MoJingly

That seems strange to me. If he is going to treat you like a nuisance during your time there, you might want to seek another advisor. It might be awkward at first, but it's YOUR education, and there is no reason to deal with people like that unless absolutely necessary.

GROUP HUG!

Most Eastman students live around Eastman. I know a few in the Park Avenue area. Eastman is downtown and the river campus is about a ten minute shuttle ride away. The area is definitely sketchy, but if you use common sense you will be fine. There always seem to be a lot of people out around Eastman, so that can make it a little safer.

In some places, you have to be in the department the lab is affiliated with. One of the biggest advantages about the graduate program I chose is that I can literally work with ANY professor in the school, whether or not they are affiliated with my program.

LOL. That's what happens when you are thinking about the next word while typing the current one. I'm not even going to change it.

As far as public speaking goes, practice certainly helps. But also never underestimate the benefits of positive self-talk. I was a music performance major in college, and the pressure of getting up and playing a solo in front of an audience or a panel of distinguished professors would sometimes make me ill. But then I started talking to myself. "yeah, I got this. I'm prepared. Just go in. Kiss ass. BOOM. Do it." A internal sense of humor, an ability to laugh at yourself, and confidence in your preparation all go a long way.

Not going to lie, I didn't even notice until you mentioned it.

(welcome!) For me, it was trying to actually figure out HOW to do what I WANT to do. And then, finding an institution that had the desire to explore my path with me. It worked out in the end!

Zouzax, I have a feeling that if we met, we would quickly become very good friends.

Yeah, I'm confused by this post. Do you mean that people are being too hard on Franco, or that people are being too hard on the schools?

Not to join the hate-fest, but I'm not going to lie, I just went to Amazon and read a bit of Palo Alto. It was mildly painful. And by mildly I mean severely.

Yeah, I was unclear who he was actually (maybe I live under a rock?) but Wikipedia helped me out. He seems like one of those kids I hated in middle school. They'd get out the biggest books from the library, sit in the corner, and read them with their brows furrowed and head resting on their fists so that you knew they were thinking REALLY hard.

I hope so. Well done.

GOOD LUCK!

Hmm, well. I'm not a fan. I guess it's good to hear negatives so you can be prepared, but I propose this. 1. Back Trouble - You will develop back trouble. But then, you will take five minute breaks from hunching and you will start stretching and you will be fine. 2. Weight gain - this might not even happen. You will be stressed, but you will find that exercise will counteract that. 3, Mental Health Problems - you will have moments where you are depressed and anxious. But that will happen no matter what you do with your life. You'll exercise (see #2) and you will be fine. 4. Relationship trouble - maybe. But if it's meant to be, then it will work out. And, again, you will be fine. 5. No more hobbies - ok, yeah, that's just insane. Of course you will still have hobbies. 6. Acute bitterness - if this happens and persists, then you have more things to worry about than grad school. It's not going to happen to most of us. I know this might have been posted as a devils-advocate situation, but I'm not eager to entertain things that are unrealistically negative. Sure, there will be negative things, but I'm pretty certain that grad school isn't the hell that this blog made it seem. If it was, nobody would do it and it would have disappeared a long time ago. I'm also sure that a LARGE majority of the people on this site know what they are getting into. And guess what? They are still doing it.

OK! I'm reviving this. I'm sorry that I didn't have time to make you guys a cartoon (house-buying has taken over my life), so I tried to make myself look like one. This means, of course, that I have completely thrown away any chance I had at remaining anonymous on this forum but, oh well. You guys are worth it. I wanted you to know that I really did honor the song request. It's a beautiful night here. Just sitting, sipping wine, and playing music. Getting ready for the next chapter of my life. http://vimeo.com/22726716 Edit: Also, remember. wherever you are in your journey, whether you just got into grad school, you're trying again next year, you are just starting, finishing, loving it, hating it, unsure of it, forgetting it... you're going to be great.

1203 weeks, 5 days old.

On behalf of exhausted grad students everywhere, I present this seal to the Grad Cafe and its fabulous members.

It's seriously this quality of work that reminds me why I want to go into science.