truc

It is really worth noting that completing an MA in anthropology at the new school guarantees you nothing. Sure, the pool of applicants to the new school's phd program are all 2nd year MA students, but the faculty sometimes choose not to take any of them. What saveageminds says is true, most people I know who went to the new school have multiple phd options when they finish their MAs, but others have no choices and are just saddled with $40k-60k in debt. That isn't to say they don't appreciate the time they spent, but it does come with a hefty price tag.

This is written by an anthropologist and provides a healthy discussion of strategy if academic work is what you hope to do (http://chronicle.com/article/Graduate-School-Is-a-Means-to/131316). It's kind of mechanical and elitist, but she makes some good points.

Don't know much about LSE (heard it's great), but I'm quite familiar with the new school. PMed you about it.

I don't know what the specific requirements are for applied anthro, but I'd assume being proficient in a language other than English would be beneficial. If you take a year off to teach, make sure you incorporate why you did in your SOP. It will lend weight to the actual experience.

Don't take this offer and then reapply. Pick one. IMHO, take the GRE again before it changes and apply in the fall.

Can anyone recommend good (read not terribly sketchy) ways to find apartment shares/roommates? My quite limited funding from the New School is going to need to stretch as far as possible.

free pass

The April 15th deadline, though signed by most US schools, is more of a guideline. If a program violates it, all they risk is a rather light slap on the wrist by CGS.

Washington Heights and Inwood are pretty affordable, I have a friend who lives on Fort Washington near the CU medical center and she loves it. Not a bad commute to Columbia either.

Have you talked to current/previous students at Rutgers? Particularly students who have worked with your POI? You could ask if he/she has any who would be willing to talk with you about their experiences...that'll buy you 30 seconds. To be honest, I think letting them know that you are waiting on other decisions yourself and don't want to make an uninformed decision should be fine. You are probably neither the first person nor the last who hasn't instantly accepted their offer. You might also consider contacting Chicago to find out the actual likelihood of your getting in, just so you don't hold on for no good reason.

political science

To sum my final semester of undergrad up in a nutshell: I'm over it. Besides my thesis writing seminar, I had no course requirements left to graduate. Still, in order to keep my financial aid, I had to take a "full" course load. The 12 credits of bullshi* courses I am in right now are the lightest load ever, but also the most unbearable. I just want it to be April 19th so I can turn in my thesis and relax until september.

Sorry to break with what others have said, but a program for which I am an alternate said it was their word for waitlist. That said, there are only four people on this waitlist from what I am told.

Similar, but also different. I've been accepted to a 50% funded MA program in New York City for anthro and a PhD program in anthro (also in New York City) where funding won't happen until the second year, or so I am told. While I'd love to jump into the open arms of my dream PhD program, the possibility of having to fund myself (read - take on vast amounts of debt) for five-plus years is daunting. I'm just finishing my undergrad where I have been lucky enough to be on scholarship and avoid taking out loans. For this reason, I'm leaning towards the MA program. I think it will give me time to network and improve my cv a bit before applying again to PhD programs in two years. EDIT - and hopefully be funded at that point! Also - I have a SO who is applying to grad schools (in clinical psych) this coming fall. We are beginning to realize how inconvenient being in a two grad student (and potentially academic) relationship is.

Yeah, I got 1/2 funding to the New School and am in the same boat. Here I come NSSR! Not to say that getting admitted to the MA at Columbia isn't an honor in and of itself.

Consolation MA is what it meant for me...sigh. Though the possibility of Columbia is tempting me, I am a little miffed that they asked for a reply by April 11. What about you?

As a graduating undergrad I can give some advice on this topic. Look for anything in "Kerrytown" or the "Old West Side." This is where grad students, in my experience, tend to live. FWIW I like Kerrytown more because it is closer and has the food co-op. Tacky, yes. Real, unfortunately also yes. The upside is that these are all on the outskirts of town and not located anywhere near campus. No clue if grad students commonly live there, undergrads don't. We don't have many high-rise style apartment buildings (I think there are 4: University Towers, Zaragon Place, 411 Lofts, and Tower Plaza). Smaller apartment buildings (not the faux-house variety) and houses divided into apartments are the norm. I don't think downtown / campus area Ann Arbor knows what a corporate condo is. One bedrooms and studios are rarer at this stage of the game (leases for september 2011 were first available to sign in october 2010), but much easier to come by in small apartment buildings as opposed to apartments in houses. I recommend the university's off campus housing website (http://www.offcampus...du/lt/index.cfm), it is definitely way better for finding apartments near campus than craigslist. In my opinion, Ypsi is not the answer; however, I don't have a car, which, from the rest of your post, I gather you do...

I'm in a similar situation and don't know what I am going to do yet. Question, though, aren't you going to end up paying (at least in part) for the MA programs? Or am I not understanding somthing?

Nothing here either. But I'm assuming it is still a rejection because people posted earlier about being waitlisted...

Standing at the mailbox in my apartment building. I started jumping up and down I was so excited...in front of the mailman.

Ahh, I'm in cultural anthro and can't give much help as far as bioanth goes I'm afraid. However, I do have a shameless plug for my undergrad institution (Michigan) where I took an EEB course to fulfill my bioanth requirement. Searching their website, it looks like they have a master's in EEB http://www.lsa.umich.edu/eeb/graduates/traditional.html. Good luck!

I don't know what it is exactly you want to study, but Columbia and the New School both offer MA programs.

Rural / Wilderness are not far away, with several largeish state parks / nature preserves within an hour driving. As far as hiking, if you want hills, most of Michigan is flat as a pancake, but there are some nice places around Traverse City / Sleeping Bear Dunes (north, approx. 4 hours driving) The upper peninsula has awesome options for kayaking and backpacking at pictured rocks and isle royale, but those are about a 10 hour drive from Ann Arbor. PS - I'm not from Michigan, so my knowledge of where to go might be limited.

I'm currently finishing my undergrad at UM, and I think I can speak to this question . If you don't want to live around us, look at places in Kerrytown (West of State, East of Main between Huron and Depot) and on the old west side (West of Main, East of 7th). Many of the grad students I know live over there and the rents tend to be lower for better (read MUCH better) houses/apartments. While it is farther to get to campus, you can use the AATA buses for free with your MCard. If you want to live in ypsi, I'd look in the depot town/historic district area. Apart from that it tends to be pretty dead as far as nightlife goes.

I just got accepted to a program at the New School and am wondering if anyone has ever lived in their grad residence (the one on William St is indicated on their website). Being that I'm currently abroad, coming into town to apartment hunt is next to impossible and hunting via internet is just sketchy. Thanks