ewurgler

Almost all of orange county is really expensive. If you are willing to drive a bit to school, a cheaper area nearby is Santa Ana, farther north probably Orange. If you head west or south of the university, it tends to be more expensive. I would suggest bopping around orange county craigslist (http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/)--they usually have the city in parentheses after the listing. If you don't have a car, get one. You won't survive in orange county without one.

Yeah, UNC doesn't pay for travel either--unless they didn't like me enough to offer any.

Very cool!!! Is it a top choice now?

Which did you visit tritone? Delaware? And I just noticed FSU and Delaware acceptances!!! CONGRATS!!

Yeah, I was thinking I would do that as soon as I visit my preferred school.

One prof I talked to in a top 10 sociology department said "try to get in the 90th percentile in all 3 sections." I was shocked to hear they expect soc people to have 90th percentile in math. That is nuts.

I wonder why they took it off. Those seem about rightish, though I would expect their gre to be a bit higher. But, after talking with the DGS and a few current grads, they seem to not put much stock in stats beyond a certain "cut-off."

While I find the adaptive test to be horribly nerve-wracking and I hate taking on the computer rather than paper, I do think there is some value. BUT! I think it should be pass/fail, or like 5 tiers. Yes, there needs to be some sort of evaluation that is identical for all applicants, as we all know how inflated/deflated GPAs can be, but it is wildly imperfect. If I made up the scoring, it would be a scale of 1 to 5, with 3 as "average" (what all undergrads should come out knowing), 5 being amazingly brilliant, and 4 being not quite there but definitely serious grad school potential.

Does indiana post their medians? I thought it just said "you will be well-served by having over the 60th percentile in all sections" type of thing.

I notice lots of them sign with the first name as well, but I am not going to use their first name until I meet them in person. After a visit and if they continue to sign with the first name, then I will do the same. I would just not feel comfortable until I meet them and "feel them out."

I think it would be taxing to live in san diego if you like seasons--you just don't get them here. (80 degrees today). BUT, as a ucsd undergrad, I LOVED the school and highly recommend it. I don't know much about the linguistics department, but I was in the social sciences and loved it. Even though they are having budget crises, they are generally committed to funding all graduate students. Because the hard sciences are so strong and bring in major research dollars (a large chunk is taken off the top to goes into a general university fund), they do have other resources. (I worked in fundraising for a while at ucsd). Anyway--i loved ucsd and if you do end up going, send me a PM or look at my post on the san diego city guide thread. There are certain neighborhoods that I have found much more bearable (and cheaper) that will REALLY make your life more enjoyable than living in La Jolla.

What? I've only heard casual.

Only one has a page, but another's books have been used as a citation on several pages for political theorists.

I guess I should say what bothers me about san diego. It is ridiculously expensive--even if you live in the not so nice areas. I liked it for the first 2 years I lived here, but then it gets old. I get sick of having to drive everywhere, I get sick of paying huge amounts of money for rent and having nothing left to spend to do fun stuff, and I get sick of having the same weather every single day. It is very touristy, and therefore a lot of the "fun stuff" to do is really expensive. If you want good restaurants, you will have to pay for it!! Sure, you can go downtown if you like a "night on the town," but with parking nearly $15 alone, it is way too expensive to be worth it. If you surf, you will like it. But if you live having spare change to grab a drink, for about it--it all goes to rent.

I just scheduled one with a school that has no recruitment weekend. Because it is spring, go online and find when their break is. Don't schedule it then. Then, email the coordinator and DGS and say "i'm really hoping to visit, do these days work?" Also, ask about where is best to stay, at which point they will most likely offer to have you stay with current grads. Ask what the best transport is to and from the airport, at which point they will most likely volunteer to have someone pick you up. THen, they will probably arrange itinerary for you. This is what a school has done for me. They asked me who I wanted to meet with, and they will schedule it all for me.

I had emailed the coordinator last friday, asked when I could expect a notification, and she said "we are currently putting them up on the website so keep checking." My guess: they sent some out they know they want and do not want, and are now waiting for responses to send out a new batch. I think they don't tell anyone they are on a waitlist ever--they just don't tell you until they can give you an offer or a rejection. Lots of schools do this. I guess just wait

I agree with this, and for me was extremely frustrated. I know I shouldn't care much about grades, only that I learn, but when my work is far superior and gets an A, and someone has a paper that does the assignment with no particular flair, creativity or innovative arguments and gets an A-, it sucks.

I curse because I want to, not because it makes me feel powerful. When I mentioned rousseau I was referring to the general will, but not to support socialism--to talk about one's responsibilities as a citizen of a given nation. I agree that one does not have to agree with a philosopher--I have read locke and I generally do not agree. My anger was mostly directed at those who refuse to engage because they say the "system is broken." This is the ultimate form of laziness and social irresponsibility in my eyes.

Duh! Haven't you seen The Wire? Just kidding. But I was tempted to apply to a school there so they would pay for a trip and I could see what it was really like.

Ugh, Not San Diego. I've lived here for 5 years and the lack of change really gets to me. It is 80 degrees year round, leaves never change color and you never get to wear a scarf! The area ucsd is in is horribly stuffy, isolated and makes you want to die because you pay so much for rent. There are cooler places to live in sd, so if you end up there, send me a PM and I can hopefully make your grad school life a little happier. Personally, I love chicago and seattle. The area U of Chicago is in isn't quite the city center and not as close to public transport, but it is still nice!! Obama lived there!

Oh fantastic--a conversation with people who are clearly well-read on political and social theory. NOT! I am far far far left. And to answer the question of why do people in the humanities think the government can do things best--it probably can't, BUT WHO THE FUCK ELSE IS GOING TO DO IT? You? I'm sorry, how much have you donated to non-profits this year? How many hours this week did you spend at the soup kitchen? None? Yeah, thought so. And to those who say "this system is broken so I don't bother." Excuse my extreme anger, but take some fucking responsibility and pay attention, participate and donate time/money to the causes/campaigns you find worthwhile. If you think its broken, FUCKING TRY TO FIX IT!!! Yeah, so our programs/public schools aren't the most effecticient, high-functioning entities out there--but you know what? That does not mean we stop trying and give up. Grow up and take on ALL of your adult responsibilities as an American citizen. Go read Rousseau.

wow--did not put together bloody ben at dock with death of penny. Yikes!!! That sucks

Yeah--same here. I think I would love how the program is run, but there is no really great faculty fit. I would definitely visit along with my others.

I know several professors at my undergrad university who specifically told the TAs to make the average a B, regardless of the work. THe professor was instructed by the admin to make this the average. Lame.

Well, the results show mostly international but also an american reject. I am american, have nothing. My guess: waitlist. Perhaps they admitted a very small number due to funding precautions, and so they have a bulky waitlist? I don't know, this is my optimism. For those waiting--is northwestern a top choice?