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bon to the jour

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  1. Hi Everybody, I'm not even close to applying yet --- in fact, I'm still in my first year --- but I'm curious about how narrow a job search can be for an academic psychologist. My initial thinking is that basically, you go where the jobs are, which means a national search. Is a regional search, or for that matter, a state-wide search basically impossible?
  2. So the gift-giving season is upon us --- does anyone get a gift for their advisor? I have no clue whether I should or not, so I was looking to hear what you guys usually do. I was thinking of just baking some cookies, but again, I don't know the etiquette around these situations...
  3. ha that was good for a chuckle joro. too bad it will be stuck in my head all week...
  4. Taking a bunch of graduate classes may actually just be a a big, expensive waste of time. At least in psychology, most schools only accept 6 or so transfer hours towards your graduate degree. Look into the policy on credit transfer at the schools your thinking of applying to and make sure that if you spend the time and money in graduate level classes, they will count towards your eventual degree.
  5. I can't decide what I should wear to orientation... what about you guys? I've got a general orientation from the Graduate School and then another departmental one. I'm inclined to say I'd rather look nicer for the departmental orientation because those are the people I'll see every day. What are you thinking about wearing?
  6. Yes, but how is their tenure affected by your performance? Like in a "you obviously can't teach because your student is crap" sort of way, or something else?
  7. Why is it that if they don't have tenure your success and his/her success depend on one another?
  8. Yes, it does make you wonder --- that is an excellent point that I hadn't really thought about until now. I suppose one reason that professors want us to work hard and be stellar students is because they think it reflects upon their own career. For example, an advisor takes on a new student; if the student is successful and wins awards, grants, fellowships, has lots of thoughtful publications, ect, the advisor's peers may or may not attribute that student's success to the wisdom and success of the advisor. But if the advisor takes on a student who does poorly, with little knowledge of the field, unimpressive publications, and under-developed skill-sets, the "black sheep" of the field might call into question the advisor's own capabilities --- in the same way that we make assumptions about the parents of children who throw long, drawn-out temper-tantrums in public, or who have terrible manners. This is all speculation, of course, but it is something to think about. And also a bit funny --- imagine professors tip-toeing around students as if we are all ticking time bombs that, if detonated, draw the scorn and mistrust of other academics to our advisor. Or like we students are hot potatoes that advisors toss around from project to project in effort to not let us fall and burn the advisor's own foot. Anywho, I digress yet again. These were just some funny images that popped into my head while I was writing.
  9. I so admire my advisor's career and accomplishments, and I trust that he asks me to do things for my own good. Like that semester I collected, scored, and entered data on my own in a 200-person study. Or that time I spent the summer reading "Applied Multiple Regression/Correlation Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences". Or maybe that time I attempted to write an article on a topic I don't really know much about. Anyway, I digress. Back to the point: When my advisor asks me to do something, I see it as more "eat your vegetables because they're good for you" (a la my mother) and less "grade these papers because I don't want to and and I don't know what else to do with you" (a la frightening, advisors-from-hell stories). But I suppose this type of motivation only works in scenarios where you trust your advisor is investing in your career and really wants you to stand out amongst your peers.
  10. I had a few terrible semesters myself before doing well, so I know exactly what your problem is like. I chose to not address any grades in particular and really focus more on the catalyst behind my switch from academic probation to dean's list. After all, grad schools are really looking for the motivated students --- those that get good grades because they really learned something as opposed to those who just test well or guessed lucky on multiple choice exams. What I'm trying to say is that having good grades is not enough, because almost every applicant has good grades. Schools want to know why an applicant's grades are good, and that's where the statement of purpose comes in. As such, I would try to focus the statement more on the reason behind the change in grades, and less on what's to blame for your poor performance in a few classes. If you have more specific questions about your statement, I can try to answer those as well. I've found that the hardest part of writing these things is being able to explain your reason for pursuing graduate study in the first place --- as many applicants and ad comms alike will tell you, "because I want to" is not an acceptable answer.
  11. I actually looked at that. the interest on 8500 at my bank is only $4 a year... totally not worth it
  12. for keeping feet dry in the snow, try newspaper bags. we used to put on socks, then slide one of those long, skinny plastic newspaper bags on each foot, and then put boots on. when you tuck the top of the bag into the bottom of your pant legs, it keeps the snow out and your feet stay warm and dry.
  13. I'm pretty sure you aren't allowed to pay off debt with your stafford loans, but then again, how often do they really check up on that stuff? I know someone who took out stafford loans to vacation in Greece... also not allowed, i think, but no consequences yet.
  14. I am! Psychology PhD. I'm going to be studying mostly creativity but I'm also interested in expertise in writing
  15. To add some late advice (though it seems you're doing awesome... great job with all those pages!) I'd recommend every writer read How to Write A Lot by Paul Silvia. It's a tiny book --- very fast and funny read --- that has been immensely motivating for, you guessed it: writing a lot. It is under $10 at Amazon. Go check it out --- anyone who struggles with writing (even those who shame the rest of us with their prolific compositions) will undoubtedly find this little gem of a book useful.
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