fuzzylogician

It’s common in some parts of Europe but it’s never done in North America.   

It’s common in some parts of Europe but it’s never done in North America.   

Good luck!!!

I'm taking comps on Monday and had to post here...I can't believe that 4 years ago I was researching grad programs while trawling through GradCafe, and now I'm about to be ABD *fingers crossed*
Thanks for all the support! This is the best community ever.

This will depend on the school so it's a bit hard to say, but I can tell you that at least for the schools I've studied or taught at, it wouldn't have made any difference. Applications are reviewed on merit and independently of any funding issues. The only way I can see it helping is if you were borderline or on a waitlist (so independently judged as good enough), in which case I can imagine this pushing you over the line. But for any strong school, I think what will really matter is your application. 

I would move. A PhD isn't just about the seminars. It's also about the networking, being able to attend events on campus, gaining teaching and research experience, having access to the reference librarians and the stacks, etc. I think it's fine to live at a distance later in the PhD but early on, being close to your colleagues, advisors, and campus resources is often crucial. That said, you're putting the cart before the horse if you haven't even applied yet...

The thing is, this is not an exercise for a creative writing class. You don't need to hook your reader, they will read your essay either way -- or at least, skim it quickly for relevant information (ignoring here general cutoffs that may land your application in the rejected pile without your essays having been read, hook or no hook). What you want your essay to do is *help the readers answer the questions that they are asking themselves* - namely, is this a good candidate (in general), and are they a good fit (for our school)? You want to give them quick and easy soundbites, framing your research interests up front, and you want to show that this is a good school for you (e.g. by having interests that match potential advisors, by working with similar methodologies, by showing that you've been successful in the past and are prepared for what you want to study in the future). Yes, you could be the guy with the unusual interest in basket weaving or the girl with the inspiring quote from the Dalai Lama, but personally I'd rather be the applicant with the really interesting research questions and cool past projects. 

This is the exact way to go.

Most first drafts of SOPs I've seen start with a narrative of the person's past and background, and only get around to their current/future interests towards the end of the essay. To have a good SOP, however, the focus should be on your current and (mostly) future research plans, and it should be apparent what your interests are as early as possible. It's the same advice I get now for writing papers - don't recount the history of all your failed attempts and bad starts, tell me the path that succeeded and show me what you can do with it.

For a good, focused SOP, you should be able to demonstrate that you are familiar with the inner workings of your field. Address strengths and weaknesses in current thought about your topic, or suggest a fresh way of looking at it; choose a project that is feasible in size for the degree you're applying to; aim to have similar interests/methodology/both as the researchers in the department you're applying to. Remember that you're not committing yourself to actually doing the project, you just want to show the adcom that you can think through the details of a possible project within your area of interest. Choose no more than 1-2 interests as your main interests and spend most of your time talking about them. It's OK to have secondary interests, but it should be clear where your interests lie.

Aside choosing the right kind of interests to discuss, fit is also understanding your intended department's attitude towards things like collaborations, innovation, going in unexplored directions, doing quantitative/qualitative/theoretical/practical/etc work. Talk about things that make sense for that department. Mention anything unique that the program offers - resources, reading groups, any kind of opportunity like an exchange or a diploma. If it's not a school that emphasizes teaching, don't dwell on that. If you're not sure that you'll be encouraged to take courses at other departments, make sure before you mention "resources" that are not really going to be there.

If you want to mention coursework in more detail, most applications will allow you to e.g. upload a summary as a supporting document or as part of your CV. You can also attached it to your transcript. Include a list of course names/numbers, the instructors, and a one-paragraph description of each course (+optionally, the grade and nr of credits, but that should be on your transcript; optionally2: the topic and short description of term papers you wrote for each course). All those details don't really have to be in your SOP, unless they're directly tied to your current/future interests. If you've caught the adcom's eye, they'll go look at your credentials anyway. Optionally: give a link to a website that contains all the work you're comfortable with the adcom seeing. It can be a simple googledocs-based site, I hear they are easy to make. If they're really interested, the adcom might want to know more about your work, and that's a great easy way to give them that extra information.

^agreeing with the above. Be polite, but you are entitled to the money they owe you. For what it's worth, this happens all the time. You need to stay on top of them and on occasion, you need to cc more than one person on your email to get anything to happen. It's annoying, but that's the way it often is. Don't give up; follow up periodically. 

This is a person who already asked you something ethically dubious....is that the first person you want to put your trust in right now?
I can see scenarios where this would make sense—they hinge on him not knowing this norm and now being sorry—but also, you know, are there any other warm bodies in your general vicinity you could collaborate with?

In my program everybody says the first year is the worst in terms of work load but I don't think they're right. It's definitely different than the other years - much more structure, more assignments and readings and less (read: ' almost no') time for research. That all can be very stressful. In subsequent years we're free to build our schedule and do research at our leisure, but I don't think I'm working any less than in I did in my first year. If anything, I'm working more. But the nature of the work is different and the ability to control my time makes it more bearable.

The one important thing to learn in graduate school is time management. With it, it's also important to learn to say 'no'. There are just too many demands on my time and some things I just can't do, or can't do within the original time frame. I've learned to prioritize - some things I decide I won't even try to get done, others I decide to only invest X amount of time in - even if it means the final product is less than perfect (that's especially true for assorted class assignments). I try not to over-invest in my TAship so I keep careful track of how long I spend on my work and try not to overdo it, although sometimes that's difficult. The one thing to remember is that you'll have time for what you decide is important. If you make time for a social life, for breaks, for exercise - then you'll have time for those things. If all you do is work - you'll get tired and depressed and won't be able to keep it up. It's important to actively take time off, have hobbies, do other things. It's all a matter or deciding what's important.

You might want to look into different companies, including the smaller ones that use the big carries' networks. Sometimes their terms and conditions vary quite a lot. I personally got a prepaid phone to get started, but I know it's possible to get a plan, sometimes by putting down some deposit. Once you're in town, try and see if your university has an arrangement with one or more carrier, or try to visit a branch near the university to find out more. The ones near a university are usually better at dealing with international students than other random branches. This is also true for banks and other places where not having a SSN might cause some inconvenience. 

^This. They may not report it. Or they may report it, and it goes to the Dean of Students or similar and then nothing happens. The reason for this kind of policy is often to make sure that students don't get away with serial behavior like this, where it happens once in each class and if it's not reported to some central body, the Prof has no way of knowing that it's not just an isolated incident but instead a pattern. If this is a first offense and it's this tiny, even if it were reported -- again, for the 1000th time -- it's highly unlikely to have any serious consequences. So for the love of god, relax, and don't write 72 word long sentences to begin with. 

Never heard of this happening, but I am not all that surprised that it does. Frankly, it sounds like a terrible idea to me. I absolutely would not want my name on work I didn't contribute to, especially not work written by someone I don't trust (which is anyone who would do this in a first place). Keep in mind that if your name is on a paper, it's fair game in any future application or interview. You might get asked to describe the work, or why you made choice X and not Y, or about alternative interpretations of the data, etc. Unless you're willing and able to defend the work and stand behind it, I really wouldn't want to get myself in that kind of situation. This, of course, not even mentioning the obvious dishonesty involved. 

MAs are less often funded. 
Do you know what your goals are for this degree? Is it getting a PhD or a job in your field? Can you find out what alums of both programs are doing, and in particular whether they've been successful in achieving whatever it is that you are aiming for? 
In general, a non-accredited program would be a concern for me, and on the other hand I'd be encouraged by the fact that students at the other program seem to only have good things to say about their program. It definitely isn't always that way. 
Unless I'm confused, you don't actually have two ways. You have one option in hand and one you are only hoping for. Have you tried to figure out (a) how likely you are to be accepted on a second try, and (b) if you can defer your current acceptance? 

It seems to me that given your circumstances, it'd be very risky to decline one offer without another one in hand (and no word on your chances of getting admitted on a second attempt), if you can't apply elsewhere outside these two options. Personally, I like pretty things and I *do* think that a welcoming campus can have a positive effect on students. However, I don't think it's necessarily a deciding factor in this kind of decision given your current parameters. There are some things you haven't mentioned yet, though. For example, is this a MA or PhD? Are you funded? How do you like the people you'll be working with? Also, is there an option of deferring your acceptance by a year so you can try again with the safety fallback of the offer you already have? If not, if aside from the office building you have a good, funded offer with advisors you like, I would say you should take it. I don't think there will be anything stopping you from working in the pretty library at the other school, if it's nearby. People work off-campus at various locations all the time. You don't have to spend too much time at the less attractive office. That alone wouldn't cause me to decline my sole, reasonable offer. 

You're likely to have all kinds of problems, since both first and last name are often required fields in many (many!) online applications and forms. You shouldn't have trouble entering the US since all of your documents will be in order, but you can expect some trouble with some bureaucracies. You may need human assistance in places where others could just use an online form. It should all be resolvable, but it may be a pain. This thread may be helpful: 
 

Honestly, the biggest offense in this scenario is probably the fact you have a 72-word sentence.

Ask your department if there is anything they recommend. Also strongly consider using this time to rest and recharge your batteries, because first year can be very hard. 

You might want to look into different companies, including the smaller ones that use the big carries' networks. Sometimes their terms and conditions vary quite a lot. I personally got a prepaid phone to get started, but I know it's possible to get a plan, sometimes by putting down some deposit. Once you're in town, try and see if your university has an arrangement with one or more carrier, or try to visit a branch near the university to find out more. The ones near a university are usually better at dealing with international students than other random branches. This is also true for banks and other places where not having a SSN might cause some inconvenience. 

You might want to look into different companies, including the smaller ones that use the big carries' networks. Sometimes their terms and conditions vary quite a lot. I personally got a prepaid phone to get started, but I know it's possible to get a plan, sometimes by putting down some deposit. Once you're in town, try and see if your university has an arrangement with one or more carrier, or try to visit a branch near the university to find out more. The ones near a university are usually better at dealing with international students than other random branches. This is also true for banks and other places where not having a SSN might cause some inconvenience. 

Okay, so two thoughts here. First, if this is not a writing-intensive course, writing probably shouldn't carry an overly sized weight in grading. Second, unless there are rules explicitly privileging non-native speakers in some way, I think you need to grade everyone equally. Now, offering extensive writing advice is probably not part of your job description here (again, unless it's a writing-intensive course), so whatever you offer is up to you. For me, it seems that students with extensive problems don't get that much out of TAs correcting their work; many of them never look at their assignments or comments that closely (or at all), and they're often so far behind that they don't know how to pick the major comments from the minor ones, and just get overwhelmed. If there's a writing center at your school, that's really the place to send them to. If you are so inclined, you could offer either a re-grade of the writing (as opposed to content!) component of the assignment once they've visited the writing center, as an incentive for them to actually work on it, or give them an extension to work on their writing, but then grade as you would anyone else. It's up to you and how much extra work you're willing to put in. 

Some potentially relevant past discussions:
There are more if you search. It all comes down to a matter of personal preference though.

There is no way anyone here can know what your two professors are discussing. You have to ask them. It's completely reasonable to worry about funding, you should not feel ashamed or embarrassed by it. You might ask two questions, maybe in two consecutive email. First, ask for a timeline to decision; if they tell you it'll be soon (whatever soon means for you given your other constraints, e.g. if you need to know by a certain date because of your other offer), you just wait. If the timeline is long or unclear, then ask if the offer would likely include tuition remission in addition to the stipend, and if you can get a ballpark estimate, acknowledging that you understand that they're not making any promises by giving you this information. You might also instead just ask both questions at the same time, if you feel comfortable doing so. If you do have outside pressure because of the other offer, you should also state that in your email, so they know and can take that into account in their planning. 

Any local university where you can find a host in the relevant department? Churches or other volunteer organizations that work with the local population? Alternatively, for touristy areas, are there local ho(s)tels where foreigners congregate? Is there a consulate where you can try and find expats? Or maybe the solution is to set up a remote support group (your cohort, maybe?) that you can keep in touch with via Skype or similar?