MissMoneyJenny

I'm curious if anyone knows of any books or movies or tv shows where the main character(s) is/are (a) grad student(s) and it actually is a major plot point or something followed closely throughout. I know there is a lot of stuff about high school and college . . . so why not grad school? And yeah, i know, because grad students don't have time to read, but I actually will next month!

I'm currently in a Master's program in a field I am very passionate about. It's a course-based Masters, although I will have a research project at the end of it (although it is more heavily weighted towards being a fairly comprehensive literature review with a small sample size study tacked on), and while I am enjoying my classes and am interested in the topic I really wish I had embarked on something more related to my personal interest in doing research. Unfortunately my undergraduate grades didn't really allow for me to take on that option immediately, but I think it is possible I could finish this degree with Merit or Distinction so that will be helpful for me in the future if I want to embark on more intensive schooling. Basically I think I want to do a Ph.D., but I'm not 100% sure yet. I'll be working between graduation and when I decide I am ready to take on the task, but I am curious as to how everyone else decided "Yes, I want to do intense research for the next 4-6 (or more) years and come out with a doctorate in the end."

It depends on your student Visa. Fuzzy mentioned the restrictions on a US Visa, and I know the UK Visa is similar. You can work 20 hours a week during school, and then 40 hours during holidays and on internships, but it is not restricted to only on campus work.

Canadian universities are very stringent with their GPA requirements when it comes to applying to grad school. Through my applications I felt as though they didn't even bother looking at the rest of my application because my GPA was not what they wanted. Even in a not very competitive program. UK and European universities tend to be a bit more forgiving, looking at the whole package rather than just the GPA. If you're a well rounded application you'll stand a chance of getting in. I firmly believe my very passionate Statement of Purpose was what got me my acceptance in the UK.

None of the poll options apply to me. I am living in my own en-suite room in university halls designated for postgraduate students. No roommates, but I'm sharing a kitchen with several other people.

I'm at your pre-qutting Diet Coke stage, although I only drink 2-3 12 oz cans a day. But I know the feeling of cravings. I don't drink coffee myself, and I am too lazy to make tea as often as I would like to drink it. I'm hoping doing my graduate studies in England will help me get more into tea drinking and less into soda drinking.

If you can I would recommend waiting a couple of months for the cell phone plan. The law changed recently so that 3 year contract plans are now illegal, but it doesn't come into effect until December 2nd. I don't have any suggestions for what to do until that time, but it'll be easier on you not having a 3 year contract - believe me.

It is a little under 12 months, but not by much. I start courses on September 30th 2013 and finish my dissertation by August 31st 2014.

Right in Central London, in halls. It's a tad expensive, but much easier than sending a deposit to a stranger for an apartment I hadn't seen.

I'm going to be attending a Human-Centered Systems program in the Fall, coming from a Psychology background. I am hoping to get into UX once I finish, maybe eventually doing consulting when I have a breadth of knowledge in the field (I'm thinking 10 years time, maybe more). Anyone else going into the field? Where are you going to be/where are you applying to? Plans after graduation?

I'm also really curious about this, anyone have any information?

My program is only 1 year so I'm just going to go home at the end of it, otherwise I'll spend my money and holidays travelling elsewhere. I doubt I'll ever get a chance to be in Europe or England for an extended amount of time ever again so I'm taking advantage of it even though there will be the sacrifice of not seeing my family.

Carleton University in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada has an Aerospace Engineering program. http://graduate.carleton.ca/programs/aerospace-engineering-masters/ Other Canadian schools may as well. Tuition tends to be less than American schools, but Canadian schools are frequently sticklers for their grade requirements for admission.

Yes, definitely. Thankfully they looked beyond my conditions at the school I applied to. The UK seems to be more forgiving than Canadian schools.

I posted a little while ago saying my acceptance was pending on my grades. I didn't meet my grades, I was a little below, but I still got an unconditional acceptance. I am convinced it was based on my statement of interest. Sometimes passion gets you everywhere. Good luck everyone else!

Macleans is biased, they give bad ratings to Universities who do not participate in the ranking system. I believe the Times Higher Education Ranking is probably the best regarded ranking system; at least, most Universities brag about their ranking on this site more than their Maclean's Ranking. The top three on this ranking are generally considered the best schools in Canada anyway, although I have heard that McGill is slipping. Queen's is a lot of talk for their undergrads, I don't know much about their research levels. I know the University of Ottawa (my alma mater) is attempting to make leaps upwards in their research capacity. I really have no idea how comprehensive these ranking systems are though.

counter culture

One application under review for 3 months now, final grades went out today so I will hopefully know in the next 2 weeks. Another conditional acceptance, but the condition wasn't met. They said they would look at my application again and decide then. I initially was conditionally accepted based on my statement of interest within 2 weeks of my application, the condition being I have a certain average and I provide 2 letters of recommendation (letters were received last month, grades will be sent this week). Hopefully all this put together leads to an unconditional acceptance despite my bad GPA.

Thanks for the advice guys. My school allows us to review our final exams so I have arranged for meetings with 3 of my professors to do so (one professor already raised everyone's grades by 9% and the other refuses to change grades so I won't be seeing them). I am also considering retaking the course I did very poorly in over the summer, if the school will allow that grade to count.

I've been conditionally accepted into grad school and on that condition I need a B+ average from my forth year to get in. I fucked up and I have a B- as my final average from this year. There is one grade I might be able to move up to the next level, if I ask the prof, but I am unsure about doing this because I didn't really have a relationship with them at all. Even with this my average still won't be a B+ Any advice for the next steps I can take? I don't want to have to do more time in my undergrad . . .

cell mate

I'm currently having a problem deciding where I'm going to live next year, while an International student. From what I can see, I have 3 options. All have their ups and downs, and I really can't decide, so I figured I'd ask what others are doing. Obviously not everyone's situations will be the same, but it'd be nice to see some input, and get a sense of what others are doing. 1. Residence Halls - There are many private halls of residence in the city I'll likely be moving to. The cost of them varies, but it is possible to find ones which are the same price as the other options. These also have the plus of guaranteed being furnished, and not having to worry about extra utilities costs, and a lot of the places have ensuite bathrooms. Downside is they can also be much more expensive, and I might end up being the roommate of a bunch of freshman/freshers (but it might be possible to request not to be) or people who are not good roommates. 2. Sharing an apartment - This is the option I took while in my undergrad, until i was no longer able to find a roommate and moved into my own place. The plus is I will be living with people who already might know the city, and could be willing to show me around or whatever, and all costs are split. Downside are I can't look at the apartment before getting there, so I could end up with a bad place (or homeless while I looked for accomodation), I could end up with crappy roommates (which have a whole other multitude of problems that aren't present in halls), or I might have an unfurnished place where I would need to buy furniture. 3. Homestay - Third option is living with a family, renting a room from them. Pluses are cheaper and all utilities are covered, and sometimes a meal or two are included in the cost. Downsides include possible curfews, feeling like I can't make myself at home in their home (having to share a kitchen, bathroom and laundry with the people who actually own them), or renting from people with poor attitudes. My explanations for ups and downs might not be super clear, so I can clarify if you want. I'm open to suggestions, or discussing why you chose what you chose. Thanks for your help everyone.

1. Taught degrees are Master's degrees. Research are Ph.D.s This is all available on websites for schools, if you actually look into the programs. MA is the same as it is in Canada. M Res is a popular distinction in the UK and Europe I believe, it stands for Master of Research, and I believe the courses tend to be more focused on research methodology. MPhil is generally what you get if you complete your Ph.D. coursework but not your thesis, in Canada as well. All these can easily be googled for your answer. As far as I know equivalency isn't too much of a problem between England and Canada. Your main difficulties will arise if you're trying to get into a regulated profession, like Clinical Psychology. 2. I just finished applying to one school in the UK. I needed everything I needed for my Canadian applications, but the GRE score was never asked for (though this might be program specific) and I had to provide an explanation as to why I didn't need to submit a TOEFL score. But I provided 2 references, a C.V., a statement of interest, and my grades. 3. I know. This sucks. From my research the Canadian government has gotten rid of a lot of the funding options for students wanting to study abroad in the UK. Ones available are limited to students who have high GPAs. The National Student Loan Service Center website will be able to tell you if the school you're attending to eligible for you to get loans though, and the OSAP website mentioned they give bursaries sometimes. Also, schools normally have a scholarship or two available for students. If anyone else knows more about this I would love to hear it.

I will have a 6.0/10.0 (about a B, not sure how to convert to a 4.0 scale) upon graduation, looking like I'll have a B+ average (7.0/10) my final year. I got in to City University London's MSc in Human Centered Systems today, pending that I get my letters of recommendation in, and I have the B+ average. Yay