sociologo
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Posts posted by sociologo
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I had a friend who ended up doing this the first year of her Masters. It was apartment-style housing that was intended for undrgrads, but grad students could also apply to live there. She was moving across the country, so thought it might be an okay place to start. I think the worst part was when her roommates would have parties, and then some of her students would be at these parties. Very uncomfortable. She spent a lot of time at my apartment off campus.
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Holy moly, a large chunk of that site needs a massive trigger warning for rampant sexism. Yeesh.
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I have been hoping to get a kitty when I move down to school! I'm assuming they are good grad school companions because so many people have them, but I was just reading the cost of vaccinations, spay/nuetering, adoption etc. and maybe it's just because I have been stressing about my budget but it seemed like a lot. Have other people found it managable? I really want an apartment-mate
If you go through your local animal shelter(s), they will sometime run specials in which they waive the adoption fee. As well, if you adopt an older cat, they will usually have been spayed/neutered already. Plus you're less likely to have to worry about toilet training with a slightly older cat! These were things when I adopted about a year ago. The shelter happened to be running a special on adult cats - they'd had an influx of strays come in recently, I guess. I also noticed that some of the pets were sponsored and so had had their adoption fees paid for already. If you're worried about the costs of vaccines, some vets might be wiling to do a payment plan of sorts - doesn't hurt to ask!
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This was a point that played a big role in the schools I applied to several seasons ago. I found that looking at job placements of recent grads was a good indicator of whether students were supported in entering non-teaching positions. You could also look at professor's CVs to see if they do work outside of teaching/publishing - what else are they involved in?
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That is great that you guys get summer funding. The other day somebody in my college that is in a different department told me that they taught at another school for the summers and told me they were looking for somebody to teach a course in my field. It is a 4 year college, but it is an arts school. It is more or less a trade school (fashion design, culinary arts, etc.) that is not very prestigious. So I am curious, do you think that teaching at a school like this and putting it on your CV would be beneficial or harmful? My university is a balance school (professors teach a 2-2 load and do some research) and want to place their graduating PhD students in a similar university system. Do you think having taught at a small arts school would hurt my credibility with universities that value research?
No - it's just more teaching experience. It's also only one class for the summer term (at least for now). Doubtful that it would be something to seriously impact your future job prospects.
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I had this issue in August when I moved for school. I ended up having to show them a finaid award letter that included the amount of loans I was eligible to take out. Seems stupid because I didn't end up taking the loans out, but I guess they just wanted me to jump through some hoops.
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If you have funding, make sure that you are allowed to have employment outside of your TA/RA position. Sometimes there is the expectation or requirement that you do not pursue employment outside of what is given to you. The thought is that that is time you should be using for your courses or conducting your research.
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Graduate students live all around Knoxville. Really, I don't think there's a single place they are congregated. Even if you are living in one area and more of your friends live in a separate part, it doesn't take more than 20 minutes to really get anywhere. People in my department are really spread out over North, South, and West Knoxville - not too many in the East, but I don't think there's a specific reason for that. It just depends on their wants - more shopping, a yard, a house, local schools for kids, etc.
The Graduate Student Senate has 2-3 socials per semester. I believe they are planning for two orientations for the upcoming year to take place in August. One for all incoming graduate students, and one for GTAs. This past year there was only one for GTAs, and it was really lousy. A friend from my department sits on the GSS board and says they are trying to plan more events for grad students next year. There's a fb page if you want to look it up - I don't think it's particularly active this semester though.
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Here is an awesome Tumblr post with lots of tools to help with this very problem: http://ianthe.tumblr.com/post/35949231122/adhd-the-internet
I'm pretty sure most of the links still work. I was pretty excited when I stumbled across this a number of months ago - hope it helps some of you!
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In my program, I think the average is around 5 semesters so again that ~2.5 years range. Some people can do it in less, some people do it in more. My personal timeline is 5 semester.
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Seems like I might be headed towards that type of bind too. Anybody from previous years find themselves in this situation?
I was in this situation last year. I had to accept an offer by April 15, but received an email about a week later saying I was off the funding waitlist at my top choice. I felt really guilty about reneging my acceptance to the first institution, but I knew that I would be happier and do much better work at my top choice. I was expecting to get some sort of nasty email or something after I contacted the first institution, but I didn't get anything like that. The DGS emailed me to ask me a few question about why, but it wasn't accusatory, it was more seeing what the program could do to be more competitive in the future. He seemed really understanding about why I had chosen the other school. I think it helped that I very much made it a "it's not you, it's me" situation, and that it was not too long after the deadline - two weeks max. I felt really guilty (and I may have cried and given myself panic attacks while trying to finalize my decision), but I'm really happy that I ended up coming to my first choice. The program is such a better fit for me, there are so many more faculty who share my interests, and it was totally worth that little bit of anxiety.
Another thing to consider is what type of funding (if any) you are being offered from the university where you are accepting in order to meet the April 15 deadline. Some funding packages are things you were specifically nominated for - such as fellowships. If you end up reneging your offer, the university might not be able to give the funding to someone else. For me, I was going to be funded through a GTA position, so that is much more easily transferred to another person.
- sociologo, tape and semperfi101
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Yes, that is a reasonable price. I pay $550 for my one bedroom in West Knoxville.
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If you are funded with an RA/TA position, you should make sure that you are allowed to have a job outside of your school one.
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For those of you doing long distance, how long are you planning on doing it for? I started my PhD program in August, so I still have another 3-4 years here. My partner is about 900 miles away and has another year for his MS. We knew when I moved that we would have two years long distance, but now with some other life things, there's the possibility that it might be more like 5 years. Anyone out there do it for that long? Any thoughts on making that work?
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The other glitch I have run into is that a lot of the larger complexes require that you show proof of employment with an income 3x that of your monthly rent. I will be moving with the BF but he will be 2 months behind me in moving. As a result, we are not able to show any income from him yet and my stipend is not nearly enough on its own to meet this requirement. Previous proof of employment, tax return showing strong income, and even bank statements showing a stack of dough have been turned down. We have saved and prepared for this move but this is a problem I was not expecting to encounter. I assume we will end up dealing with a private owner of a condo or home via Craigslist, etc. to start because the larger companies have a formula that works for a typical undergrad/grad student renter and we don't fit that mold.
I had the same problem when I moved in August. In addition to my stipend, I'm also eligible for some federal loans. I had my university send a letter to my rental agency showing that I would also be receiving these loans, and so my income looked much larger than with just my stipend. This satisfied the rental company, and I just re-paid the loans after they had disbursed. Not ideal, but this worked for me in a pinch.
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All of the areas are generally safe - I wouldn't say it's a particularly high crime city. There will be some burglaries around the area called The Fort - it's basically the neighborhoods around the university. This is also the area where a lot of the undergrads live, so I think that contributes to crime. Other than that, I have not heard anything negative about other aspects of the city. East and North Knoxville tend to be lower-income communities, and so might have fewer grocery stores /entertainment. There are some really good bars in these areas though haha. Apartments are cheaper, and there will be a lot of cute little houses for rent at a decent price. West Knoxville is more gentrified, and the apartment complexes are newer and more expensive. There are some differences with schools in the neighborhoods - if you have kids and that is something you're thinking about. I actually live in West Knoxville and found my apartment on craigslist. It was more matter of convenience - I was moving from a different part of the country and couldn't visit ahead of time. However, I wouldn't have an issue living in any parts of the city, except for The Fort, but that's more related to partying undergrads, not crime. Feel free to pm if you want more specific info.
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They are probably telling you are high on the list because they still want you to come. I was waitlisted for funding at several places when I was applying and ended up getting funding offers from all but one where I was originally waitlisted. I started hearing towards the end of March - whenever other people started to turn down their offers. There's definitely still hope!
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PM'ed you
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Not exactly answering your question - but I was accepted into Northeastern last year without funding. They usually have a waitlist for funding divided by concentration, and you should be able to email them to see where you sit on the waitlist. I was somewhere between positions 1-3 and wound up receiving a funding offer sometime in late-March or early-April. There's still hope for you!
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I eat an obscene amount of lentils and black beans. Super cheap, super versatile, and oh so delicious.
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If you haven't already, see if you can get your hands on one of the ASA Guide to Graduate Departments of Sociology: http://e-noah.net/asa/asashoponlineservice/ProductDetails.aspx?productID=ASAOE702G12 . Your former department should have a copy, or you might be able to get a slightly older edition online somewhere. This book was invaluable to me in finding departments with my research interest areas when I was first applying to grad school a few years ago and feeling extremely overwhelmed.
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I'm a current student at UTK. If you have any specific questions, feel free to message me!
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Teaching will definitely challenge you to know your material/discipline. If there's one sure way to check your understanding of a subject, it's definitely through having to teach it to others.
Rooming with undergrads
in The Lobby
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I think it's really different on campus versus off campus...