Levon3

It sounds like what you are taking from this experience is a hard look at your writing style. That's exactly the right response. I'm sure the dean was impressed with your work, and he wanted to check to see what your reaction was when he mentioned the plagiarism due to sloppiness. Had you reacted defensively or otherwise than as you did (urging him to critically examine your work further, looking into it yourself), it would have put up red flags for him. Sounds to me like you did everything right, and that in the future you will be more careful, which is great. Don't worry too much - it's a positive learning experience!

Well, everything depends on which services you choose. My friends have been using some good ones that provided a good material.
Is it ethical? Maybe not. But when you're short on time or having some other problems to solve there's not a lot of options. 

Awesome, thanks to you both. That's the way I was leaning--but, in my field, funding just comes from the university, not a specific prof. (I haven't even chosen an advisor, yet), so the person writing for me doesn't really gain anything from it--except, really, my gratitude, & so I wanted to make sure to get that part right, having put one more thing on their plate!

Saying "thank you" is sufficient and perfectly fine.* Be respectful and mindful of their time, so give them enough notice and provide them with whatever material they need/ask for to help write you a good letter. If you want to send a card, you could, but you're going to be asking for lots of letters and you don't have to buy anyone a gift or card each time you do. What you could do is update your letter writers about the outcome of things they wrote for once it's all done, and thank them again for their help regardless of whether you were successful or not. 
* That would have also been true as an undergrad, btw. 

Things to have/things I plan on buying myself when I leave this year:
- High powered computer that will survive the grad school years (invest in a good machine so you don't have to worry about it during school. Because nothing would suck more than your computer crapping out on you midway through your journey)
- Laptop for on-the-go work (I wouldn't go with a tablet as they are limited in their ability to perform, but it also depends on what you need it for and how you study. I found that tablets that double as entertainment devices are distracting more than they are helpful, but that's because I have no self-control)
- Business cards (you will be giving out a lot of them)
- A decent home printer (for when you can't get to the office and print stuff out for free)
- Desk with drawers for office supplies (for staying organized. Plus I have a slight fetish for office supplies kek kek)
- Destressing stuff (video games, sports equipment, art supplies, whatever it is you need to destress)

I asked this question to the professors from my department during Admitted Student Day and they said that it is possible. They told me that there is a change of program form that has to be filled out and a fee that must be paid. However, you have no guarantee of acceptance (it's sort of like re-applying but a little easier)

I'm considering two programs, neither of which will offer amazing funding I'm sure (funding info still on its way to me). One is a perfect fit but expensive due to out-of-state tuition. The other is passable, but not a great fit, but costs 1/3 due to in-state tuition. When I brought this up with a faculty member at my undergrad she talked about how her son, who was going to med school, got into multiple schools and basically approached his top choice and said "I want to go here, but Home State School is a better choice financially, can we negotiate?" and they promptly offered him the in-state tuition rate for their school.
Obviously my programs (MPH in Nutrition with RD Training) would approach this differently than a med school or PhD program where funding is probably more available, but I'm curious all the same. Has anyone negotiated masters costs before?

Hi @HiFiWiFi,
There are lots of previous threads on this. See 
for starters

Hi @HiFiWiFi,
There are lots of previous threads on this. See 
for starters

Congrats! I was accepted to both as well and will be going to TC most likely. For me, the multicultural focus is a big draw because I intend to get the bilingual certification.
I have talked to students at the NYU program and they said they liked it, but I didn't ask for much details. There are some posts on this forum that goes into more details with regards to the program at NYU so you can try to look into that.
For people who never had any CSD classes, the program at TC takes 2.5 years and I think NYU takes 3 years. Not counting the undergrad level classes, TC requires more grad credits in order to graduate (around 60?) than NYU (48 I believe) so NYU might end up being cheaper even though it would take longer. Both schools offer abroad experiences but in different countries so you may have a preference. It does seem that NYU has more variety when it comes to research labs but personally I am not concerned because I have no interest in going into research.
I don't like the way that NYU is doing prerequisites. First of all, they are just launching the whole online program so there is no guarantee things will work smoothly. I can pay way less money to do prerequisites elsewhere online that has already established a good system. I have already taken some prerequisites elsewhere, and looking at the requirements of the NYU program I would have to retake some classes because the requirements are 2-3 classes built into one.
I don't think that you could really go wrong with either program, but just need to figure out which program fits your goals more. Good luck with your decision and maybe we can be future classmates! 

Very interesting perspectives from people who attended accepted students day.  I remember attending last year and leaving in the middle of the day, deciding that the cost of attending HGSE wasn't worth it given what I too perceived as a weak group of students and an under-representation of people of color.  HOWEVER, I kept an open mind and spoke directly with my program director and shared those thoughts, I'm in Prevention Science and Practice - School Counseling (Adolescents).  I had a full ride to Boston College for the Higher Education Administration program with an opportunity to dual enroll at the law school and thought I wanted to attend there instead.  The conversation with my program's director really challenged me to think critically about my decision, identify my blindspots and biases and ask myself where these tensions came from.  I went on to receive a full scholarship to HGSE, which helped my decision, but even if I hadn't I still would have attended.  I'm returning next year for my CAS in school counseling w/o a scholarship.
I share all of this to caution the single story some have developed following very limited experiences, conversations and hearsay.  As Vulpix stated, we all end up taking at least one dud of a course.  It happens.  The conversations in some of my courses could go deeper but as a counseling student, most of my classes are tense in conversation and critical thinking as we're holding ourselves responsible for the impact we may have on a child's life.  As a counseling intern, we're on site 16 - 24 hours a week and quite a few of us work in the Gutman library 10 hours a week.  There are ways to stretch yourself thin here, especially when you think about the number of student groups that exists.  It's true that some people have less experience than others.  I stopped holding that against students quickly as some of the most meaningful and challenging conversations I've had have been with students who were coming right out of college with little to no counseling experience.  
I was a science and philosophy major at a large college and I have many peers who too did not study education before coming to HGSE but we all had 5+ years in the field and were committed to staying in education.  HGSE attracts all sorts and you can find community, if not on campus than throughout the Boston area.  I took a statistics course with students from the medical school and have law, business and government school students in two of my courses.  I can't say I've always enjoyed my time at HGSE but I've met students who have received Masters degrees from UPenn, Vanderbilt and Columbia who've shared the pros and cons of each school.  The experience wherever you attend is what you make of it.  If you feel like conversations and coursework isn't intellectually simulating enough, you can challenge and take the conversations there.  We all benefit from those we are willing to push the envelope and take us outside of our comfort zones.
If anyone was recently admitted to PSP and has questions, feel free to PM me.  I've got no blind allegiance to the school and will share openly and transparently to the extent that I think it will help one make the most informed decision.

If you want to become a teacher, don't go to a "top" ed school. You will wind up with enormous debt and a meager salary. Go to your local state college.

Anyone who got into PhD (LPO) at Peabody, but is planning to reject it?  
#Wishfulthinking

That last sentence is kind of problematic to me. What makes you think a teacher can't be "super"? This is an ed school --- teachers are supposed to be respected. Isn't your friend intelligent? Isn't his/her classroom teaching experience extremely valid when going into ed policy or whatever field?
$65,000 is a good starting salary for education, I don't think the comparison to Harvard College is at all relevant because of the reasons stated above, students go into much more lucrative fields. I don't think you'll find an ed program with a HIGHER starting salary.... and if you yourself have more experience, then yours will be higher. There are plenty of students here who were making more than $65K before HGSE, and they obviously expect to make more after. 
In terms of critical thinking, I would caution everyone to not think that the few current students you see at an open house day, and the lack of professors present, is representative. I can't imagine there are many masters programs that have students with much MORE experience than HGSE students (considering MOST people get their masters degrees in their 20s, I don't really know what you expect overall), and in my experience, it is the younger students with fewer responsibilities who tend to volunteer with admissions to represent their cohorts at open house events --- i.e., you're not going to see a representative sample of experience (the moms who run schools are not available to talk with admitted students on Saturdays--- same for the professors who have lives and kids). As a student at HGSE, I have had unprecedented access to personal relationships with my professors, the ones I choose to pursue. And this is coming from someone who went to an extremely small college for undergrad and is used to very small classes. 
Also, my program professor was also not able to make it to my admitted students' day last year, and I worried that was a bad sign, but he is nothing but accessible. Scheduling these things are not easy, these people are incredibly busy and generally DO make the time to talk with students as much as possible.
I do, generally speaking, agree with the camp that thinks that coursework here is not overwhelming, but I was in a rigorous undergrad program and am comparing to that. I believe HGSE is really the whole experience, the things mentioned before. That being said, it really depends on the classes. There was nothing easy about most of the classes I took, but others were less intellectually stimulating than I might have hoped. I have complaints about HGSE, but overall I'm happy I went.

Keep in mind, though, that the average HGSE graduate still goes into the education field. Whereas, Harvard College graduates are (a) far more competitively selected, and (b) mostly headed to far more lucrative sectors. 
$65,000 is not a bad starting salary for the education field. 

Make friends with current students. You might be able to get someone to go look at apartments for you. You should never sign a lease for an apartment you haven't seen, but if you can't go yourself, at least have someone go there and take pictures for you. You'll owe them something nice, but it'll be worth it. This is something that you should be able to find someone to help you with! Also, check if there is any current student moving out of an apartment whose lease you could take over, or if any of them happen to know of an opening. That would be an excellent way to find a place that is more likely to be okay. (E.g. check if any graduating students are leaving an apartment that would be good for you.) Other than that, university listings are also a safer bet; craigslist is always a bet, but it's better if you actually have someone go to each place you're considering in person. 

Hi there,
I am also conducting a meta-analysis as a part of my master's thesis and, as a result, I referred to various resources to get a better sense of the meta-analysis/systematic review process. I am not sure which methodology you are following for your systematic review, but most people in social sciences follow Schmidt and Hunter's (2015) approach to meta-analysis, therefore the first part of my advice is based on their approach. Schmidt and Hunter (2015) have published a third edition of their book which explains everything you need to know to conduct a meta-analysis. Also, they have provided YouTube tutorials which explains the process of conducting a meta-analysis using a software developed by Schmidt and Le (2014).
On the other hand, if you are following Hedges and Olkin's approach to meta-analysis, then, in addition to Campbell collaboration, you can also refer to the Michael Borenstein's YouTube tutorials (This approach is slightly different than Schmidt and Hunter's approach). Furthermore, there are various books as well such as "practical meta-analysis" by Wilson (2001) and "Introduction to Meta-Analysis" by Borenstein (2009) which do a great job at explaining even a tiny issue of the meta-analysis process. Links are given below for these books if you want to have a read. 
http://www.textbooks.com/BooksDescription.php?BKN=488315&SBC=SG9&kpid=9780761921684U&kenshu=575dacf6-c394-4b5e-bb82-17a66f6ee3f2&mcid=XKS-7564-41-4219-GoogleShopping-PRIDREPLACE-291&gclid=Cj0KEQjwzd3GBRDks7SYuNHi3JEBEiQAIm6EI8ZK3O3jpedcZNOkMe4Ri2zhbiA2tVgm1gxnaWz55NIaAmSn8P8HAQ
http://www.barnesandnoble.com/p/introduction-to-meta-analysis-michael-borenstein/1101201023/2694977426406?st=PLA&sid=BNB_DRS_Marketplace+Shopping+greatbookprices_00000000&2sid=Google_&sourceId=PLGoP24014&k_clickid=3x24014
Hope this helps.

Yes and no. It can certainly help (there is sometimes a snowball effect with prestige upon prestige), but there is a lot you can do to set yourself apart even though you didn't get the major scholarship. Ask your advisors how you can finish your master's with a competitive Ph.D. application; seek publication/research opportunities.

Most research-based master's programs should have funding opportunities. I would ask Johns Hopkins if there are any funding opportunities available, and if not, reapply next year for funded programs. Don't be afraid to check with prospective programs ahead of time to see what the funding situation is like for their master's students. You can tell them that you had been accepted by Johns Hopkins this year but that the financial burden was too much, and that's why you're checking with them to make sure ahead of time. Alternatively, you can try to apply for external sources of funding. It might be too late at this point, but it might be worth considering if you reapply next year.

I went to visiting days with my hair dyed a fluorescent blue. I also wasn't sure how to act - I was a first gen college student from rural Illinois visiting an Ivy League, the stress of figuring out how to present myself actually made me nauseous.
Looking back, I'm laughing at how much I overthought it. Just wear something comfy but modest. That's literally the only advice you need. Oh, and chill.

This is a good summary of the review process: https://www.nsf.gov/od/oia/presentations/lh/MRev_DOE_EERE1_26_10.pdf
There are 5 different ratings you can get, which correspond to E/VG/G/F/P:
Excellent Outstanding proposal in all respects; deserves highest priority for support
Very Good High quality proposal in nearly all respects; should be supported if at all possible
Good A quality proposal, worthy of support
Fair Proposal lacking in one or more critical aspects; key issues need to be addressed
Poor Proposal has serious deficiencies
Other people on the forum said that you are actually given a raw score which is converted to the 5 categories listed above. Even if you get all E's, if you are on the lower end of the E category, your total "point" score can be less than someone who doesn't have all E's. I haven't seen anything to verify this, so it may or may not be true!
However, according to their website, the reviews only make up part of the decision. The Program Officers have the final decsision and consider other "external factors" such as
 different approaches to significant research and education questions  potential (with perhaps high risk) for transformational advances in a field  capacity building in a new and promising research area  achievement of special program objectives The Program Officers are recommended by NSF to support riskier proposals, and particularly noes that are different in some aspect to what has/is currently being funded.
 

Norms for conference presentations vary by field so it would help to know what field you're in. In mine, you don't usually read a paper but rather you give a presentation usually accompanied by slides or handouts, but this is precisely the place where expectations may vary. If you want to also give us the link to the conference website, we might be able to help you figure out how long you have to talk, etc. But if not, I bet you could get a lot of information by going on the website for this year's program, if it's up, or else last year's program, and seeing how long each talk is scheduled for. Keep in mind that there will be some time for questions, too. By far the most common format in my field is 20 for the talk + 10 minutes for questions. You might also see 15+5, 30+10, or 45+15, for example. The call for papers might also be a place to look, in my field you'll often find wording like "submissions are solicited for 20 minute presentations plus 10 minutes for questions" or some such as part of the CFP. 
One thing you might do in preparation is see if there are any local talks you can attend, to see how other people give presentations in your field. Your department likely holds reading groups of various kinds and has invited speakers at colloquia and perhaps job talks, if they are hiring this year. Ask your professor if there are any upcoming talks you might benefit from attending.
As for the actual preparation, practice, practice, practice. That's the best way to get rid of the nerves, or at least bring them down to a manageable level. Make sure you give at least one full-length practice presentation to a small local audience (your professor and peers, if possible) to get feedback, but you will also want to practice in addition either alone or with friends to get a sense of the timing. Plan, in particular, what you want to say in the very beginning. That's when you'll be the most nervous. Once you've established a rhythm and get into it, things will get easier. It's fine to begin by saying that you're nervous because this is your first presentation; that might help get the audience on your side and give you some slack if you get confused or flustered in the middle. You might also want to think about some possible questions you might get asked, although those are a whole lot more difficult to anticipate. Learn to say "thank you for that question, I hadn't thought of that. I'm not sure what to say, I'll have to give this some more thought after the conference". 
And finally, enjoy and have fun. Good luck! 

Also, some old advice threads: 
 

Wooohooo! Congratulations!

Congratulations!!! 
This is interesting, and doesn't surprise me at all. I really feel like I won the lottery with this fellowship. I'm sure more than half of the people who apply are of "high quality." And reading some of the comments on this forum, it seems like some applications really just hit bad luck with over-worked and tired reviewers. One of my cohort-mates had five E's and one P, and got HM--but I feel like she deserved it more than me, with so much more research experience and publications! The last reviewer just seemed to miss her bold-faced "broader impacts" section and gave her a P.