they couldn't pick up. But maybe when I decide where to go I'll send them a sweatshirt or something...

The only negative thing I've ever heard/read was someone else's experience on this forum, where they weren't hired (or might not have been hired) as a professor, because they wouldn't be able to work at the university for as long, I suppose. There are others of us not-as-young ones lurking around here. You're not alone!

You sound like my fiance

In my humble and inexperienced opinion (I have not been to the other side of a grad program yet), when you're rankings are above 10, they're all the same. That's if you're talking about PUREly ranking. If you're talking about the difference between the correct or best equipment or facilities (right type of telescope, right collections in the library) and rank above 10 reflects that, then it matters more.

Oh no, I didn't say she should turn it down because of it. She asked for pros and cons. Having lived with these little creatures, I'd call it a con. Also, just curious why you think it's extreme or an over-generalization? It's kind of just a fact of living in the southwest. Just like tornadoes are a factual part of living in Tornado Alley, and earthquakes are part of living in California.

Caution: I am biased, I strongly dislike AZ in general. Tarantulas, giant centipedes, rattle snakes, and scorpions. For critters with venom, they are some of the most poisonous in the United States. Google giant brown centipede. I stepped on one (10 inches long) in the middle of the night, it "bit" me (can't actually bite, just pinches) and had shooting pain for about a week afterwards, in addition to numbness and tingling in my toes where it got me. We have woken up to scorpions on the floor in the house, and have had a rattlesnake in the backyard in only the half year I've been here. Some of the worst air quality in the country, due to dust problems. Hot as heck with almost no respite. It "cools down" in the winter months. Get used to being hot all the time. Local population seems to be lots of immature frat-boy types, worse than a typical "college town." Areas downtown are covered with drunken undergrads -- you'd think you were still on campus half the time. Great airport with lots of travel options. Source: I live relatively close by. --shudder-- I can't wait to move.

Hi there - I'm almost 30 and have a fiance and three stepchildren, two of whom are moving with us to wherever we end up. Any other stepparents on this thread? Brings a whole new dimension to the challenge... They're 13 and 11, and wonderful kids, but still not used to me as their primary female caregiver (they see their out-of-state mom for one weekend every other month, at best). Being the stepparent and the cause for the impending family move is making for tense family life. I was already the least favorite parent, now I fear it's going to get worse. (I'm not an evil stepmom though! I cook and clean and help with their homework and shuttle them to and fro, take care of them when they're sick, etc., etc. all without batting an eye, at least not at them...) I have a supportive fiance, but we're really worried about making ends meet wherever we go, because everywhere is more expensive than a border town. At least we have the solace of knowing wherever we go will have better schools and better environment and better people for the kids.

U.S. visa officers use published federal poverty standards to determine whether an applicant can use a certain amount of money to support their family in the U.S., of however many individuals. Here are the 2014 guidelines: http://aspe.hhs.gov/poverty/14poverty.cfm They are ridiculously low, and $30k would be enough to support a family of FIVE according to those guidelines. If the officer refuses you for not having "enough funds" to support your family, yet your stipend or wage would be above those guidelines, you can appeal your visa rejection (only if the refusal was ONLY on those grounds). Source: http://www.state.gov/m/a/dir/regs/fam/09fam/index.htm

I am working on a spreadsheet of this, which includes more or less the following, so far (not by any particular ranking yet): Money: Moving costs Cost of living (Housing, property taxes, food) Stipend amount Tuition waiver Tuition costs if any Quality of life: Transportation options Pollution Outdoor recreation Weather Parks and open spaces Other recreation Program: School ranking/prestige Job placement statistics TA training and support Cohort fit Range of skills I'd leave with Number of faculty matches Quality of faculty matches Quality of faculty, period Average time to completion Array of specialties Department environment (building, rooms, office spaces for TAs) Specific to my situation (spouse and children): # of hours in class per week Schedule flexibility Class times and days Job market for spouse Salary range for spouse in that area Ease of transferring his professional license Schools for the kids: Open or closed districts Proximity to home Proximity to my school Proximity to spouse's likely work area School quality Availability of specific extracurriculars As for how you rank them, it depends on what's most important to you. Only you can know which factors really matter. Are you more concerned with have a decent quality of life for the next 5-7 years? Or more concerned with finding a job immediately after graduation? etc.

double vision...

...Sounds like the UC system to me. I would email a Grad Program Assistant to clarify/verify.

Hmm, you make a good point. I definitely could work my way back into my subfield. I never thought of it like that. Whereas if I go to a school with no reputation (not a bad rep, just no-little rep), despite its subfield ranking, if I wanted to branch out or go into different areas of the field... It might be harder, because my general program name is not recognized. However... this program has been described as "up and coming," and one of my main POI's there was just given the annual outstanding research award by our national association. To contrast, the beauty of the top-10 in-my-field school, too, is that they not only have lots of faculty I'm interested in, but even other areas and departments, and they encourage interdisciplinary work (my love!). This school, however, has been flagged as possibly going the way of 'old' Chico State - i.e. becoming a party school, and being known more for its undergrads party life than for its academics. The in-between school is "recognized" by people in my field, though not ranked particularly high. I am going to re-visit that school to hopefully make a better determination of faculty fit. Right now, I say two or three fit, but it's really only one or two that I can see myself working with... But even with those two I feel like my research will get swayed heavily by their own interests, rather than my own. Gah! There is too much to think about! So many factors to weigh. I am trying to make a pros and cons spreadsheet, ranking the programs against one another, but also giving a stand-alone "score" 0-10 based on about 30 different factors and counting right now. Although I read somewhere else on the forum that doing this type of sheet is a waste of time because we subconsciously score/rank things how we ultimately want them to come out. ...Though I guess that gives you insight (if you lack it) on which school you really do prefer...

Yayyyy Hermes! Congratulations!!!

This is such a helpful thread! I want to bookmark it for when my time comes...!

Thank you, right? Top 20 is top 20 is top 20. I'm looking at a school that, IF ranked, hits well past 125th. But 45 in my field. But tons of excellent faculty fit. And sometimes ranked top 3 in my sub sub field. But people in my field sometimes don't even know it exists. Seriously. Vs. a school ranked at 40 overall, and top 10 in my field, but not even ranked in my sub field. But with tons of faculty I am interested in. Vs. a school ranked 100ish overall, 80 in my field, but top 10 in sub field. With only two or three faculty. Now that's a spread!

No way! How cool! His work is super interesting, and crosses over with one of my (not primary) POIs at UNM, Shinsuke Eguchi. I can't wait to read your stuff a couple years from now

Yes! This!

Oh that's exciting Autumn! I just realized that's where Kent Ono is, too. Very interesting work. Yours intersect at all?

Lol. I tried to tell my partner that bit about worry being like rocking chairs, cuz he worries way more than I do. He said, "But they're so comfortable.."

I once slammed into the back of a parked car, when no one was around. I wrote them a note and gave them all my details. Turned out to be a rental car so it would've been covered even if I hadn't left a note! Years later I witnessed a hit-and-run..... and decided to chase the jerk myself while on the phone with 911. Not my smartest moment, no, but it sure felt good to do the right thing!

Is anyone else going to Boulder's visit day in March? It's March 5-6.

Another gradcafe-er PM'd they received 27k from the central fellowship, in an unrelated major, but still in the humanities. The results search shows someone in physics getting 32k, and someone in English getting 29k. Anyone else able to guesstimate or contribute data?