A blighted one

Thanks, I'll try to focus on the excitement. Have any tips for moving to Bethlehem? What's a good time of year to look for housing? Are there any resourses for finding other gead student roommates? I'll probably be moving alone and I'd like to have roommates, at least at the beginning, so that I'm not too lonely. P.s. You've got me all excited to try Full of Crepe and the $3.79 sandwich place!!

That's great to hear! (both about the crepes and the English dept ?) I guess I'm just nervous because I just graduated with my BA a few months ago and I feel so unprepared and and basically shocked that I have this opportunity! Also, wow, I didn't even think about summer funding. I'm really excited, but if I'm being honest, having to be a smart grad student who's always on point is kind of scary because I definitely don't feel like a smart grad student! Haha

@gingin6789 I'll have to check out Full of Crepe. I'm not sure if I've ever had a crepe, if I'm being honest.. Haha. I did have something really similar to a crepe when in Thailand a few years back that was filled with bananas and Nutella. I'm more of a savory food person. Do they have savory crepes? I was invited to the recruitment day next month and I'd really like to attend. I'm pretty sure I'll be there. I'm nervous though! My minimum stipend will be about 25% more than what I've been making at home for the last 3 years as an undergrad, so needless to say It should be a LOT more affordable for me to live in Bethlehem if I decide to go to Lehigh. I was nominated for a fellowship (which I'm not counting on getting because it's competitive) that would be almost 50% more than what I'm currently making at home. It's mostly flat where I live, but I do work on top of a hill and either walk to bike to work. My undergrad institution was on a hill as well, but the campus itself was only slightly hilly. I think I'm in pretty decent shape, so hopefully I won't be gasping for air all the time, haha!

Thank you, @ProfLorax !

Wow! Ok, so a (really crappy) studio apartment where I live is $1400 (probably more now, actually, as I was house hunting 2 years ago). I have roommates now and my room is still $1050/month (I share my room with my partner, so luckily I pay $550). And a good sandwich is $10, minimum. A crappy sandwich would still be $8. Coffee is more like $3.50 for a plain cup here. I usually make coffee at home, but I do like to study/read at cafes, so it's good to know. I knew it was going to be cheaper in PA than where I live, but that sounds amazing. I moved to this city for college and the cost of living as been killing me the entire time. I'm so ready to live somewhere where my rent doesn't take up 65% of my monthly wages. Thanks for the info! I was on Bethlehem's Yelp page the other day looking at coffee shops/grocery stores out of curiosity and I saw Full of Crepe. Hahaha, the name made me laugh.

Sorry for being redundant @ProfLorax! I did search around a bit before posting, but didn't look hard enough, I guess. I guess my more specific question is if I am accepted to two MA programs with an equally good fit but the higher ranked one gives me less funding (in relation to cost of living), do I follow the funding at the lower ranked school? Feel free to ignore this question if it is, yet again, redundant. Sorry!

Thanks @shadowclaw and @gingin6789 !! I grew up in a large city (4 million people, 10 million if you count the suburbs, which, in this particular city are relatively urban and basically a part of the whole) but I have lived (and currently do live) in a smaller city. A few years back I lived in a college town with about 50,000 residents that was about an hour and a half away from the nearest large city, so I'm guessing it will be somewhat similar (in size and resources) to Bethlehem. This isn't something I'm too worried about as long as there's decent coffee, a natural foods market, a least a smidgen of an arts/underground scene. The privileged white undergraduate population makes me a little nervous, but I do feel that most colleges are populated in such a way (my undergraduate institution is majority non-white and is somewhat of an anomaly in that sense). It will be a bit of a transition that I'm sure will be fine. The undergrad frat life is a bit bizarre to me. I came from a school without a large greek presence so in that respect it will be interesting. I've also heard that there's a casino in Bethlehem. Is that right? Seems bizarre! @gingin6789 , since you are a current resident, can you give me an idea of the cost of living? How much does the average 1-bedroom cost? How about renting a room in a house with roommates? How much is the average coffee at a cafe? This one might be weird, but how much does a good sandwich cost? (My friends and I have a little theory about the price of a sandwich in relation to minimum wage and the cost of living in an area, haha). Thanks for all the information!

I've recently received a fully funded offer for an MA program. I'm wondering... if I plan to apply for PhD programs after I complete the MA, how much does the program's ranking matter? (I'm also confused as to MA rankings; do they exist? I'm basing the ranking of this program off of their PhD ranking) Will a lower ranked program hinder my chances of being accepted to a more competitive PhD program in the future? I've heard that acquiring funding for an MA in the humanities is generally seen as impressive, but I'm not sure how true this is or if it being from a lower ranked program will negate that. I feel like (and hope) that the answers to these questions are "no," but I'm afraid people do take prestige quite seriously--but then again, I really know nothing.

Anyone know how much fellowships are taxed? Would it be the same as income tax in the given state? Trying to figure out how much I'd actually be getting monthly with an offer I currently have. Thanks!

So, I applied for all MA programs this round because I want to get a bit of graduate school experience before I commit to a PhD program. I've noticed that there is no ranking system for MA programs and I'm wondering how I can go about finding out how certain MA programs are perceived by the academic world when there aren't any rankings. When schools house both MA and PhD students, it's easier because I can base my perception of the MA program's rank on the PhD program's rank, but what about schools that don't have a PhD program? About half the schools that I applied for are cases of the latter. Although I am not overly concerned with school ranking and hope to focus more on fit and funding opportunities, I do think that it is somewhat important to consider when weighing options. That is, if I want to get into a more competitive PhD program in a few years. One last question: how important do you all think that school ranking is when accepting or declining an MA program offer with full funding? Does full (and quite generous) funding override program prestige? Thanks for your input!

Hey, anybody else hear back from Penn State besides fellowship nominees? I know a few years back they were notorious for never getting back to their rejects. Just wondering if they've started notifying yet.

Nothing on the results board yet, but anybody have any news?

I recently received a very enticing offer from Lehigh University so I'm bumping this thread to see if anyone else has any info. Never been to Pennsylvania before and I grew up in a large city. I'm wondering if anyone has info on what's going on in Bethlehem on a daily basis? What's the culture like (I'm from a liberal state and city)? Any info at all is appreciated. Thanks!

I've applied to 10 schools and haven't heard back from any of them either. I think this is pretty common. Of course it's different in every discipline but from what I've gathered most decisions are made in February or March, with fellowship candidates being notified earlier. I'm anxious too, but I'm trying to stay calm until the end of February when I've likely heard from most of my programs.

@genrescholar According to the (limited) information on the results board, we might be hearing back in a week (or two for your track)! I haven't heard back from any schools I've applied to thus far. This is my first time applying and I am so nervous and anxious! This program had the earliest due date so I'm obsessing over it most, figuring this'll be who I hear from first.

Hahaha, I've seen this promoted on Google Play. Never tried it out, although I do feel it might be stress relieving... And I desperately need the distraction... Which is why I'm downloading it right now!

Anyone else apply here this year? There's very little data about this program from previous years on the results board. I'm so curious when we'll hear back!

This was me two nights ago

Noooooooooooo

This is my first time around and I'm feeling the same way. Im beginning to think (and truly believe) that I did everything wrong and I'm screwed. It doesn't look like any of my programs do interviews (I'm applying for mostly MA programs), but I'm also very interested in what the interviews are like. Good luck, ypink!

Awesome, congratulations!

Nice! I applied for their MA too! Which specialization did you apply for (if you don't mind me asking)? Edit: Sorry, I'm on mobile so I can't see your signature if all this info is located there!

Congrats! Is that Ohio or Oregon?

Also, I can't wait for the new season of Game of Thrones to come out.

I usually only watch TV/Netflix when trying to fall asleep, but my go-tos are It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, Peep Show, nature/culture documentaries (like Planet Earth or Wild China), recently watched the remake of Carl Sagan's The Cosmos with Neil Degrass Tyson, kinda cheezy but some of the info is super interesting.