math123

Now I'm just confused. You got the award, right? I think I saw your name on the list. I thought it was because I didn't get two e's from different people, but clearly that wasn't it. I got e/e vg/g. Totally random.

^^^ why are you black too? I don't see how race can be deemed 'interesting'. This person clearly wasn't good according to his rankings. But they gave him a bye because he was black. Yeah, life ain't fair, but that's total bullshit.

People like you make me sick. You totally used the black card to get ahead. I got e/e, and vg/g and received shit.

mathematics. got nothing with vg/g and e/e i hate nsf and the people on these panels. they are so inconsistent in what they say they are looking for.

Agreed. This person clearly already knows what he/she wants to do and is simply seeking affirmation from equally amoral people. This person knew what he was getting himself into. Oxford works on a very different timescale--as do most UK universities. There is nothing selfish or unethical about these programs abroad. However, what this person is set on doing is very much selfish and unethical. Period.

Why is it a bad idea? Because it's unethical. That's why. When you accept an offer, it is expected that you will keep your word. You do not want to burn bridges by actively screwing schools over.

I'm really sorry. It sounds like you should wait and see what Temple says, as that appears to be your first, and best, option. If things don't work out this year, contact the programs and try to find out what about your application stood out, and perhaps work to better it.

The notes of guidance say 15 May (the IR department may work faster, but they are not obliged to let you know before this University deadline). Looks like you have at least another month of waiting...

With the Clarendon competition over, your sources of funding are even more severely limited as an overseas student. A College may have a special studentship/scholarship which you can apply for (if the deadlines have yet to pass!), but you should not be expecting for them to throw money at you. It doesn't work like that. If this is a one year course, you may want to start thinking about whether it's a good idea to bite the bullet and self-fund. Hasn't been that long has it? ;-) Once the offer has been made.

wow; just, wow. now, surely that's "racist"!

anthro is correct. If you receive a fellowship, they don't set 3 years worth of money aside for you--just enough for that one year.

scienceteacher7, wonderfully put! You sound like you have a good head on those shoulders. I wish you the best of luck!

You aren't really being free with the details, but surely a (funded!) Ivy master's will be better. You can always apply to the DPhil next year along with other schools in the US. But, hey, it's a personal choice.

It seems to me that you want to do the MSc because you think you can get a funded DPhil place after. If so, that's the wrong way to go about it. Remember, funding is never a guarantee. Unless your department offers studentships which would cover ALL your expenses as an overseas student, will you be any better off in a year's time than you are right now as an MSc applicant?

Ugh, why do I even bother. My fuckin' taxes are bailing out people like you and vannik who believe in whatever they want to believe.

I'm insulted. I wasn't even involved in the (reasonable) critique of his/her English ability. How dare you use my name and "racist" in the same line.

I would also like to add that the apparent blase attitude toward loan burden is highly problematic. We are in this mess today partly due to people who don't understand not biting off more than you can chew. Do whatever you want, but don't expect to be bailed out.

I beg your pardon, but we aren't pulling these numbers out of our asses--as you seem to be doing. Loan agencies recommend having a 200k salary in order to justify taking out 130k in loans. End of story. If you choose not to head their advice, I hope you have good reason. I don't see how you find that so unreasonable.

I'm bored. I should be studying, but I find this far more interesting. Plus, until I read the reviews, this chapter in my life is not officially closed. So bare with me until then if I feel so moved to contribute to this forum.

blah, I don't think this rampant speculation is healthy. NSF has many, many educational programs, not just GRFP. If you take a look at the stimulus bill governing the 3b the NSF was to get, many of these programs saw huge increases, but sadly not GRFP. Point is, just because NSF got more money than they requested doesn't mean GRFP saw any of that.

agreed. I do wish you the best of luck, but I had to stand up for some of the rejectees. Sorry, "she".

record will show that he started it. ;-)

again, I don't want it to appear as if i'm whining, but to say stuff like that is just utterly disrespectful. you are suggesting that people who were rejected wrote crap proposals. Firstly, you are only as strong as your competition. My proposal wasn't compared to yours, so you can't say yours was better than mine or the next bloke that got rejected. Since two people essentially determine your fate, you should be arguing you got lucky with your "respectable proposal" more than anything.

the NSF does do geographical fudging on a good portion of the awards. is your school frequently populated by those who stay close to home? I know it's common for non-big-name universities.

With all due respect, my saying whatever won't change reality. This is a public forum. If you can't deal with the stress of hearing what you don't want to hear, go crawl underneath a rock for the next week until all this is (hopefully) settled.