coffeeplease

This is a VERY extreme move, and probably a very short-sighed. Academia is a small, gossipy place and I could imagine having that sued your institution will have a negative imact on your job search. Based on what I've read, your situation is not necessarily a unique one -- terrible and frustrating absolutely, but it happens. In the future, get ALL of their feedback in writing, whether that means email or writing up the minutes of your meeting and emailing them around -- a "paper trail" of sorts. Contact the university's ombudsperson and see if you can set up some kind of mediation or at least find out what your options are, because clearly you are very unhappy and your committee has done a poor job communicating with you. Have other people in this specific program had similar issues?

I have some time and can give you some general feedback if you like. PM if you're interested.

I visited recently and students told me that whlie they liked the apartment, they wished they'd gone for unfurnished apartments. I don't know if it'll be an option for me, though, because there are no pets allowed in subsidized housing and I've got 2 rabbits I'd be very sad to leave at home. Does anyone have any experience with using OCHA to find a place (Columbia's off-campus housing assistance service)? Or are you just better off looking on your own?

The day my mom joined Facebook was the day Facebook died for me.

This is something else I was wondering about. I am arranging all of this informally because I have to travel from abroad and work around my job -- it is during neither A nor B's recruitment weekends. School A is reimbursing me for part of the plane ticket. I arranged accommodations on my own and am otherwise paying for everything myself (including other travel costs). I already have a few extra days, as they managed to pack everything into a really short amount of time and I overbudgeted the time I would need in the area. Still -- am I in ethically sleazy territory? That is absolutely NOT how I want to start off my new career, and obviously I won't approach B if that's what they will think of me. I am not a crook (*Nixon pose*)! Edit to clarify: I was only considering asking one or two profs to have coffee and/or chat, nothing more formal than that.

You guys are right of course. This whole process is just confidence destroying (I say as I try to compose an email to the last school I'm waiting on, because I just want to move on with my life!). -sigh-

My mother told me that when she applied to law school (in the late 70s, at a VERY liberal school), her advisor told her not to bother applying to Harvard, because even if she got in, she would only be taking up a man's spot.

I am a couple years out of undergrad, but only have a BA. Only applied to PhD programs. Also, I have a wait-list related dilemma that I'd like to run by you, wise comrades of the Grad Cafe. I was admitted to a school (let's call it A) in the same city as another school where I was waitlisted ( B ). I will be visiting the city for a few days at the end of this week. I just got my schedule from School A, and it will leave me with plenty of free time, in which I could theoretically visit School B. The thing is, on paper I am pretty sure I would rather go to School A and I don't want to waste B's time. A and B are both part of a consortium, so it is very likely that I would end up taking courses at School B and working with POIs there. Both schools have profs working in the areas that I want to study, and I love the city and wouldn't want to miss an opportunity to study there, should School A turn out to be a poor match. Details of my visit are already covered by a combination of School A and a friend with a comfy couch, so it while it wouldn't cost B anything but time, I still feel kinda guilty at the thought of asking them to go out of their way to do anything for me. What do you think -- email POIs and ask if they are free to meet? Or just let it go and see what happens? (Edited to remove accidental emoticon)

I'm curious about this too...I had one 10-ish conversation with a POI in which I just ended up babbling. I'm visiting the same school soon -- they've scheduled 5 or 6 back to back 25 min meetings with faculty. I'm terrified. They're just people like us, right? RIGHT?!

If nothing else, they'll probably try to arrange for you to stay with a current student, which would cut down on the cost significantly.

I'm planning to learn French, go to the gym regularly, and read by the pool. Of course, I've been telling myself I'll work out every day for months now...hopefully this time it will take.

@ Stately Plump and Fiona Thunderpaws -- Oh my god, it IS true! Adding this to my collection of odd animal news stories (favorites: drunken badger and stoned wallabees) And glad you like my signature....while I'm technically waiting on one more response, I know it isn't gonna be the kind of answer that will really change things. It's nice not to feel like a basket case all the time, and I hope you guys get to relax soon, too!

Armadillos with leprosy.... I literally laughed out loud.

thought police

That's terrible. I know people who have had similar problems getting their secondary and post-secondary degrees recognized in Germany, but 2 weeks before the start of the semester??

17 schools?! That sounds exhausting!

Go to your professor's office hours regularly, ask questions about the homework and how to tackle those kinds of problems. Even if you continue to struggle, you will show that you are dedicated. Also, does your school offer tutors in the subjects? Are there other professors or graduate students you can ask for help?

I'd like them more if they'd vary their repetoire a bit. My accordian guy plays the same song from the Godfather every time.

This is a great idea....my current commute includes a guy who serenades passengers with jaunty accordian music. Another route features a lady who awkwardly sings opera between stops. It was amusing the first day....two years ago.

I applied for PhD programs, so maybe things will be slightly different for you, but I would only spend time talking about those classes as they relate to your research interests. The fact that you took them (and presumably did well) will tell the adcom that you have that advantage and are in the rhythm. However, I'd suggest only discussing the actual content of the courses and what you did if it is relevant to your proposed area of study. Somewhere near the beginning of this thread is advice that I didn't fully see the wisdom of until I'd already submitted my applications: the SOP is a narrative about the future, about what you want to do in grad school, and anything not relevant to that should be removed or limited to save precious space. So if you took a course in X, that's great, but if you want to study Y, you should spend much more time talking about your interest and background in Y. If you took a course in Y, then it's fine to talk about the content as it relates to your goals in the "future" portion of your essay.

I'm curious about this too -- not an English student, if issues are interdepartmental, it would be good to know. This thread seems to be mostly applicants, but maybe there are some lurkers who are at Columbia, or know something more concrete?

Is it possible to annotate pdfs with the Kindle Keyboard? I've had my eye on that one, but wasn't sure if it would be worth the investment without the ability to take notes.

Thanks....I had a crisis of confidence, but some good news over the weekend helped a lot.

Bumping this -- I talked to a prof on the phone yesterday and babbled like an idiot. I wanted to ask about the structure of the first two years -- required coursework -- but I got nervous and worried that that would be stupid (although I've scoured the website and found no specifics), so I didn't ask. Guess I'll ask when I visit. Anyone have any tips for overcoming shyness/phone awkwardness?

electric slide