JennyGoat

I was nominated for a fellowship/award for my graduate school in my admission letter to my top choice schoo. It gave a lot of specific details about what that award entails, then the paragraph ends saying decision will be announced mid to late March. I wondered the same thing...why mention it in the letter until a decision had been made? I also looked at the award page on the university site and saw that five people from each department can be nominated. However, I can't see find out how many people actually get the award. I did get the fellowship I applied for, but this one has a significantly bigger stipend so I'm really hoping I get it. Sorry if this post has no usable information for you...just wanted to commiserate!

@inception TL;DR: Had I been given the choice, I still would be choosing Michigan over Cornell here at the masters level based on funding and future planning. First, congratulations on Cornell! I didn't get in (although I had a nice email from the department). Michigan has been my first choice throughout the whole process, so I wasn't heartbroken over the rejection. I'd thought the same things about Cornell just the night before...no funding other than FLAS, which still left a deficit. I'm pretty sure there are no TAs available at the masters level, but I might have read that wrong. Also, the Cornell Asian Studies MA track doesn't have the review to continue on to PhD (like the Asian Literature, Religion, and Culture MA). Professors that I want to work with at both Michigan and Wisconsin have their PhDs from Cornell so in my long term planning for a future PhD, I could earn some very nice recommendations for a future application there. For me, had I gotten Cornell, it was easier to consider relocating there than it likely is for you. Both Cornell and UM are about six hours from me. In fact, I didn't apply to either UHM or the University of Washington in consideration of relocation costs and distance from home. If family and returning home for visits to Arizona is important to you, I'd look into what that would cost from each place. I already live in a climate where I'm used to wintery conditions, but you'd want to factor in the cost of winter gear and weatherizing your car to live in Ithaca. I'd also try and determine if it is feasible to leave your car rather than transport it if you go to UHW. As far as funding at UHM, you could ask for in-state tuition if the yearly cost exceeds the 18K (I think) from FLAS. Plus, as you said you have some other funding options that might work out. Good luck! Cambodia is a both beautiful and haunting given the history of the Khmer Rouge. It's a fascinating topic. Feel free to PM me also to further discuss any of this. PS: I didn't get FLAS at Wisconsin, so will be declining there. Still waiting on final funding from Michigan but it looks much more promising between FLAS and a fellowship the review committee nominated me for.

A lot of my decision making came down before I even applied. I looked at faculty first and foremost, and how their research aligned with my own ideas. Since I want to continue to a PhD, I looked at the foundations of those masters programs, and also checked into what the schools offered as the next step, even if I apply elsewhere when the time comes. Being lucky enough to get into my top choice, it's a no-brainer for me but I am waiting on final funding offers before I decline the other program I got into. I also looked at the cost and distance of relocation. What both the states and cities were like as far as politics and progress since I may be there longer than just two years. However, good advice I got from several professor friends was to not look at the cities as much as the programs and professors. That's where I'll be spending the bulk of my energy and focus, so everything else is secondary.

Looking for housing/area recommendations with no breed or weight restrictions for dogs. I also have two cats, and am having trouble finding a place that either doesn't have breed restrictions or a two-pet limit. I'd like to be within walking/biking distance to campus (International Studies MA so I'm not quite sure what part of campus those classes will be on yet) but I also don't mind a short commute.

I'm waiting also (and also Southeast Asian Studies). No word from the program itself, but I did get an email asking me for additional information for my FLAS application. I'm in at Michigan and Wisconsin but impatient to hear from Cornell so I can make a final decision.

I'm in a similar boat. One of the two acceptances I have so far has nominated me for a nice fellowship with restrictions on outside work. My dilemma is that I went through a divorce about two years ago from which I basically took nothing. I was lucky enough to get a job since that included fully furnished housing and meals, but now, at 46, I find myself about to relocate to a graduate program with nothing but books, clothes, two cats and my car. However, with still paying off debt from my marriage and being well past the point where I would ask family for help, I don't have a pool of resources outside of myself to lean on. That being said, getting into this program is my dream after the first half of my life where I already raised a family and had a mortgage. I'm fully prepared to spend the money on myself to achieve a goal that may not be possible otherwise. Although I know the adage is don't go to grad school if you have to pay for it, I've already decided to take advantage of some of my loan availability at least the first semester/year in order to help cover some expenses if I need to. I think it's just subjective on whether or not it can or should be justified. I'm fully aware of what it means to take on some loans and am prepared to deal with that decision when all is said and done. HTH