eco_env

it could mean a lot of things. just ask.

I think 1 month is a pretty reasonable length of time to wait, but it probably varies by field.

I remember there being a bunch of developmental questions, but maybe they just stuck in my mind because I couldn't answer them. There are quite a few questions organismal bio type questions about plants.

I wish it was that easy in my field. I don't think most ecology journals are that sub-field specific, and some of the papers that are relevant to my interests would be in entomology journals. I've got 17 different journals listed for the papers I have in mendeley on my research subject, and that's not even a comprehensive list of the possibilities.

there should be a way to search by school/subject. or if there is a way, it should be easier to find.

that must be one way; google maps says ~1 hr and 40 min one way.

I think it's up to my advisor to provide me with summer funding for research (if I don't manage to get my own)- the department just provides teaching assistantships. This allows me to do more independent research, maybe along with some work for my advisor that is related to my work. But- I'm still not really sure how funding in the sciences generally works. Any scientists out there that can provide advice?

It's a PhD. Maybe one option is to try to get a Master's and then leave, if I find that I'm unhappy with it. Or withdraw now before the semester starts- but I don't know if I'll find any good research jobs that will help me get into another school.

I guess I'm too trusting- they didn't put the summer RA in writing, but my advisor made it sound like s/he would have summer funding for me, but is now the funding situation sounds more iffy. I guess I'm better off waiting and seeing if I can work something out, funding-wise. I just felt like I've done a lot since I submitted my application (and accepted the offer) and learned a lot from my failures last application season, which tempted me to give it another shot to get in somewhere with a better reputation and location.

can't you find out if a seminar will be offered in the spring? Surely someone has some idea of what will be offered.

I guess there aren't many ecologists on gradcafe... how about ecology blogs? all the ones I've seen so far are theoretical ecology oriented: Oikos Blog, EEB and Flow, Jabberwocky Ecology. I'm looking for more field ecology oriented blogs.

I was accepted to grad school for this fall, with 9 month TAships to support me most years, but I'm not so sure about summer funding- so far it doesn't look like I'll get any. So, I've been thinking about applying to other graduate programs. will it reflect badly on me that I'm applying to other grad programs when I'm just starting my first year in another program? Even if I can stretch my 9 month TAships into the summer (which I don't think I can), it doesn't seem reasonable to do summer research without getting an RAship to cover it (maybe I can manage to get my own grant to cover it, but I can't count on that).

Grad students are supposed to save money by living with roommates (could save me $3.5K per year), eating free food at events (http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=39) , and getting free clothing from lab equipment companies. Sadly, I can't do any of that stuff, so I'm trying to find a cheap apartment and hoping that my stipend in future years won't be much lower than my first year, because even the cheapest rent is almost half of my stipend.

Actually Harold Bloom teaches: Shakespeare and the Canon: Histories, Comedies, and Poems and Art of Reading a Poem. http://english.yale.edu/faculty-staff/harold-bloom

It sounds to me like your initial email is not direct enough. Do you ask them if they would consider serving as your advisor at that university? or something along those lines?

Roxbury and Dorchester definitely don't fit into the "safe" category.

If I'm going to rent an apartment without seeing it in person, is it better to go with a more expensive apartment? an apartment in a large complex? what are the safest options? I've tried looking at apartment ratings, mostly on apartmentratings.com, but it seems like every apartment building has bad reviews, and many of the good reviews sound way too positive, like they were written by the owners.

maybe a Professional Science Master's?

In undergrad, during the academic year, I watched these shows on a regular basis: Simpsons, Modern Family, Parks and Recreation, Community, Reba, 30 Rock, Outsourced, and the Office. I clearly need to cure myself of this habit before starting grad school... Checking email, etc. during the ad breaks makes me more productive, or so I like to think , and I watch them on Hulu, so ad breaks are not so long.

thank, what you did sounds like a good idea. The end of the month isn't last minute in terms of when I'm starting classes- I start classes in late Sept. did you mean it's not enough time to find an apartment before they are all gone?

for those of you that are moving a long distance for grad school how do you go about finding an apartment? I don't mean which websites, etc. I mean- do you pick apartments to look at before moving, then stay at a hotel while looking at those apartments? rent an apartment without seeing it in person? How early do you need to move to the city if you are doing the former? do you need to move at the end of the month so you can look at apartments that become available at the beginning of the month? Basically, I want to get an idea of the overall process people go through to find a decent apartment if they are moving several thousand miles away.

That just means that they signed with their name the first time to show that you can call them by their first name, and are now saving time by signing with initials... I think.

I was co-mentored for my research in undergrad. The pros: 1. I could take advantage of the different skills/availability of each. 2. I got several opinions on my work, so if I got the same comment from both it would indicate that the comment probably had some merit. The cons: multiple conflicting opinions can be frustrating, esp. for a naive undergrad. Overall, I don't think it's worth worrying about- if that's what you need to do, do it and you'll manage.

I'm too nervous and worried to be excited, but I guess I wish it was Sept already so I can have the transition to grad school and "adulthood" behind me.

It really depends, i think- I had a non-ecology/biology major in undergrad, so I listed relevant coursework to show that I had some background in ecology and general biology.