Cheshire_Cat

I have a similar question. Except that also, a couple of my LORs work with someone who is BFFs with one of the senior managers at my firm. It is a small world. Since I was one of their star students and a daughter of one of the faculty, I am sure that as soon as I tell someone I am accepted, it will be all over the college, and to the person who is the BFF of the senior manager. Well, then she will know and then everyone here will know I am leaving. (I also really like the person who is friends with the senior manager because she talked to us like adults even before I was in college and she has seen my siblings and I grow up) So, I'm not sure if I want to tell them yet or not...

It's COLD outside! No snow though. But I don't think I've ever had the weather this cold when it is daylight outside.

I'd say something like this "Hey, I noticed you were using my chair the other day. That is cool and all, but if I need to work then maybe we should steal another chair from outside our office to use. If it's just going to be a couple more minutes, then I don't want to go through the hassle, but if it will be a while then I may want to... so anyways, next time, if you could give me a guess at how long it will be, I'd really appreciate it. Thanks" Signed Pushy Broad

It is really hard for me to stop jiggling my foot. And it annoys me just as much as everyone else, but sometimes it feels like if I stop then my leg will explode. I try not to hit anything with it though, and usually it is my foot, not my entire leg. I know how annoying it is though because it annoys me when someone else does it, haha.

This has to be my favorite quote ever, haha.

Well, I agree with you on mentioning names, I think that was completely unacceptable. However, I think sometimes not mentioning where you work could be dishonest. For instance, a professor at ABC Tech school may have a Ph.D, but even if he is speaking in his area of expertise, he probably doesn't have the same expertise as someone from Harvard. The only caveat is that you have to mention your discipline too. I think if you write that you are a professor of XYZ when you are discussing coffee then you are a pompus ass, but there are a lot of cases where your purview isn't clearly defined. I just don't think we should be able to punish people or revoke tenure when they mention their employment. Sometimes they may use it to manipulate things, but sometimes it can be a useful piece of information. I guess as an accountant I always think the more information, the more transparency, the better. People can look at someone who signs their academic institution name after discussing coffee and think "Well, that's stupid, planetary sciences has nothing to do with coffee" whereas if he just signed it Dr. X, then they may think "hey, he's a doctor, obviously he knows the healthier coffee..." But like I said, there is a difference between writing it *as* an employee of somewhere, and mentioning your employment as credentials. I can't say anything about healthcare as an employee of my company, even though my project has to do with accounting and healthcare, and Obamacare implementation is a huge topic of discussion. However, I can say that I'm working in that industry at X&Y firm, and my opinion is... I just can't say it is the opinion of the firm. But it is relevent information.

At a university you are always going to have people with opinions that are different than your, and they deserve to have their opinions heard just as much as you do, even if it isn't in their area of expertise. And I think it is ok to use your credentials to bolster your opinion, because even if you are speaking in an area that isn't your expertise, it at least means you might have some critical thinking skills to get this far. Also, in Planetary Sciences, you may have a pretty small area that you can speak on(I dunno, I only took one weather and climate class in undergrad) but other areas may have a broader spectrum. I know my dad, a marketing professor, actually has a huge publication on the philosophy of science, which at first glance you would think has nothing to do with marketing. Part of scholarship is branching out to areas that may be unusual for someone with your degree to show interest in, and see how it could affect your discipline. And sometimes you need to recieve unofficial feedback before deciding to dig into the issue further. To do that, you have to publish it somewhere, which I think is why we see a lot of professors with blogs. But let's take it out of academia for a second. Suppose you were reading an article titled Why Accounting is Ruining Free Markets By Cheshire C. CPA (or something like that.) At the end of the article, there is a blurb about the author Cheshire C. Is a Certified Public Accountant, and works as a staff accountant at Ernst and Young, LLC. In her spare time, she eats green eggs and ham, and plays with her pet alligator, Alice. Would it seem unusual for part of the blurb to include her place of employment? I don't think so. Even though obviously her employer would never endorse saying that accounting is ruining free markets, it is part of her her background. You just have to get over the fact that other people at the university may have opinions that make you uncomfortable, and may share those opinions with large groups of people.

Well, first of all, it would be business student who would be the "protected class" in this example. But I didn't want to use real examples. The point is, we need to be able to discuss race, religion, and sexual identity civilly. You shouldn't talk about them in a bigoted way, but at the same time, nothing will change if we stay silent about them, or simply refuse to address dissenting opinions.

How much taxes is withheld really changes things, budget wise. I've realized I'm not actually going to be taking home a whole lot less than I am right now, but I won't have all the benefits I do now either.

I would get one now if you have the money. If not, it will be a random big expense in middle of grad school when you aren't expecting it. You might be able to mitigate that by paying for it with credit, but some place like Best Buy may not see a grad school stipend as a good enough income stream to extend a lot of credit. Or, put however much you think you may spend on a computer aside in a savings account so that you will have it when your finally dies.

There is a difference between discussing an idea and making bigoted comments. For instance, say we were in a sociology class, and I mention something in economics that tends to disagree with most sociological theories. A response of "Well, you just say that because you are a heartless business person" would be a harassing remark, whereas something like "Well, economics generally only takes into consideration the monetary values whereas our models are taking into account the sociological affects as well..." would be a perfectly fine way to address the point. Or if the professor of the sociology class kept mentioning how evil rich greedy business people were, then that would be a intimidating learning environment. But in academia you shouldn't say that anything is a "sacred cow" and not up for discussion, although it may not be up for discussion in a particular class. However we should always strive to discuss sensitive topics with the greatest tact possible in efforts to not offend anyone unnecessarily.

Speaking for the university is one thing, but mentioning your creditials is different. Part of your credentials is where you work. Mentioning them is different than saying that the whole school agrees with you. Universities are full of differing, sometimes crazy, opinions. (It may be different in planetary sciences, but take a walk down the hall to the sociology or history departments if you don't believe me. I've grown up on a university campus) If you are writing something, and happen to have a position at Harvard, you are going to mention it because hey, it may make you a more credible source. Professors at Harvard generally have some expertise, even if it isn't in the area being discussed, it is part of your resume. The reason we have tenure is because professors have a greater need for protection to explore unpopular opinions. You can't say they can only publish them as a private citizen, when part of their job is to explore these issues. They must have protection to research and publish without fear of retribution.

Professors are people too. I would suggest reading up on his research some, however when in doubt, you can also talk about family, work, hobbies, ect.

I'm pretty conservative, and actually agree that sometimes people try to shut down discussions that should be had by saying it is "offensive" and that isn't right. (Conservatives do it to, but usually say it is unamerican or something like that to do it instead) but I think what he did was wrong and there should be consequences. It is one thing to post about an event on campus and use it is an example of something endemic that you disagree with. It is another matter entirely to post names of students in this event, especially if you are in a position of authority over one of them. What the TA did was incorrect, imo. However, he should have used it as a teaching moment for her instead of blast her on the internet. That was completely unprofessional.

I have a degree in accounting, an Masters in Accounting, and a CPA. If you already have the accounting credit hours needed to sit for your CPA, then I'd go with the MBA. It is more flexible. However, if you are still having some problems with some concepts that will be tested on the CPA exam, then a MS in accounting will help with that. Another71.com has a great active forum for people who are trying to get their CPAs. If I were you, I'd go over there and ask them what they think.

Yay! Another B-School person! We are a rare breed from what I've discovered. I've heard from GA State(accepted!), but not from Emory or UGA. I know Emory sent out interview requests, so I'm pretty sure I'm rejected there. I think business schools are generally rather late in their acceptances, unless they are a lesser known schools trying to get some really good people.

It depends on how much you will probably make after school and how long you want to be repaying loans. I am going to end up with a little debt, but I estimate that I will be able to repay that debt in 2 years, while making debt payments that are around 10% of my monthly income. That seem acceptable to me. I have a friend who has 180k in student loan debt, and works as a nanny. That is unacceptable to me. Just remember that if you are in debt, every cent that you spend on something silly, is a cent more you are in debt. Debt can be a useful tool, but like a chainsaw, if you use it incorrectly you could end up losing an arm.

I believe loans count as you providing your own support unless your parents actually pay them back. However, if you stayed with your parents and they covered rent and food for part of the year, that may count for them. The question is, did you cover at least half of your support this year through either loans or working? (Graduate scholarships count) If you did, then you are independent.

My dad has Dragon Naturally Speaking and he loves it. He's a professor and writer, but I never thought about it being useful for school. I bought a monitor for my computer, so with my laptop I can have dual monitors. I also bought a comfortable reading chair... ok, I'm weird. Also, the dual monitors is so I can work from home at the moment, so it isn't that weird to buy this early.

I don't believe they can because their offer constitutes a contract on their side, however, it is best to get along with the people you plan on working with for the next 4-5 years of your life. Good luck. I'm meeting with my POI and several students for lunch this afternoon. I've been accepted into the program, but it's still nerve wracking.

Ugh! Work is just really hard right now. I hate my assignment and I don't know what I can really do about it. I've tried being happy about it, but then I miss something and it hurts my morale. They can't really fire or reassign me because they need people or they aren't going to get done on time. I'm not detail oriented enough for the job. Maybe I would be if I had time, but I feel like they are pushing production, production, production, and I don't want to fall behind. But I don't see things, or I think I've done them because I'm juggling 40 different projects at once, and each project has 50 moving parts. And to top it all off, I'm sick and all I want to do is sleep. And I don't like disappointing people, especially not my senior manager. If I cry less than twice a week as a Ph.D student, it will be a step up from this job.

Yeah, that is the biggest thing people ask me. "You mean you won't be working? How are you going to pay for that? Are you going to have a bunch of student loans?" Oh, I'll be working alright, just not in corporate America. What I say is that a Ph.D program is basically like a job, however at the end you have a Ph.D.

Good to know. This is what I thought, but I wasn't sure. Also, make sure to deduct fees and other education costs from your adjusted gross income if your offer only promises to cover tuition.

Emory is probably B. It is a highly recognized private school, with a huge hospital attached. The hospital is where they sent the American Ebola patients. In my field, it is also a top 10 research school, but I'm in business. However, what they are known for is science and medicine, so they may be even better there, I'm not sure.

My dad always has some interesting evaluations. For example, he teaches a MARKETING Tools class, which is an elective, and he got one that said "I'm not a marketing major, so everything he taught here was completely useless and I don't understand why the teacher was teaching us this stuff." Really? He had a student go to the department head because she called him at home one night, and then again early the next morning, and because he hadn't returned her calls yet he was "unresponsive"