Yellow#5

Boston College offers some 1st year tuition waivers and 2nd year teaching positions with a small stipend above tuition. Generally, they grant 12 entering MAs a tuition waiver, according to their website. UVA and BU also grant tuition waivers for some MA students, I've heard.

I am facing the old "MA for pay" dillema, so I thought I'd explore an alternative to paying the whole way on this board. An MA is generally considered a "good prep" for the PhD, but often doesn't help you finish anymore quickly. So, would it be terrible to accept admission to an MA that is flexible, allows a student to graduate in 2 years, but reapply to PhD programs again this fall, then drop out of the MA before completing it if a PhD spot comes through? There are a few reasons I'm inclined to try this 1. I already have applications on file, and I could re-activate them just by paying the application fee. 2. I felt that I was pretty close to being admitted to a few of these programs and last year was quite a tough year. 3. I've heard an application might be viewed in a slightly better light at some schools if you re-apply. So, will I burn a bridge at my MA institution that will haunt me forever?

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Friends in the hills have cars I lived there for years without a car. Take a cab to the airport. Rent a car on the weekend. Make friends.

I agree, this is not obvious to American students. In American Universities, we have a semester of classes (sometimes a shorter, tri-mester) followed by a longer paper or exam in every class. When I studied abroad in Germany, I didn't realize there was such a long break between semesters and often papers and exams don't happen until graduation. Of course, since I was visiting, I didn't have the same stress level during this break, but I was left wondering where everybody in my small college town was hiding when there were no classes

I think that BC has a fairly small PhD program and usually admits 4 students total to the English PhD program. I'm not sure if they have a separate "American Studies" program, though. I've heard from a grad student specializing in Medieval Studies, that he was surprised to find out (after enrolling) that Tufts' English department is almost exclusively interested in feminist and gender theory, so you should be interested in that approach for Tufts to be a good "fit." You can try e-mailing professors of American Lit to inquire as to whether this is the case in your area of interest as well. My impression was that it was a department wide interest. I'm going to BC in the fall for the MA and I've poked around the internet for some professor's writings. James Wallace teaches early American Lit and he takes a primarily "New Historical" approach to reading lit. Chris Wilson teaches late American and he seems to mix it up a bit. He teaches classes like "Narrative and Media" and goes outside the cannon to genre, even self-help manuals. I've heard he's quite interesting. I've also met Professor Shrayer, who teaches Nabokov (technically Am. Lit?) in conjunction with the Slavics department. He is very personable and his essays on Nabokov are great.

Oh, sure, that's what I mean. You re-read closely the passages you're interest in or are discussing because they touch on an area of interest for you. That's why a first read in the summer IS a time saver, I'd argue. It allows you to do close reading on the part that "floats to the top" for you. I have a class on 18th century novel, for instance. There is no way I'm going to leave all that reading until the fall.

Does anyone really read a book once for class?

I think downtown/State Street has a great cafe culture. It's a great walking city, with most of the best cafe's, shops and sandwich shops/ restaurants along 10 blocks of the city, with many other cool, sometimes cheaper spots hidden in the side streets a few blocks away. I don't know Elwood that well, but Goleta is definitely more spread out and within a 2 mile walk in either direction, you would have many fewer choices for groceries, cafes restaurants and shops. The main grocery store is on Chapala and Anacapa, (right near the bus stop from UCSB) if I recall, and then there's the farmer's market for cheap fresh veggies around the 400 block of State Street. The main bus stop downtown also goes everywhere, but Elwood and Goleta would probably require you to go to Downtown SB and transfer for out of the way places like Mesa (SB City College), Montecito, etc. I think a smaller apartment downtown is better than a bigger place in Goleta, but that's me.

I just wish that instead of obsessing over how worthless their discipline is, the professors who openly do so should spend some time focussing on how it IS relevant, and organizing their lessons, their syllabus, their departments etc., around highlighting that, instead of what losers they think they are. I hear this kind of talk far too much, and I haven't even started grad school yet. Any private firm that marketed themselves in a similar way would not do well. As far as I'm concerned, it's a marketing failure. In a world where marketing has successfully convinced us that we need different kinds of cremes for our eyes, face, neck, hands, body and feet, why cannot the "smartest" professors of literature convince the public that drama, literature and poetry is enriching?

Suburbany. (more need of a car)

I don't think it will reflect badly on you that you took longer to finish and changed majors at the begining, as long as you can articulate a clear reason/area of interest that you want to study in the future. One of my profs said to me, because I also have some disparate areas of study on my resume (english, economics, law); it doesn't matter if you have an integrated resume, as long as you come across as an integrated person.

When you open a bank account, you will get a set of temporary checks and an ATM check card that day. That won't be a problem. It might help you to bring some travelers checks to deposit into your account, so you have money available immeadiately. I don't really know what the rules are specifically for opening a bank account in the US, but if you bring your letter from MIT, you should have no problem opening an account. Bringing a copy of your MIT award letter to your landlord to help your credit approval is a good idea too. As far as finding an apartment quickly, you should do as much research as you can on-line. Look on google maps to be familiar with the streets you might want to live on, so you'll locate the best listings right away, for example. You can even look on google street view to see if you like the area and take a virtual walk to campus! Then you'll know if there's an ugly freeway in the way, or a nice tree-lined path.

I lived downtown for 4 years as an undergrad at UCSB. The bus is always on time and takes about 1/2 an hour. The MBTA is on Chapala Street, so if you lived near Chapala and Anacapa, you would not have a problem. There is also a good bike path to campus, and you can put your bike on the busses bike rack at night if you're too tired to ride home. UCSB is a super bike friendly environment with good paths, parking, etc, which I'm sure you noticed. I recommend downtown more than Ellwood, the Mesa or Goleta. It's just beautiful and the most convenient. Some of the smaller towns nearby are just sad.

I've lived for 10 years in Boston with no car. I have no friends with cars and it feels weird to visit my family in car towns. If you ever really need a car, taxis are everywhere (in Boston that is, not so much in Somerville) and then there's always zipcar as many have pointed out.

I think two weeks is plenty of time, but you have to be persistent. Don't think making 30 minutes of phone calls will do it. Don't just call about one or two apartment, make as many calls as you can. Set aside the whole day, be ready to drop in and look at a place at a moments notice, know EXACTLY what you're looking for, (what you are willing to compromise and what you absolutely will not compromise and your price range). Finally, show up with your checkbook in hand. If you like a place and it meets your must-have criteria, put down a deposit, don't think about it a few days and expect it will still be there when you make up your mind. During rush months, landlords will pretty much do whatever is easiest for them, since they probably only have to wait 20 minutes after posting an availablity to get some interest, so don't flake.

Nailbiter! Nicely done

Here's an old thread I started on Rossetta Stone where other members made some helpful suggestions. viewtopic.php?f=56&t=15349&p=65877&hilit=rosetta#p65877

Rather than sign on for a year's lease sight unseen, try renting a temporary, furnished apartment for 2 weeks, rather than make a mistake. It may cost you an extra k, but it might be worth it to actually live in the city and figure out where you want to be for the next year...or 7. http://www.copleyhouse.com is a good bed and breakfast rental, though the furnishings, especially the beds, are a bit old. I'll bet you can negotiate a better deal for cash up front. Studios Daily $85-100 Weekly$525-625 Spring/Summer Pricing: Small Studios Daily: $95-$120 Weekly: $700-$750 Google boston and corporate apartments or weekly rentals or bed and breakfasts. Most offer a better rate than hotels if you rent for a week or a month. Here is an example I found: http://www.bostonapartments.com

Didn't something similar happen with UCSD's undergrads?

I love to watch good news come in on thegradcafe!

Are you looking to get the MA to continue teaching high school, or are you thinking of going on the the PhD and becoming an Acedemic? I would think reputation wouldn't matter as much and a good, solid program you enjoy -- with some funding is pretty awesome. I don't think many programs offer support on the MA level.

Congrats! I agree, it's a nice compliment.