madamoiselle

@HomewardBound @Monsieur Vénus I say go ahead and ask the department if it would be okay. This seems to be a common question, and the worst case scenario is that they're going to ask you to rent a separate hotel room for your partner (they tend to put potential students in a double room together!)

Congrats to y'all @n.m.m. on Columbia and @Saltshaker on Michigan!!!! That is amazing!!! It's been a very exciting and fast-paced 48 hours, haha (I'm running out of upvotes!!)

@HomewardBound YESSSSS CONGRATS! Is this your first acceptance? I'm so excited for you!

@Carly Rae Jepsen HUGE CONGRATS! I know you were really excited about that school since the beginning, I'm so happy for you!

@Assotto Thank you so much! That's interesting that the bus doesn't run as frequently to graduate housing haha. Is there one that seems to be preferred over the other? I'll also give Travis Hyde a gander.

@Pacayas @Saltshaker I just got clearance from work -- I'll see y'all in Ithaca! (Will start a PM closer to visiting days :)) And I completely agree, Pacayas -- the stipend is amazing. Tons of opportunities for travel! And hey, NYC and Toronto are only a few hours away Happy END OF JANUARY, EVERYBODY! Best of luck for February!

@awhiterussian Do it! Haha we should all have a skype party @meliboeus a little wary because I'm more city-oriented, but I've heard it's beautiful and I'm hoping to get a peek this March!

@Pacayas ah, awesome! ¡Felicidades! I'm REALLY hoping that I'll have the chance to visit! The fact that they're letting us shop classes is so cool, I'm ready to grovel to work for more vacation days. @Saltshaker thank you so much! I'll let ya know if I can make it or not. If so, we should ALL get coffee!

@AL95 that's awesome, I hope you have a great time! Looks like somebody got into the masters program at IU Bloomington! Congrats if you're here I'm not applying to the program personally, but it seems like y'alls decision should be coming out relatively soon!

@Saltshaker YES!!! You go, Saltshaker! UVA is an awesome program, that's so exciting!! Must be a very exciting Tuesday for you

I have 31 unanswered, outgoing calls to my mother from when I got my first acceptance; I know the feeling!

pop rocks

I just got an offer from Cornell for an outstanding program, and am looking for graduate housing suggestions if anybody has any!

@Saltshaker Sounds so awesome! I may reach out to you with a PM if I can't make it, and if I can, I'll make sure to let you know -- maybe we can grab a coffee or something! Best of luck at Columbia, sounds like you really did well on the interview

@Yanaka @Monsieur Vénus thank you so much!!

OH HELL YEAH, CONGRATS!!! Extra congrats on your first acceptance!!!!!!!! Are you going to visiting days? I'm not sure if I can take off work, since I'm already taking off for Berkeley

@awhiterussian @frenchlover thanks so much, y'all!!!

Y'ALL I just got into Cornell! Full funding, I'm pumped!

First generation, chiming in! My dad is an older father, African American from rural Texas, and was actual a child during segregation (crazy to think that was so recent). His family was too poor to send him to even an HBCU, so he went into the military. Mother is an immigrant from Southeast Asia, English is her third language. They both only have high school diplomas and worked so ridiculously hard to help me succeed. I'm the youngest of 7, and the first ever to even think about doing grad school. I had no idea what to do until my advisor and secondary readers had a nice, long talk with me after my thesis defense (I'm currently on a gap year as a teaching assistant!) I love my family to death and they have always been outstandingly supportive of my decisions in school. At first, they were upset I didn't go the "guaranteed job" route (Medicine, Law, etc. but it's hard enough to explain to them that those roads are not always straight and narrow), but they love the concept of me getting a PhD (also not straight and narrow lol.) The "gap" between my parents and I is blaringly evident sometimes. I studied a foreign language and have had awesome travel opportunities to France (Study abroad, a fellowship and now my teaching assistantship). People would always say, "You must get that travel bug from your parents!" but no; dad traveled in the military and mom traveled to immigrate. I travel because I have the opportunity and am enriching my studies... they traveled because they had to survive. I studied existentialism and psychoanalysis, convoluted topics even for academics. It can be hard knowing that they busted their asses and worked so hard to give me these opportunities, but I can't properly express what it is I'm doing. So all I can do is thank them Their enthusiasm makes up for it, though! When I wrote and shelved my thesis at my undergraduate's archive, I just thought it was a silly little thesis tradition that all honors undergrads do. However, my family was so excited that our family name was on a book in a university library haha. When I got into Berkeley, my mom broke down crying on the phone. Sometimes, I get winded just thinking about how much can happen within generations. My parents drive me so much, that I was more likely to apply to programs with a diversity/familial background essay options. Programs with diversity programs or choices for first generation students (that are more than just a recruiting tactic) are also a huge plus. I even openly say that one of my goals as a professor is to mentor for Mellon Mays or McNair. Gotta hold the door open!

Sorry I gotta vent for a second... HOW IS IT STILL JANUARY???????

Howdy, y'all! I went to UT Austin for undergrad and absolutely loved it; Austin is an absolutely kickass city. This being said, prices are rising as Austin is very quickly growing (and gentrifying, which is going to be a hot topic btw, should you move there). You'll find that most students, undergrads included, do not live in university housing. Maybe freshmen, but from what I understand, even freshmen aren't guaranteed housing anymore. I personally never lived on-campus (I lived in West Campus for 3 years, then spent my senior year in Hyde Park). Here's my little breakdown on student living as I saw it. I'll outline the more common student neighborhoods, although there are definitely more! POPULAR STUDENT NEIGHBORHOODS: West Campus : Right behind Guadalupe St., the large stretch that separates West Campus and Main Campus. Guadalupe St. is also lovingly referred to by Longhorns as "the drag." The Drag has a ton of businesses, cafés and small restaurants that, sadly, fluctuate in and out of business. Certain staples like Caffé Medici, however, are super popular meeting spots for all types of students (namely Liberal Arts). West campus tends to extend from MLK Jr. to roughly ~31st street, and between Guadalupe St. and Lamar Boulevard. Super expensive because of its proximity to campus (2br/2ba will run anywhere from 850-1500 per room, price decreasing as you go towards Lamar). Apartments are tall, new, rather nice and furnished. You may be able to find more humble abodes sprinkled around, if you look hard enough. Also, beware -- this is the Fraternity and Sorority neighborhood, which may not be the most savory for graduate students (unless you're dying to hear the Kappa Delta chant every day in August!) Super popular for undergrads leaving campus housing and getting their first apartment with friends, as well as people in Greek Life. Far West: Essentially the area between MLK Jr. and 51st, but between Lamar Blvd and Mopac Expressway. Way quieter and relatively cheaper than West/NW Campus, but Mopac can be a nightmare, so beware! I don't personally know many people who lived here, but the expressway is a great way to traverse Austin if you're not stuck on it between 4 and 6 PM. This back area has a lot of little businesses and houses; I've seen some apartments, but small room-for-rent houses definitely seem to be more common. If you go west enough, you'll start to see rather large, family houses, some of which may also rent to students. The only people I knew here were two PhD Candidates who were near defense. Seems to be pretty popular with standard Austinites and young professors. North/North West Campus : The areas surrounding Guadalupe, extending to Lamar (west) and I-35 (east), around 31st to 38th streets. Much calmer than West Campus. Still a heavy student population density, and still rather expensive. Mostly small, multi-bedroom houses as well. There are apartments, but they're not nearly as swanky as West Campus (2br/2ba will probably be in the 650-950 range per room). Next to some cool pubs, brunch places and bars, but not as busy as the West/Main Campus area. Good parties here for upperclassmen and graduate students. If you go east of Guadalupe, towards I-35, you essentially run into the engineering department of UT and the beginnings of Hyde Park, which is a super cool area. Mueller : 38th to 51st but on the east side of I-35. I love Mueller and spent a lot of time here. The East Side of Austin is historically a very African-American/Hispanic/Latinx population, but as I previously mentioned, gentrification is challenging that. Mueller housing is mostly professors, TAs and young lecturers, and the student population starts to wane off a bit. However, you can find some awesome, authentic food in this area, and it's incredibly cheap. Also has very cool, hole-in-the-wall coffee shops. Mostly houses, as well, prices comparable to Hyde Park, possibly a bit cheaper. Cherrywood: from 28th to Airport, on the east side of I-35 (Austin starts to get very loopy and curvy on this side of I-35 around Cherrywood/Mueller, so it's harder to differentiate the neighborhoods). Mostly houses as well, super similar to Mueller. Cherrywood Coffeehouse was one of my favorites during undergrad Hyde Park : Where I lived during my senior year, a personal favorite neighborhood of mine! Very quaint, mostly house rentals. Lots of trees and cute houses. Little shacks that sell sandwiches and coffee/pastries are not rare. This area is east of Guadalupe, from around 38th to 51st street, between Guadalupe and I-35. I had an awesome studio for about $800 (still a lot, but it was very spacious and nice, I also had my dog). You may be able to find a studio starting around $700 or even $650. I had friends in a 6 bed, 3 bath home who paid around $450-$650 a person. Super popular for upperclassmen, graduate students and young professors/lecturers. Also, people/students with families. A lot of parks and many, many cafés, almost no parties. Suburban in the cozier sense. TONS of buses that run to UT. The Triangle: Between 38th and 45th on the west side of Guadalupe, you find a ton of shopping centers. Housing picks back up again after 45th up until about 51st in The Triangle. I know some underclassmen who lived here, and surprisingly, not a lot of graduate students. Rent isn't necessarily cheaper than say Northwest campus, though, because the residential area is really nice and in a pretty swanky shopping center. So it's nice, but further away. Thankfully, the 801/803/1/5 buses run really frequently to UT and it doesn't take too long to get from the Triangle to Main Campus (the bus typically stops along the Drag). If you have a car, it's even easier. Super close to grocery shopping, suburban in the fancier sense. Riverside : South of the lake, along Riverside Drive. Even more south than Downtown. Incredibly popular low-cost housing options for undergrads and graduate students alike. A 1br/1ba will run around $500-$700 for a pretty nice space in a newer apartment complex. Heavily suggest having a car, though, because I've heard buses are irregular from here -- had a ton of friends in undergrad who lived in this area who would run late for class. Students in Riverside tend to be cut off from the general UT population, which can stink. It's a rather suburban area near the river, and has great access to outdoorsy-Austin, SoCo and downtown. However, it does have some safety issues (such as theft. Rest assured, Austin is a generally safe city overall!) Downtown (super south) : From MLK to Cesar Chavez. A huge business district and high rises galore. Some coffee shops with almost no capacity, I don't even try going down there during finals. I don't know anybody who lived here, personally, but a cool place to take family that's visiting! Buses run from UT Campus to 6th street/Rainey/Red River very frequently, with nightbuses on weekends and Thursdays (pour one out for the dirty 6th!) In terms of nightlife, 6th street is very undergraduate-dense, Rainey tends to be more for graduate students and upperclassmen with IDs. The West End is Downtown around 6th Street and Lamar, and is very, very swanky, with the Whole Foods and lots of fancy Yoga places. South Congress is south of the river, and is mainly for new graduates and general Austinites. North of 51st (super north): Around Burnet and the North Loop, the student population tends to wane off as well. Not too sure about the graduate student density, but these areas have great, quieter, larger coffee shops and tend to cater to standard Austinites. OTHER HINTS: Should I bring a car? I did, and it really helped with stuff such as groceries. However, if you have a roommate, you may fare well with one car between you. The buses are pretty good, but not as frequent as much bigger cities. UT Austin students get free bus fare as well, so benefit from that, especially since downtown parking is impossible! Is food cheap? Food is pretty standard; not as expensive as a big city such as NYC, but maybe more comparable to the quieter parts of Seattle/Portland. TONS of awesome takeout places and really diverse cuisine! South of the lake, you'll find really nice, little gourmet restaurants Tons of HEBs, Wal-Marts and Targets, if you don't want to spend too much money on food. You WILL, however, have to partake in ATX craft beer culture from time to time TONS and TONS of coffee shops. Coffee shop culture is gigantic in ATX, and all UT students have their favorites/opinions! How is the UT Campus? UT is absolutely stunning as a campus and I miss it dearly. It's a sprawling, shockingly green campus with tons of trees, fountains and beautiful places to study. You'll also find a ton of good food and coffee places on campus (F*** Starbucks and GO TO TEXAS COFFEE TRADERS!) ------- So yeah, that's my very rough beginner's guide to ATX! It was an awesome city with tons of diners, cafés and fun things to do. If anybody has any questions, don't be shy I was in Liberal Arts, but know a little bit about every department!

@n.m.m. Bienvenue!

@frenchlover Take a deep breath! Yale is super competitive and it's early -- you still have options. Don't panic (I know it's easier said than done!)

@HomewardBound Congrats on Iowa and your first acceptance!! Take it all in!

@HomewardBound I need one of those AmazonPrime specials on funding packages haha