ktel

I had a 3.9 cGPA from my undergrad and received an NSERC scholarship for my first year. I have a feeling receiving NSERC has opened up a lot more doors as far as receiving other scholarships, but I could be wrong, as apparently previously receiving OGS doesn't mean anything to them.

I e-mailed my graduate awards office and they said "tuition top-ups" are exempt, so it sounds like my internal funding would not count. I just accepted the OGS and the acceptance form was very strange. It asked if you had other awards, and if I clicked yes, I was only able to fill in other awards OVER $10,000 but not those under. So then I was forced to click "no" in order to accept.

Thanks for the information. Yes, they do reduce my internal funding, but I will still have a pretty huge net gain regardless.

Now, before I go e-mailing and phoning people, does anybody know if the $10000 cap on other awards includes your internal funding package from your university?

No, I did not get an e-mail. I will also note this must have literally happened in the last hour or so as I checked earlier today and there was nothing. The update is dated May 4 as well, which is a little weird

I just checked and I received an OGS as well!!! YAY! I can add this to my other scholarship and have a lot more money for next year! So exciting!

I think it would be inappropriate to do so. You should be emphasizing all your strengths, I don't think your age is a strength (or weakness for that matter). It should be irrelevant to your application.

Is it all course based? What are the requirements? I think it would be very tough to do. I'm at U of T but my department is kind of near York. It's at least a 1 to 1.5 hour commute between the two campuses via TTC. There's a huge likelihood that you would have class conflicts.

I think it's really field and supervisor dependent. I did a summer RAship, and I definitely had to log my hours, although they were quite flexible. My whole job was to do research for my supervisor, and I was paid hourly, not in a lump sum.

Because I want him to be able to lie down in all sorts of situations. It's our replacement for sit because sitting is very awkward for a Greyhound. I don't think he's confused, I just think he's lazy and a little stubborn.

So I have been teaching my dog to lie down. It is going quite well. He can lie down inside, outside, on grass, on concrete, wherever. The problem is getting him to get back up! I have had to wait several times on a walk after I've done the command and he decides this is comfortable and he just wants to lay there for a while. What a goof. I also caught his long nose and tongue down my milk glass the other day lapping it up. Dogs do the strangest things.

^ If you read the full title, the OP is working as an RA. So it is much more like a standard job than if they were just doing their own research.

I did just that. I entered a program in a new city, and made finding new friends a priority. If it wasn't rugby, I would've become involved in something else. I've branched out within my department and have a number of people that I am quite friendly with, but it's become clear to me that it probably isn't the place where I'm going to be making close friendships. Partly due to the lack of females, although I have never had a problem having close male friends as well.

Do you not have some sort of employment contract for your RA work? My experience with universities is that they are hopelessly bureaucratic, which would mean that getting paid would be part of that bureaucracy. Hence there should be a contract of some sort or something that should say how much you were getting paid. I personally wouldn't sit idly by while the money I was promised wasn't being paid to me.

I still logged in today even though I had this information... What does that say about me?

I know each graduate unit has a certain number of designated spaces it can give its students in Grad House. My department is by itself far away from any of the campuses, so my experience is totally different, but I do go downtown fairly often for sports. I live at St Clair West subway station and it only takes me 15 minutes to get to St George campus. Super quick and convenient.

I don't see how your life could be so insular that you don't have any relationships outside of your program. I've always tried to keep a somewhat diversified group of friends, albeit only because I play a sport. So I have school friends and rugby friends.

I've always been able to maintain my balance, but I know a number of people who can't. If they're not studying or working they feel incredibly anxious. I've done an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering and am now doing a Master's, and have competed in a varsity sport throughout. This sport is my priority, and I always make time for it. Another thing that helps me keep balance is having a dog. No matter what he needs to go for a walk. And I can certainly afford an hour a day to do so. I also try to treat school as a 9-5 thing, as my partner works full time, so I can then spend my evenings and weekends with him (when he's not working overtime).

Thanks for letting us know! Won't expect anything until next week then.

There's a married couple in my research group. Not sure if they met before or after. I have always kept dating very separate. I have never dated anyone I worked with or had classes with. The only thing that came close was dating someone in engineering, but a different year and discipline. None of my serious relationships have ended amicably, so it's probably for the best that I do it this way.

All of my tests have been open book. Typically the tests are worth no more than 40%, but the assignments are worth a LOT and took a long time to do.

I took 2 classes a semester, for a total of 4 classes. I also had to attend an ethics seminar and my Research Assessment Committee is listed as a "class" on my transcript.

I'm at the University of Toronto. I think the competition is a bit more intense for international students here

Perhaps it's a double post? And the replies didn't actually disappear?

I currently live in a building owned by: http://www.flagshipcorp.ca/ They have a lot of locations, are pet friendly, aren't picky about tenants, and overall I am happy with them. I would suggest going for a larger commercial landlord if possible if moving from far away. It will probably be an easier process for you.