MashaMashaMasha

Yep, I will be there! Sorry in advance for the rain... Looking at the event schedule, it seems like it will be a pretty useful weekend. Are you staying with a graduate student?

If you're a subscriber to CHE, you can find good stats here: http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-Students-Pay/36366/ There have also been a few threads on this topic, but this one has a number of outside links as well as some estimates of typical funding packages: It seems to me that funding varies widely based on a number of factors, including geography, the extent to which the institution relies on state money/the state money situation, and ranking/size of the program.

With acceptances going out, decisions being made, and recruitment weekends just around the corner, I thought we might start a UW meet and greet thread. I'm headed to UW for Sociology (PhD) in the fall. I'm pretty excited about spending time at the Suzzalo library, particularly that Harry Potter-esque reading room... I also live in Seattle, so I'm happy to help answer questions about neighborhoods, culture, public transit, etc.

Great timing for this advice! I'm already accepted to MyU and headed to the recruitment weekend shortly. Two of my three POIs will be there, along with several current students. I've been out of school now for five years, so I'm actually quite nervous about holding my own in this crowd. Any advice on specific questions I should be asking, things to look for, or what students appreciate from prospectives? Thanks!

I am also taking a huge pay cut to do what I love. I'm working on my budget and cutting out the fat. One of the ways I'm doing this, is by looking at what kind of "free" or discounted services or products I can access once I'm attending MyU. One of those benefits is a transit pass that is good for unlimited rides/transfers on the public transit systems in this city. So, I'm selling my car which will free up a little cash but also will mean no car payments and no insurance payments. I'll essentially be saving $600/month before the cost of gas, which is major. Another benefit is the student recreation center, so I'll be dropping my gym membership in favor of using the student center, which will cut about $50 a month. I'm also holding back from buying lunches and cooking dinners that make good leftovers to take to work, so that I can get used to never ever ever eating out again There are quite a few penny pincher resources out there. The blog The Simple Dollar is one of my favorites to peruse.

I have the same decision to make - I told my boss that I was admitted and that I'd be leaving in the summer, but that could mean any time June - Aug. I'm already going to start training my replacement this spring. So, I also crave the adventure! Cross-country train trip? Yes. Road trip on the California coast? Yes. Europe? Yes. Have the money to do anything? Not reallyyyy.

Oh, Chuck. I am SO with you on all of this. I've been out of school for 5 years. I really tried to highlight this professional experience as a strength, but now coming up on the recruitment weekend, I am about to meet a number of admitted students who are just plain brilliant and hard-workers and I'm supposed to be one of them?? Surreal. I've re-directed my anxiety into making spreadsheets for the following: 1. Graduate school supplies 2. Course requirements (i mean, how else am I supposed to figure out my electives) 3. External funding sources Re-directing helps me a LOT. I highly recommend becoming obsessive over something

Congrats!

This was my 2nd cycle. The first cycle, I applied to 6 schools and was rejected from 5 and waitlisted at the remaining 1. Here's what I did differently this year: The major change was a sense of focus. I honed in on one school (not highly recommended by most) and saw that I had a great fit. The one school is in a major city, so after the failed 2009 cycle, I applied for jobs and moved here. As a local applicant, I could visit the campus whenever professors were available. This was huge. My statement of purpose went through no fewer than 12 edits and was seen by no fewer than four of my former professors. I also floated it to my POIs after several positive interactions. I stuck with what I knew and kept my SoP short and professional. All those friendly tips about giving a hook in the beginning, explaining away bad grades, showing some personality - I totally threw them out the window. I said this is what I'm here for, this is who I want to work with and why, this is why I want to go to MyU, this is why my whole academic career has been building up to this moment. POIs - As a local applicant, I had greater access to my POIs. I found three professors whose work seemed relevant to my proposed research. I emailed all of them, met with two of them, and those two professors actually looked over my application materials themselves before I submitted it. Last cycle I half-heartedly emailed a few professors at each school, with less than excited responses. I did meet with one or two, but did not really take into consideration their work while writing my SoP. This time I mentioned all three POIs *and* I included examples of their work in my SoP that I believed showed excellent fit with my proposed research. I actually used my exact same letter-writers, but included more than the mandatory 3 letters. I do not know if this helped or if they were read, but it is different from last time. I researched the program obsessively. I set up google alerts for my POIs, I looked at their program strengths, I looked at which professors were also professors at the school of international studies, I looked at the current graduate students and their work. This also led to being able to ask informed questions when meeting with professors. I approached meeting them as a session to gather information in order to make an informed decision to apply. I did not look to them to see what my chances were, and I did not ask them to do me any favors. I talked to them about specific subfields of training (i.e. Demography, Political Soc) and what the strengths and weaknesses were in the department. I went to the ASA meeting last summer. This helped me refine my thoughts, utilize the academic language that current faculty and students were familiar with, and network with interesting people. Attending also got me energized to take on the admissions process. My job is related, so I didn't network as a prospective student, but as a professional in applied sociology. I spoke with people after related presentations, and asked folks about their research trajectories. None of the people I met were current students or faculty at MyU but it did help boost my confidence and get excited about my own research. I trusted my former professors and mentors to a large degree. I spoke with them by email, I got their input, we talked on the phone. It was intense. I studied for and re-took the GRE. I did better, although with the new GRE scoring system, it was hard to really compare to the old scores. EDIT to add: Since I had already been out of school for a number of years, I did not focus on publishing or boosting my transcripts. I think that it's a great idea if you have the opportunity, but I had to focus on the parts of my application that I could still improve, and tried to highlight my strengths. So, I essentially put a ton of work into crafting the parts of my application that I could change (if I could have gone back in time and boosted some grades, I would have!) and accepted that my application was not perfect. I took a very professional and reasoned approach to this decision. I've now been out of UG for 5 years, so living on a graduate stipend while facing a less-than-ideal job market on the other end is not something that I take lightly. I think that kind of preparedness shows when you meet with potential advisers. HTH! I would have been able to use a thread like this about a year ago!!

I emailed mine as soon as I made the decision to accept the offer. I sent quick emails letting each POI know that I had just received the good news, had accepted the offer, and looked forward to seeing them at the recruitment weekend. I think it depends on the professor, how frequently he or she reads and responds to email, and what kind of relationship you've built (just a few emails? In-person meetings?) If you feel comfortable doing so, I don't think it's a problem to thank your POI for answering questions about the program or offering you guidance while you were applying. I would, however, avoid emailing before being accepted. I considered doing this, but restrained myself, and was relieved that I hadn't jumped the gun.

Soo, not to be *that* person on a forum, but is your frustration limited to this situation? It sounds like he really dropped the ball on this life-changing decision. He never got around to making his list, he didn't get his ducks in a row to apply... From this extremely limited and biased info, it sounds to me like there's some toxicity here that you two need to address before making *any* long-term plans. Is it possible that he does not want to go? Is it possible that making a commitment for the next decade or so is too much for him? Anyway, these are my two cents after about a year of therapy that started wayyyyy after my husband and I began to have similar issues. :-/

Ask open-ended questions! It makes you seem more engaged, and since the conversation cannot be shut down with a yes or no answer, you'll have opportunity to ask follow-up questions.

Folks who are interested in analyzing the earlier data might use this 1995 report: http://www.nap.edu/html/researchdoc/ from the National Academies of Science. Same source, but they may have changed methodology between the two reports so the metric still isn't flawless...

If you are a member of a student or professional association, check with them to see if they offer travel awards. I second all the reasons above for going!

Ha! I love it!

Fellow Seattlite, you had me at this ^ Also: the great lakes, the puget sound, reading in front of the fireplace with my partner, days in the garden, my dog when she wags her tail so hard that she smacks herself in the face with it, bike rides, fresh food, cooking and wine, and that moment in jiu jitsu when something you try actually works.

Congrats on the new job! What is it? FWIW, my first time around I was rejected to 5/6 and wait listed at the 6th but not offered admission in the end. It is too early to worry about that in your case, but even if it comes to that, it's not the end of the world and it will give you a chance to strengthen your application for next time around.

Oh, this! Yes. Hoping I don't let any former or future mentors down...

Oh, I feel ya. I waited until I got my official letter with funding before telling anyone except this forum! I thought for sure that they had made a mistake (that happens, right?!) and that they actually wanted someone else. I have been TOTALLY overwhelmed with joy, relief, nerves, pride, nerves... did I mention nerves? I am definitely in a state of disbelief. I think it's even more pronounced for me because this is my 2nd cycle, and the first time around I got rejected from every school I applied to. It was so painful, and I was so nervous about this round, and now feel so very vindicated. But also nervous! So yes, I am riding this wave of emotions too. I have a great therapist though And I'm trying not to obsess over course requirements and instead looking at practical things, you know, like the best bike route to campus from my house! (Kidding. Sort of.) How are you dealing with this influx of emotions?

I contacted 3 POIs at my program, all of whom responded. I exchanged emails similar to the template above. I met face to face with two of the three, and asked them about the program and what the department values in terms of research interests (I.e. domestic or international focus, quantitative methods). I spoke a little about my research interests and background, but mostly focused on the program. I have to echo a previous post in saying that I don't think that just contacting POIs really matters for admissions - it is much more important to demonstrate an understanding of the program, and a strong interest in attending, imo, regardless of whether that happens in person or on paper. I also think jenjenjen is right that if you have anything lacking on paper, you need to make that up somehow, and contacting POIs is one way to do that.

3.4 GPA in my last two years of study at a top university. 3.7 overall GPA. GRE V 159 Q 162 Five years professional experience as a researcher in the labor movement. Research interests: Social Movements, Demography, Political Sociology, and Russia and Eastern Europe. My POIs were Professors Pfaff, Tolnay, and Rosenfeld. I had pretty good contact with them throughout the process, and met with two beforehand. I mentioned all three in my SoP. Allegedly great LORs, one from a high-profile scholar in my subfield, and an SoP that I never want to look at again after the 20+ revisions! I'm a 2nd-round applicant - I applied and was wait-listed in 2009. I now live in Seattle, which made contact with POIs much easier this time around, obviously. jenjenjen - Are you planning on going to the Recruitment Weekend?

I will claim one of the University of Washington acceptances from today! Got a congratulations email, details coming in the mail. Immediately emailed a few of my POIs, one of whom said that it was still early in the admissions process, so those of us who posted today must have been early admits. Good luck to my fellow applicants!

I think the grad program folks at UW - Seattle generally don't work on Fridays, so we may not hear anything today.

I'm in the same boat with my quant skills. Hoping that 5 years out, all in research and data analysis, will make up for that one stats grade where I was too arrogant to come to class :-/

Agreed. Super premature, although I know we are all holding our breath and crossing our fingers. I highly recommend taking a personal day, stepping away from your email for a day, and getting some activity and fresh air. This process can be really unhealthy for a lot of us, and it's good to get perspective.