Jae B.

Sunday driving

clothes swap

That is truly ridiculous...I'd like to know who got into this program! Good luck.

My pet-peeves are when professors have eyed me suspiciously because I'm using a laptop, disallow laptops or sequester laptop-users in a corner because "you'll distract other students." There's nothing exciting going on on my screen, just note taking, so I expect the 19 or 20-something year old sitting behind me to grow up and put his or her eyes someplace they should be. That's their responsibility, not mine, so don't punish me. If they are going to be distracted by my boring screen, professor, even if you make it go away, they'll still be daydreaming and either staring at a bird outside the window or a tiny speck of un-erased chalk left on the board. My deal is, I use laptops for the right reasons, so I don't want to get punished on behalf of the Facebook surfers when I'm a good example! I've had more than one heart-to-heart with professors regarding this issue, and most have been receptive. Additionally, I am a front row person, but I've actually invested in an electronic pen for all the times professors have forbidden laptops in the front row or period, so I can still put all my notes in one place on my laptop and create a searchable collection of notes. But it's still a big hassle for me because some people's behavior is spoiling a valuable resource. I loved it when a phone would go off with a really silly, distinctive ring tone like that, everyone laughed, the person apologized, and then five minutes later... It'd be like an SNL sketch. At least twice I've seen someone flustered over their ringing reject the call but fumble turning the phone off, only to have it ring a second time while the whole class is watching them freak out. Ah, Blackberries.... I had one professor in undergrad who would absolutely tear someone a new one if their cell phone went off in class, and kick them out of class that day. No warnings other than on the first day of class (and assurances from students who'd had him before, "He really will..."), no second chances. Didn't matter who you were, how fast you turned it off, if you begged, cried, or if the whole class felt bad for you -- and this guy was so mean about cell phones, we always did feel bad for the person who forgot to turn theirs off. That said, I only remember it happening twice, which is unheard of for such a large class.... And he was an awesome professor, otherwise.

Yes, the load speeds are much better now. Thanks!

swimming meet

Congratulations on Annenberg! The Specialized program was the most interesting to me when I read about it. So you're creating your own track? I totally understand the Columbia pangs...someone recently called it the chance of a lifetime and I was just like, gee, thanks.... But the debt still wouldn't make sense for me. Hopefully we get comfortable with our decisions soon! Thanks! I'm jazzed about it.

run away

first dibs

Wow, I totally just got that hint! How awesome!

I am the opposite of wealthy. I'm sure people can make some really valuable contacts and potential work connections in their fields during grad school. You may be getting to know your future colleagues. But that's another one of those "you have to make the most of it" deals. As in anything. It's up to you. Pressure. They said the same thing at my undergrad, to remind us to be competitive, do internships, etc., because actual work experience could be the tipping point. "This is not an employment agency," they'd say. Should a degree ever really hand or steer someone into a job? Or should it just make them more employable, or valuable as an employee? It should be an asset. But, even with the whole package, you could wind up overqualified and not get the job. Finding the appropriate job could still be difficult and take awhile, and it's fair to have some warning. Jobs just aren't easy to get right now, or much of the time in some fields, whether you've got an MA in Journalism or a PhD in Linguistics.

plan ahead

This is exactly what I think of graduate school for. I am getting an advanced degree in journalism, a professional field, but even I don't expect this to get me a job. Far from it. A portion of journalism employers actually look down on the "poor saps" who get "suckered" into paying to get what experience gives. They think it's an absolute waste of time. Therefore, if I just wanted a job, I would start looking for one today. Sure, it's different in other fields, where you need a certain degree to get your foot in the door, but there's still no guarantees. You might end up working outside of your field. Outside forces might cause this, or your studies, interests and opportunities might lead you in a new direction. A number of journalism devotees I've spoken with anticipate this, and feel their personal development and skill acquisition in grad school will help them secure a job in another field, until they find their opportunity in journalism. It might be awhile. A lot of the people I've talked to in my field expect to freelance after they graduate -- not to nail down full-time employment under contract with benefits. I am going to graduate school for personal development reasons, and to have time to reflect on my field before becoming totally immersed in it and working a specific medium of it -- and perhaps losing the ability to see outside perspectives. I enjoy the academic environment, and am glad it will be part of my life for two more years. I hope it opens up my opportunities a bit (journalism, new media, web development, community work, teaching, etc.), but I don't expect it to pare them down for me. To me, education is about critical thinking and acquiring knowledge and skills to enhance that ability. Grad school, in my mind, is about applying critical thinking, knowledge and skills to a specific topic or trade and its circumstances. Finding paths to explore and methods to explore them. Becoming really good at something, not necessarily finding a really good job in it. (Yes, there's some expectation management there!) In this sense, graduate school may even be counter to -- or highly inconvenient relative to -- realistic employment goals. You may learn things that are highly inconvenient for your work flows, career routines and just getting along with people at meetings. You might develop such specific interests it becomes difficult for you to find paid work that expresses them. You might have to settle for something else. Working as an intern has helped me put work responsibilities in check with my idealism. I expect grad school assignments will do the same -- I hope they help me find a balance between the two. In my field, a lot of discussion circles ethics and legal debates. For me, grad school is an opportunity to do work in a field I love and still be outside of it. I'll get to work in underserved communities and areas, where I wouldn't be able to find an actual reporting job. I hope I'll get to try new things, be on the cutting edge, but also learn traditional things that are falling by the wayside. In the process, I'll gain skills that will make myself more valuable as an employee -- something I'll still have yet to demonstrate, and hope my work in school will suggest to employers -- but much of what I do will be about becoming the journalist I want to become, not just getting a job.

I've got the same thing going at my program. Everyone seems way more awesome and accomplished than me. Maybe they let in one green devoted dork every year, for good measure. But it's part of why I accepted their offer, anyhow! I felt really honored to be accepted. Now I'm hoping some of my peers' awesome rubs off on me.

I had this experience as well. I'm just glad I applied to the school I wound up accepting!

Are you on Facebook? LinkedIn? If you know these people's names, look them up. Maybe their profiles will say where they're going. I wouldn't hesitate to Google them -- if you find any e-mail addresses (assuming you don't have them already), you might send friendly inquiries as to their plans. My cohort has pretty much all friended each other on Facebook or LinkedIn already. We also have multiple Facebook groups going, one that admits started and one that the program made. It helped that a bunch of us we met at welcome week events after we'd been accepted. But it was still before most of us decided where to attend, so we even talked about our options together. Now I'm glad to know who's picked my school and who's decided to go elsewhere. It would be good for you to keep in touch with the people you hit it off with, anyway! Always nice to know others in your field, even if they are not at your school. I've walked away from the admissions process very happy with my new contacts at schools across the country. If you can't find them online, maybe e-mail your program and ask about introductions, like your friend's program. That's a really good idea on their part. How big is your cohort? Especially since the program sounds small, maybe your presence helped sway someone to accept. Awesome peers are very persuasive.

music lesson

price cut

My rule of thumb is never to e-mail twice in a row. That can be construed as nagging. Either wait a few days, or, preferably, call. I think your first e-mail (response) was fine. You didn't need to send the second one. If I were you, I definitely would not e-mail again. I'd even wait a few days before calling. Even if you are not going to hear good news, if you care enough about this program that you may want to apply again, you need to stay on good terms with these people. I ditto JustChill -- I would not mention rumors. If there is a chance they have not made a decision yet, I'd be especially delicate during this time. I understand that if you have other opportunities pending your acceptance or rejection at this date, you might want to e-mail or call -- but point out why you need to know now. Otherwise, you should probably just wait, now that they've said you'll hear in the next couple of weeks. I know it's painstaking, but it's the best move to make sure you don't annoy them when the ball is in their court! Good luck!

Lol...I'm supposed to be finishing my thesis....

So, what is everyone planning to do now? I've been trying to guess! It's May 1, so most of us have had to choose a path already. I'd love to know your decisions. Especially before most folks abandon this forum. Maybe this is a "goodbye 2010 applicants" post! Curiosity is getting to me! I'm finishing undergrad this month (yay). I've almost finalized my summer internship plans; I'm working on scheduling a communications internship with a community non-profit, but I am still in the running for an online editorial internship in the tech field (and will bow-out once my other internship is secure). In the fall, I'll be attending UC Berkeley's J-School, after making the tough decision to turn down Columbia. So, I'll be at Berkeley for the next two years. My concentration is magazine writing, but I'm looking forward to trying other kinds of journalism and, first, finding out my newsroom assignment in the next few weeks!

(Thanks!)

Did your schools provide any guiding questions for your SOP? Mine did, so I used the "repeat the question in the answer" technique to get myself started. Once I had some thorough answers to their initial questions, I revised like a maniac. But it's a good way to make sure you specifically address their concerns first, and expand off them. Also in my case, one of the schools had departmental SOP suggestions, but I also saw suggestions on the school's general grad admissions form, which I was to use. So I tried using both, and by then I had more than half a draft! I marked the general question parts, so I knew I could edit them more -- or remove them completely if I wanted to -- and worked from there. Basically, anything that helps you get started on the right track is good. Don't worry so much about how you should begin yet. Later on, once you have most of your material written, you can decide what is an engaging way to start it off. Personally, I liked something to specifically let each school know I was talking about them and what they offer, and not just writing to any school I wanted to go to. I have so many versions of my SOPs, I don't know which ones I used anymore. And some of them are totally different. Have fun!