alexan

I'm in a similar situation as the OP. I worked for 7 years post undergrad and had saved some $. I've also always lived in same city as my grad sch and therefore didnt have to move into a shoe-box, unsafe apt near campus, as most of my cohort. I simply dont bring up my "extra" finances. We've gone on a couple of weekend outings and they were affordable places. I'll probably host a Thanksgiving dinner, not to rub it in their faces, but coz I know most of them are new in town and will probably not have an opportunity to get home for the holidays. I think if you focus on other things (classes, rabid PIs, study groups, exams etc) it will be ok.

I have been accumulating office furniture to put in my little nook area in my apt. I love the chair that I use at work so I asked my soon-to-be-former boss if he could sell it to me and he agreed, so I scooped up a nice, comfortable, leather chair which I'm sure retails for at least $200 for $30 . I picked up a metal filing cabinet, a laser 3-in-1 printer and a few desk knickknacks from Walmart so I now have some semblance of adult working space at home. I'm still not sure if I'll be studying at home, but definitely not at the library, I cant do quiet spaces for sure.

I also received the orientation email. Ours is grad-school wide and not program/department specific. I wonder if it's valuable for someone to attend a talk specifically geared toward a department that they are not in? The mandatory events have been highlighted and for one to receive their pay for orientation week, one has to attend those mandatory events.

Glad to see I'm not the only socially awkward person here . So I'm thinking I should: 1) Learn how to socialize and make friends. I tend to head straight home from work and not have much of a social life. I see the same ~20 people nearly every day. When grad school starts I will try to be available for networking opportunities, academic or social. 2) Brush up on my presentation skills. The thought of a PowerPoint in front of a group of more than 2 sends me rocking back and forth in a fetal position. I grew up in a lot of areas therefore my accent is rather weird, this makes me avoid public speaking because I'm not sure if I'm being understood and simply dread the "so, where are you from? I cant quite pinpoint your accent" 3) Start and keep some semblance of organization. clutter-free workspace, make and abide by to do lists, do assignments on time & create and maintain a budget

I got some journal articles from the faculty I'll be working with my first year. I've gone through some of them but just barely. I figure this is my final free Summer and I dont want to start stressing before its necessary. However once in a while panic sets in and I wonder if I'm the only one in my cohort taking it easy this Summer

Hey SpaceShuttle, I'll also be starting at UTHSC this Fall but not at SPH. I will be at GSBS.

I work in a very small company, so I have already told them which is about 3 months notice. Also my position is such that I will have to train someone extensively to take over for me. My immediate boss is okay since he's also a PhD and understands my wanting to become one too, while my CEO is another story. When he found out, he didnt talk to me for about 1 week, taking it personally that I'll be leaving. He has since "come around" to the idea although he drops snide remarks here and there about it.

Hey guys, I've been living in Houston for quite a while and did my undergrad at U of H (yay!). I however, did not live near or in campus because I have family in Houston anyway. Honestly right around UH and TSU (they are within miles of each other) apts are not very great (safety) but if you spread out maybe 5-10 miles or so its much better I think. I would look at apartmentratings.com for apts in the 77054 or 77030 zipcode and read reviews. Students tend to live in those zipcodes since the Texas Medical Center and other schools (UT, Rice, etc) are all in the same area. What I think tends to happen is out-of-state/city students usually come in live near campus because they know nowhere else but then after a few months, once familiar with the city, they move farther out to safer places. Public transportation is not really good in Houston but there are buses that go to the UH area. Also some apts will have shuttle services that drop off and pick up students for like $1 a ride. But at some point you will need a car especially if you want to take advantage of the city and go beyond the campus. But cost of living is cheap and the city is very diverse .