RPCV Cameroon

As someone who went into debt for an MS, I have to comment on this.  DO NOT DO IT.  THERE IS ANOTHER WAY.  FIND IT.  Student loan debt on that level will take over your life, regardless of whether it ends up being useful to you in some other way or not.  WAIT.  Do a master's IF AND ONLY IF it is FULLY funded (including living expenses) --- or if you can pay cash for everything it will entail.  It doesn't matter how good the program is.  Ask all the people who went to top tier medical, law, and business schools.   This particular risk is absolutely not worth it, especially in the humanities and/or social sciences.

As someone who went into debt for an MS, I have to comment on this.  DO NOT DO IT.  THERE IS ANOTHER WAY.  FIND IT.  Student loan debt on that level will take over your life, regardless of whether it ends up being useful to you in some other way or not.  WAIT.  Do a master's IF AND ONLY IF it is FULLY funded (including living expenses) --- or if you can pay cash for everything it will entail.  It doesn't matter how good the program is.  Ask all the people who went to top tier medical, law, and business schools.   This particular risk is absolutely not worth it, especially in the humanities and/or social sciences.

As someone who went into debt for an MS, I have to comment on this.  DO NOT DO IT.  THERE IS ANOTHER WAY.  FIND IT.  Student loan debt on that level will take over your life, regardless of whether it ends up being useful to you in some other way or not.  WAIT.  Do a master's IF AND ONLY IF it is FULLY funded (including living expenses) --- or if you can pay cash for everything it will entail.  It doesn't matter how good the program is.  Ask all the people who went to top tier medical, law, and business schools.   This particular risk is absolutely not worth it, especially in the humanities and/or social sciences.

Congrats everyone! 
 
One question: were any of you admitted to the MA in socio-cultural anthro in lieu of Ph.D. at Columbia? Are any of you at all familiar with the MA program? Is it a bad idea? Too much debt for nothing?
 
Thank you:)

Hi! I looked up quarterly taxes before. I can't find the link, but I remembered reading that for fellowships, if they start in September, you don't pay the quarterly for then until January 15th. You need to have actually had the fellowship for a quarter of the year to pay taxes on it. 
 
Also, there is only a penalty if you don't pay quarterly taxes. I don't fully understand why, at the end of the year, I can't just pay what I owe, but that isn't really important. Additionally, if you work another job (part time), you might not need to pay quarterly taxes if you make a certain amount (the taxes you paid from this part time job MAY clear what you would owe for the quarterly taxes). Thus, if you owed X amount for quarterly taxes, but you over pay taxes for your part time job (and thus would have gotten a tax return), you may just break even. But this requires a lot of math. 

I currently have to make quarterly tax payments since I work at a foreign embassy and the taxes aren't withheld from my paycheck. I am by no means an expert and the situation might be different for fellowships vs. income but I will try to answer some of your questions:
 
Can you use Turbo Tax to figure your estimated taxes and quarterly payments?  Has anyone successfully done this using Turbo Tax?  Would you recommend it? 
I did not use Turbo Tax to figure my estimated taxes. Last year, I actually just kind of played it by ear and paid as much as I could each quarter (I had a lot of expenses last year so it was a bit tough) but I underpaid and have to make up for  it when I filed by tax return. My tax situation was a bit confusing so when I filed federal taxes I went to a professional instead of using Turbo Tax and they also helped me calculate how much I should be paying. That is, the amount I pay each quarter amounts to ~50% of one month's salary (ex. if you earn $3000 a month, it's safe to pay about $1500 or a little less per quarter). That is only my situation, however, so it might differ when it comes to fellowships
 
But what if you don't start school and receive your fellowship/stipend until September?  Will you get dinged for not having made estimated payments in April and June?  
I highly doubt it. It doesn't make sense for you to have to start paying for income you didn't receive at that time. The way I did it, I paid the first quarter after I started working, so if you don't receive your fellowship until September, I would only worry about estimated taxes starting in September. Basically, the first payment you make should be on Sept. 15
 
Do you need to include deductions when you figure and make your quarterly payments, or can you simply wait and claim all the deductions when you file your annual return the next April?  (I assume you still need to file an annual return, right?...  Speaking of which, is making estimated payments anything like filing the annual tax return?)
Deductions should be made when you file your annual return, which you DO need to still file. Making estimate payments is much easier than filing the return. I did it online through the IRS Direct Pay system because it was the easiest and fastest way. You just fill out your personal and checking account info, choose 'Estimated Taxes' in the section that asks what you're paying for, and click submit. It takes less than 10 minutes and you don't even have to print anything out, although you can certainly print out the estimated tax vouchers from the IRS website and mail in the payments if you want to. 
 
Do you have to report the cost of the health insurance provided by the school?
When you file annual taxes, they will ask you if you have health insurance, and if you answer yes, I think that's the end of it. Definitely don't need this info when making est. payments
 
Is there any penalty for overpaying estimated taxes, or for paying if you actually wouldn't have been required to?
Not 100% sure, but I doubt IRS would penalize you for paying more than you owe. I assume that if you overpay you will just get the money back as a tax refund in April, but you can always double check. 
 
And what about receiving extra funding in the middle of the year (i.e., a research or conference grant, summer support)?  Since it could be difficult to predict exactly what support you'll get, should you use the "annualized income installment method"?
No idea about this one, but if I were you, I wouldn't worry about it until I actually receive the funding, in which case check with the people/organization allocating it and see if they have any insight into how to report it.
 
Hope that helps! 

Hi all,

I posted this as a reply in another thread, but I thought better of it as that thread hasn't been active for years, and this is an IMPORTANT, confusing topic that I'm sure a LOT of grad students need help with.  Accountants are expensive to use ONCE a year, let alone 4 times a year, and schools refuse to give tax advice.  Let's see if we can't help each other out.

If you're under a fellowship from which NO TAXES ARE WITHHELD, chances are that it is in your best interest to file and pay QUARTERLY ESTIMATED TAXES.   It's confusing and looks like a huge hassle.  

I've seen some people comment in these forums about having done it, or about knowing someone who has done it, so there is knowledge to benefit from here!       

Below are some questions I currently have regarding this process.
______________________________________________________________________________________

 
Can you use Turbo Tax to figure your estimated taxes and quarterly payments?  Has anyone successfully done this using Turbo Tax?  Would you recommend it?
 
I'm planning to make quarterly payments just to be safe, but I'm confused about how it works when you're just starting school.  The following publications make it sound like you figure/estimate your total taxes for the current year AT THE BEGINNING OF THE CURRENT YEAR, then pay them at 4 times during the year (April, June, September, January)...  But what if you don't start school and receive your fellowship/stipend until September?  Will you get dinged for not having made estimated payments in April and June?  

http://www.irs.gov/p...pdf/f1040es.pdf
http://www.irs.gov/B...Estimated-Taxes
Do you need to include deductions when you figure and make your quarterly payments, or can you simply wait and claim all the deductions when you file your annual return the next April?  (I assume you still need to file an annual return, right?...  Speaking of which, is making estimated payments anything like filing the annual tax return?)

Do you have to report the cost of the health insurance provided by the school?

Is there any penalty for overpaying estimated taxes, or for paying if you actually wouldn't have been required to?

And what about receiving extra funding in the middle of the year (i.e., a research or conference grant, summer support)?  Since it could be difficult to predict exactly what support you'll get, should you use the "annualized income installment method"?   From reading the description here   ->  http://www.irs.gov/p...blink1000194572     ...  it *sounds* like this method allows you to figure your estimated taxes at regular intervals throughout the year (based on earnings during the specified period, and, now that I look at it, I think this method does want you to calculate the deductions four times a year as well).   Is that right? 
^ This sounds like a HUGE pain, but - if you use the four-equal-payments method and end up getting an unexpected award - you could end up being penalized for underpaying.  

 

Contact them to "update your application materials" and let them know you were awarded the NSF. It's a significant enough award that it won't seem like you are pressing them with a useless update.

Do NOT pay for an MA...  unless your family is filthy rich.  So, I guess I should say, "Do NOT go into debt for an MA."

From what I've heard from past students (my boyfriend & his classmates) and current UChicago undergrads, it's a cash cow for them. If you have PhD offers on the table, take them instead. I don't think a master's counts for much in a lot of disciplines when applying for PhDs. Also, I've heard this program doesn't give a lot of individual attention to students.

I would personally approach with caution.

This is spot on.  I finished my undergrad in 2013 and I've spent the last two years interning (and later working full time) in the museum field.  It's low paying and not in my preferred field of museum work, but it's been a fantastic experience and has helped me mature and figure out how to be a "real adult."  This job has thrust me into situations where I have to constantly make my own decisions and manage my own time - no professors to tell me which chapters to read or which theories to study.  I feel like working in this environment, "the real world," so to speak, has prepared me for advanced academic study better than any master's program or post-bacc could have done.  
 
In fact, the only reason I'm going into a master's program first is because I slacked off during undergrad and have no research and pubs, and because I want to have a professional MA in my back pocket when I hit the job market post-PhD.  To be perfectly honest, after two years of slogging through a 9 to 5 for 40 hours a week I am more excited about going back to school than I have ever been in my entire life.  Taking time off from has refocused and re-energized me - I honestly can't imagine how people go straight from undergrad to a PhD program without totally burning themselves out.

Is it worth it? For me, hell no.  For you, I don't have a clue.  I don't think anyone should pay for a graduate degree in the social sciences.  It's bad enough going into penury for a BA.  If you can afford it without going into debt I'm sure it wouldn't be a bad choice.  I'm sure folks are more ready for a PhD program after MAPSS than before. But there are other cheaper ways to prep for a PhD program.  

First, ouch.  Been there, done that and it isn't a great feeling.  Just know that SO MANY of us got completely shut out our first application cycle. 

Next: what do you want to do?  Decide what kind of questions you are most interested in answering and then tailor your future studies/applications to those questions.  My questions were based around culture in the US, so I hit a wall when applying to Anthro PhD programs last year.  This cycle, I worked on reining my questions to better fit Anthropology in general.  But I also worked on getting clinical experience and worked with women's groups and applied to Gender programs and public health programs in addition to Anthro programs.  That seemed to work.

If you are especially interested in research that involves poplations outside of the US and western culture, I think I would go ahead and finish the Anthropology BA if it wasn't a financial strain.  But, if my questions were focused on populations here, I wouldn't worry about the Anthro BA, and instead I would look for ways to strengthen my application in gender studies or maybe even in sociology.  Present a paper or two at various conferences (sign up for these NOW while you still can get student rates!!) and look for work in those area of research.  

And I don't think I would necessarily do the MA.  I did, and wished I didn't.  It was a lot of money and it didn't do much but take up time I could have spent doing a PhD.  Since PhD was always my end goal...the MA doesn't make sense in hindsight.  But that is just my experience, yours might be different.

Hope that helps.  Sorry about the shut out.  Try not to get too down about it, it doesn't necessarily reflect on your worth as a researcher or as doctorate material in any way.  Good luck!!

3 out of 4! Not too shabby! 

all my results are in! I don't think I realize how much tension I had been carrying around until after getting that last email. for y'all stuck in limbo--- hang tight.

I just emailed my POI who said that she's sure the adcom will reach out soon.

We have definitely entered the "Waitlist Zone" and I'm afraid that it will last in perpetuity (or mercifully end on April 15).

UCLA Graduate Division decision status page. It's the same page I've been checking for ages, and I honestly checked it about fifteen minutes before I got the email and there was still nothing there. Got the email and the decision was up, so you just have to hold tight and wait (looks like they've been rolling out decisions over the last week or so...obnoxious).

Hola! High school drop-out, 3.5 years at exceptionally shitty community college, reasonably young current Oxford graduate student here. It is possible! I used to feel really embarrassed and miserable about the community college thing, but really, people don't look down on you because of it, and they'll respect your dedication and hard work. Dreams aren't always easy, and often require huge amounts of struggle, but flexibility in how you get there and your timeline is key

Please though, keep your appointment for next week, and like another poster said, call 1-800-273-TALK if you need someone over the weekend.

While we're all riding the (entirely deserved) high associated with offers of admission, I'm wondering if any of you are interested in meeting at the AAA conference in November (or at the conference in 2016).
 
I remember using this forum as a haven last year while I was waiting with bated breath to discover whether I would be able to quit my terrible job and return to university, but I stopped checking the site in the summer. I only returned after submitting my applications for PhD programs this year. My guess would be that many of us will do the same, and few of us will check the forums very often in the future. However, after going through the trials of admission season two years in a row with many of you, I think it would be amazing if we could organize something (coffee? a drink?) at the AAAs this year. After all, we're supposed to be building our academic networks, and since we've already started making connections here, we might as well work with what we have, right?
 
Feel free to reply here, or PM me if you want to exchange emails. I may also post a separate thread if there's interest here. I would love to have the chance to meet up with some of you, especially those of you (i.e. NOWAYNOHOW) who are med anthro students.

Coming from the land of job applications, I am used to sending weekly follow-ups after interviews. This has worked wonderfully for me in the past. I think this is expected in the professional job application process, but what about PhD interviews? I sent thank you notes to my interviewers the same day I interviewed, but have you been following up beyond those messages? 
 
One on hand, I see the importance of reiterating interest (if you are still interested) and staying in touch, but on the other I know that this process is unique and not quite as easy to navigate as job application processes. 
 
I don't think a weekly follow up is necessary, but 2 weeks? Thoughts?

I got into Michigan too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   

I got into Michigan too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   

I got into Michigan too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   

I got into Michigan too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!