theodidactus

sorry Weepsie, I would have gotten to this sooner, but I wanted to see my results before talking out of my backside. I've been accepted to every school I applied to with a 3.3 GPA, this is average for college students, but a tad below for applicants to most graduate schools (Especially Madison, my #1) I I think (I don't know, but I think) that experience matters A LOT more than GPA, I have teaching and archival experience, and I think this shows that you have a commitment to library sciences in specific.

Can anyone tell me how funding works? the grad schools aren't exactly forthcoming with that information, and their sites are a pain to navigate. How do we learn how much the program will cost, and how much funding we'll be getting?

Will be going to Madison for Graduate school in Library Science.Write me if you want to meet up.

my employers, all current or former librarians, say to focus much more on cost and convenience. Where you went isn't nearly as important as who you are. I was just accepted to the University of Wisconsin, and will probably be attending there. If anyone's looking to share an apartment, I'm looking for something cheap with lots of bookshelves.

yeah, all the grad schools are yanking us around this year, and it's really uncool. How can we realistically be expected to make life altering decisions within a week!

I don't know this for certain, but I bet that international teaching jobs would look really good on an application. If anyone is stuck on what to do, apply to work overseas in China, Japan, Taiwan, or Singapore. The jobs pay well (in local currency) and you will be hugely respected. The work can be frustrating (if you're teaching English) and very difficult (if you're teaching Science) but it's definitely a great job.

I took two years off after graduate school, hoping to ride out the recession while saving up money. I work in Taiwan, my job pays very well, but only in Taiwanese dollars...returning to America will not be pleasant. McGill charges an insane amount for tuition, I cannot afford it, it's disappointing to turn them down.

anyone want to help me figure this out? I don't know what I want to do yet. I enjoy research, especially learning new things. I quickly get bored when something doesn't interest me, but if something does interest me, I can follow it for years. I am interested in far too many fields, but most of them have to do with pure science and politics. I feel like I'd be happiest doing something for the government. Academic librarianship interests me, but I feel like it requires an extreme specialization that I find a little scary. I would like to dedicate my life to a cause, not a specific field. At present, I'm thinking of finding an intersection between law and science librarianship...anyone who knows something about science librarianship, please tell me what the field is like.

yes, everyone I've talked to agrees that the location is not important...all told then, I'm going to Mizzou or Austin...I'll wait until the last possible second (in case of early rejections) then turn McGill down. I have already taken two years off, because I wanted to get some experience in the real world before throwing myself into academia for the rest of my life. Like library science, my current job is secure, highly competitive, and does not pay very well. I love learning, and teaching, and I know that I would be happy in Library Science. I suppose the logistics of it are what I find overwhelming: how is it possible to work in this (amazing) job with forty thousand dollars in debt over your head? Is there some trick that I'm missing here?

I suppose the silliness is on my end...I never looked at tuition rates before I applied to these schools. I never would have believed it cost this much. Especially for a library science degree. It's not like our jobs will be high paying or easily available. Is it worth it? I'm really not sure anymore.

Well, I've reached an impasse... I'm calling on folks who know more than me to help me sort out this situation. Bear in mind that I know almost nothing about the applications process. I recently applied to four schools for a master's degree in library sciences: McGill, Mizzou, Austen, and Madison. McGill responded almost immediately, offering me admission with absolutely no funding. I don't want to badmouth my former #1 choice, but McGill is absurdly expensive...there is no way I can afford 15,000 a year plus living expenses in Montreal...even the 300 dollar acceptance fee is intimidating for someone in my financial situation. So now I'm in a bind: They require that I accept them by March 18th, way, way, before any of my other schools will accept or deny me. I know nothing about my chances at the other schools, and the departments haven't exactly been forthcoming when I wrote them for information. If I turn down McGill, I need to know that I have a good chance of getting into one of these other schools with decent funding. I posted a brief summary of my scores and other garbage at the end of this post. I really hate how that determines funding, but it looks like it does. Please assist, I really need a place to go. GRE: 720V/680 Q, GPA 3.3, Double major in Communications and history, currently employed as a teacher and freelance writer/researcher. Previous internship at a historical archives.

well, I've been accepted to a few of these places, but no one is offering me a cent of funding of any kind. Be real with me people, is library sciences worth it if it costs 15,000 dollars a year? Honestly, I had know idea it would be this expensive, I suppose I should have done my research well, it's kind of a slap in the face to get these wonderful acceptances, but know that I won't be able to afford it. What are the odds that Austin, Madison, or Mizzou will give me funding? I don't want to spend next year painting houses.

History of Science and Mass Communication.

Yeah, I am writing them a letter, basically saying "I've been accepted to lots of schools, some are giving me money, you have one week to comply".

They officially accepted me! Problem: I need to give my official acceptance by March 18th...I won't hear from any of my other schools until the end of the month! McGill is probably my #1 choice, but I would like to at least know my other options... ...think I can pressure Madison, Mizzou, or Austin to give me the results ahead of time? Waiting until April seems a little silly.