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Jcrisn

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    Arizona State Poli Sci.

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  1. Jcrisn

    Tempe, AZ

    Fair enough, my friend. I think I misread your previous post, my apologies for that. Thanks for the info on the surrounding area. That's the second time I've heard something about parking being somewhat worthless and I think I'll heed the advice. My worry with apartments around ASU is that I've seen many people (albeit on unreliable apartment rating websites) complain about noise from undergrads and poor management, etc. Maybe their just being overly sensitive but it just made me wonder. I'll do my best to seek out a good spot and I'm sure it will work out for the best. Thanks!
  2. Jcrisn

    Tempe, AZ

    Ok, I don't mean to beat a dead horse or cloud this board with a petty argument, but I must briefly defend my original statement. First, head over to weather.com and check February's recorded temps for Tempe. It never topped 90 (highest 84 and most often upper 60s into the 70s...not hot). There will be abnormal days in March when it hits 90+, I'll grant you that. But you have to base your assessment on averages and based on that my above statement is right on the money. Avg temps in the valley don't hit 90+ til early May. If a few aberrant 100+ days in April is going to kill you or you're very sensitive to the sun don't come to Phoenix. Otherwise its really not that bad.
  3. Jcrisn

    Tempe, AZ

    I grew up in Phoenix and am returning to start my PhD in Poli. Sci. at ASU (can't wait to come back home!). The first thing I have to do is clarify some confusion on the weather: what somebody posted about two comments before me is not true!! How can you say it is too hot in April? Or October for that matter? That's like me saying its too cold in Fort Collins, CO (where I am now) from October through April...if that's the case you just have to learn to adapt a bit or move to a tropical island. For 85 percent of the school year the weather ranges from slightly warm to gorgeous. It will cool off in early Oct (avg 85) and stay nice until early May (same). If you head back home or do something else over the summer you'll barely even touch on the summers in AZ (which admittedly can be brutal). I personally don't mind the summers TOO MUCH, but again I grew up here and I worship the sun so I'm all about it. The person above stated that there's only four months to enjoy but I find it to be the opposite. There's only fourth months to not enjoy (if that). Phoenix has some ugly parts, trust me (I grew up in one). Plus car theft/break-ins is a problem. I suggest taking an extra step to protect yourself here (the club maybe?). As a student you will likely be centered around Tempe and you might go to Scottsdale to hang out (and you should!), so you really won't come in too close of contact with the bad parts unless you go out of your way. Also, somebody above mentioned Tempe to be a very "white" place. I have to amend this statement: ASU is a very white place, like most other universities (we still have work to do here as a society). But Tempe and Phoenix are very diverse, especially in terms of Latinos, I think even to the point where it makes some white people uncomfortable. Am I off base here? Mexico is two hours south, California is five hours west, Vegas is four hours away, and the mountains and Flagstaff (great place) are two hours north (you'll find a whole lotta nothin' to the east til you get to Dallas!). In terms of the city and surrounding areas I could go on forever, so feel free to ask about specifics. I'm curious about the university: what have people's experiences been with the grad student medical insurance? if you were told you were getting funded did it last throughout your stay? Was the administration deplorable or manageable? How does parking work out if you commute? Is there affordable housing/apartments surrounding ASU that allow for some level of concentration? If anybody has any good insight into political science or possibly the social sciences in general then please let me know. Thanks!
  4. Jcrisn

    Ft. Collins, CO

    Fort Collins is a cool mid-sized town (I'd say just over 100K ppl) and there are a lot of conveniences. First, decent housing is available close to campus and if you're a bike person you will find Ft. Collins and CSU friendly to bikers. Whatever you do just stay close to campus, its pretty much right in the middle of everything. If you're an outdoorsy person you'll be thrilled with what FoCo and the surrounding areas have to offer and probably won't be bored too much. If you're not an outdoors person the town should still offer enough to do for you to keep busy you just have to seek it out a bit more, depending on what you're into of course. Denver is only 60 miles away if you need a major city for anything (and a fun place to hang out by the way). People in FoCo will often brag about how many breweries are in the area and hold it up as one of the best beer towns you'll ever encounter. Its true, there are a good amount of breweries but half of them brew crappy beer (in my humble opinion) that half the time make me wanna strangle somebody for a simple bud light. What's more is that they often only have THEIR beers which kills me. But you'll get plenty of New Belgium and O'Dell's which is far from a bad thing (oh, so tasty)! Downtown offers a pretty good assortment of hangouts from a couple dance spots, to pool halls, to an irish pub, etc. Also, away from campus you'll find some cool spots which offer a change from the downtown scene. Honestly, if you know how to have a good time I don't think FoCo will disappoint. Just meet the right people. The town has an overall good feel to it. I definitely wouldn't say the people are super nice but they're also not excessively rude. As a grad student who lived off campus for two years I feel extremely lucky to have had cool people in my department, otherwise I don't know how I would have made friends. It is these people that allowed me to enjoy this city because I think I may have otherwise been miserable. I'm a pretty clean cut, Latin, warm-blooded city boy from AZ and while nobody ever made me feel unwelcome, I never fully fit in with the FoCo vibe (olus its SO COLD!). Again, not a knock on the place, just didn't mesh so well with it as other people did (many that have ever lived here will tell you its an amazing place). The thought of leaving here in May to return to a warmer climate puts a smile on my face and I won't be rushing back. But, again, that's just me. Now the reality: this university and this state have SERIOUS education problems in terms of money. Adjuncts are so far underpaid it makes me sick and the university does not offer health benefits to its TAs, which I find rediculous at this point. As a TA I outearned the adjuncts I TA'd for unless they tought multiple courses. Add that to the fact that at least TWO bad budget years are in the future and you'll realize how shaky your funding is. Its unfortunate, but its reality. I hope that gives you a decent idea. Let me know if there are any specific questions you might have and I'll do my best to oblige.
  5. When I was accepted to the Political Science PhD (holla!) program I received an acceptance through e-mail and then my status changed on MyASU to "Accepted," giving me a register date of March 29th. I have to say the application process through the political science dept was a bit cumbersome as there was conflicting information on the "apply" page of the dept with that of the grad admissions office. I had to call to clarify and even then didn't get the best answers from the office (somewhat disconcerting). At this point it looks like I'm headed to Tempe unless UC Irvine gets off their butts and sends me the acceptance that I deserve!! 8)
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