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exidwhere

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Everything posted by exidwhere

  1. exidwhere
    game theory
  2. exidwhere
    For those of us waiting for Penn State, their Spring break starts next week (March 4-10th). So, stop refreshing the application portal and expect at least another week of waiting.
  3. exidwhere
    Got some responses from few schools' admission staff: UBC: they sent out their acceptance letters early in Feb. They won't sent out formal rejection letters until late April/early May (aka. graduation). There is not an explicit wait-list. York: still deciding, should hear by "mid-March" (*I am not sure how to interpret mid-anything anymore b/c Penn State) I also wrote to Penn State but didn't hear anything back... going to e-mail my POI next. I'll post an update if I get anything from Penn State.
  4. exidwhere
    Literally in the same situation. I think departments send out their letters in waves so that they can achieve their target number of students they want to accept each year. If a department sends out all of their acceptance letters at once (and assuming a lot of people will accept the offer), then the department will have a very difficult time to fund everyone. On a related noted, a possible explanation is that the department is still trying to piece together your funding. They might have a strong applicant pool this year, and they still want you, but they might be tighter on funding. For your second question: I was just talking to my current academic advisor the other day about this. They said to politely e-mail the department graduate staff/assistant/etc. and ask about your situation indirectly (I know! It's so frustrating!). Do not mention the other people! It makes you look not independent. Just mention how it's late in the application cycle and you need an approximate date to plan for your future. However, if the department assistant provides you with a vague response, wait another week or so and then send your POI/your connections a more direct (but still polite, respectful, and not-too-direct) e-mail.
  5. exidwhere
    It's a shitty thing to do... But I think you just lose your deposit (?) if you decide to go with that. You are basically withdrawing from the program, and there isn't much schools can do about that. However, I still think you should go with schools that didn't wait-list you initially.
  6. exidwhere
    evil smile
  7. exidwhere
    Oh no . I am sorry to hear that. At this point, I am wondering if my POI just forgot I existed and didn't sent out my rejection letter ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Two more days before I send out an awkward e-mail asking about my decision.
  8. exidwhere
    I got a similar response from one of my POI and was a bit overwhelmed initially. I asked few of my current professors and, basically, your POI is willing to look over your SOP/SOI. They can give you tips on improving it (aka. tailor it to the department) so that you have a higher chance of getting in. Your POI may also be referring to your CV/resume if the program is asking for it.
  9. exidwhere
    Congratz on the acceptance! I was telling/lying to myself that the department must be contacting the physical/GIS applicants first, but I guess not... I am somehow more anxious now lol. Anyway, thoughts on Penn State: the school I am currently attending is also very (very) white and the location is quite similar to State College. A part of me is screaming "don't go there, you're an urban geographer, you can't live in another college town for two years." The other part of me is like "I've done this for four years now. It's just two more years and I'll definitely do my PhD somewhere else more urban." Soooo, *lol* I am a bit torn about the location/diversity of PSU. Howeverr... during my undergrad years, I've come across the work of two feminist geographers from Penn State, and I really find their work inspiring (like I value their work on the same level as Massey and GG). This is the major reason (if not the sole reason) for me to apply to Penn State. Personally, I think the cost of missing the opportunity to work with (or just havingthem around) these faculty members is much higher than the cost (at least for me) of attending another college town for two years. Hope that helps!
  10. exidwhere
    mock exam
  11. exidwhere
    lol my POI is the head of wgss, so hey, double edged sword for the both of us!? Also, I am sorry to hear about the Kentucky thing. I am wondering if the funding just sucks for geography departments in general this year. I am surprised to see that many PhD applications are accepted without funding on the results page. Anyway, WVU is still funding you for geography right?
  12. exidwhere
    I think I'll wait till the first day of March. If I don't hear by then, I'll try to contact Penn. I am also not exactly sure if I should contact the program coordinator or my POI directly. Here is a rejection result for the 2017 cycle: "The program coordinator claim to have bcc'ed the rejection email to me on Feb 16, but I have found nothing in my archive. During this 2 month, I have sent several emails inquiring about my status, and they told me they were still making decisions, ironic, isn't it? " So maybe contacting your POI might give you a more direct answer???
  13. exidwhere
    I definitely should’ve applied to more schools initally. Almost, if not, all of the schools I applied to have been dead silent. I’ve been looking at programs with late March to early June deadline. I think when March hits and if I still don’t get an acceptance, I’ll start doing a second round of applications. I didn’t want to give my recommendors more work during the first round, but now I have to ask them to do a second round of letters which is awkward for me and them. “Sighing endlessly”
  14. exidwhere
    lol I feel less awful now for sending my POIs short and direct e-mails.
  15. exidwhere
    I do think Penn State's dual program has an edge over Kentucky if you want to do feminist geography rather than just feminist theory. Several geography faculty members have a joint-appointment in the WGSS department, and that's like deal-sealer for me. Anyway, I hope we both hear from Penn State soon!
  16. exidwhere
    I don't think you should assume that. I am assuming the two results are first-first wave acceptance (people who Penn State really really wants). They should be sending out more letters this week. I was looking at last year's discussion and this was the week when most people got their letter. Also, if you applied to the WGSS/Geography dual degree program it might take longer for both departments to make a decision. So don't give up!
  17. exidwhere

    Los Angeles, CA

    exidwhere replied to a topic in City Guide

    Cost of living: can be cheap if you can drive/willing to take the public transit. Immediate rent around USC/DTLA can get very expensive due to gentrification. But there are many other residential (/suburban) areas where the rent is doable on a PhD stipend. Generally, you want to look east of LA (e.g., San Gabriel Valley, Covina, Azusa). Housing Resources: USC has a ton of resources to help their students find housing. If I remember my friend's dilemma correctly, there are like several Facebook groups for housing (i.e., they were getting 20 notifications every minute). If low rent is your goal, craigslist is your best friend. Life-Outside-of-School: Congratulations! You've picked the right school. You have access to good food, good bars (karaoke optional), good clubs, good museums, a zoo, shops, etc... There are so many fun things to do in DTLA, so you can't beat USC location wise on access to entertainment. I can't guarantee that you will makes friends in USC, but USC (despite it being a private school) has a lot of students and diversity. It's also likely that you'll meet people from surrounding schools (Cal State LA, UCLA, sometimes UCI/UCR) since DTLA is where people come to have fun. Safety on/off campus: Yes, it can get unsafe later in the night (I am talking past 10/11 pm) if you are walking alone on the street. But honestly, if you are careful and mindful, you will be fine.
  18. exidwhere

    Los Angeles, CA

    exidwhere replied to a topic in City Guide

    Because the way "Los Angeles" expanded and sprawled, the rent can get very cheap ($400-800 if you want to living with other people, $900+ if you want a single apartment) if you are willing to drive (30+ minutes). So yes, $20,000 is doable. If you find a cheap place, you'll still have a considerable amount of disposable income for other stuff, but your stipend does seem to be lower than the average.
  19. exidwhere
    The results page for geography just updated and someone got into Penn State PhD! Maybe the master's applicants should be getting the letters soon (hopefully next week)?
  20. exidwhere
    I similarly applied to UBC and UW for MA and have not heard back. My undergrad advisor told me not to worry since these two schools have not rejected me yet (aka. I dodged the first-wave-rejection bullet). Also applied to Penn State, York, and UofT and have not heard back. At this point, I will even take a rejection letter just to alleviate some of the waiting anxiety.
  21. exidwhere
    I guess what I can add is that even "screening" can be deceiving since people can present themselves differently from their actual living behavior. During my last year of undergrad, for whatever reason, I decided to try out the roommate thing, and oh gawd, it's one of the worst decisions I made in my entire life. I chose two people who I thought I knew, and during the "screening process", I asked them whether they're clean and they both answered yes. When we started to living together, however, I found out that their action differed a lot from their words. For instance, one of them never washed the dishes immediately and would leave the dishes in the sink sometimes for two plus weeks. In addition, both of them love to fill trashcans but never take the trash out. After they fill the living room trashcan, they would move on throwing stuff into the bathroom trash-bin (I once saw a packaging envelope filling up the bathroom bin). Honestly, I never even got the chance to use these two trashcans because they are always filled (note, one of them even claim to be an environmentalist). When I asked them to clean their dishes/spaces or take out the trash, both of them would say how busy they are with school. Seriously? They made this excuse when one of them can spend two plus hours on the phone everyday just chit-chatting and the other was taking time-off from school. This seriously impacted my grades and my emotional well-being, and because of this, I never want to live with any other people ever again. Getting good grades and being in a good emotional state are things you need to succeed during and post grad-schools. So unless you are willing to take the risk, I would say avoid roommates at all cost.
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