Strangefox

Why?

Hm, it's a difficult issue. But if you send a professor first a short email and then a long one, in the end they will have to spend more time reading them, won't they I guess that when I decided to send long emails, my logic was as follows: in a short email I will not be able to express fully all my ideas. If I don't express my ideas fully, how will a professor know if my interests truly fit his/hers. If they don't know that, how can they reply positively or negatively or at all? I am ready to admit that this logic is not perfect. I could have expressed my ideas more consisely, I guess. But in the end it turned out fine. I have not received any negative replies. Some professors explained that their interests differ from mine. Some replied tersly. But many wrote long detailed emails and no one said anything among the lines of: "You presumptious little thing!" Though may be some thought this way Seriously, I don't know. I am not saying that my way was the right way. But it surely led me to the right place

Better ask a grad coordinator. All programs are different so we are basically making assumptions.

Oh, these online applications can be really weird I remember I was buffled by some questions in them but then I figured out that, as I've explained all of it in my SOP anyways, I don't need to answer them again in these forms. I think this is your case as well. But to be sure you can always ask grad coordinators. Good luck!

I believe that having illegal stuff on your PC is fine. Downloading it while you are in the US, on the other hand, would be a bad idea.

Well, that is one thing that is discipline specific, I guess. I sent quite a long emails to all profs last summer. It was not just: "I am interested in..." I outlined a project I had in my mind at that time. And though some details have changed since then, the basic idea remains, I am working on it and it will eventually become my dissertation. And I believe that what helped me to find a great fit is exactly that I described my ideas ...well, not at length, but not too briefly either

I could not say better!

The idea is not that grad school can never ever become your life. The idea is that you should not let it to. And you CAN prevent that from happening. It's totally whithin your powers. If somebody has no life beyond grad school, it's not because that is inevitable but because this person does not manage his/her time right. That's what the advice in the article is about. That what makes it so wise and so great.

Thank you!

I wish you to have a great trip! My flight is in two weeks and I am feeling a bit nauseous already I am sure you will find a lot of great friends in the US! And with Skype and emails you will keep the old ones as well. Just imagine - you will have even more great people who will love you and whom you will love. I think it's awesome! Let us know how your flight has been. Good luck!

Hm, I would like to know an answr as well... May be somebody else out there can help us?..

Hahaha, I've just imagined starting my next letter to a prof with "Yo! Wazzup, man??!!"

Oh, it's from Labyrinth! And I was thinking where I had seen this shot

Well, I guess it depends on a discipline. Last year I contacted most profs in the summer because I wanted to have a list of schools to apply to by the end of August when I was to take GRE.

May be you can send all of them a follow-up email, asking if they would be interested to supervise you when you are working on these topic. You can explain that you know how important fit is when applying and how important it is to have somebody who could be your advisor. You can also ask if they will be taking grad students next year. If they reply - "I could certainly work with you on this topic." - then that will definetely be a good reply and you will be able to mention contacting this prof and being encouraged by him to appy. That's how I put it in my SOP: "... I am exсited about the opportunity to learn from DDDDD’s faculty members who explore different aspects of XXXXXXX and ZZZZZZZ, among them Professor WWWWW LLLLLLL and Professor OOOOO RRRR. After consultation with Professor LLLLLL I am convinced that my research will be a good fit at the DDDDDDDDD."

That seems odd... And unfair! However, I don't know your discipline, may be it a norm to apply to five schools in your field. But I know of people (from these forums) who applied to 10, even 15 schools and when they could justify their choice to profs, these were happy to send LORs to all these places (or may be not too happy but they did it ).

I think that 6-8 schools is a good number. Fuzzy's advice is great - I second all of that. Have you already contacted POIs at all schools you are planning to apply to? If you do that, it may help you to shorten your list (may be it will turn out that some profs whose academic interests seem a good fit to yours are not interested - or won't be taking grad students next year). Anyway - good luck!

Why wait until September? And why emails that you've sent before were not "real"?

Is anybody using LastPass? (http://lastpass.com/) I've been struggling with the growing amount of passwords and then I came across this software. Would like to know your opinions.

I am not sure it's so easy to major in English and Chemistry, for example, for one person. Different sets of skills, different types of mind are required for these. But I agree that double majoring on the whole is a good idea.

Harvard! Nice! Congrats on the positive reply from the prof!

I am so sorry to hear it has happened to you! If you are completely sure you have returned the book, keep insisting - they must find it or a trace of it - perhaps another person has alrady took it but somebody has messed up the record. If you have returned the book - you don't have to pay! Good luck and keep us posted about the situation!