Teaching Faculty Wannabe

Yep! I did pretty much what @Letsgethisbread did.

I actually reached out to the GEM Representatives about it. I told that I had been accepted to the school and was wondering if the school was willing to sponsor me as a GEM Fellow. As they were confirming me, I kept in contact with them and asked them many questions about how the fellowships work. And then the portal changed during this.

Thanks! Super excited! I haven't yet accepted a school, but both of the school I got accepted to are willing to accept me as a GEM Fellow and have offer links. Additionally, I got my official acceptance letter from my employer, so I figured that means I am a GEM Fellow?? I haven't gotten an official letter from GEM yet. I will let you know when that happens.

The answer to this question is very dependent on the university, I would guess. I got a $20k/yr fellowship at one of my universities and they are compounding it with my GEM Fellowship for my first year, so I would get $36k that year. I am sure they will compound it, but definitely ask the school. The average range of stipends varies depending on your advisor's funding, the department, the university, and the location of the university. However, I think the average stipend is in the high twenty thousands. Congrats on your acceptance!

How are you getting to your vacation destination? If you are flying, you might want to check the rules and requirements for traveling with a cat. If you are going on a train, they might have requirements as well. However, if you are more concerned about what to do with your cat while you are out and about during your vacation and want to bring your cat with you when you explore, I would think the cat bubble backpack might work. However, you want to make sure your cat will be happy with all of this sudden change. I know some pets love traveling while others do not. You could try out the backpack and see how your cat likes it and if they don't then return it.

I got my first GEM offer letter from a university. It states that the total financial package sent to the university from GEM for the first year is $20,000. $16,000 of that is the stipend for us and $4,000 of that goes towards tuition. So, we get the $16,000 no matter what. It can either be used as part of the stipend the university provides or be added onto our financial package from the university if you received another fellowship. So, for example, I got a $20,000 fellowship every year for five years from a university. For my first year, I will also get $16,000 from GEM. So, that first year, I will get $36,000. However, if you don't have a fellowship, but rather an assistantship of some sort (RA or TA), you will get the paid the amount the university pays for those position, and they will use the $16,000 to help pay for that stipend. So, for that situation, it's not an addition to your stipend, but rather a part of the stipend that the school doesn't have to pay for and the university just has to pay the rest of the stipend to you for the first year. I hope that makes sense! Additionally, I think if you get a full tuition scholarship and/or a TA/RA position, you will also get the $4,000 tuition money since the school is already covering it. However, of course I could be completely wrong since it could vary by school, so definitely check in with a particular school about how the GEM Fellowship works for them.

Flying is so stressful in general. And then flying to a visitation weekend seems to be even more stressful. AND THEN one of the flights to the visitation weekend getting cancelled less than two days before you go and then trying to figure out what flights work now is massively more stressful! Ahhhhhh!

For podcasts for the PhD experience, check out: Blk + In Grad School BIJTG Personal Finance for PhDs PhD (in progress) Podcast PhD Career Stories PhDivas Rock Your Research with Chris Jones STEMCulture Podcast The Ph.D. Life The Research Her Growing Through Grad School

Supposedly getting the agreement signed by schools can take some time due to red tape, which is understandable. I gotta learn to be more patient!

I am so glad I found this particular forum! I really want to get a cat after my first or second year of grad school (I will be starting this fall). I am hoping to save up some money for when I get the cat (or two).

I just wanted to say congrats to those who have received acceptances already! To those who haven't received one yet, I am still rooting for you! There is definitely time left to hear something back! Good luck!

I honestly think it depends on the university. For one of the universities, they are giving me the money, but I think for the other one I have been accepted to, there has been no mention of it in the letter and I think the school is just using it towards my fellowship. Definitely ask the person that handles fellowships at your school about it. Congrats on your acceptances!

Status Change Definitions Matched - GEM thinks you're a good candidate and matched you with a company(companies)  Held - A company is reviewing your credentials and is considering an interview extension Release - if you went from Held to Release then the company was looking at you, but decided to pick another scholar. (This can happen after an interview also). Accepted - You got a company sponsor! Congrats! I hope this helps and you hear something some soon from an employer! Good luck!

I believe all schools that are university members listed on the GEM website, which include many non-ivy leagues, will accept any fellowship. I mean, there is no 100% guarantee, but the fact that they are a university member is a good start. Good luck!

Bike shop

I am not a grad student yet, but I have heard a lot of advice on this topic. Here is what I've learned: It's good to make friends in and outside of your field. For friends in your field, they can be people within your research group or in the department. This is dependent on how close the graduate students are in the department based on activities that are planned and how big your research group is. But it is good to connect with people who exactly know your pain. For friends outside of your field, I am assuming you can make those in classes and organizations you are a part of and from friends that you make in your field who have friends outside of your field. Go to activities planned at the university. Join various clubs and organizations. I have heard that finding your friend group is very important when it comes to surviving grad school. Grad school can make you feel isolated and lonely, so your friends are there to convince you of otherwise. Good luck with everything!

They all are fairly well-known schools. However, when it comes to choosing schools, you want to look at some various aspects. It seems like you have a list going so far, which is good. Here are things you want to look at: 1. Your advisor. Do you already have an advisor? If you don't have an advisor, how do you choose an advisor? How quickly do you need to choose an advisor? Do you connect with your advisor? Do you see yourself working with this person for 4-7 years? Do they do research you are interested in? Do you like their mentoring style? Do they send their students to conferences? Will they help you with professional development? 2. Funding. Are the fellowship you receiving supporting you during the summer as well as the semesters? How long do your fellowships last? Will you and your advisor have to find funding when your fellowship runs out? Do you have to pay tuition and fees or does the school cover it? 3. Location. Do you like the location of the school? Is it in a city, town, or in the middle of nowhere? Where would you prefer to live? What is the cost of living? Is your fellowship/stipend enough to cover cost of living in that area? 4. Student healthcare. Does the school give you healthcare? Does the healthcare cover dental and eye care? Do you have to pay co-pays and current premiums? I hope this doesn't complicate things too much, but it is good to look at many aspects since this is a huge commitment. As an FYI, I just recently visited Boston University, and I really liked it there. Boston seems like a cool city with tons of things to do and the public transportation seems nice and easy to use. I also lived near University of Maryland (College Park) for ten weeks. UM has a lot of things to do. It is close to DC, which is a great place with tons of things to do. There is a metro stop near the university where you can take to go to DC and other places around the DMV area (DC, Maryland, and Virginia). If you really like the city environment and like doing things outside of school, I highly suggest these two areas. I have heard that Purdue is in the middle of nowhere. If you like country environments with a slower pace, then you might like Purdue better. Good luck!

You should look here: https://forum.thegradcafe.com/forum/38-history/ Good luck!

This is so true, and one of the best things I've read on here. I wish I knew this before I applied.

@a.s. I have a lot of apps on my iPhone for looking for apartments: Trulia Rentals HotPads Zillow Rentals Rent.com Zumper apartment list (Apartments & Houses for Rent) Realtor.com Apartments.com Rentals PadMapper Sometimes schools have a website where they help students find off-campus housing and/or roommates. You will want to find out if your school has that. Good luck!

LORs are really important. You may think you letter writers are going to write you great letters, and they might, but you have to make sure that each letter says different things about you and aren't repetitive.

So, on the GEM Online Portal, the status of one of the universities I was accepted was changed to "Willing to Admit You as a GEM Fellow". However, there isn't an offer link, which indicates that a "GEM University Support Agreement" wasn't signed, correct? Has this happened to anyone else?

I agree with @Mataharii on wearing something business causal but comfortable. You are going to be doing a lot of walking and out of your comfort zone since you will be in a new place meeting a bunch of new people, so comfort is really important. You want to look nice, but you don't have to be super fancy or anything. Just look put together. I had time to roam around campus depending on if I was reliant on scheduled transportation to and from the hotel. During my visits, I had lunch and dinner with grad students and was able to ask them many questions. Also, don't forget to stay hydrated! Good luck at your visit!

Worries: Imposter syndrome over acceptances Excitement: acceptances!

Took the words from my mouth!