Songbird222

I would recommend that you touch base with other applicants here:

https://federalstemgradseminars.wordpress.com/upcoming/ August 24, 2016: How to Successfully Apply for Federal Fellowships We welcome you to join a virtual information session on applying for federal fellowships that will be held on Wednesday, August 24, 2016 at 1pm ET. During this 1.5 hour session, our panelists, who represent several different agencies, will be sharing tips and advice on how to successfully apply for federal fellowships and traineeships. There will be time for Q&A following the panelist presentations. Our panelists include: Pamela Hudson-Veenbaas, Smithsonian Institution (SI) Carolyn Knowles, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Kay Lund, National Institutes of Health (NIH) Gisele Muller-Parker, National Science Foundation (NSF) Fellowships to be discussed: SI: Smithsonian Institution Fellowship Program NASA: NASA Aeronautics Scholarship and Advanced STEM Training and Research Fellowship (AS & ASTAR) NIH: NRSA Individual Predoctoral Fellowships (F30 & F31); NRSA Individual Postdoctoral Fellowships (F32) NSF: NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) Date: Wednesday, August 24, 2016 Time: 1:00pm – 2:30pm WebEx (Registration required): https://nsfevents.webex.com/nsfevents/onstage/g.php?MTID=ecd623efac41b57aefc37c1f19a6477a3 Event Password: 8sHU24T@

Hey all, anyone else on here attending the New Graduate Student Orientation (NGSO) at UC Berkeley next Tuesday? We could arrange a little GradCafe meetup during the lunch break or during Gradfest. Thoughts on this? http://grad.berkeley.edu/students/welcome/

I just read up a little more about the Smart Writing Set, and it's not currently available in Android (which I use). So, it looks like I'm not investing in this item for now.

Yes to all of this.

For me, I took about five "gap" years in between my undergraduate degree and graduate school. I was undecided between several related career paths, and working in the professional world helped me to explore career options. Ultimately, I applied to graduate programs that I didn't even know existed as an undergraduate. Also, a totally unexpected bonus was the chance to build a very large professional network to call on if/when I need support in graduate school. They have counseled me throughout the entire application process, and there is always someone I can go to when I'm not sure where to start on a particular problem. In general, people are stressed because there are aspects of graduate school which are very mysterious. But when you have a lot of people to help you get those questions answered, it's easier to make decisions that truly reflect your values/goals.

That's really good to know, thanks! I think that I'll actually be applying for something like Summer 2018, assuming that the NSF GRIP is still running the same way they are now. I know it's a new program, and things can change.

Cool, I'll send you a message in August - I put it on my Google Calendar. Best of luck with your work!

I agree. Based on the goals of that particular program, not having teaching experience can make you ineligible. However, IT DEPENDS ON THE PROGRAM. If you aren't sure if a lack of teaching experience will be a disadvantage, the admissions office or administrator can tell you exactly what the program is looking for. I have also had the experience of a potential faculty adviser telling me what experience they are looking for in an applicant, which helped me prioritize which grad programs in education to apply for. I'm going into an education research PhD program, and I have zero classroom teaching experience, but I've worked extensively with education programs . . . and this is exactly what I'll be conducting my research on (at least in the beginning). So for me, the teaching experience is a non-issue.

Congrats on your award. I am going to start my PhD program this fall, and I am interested in applying tor the NSF GRIP, to work at the U.S. Census Bureau (other orgs interest me, but I think their data sets would be applicable to my proposed research topic). I'd love to stay in touch with you about your experience, if you're open to it.

I am also seriously considering buying the Smart Writing Set, but I'm torn, because I've been reading some great things about the Livescribe pen as well. Would love to hear other thoughts on this!

Thanks for recommending Corso Como, I'm definitely going to check this out. I have owned several pairs of Danskos, and I highly recommend them, especially as they have begun to come out with new styles. These are definitely not for everyone, but they will help out with arch support, and you could get away with working in these, traveling, and going to meetings/classes. I think it depends on your outfit that day, but a good pair of black Danskos will last a long time.

Yeah, I will echo what the others are saying. It varies wildly between programs. I would not recommend that you focus so much on how competitive the field of education is, but instead just focus on what your career goals are, based on what you know about yourself and your interests. After that, find some programs that seem to prepare their graduate students for those career paths you're interested in. If you connect with faculty members you would like to do work or collaborate on research with, your conversations with them will clue you in on how likely you are to be admitted and/or succeed there. It's very powerful to be submitting graduate school applications after having already established communication with those faculty members you've listed as your top choices. It doesn't guarantee you admission, but it does greatly strengthen your odds. This worked in my favor, and for lots of other people I know in multiple fields.

Very interesting perspective. It will be hard to put my toddler aside for 5-6 years while I complete a PhD. Instead, I like to think of my child as a strong motivator to become an expert in prioritizing my time. Plus, added bonus, he gets to grow up with a cool role model, don't you think?

Awesome! Are you taking classes in GSE as electives, so you can conduct research in education policy? Interested to learn more about your goals. If you want to connect offline, shoot me a PM.