katpillow

I am currently industry-side at a startup of about 25 people. We do a lab meeting once every two weeks, and it tends to go for about 1.5-2 hours or so (though can be as short as 45 minutes). All we do is present our current work if it's worth presenting, and do general lab-wide updates (i.e. information about our first clinical trials) and just keep ourselves up to speed. I cannot possibly imagine doing group meetings for 3-4 hours per week, it would eat up way too much time that could be spent in the lab getting shit done.

Building off of what @rococo_realism said, I would add that Skokie has some affordable living spaces, but you would have to live near a bus stop for the 205, or near the yellow line L stops. But those commutes would likely take longer than desired in either case. I currently work in Skokie, but live downtown. As was mentioned by Citizen, one would probably want to have a car if living there.

@Citizen of Night Vale has it all right. They won't ticket you if they see your car once or twice, but they will can you if they see it over a prolonged period. Better safe than sorry, though.

@Citizen of Night Valethanks! And that's awesome, you'll definitely enjoy Dallas. Though personally I'm not sure I'd survive the summer there- I'm a bit heat adverse. I have the same hesitation with living in Evanston, especially considering that it's been a few years since I have lived amongst students- but naturally I'm open to it anyways. Might be helpful for me getting back in the swing of school. @talkingscop no problem! I'm happy if it's able to help!

@Citizen of Night Vale Andersonville is awesome, definitely one of my favorite neighborhoods in Chicago. Where are you heading off to?

Hi guys! I wanted to share some information with any interested parties, pending decisions and commitments to the Chicago area. I have been living/working in the Chicago area for the past 5 years or so, and I figured my advice could be useful if you're planning to move here for school, and haven't spent any time here, either. All of this posting comes at the encouragement and sharp thinking courtesy of @fencergirl, so thank her for suggesting I share it. The advice is definitely more oriented for grad students planning on attending school up on the northside/Evanston, however I've added some notes for those thinking of attending UChicago, UIC, or many of the other great schools that are mid-to-south. A little about myself first: I will be studying biomedical engineering at Northwestern, starting out in the master's program but going to attempt to transfer into the PhD. I actually grew up in the suburbs outside of Chicago, went to Johns Hopkins for undergrad, and came back. I now work in a startup pharmaceutical on the north side in a town called Skokie (borders the west side of Evanston). I commute to work via the L (the public train system) from the West Loop (it's about an hour ride, not the best, but I have a nice apartment!). I do not see myself staying where I am, because I'm not crazy and don't want to pay living expenses of $1000+/month as a grad student. Anyways! I do have suggestions! It depends on a few of your personal preferences, though, so I'll give you a rundown of how I'm approaching it, knowing what I know about the city and Evanston. There are three general areas the Northwestern graduate students habitate in: Evanston (duh), Rogers Park/Edgewater, and Lakeview (near the purple line express stops, I'll get to this). In Evanston the pricing of apartments tends to float between fairly cheap or somewhat pricey. There isn't much of a middle ground. I anticipate shooting toward the cheap end, especially with a roommate (or two!). I've been looking at pricing the past few days, and for two people I've seen stuff in the neighborhood of $600-1000/month (per person). There may even be a few places that dip under $600. Right now the listings aren't super plentiful, but when the quarter ends and graduation comes, a fair number of people will vacate and there will be increased options, possibly even better pricing (a coworker of mine who recently graduated paid $400/month for 2 years!!!) so it's worth waiting a bit to see what becomes available. Evanston obviously offers convenience for proximity, and is a fairly nice place. The areas around NU are safe and pleasant, with many good food options (try Bat 17 for a mean sandwich) and a few bars to choose from. There is also easy access to the city for the very few weekends that one does get to explore Chicago proper. The main streets of residence tend to be those that line up with campus east-west (Noyes, Davis, Foster, Church) but Chicago Ave also is good, as there is a bus (#205) that runs up to campus along that road, additionally, there is the #201 bus which is Central/Ridge Rd. Both routes are north-south, though the #205 will take you west to Old Orchard Mall. Several of the east-west streets in Evanston have L stops. I know some people will live down near South Boulevard (I think it's a little cheaper down here, too) and do a very short commute to campus. Rogers Park/Edgewater are two of the neighborhoods on the southern border of Evanston with easy L access to campus. The apartments there tend to be slightly cheaper, and occasionally more spacious. The area used to be pretty rough with crime, but over the past decade or so it has become much nicer. If you are looking for a little more of a city feel or don't want to constantly be in the suburban atmosphere of Evanston, this area will do that job. Additionally, it is slightly closer to the city, but honestly not by a huge margin. Main L stations for these areas would include Granville, Loyola, Morse, Thorndale. These are all Red Line stops, and you would have to transfer over to the Purple Line at Howard (which is nearby). Commute time from this area would probably average 20-30 mins, depending on how smooth the transfer is. Currently, I've seen apartment pricing in the $500-1000 (per student) range here, but for all I know there could be better deals lurking. This is also the general area in which Loyola students live, and an obvious choice for many soon-to-be Loyola students considering their housing situation. Lakeview is much further south, however during rush hour commuting periods, the Purple Line (which services Evanston) runs express from Belmont (central/south Lakeview) up to Howard. The current average run time is about 15-16 minutes between these stops (I'm super nerdy and started keeping track when I was trying to figure out the best way to get to work). Anyways, it would take about 25-30 minutes to get to the campus Purple Line stops. Another 5-10 minutes walking from there. So conservatively speaking you're looking at something like 35-40 minutes of commute if you live further south. The only reason one would ever live down here is if they wanted more of a Chicago city-feel. It's generally more expensive, and only tends to be competitively priced with the prior-mentioned areas when you have at least 4 people living together or if you're a lucky son of a gun. Not a whole lot of students live this far south, but they DO exist. A lot of Depaul students live throughout this region, so clearly there must be some level of affordability, though they have a bit more flexibility as their campus is based out of the Fullerton L stop (Lincoln Park), and can probably live a bit further away from the L and use buses instead. If I were going to Depaul, I would consider living somewhere further north or possibly on the Brown Line between Lakeview/Lincoln Park and Lincoln Square. If you don't mind a 30+ minute train ride, you can live beyond Lincoln Square, but some of the real estate up there can get kind of dicey as far as personal security goes. For those planning on attending schools that are further south: From what I gather, a large majority of UChicago students, particularly in the first year, tend to live in and very near to Hyde Park. The campus is reachable via L, bus, and Metra (local commuter train). My best friend currently attends Booth full time, and lives up near Grant/Millennium Park. He takes the Metra from the Millennium station every day he has class. If you were considering living somewhere in the South Loop or Near South Side, you'd probably have to stick to one of the L lines (Green or Red) to make your commute worthwhile. IIT students also find housing somewhere in this south-side jumble, though obviously not as far as UChicago. I would not be surprised to hear of IIT students living near Hyde Park and commuting north, though. I believe IIT is fairly accessible via Red Line. For UIC, it's fairly straightforward. Many students live in University Village/Little Italy, as well as across Route 290 in a few pockets on the Near West Side. Additionally many students commute via the L, and live somewhere on the Blue Line or one of the many other lines that connect to it. The UIC-Halsted stop puts you right at the main campus, and the Racine and Illinois Medical District stops will bring you to some of the other components of the University as well. I actually live very near the UIC-Halsted stop right now, and it's super convenient. Let me know if/what your questions are! Also, anyone else in Chicago please feel free to adjust what I've got with comments and other input! (Shameless/shameful self-advertisement- I am looking for roommates and am flexible between Evanston and North Side Chicago. I am a male 27-year old who is looking to rock the bologna out of my first year of grad school. My only limitation is that I own approximately 300 books and ~200 National Geographics that, needless to say, will either be located in my bedroom (if it's a tiny apartment) or in the shared living space. Because I am a poor MS student without a stipend, I prefer to live in as cheap (but good!) of a place as possible. I will also have a fairly well stocked set of kitchen appliances, dining room table, and a nice L-shaped couch assuming there is enough living space. I also own a semi-realistic looking cat pillow who will probably live on said couch. See: profile pic.) Last of all- if any of you would like a comprehensive eating guide to the city of Chicago, I am more than happy to provide one.

@talkingscop sounds good, and good luck finalizing everything!

I'm joining this party as well. Luckily for me, I already live in Chicago, however I'll certainly be moving out of my current apartment as it's in the West Loop, and aint nobody got time for a 1.25-hour L ride each way. Plus I won't be making a steady income capable of paying higher rent, so there's that. I am hoping to live somewhere on the north side of the city, but not as far up as Evanston. I'll be enrolling in the BME program. @talkingscop, I'm looking to assemble a band of potential apartment/housemates, and would definitely be down to help people search for places.

I will just keep working in the job I've been at, probably up until 2 weeks before starting. I want to build as much of a emergency cash cache as possible. Benefits of being in the industry before going back to school, I guess?

You guys certainly know how to make a guy feel good about things he should already be feeling good about. Thanks again for all of the supportive words you've all thrown at me!

Official admittance to Northwestern's MS BME program rolled in this morning. A good way to wake up after taking a red eye back home from Vegas, if I had to say. Plus turning $200 into $440 on blackjack doesn't hurt, either. Thank all of you for the really positive words of support and encouragement. It certainly feels much more like a victory than settling! I only hope that other applicants who are still waiting on responses or have had a rough go of it this cycle stay strong. Even if you don't make it in somewhere, odds are you probably have a lot going for you, and even if you have to put in some extra time to demonstrate your prowess, you'll definitely find a way. Look at me (everything in chronological order): Original UG class of '11 (graduated in '13, last in my major's class of 15 people) (Materials Science, for those interested) 2.40 GPA 1.5 years working as 'the wine guy' in a fancy grocery store while I tried to get my shit together and finish the last few credits on my degree ~2.5 years (ongoing) working my butt off in a small R&D pharmaceutical startup (started as a tech, now Associate III, this probably saved my life) GRE: 161Q, 159V, 4.0W Now: turning 28 in September, probably going to Northwestern, and in position to finally hit the goals I had set for myself when I was about 20 I took the long way, and not everyone has the same cookie-cutter route to get where they're going. I had to claw my way back from the lowest place I'd ever been, but to be honest, 'the bottom' was something I had never glimpsed before, but man did I need it if I was ever going to have a chance to really pursue this path. Heck, even what I've got in front of me isn't what I expected, but I can still see a pathway, and that's what's important. Always keep your eyes on the prize, and be ready to be flexible and persevere when unexpected things come up in the road. Your life is what you'll make of it. No guarantees except for what you create for yourself.

Glad to hear it. Thanks!

Well, I've communicated with some of the powers that be, and it looks like I'll perhaps get offered a MS with intention to transition to PhD (provided I prove myself academically) at Northwestern or UMichigan. To some degree it feels like I'd be settling, but given my academic history this may be the best result I can get without a whole bunch of publications (which I will not have by the next cycle). So, good news I guess? I'll have to really shoot for some assistantships or something, as well- I really want to minimize loan damage. Plus, the NSF GRFP could magically be awarded to me (in some crazy world), and that could change the game. Unsure of what to think right now.

Yes, that's a good way to describe it. ~$2500........

Have an upvote, you dirty hippy.

Thanks @sjoh197, I do appreciate the encouragement, as well as the familiarity with the feeling. It's just particularly frustrating because of the whole starting the process a couple years later than desired in the first place. If it had been a reasonable or attainable option immediately out of school, I probably would have bolstered myself with a masters before jumping into this process. My credentials never would have gotten me in anywhere back then, nor was I in a good place for it mentally, anyways. Many people here who know the feeling of sacrifice in pursuit of this goal, and I'm glad at least I can share in that, I suppose.

Well I'm honestly surprised, but also not surprised. MSU rejection rolled in today, despite having a pretty great interview (or so I thought). I wonder if perhaps they just didn't think I was a good fit. Either way, there goes what I had assumed to be my best shot. I guess I'll be figuring out how to improve things for next cycle. Can't wait to be unmarried at 29 and starting a PhD.

"Angry Bonsai" could be the name of a Japanese metal band.

Chalk another one up, b's & g's. At least the decisions have no sense of surprise at this point. It's just that slow ooze of waiting to get the official responses that drags out the agony. I should probably start applying for academic-side laboratory positions. I've pretty much done all the growing one can do where I'm currently at, especially considering the direction my company is moving (growing, so everyone is becoming more and more restricted in terms of role). Plus it's stupid difficult to publish, and I want to do more of that regardless. ugh

Hey- think of it this way. This is the same process you'd have to start going through as a graduate student. Treat it as fun- don't treat it as something conditional for your future. Becoming more involved in the lab environment is really rewarding, and as long as you put in the effort, they'll see it, and you'll be fine. No one is "up to par" from the moment you start. It's reality. But you only reach an operational status by plunging yourself in, making mistakes, being wrong, learning, and improving. It's research.

Good thing I'm about a month behind on my lab notebook, at least I'll be able to occupy myself with filling out about 40 pages today.

Thanks RC. I hope things are well or will go well for you, too! Either way, soon it will all be finito, and I'll know whether or not I'll be building things up for next year.

He certainly could have chosen a better voice to express his point. Mentioning stuff like the acceptances in the same breath as the advice just makes the whole thing a little more condescending. I'm happy for him and hope that he's successful with whichever acceptance he takes- he, just as anyone here who pursues a PhD or masters has earned their way. I get that he's not sugar coating the advice, nor does he have to. Benefit of the forum is that we're able to rock our opinions as we see fit. But if he or anyone else here things that a healthy dose of harshness or "reality" as I've come to know it- people need to get over themselves. This process is hard enough on people who are putting a fair bit of effort into it. They don't need to be reminded even further. Negative reinforcement is never as good as positive. Sure, they may not get into any programs, but I think that in itself is all that's necessary for them to step back and say "hey, where can I improve this?", even if it takes them a little time to get to that mode of thought. And if someone does return to the process without trying to do anything, and then gets rejected again- who cares? Sure, they may complain, but that is ultimately their problem. I doubt that someone who can't work on improving themselves (even if there is nothing to improve, which has been never been the case in the history of humanity) is cut out for grad work as it is. Especially a PhD. Just by the sheer fact that many programs accept 10% or less on a yearly basis, with hundreds of applicants (many of which probably overlap at the same schools), it should be expected that profs are going to aim at acquiring the same general 10% as their competitors, leaving many people in the dust. And many of them, not necessarily all of them, are qualified. So if you think that using a non-sugar coated opinion to tell other people who supposedly haven't worked their asses off to apply to grad school is justified because you did so and it worked out for you... get off your high horse. Encourage people, don't step on top of them. Everyone will be better for it. edit: @ChrisTOEFert I get where your frustration on this comes from, too. There are plenty of people, especially in the results, who say "I don't get it- I was PERFECT and they rejected ME!" Don't forget that many of these applicants are probably people who have never been rejected once in their life, or who have been perhaps fairly sheltered, or maybe they are just trying to find a way to vent their frustration. Be bigger than that and just let their whinings go. I should probably get off my own high horse at this point. I'm not a fan of telling others how to live their lives. I just don't want the good in your message to be clouded by things that may rub others the wrong way.

Well here we go people. It's pretty much this week or it's not happening for almost everything I've still got floating. MSU's decision is supposed be sometime in the next 7-8 days. I don't have the energy to worry anymore. It's almost all apathy at this point.

I went the wine route last night.... woke up with a text from a number I don't know (time stamp 3 AM) which simply said "call me". Not sure if ominous.