red_crayons

There is a waitlist. Judging from this forum, it's as long as the list of accepted people. Gosh, good luck everyone...

Yeah, exactly. And considering the prestige of people like Mike Lynch, Trevor Pinch, Steve Hilgartner... Yeah.

I really wish someone who got in would contribute here! What are your interests, twchristopher, moraurora, and ldh? I'm afraid I have to waffle on this on the public board, but I would be happy to share mine once my situation with regard to this department becomes clearer, or via private chat.

Huh, interesting. I'm at Cornell, and I take classes in the Science and Technology Studies department. My understanding is that HASTS is pretty similar, but maybe with more of an emphasis on the "history" piece. The first thing I think of when I think about STS/Sociology of Science is not so much field work, so that's an interesting approach. In STS here, and in the Anthro programs that some of the HASTS faculty come out of, the emphasis is on theory and criticism. I would look at the journal Social Studies of Science to get a better idea of what the STS side of that program is all about. I just noticed this because I'm peeking around here again to get more information on STS-y programs. If you have any thoughts you'd like to share about HASTS from your own experience, I'd love to hear it!

I'm a big tech nerd. Another caveat I didn't notice in this thread: NETWORKS. There are 2 kinds of cell networks in the states. Phones built for one don't work on the other. iPhones only work on ATT and T-Mobile. ATT: half-assed coverage, but everywhere T-Mobile: excellent coverage in most big cities, but leave downtown and you're stuck with no reception. AT ALL. Even in medium cities near the big city. You might have trouble convincing a carrier to let you use all your phone's features on their network. In the US, ATT has a stranglehold on iPhones, and controls what you can do on them, and would prefer to you off the network if your phone is unlocked. T-Mobile... I'm not sure how readily they accept customers with unlocked iPhones? Try one of the many online iPhone forums - maybe Apple Insider? - to find out how to deal with this. The iPhone is a very special case as far as carriers go in the US, so advice from someone with a similar experience will go a long way. You'll be required to have a data plan on ATT, just by virtue of the fact that you own an iPhone. I doubt that you would be able set up prepaid calling at all with ATT. I'm not sure about T-Mobile. You'll probably pay in the $80-$130 range per month, and voice/data will be bundled. Texting will be an extra $20 on top of your voice/data, but optional (but not really, who can live without texting?!?). Some universities have arrangements with certain carriers to off discounts on monthly service, which can help. Smartphone service is the US is subpar, restrictive, and expensive. Good luck...

Sounds like a scam, stay away! Or, so anal that they won't rent to grad students, anyway...

Yeah, I paid my bill late almost every semester as an undergrad because the financial aid billing was going through a lot of changes. I was always registered within a couple days of talking to someone, and it was fine!

If you don't pay your bursar bill, you can't register for classes, ride the bus, or officially participate in campus life at all. And they'll charge you interest once you're overdue for a certain amount of time. Of course, in practice, crying works to get deadlines pushed back... Teagle is really close to Upson and collegetown. You could just walk. If you really want to park, there's free after 5pm parking up at Helen Newman. To park near Teagle, you'd have to walk across the street to the parking garage, which I believe is also free after 5?

I've been saying for 3 years that when I started grad school I would shave my head. It wouldn't look any less professional than my uncontrollable semi-afro, so. Plus, given the town where I'm going to school, it would make me blend in more with the townsfolk and long-term grads that are already here. I'm not sure if I'm going to follow through... I should! I shouldn't. I should! I shouldn't.

You can walk to Helen Newman Hall any day of the year, pay for your gym fee by credit card or add it to your bursar bill. They will program your card then and there, AND give you a paper receipt so you can use the gyms immediately if, for some reason, your card isn't activated immediately. If you haven't opted to purchase the gym membership yet and you're strapped for cash, wait until you get here and go in person. But if you already opted in, and it's on your bursar bill... The gym you mention on the "far southwest" is probably Noyes? If so, it is tiny, meaning there's often no equipment free, filled with anorexics and dudes on sports teams, and in the middle of undergrad dorms. Not my favorite for those reasons. It is new and has big windows, which makes it worth trying. But it's also down a big hill. Teagle - near the baseball field and Barton - is close to Upson, easier to get to (less hill), parking closer in the evenings, and has a more pleasant atmosphere. Maps of campus are really deceptive because the hills change EVERYTHING. I'd be up for meeting up. I'll have to see how things work out. Lunch during the week will probably be easier than Sunday brunch, as at least 2, possibly 3, of my September weekends are spoken for (Philly, NYC)...

I think there's a lot of over-thinking going on in this thread. Grad students at my undergrad/future grad dress worse than the undergrads. Frumpy, nothing fits, old things from the 90s when we were freshmen in high school. I think anyone who's worried enough to still be reading Grad Cafe will be juuuuuust fine. Plus, remember how so many of the posters on this forum showed up to campus visits wwaaaaaaayyyyyyyy overdressed? We'll all be fiiiine. Last year, I got a couple pairs of skinny, non-jean pants (Banana Republic, Urban Outfitters, and Old Navy). Now I just wear those with tunic/belt/sweater, or with hipster blouses, or with a fitted and/or embellished t-shirt. Think the cheaper side of Anthropologie (same shapes, but not as much silk/expensive prints). It works for my casual university jobs, and I'm SURE it will work for grad school. I was middle-of-the-pack dressed up at my department visit weekend, and more dressed up than the grads normally dressed (...I took a class in their building). So my advice would be to go a step up with your pants/skirts and see how you fit in. You'll instantly feel more adult, and you'll probably realize you're fiiine.

I checked on this. August 23rd was the answer I got. That's the day of registration. Danya

My $0.02 on this: - Cornell Card. I had it as an undergrad. It shows up on your bursar bill, but it's billed separately, and gets finance charges applied separately and, I think, at a higher rate. My parents flaked out on helping me pay it, I rolled it over from semester to semester, and eventually spent over a year paying it back. Boo. It's a credit card that's semi-attached to your bursar bill. You can use it many places on campus. You can use Cornell card and Big Red Bucks (prepaid food account) at dining halls, campus cafes, and for food in campus stores. You can't use BRB for NON-food, so Cornell card would kick in for buying books, medication, etc. Except at Gannett, the health center, where you can charge things directly to your bursar bill. I'm not doing Cornell card again. I have a regular credit card if I want to put off paying for things, and it has a lower interest rate, too. Meh. - Gyms at Cornell are like the libraries: There are several small niche ones, and a couple big ones with all kinds of people. One of the bigger gyms (Helen Newman) has very limited free parking after 5pm. Another (Teagle) has a parking garage pretty close by, which is I believe also free after 5pm. Luckily Teagle is also very close to Upson, and close to collegetown, and it's the biggest gym, too. I LOVE the gym system. None of them are perfect, but there's so many, and they're open all the time. It's very convenient. And it's wonderful to have a cheap way to stay active during the long, long winter. The nice private gym in town is $50/month for students. - Parking. Don't bother registering if you're not getting a parking pass. It's just so they know where to send the tickets! As staff, I can buy packets of 10 day parking passes. You can do that as a grad student, too. I'm not buying a parking pass, but I'll buy packets of 10 as I need them. I live downtown and drive to campus about once a week, when I'm running late or have extra stuff to drag along. It helps that one of the zones that those work for is literally 10 feet from my office door... - Payment. I know nothing about this. I am really getting pissed with all the super shady emails. Cornell Bursar signature, meaningless Sallie Mae subject line, and all text? It couldn't possibly look more like a scam. I refuse to use it, and I'm going to continue dealing with all money issues in person, in Day Hall, at the Bursar's office. Thanks, but no thanks, Cornell. Cornell's billing practices are the worst part of the university, IMHO. They nickel and dime you, and they have high turnover in financial aid/bursar so no one can answer complex questions, and now they have this horrible, sketchy payment system. Signing up for NetPay right now is making me feel really paranoid. But mostly... I'm SO EXCITED. Yay being a student again! Edit: OH MY GOSH. I can't even express how much I hate the way they apply credits to your bill!!! They bill in early July, but don't apply credits until sometime in August, leaving the next 3 weeks for me to worry about funding mysteriously being pulled and not being able to pay my bill. ARGH. Their billing system does no favors for those of us who tend toward paranoia and panic.

Tough. Landlords aren't very nice about letting people out of leases around here, so good luck... I would ask ASAP so you know what your options are. I second posting to your department's listserv. I got a roommate through the housing listserv pretty quickly, but that was months ago. Also, try posting to the shared apartments on Craigslist. As for ID cards... They can take your picture when you get there. They say they can't to speed things up by having most of them done ahead of time. They might charge you the day of, too? Most of the orientation programs are run by department, or MAYBE by college. University-wide, it looks like there's only a 3.5 hour pick up your ID and paperwork time on Monday the 23rd. So really, just listen to your department. Also: undergrad check in might be on August 20th. But grad school is the 23rd. You'll want to stay far away from campus when undergrads are checking in.

My biggest caution is on the ground floor apartment. Watch out for mold. Even if you don't see it. Musty, old smell? "Stuffy" feeling? RUN. It's not hard to develop a mold allergy which results in always having a "cold", or developing asthma, or getting bronchitis a lot. This happened to me and it's had long-lasting effects. Several co-workers have also had this problem. Ithaca is humid, and then it's cold, and that's how you get mold. State and Stewart sounds nice. A lot of old houses have too-powerful heat. Plus, heat rises, so the top floor will probably be the warmest. State and Stewart has a bus stop TO campus right in front. It's walkable to downtown. There are no grocery stores nearby, but you can take a bus from downtown. There's also a Carshare car at that intersection that you could rent hourly for errands. I did Carshare for a while and it was GREAT.