beginning grad school in summer vs. fall

[michaelangelo]

A lot of the programs that I got into have given me the option to begin in July or September with an extra summer stipend if I begin in July (Princeton, for instance). Would it look bad if I opted to begin in the fall? I was hoping to travel this summer but I am afraid that it could hurt my chances of working with my top choice advisor if I am not there to do research this summer. Does anybody else have this dilemma? Any thoughts?

[tso123d]

A lot of the programs that I got into have given me the option to begin in July or September with an extra summer stipend if I begin in July (Princeton, for instance). Would it look bad if I opted to begin in the fall? I was hoping to travel this summer but I am afraid that it could hurt my chances of working with my top choice advisor if I am not there to do research this summer. Does anybody else have this dilemma? Any thoughts?

No, I don't think it would "look bad" if you decide to begin in the fall, after all, that is the standard route. On the other hand, it is possible that by starting early you may have an advantage in joining the group you want. But also consider the other side of the equation. This will be our last summer before a busy 4/5+ year long haul, so this may be the last chance for a while to take it slow and do something for fun (not that research isn't fun of course ). I think if there is one specific group that you want to join, maybe you can try to communicate with the potential advisor in concrete terms before/during/after visiting the school and directly broach the subject of joining his group in the fall. It's possible that he may be hesitant to commit in advance, but there is also a chance that he may just do that.

By the way, I'm actually considering the same situation. I have to say that I'm strongly leaning on the side of putting grad school off until the fall. Even if I don't travel as much as I may want to (I found it's scary how expensive it all is), at least I would get to relax for a bit, something I haven't done in a while, and which I'm afraid I may not have a chance to do again in a long long time (in fact I shudder to think that this may be the last time I get to take a three month vacation until retirement ).

[Eigen]

I'll throw in my 2 cents...

I don't think it would look bad, but there are distinct benefits. Of course, if you're feeling kinda burnt out and want the time off, it's important to start fresh too.

I started in July, and it was a huge benefit to my first semester. By the time all the other first years got to campus, I'd settled into the town, been working in a lab for a month and a half, had been checked out on all the departmental instruments, met the profs, and knew most of the current grad students.

I ended up staying in the group I started with in July, so it also gave me a huge edge on research- even over people who started in their permanent group at the start of the semester. Being able to get a research space set up and start settling in without having to worry about classes was great.

The administrative staff are also not nearly as busy, which made getting paperwork in much faster and less painful. It was also nice to move in and have some time to get situated and used to the school before I was having to get to campus for classes at specific times.

The others in my cohort that were juggling starting teaching, classes, and research all in the same week had a rougher time, imo.

I took May and June off, which made for a nice break before school.If you want to travel, you could take those two months to travel, and then still start early, perhaps.

Edited January 31, 2011 by Eigen

[ScreamingHairyArmadillo]

I also had options to start in the fall, but decided not to. I didn't really take a break (I worked 2 jobs to save money), but I wanted to take a mental break from academia. I also had more time for a mini camping vacation, which I wouldn't've been able to do had I started my field work in the summer.

However, I already knew who my advisor was so I didn't need to stick my foot in to get the advisor of my choice. But without any summer work I couldn't go to the national conference of my field in the late fall (which was in San Diego, dammit!).

Weigh your pros and cons. Might you get a month before/after your school's summer term, and may that be a long enough break? Either way it won't look bad at all to start in the fall, it's just an option you have.