capnganch

Does anyone know anything about Holleman by the Park?

I applied to the Ph.D. program, and I heard a few days ago ... I think Friday, but I'm not sure. My grandma died last week, so I've been all akimbo.

I applied to the Lit track and was recently called by the DGS to let me know that I'm on the waiting list. She said that the program only accepted 5 people this year, but she didn't specify as to whether that was department-wide or simply within the track to which I applied. Best of luck all.

Pittsburgh can be cold, I guess, but no colder than most of the other Northeastern states. What's probably the worst thing about the weather is the wind ... when it whips through, it carries a lot of the moist, cold air right to your bones. But a scarf will help with that. The social scene is funky ... there are a lot of student-friendly/twenty-something-friendly neighborhoods (like Southside, etc.), but the downtown itself virtually shuts down after 5 pm. There is a good cultural scene, though. The Pittsburgh Public Theatre will stage a lot of smaller traveling shows/original pieces while Heinz Hall and The Benedum will host a lot of the bigger Broadway shows coming through. It's a pretty cool place, but what's the best is that almost everyone is hyper-proud to live there.

What are people hearing from Miami University of Ohio?

My advisor, who attended Texas A&M as an undergrad in the 70s, said that there is a HUGE difference between the graduate/faculty and undergraduate populations. Unless you're interacting with undergraduates on a regular basis (perhaps as a 101 instructor), I doubt that the "conservative lifestyle" will really be all that affecting. I'm at a public university in the Midwest right now with a similar scenario, and while the county was overwhelmingly McCain in the election, I rarely end up finding myself in uncomfortable confrontations based on my politics and beliefs.

I think it might depend on where you live ... if you're far away from Texas, it may take a while. Also, check your spam folder to make sure that something didn't get re-routed there. You can always call them in a week to say you didn't receive anything -- they seem pretty friendly.

Thanks, that's very helpful. A tight academic community can be a really helpful aspect of graduate school (though it can also have its drawbacks, too). I've been very impressed with A&M's friendly, informative welcome wagon, even though it may not have been my first choice. They're definitely making me think strongly of attending.

Has anyone else heard anything from Texas A&M? I was accepted last week, and I've been getting some very friendly emails from graduate students and professors alike wanting to meet with me. I'm sure that a lot of this is the ol' Aggie welcome wagon rolling out, but I wondered if any of it might be something I should keep in mind when deciding between programs. They all seem pretty nice, and their emails don't seem to be a PR stunt in that they specifically refer to my writing samples and personal statements. Is anyone else having similar conversations with A&M faculty and students?

Can anyone give any recommendations as to "good" neighborhoods in the College Station/Bryan area? Something more specific than either "College Station" or "Bryan"? It'd be nice to find a decent, quiet area that won't break a grad student's limited budget. Maybe certain blocks and/or intersections would be a good place to start so I have something to search for in all the rental listings...