burnt

Riverview's pretty far from campus, not necessarily geographically but you'd have to drive to get places. Stay away from Northsteppe Realty. They're terrible. Two married friends of mine live here (he's an ECE grad student and she's a Chemistry grad student): http://www.olentangyvillage.com/floorplan.asp?FPID=40059 The River is very close to campus and High Street (the main drag). I've been to their place many times. It's very nice. They split the rent, but it's a nice complex and location if you're willing to drop the dough. Having said that, you can find much cheaper places if you're willing to have roommates and live somewhere a little more... modest (shoddy yet not bad).

At one school it was a Skype interview in Arabic to test proficiency and at the other was where I did undergrad and so my professors just deemed me advanced. I feel like there's not too much emphasis on the case endings but it's definitely something to be familiar with.

I would've said the same thing about my own level, but two schools I applied to placed me firmly in the advanced category. The impression that I've gotten is that it's all about having laid a foundation. Though we have a LOT left to learn, I think the expectation is that it'll come naturally and "advanced" is not a measure of fluency but a level of learning, or knowledge of grammar. Either way, it sounds like you'll be perfectly fine. I feel the same way about Al-Kitab. If you want to review grammar hardcore, I'd suggest A New Arabic Grammar by Haywood and Nahmad. It's old-school pedagogy that focuses on the little details of grammar. Congrats on your acceptance to NYU!

I'm going to cook them dinner at my apartment. They're all colleagues and I'm sure with a bottle of wine in the mix it'll be a good time. The two departments with which I'm associated throw pretty classy yet just slightly boozy get-togethers.

Typically departments use the Al-Kitab textbook series published by Georgetown. Finishing and feeling comfortable with the third and final book in the series would put you at an advanced level. We did book one the first year, book two the second, etc. I'd say get your hands on those and see what you're comfortable with. They should be having you take a placement test and seeing where you belong based on that. Where are you planning on attending?

I did my undergrad at OSU and have ended up accepting for my MA. I'm pretty excited. I still have a lot to learn from my department. Anyone else here going into the humanities? I'm in the Near Eastern Language and Culture department.

Anyone interested in Columbus housing or general info can send me a message. I've lived here for six years and am starting my MA in the fall in the NELC department for Arabic. I can answer questions and would be willing to show you around to some cool places to hang out, study, etc. If you have any particular interests (say you like jazz clubs or house shows) I could probably suggest some neat places for you too. I would say there are little to no students in Upper Arlington--mostly families and professors maybe and definitely has an upper-class vibe. You might be able to find a decent apartment there but I have no idea what it would cost. A car would be absolutely essential. If you're looking to be as close to there as possible, I would suggest Clintonville and, if you don't mind more of a student-like atmosphere, Old North Columbus. If you have a car and don't mind the 'burbs then see if you can find anything in UA. It's just that I personally wouldn't live there.

*bump* Does anyone have anymore information on this? Especially the interdisciplinary PhD in Near and Middle Eastern Studies. It looks comprehensive and really interesting, but does anyone have any first-hand knowledge about it?