jnpull2

I know that the program is now titled Sociocultural and Global Studies and you get to choose your emphasis: Anthropology, Sociology or Geography. For me, it is a great program. I really appreciate the interdisciplinary approach, the international research opportunities and their areas of focus (inequality, migration, environment). I actually have chosen this program over UW-Madison, UC-Berkeley and others. I am really looking forward to the opportunity.

I will also be starting a PhD program in the fall at FIU. I was wondering if the area around the school is moderately safe. I would love to be within walking distance from campus without worrying about getting home safely at night.

That is what I did, and I was awarded a fellowship.

You do have a year to get some sort of astronomy research under your belt as a side project or something. And they are funding you based on your potential to succeed in a particular subject. Even though it is possible that you would be able to change disciplines, such a change has to be approved. I don't know. I wouldn't try to figure out a way to get a grant based on something you have no intention of actually persuing. If you want to study astronomy, apply as such. If you want to study material science, apply for that. It's all a little confusing. If you want to study astronomy, I would apply with an astronomy research proposal. If you get it, then you can be funded to do that research. If not, you can continue on your current path with funding from your university.

When I got my undergraduate fellowship from the EPA it took FOREVER to hear something. If you haven't heard anything, it is a good sign because they send out rejection notices before acceptance calls as they are able to weed people out more quickly than they are able to decide on the few that recieve an award. That said, I recieved my rejection packet. Thank goodness for the NSF.

Also, I think the purpose of the broader impact is not volunteer work that you have done in the past but how your research will impact society.

How long will you be in Louisville? With your kid, you may want to consider living in Oldham County (Crestwood, Prospect, LaGrange) because the public schools there are very good. The area has a small town feel (very small town), but I didn't think that the commute to Louisville was bad at all. Once you get off of the interstate, you are basically there. Of course, that means driving... The place to live in Louisville is the Highland area off of Bardstown Road. There are a lot of shops and restaurants, but I think the traffic is pretty bad. I would honestly look for places to live on Craigslist. A lot of private owners post their listings there, and you are likely to find a fourplex with character or something along those lines. Congratulations on your acceptance! I think that you will find that Louisville is a great city.