Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 maybe you were flagged by the grad school as being very likely to get an NSF? I certainly hope it means that you do get one, but it's not that likely that the NSF (or any government-funded entity) would be organized to "tip off" your grad school that you're getting an NSF. It would mean twice the notification load, because they already have to email each and every applicant the good or bad news. but, don't be so suspicious about departmental awards--enjoy it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ophiolite Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 Ok...finally figured it out...I'm an idiot... It was for my small research grant I received last year. I found an email from a few weeks back from the Student Services Administrator in the department asking for those who won 'external' money last year, to which I replied my small grant. Sorry for raising an alarm...took me awhile to decipher everything Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 maybe you were flagged by the grad school as being very likely to get an NSF? I certainly hope it means that you do get one, but it's not that likely that the NSF (or any government-funded entity) would be organized to "tip off" your grad school that you're getting an NSF. It would mean twice the notification load, because they already have to email each and every applicant the good or bad news. but, don't be so suspicious about departmental awards--enjoy it! doesn't it seem like the notification process is automated, though? it shouldn't be that hard for them to send email each of us, since it's all computerized past the decision stage... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hurryitup Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 for all those obsessed folks out there, I thought i'd share an NSF tidbit I learned yesterday: Apparently, the reviewers (in each subfield) first make a decision about who should definitely get the fellowship, and those who should either get the fellowship or honorable mention. The first pile gets the fellowship. The second pile is where geographic region can come into play, with someone from bumblef*ck getting the money over someone from NYC (who'll get honorable mention). Interesting no? Haha, just giving you all something to read while we wait for Friday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 you mean where the person is from originally, or where the person went to school? heh, some people came from bumfuck, but then managed to go to decent schools.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest anon Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 you mean where the person is from originally, or where the person went to school? heh, some people came from bumfuck, but then managed to go to decent schools.... no kidding! i came from middle-of-nowhere-down-south and then happened to go to school in a big metropole. now this is going to count against me? wtf! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 no kidding! i came from middle-of-nowhere-down-south and then happened to go to school in a big metropole. now this is going to count against me? wtf! i read someplace that it's based on where you went to high school. i don't remember them asking for that info, though... either way, i'm screwed. i've lived in california my entire life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 for all those obsessed folks out there, I thought i'd share an NSF tidbit I learned yesterday: Apparently, the reviewers (in each subfield) first make a decision about who should definitely get the fellowship, and those who should either get the fellowship or honorable mention. The first pile gets the fellowship. The second pile is where geographic region can come into play, with someone from bumblef*ck getting the money over someone from NYC (who'll get honorable mention). Interesting no? Haha, just giving you all something to read while we wait for Friday. do you (or anyone else) know if any other diverse factors are taken into consideration for that second pile? like race/ethnicity or disability, etc.? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guestservices Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 Is small town Minnesota considered bumblef*ck? Where are we talking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hurryitup Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 i think diversity used to play a role -- but they took it out of the equation for this fellowship, and have seperate fellowships which address diversity. I'm not a 100% on that though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hmmmm Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 The address they use in trying to get "geographic diversity" is definitely the main address you used to apply (i.e. your "correspondence address." I know this because one of the universities to which I applied said, "if you're from bumf*ck, then use THAT address as your correspondence address. But then again, who knows how which states are rated? For example, I had to choose, do I apply from Colorado (where my parents live, I went to HS, etc), or from DC (where I currently live--besides both yuppies and very very very poor people). I wasn't sure in the end which would make things "easier" on me. So I just went with DC to not have to deal with my parents having to tell me when the letter came. But now that the info comes via email (something I now know but didn't then), I feel maybe I should have used CO. But then again maybe it's only those from CA and MA and NY that are really screwed? Damnit, geography should NOT matter. Is this a meritocracy or affirmative action bullsh*t? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 i think diversity used to play a role -- but they took it out of the equation for this fellowship, and have seperate fellowships which address diversity. I'm not a 100% on that though. they used to have a minority fellowship program, but it's been scrapped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 26, 2006 Share Posted March 26, 2006 I do recall filling out where I went to high school on the form, which was probably the most random item of information in the entire application, so that fact, plus the fact that where you happen to be living at the moment is largely irrelevant to issues of legal residency (ie, generally college students maintain the same residency status they had in high school because they are not moving to their college town/city with the intention of moving, they're there temporarily for an education). Thus, I think it's most likely the high school locale that matters - but who knows really. In any event, remember that these factors only come into play once the final groups have been decided, and I find it hard to imagine that geography will really trump over merit, but if you're equal, maybe the kid from Montana gets the nod. I assume racial/ethnic diversity is a separate factor from geography that comes into play at the same time and probably is more important than geography in deciding awards. It's out of our control anyway, but good luck everyone, we're in the final days of the long march. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 well...while we wait... i was wondering, did you all do true research proposals (hypothesis, research plan, anticipated findings, applications, etc.) or did you go the other way, and just present a few questions that interested you and how you would go about answering them? the directions provide both options. i wrote an actual proposal, but i wonder which approach is more advantageous. also, to what extent did you "sell" your school? how did you make it clear that your school is the best place for you to do the type of research you're interested in? are you already in a program, or are you applying to them this year? i'm already in a PhD program, which i think might be detrimental, as i think the greater number of awards are made to students who are beginning programs in the fall. what fields are you in, broadly? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ophiolite Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 I also proposed a research project as outlined in the guidelines to the best of my ability (hard to anticipate findings in geology). I hope its more advantageous... As for selling the school, I explained a research plan utilizing my prospective advisor's new 'toy'...a brand new ion microprobe that is the only of its kind in the world (capable of stable isotope analysis on 8 micron spots). So, it was literally the only place I could really complete my project idea, being a cutting-edge idea I thought up after hearing about the machine capabilities. I'm in a program right now (finishing up my MS), but changing for the fall to a PhD at a new school, to which I have already been admitted and have committed. I hope it's an advantage that I completed my research proposal without the aid of any professors. It was totally my idea and was only sent to my prospective advisor after I was completed and after the submission deadline. Broadly speaking...I'm a metamorphic petrologist at heart...I love studying metamorphic rocks and figuring out how they are exhumed to the surface tectonically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guestservices Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 I also proposed a research project as outlined in the guidelines to the best of my ability (hard to anticipate findings in geology). I hope its more advantageous... As for selling the school, I explained a research plan utilizing my prospective advisor's new 'toy'...a brand new ion microprobe that is the only of its kind in the world (capable of stable isotope analysis on 8 micron spots). So, it was literally the only place I could really complete my project idea, being a cutting-edge idea I thought up after hearing about the machine capabilities. I'm in a program right now (finishing up my MS), but changing for the fall to a PhD at a new school, to which I have already been admitted and have committed. I hope it's an advantage that I completed my research proposal without the aid of any professors. It was totally my idea and was only sent to my prospective advisor after I was completed and after the submission deadline. Broadly speaking...I'm a metamorphic petrologist at heart...I love studying metamorphic rocks and figuring out how they are exhumed to the surface tectonically. How could you apply if you're currently finishing up your MS? I thought you could only have 12 months of graduate study to apply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 you can apply if you're beginning a new field. that's what i did. i did a master's, but it was in another field. now, i am in a PhD program. none of my previous coursework or research will apply to this new degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 I, too, outlined a proposal for actual research projects. I'm not sure there is a particular advantage to one approach versus another - an extremely well-written theoretical piece could be compelling, I'm sure, if that's your strength, and give you a lot of freedom to demonstrate knowledge of a particular area and brilliant original thinking. However, for me it was easier and safer to describe proposed research studies, since it gives NSF a more specific view of what type of studies they would be supporting, rather than just ideas. However, I'm in psychology, which really has its bread-and-butter in empirical studies, so I think this was the wiser course of action for my discipline. I also described a series of related studies, as people I knew had done in the past, but I think it works just as well (perhaps better) to describe one study in detail. Do you really think there is a bias toward giving awards to college seniors as opposed to first-year graduate students? There may be differences in the numbers from each group applying that may account for differences in awards - the only thing I had heard was that NSF tries to distribute awards proportionately, by discipline (though some fields get a little more, I think engineering does for example) and by year in school. I don't see a good reason to give proportionately more to seniors, unless some of them wouldn't go to graduate school but for the NSF award (and that's hard to imagine given that the application process is almost over by the time the awards come out). Any one have good information on this point raised earlier? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ophiolite Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 How could you apply if you're currently finishing up your MS? I thought you could only have 12 months of graduate study to apply. I applied after 12 months of graduate study. There is nothing in the rules saying you can't apply for a new graduate institution. So, yes I'm finishing up my MS in two years, and therefore applied for the fellowship after my first year, the maximum allowable by NSF Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest hurryitup Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 so i know the NSF results came out on a friday last year... but do we know that this is always the case? Anyone know about any of the other years? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 so i know the NSF results came out on a friday last year... but do we know that this is always the case? Anyone know about any of the other years? i've read that they come out on fridays so that the NSF people can avoid an onslaught of "why didn't i get it" or "i got it, now what do i do?" responses. but...it's not like people are going to forget that they didn't get (or got) the award over the weekend. sending them out on friday doesn't ensure anything, really. they've got to have all of their decisions made by now. it's really just a matter of them pushing the giant red button. i mean, clicking "send". it's not as if somebody has to go through and send each of us an email indicating our status. it's all automated. heck, they don't even need to send an email saying if we got it or not. just a simple "check your status on fastlane" email would more than suffice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest anon Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 i've read that they come out on fridays so that the NSF people can avoid an onslaught of "why didn't i get it" or "i got it, now what do i do?" responses. but...it's not like people are going to forget that they didn't get (or got) the award over the weekend. sending them out on friday doesn't ensure anything, really. they've got to have all of their decisions made by now. it's really just a matter of them pushing the giant red button. i mean, clicking "send". it's not as if somebody has to go through and send each of us an email indicating our status. it's all automated. heck, they don't even need to send an email saying if we got it or not. just a simple "check your status on fastlane" email would more than suffice. it's true that last year it came out on a friday, but the year before it looks like it came out on a thursday. so who knows... maybe we'll find out earlier. i hope so -- as the waiting really sucks !~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 it's totally wishful thinking (but that's okay), but i hope we find out before this friday and i hope we all get awards or honorable mentions. (sorry, i'm getting burned out...i've had a lot of work to do this weekend) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest anon Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 it's totally wishful thinking (but that's okay), but i hope we find out before this friday and i hope we all get awards or honorable mentions. (sorry, i'm getting burned out...i've had a lot of work to do this weekend) ditto. if anyone calls to get an update, can they please post any updates from the NSF here? dying to know... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest getting antsy! Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 How could you apply if you're currently finishing up your MS? I thought you could only have 12 months of graduate study to apply. there is an optional essay where you can explain a special circumstance, such as an interruption in your studies or changing programs. you need to demonstrate, however, that you will be able to utilize at least three years of funding. i don't remember if it was the NSF or ford foundation that required that you also indicate that you have at least one year of coursework remaining...i kind of think it was the ford foundation. which prompts me to inquire...which other fellowships did you all apply for? i applied for the NSF GFRP, the ford foundation fellowship, and the javits fellowship. already rejected from the javits. bleh. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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