Nothingtown

I don't know much about adulting--what would locking/unlocking do?

I wish we could pin this whole thread to the top of the forum, but especially this part.

That's really encouraging, because that isn't how grad school has been sold to me in the past, and I would even venture to say it isn't an attitude that many (if not most) grad students share. I hope to have time for hobbies! As for reading, though, I always felt distracted reading fantasy in undergrad. Free reading has been a bit hard when I have so much other reading to do, but perhaps that is something I should work on

I'm honestly preoccupied just with getting ready to move. I'm going through my things, looking at houses in the area, getting quotes from moving companies in the area, and saving up. In addition to all that, like @dgswaim said, I would like to establish good habits as well, especially with diet and exercise. I'm also reading Discworld and playing video games because I'm definitely not going to have this kind of time on my hands again for a good few years

Hi there--I'm so sorry you're facing this dilemma. I hope some internet strangers can help you out a bit. My (now husband) then boyfriend and I went long distance when I got a Fulbright for a year--I was in Germany, he was in Texas. That's about as long distance as it gets. We found out 3 days after we started dating and went for it--by the time I left, we'd been together 3 months. It changed the whole course of our relationship, because from the very beginning we knew we were taking it very seriously--seriously enough to go through the pain of long distance. We made it through the ordeal stronger together in the end. And, we're never ever doing that again! Here's my two cents: if you're thinking that long distance for a year would tear you apart, then other hardships closer to home might as well. If you two are strong enough to withstand the distance, and you both want to, then you'll be even stronger at the end of it. I'm not going to lie, long distance was the hardest thing I've ever done. If, on the other hand, you truly believe that her moving would cause a breakup, then (I think) other issues in the future might as well, and perhaps a breakup is the right move for you both. I can't think of any other Fulbrighters from my year who went long distance and stayed together, though some did move with their partners and that worked out maybe 50% of the time. That means you might leave your job that you love, and your aging parents, only to break up in Tucson because of other issues. Just something to consider. I also think it's important for you to make the right personal and career choices for yourself. If you love your job, and you want to be there for your parents, it's totally valid to stay in the Bay Area. I know this isn't an easy choice to make, but it may be the right one--both for you and your girlfriend. Another option is to try long distance for a while and see how it goes--you won't be giving anything up at home, and there's a chance you make it through. I hope I've helped a little. Hang in there!

I think funding should be the deciding factor here. Are you able to work your way through school? If not, you'll need loans for tuition as well as for living at SAIS (and I think COL in Baltimore is quite high). Student loan debt is no joke, and I personally think you should avoid it no matter what. At least run some calculations real quick today and think seriously about taking on that debt. But keep in mind that I'm an internet stranger. I don't know you, and neither does anyone else on this forum. We'll all do our best to give you our best advice, but please do what you think is best for you.

Declined an offer from UVA this weekend. Withdrew from UNC waitlist last week. Just withdrew a waitlist spot (#1) at the University of Kentucky this morning that I didn't even know I had, so apologies on being late with that one. Looks like they may be moving on to the waitlist if anyone's interested.

Accepted an offer at Baylor. Really excited for this fall, and kind of in shock that this whole process is finally over.

I hope this indicates that many people are just waiting for very late visits, as UVA's is mere days before the deadline. Then after they visit, they'll make a decision on the 13th or 14th--though that's not too much time for others to act, it is better than 5pm on the 15th. Though I'd say in general, you're probably correct--with so many people holding onto waitlists until the last minute while sitting on other acceptances, it's going to make for a crazy day on April 15th. I'd say almost moreso than usual, given the late visit times so many schools seem to be having this year. We'll all have to do our best to be conscientious of our offers and waitlists and give others as much room as possible. One thing I highly recommend waitlisters do as we near April 15th is to get in contact with schools to determine likelihood of getting off the waitlist. Especially on the 14th or 15th, if you reach out to them, you'll get a much clearer picture of expectations going forward than if you just wait for their email. I know they're probably all going to be very overwhelmed on those days, but if you look at last year's April 15 thread, a lot of people did get responses to their emails and were more informed about their status as a result. It'll help you make a timely decision if you remain in contact, I'd imagine. Of course if anyone who has applied in previous years has any input on this point, please share!

I lurked on this thread but never posted, because I've graduated already and took a gap between graduation and applying, so I wasn't sure if I counted! Sorry if I still don't count haha. I had some life circumstances keep me from applying for a few years, even though I had wanted to apply straight out of undergrad. It's weird being in this sort of in-between group where I'm not currently enrolled as an undergrad, but I don't have an MA. People seem to assume that I got distracted by job prospects in the "real world" and decided to come back, but that isn't the case at all. I'm happy with my results so far, and I know I'll get to go to grad school for a PhD this upcoming year! I was honestly surprised by how many current grad students at my visits had an MA coming into their PhD, and I feel like despite the rejections this year, I've done well applying with just the BA.

Hey, welcome to TGC and congrats on the acceptances! You may want to talk with some other computer science people regarding making decisions. There's a dedicated computer science forum here: https://forum.thegradcafe.com/forum/33-computer-science/ They'll know more than I will about program and discipline specific issues. Generally, it's recommended to take the offer that a) offers you the best funding so that you can avoid student debt and b) is the best fit for you in terms of faculty, resources, and city (obviously Florida is very different from Kansas, so you may want to think about where you'd prefer to live). I don't recommend you accept both offers at all. You're under no obligation to accept until April 15th, unless it's different for MSC programs--meaning that they don't expect to hear from you for another 10 days. If you do accept both, you'll be taking up a spot at each school that you couldn't possibly fill, and thereby keeping another student on the waitlist from getting into the program. Also, you'd be likely to burn bridges with that program and anyone who works there by accepting and then declining at a later date--especially if it's after April 15th. Just think about it for a couple days, talk to some more people on TGC and weigh the pros and cons, then accept one and turn down the other.

Congratulations! I was very impressed with them through my correspondences while applying. It seems Duquesne not only has a great philosophy program, but caring people who work there. I hope you enjoy it, and congratulations again!

Oh it was definitely awkward. Actually they were both PhD offers, but I was waitlisted at UNC so I was getting an acceptance call while on tour with my waitlist which is sooooo awkward. I was trying hard not to sound suspiciously excited or anything but it was my first acceptance so I was really happy.

Hey there! Congratulations on making it through all that and finally getting to think about grad school. I've been on two campus visits and found that the grad student population was more diverse in age than I expected. At one school, quite a few people were in their 30's. At another, there weren't as many and most were young, but there were still a couple of people who were older than average. It is not uncommon for people your age to be returning to school. If you have the money, I'd recommend applying to quite a few MA programs (especially those with good funding--Georgia State and University of Houston are good for that, I've heard). Depending on how good your grades were in '07, and if you get any good LORs, you could even try some PhD programs--but I agree, you'd probably be looking more at an MA, especially because it'll be hard to get good LORs after all this time. But I don't think you should be discouraged by your age at all. Some people go to PhD programs right after undergrad, some have life get in the way and have to wait a few years (I'm one of those people, but I'm still in my 20's). I promise, the admissions committee has seen cases like yours before. EDIT: I'd definitely find a tasteful way to address the gap in your Statement of Purpose. Find someone to look over it and confirm you stated things well, but definitely do explain briefly why you should be taken seriously after the gap and I think you'll be fine.

Turned down MA offers from Wake Forest (bioethics) and Duquesne (philosophy). Those were hard emails to write.