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If you already have a car, I would bring it. I don't have a car and I often feel either trapped or like a mooch, always asking my friends for rides. If all you're doing is going between campus, downtown and home it's not a big deal but if you play sports, want to go into the wilderness or want to find cheaper grocery stores, having a car to get out to those places would be useful. If you want to live downtown, parking can be expensive or a hassle. Make sure that when you are looking for homes, that you figure out what the parking situation is. There are a few diamonds in the rough that have free off-street parking. Street parking is possible but can be a pain, especially in the winter when there is alternate street parking to accommodate snow plowing.

Hey Spinach, There are a ton of co-ops in Madison. I have never lived in one but I have several friends that have. Everything I have heard from my friends has been positive. The one seeming drawback is that it is hard to find privacy but I imagine that would be a problem in a co-op in any city.

It is going to be difficult to live off of that amount of stipend, but not impossible. I had a roommate who only got about $9000 and she said that she was able to survive without dipping into her savings. She really didn't so anything except stay in her room and read and write all day everyday, and as far as I'm concerned, that's no way to live a life. There are options for cheap living, like living in a co-op or living further from downtown/campus. Several of my labmates bike. Some of them stop biking when it gets really cold but others just keep going by dressing warmly and using winter bike tires. Also, the main bike paths are plowed when it snows. Otherwise, the bus system is pretty good and you get a bus pass as part of your segregated fees. Overall, I enjoy Madison and I'm happy to be here. The lack of diversity is a bit of a problem for me but I think it's ok for now.

I agree, some professors need constant reminding. In the meantime, if you have extra time, it's not a bad idea to work on another draft and send it to him. My guess is that he hasn't read anything yet (if he had, he would email you, right?)

That sounds like fun! It's almost like a blind date! Do you have a place in mind?

My department orientation is on the 31st, before the grad school one. I guess it would be good to attend. See you there?

What about a middle-ground? You could go to another Canadian public university that has a better reputation than Calgary. That way, you still save money but have a better education.

I am moving away from my SO of four years, and we plan on being apart for two years. After two years he is supposed to join me in the Midwest. Currently he has an amazing job that is a great foot in the door for his career so he has to make a positive impact there before he can move. Although I am very excited about my new lab and I'm even excited about the city I'm moving to, in this last week before I move, I am more sad and anxious about leaving him. I feel like we will be ok. We have plans already for when we will see each other and we have plans for talking daily on the phone but I can't help but feel sad. The fortunate thing is that he is not in academia. He is an engineer and should not have difficulty finding work most anywhere. So down the road, we won't have to worry as much about trying to find work in the same city.

I have an awesome backpack from MEC (Canadian company) that I use on a daily basis to carry my lap top. I also have a little purse that I keep at my desk for when I want to run out for lunch or coffee, so I don't have to take everything. No one cares anyway what you look like at my school. I feel like my new school will be the same. Perhaps it's just me but it doesn't take long for my shoulders or back to start hurting if I have just a shoulder bag. The worst was during undergrad when I would have textbooks, rugby boots and gear, and shower gear all in a large one-strapped rugby bag. I loved that thing but it was terrible for me. I had to carry it around all day two days a week. And of course, in undergrad there's no office to stash your things in.

Yeah... I'm leaving on the 21st and I'm still writing. I will actually have to fly back to defend sometime in September. I have told my new advisor about this and he's ok. I just hope they don't kick me out of my new program :/

I am definitely freaking out. I'm also leaving behind my SO, a close family, great friends and a city I love. AND I have to finish my masters thesis before I leave in 15 days. I'm also worried because I will be quite poor when I move. Although I will be going from masters to PhD, rather than straight from undergrad, I still have weird anxieties that I'm not cut out for this. I've already experienced imposter syndrome for much of my masters.. I hope it doesn't take over again for the PhD. I'm hoping though that these anxieties will all go away once I actually move.

I use google docs, specifically the spreadsheet, which resembles excel. This worked really well when there was another TA I was working with and we could access and update the spreadsheet anytime we wanted. If you want to let your students see their grades, you could send them the spreadsheet too, but give them "read only" access and obviously use their student numbers rather than their names. I have no idea what we will be using at my new school but I loved using google docs!

Seems like reading style varies considerably depending on the subject of study. As a biologist, I do a whole lot of skimming. I go the abstract, graphs (only if they are clear) and discussion route. If their conclusions seem strange I go back through their methods and results. If I am having a hard time understanding the paper then I will read in introduction and go through the paper again in order. I find that it is easier to get the key points from a paper if I skim. I find that if I read it from beginning to end, I get lost or bored. I also don't make a lot of notes, which is probably to my detriment but I use the program Papers, which is awesome and super helpful. It's very easy to do full-text searches of all of my papers to find those that might be relevant to a topic I am thinking or writing about.

*sigh* We're spoiled in Canada. Here, if you make less than $20K (depending on the province, I'm underestimating) you pay no tax. Not to mention all of the additional deductions you get for being a student, buying a bus pass, etc. It will be tough moving to the US. At least my cost of living will be lower and my stipend will be higher.

I think that everyone here seems to agree that there is a lot of variability when it comes to integration (for lack of a better word). It varies from region to region (Midwest to East Coast, for example), the country that the international student is coming from (it's pretty hard to stick to your group if you're the only one from your home country) and personalities. I think some individuals just find it easier to transition to a new culture or environment than others. And I definitely think that the place you go to makes a difference. There are places where there are large groups of people from a particular region and it is much easier to stick to your own group. I think that if you are an international student and you make a point of getting involved with the locals, then there are not huge barriers. And I think that the grad school environment is more accepting of international students because there are a lot more of them and because people are more mature. You will have to interact to discuss your research and such, so you will already have a foot in the door. This differs from undergrad where everyone can afford to stick to themselves more.

I definitely think it hinders people when they stick with their own kind and don't try to get to know new people or cultures. And I also understand that when moving to a new place, especially when the culture and language are different, that it helps to have people that understand you and help you to maintain a feeling of comfort. But I think it is unfair to think that only international students do this. A lot of people live like this, except that it might not be as noticeable because they do not speak a different language or look different. Some people stick with the same friends they've had since highschool. Some people stick to their own social class. Some people stick with only people that share their beliefs. I could go on. My point is that generally people stick to like-minded people. And then there are people who try to break these barriers, either by leaving their comfort zone to experience new things or by inviting those people who are in groups to try new things. I think that it is easy to look at international students and say that they "stick to people of their own ethnicity" but not really work to include them. It's hard to come to a place with a new culture, and all too often I see that "locals" do not make an effort to include the new people. Let's build bridges instead of reinforcing walls.

Through my masters I found that the "in control" thing only happened once I had finished all my courses and was nearly done all my lab work. I feel like grad school is a state of constantly feeling stupid. If I felt like I was in control and knew what I was doing all the time, I would lose the motivation to learn anything new. Balance is definitely important. I agree with all of the previous posters. Also, I found my experience to be a real emotional rollercoaster. When I started, I was THE HAPPIEST I had been in my life. I kept telling myself though, "this is not going to last. Remember this feeling when shit hits the fan". Sure enough, I had periods of time when I doubted my self worth, not to mention why I was in grad school in the first place. Then I would look back to the early days and the joy of discovery and the freedom to explore and discuss ideas and theories that bring out my passion. Remembering that joy (even if I couldn't feel it at the time) really helped me to get through the rough patches. Kind of along the same lines, try to talk about your project as much as possible. And I mean this on many different levels. Talk about it to your advisor and lab-mates, talk in conferences, and talk about it to your family and friends. You should be able to explain your project at any level. Talking about your project should be able to rekindle your passion for what you are studying, which can easily be lost when you stare at a computer or a lab bench all day. I find that talking to people that are not in my field garners questions that I would never have thought of. It results in a more holistic understanding of your own work. Talking with people also makes you more accountable. People will know if you are not making progress and can give you that little push if you are in a rut. That was a bit disjointed and rambly but that's my two cents

Wow. There are a lot of great ideas here.. I just thought I should share some of my own before I get back to work (I am a TERRIBLE procrastinator). For me, I have always been better at group work. I am always more motivated to finish and do a good job if others are relying on my work. Of course, with my thesis, it really doesn't affect anyone but myself so this has not been a tool to motivate me. But I still work well if I have a friend present who is also getting some work done. A technique that works really well (kind of like Psycholinguist's but for talking) is that anytime we think of something cool that we want to talk about, we write it down on a piece of paper then have a designated break time for talking about any of those things. Usually when I look over the list I find that many of the things that I so urgently wanted to talk about were silly and trivial. Writing things down really does help to get them out of your head. I've realized that using an outline helps me a lot. Even if I end up changing things down the road, I like having an outline then just filling-in the material where it's necessary. I often jump from section-to-section depending on what my mood and my writing ability is on a particular day. Methods is for stupid days, intro and discussion are for days that I am feeling particularly brilliant. I have also realized that I am much better at talking than I am at writing. I have heard of people that actually record themselves talking about their work and then go back and transcribe the whole thing. I have not tried this but I find it easier just to whisper to myself as though I am telling someone about my work and type as I do it. The language is usually imprecise but just getting the ideas down helps. I can always fix the language later. Ok. I've got to stop. I just opened a tab for "Get Back to Work" and I'm going to set a goal. Oh! But before I go, you guys should check out PhinisheD.org. It's a support group for people trying to finish their dissertations.

I would like to credit this thread for finally pushing me over to the smartphone camp. I will get one when I get to the States. Now.. to decide between iPhone and Android...

I will be moving from Vancouver where it rarely gets too hot or too cold, to the land of extremes: the Midwestern United States. I'm not looking forward to the change in climate. I just hope I can go down to the tropics frequently for my research Edmonton definitely gets cold in the winter. I agree that dry cold is better because it doesn't penetrate like wet cold. However, there is an evil that lives in the prairies that is hard to escape, in the form of wind. The wind reduces the already cold temperatures with a wind chill that can freeze exposed skin in a matter of seconds. I lived my childhood in Regina and found the winters nearly unbearable. I have heard that Edmonton is even colder. At least the mosquitos are not too bad in in Edmonton summers. Oh prairie winters... I remember the day that I walked home from school and the wind chill was -72'C. I'm going to have some good stories for my grandchildren someday...

I think I contacted my advisor in June of last year and we kept in touch over the summer as well as during the application process.

Oh! Sorry for the delayed reply. My advisor is a "trainer" in several programs. More specifically, I applied to Microbi, Genetics and Zoology. Zoology accepted me.

I think you should definitely schedule to meet with some of these professors!! This is an opportunity you should not pass up. If I were in your position, I would send these professors an email. Tell them that you are really interested in their work (maybe say specifically what aspect of their work) and that you are hoping to do a PhD in this field. Ask them if they have room in their group for another grad student and whether they have some time to sit and meet with you briefly. That should get your foot in the door. Once you meet with them, go with the flow. They may end up doing most of the talking. Try to convey your enthusiasm. At this point you could ask them if you could work or volunteer under them, depending on how the conversation is going. In terms of the timing, the sooner the better, especially if you plan on working. You need enough time to actually gain some experience and earn them as a reference.

Ok.. this is ridiculous. This is the third time I am trying to reply to this topic.. it keeps deleting my posts. I applied to three programs at the same university with the intention of working with a particular advisor. He was very supportive, and yet I was only admitted into one of the three programs I applied to. It definitely helps to have a professor that wants you and is willing to fund you, but it does not guarantee your acceptance. As well, the politics really vary from program to program and school to school. The potential advisors should be able to tell you what the politics are in the program and whether they have a lot of say in your admittance.

Maybe it was just the programs I was applying to (I applied to 3 programs at the same school). The two that rejected me seemed more concerned with undergrad performance than the fact that I had a masters. Even my prospective prof mentioned that my masters might not be seen as an advantage by the programs (even though he did). ' So it was probably just my limited experience. I think a part of it is that a lot of PhD programs offer a masters as a "way out" if you are not able to pass your qualifying exams and such. That being said, I think doing a masters is great and not a day goes by that I regret my decision to take this route.