pebs

@Almaqah Thwn For one of my apps, I didn't realize I was eligible for a waiver until a notice was included right before the payment section. Unfortunately, procrastination cost me $75 because I slid that application in right under the wire, and getting the fee waiver meant emailing a form to the office before submitting the app online. I'm glad yours worked out better than mine!

How far into the paper is the selected text? I wouldn't make them dig too far for it. If it's near the beginning, I think I'd sooner gray out the remainder text (either the font or via gray highlight) and include an indication in bold of the start and end of the selection. Highlighting or bolding the selected text might make it difficult to read. Try a couple approaches and show others; get some opinions on what looks most obvious while still being readable.

For most of them, it was an automated system. For the couple that were live humans, I gave them an earful about calling a number on the do not call registry. I was already heavily considering switching to Google Fi; I think this might have cinched it. Do you have any issues with customer service? The only reason I think I'm still hanging on is that I've been with T-Mobile forever and their customer service beats the pants off the others. Congrats on your interview invite!

Hah, same. I've found invaluable information here, but at what cost to my peace of mind? I just try to imagine that I'd be as anxious not knowing what I didn't know, and try to relax.

Vertical by Stephen Graham. Which, while fascinating, is a somewhat academic geography book. Which...isn't helping me chill. I should probably read something else.

I have been answering so many stupid spam phone calls the past two weeks; my god. Thank you, graduate admissions process, for helping me confirm my number in at least 12 telemarketer/scammer databases so far.

I have let impostor syndrome take so many chances away from me. I wish I could say something nervy and awesome like "not anymore", but even applying to grad schools was a huge step for me, and I'm proud. (Now please, oh please, don't roundly reject me and confirm my crazy fears, thx!)

@GeorgeC07 Well, I'm glad to hear I misunderstood you. The first line distorted my reading of the rest. I'm lucky that my parents never nagged me about singledom. How long have you been at your current school? It took me a couple semesters to make friends at my final undergrad institution, but I was also an old bag.

Three schools, GRE plus GRE prep, app fees, actual freaking *fax* costs to order transcripts since some schools insist that faxing a signed form is the only electronic option that satisfies FERPA (it isn't), and access to a couple of essential POI pubs that I couldn't get through school...about $700 altogether.

@GeorgeC07, I'm not sure I understand. Are you intimating that people with partners don't experience persistent harrowing thoughts? I certainly apologize if I've misread your post, but if not, that's concerning for at least two reasons. One, it seems you're implying that we don't deserve understanding and care. Two, finding a partner does not cute depression, anxiety, or any other problem, and it sounds like you might be expecting it to do so. I was single through big chunks of the loneliest and most isolated years of my life. I suffered chronic depression and anxiety since childhood. I experienced suicidal ideations and intent from the age of 10. Now I'm happily married to my partner of four years. And I still go through all of the above. It's hard work dealing with them, but if I hadn't started learning how, with professional help, several years before this relationship, getting here and realizing I still felt all these awful things might have killed me. Your destructive thoughts are not about being single, and they will not go away when you find someone. You're worth the investment in self-care, single or otherwise. Regardless, I wish you the best.

I'm still proud that I had my SOP done two full days before the deadline. That's two days' more breathing room than I normally give myself on assignments.

Hey! I'm another geography hopeful. I'm constrained to the Northeast because of my husband's job, so I've applied to Clark (PhD), UConn (PhD), and Hunter College (MA). My GPA at the school I completed undergrad (last four semesters) is 4.0, but I visited a few other schools along the way (I'm...not young) and have some bumps in my academic history, and no idea how to divine an overall GPA out of all that. My GRE scores are 170V/158Q/4AWA (the last one is BS; writing is my strength). I have strong LORs and an SOP that is supposedly also quite good. I'm so nervous about my past grades. There are a few ugly marks in there and even though in my SOP I explained moving constantly (big moves, too) during that time, I can see someone getting hung up on them. I also didn't contact any POIs prior to applying; I received conflicting advice on that topic and my social anxiety eventually won out. I'm not sure if I should try to do it now - again, conflicting advice. If it doesn't work out this year, I'm going to take more classes, get more research experience, and try again. This is the first time in my life I've ever been sure of what I wanted to do.

Hm. In that case, I'd worry that they'd notice my reported scores were different than the ones I'd filled in, and think I was trying to hide something. Unless the director told you to fill in the scores you wanted considered?

I have seen conflicting advice on this question all over the place, so I will be following this thread with great interest.

I'd be inclined to go with the middle scores, but do you have anyone you can reach out to at the program?