sjoh197

Nope I totally understand..... I compromised by getting a roommate that I was also in love with... Lol.

Nearly impossible, impossible, and difficult are very different things. Only you will be able to decide not only which one of these it is... But weigh it against the quality, happiness, and likelihood of your success vs other locations.

^^good suggestion about making sure they will actually do it. Although, you sounded as though you had maybe already been told tho was the case.

Every David Attenborough documentary ever. The Bird of Paradise BBC doc is super hilarious too.

Just wanted to say congrats on the interview invite... Hope all goes well

Now that you have been accepted into some programs... It might be a good time to go talk to someone about this. (Im not sure who "your guy" is) If you know that the background check is inevitable... It's not like you will be keeping it a secret anyways. Better to be told the possibilities now than later. I hope someone else here can help you.... And good luck.

Congrats @Pink Fuzzy Bunny Dug up this old gem....

Just saw a job posting for my field that says.... Required education: Master's degree or better. Like, couldn't it just say "or higher"? Does it really have to say better? Does it really need to remind me that the piece of paper in my bedroom is basically worthless.

With the realization that there is a good chance I won't get into the one grad school I applied to.... I am attempting to come up with a plan for what to do after acceptances and rejections roll out. Background: I just got my geology degree after my partner got a really great job in Houston. A month later... oil crashed like a plane without wings. Since moving is not an option, and I have basically zero chance of finding a job in my field here for at least 2-3 years.... I need a new career path. What sounds fun and has nothing to do with oil? ...or medicine.... I hate medicine.

Oh god.... It's so bad its good.

How long ago was it that you responded?

Most people I know don't wear suits, but I am also in a more relaxedly dressed field. Unless it is going to be very cold in the building... I would also refrain from the suit. Nice slacks and a longsleeve blouse would be good. And comfortable shoes. I would never wear heels... you don't know how much you will be walking and will likely be on your feet all day. You don't want to be thinking about your feet rather than your purpose.

@piglet33 Well, once you took out the test results and images, it was probably more like 20+ pages, but still, it was a lot freaking pages. It was basically the whole... abstract, general history, procedure, results, discussions... everything, the whole shebang. The worst part was that there wasn't a page limit.... that's just how long it took to write all the crap we had to write. And mine was pretty succinct. And we had not one... but two of them in the semester. I managed to keep the blah blah blah out of the second one. lol

@piglet33 When it comes to essays, scientific papers, and the like I am usually a very good writer. (Forum not so much lol) But I had one 30+ page paper due for a core class, and despite doing really well, in the middle of the paper I had literally left a "blah, blah, blah," Where I had meant to expand later and then completely forgot, and somehow managed to read over it like 5 times. The professor ended up putting "LOL" and didn't even take off points. It was a very stressful paper.

I can't eat wheat, alcohol sugars, and have gerd which limits my intake of coffee, citrus, tomato, fats and so on.... So nausea is a common occurrence on this end. Even if its anxious nausea, you could try asking your doctor for a script of higher dose prilosec or nexium. It would help you feel better.

UH for my program doesn't respond from mid march to early April. The pain I real.

With so much relevant discussion..... http://www.collegehumor.com/post/6774819/honest-game-of-life

It's so funny, because my father never went to college and ended up quite wealthy in my adult years.... and I have lawyer friends who are $100,000 in debt to pay back and are still living under this cloud. Certain jobs don't guarantee happiness and certain career paths don't guarantee success. I just wish more people would do what they enjoy (within reason) without worrying about keeping up with the Joneses.

@piglet33 My mother isn't unsupportive.... but (and I really don't want to step on anyones toes) she got a degree in social science that didn't have to be funded at a place where basically everyone got in for that program. So she doesn't understand why it is so much more difficult to apply to a hard science where your lab and department needs the funds to support your research. That's why I was rejected last year. My first POI at UH said.... I really like you and your app was great, but I just don't have the funds I thought I would to support you.... bummer. You would think being in a university she would be more understanding.... honestly, my father, who never went to college is super duper supportive and has asked me about it all along the way and even offered to pay any tuition costs throughout the entirety of my degree.

@piglet33 It's amazing the trouble that institutions will give you over the most common sense stuff. So my mother is a professor at a large state school, and she has a Masters, which was sufficient to become tenured faculty in her field. Last semester she decided she wanted to go back to get her PhD, which is provided by the Uni, with time off to continue her education. But she had to go back and take 2 undergrad math courses to be eligible. And boy did the the undergrad college admissions give her all kinds of hell. "We can't admit you without SAT scores from 20+ years ago" and "We need the transcript of the community college you went to at 17 for one semester even though you already have your Masters and are faculty here." The best was "Since you don't have proof of your childhood immunizations... you can't come to class if there's a sickness" And she asked them.... "Does that mean I get to skip teaching the class I am a Professor for too?" That one stumped them.

Better to have spent the 500 and wish you hadn't than to have not applied and gotten rejected from your current acceptance and than be in a hole of stress and worry

After reading your response again....you seem to think that I am very much judging you and thinking that you are making a terrible decision. Neither of these things are true, and I was never attempting to imply that you are being foolish. You put in a lot of subjective opinions that I never made. Nor was I judging people who put their children in daycare. I myself put my daughter in daycare and was fine with it. But I know many mothers that feel extremely guilty for the same thing. I have never judge working or stay at home mothers so long as they are doing their best to provide for their children. I understand that you are extremely stressed, but Jesus

I think you are misinterpreting my story as being on the offensive, and for that I apologize. Having a child is a wonderful thing and I never assumed you were doing it for kicks or that trying is a senseless decision. I think you are projecting the negative responses you have gotten from others. .... the reason that I included said anecdote is that you really wont know what will happen, and there are many paths that you can go down, each with its own unique consequences. I wasn't attempting to make you justify your decisions to us, as I think doing what makes you happy, regardless what decision that is is great. I was just trying to show that there are many factors and each will have to be weighed, and even with as much planning as possible... you will never be able to fully plan for what hasn't happened. That is why I included questions that you will have to ask and answer to yourself... not us. No one needs to know why you make the decisions you do... other than you.

If you can afford to live alone, or move someone slightly less expensive but still alone.... I would personally do that. Unless you have a specific friend in mind, roommates can be a huge gamble. Also... if you've been living alone, you have all of your furniture and personal items. You might have to downsize. Would you furnish the apartment and let other people potentially ruin your stuff? Can you deal with the lack of privacy as others mentioned?

I know someone who went through something similar, but had a not so happy ending. They tried fertility treatments and such, and she did end up leaving her program due to the stress of it all (which I understand). However, the fertility treatments in the end didn't work out. They didn't end up having bio children, and she gave up her program and never did end up finishing her PhD. I also know people who have successfully had children during their PhD and they did great. All of that to say that I think it would be really great to sit down at a calm and unstressful time, perhaps with your partner or someone else you really trust, and go through a pros cons list of the possible decisions before you. What are the chances of you actually having bio children? (Hard one when you don't really know the answer yet) Do you have the support network necessary to realistically finish your education with a newborn baby/ young toddler? Will you beat yourself up if your child spends a lot of its time with a sitter/daycare? Will you beat yourself up later in life for Not finishing your education if you do quit? Will you beat yourself up if your fertility treatments and such are unsuccessful?