picnic_lightning

anyone else starting the apartment hunt?

AGREED! Does anyone know when the visit weekend is? I assume all of the shuffling will happen after that? Have they notified the waitlist yet?

Thank you for starting this thread. This exact predicament has been my struggle, too. I only have one PhD offer (I have a funded master's offer too, but without a stipend), and it is at a school that is ranked about 50 in US News for general English. However, it is in the top 20 for my subspecialty, Visual Culture. It is a small program, with tiny cohorts. I went to a top ten small liberal arts college for undergrad, so the size of the PhD program is enticing. However, I am nervous that I am settling for the school since it is the only offer I got (it's a good one-guaranteed tutition remission and a 17K stipend for 5 years, only teaching years 2-4) because I don't have other options. One of the professors at the school actually told me I could transfer into a different program after two years (CRAZY, I couldn't believe he said that to me), while my advisors from undergrad are telling me to take it and run. I am so nervous that I will take this offer and not be able to get a job after. I have done the placement searches, I know where these graduates end up. Frankly, it seems like a bit of a crapshoot to me (though people with my concentration do better than the general population coming out of there!). I guess I just wanted to see if there were any thoughts about this... or if the answer really is just to publish and present a lot while I am in the program and ultimately the name on my degree won't matter. Thank you in advance for any advice you might be able to offer!