Queen of Kale

The wikipedia entry on Myers-Briggs Type Indicator has a breakdown of the US population. Although, I didn't look into the details for how they got the numbers.

I am & have tested since a young age as a INTJ, and really tightly nested into that corner, but I'm not someone someone that most people would describe as "shy", "gifted", or "serious". I'm the sort of person who addresses my adviser as "homie" and gets the giggles during seminar. Those parts of me are real, but the more classic INTJ bits are at the heart of me too. Well, I'm not feeling particularly gifted this week… But although I'm wonky and playful and filled with whimsy and mirth - I also usually work with my door mainly closed, and need plenty of "me time" to unwind after work, and share a really linear way of problem solving with my dad that has flummoxed and annoyed my mother (and now my husband?) for years. Of all the personality type tests, I always liked this one because it helped me put my finger on the fact that I was a true introvert & not (as people who only noticed my more outgoing qualities might assume) an extrovert having a series of bad days. Also nice, this test doesn't say that one type is better than another. And I hope nobody feels this way from reading this thread. There might be a ton of us INTJ's here but I think this forum might have more than my department, and certainly the smartest, funniest, kindest person I know (my husband) is an ESFP. And I think he's perfect.

I'm sorry, I must have misunderstood your first post.

I've been used to semesters all my life and I think the quarter system is wonderful for TAing but a little less wonderful for being a student. Because of the intensity of the coursework it's hard to pace my research except it fits and spurts. I'm more of a slow & steady wins the race sort of person. But, I think I also tend to be over ambitious with the coursework. Our coursework requirements are minimal but I have so many courses I want to take & yet I see that the students a year ahead of me have learned to pace themselves more. That might be the secret of the quarter system.

I have a sneaky suspicion that someone from this forum used my referral link (since neither of the 2 people I know IRL who has used my code had a Fix ship yet which is when referral credit posts to my account) and I just wanted to thank you! Stitch Fix doesn't tell you who used my code but whoever you are just made my day. It's been a terrible grueling week in terms of weather, research, and coursework and this was just an awesome surprise. I'm sending out big radiating love in your general direction whoever you may be!

It looked like you left out three courses from the fall: But you only mention the course with the C in the above email. Whatever you write I wouldn't omit any coursework. You will have to send your full transcripts when you are admitted so make sure to cover all the information your transcript will & if you want to add a few sentences to clarify your grades or coursework do it after you've clearly presented the information they ask for. Just my 2 cents.

$11k all subsidized loans + $3k I borrowed from my parents. Not terrible considering I went back as an adult & independently funded student. But, cheaper schools like the one I went to for undergrad are having a harder & harder time scraping by. Many times with reputations adversely influenced by taking on my older part time students or transfer students who don't count towards "graduated in X years" stats.

It's not your fault that your advisor is a bad fit. Just remember that. I meet people in my program who feel guilty because of a bad advisor fit and so they stay in a bad situation trying to force it to work. Sometimes you just have to move on. It might mean a different advisor in the same program or it might mean a new program altogether. A good advisor makes all the difference in the world. I currently have a 73 in a class but telling my advisor, and getting his advice (don't worry so much Queen & if you're overwhelmed drop the course because in the end they don't really matter) was a relief & not a burden. A good advisor will fit with your personality in a way that makes you more productive & anxiety is not productive. So don't feel guilty about needing to make a change.

I also got an e-mail (often promising but not explicitly stating an acceptance - something along the lines of "I heard that you should be expecting some good news soon Queen!" - to which Queen of little faith would just fret more). Next I would get an email acceptance from the department or school but this would often come a week or two later. Sometimes after I had an acceptance notification on my online application. Last, I would get a paper acceptance. In one case this arrived 6 weeks after the initial email from the POI.

I never, ever reuse socks. And I also only have 7 pairs. I wear them to the gym, I wear them to work, I remove them for the bulk of the work day, I put them back on to walk home & I peel them off and wash them. Feet sweat & I have a dog. Plus, they take up basically no room in the washing machine and cost under a dollar a pair. I do reuse jeans and sweaters for days. But never socks.

This was my experience also, but the meetings were each so brief that I didn't have to do a great deal of research to be able to have a conversation with each person. Mainly I just needed to remember the general overview of each persons research (as they would have on a website) and be able to explain my research, my fit, and my reasons for deciding to go to grad school. After the first visit like this you'll have your elevator speech down pat. Have fun!

I think it's a big risk, high reward prospect. You might need to be more independent but as your professor attempts to have the best possible case for tenure he will also have an extra invested interest in your success. He just might be spread a little thin. If you believe in his research and the department doesn't have a history of leading people on (tenure-wise) I would take a leap of faith. Strangely, I've noticed a large number of my professors over the years have been "1st students" and I wonder if they benefitted from the independence and extra push to publish early that this situation can create. In either case - good luck!

positive identification

I feel that coming from a no name school can be 'canceled out' by having one or two things which legitimize your undergrad GPA. For instance, I come from a literally unranked school my POI had never heard of, and he told me he never would have considered my application except for three things: my GRE made my GPA not look like I simply skated through an easy program, a recommendation from a known person in the field gave credibility to my other two LOR writers who were unknown to him, and my previous presentation at a major conference meant that I had a stamp of approval from other researchers. I don't think this is some sort of magic "holy trinity" of admissions but it was what helped round out my application. If you have anything like this which could tether your reputation to something outside of only your undergrad institution I think it is a big help.

I read 3-4 papers a week but many more abstracts. I also skim more articles than I actually read. But I try to read one broad article in my field, one classic article, and one related to a project. Sometimes more if I'm doing a lit review for a proposal or paper. Edited to add that this wouldn't include papers for class, which would be maybe 5 a week on average but with big burst of reading near paper deadlines.

Meet the person first in a public place. And seriously, just like everyone complains about everyone else on the road while they text/apply lipstick/headbang/etc while driving - just remember it is as important to not BE the crazy person on CL as it is to avoid the other crazy person on CL. If you act crazy you will attract crazies.

Does this title remind anyone else of that scene in Natural Born Killers where Mallory Knox kills that mechanic and reprimands him to "Next time don't be so f'ing eager"? There's really no SFW clip I could attach but now it's all I'm going to think of anytime I hear about someone contacting admissions about an application they're waiting to here back about.

I completely agree. I have never pulled an all-nighter because my brain is basically useless after 8pm. Now, I do have to stay up all night to run experiments but that is completely unavoidable in my field and doesn't require taking a test the next day. I'd much rather sleep the night before a test than study all night. I do, on the other hand, usually wake up a little earlier (maybe 5am) to study for a few extra hours the morning before a test. That way I'm still rested but my brain is fully awake and information-saturated when I sit for my exam. I know it wouldn't work for everyone, but it's the system that works for me. Also, my plan comes with delicious breakfast food bribery.

I think this is very field dependent. I based my CV on the CV of the POIs I was interested in working with. I only included the level of information that they (or even more importantly, their students) listed. Which meant I purged a lot of individual lines as well as sections listing vague accomplishments such as "Skills" (SEM, AFM, blahblahblah) and just made sure to work that information into my SOP. I'm not saying that a CV over a page is excessive, but only that it would be in my case. I have conference abstracts and presentations but no papers & that cuts out the bulk of a CV for my field. But every field is very, very different. And luckily, the "no fluff" approach did not backfire for me as I am happily nested into my program already.

outlook good

One. With no descriptions & and zero fluff.

This post came at a perfect time for me - literally when I was taking a break from writing the front page to a new blog about trying to maintain one's well-roundedness while in grad school (specifically in science, where time outside the lab is often looked at as wasted time). I have so many interests outside of science that inform and strengthen the work I do inside the lab & often provides fresh insights I would otherwise lack. Sometimes that's not the case of course, but even when my outside interested & learning is just for my own edification - I feel comfortable with that too. Because honestly, graduate school for me is as much about self-improvement as radically changing my field. I'm never going to win a Nobel prize, but I can chip away at being a better scientist everyday (inside AND outside the lab). Some things I read about that inspired me to not ditch my side pursuits: The Myth of the Well Rounded Scientist (article) A Scientists thoughts on the above article An example of a well-rounded badass Even my hero takes a break from brains to hang out with ferns Ok, this one may seem a little light and frothy, but when I say 'well-rounded' I'm including the seemingly frivolous, because I think maintaining a sense of self is important in any field: Stylish Scientists

Not for nothing, but I'm in a male-dominated hard science and I wore a pencil skirt and make-up for every interview. Because, damn it, it was a day I wasn't working in a lab. I also brought a pair of skinny jeans, blouse, cardigan, and flats for lab visits. But if I'm just going to be talking to people about science they can deal with the fact that my legs aren't individually wrapped. It didn't cause me any problems, although it was apperently memorable enough that students at the school I chose brought it up 4 months later when I came in the summer to start my research. Honestly, if you're at a science graduate interview and you didn't cut your own hair and your socks match you're at least in the middle of the pack already. Read your POIs papers and wear what you feel comfortable in & it will all work out.

I've had my dog (and a few previous dogs) for several years and in several states and in several apartments. Finding an apartment which takes dogs over 50 pounds or so-called 'bully breeds" is harder than finding an apartment with a smaller dog. Like previous posters, I found you may be required to pay a larger initial deposit but only a small ($25 or less) additional monthly fee. The first year and last year of a dogs life are the most expensive. You don't know, of course (and I don't want to sound callous or morbid here, but just make a point) when the last year is going to be. So my advice is to avoid getting a puppy if possible to save yourself the additional vet costs, training, and chewed everything that a puppy will cost you. I didn't follow my own advice with my current dog (adopted at 6 months) but I can assure you her "start-up costs" were easily 10 times her adoption fee. Also, I think it's only humane to start a small fund for your pet to afford a graceful exit for them if they come across a life-threatening health issue. You may plan to have your dog for ten-plus years but dogs often are born with health issues which surface much earlier, and you will want to be able to afford as much vet care as possible, as well as provide a comfortable end to their life if needed. Somewhere in the middle of that expensive but adorable puppy stage and the expensive and heartbreaking end of a pet life, you will usually hit a stride of medium maintenance and medium cost. My dog costs approx. $50/month in food plus $25/day if I have to board her. She goes to the vet 2 times a year which costs about $100 each time. Throw in a couple baths for when I'm lazy and I'd say she's about $1000 a year. And worth every penny. I mean look at that mug ^^^ As far as time spent keeping her happy: if I'm not at work I try to spend as much time as I can with her. That includes two mile-plus walks a day in the -20 wind chill right now. If you have a spouse, they are wonderful for walk-sharing, but do not rely on a roommate to co-care for your pet. Your roommate will not love your pet as much as you and your pet may fall through the cracks. Not saying roommates aren't good in a pinch, or are all bad, but a dog's life is hopefully longer than any given roommate situation and a dog deserves at least one persons full attention. I know dogs who have been given up to shelters because two roommates both decided to half-care for it & it never got the attention or structure needed. That said, I love all my ex roommates very much and keep up with all of them. This isn't an anti-roommate PSA, but dog ownership is best when there's someone clearly "in charge" of that animal's complete care. I could go on an on about dog ownership but I don't want to prattle on too much and you are welcome to PM me with any specifics. Clearly, this Queen is a proud pup mother as demonstrated by my picture

When I first starting dating my now husband long distance (many, many moons ago) we both received fortunes that said "you enjoy organized sports" - from different Chinese places in different states. Its not the only reason I decided to marry him but clearly a sign…. My best, or at least most QoK appropriate fortune ever just said "Don't Panic!"