tkm256

As an academic librarian, it won't matter where the OP gets his/her MLS; it will matter where he/she gets the degree(s) that come after it. A PhD in library science from IU, or an advanced degree in the specialty (music, medicine, etc.), may carry more weight than the same degree from Kentucky when looking for faculty positions, but we aren't there yet. It isn't necessary to return to the same institution you earned your MLS from to continue to the PhD, and even if the OP chooses to do so Kentucky is still in the top 30 US library schools. That extra health insurance and stipend are "sweets" enough to justify jumping on the other offer.

Did anyone here receive funding information from UNC Chapel Hill? I have been emailing them to ask if packages were sent out, but they have not responded.

As a Hoosier myself, I'm pro-IU in general, but not for this reason. If the OP was planning on becoming a researcher, reputation would matter; but as a librarian, where he/she earns the degree means next to nothing. It's like nursing or K-12 teaching: employers don't care where you obtained your certification as long as you have it. Work experience is infinitely more important, and most potential librarians choose their school based on geographical convenience and finances as opposed to what's the 'best.' It also isn't the sort of discipline that you need top resources to succeed in.

How much are we talking? A couple $10k for tuition or something in the triple digits? It also depends how much you expect to earn after you get your degree. If your masters will allow you to earn $50k a year, you can pay off a debt of $50k in ten years assuming 8% interest and the ability to allocate 15% of your income to repaying the loan (circa $625 a month). Any more debt than that, or any less income, and you'll have to extend the payment period or increase the amount of your payments. If you're comfortable with the numbers, go ahead with this program. If you're not, then start work for a few years and let the dust settle before trying again with a spiffier resume. You can also consider deferring for a year, work and save up for living expenses, and start next year with a little less financial pressure.

Here's how I read your post: "University A: blah blah blah blah strong faculty I want to work with blah blah blah University B: blah blah hated potential advisor end" A ranking difference of 3 is effectively 0 when you consider how widely ranking systems can differ. Two thousand a year is a relatively small difference in the long run. People being super nice on a visit that was meant to woo you is meaningless, as is how "contacty" they are. And honestly, would you choose a school just because the trees are prettier? The most, and only important factor in this particular list, is that you'll be spending the next half decade under the thumb of your advisor. You'll be pretty miserable if you can't stand him. I wouldn't hedge your bets on someone you've never met, either. My vote: A.

Now, I have nothing against reporters, but I do take issue with bad reasoning. The only example of a college applicant whose admission was greatly affected by the economy is the very first--everything else is completely unrelated. Even in the best of times there will be "good students who got rejected by every school they applied to," or "a student who got into more than a dozen colleges" (which I actually can't see the connection to the insinuated human interest OR economy angle). Some of the scenarios are just funny: are the Mr. Moneybag Jr.s of the world suddenly flocking to Big State U's campuses and leaving the halls of Hahvahd empty but for the crickets and tumbleweeds? Are 'working adults who applied to grad school programs' crying on their keyboards as they type emo posts about how that was their dream school? I think (and hope) not. If the reporter wants sob stories, he/she should dig up the ones about students forced to accept offers before funding information is available, having to defer a year to work and gain in-state tuition to afford graduate school, or undergraduates not qualifying for federal aid this year because their parents had lucrative jobs up until a month ago--not "I got rejeeeected!" whine-fests.

You received funding from IU? I'm so jealous. I'm an IU undergrad and I haven't heard anything, which by this point means "sorry..." Now I'm half tempted to say "On second thought, it would be horrible of you to make the other applicants wait; you should turn it down now so they can give the package to me!" But seriously, I think you should ask for an extension for all the schools, including IU. The secretary here is exceptionally nice, and since there isn't a deadline for everyone else, it isn't very fair that they imposed one on you. Let me know how it works out!

You already know what you want to do. It seems the only thing keeping you from doing it is the desire to keep up appearances. You don't want to see yourself as a cold career woman who will die alone with a glass of sherry in her hand, or as the sap who gave up her dreams to subvert herself to her not-quite-husband. Forget what it sounds like in the abstract, and just weigh the straight pros and cons. If he's saying see you in two years, then see him in two years...if you two are still together. If you're not, that's the way the cookie crumbles. The reality is that if you intend to enter academia, or you're training for a specific professional program, you will most probably have to move away from wherever your honey's rooted to get a job, no matter where you go for school. If he's not willing to uproot now, it's not likely he'll magically change his mind later.

I'm in the exact same boat--same discipline too. It seems that library schools are under particular stress right now. With only two days to go before decisions are due at two of my schools, I have received financial aid information from none. I emailed every office last week (except for IU's, because they don't have a reply deadline) and asked for an extension. I have received a reply from only one, which didn't actually contain a reply (it was just the text of my email quoted, with someone's signature at the bottom). If they have not replied by the fifteenth, I will send in the card saying I'm coming so they don't take my spot away and then retract later when the packages arrive. It's morally questionable, but I'm not going to let these schools cheat me out of $40k because of inane policies and a penchant for ignoring polite inquiries.

I sent emails to my schools asking if they would extend the deadlines in light of the fact they have told me diddly squat about what I'm going to have to pay them for the next two years. Three of four have yet to write back and the last replied to the email...with no reply. Just my text with the little greater-than marks next to each line, with a signature from someone at the bottom. I am seriously considering my father's recommendation: say yes to all of them and leave three hanging out to dry when funding finally comes through next month.

Believe you me, I would be ecstatic to be able to turn down any of my schools so others can edge in, because if I was in such a position that would mean I had financial information from all of them. But I don't, so I can't. I could end up at any of the potential schools right now, or at none if funding doesn't come through from somewhere. I'm not collecting paper trophies or playing some high school game, I'm just stuck waiting for information like you guys on the waitlists are.

My SO and I are completely different when it comes to academia (I've always been a hard-core student and place a lot of importance on where I'll go for graduate school; he sees college as an inefficient institution that's wasting his money by forcing him to take gen. ed. classes he'll never use and testing memorization over skills), but we're on the same page personality-wise: we're both tightwads. Because he worked for a few years after earning his associates, he's stuck at our current university for another three to complete his bachelors while I'm looking at starting my masters in fall. If I can get an aid package here, great, but if I receive funding from a school far away, he'll push me out the door so that later he doesn't have to bear the burden of my debts The thought of separation is a little stressful, especially since the possibility of visiting is pretty much nil (neither of us have cars, or the money to take trains/planes). We tend to get into arguments if we only communicate by phone or chat because we both have abrasive ways of talking and need physical contact and facial expressions to soften the blow. Still, we'd both rather separate now and reap happiness together later than to take on debt, be happily together temporarily and miserable down the road.

Most programs prefer students to start in fall anyway. I don't think they'd have a problem with it; email the secretary of the department and ask.

I have been lucky enough to receive acceptances to all of the programs I applied to, but not so lucky with financial aid. It isn't that I haven't been offered any--no one has been offered any. All of my schools intend to send out scholarship and GA offers after their reply deadlines (with the exception of the school who retracted the deadline in light of the fact they're taking so long to decide packages, which scores them major points in my book). I've emailed some to ask for extensions so I can make an informed decision, but none have replied yet. My father, who was burned years ago when he was forced to accept an offer from a law school that subsequently didn't follow through on insinuated funding, advises me to throw honor out the window and just say "yes" to all, kiss off the deposits, and decide for real in June when the offers have finally come through. In his opinion, they have no consideration for their students, so there's no reason the students should have consideration for them. I have moral qualms with this, especially since I could be holding a spot someone on the waitlist is depending on, but in the face of tens of thousands of debt for my masters degree I might be willing to take a walk on the dark side. Is anyone else in a similar situation? What are you going to do?

I don't think there are many academics who go into their fields for the sole joy of writing grants and getting rejected by journals :wink: Still, there were two major aspect of the process that were enjoyable and consistent with what I would do as an academic: research and planning. I loved looking at the particulars of different schools, making tables and looking up statistics of acceptance ratios and job placement per industry and cost of living per area, projecting financials, and getting results. I'm like that with experiments too; love the planning and research stages, reading up and finding holes and picking new directions to go in, and I love data analysis, but I really hate the boring stuff in between (show of hands: who likes watching something reflux for two hours?) I also hated formatting my personal statements to the specifics of every school, just like I'm sure I'll detest formatting my papers to the specifics of each journal or funding committee. Processes like these aren't so much something you should look forward to as something you're okay with enduring so you can get to the good parts; like eating your vegetables so Mom will let you have ice cream