theprincessleia

I just took my general comprehensive exam a few weeks ago and my oral defense is coming up in a week.  The written portion of the exam was pretty tough and I am more confident about the first question compared to the second. I'm really nervous about the oral defense and I'm planning on writing out what I would've changed if I could go back, but I'm not sure if that's enough. It'd be great if I could have the writing center take a look to see if my argument answered the questions/overall clarity but I'm not sure that it's allowed. Does anyone have any other tips to prepare?
 

If you're not super attached to your furniture, Amtrak and Greyhound both ship REALLY cheap. Amtrak is faster, but Greyhound looks cheaper and has fewer restrictions. Even considering the cost of storing things yourself and transfer to and from the station, it's a really great deal.
I'm moving cross-country (East coast to West coast), and the trip should take about a week. I'm planning to sell my furniture, seriously winnow down my belongings, and ship via Greyhound. It should cost ~$300. (The Amtrak estimate was pretty similar, but I'd have to pay for storage because my stuff would likely make the trip faster than I did.) I'll take the essentials on my roadtrip and live out of a suitcase for about three weeks while I look for housing and stay in an AirBnB.
This option works for me because I'm transitioning from living by myself in a studio to living in a shared apartment, so I would need to get rid of a lot of my stuff anyway. I'll only need to replace my bed and bookshelves, which I can do for well under the ~$1000 I'll save by using this method rather than PODS.

I feel the same way. I took time off to work after my undergrad since I graduated a year early because, I thought that I could gain some more research experience and professional development (which I did, to an extent) and I thought it would make me feel more ready (whatever that means) but, I think I'm more terrified now since I was actually accepted to one of my top choices. It feels so unreal. I have this awful fear that I'll get one of those calls that my acceptance was a mistake. 
Though, with a campus visit coming up soon, my acceptance feels more and more real. I am also terrified that I won't be good enough or that I'll be a disappointment. I'll also be moving away to another state that I've never been to (yet), where I don't have any family or friends. I've never been in that situation before and even though I haven't even left yet, I already feel so alone. I am so excited to start but at the same time, I am so afraid. 

Congrats! I'll see you in the Fall

Claiming a last minute admit to UIUC for comparative!

Ok, I gave this matter a lot of thought and probably my suggestions are more for when you teach, especially your first courses. 
Organization Plan ahead. Not only the readings, but the types of questions you want to elicit from chapters, the types of activities that would suit different learners, and a good balance of assessment opportunities.  Yes, think about extra credit. In my case, they had to watch a movie and write a report connecting the movie with topics in class. It was a two-week window in the middle of the semester, right after the term exam (when they usually panic).  Remember introverts and students with disabilities. You don't know what disabilities they have unless they want to share with you. In general, I plan ahead for possible ADHD and dyslexic students. For introverts, I use very small group discussions and online posting.  Start your sessions with a recap and end them with a conclusion/take away. You may need to change stuff in the syllabus. Give a week-notice.  Your presence You are a figure of authority, act like one (which doesn't mean to be dictatorial!). You are not their buddy.  Dress appropriately.  That said, be kind, don't be condescending. Listen to their questions and give everyone an opportunity to ask questions, disagree, and interact.  Be on time, plan ahead if you are going to be absent (it is ok to have a conference). Remember that you are a role-model on how to behave in the real world. Be available within your own parameters and teach them that you are not available 24/7. Teach how to write/respond to e-mails, how to address other people, how to politely disagree, etc.  Don't be scared of silences.  This may be a little controversial but don't be afraid of name-picking. I found this a very good way to learn names, to have students ready to contribute with class discussion, and to have students engage with each other. For example, if someone had been quiet for a while, I would ask "Sam, do you agree with John's point?" I've never had a complaint about this and I've always had good evaluations from professors about this because you kind of make sure that everyone chips in at some point. But I understand this depends a lot on your personality, your class size, and your students.  Your content Be prepared. Read, imagine possible questions, imagine possible answers.  Acknowledge that you don't know everything, it is OK. Personally, I am very comfortable with the "I don't know that, I'll happy to look it up, would you send me a reminder so I don't forget?" I was surprised that my highest score in students' evaluations was... subject matter knowledge!  Be ready to give a lecture in case people did not read. ALWAYS have a plan B. ALWAYS.  Record keeping (you know, roughly) Keep a record for attendance, even if it is not important to you/the grade. If someone asks something, you can check if they came to class and help them better (or direct them to first get someone's notes and then come to you with questions). Keep a record for in-class participation but remember that not everyone is comfortable speaking in front of everyone else.  Keep a record for people that come to office hours. I had a student once complain at the end of the semester because I didn't him enough opportunities to respond to his questions. I had a record of how late he had been to class and how he had never come to office hours except at the beginning of the semester, how he didn't engage in class participation or in online discussions. So, he basically wasn't doing his part.  Keep a record of the things that work and the things that don't.   

This has been my experience as well. My department has an almost weekly happy hour frequented by grad students and faculty. Some people talk about random things (sports, news, etc.), others talk about teaching, others about research. I've found that in some of these small conversations I've gotten great ideas or insights into my research that I hadn't gotten otherwise. Sometimes just being asked to give the 30 second version of your research can force you into thinking about it in a different way or allow someone else to say something you hadn't thought of. Without those conversations, my work would definitely suffer.
 
And yea, I'm one of those people who can't work all the time. Back when I did my comprehensive exams (which were multiple questions over like 10 days), I remember people in my department (mostly those not yet at the exams stage) being surprised that I was still attending the class I was TAing (I was mostly grading but went to every single lecture), working out, and even watching an episode or two of a TV show online. But you know what? You can't work for 16 hours a day for the 10 days without a break. And really, since I was limited to like 25 pages double-spaced per answer, I would've ended up writing way more than I needed if I'd worked that long. Instead, I rode my bike to the gym, worked out with friends (including some who had PhDs and thus totally understood what comps were and why you might need a break), cooked myself real food, etc. It's about knowing what you need to work efficiently and be productive and taking the time to do whatever that is.
 
Back to the original question though:
- Be open and willing to learn.
- If you're in the humanities or social sciences, take the time to just browse the library shelves in your general field and in your intended research area to get an idea of what's been published and what research resources are available to you. (Even better, meet with a librarian early on to make sure you know what your school has and the support s/he can give you.)
- Skim through recent journal issues in your field to get a sense of what topics are current and which are becoming dated. Pay attention to book reviews if there are any and use those to help you find relevant books for your discipline and research area.
- Learn to use reference management software (EndNote, Zotero, Mendeley, etc.) and start keeping track of your references that way.
- Figure out an easy to use system for staying abreast of current/new research in both books and journals that may be of interest.
- Read your graduate handbook (and TA handbook if needed) so you know what is expected of you. Ask questions if expectations are unclear.
- Start figuring out what, if any, courses outside the department you might want to take, how often they're offered, how difficult they are, etc.
- If you're going to need research methods training, figure out how to get that ASAP. In the social sciences, this often means taking courses in qualitative methods, statistics, and/or GIS and seats in those classes can fill because they're attracting students from an array of disciplines. Getting your methods coursework done means you can start collecting data sooner.
- Get to know whomever helps oversee grant apps (NIH, NSF, SSRC, Fulbright, IAF, etc.) at your institution and ask them what you can do beginning now to prepare to apply in the future, when you should be applying, what you'll need to be competitive, etc. And, while you're there, get them to help you set up some alerts for grant announcements.
 
There's probably more you could do, especially related to conferences and networking, but I don't want to overload anyone with suggestions.

The funny thing about admit weekends is that they are very much a social affair, despite the fact that most of us who study political science are introverts and like to read and write alone for extended periods of time. Overall, visits are what you make of them but I would not advise listening and not talking. Most visit weekends have a blend of group meetings (your entire subfield meets the subfield coordinator and hears about courses and pathways, most departments also offer a general discussion of methodology training opportunities, funding, teaching etc), one-on-one meetings, socials, mixers and dinners. The group meetings are of the sit and listen variety, but everything else is entirely driven by you.
I went to 3 visits of the 4 places I was accepted. Every one on one meeting I had was a conversation driven by me and my questions. Every dinner was driven by questions from prospective students to current students. The socials were the same thing, on top of just meeting a lot of people. Professors asked me about my research occasionally, but it's not about them interviewing you, it's much more about you interviewing them. Of course this doesn't mean you're talking about their current research (though it's helpful to ask professors what they're currently working on as a starter question), but you should take the time to consider questions you have about the program, the university, department culture, student culture, advising relationships, co-authorship opportunities, funding opportunities, social life atmosphere, gender-relations between professors and students, living conditions (is there graduate housing), cost of living (is your stipend enough to live on or will you need to pick up a job), funding opportunities (is funding only for the academic year or does it include the summer), private sector opportunities (is the program honest about its placements outside of academia or have info on where graduates have landed outside of academia), planned departures (any professors you want to work with in the process of leaving?  You would be surprised but I found out about at least 1 planned departure/in process move per visit), hiring committees/future hiring plans, maternity/paternity leave policies, childcare options on campus/in town, office space availability, research centres you might affiliate with, what do course requirements look like, how are generals structured, how much program attrition is there, does funding stop in year 4 or 5/are there 6th year funding options etc.
I asked about most of these things on my visits and some of the answers were a bit startling (like a panel of professors laughing and having no answer when someone asked about what the maternity leave policy was if someone had a baby during the program...which happens for many people given the average political science grad student is between 25-30ish). Programs want to convince you to come, but they will also be honest about the tough questions. Why? Because you coming and being miserable or struggling doesn't help them/earn them any money (unless you're visiting places where you don't have full funding). 
Use the visit to get a picture of what it would be like for you to study there, and ask the tough questions. 5-7 years of your life in a particular place is a commitment. Social dynamics matter a great deal, both amongst your potential entering cohort, but also across cohorts and with faculty. The city and your living conditions can make things more stressful (especially if your stipend doesn't go far), or provide a welcome oasis. Consider whether the program is something that will work for your research agenda and your life; it should not be the case that you are working like a dog for a program and sacrificing doing the kind of work you want to do in order to meet the program's will.

I agree that it will be difficult to find a one bedroom apartment close to campus with all utilities included for under $700. It can be done if you're willing to accept some of the cheapest apartments in town, but it may not have all of the amenities you're looking for. Any website where apartments are listed (hotpads, ApartmentFinder, craigslist, etc.) can be used to see what options are currently available in Champaign-Urbana. I also agree that Urbana will generally have cheaper apartment options available.

Most apartments with all utilities and nice amenities included are closer to $900-1000/mo if you want to live in a safe neighborhood and relatively close to campus. I'd suggest looking into subleased apartments. Otherwise, a general suggestion would be that Urbana seems to be cheaper because most of the nightlife is in Champaign. Obviously, the closer you live to campus, the more expensive rent will be. Good luck!

@theprincessleia, that's great! And if you come here, you can be sure that you'll have some automatic friends and allies in the GEO!

That's awesome! Congrats on the new contract. very happy to hear the good news. i'm looking forward to a campus visit next month  

I have some questions. 
I was offered a tuition waiver for this upcoming academic year, and they say its renewable if I have satisfactory performance. Does this mean I wouldn't be affected by the elimination of tuition waivers? Or could I still be affected by it, despite them saying it's renewable?
The other question I have is, do you know if the students in the engineering department have also been without a contract?
Thanks,

Trying to get a sense of the number of schools who haven't given their decisions yet. I'm waiting on NEU

Hey everybody, not to shift the subject or anything, but I can say that I got an interview at the University of Illinois. Not sure what it means, but I just wanted to update everybody who may have applied there or are just curious. Best to all!!!

I can also report that I was admitted to the University of Illinois. They are shooting for a cohort of about 9, and they admitted only three Americanists and I am one. So anxiety is much less now. Best to everyone!