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Everything posted by waitinginvain?
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Now that you're a grad student, what do you think?
waitinginvain? replied to newpsyche's topic in Officially Grads
Today was my first day of classes and so far I want to drop out. I was one of two "new faces" in my class of 23 this afternoon. How can that be when today was the first day of class? Apparently all but two of us have taken a class with this same professor last year, so everyone (but us) knows the system. For instance, students "claimed" assignments as the professor read the syllabus. What?! Furthermore, most of them are so pretentious and boring that I entertained myself by standing my pen on end on the table. Childish, I know, but more interesting than the "discussions." But grad school isn't like undergrad when it comes to switching classes. There are very few that I can take at the graduate level. This is also a required class. So I don't know whether to take an elective in its place and put it off for another time, or just to suffer through it. At this point I just feel so stupid. -
I posted on the "Bank" forum that I shop at the 99 cent stores. Some of the meals you can make from foods purchased from there include fruit, salads, burritos, bean and rice dishes and spaghetti.You'll have to get creative. I typically spend about $6 on dinner for a family of four. I would also suggest watching the grocery ads and stocking up on food when it is on sale--especially meat. Mexican markets are great for meat and produce sales. You might also try a flea market for produce. Good luck!
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Never mind; I found the information. If anyone else wants to know, I'll be happy to post the template.
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I received an email this afternoon informing me that I'm receiving a scholarship. One of the conditions of the scholarship is that I write a thank you letter. It said I have to: "Write and return a thank you note with this signed agreement in order for scholarship funds to be released." I'm not really sure what to say in the letter besides thank you. Anybody ever written one of these? Can you offer any instruction? Thanks for any help!
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rising_star, I forgot to thank you. I've contributed to the fear-of-public-speaking thread. But I'll go check it again to see if there are any updates.
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Thank you all for your invaluable advice! hashslinger: I'll be teaching a discussion group for an introduction to screenwriting class, so the writing exercises are a great idea! You also hit the nail on the head when you said to make my degree my priority. I tend to be a perfectionist and could easily see myself sacrificing my degree for the students. Also, I'm going to get to class early to arrange the tables and chairs so that the students will face each other instead of me. This should encourage discussions among them and reduce the amount of time I'm "in the spotlight." Thank you, too, for the advice about being careful who I confide in. I hadn't considered this. Dal PhDer: I will try to look at TAing as an exciting opportunity and not a slow walk to the gallows. fuzzylogician: It's inspiring to know that you and fainting guy were able to overcome your terror--especially fainting guy! wildviolet: I've had to act in front of class, so I know what faking is like! You're right. By the way, I like your signature.
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Financial Aid Monday Not Coming Till October! Oh no!
waitinginvain? replied to hockeyguy109's topic in The Bank
If you can't get more money, you have to conserve what you have. There are lots of ways to save money. Of course you won't be able to go to Starbucks (if you do) or subscribe to cable TV.Can you take in a roommate? Give up your lease and rent a room somewhere instead of an apartment? Buy your clothes used. Sell stuff on ebay or craigslist. Buy your textbooks online, or, better yet, get them at the library if possible. Shop at the dollar stores The 99 Cent Stores have great deals and even sell food. You can get creative and make meals from the ingredients purchased there. For example: salads, burritos, spaghetti, rice dishes, etc. I made a Chipotle- inspired meal with stuff I got at the 99 Cent Store: Romaine lettuce topped with rice, black beans, and a salad dressing. That will make a few meals for $4! Get creative. Good luck! -
Egregiously low, eh? I suspected as much! By the way, I saw that you're interested in magic realism.So am I! Can you recommend any books? I know about One Hundred Years of Solitude. Any others? Thanks!
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You're right. I hadn't thought about the logistics of it. Thank you for your story. You're brave! If you can overcome "a crippling fear of public speaking and raging social anxiety" I can certainly try! It would be easy to back out, but I would also be giving up my dream. Would you mind telling me how you overcame your fears? I look forward to it getting easier! The quicker the better.
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I've accepted an offer to be a TA this semester--my first semester as a grad student. According to my professor, I will actually be teaching the discussion class myself. That means I'll have to attend the lecture in order to know what to discuss. Of course I will grade papers, take attendance, etc. Classtime alone will take 3 hours a week. Office hours will take another two. And I don't know how many hours I'll spend grading papers and exams. For all of this, I'll be given a waiver that pays almost half my tution. I have a feeling I am being taken advantage of. I should add that the acceptance letter was vague (didn't outline my TA responsibilities) and deceptive (said the cost of tuition was about $2200, when it's more than $5000.) It took a lot of investigating to get to the bottom of all of this. I know, I know, I shouldn't have signed it without asking more questions. But I trusted them to be honest. Is such low pay typical? Should I ask for more? As it is, I can't even afford to take 12 credits this semester!
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I've been thrust into a TA position in which I'll have to teach a small class of 22 my first semester of grad school. I have a huge fear of public speaking--as do most of us--and I think I would have an easier time of it if I had a co-teacher. If there's another TA who is just as scared as I am, we could pair up and help in each others' class. There are four of us who will be teaching the same class at different times. There's a mixer coming up, and I think that would be the perfect opportunity to find out if anyone else is nervous, and then approach them with the idea. Is it just a bad/weird plan? Thanks!
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Already screwing up and haven't even started!
waitinginvain? replied to waitinginvain?'s topic in Teaching
Thank you, Hank. Great advice. -
I found these videos about using pressure-point tapping (EFT) to calm anxiety when public speaking. I'm going to try it in conjunction with medication, meditation, self-hypnosis, and anything else I can find! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vYGBNK_1av8&feature=related
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Maybe Dumb Question: What does an MFA TA do?
waitinginvain? replied to waitinginvain?'s topic in Teaching
Thank you everyone! I was accepted and am now officially a TA. However, I still don't know what my responsibilities will be. The professor won't tell me in an email. He said we will have to have a meeting (all of the TAs and him) to discuss it. : ( -
I'm another one with a fear of public speaking. In fact, as an undergrad, I paid someone to speak for me (we gave a group presentation, and she agreed that, in exchange for an $80 textbook, she would do all the talking). Somehow I have managed to get a bachelor's degree without ever giving a presentation on my own! But now as a grad student I'll be expected to lead discussions as a TA. I feel light-headed just thinking about it! I attended a Toastmaster's meeting, but declined to speak in front of the group when asked. It seems like I'm hopeless. I do have access to some anti-anxiety medication. If that's what it takes, I'll use it. Maybe it will treat the problem, enabling me to get enough experience to eventually speak without it. Good luck to you!
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I'm older than you and just starting graduate school, so I don't think your age should be a consideration. I hope mine isn't! I heard that it takes three months to get used to a new place. Keep that in mind if you get homesick. Good luck!
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I've been emailing the professor for whom I'll be a TA. And in every email I've managed to come across as an idiot! In the first one he asked for my ASURite ID, and I gave him the number on my ID card instead of my assigned name. I emailed him next, asking if he could tell me what my responsibilities as hisTA will be. He reminded me that he sent all of his futureTAs an email that said we will set up a meeting to discuss the details. (In my defense, I had hoped he would have given me a clue before the meeting! But I didn't say that.) So, when responding to his email, I added that I finally found out my office location. I also gave him my office hours--which it turns out are the same time as class! Why didn't I check??? I emailed him an apology for coming across as an idiot. I said I'm not sure who I'm supposed to talk to about anything. Needless to say, I am so embarrassed! I wouldn't blame him if he had no confidence in me at all. Has anyone else had a similar experience? Is there any way to salvage my image? Thanks.
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Sorry, Eigen. You were right about contacting the people in my program again. I went back to the university to student accounts (a second time), who sent me to the graduate college office, who sent me to a person in my department, who suggested I go back to the graduate college office! When I told her they sent me to her, she looked into the matter. It turns out college tution is more than $5500 per semester. My TA-ship will pay $2500 of that. So, with fees, I owe $2758. She couldn't explain why the letter said tuition was $2,127 per semester. So, based on that erroneous information, nobody on this forum could have helped me. But thank you all for trying! I appreciate the help.
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Thanks for your kind response.
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The person in my program sent me to student accounts, who suggested I talk to the person in my program. : (
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Hi everyone! I'm happy to say I've been accepted into an MFA program, and have been given a TA-ship. From what I can tell, my TA-ship will just about cover my tuition for the whole year. But, according to student accounts, I owe $2758 for the fall semster alone! I think they're confused because my funds haven't been disbursed yet. Nevertheless, the amount of money I'll receive seems to vary depending on the source. Maybe someone with a more logical mind can tell me what's going on? Specifically, why was my stipend reduced from $5850 to $5002? Thank you for your help. Here's the information from the letter sent with the offer: "The School of Theatre and Film is pleased to offer you a position as a teaching assistant (TA) for the academic year 2012-13. This is a quartentime appointment with a compensatory stipend of $5,850. This appointment begins August 6, 2012 and ends May 12, 2013. Classes begin on 8/23/2012 and end on 5/18/2013. Stipends are paid bi-weekly; your first pay date will be August 24, 2012. The university covers a portionI of the tuition costs for TASIRAS with .25-.49 FTE appointrnents. The estimated tuition oost for students enrolling in 7 or more hours is $2,127 per semester. Please note that this value reflects the current tuition rate and is subject to change for 2012/13." This is posted on my account online: Award Summary Category Offered Accepted Disbursed RA/TA Remission RA/TA Remission Waiver $5,002.00 N/A $0.00 Academic Year Total $5,002.00 $5,002.00 $0.00
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Thank you, crazygirl2012, for your nice response. I did go to the interview after all. One of the professors was so nice that he made up for the other one! I was notified that i was considered for the program within an hour after the interview--they just have to get the official okay from the department head. As for rumors: I didn't know that people were paying attention to undergrads! I thought we were just peons. And I know how you feel for being labeled "anxious" and "inconsistent." Honestly, that would describe me, too! But I'm glad to see that you've been accepted into a program. Social Psychology sounds fascinating!
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Hi everyone! I was rejected from my alma mater (Arizona State University) for an MFA in Dramatic Writing in April, then accepted in June. Apparently I was on a wait list and didn't know. I was accepted when someone else dropped out "mainly due to financial reasons." But I have to meet with a professor who is considering me for a TA-ship. The program director and I have been emailing each other. (I took playwriting classes with him, so we know each other.) He finally admitted that the reason I didn't get accepted the first time was because as an undergraduate I changed my major and gave up funding to a conference I had been accepted to. It's a prestigious competition. I didn't know how presitigious until much later. Actually, that isn't the way it went at all. But that's the rumor, so the professors who heard about it thought I might be the type to "freak out" or be unreliable. But for some reason they are now willing to give me a chance. But I have to meet with them on Friday to answer for my sins. I think it's crazy that they would deny me acceptance based on a rumor! I don't think I want to go to a school that thinks I'm a nut. I don't feel like I'll be treated fairly. By the way, I'm 50 years old and graduated summa cum laude. Am I being too sensitive?
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Maybe Dumb Question: What does an MFA TA do?
waitinginvain? replied to waitinginvain?'s topic in Teaching
Prof. Susan, Are you saying I may not have to actually teach a class on my own the first semester? (Fingers crossed.)