Nerd_For_Life

Courses and grades are the same then you should be A-ok. I think you would only run into problems if you had misrepresented yourself in your application or provided otherwise false information that this new transcript would show for a lie.

Depends on what information she received with the offer of admission. If it she had been given a time limit and they had not heard from her or perhaps they think she received information that they didn't, etc. It's hard to know, you haven't really posted much in terms of details. If she's interested she should be going in to talk to them regardless....maybe pretend that she didn't receive the email?

I'm headed to UofT for my MA in Anthropology. Anyone here living near UofT? Or commuting a bit? I'm moving from BC and will be finding housing with the help of some friends and family who live there so I'm wondering if you can think of any suggestions or tips or warnings, etc.

Talk to your poi and voice your concerns to them. Also, if you've been offered admission whoever the graduate adviser is for that department should also be able to look into things on their end.

I just checked and there is nothing on my display either! I'm hoping it means that I will hear back...on Tuesday. Once it stops being an Easter holiday and the mail is once again delivered. (But alas, I'm sure we will all be waiting a while longer since we all want so badly to hear the results!)

I wish there was someone we could contact at SSHRC....get an update or at least a clearer idea of when we will find out. Whether or not I get SSHRC definitely has an impact on which school I am going to :S

Yey! I'm so glad someone finally made a separate thread for the MA SSHRC's. I'm a Canadian applicant applying through a Canadian university. I received work from my uni on Feb 1 that my application was forwarded and from SSHRC on Feb 15th that they had received my application. My undergrad supervisor seems to think that I will hear back from SSHRC in the next couple of weeks but based on the results on hear (which are predominantly US applicants) letters came out early May. So....waiting.

I'm planning on buying a new laptop this fall as I head back to school. Macbooks are not in the pile for consideration so I'm looking at Windows laptops and Ultrabooks. The lightness of an ultrabook is really appealing to me but I know that I am simply paying $500+ for less weight and that uber portable size. Does anyone have any experience with an ultrabook? Is it worth the cost for less weight? Is there one you would recommend or that you think people should stay away from? Better to save the money and get a regular laptop that is a bit heavier but just as capable? I will be using it for essays, running MaxQDA and other qualitative analysis software, downloading and watching tv and movies, etc. Not concerned with using it for gaming, but I do want a solid functional piece of machinery that will last. Thoughts?

If SSHRC finds out that you're working FT while receiving funds from them they will require you to pay it back and it's possible that they would blacklist you.

I'm not in the same program as you (I'll be starting my MA in anthro this Sept) but in my program and most others in Canada it is definitely encourage to change schools between qualifications, to the point where if you want to aim for receiving a Vanier Scholarship (worth $50,000 for each year of your phd) you HAVE to be going to a different school than the one you just finished at and if you're not you need to have a damn good reason why. Again, I have no idea if that is the same across the board and I know a lot of people who stay at one school for both their MA and PhD and a lot of PhD programs are combined MA/PhD programs. I think benefits of going to a different school are: potential for more/different opportunities, more networking, demonstrating that you can succeed in different environments, showing diversity on your application, etc. For my PhD I plan to apply to the school that I'm going to for my MA, but also apply to several other schools, that way I can see what my options are when the time comes and what feels like the best fit.

A non recognized uni? Do you mean a uni that isn't a name-brand uni like harvard or duke or cambridge? Does either uni give you the opportunity for ta or ra experience? Do they support graduate publishing in peer-reviewed journals?

The internal funding does include a tuition waver and I do know that my SSHRC will not prevent me from taking up a TAship. I've been told the TAships are worth $5,000-7,000 so my end amount of money for living expenses could look like this: $17,500 (sshrc) - $7,000 for tuition +$5 or 7,000 for a TAship = $15,500-$17,500. Plus a potential $1,000 'top up' or entry scholarship. It seems kind of unfare that after going through all the work of getting a sshrc (the application process, etc.) it is worth so little. Not getting a sshrc leaves me in a very similar financial situation than if I did and leaves me with no more free time to devote to my studies than if I didn't have it (ie. I have to take up a TA position to survive financially).

I vote for the first option. Research fit is important and in addition (from what I've been told by prof's) it looks a lot better academically if you go to different universities throughout your academic career. It shows that's you're getting different view points, can work and succeed in different environments, etc. Plus going to the UK will help you build a lot of new connections and allow you to network in ways that staying at your home university will not. Plus. the travel

Thank you for the reply. It would seem then that getting a SSHRC is more of value in name than in actual funding if you are headed to a dept with a minimum funding package? The remaining amount is definitely not enough to live on in Toronto and if I take a TA-ship (which I would have to financially) I would barely be able to squeak by...and the amount I would have would greatly depend on the value of the TA-ship Less appealing funding offer than I was expecting and hoping for.

So I've been accepted to UofT's anthro department for the 1 year MA program and am in the final stages of verification for receiving an MA SSHRC worth $17,500. I know that this means I will not receive the minimum funding package from the anthro department ($15,000 made up of a fellowship and ta-ship and/or ra-ship + tuition) and will instead receive a small top up award, likely to be around ~$1,000. What I don't know is whether or not my tuition fees will still be waived or if I will be expected to pay my tuition out of my SSHRC money. Tuition runs around $7,000 which then makes taking up a SSHRC substantially less appealing. I do know that with the SSHRC I can still take up a TA or RA position (worth $5,000-7,000 for one year) but that would just bring me, at best, to breaking even with my SSHRC funding before tuition is taken out of it. Anyone here with experience? I've been notified via email that I'm accepted and am awaiting the acceptance package in the mail, but since SSHRC results haven't been released yet I know that it likely won't include any information about that. I've talked to my supervisor who directed me to emailing a couple admin people in the department, but was hoping the lovely grad cafe peeps might have some insight while I wait.

Is there a help centre or (guidance?) counselling centre at the university you attend that you aid you? Sometimes taking a break can help you refresh, gain perspective, and aid you in determining what you could do that would be a better fit. Volunteer work is also a great way to gain experience in different fields and try to get a feel for if it's something that would be interesting to you in the long haul.

Does anyone know when SSHRC notifies MA applicants of their final verdict?

Why list Tennessee if it's not an option? Wouldn't that be kind of a moot point? (Unless of course you're intending on re-applying?)

You mentioned that the universities were not where you are currently living, how far away are they? Would it be a compromise to choose the one closest to him? Why does he want you to sacrifice and settle when he is not sacrificing anything and he gets to live his dream? It seems a little unfair to me. I'm in a similar situation: When I was applying to grad schools my partner (we've been together for over six years) & my professors pushed me to apply to universities outside of Canada (I live in BC), Cambridge, Australian National University, etc. I applied to those and to the University of Toronto. Then when the reality of moving and whatnot set in my partner told me that he wanted to be able to pursue school and preferred that I stay in country. The solution we have come up with is a compromise: I'm still going to pursue my dream of grad school (MA & PhD), but I will stay in Canada. He's not happy that we're moving to another province, but he's happy that I'm staying in Canada, that we'll still be living together, and that he can continue his studies (if he decides to) and goals as well. I'm happy that I get to stay with him, like the program that I'm going into (although if I was a single gal I would choose Cambridge), and financially I appreciate that this decision leaves me with a lot more money left over which I am going to use to make a down-payment on a house. Having a relationship and pursuing the higher levels of academia is complicated. Both people have to give a little and sacrifice a little. You have to know what you can live with, what will make you happy, and that you can follow through without resentment or regrets.

A lot of Universities are under pressure to make their MAs a one year program instead of a two year program for funding reasons. Based on the opinions of the profs I have talked to there is no disadvantage to doing a one year over a two year. Whether it's a one year or two year differs depending on the university and the department within that university. In terms of thesis over MRP, likely depends on your program and what you are pursuing. For me one year programs are all that were offered from the universities I applied to (Cambridge, University of Toronto - both anthropology MA).

University of Toronto has sent out first round MA acceptances. (I'm in!)

Whoot! Just got official word today that I am off the waitlist and into the program! XD

He'd have to start with getting one degree before he can move onto another

Me: "So I got into Cambridge, but there's no offer of funding. If I get into UofT for my MA though I'll be getting a SSHRC worth $17,500 plus a potential entry scholarship from UofT. My partner can work and by the time I'm done my MA we should be able to afford a down-payment on a house." Boss at my retail job that currently pays the bills and who continually asks about my grad school status so he knows when I will be quitting: "You should go to Cambridge no matter what. Man, I'll slap you silly if you turn down Cambridge. I mean, it's Cambridge." Me: "Yes but I have a better research fit with UofT and will have a better supervisor, won't have to live away from my partner for a year, can buy a house, and will be funded vs. gaining $70,000 in debt to do one year in Cambridge where there is no one doing the research I want to do." Boss: "I don't think you understand what it means to go to Cambridge." Me: "Have you been there? I wasn't aware that you had done any post-secondary schooling." Boss: "I haven't but you don't need to be a genius to know that you should go to Cambridge." *sigh*

Received official email informing me of my wait listed status for admission into UofT's MA in Anthropology (socio-cultural is my focus). I had previously received unofficial notification after I emailed asking about when I would find out (both notifications are posted in the results section). GPA: 8.5/9 from UVic, graduated honours with distinction. Application for SSHRC funding was forwarded from UVic to SSHRC for final verification (which UofT knows), current RA job experience on relevant research...only thing against me is that my undergrad was interdisciplinary (Pacific and Asian Studies, hence the socio-cultural anthro focus) and not straight Anthropology. They told me if I was going to get off the wait list I would likely find out by mid-April. I also have an admission (but as of yet no funding offer as those decisions won't be made until April or later) to the MPhil Anthropology program at Cambridge. ugh. UofT is my top choice for financial and personal reasons and I can only afford Cambridge if they fund me T_T