Kee

Hey Lizzy, I'll be there in September. I believe I remember a post from you, asking what to expect on your visit. Will this be your first time living in Ontario? Are you excited?

Hi Mr/Ms. Lizzy, Maybe I can add my 2 cents because I just visited Western a couple of weeks ago (although I was visiting the Business School). I live only a couple of hours away, and the visit only lasted a few hours. I didn't get a tour of the campus or city. But my department has a separate Grad Day which does cover that, along with panel discussions and a meet-and-greet. I wasn't sure what to wear either, so I contacted the administrator in the PhD office. Even though my visit happened on a Friday, she advised me to dress formally (jacket and dress pants). Whoever is helping you plan your visit will probably be very willing to answer your questions. Don't be afraid to ask. If I was putting myself through a 15 hour bus ride, I would make sure I knew what I was getting into! I had a list of questions ready in my briefcase, both for the professors and the current grad students. While the faculty are more concerned with making a favourable impression on you (so that you accept their offer), the students are not as much. This means they can give you lots of great information about what life will be like there for a student - both good and bad. Every student I met gave me invaluable information. For example, I had a lot of questions for the woman who is currently working under my potential advisor... Make sure you remember everyone's name so that you can email them your thanks later. Also, keep in contact with the students if you meet people you liked. It will be helpful when you think of more questions after your trip, which you will. And staying in touch means you'll start your program with a few friends, which never hurts. One of the students I met has already sent me several articles to read. Another sent me the name of a book I'll have to read in first year. I've already ordered it so I can get a head start. I really enjoyed my visit, and came away excited about the idea of studying there. I hope you do, too. But you have to tell me something now. You're not used to being addressed by your first name? That's so surprising. Where did you study where that's unusual? I'm going to scroll up to fix my salutation now.

Maybe Canadians can have dry humour, also. The smileys have retreated so as to fight again another day...

Yes.

The smileys used by evie2008 are adorable and you are way too young to be such a curmudgeon! It plays way better when you've been through a war or something. Also, I have the impression that you are currently residing in Canada. If that is true, I feel it is my duty to inform you that we have a code when it comes to this kind of thing. Didn't you get the manual? I have it with me right now, and there are at least 40 pages on being polite, easy going, etc. The RCMP may be knocking at your door any minute. If I am wrong about you residing in Canada, my apologies, and carry on being curmudgeonly...

Hey lucifer2, I think you are just being logical. It is really easy to get excited about the prospect of something without thinking through what it means. It's kind of like the people who worry more about the wedding than the marriage. You are very smart to look further down the road and ask yourself if this is what you really want. And it's better to do that now before you start because getting through the program will be tough. You have to really want it. But my guess is that you do want the PhD, you are just experiencing some 'cold feet'. If you don't get into your dream school, you were simply supposed to be somewhere else. Personally, if I don't get into my top pick, I'm going to spend the next few years being such a star somewhere else that my top pick will be begging to hire me on as a Professor. And I might even agree to go there, if they ask nicely. Anyway rankings are just someone else's idea of what's important. We spend too much of our lives worrying about what other people think. You need to find a program that fits you, only then will you excel. I've seen lots of people who turned down higher ranked schools because another one just felt better, and that's wise. And for the record, I think when you're about to do something big and you'll have to pull it off on your own merits, it's always going to make you feel alone. You just have to keep moving forward.

You people are hysterical. Thank you for the laughs....