halfpint

Hey folks, I'm at UMass Amherst (English) now and the shortcomings of the website are definitely under discussion (the grad organization and also our graduate studies committee). Thanks for posting about this here.

MUJI Gel-ink Ballpoint in 0.38 MM http://www.muji.us/store/stationery/pen-pencils/gel-ink-ballpoint-pen-0-38mm.html Awesome for underlining (don't bleed) and note-taking.

That's fantastic. Congratulations!

For NYU students, I'd suggest looking for housing close to trains that you can take to campus. I have a friend from NYU who loves the N train so she looked in Sunset Park solely because it was serviced by the N. The A/C/E and B/D/F/V will also be good options for you. Living off an express stop is better than a local stop in my opinion. So that gives you the A and the B/D along with the N. Neighbourhood wise in Brooklyn, you have the option of Park Slope, Ft. Greene, Prospect Heights, and Sunset Park. Each of these neighbourhoods will be a 15-20 minute train commute to West 4th/8th Street stops. For the person who inquired about living in a studio, I'm not sure how much you're expecting/able to spend on rent so it's hard to say but studios are expensive. In the neighbourhoods I mentioned, I doubt you'll find a studio under $1,000. I definitely haven't seen it if it exists. If you search studio in Brooklyn on Craigslist, it'll give you a range of prices. That would be a good place to start thinking about what you can afford. Then, you can figure out whether the neighbourhoods where those studios are will be desirable to you.

I want to enjoy my last summer in NYC so I'll be moving in August. I'm a little nervous about finding a place in the Amherst-area because the vacancy rates are low. I'll probably start looking soon. Anyone have any advice about that area? I've been keeping an eye on the Amherst, MA forum in City Guide as well.

I also got an e-mail telling me to check my status on the website. They said only accepted students would receive a formal letter via postal mail.

I received an acceptance notification on Saturday around noon.

Acceptance: 5 weeks. Rejections: Two - three months.

An acquaintance was accepted with I believe a tuition waiver. Not sure of what funding he received. I believe this happened last week.

Awesome. I was watching Top Chef on Surf the Channel and ignoring the beeps signalling new mail in my inbox. It was a Saturday around noon so I wasn't expecting anything important. Imagine my surprise to read "University of Massachusetts acceptance letter" in the subject line. I'm not much of a crier but tears of relief were streaming down my face. Congrats to everyone.

Skiing has been a cure-all. Other than that, going to free music weekends at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, biking in Prospect Park, basically doing all the things in New York City that I didn't have time to do during undergrad. Planning overseas trips for the summer. Good luck to all who are still waiting.

I'm a first time applicant. My list is definitely on the minimal side; however, it is not a by-product of pure confidence. In the past, I've done very well academically but am not kidding myself in this situation. I want to be able to focus my energies on fewer applications so I can put forth the best effort possible rather than spreading myself too thin. I am planning on considering some MA programs once my Ph.D. apps have been sent in. How are you organizing so many applications at once? Are you recycling materials from previous cycles? A mix of MA and Ph.D.?

According to the ETS site ( http://www.ets.org/portal/site/ets/menu ... f95190RCRD ) the dates are: 18 October 08 November I was debating between the two myself, thinking the November date gives me a few more weeks to study but not sure if it's worth the gamble of missing deadlines. However, if you take the October test and think you didn't do well-enough, there's no way to register for the November test as its late deadline is before the October test date. I don't know if you're allowed to do stand by registration. Google doesn't seem to reveal any info on that.

Thanks rising_star. I'm definitely nervous about the process but working toward/hoping for good news in the spring.

I'll be applying to 1. Brown (Modern Culture and Media) 2. UC - Berkeley (Rhetoric - film track) 3. U Chicago (English) 4. WashU (English and American Literature) 5. UMass Amherst (English) On the fence about UVA (English). Anyone have any experiences with these schools/programs? I'd love to hear your experiences.