kate_ellen

I'm coming to Stanford too...from the UK for a PhD in Art History! Visited a couple of weeks ago when trying to make a decision and found the place to be pretty overwhelming. I'm excited!

Hey...regarding the time limit on your passport/visa, when I studied in the States a couple of years ago they issued me with a visa valid until 2012 even though my passport runs out in 2011 so I think you just transfer (or get a replacement) when you do renew your passport. I'll have the same issue this year because I'm going back from PhD so will need a new visa. I would ask the international office at your new university (they're experts in all matters I-20 related). Regarding applications, I do think you need to go to the embassy in your passport-issuing country. I was studying in Edinburgh when I first needed a visa and could not get a visa from the consulate in Scotland. I was told the only place I could get my visa was from the embassy in London. Again, check with the international office but I'm pretty sure they require you to go to your home embassy. Good luck!

...no word from Chicago here. I'm not in the US so am expecting the letter later anyway. Still, even the person I contacted in the department said we wouldn't hear until mid-March. Last year they seemed to be one of the first to notify...I wonder why its taken so long this time.

Thanks all...good to know. I wasn't sure myself about giving reasons/names of other schools (especially re: differences in finances etc). Anyway, I'll compose something this weekend.

So, I know that I am going to turn an offer down but I'm genuinely concerned as the right etiquette for doing so. As with all of the places I applied to, I built up a rapport with a prospective supervisor who was kind enough to read and comment on SOP drafts and even my writing sample. She's a major player in my field and I don't want her to think I have been ungrateful for her help and support, however, I got into a school that I really didn't think I would do (with a much better finance package) and so I do need to turn the other offer down. How do you go about doing this in a way that doesn't sever ties (as I say, in my field I will certainly encounter her again) but does acknowledge that I've given the offer serious consideration? (apologies of the jackass topic title - I have no intention of writing that in the email!)

Hey all, I too have been skulking around this page for a while, watching the results trickle in and haven't posted before today. I've had offers from Columbia and Stanford and am still completely undecided about which one to take. My field is African (modern and contemporary). If anyone has any suggestions/experience regarding either, I'd be very happy to hear it! In both places there is a Professor I would love to work with and resources (archives etc) that are particularly relevant to my study. I'm a little nervous about being a student in NYC...but then Palo Alto is a long way from home (England). Anyway, good luck to all and congratulations on the acceptances.