Darth.Vegan

True. Keep in mind though, a poster in the GRE forum missed 9 (2 first section, 7 second section) questions out of 40 on the verbal section and still got 95th percentile on the new test. With only 2 weeks of studying I went from missing half the questions on a given section to missing only 4-5 per section. I am confident that with 2-3 months to study over the summer that I can drop that to 2-3 questions per section. Remember its not so much how many questions you miss, but which questions you miss depending on how they are weighted.

GRE's do matter, but only to a certain extent. I am aiming for 85th+ percentile in both quant and verbal. That should ensure that an application is looked at thoroughly and doesn't raise any red flags. Wisconsin-Madison suggests that above 75th percentile is "good," but I want a little buffer to protect myself! Source: http://ssc.wisc.edu/soc/grad/admissions_faq.php#scores

@Sciencegirl, I think you're right on. Fact is qualitative research takes longer so you won't have nearly as many articles and books as someone who does only quant research.

I am perfectly comfortable with using an MA program to climb a prestige ladder if I need to. But hopefully we won't have to do that and will just get offers right off the bat! Also, what are you working on over the summer? I applied for two NSF internships but didn't get either one. It's ok though! I just got invited by a professor in my department into a research project for the summer that should pay me about 4k and end in a co-authored publication! Have you looked into summer research options yet? If not, I would start asking faculty in your department now.

You sound pretty darn competitive anywhere. Is there an upward trend in your GPA? That could really help. My cumulative GPA is 3.7+, but that is only because I have a few community college grades from 5 years ago bringing my average down, for the last 3 years I have had a 3.94. While cumulative is important, an upward trend can make all the difference. I would think that with a good gre score you could be competitive in the top 30 and outside of that should do really well. One caveat, this process is crazy competitive as you pointed out. Sometimes it seems it comes down to luck. Are you open to getting a terminal MA and then applying to PhD programs the next cycle? I am applying to 3 MA programs directly and then Columbia and Chicago automatically consider you for their MA as well. It can be expensive, but there are some funded options if you decide to go that route!

Yes it is. I've decided that studying for the GRE and taking 5 classes is a bad idea. I am dedicating part of my summer to it now.

We can officially update our profiles for Fall 2013 now! Woohoo!

Oh yeah no kidding. I would say 1-2 miles max would be best.

Honestly, the prices don't really get better until you get out towards Aiea and Pearl City. I personally would not recommend living out that far. I think Makiki is your best bet 100% Have you checked out padmapper.com?

You will be just fine. It's all a matter of how you carry yourself, show respect and you'll get respect back. No worries, and I am sure you'll love the time you spend in the islands. You might need to pick up some pidgin though. Where you stay? (where do you live)

Don't really believe in the efficacy of petitions but I signed it anyway.

Hang in there tomato. Rejection is just part of this process, I know it's hard but try not to get too discouraged.

Lame. Oh well.

Rad. Maybe I will see you there in 2013 if I get in and decide to attend!

It's tagged (look above the post) with Boston University.

I am taking an upper division (undergrad) course on food systems right now. My professor is extremely knowledgeable on the topic but given my 15 years experience doing education and advocacy on issues related to food systems there are some aspects where I have more personal knowledge. I really don't see this as a problem.

Ok well, I would suggest just going to her office hours or making an appointment with her. See how the reacts to you going to grad school, if she is supportive take the letter, if not don't. You can't base all this off of an off handed comment.

Eventually you become ambivalent about the roaches.

At least Chicago usually throws some money at the MAPPS students.

It's a bad idea because it would probably cost $60,000(with living expenses). Would it help you with placement into a PhD program? I am sure it would, but that is a hell of a lot of money for degree that isn't worth much on its own. Plus there are no guarantees.

$300!!!!! That's crazy low. Guess I won't be visiting many schools next year!

Thanks Masha, I appreciate the kind words. There is still a chance I'll get the one at Austin, but I'm not going to hold my breath.

Thanks!

Oh I definitely think rank makes a difference, although I am not convinced that in the top 25 it really matters all that much. As the job market gets scarce it's going to be who you know, or better yet, who your advisors know. If there are more well known/connected advisors in a T25 program vs T10, one might want to consider the the T25.