Funding

[bluecheese]

This document is really getting close - keep the information coming! 

 

[edit: whoops, wrong link]

Edited March 18, 2013 by bluecheese

[Fishbucket]

That document is great. The kind of info you never hear about from the school before you apply.

[feraleyes]

This is what I have understood of my funding offer from Dr. Dobrin over the phone as I am yet to receive that acceptance letter.

A fellowship of $10,781 for the first year and TA with a 1/1 teaching load the next 3 years after that. I cannot recall if anything had been mentioned about health insurance. I understand that there are many competitive fellowships that one can apply for (as per the website). 

I'd appreciate your feedback on this funding package in relation to living expenses in Gainesville, Florida.

 

[Pranayama]

Thank you for this. What I'm gathering is that a 2:2 teaching load (which one of my schools offered me) is quite high in relation to other programs. Which is a bit nerve-wracking. Can anyone with a current 2:2 teaching load weigh in here? 

[sf210]

Thank you for this. What I'm gathering is that a 2:2 teaching load (which one of my schools offered me) is quite high in relation to other programs. Which is a bit nerve-wracking. Can anyone with a current 2:2 teaching load weigh in here? 

 

The program I'm most seriously considering is also 2:2.  One thing you may want to ask is if you'll be teaching 2 sections of the same course.  While I will have the opportunity to teach several different courses, I was assured I will always only be teaching one course per semester -- so, even though I'll be teaching 2 classes, I'll only have one "prep."  I teach now, and I can tell you teaching 2 sections of the same class, rather than 2 different courses, makes a major difference. This may be something you'd like to ask about.

[AurantiacaStella]

This is what I have understood of my funding offer from Dr. Dobrin over the phone as I am yet to receive that acceptance letter.

A fellowship of $10,781 for the first year and TA with a 1/1 teaching load the next 3 years after that. I cannot recall if anything had been mentioned about health insurance. I understand that there are many competitive fellowships that one can apply for (as per the website). 

I'd appreciate your feedback on this funding package in relation to living expenses in Gainesville, Florida.

 

 

I think that amount of money would be just enough to get by in Gainesville. I used to live in a slightly less expensive city than Gainesville, and I lived on $12,000 a year. However, that was with my health insurance covered, so if yours isn't covered I'm not sure how you would manage that stipend + paying for health insurance in that city. Also, I doubt you could afford to have a car with that stipend. Hope this helps a little.

[Datatape]

It depends on what you're being required to teach.  If you're teaching two different courses in one semester, that's much more work than if you're teaching two sections of the same course.  Obviously, it's always more work to teach two classes than it is to teach one, but this semester I'm adjuncting two sections of the same course in addition to holding down a full-time office job, which certainly takes up more time than going to classes would.  If it's 101 (or the equivalent), you may just be teaching from an existing syllabus and therefore will only have to come up with lesson plans as you go through the semester.

 

Now, with that said, obviously the more time you have for yourself, the quicker you will be able to progress to the degree.  Once you finish with coursework, it's easy to fall into the trap of just continuing on with what you're doing, particularly if you're teaching two sections each semester, and not making any real progress on your dissertation.  You should almost certainly be making at least $15,000 a year in the stipend if they're requiring two classes a semester, and should look to see if there are opportunities for funded breaks once you reach the dissertation stage.  If they expect you to toil away for peanuts and don't offer any funding to provide you relief from teaching (even if it's just one or two semesters) when you're finished with coursework, I would advise you to consider your other offers more heavily.  No stipend is going to keep you in champagne and caviar (except at Bryn Mawr, natch), but neither should it be completely disproportionate to the amount of work you're providing for the university.

[AurantiacaStella]

Thank you for this. What I'm gathering is that a 2:2 teaching load (which one of my schools offered me) is quite high in relation to other programs. Which is a bit nerve-wracking. Can anyone with a current 2:2 teaching load weigh in here? 

 

From what I've been told, a 2:2 will be rough if you have never taught before, even if you are teaching two sections of the same class. But I think it could be manageable as long as you have a dissertation year, and obviously it will take less time to prep after you have more experience teaching.

 

A prof of mine told me that he thought I should expect to devote an entire day to prep, teaching, and meeting with students for each two hours of class. So, if you taught MWF, those three days would basically be spent on teaching responsibilities.

[Pranayama]

Thanks so much, sf210, Datatape, and AurantiacaStella . I am going to visit the program in question in a few weeks, and I will formulate some questions for faculty/current grad students based on your feedback. One tricky response I've gotten in the past is that it "depends on funding." It's difficult to tell whether they are just covering their arses in case there is a financial crisis, or they just don't want to be upfront about the unlikelihood of funding coming in for everyone. I've never taught before (although I have tutored extensively and done classroom presentations), and I am concerned about doing the kind of quality work I want to do for my courses with such a high teaching load. I am not afraid of hard work, but I don't want to be delusional about my capabilities either. 

(and apologies for the bold font, my comp. is spazzing).

[muchado]

By any chance does your school offer a lightened load in the first semester? I know that Louisville's stipend has a 2-2 load, but you actually teach a 1-2 your first year to ease you into the work load. 

[ComeBackZinc]

So I actually taught a 2/2 my first year of teaching, and I didn't find it bad. It was super important that they were both the same course. The work requirement of two of the same courses is nowhere close to the work requirement of two different course. (I actually taught them back-to-back, which was super helpful; my second course got a better experience than my first, just because I had a preview of what worked and what didn't!) The only headache is grading. Here, a 1-1 of freshman comp is half time, although bear in mind that it's a 4-credit class. I don't think that a 2-2 should in and of itself scare you away from a program, but obviously it's a lot to think about.

[damequixote]

I'll second (or third or fourth) that teaching a 2:2 of the same course is really nothing to worry about. I taught a 2:2 all throughout my M.A. (my first and second years as a teacher), and I loved it. I might have loved a 1:1 more, but I had no problem doing good work for my classes and doing my own research and writing for my thesis. If you love everything else about the program, I say go for it!

[feraleyes]

Somebody on another thread on this forum for Florida acceptances mentioned that all TAs receive subsidized health insurance owing to the graduate assistants united  union. Is that good?

[nhswrestle]

This is a fantastic document. Hopefully more MA's pop up on there.

[planesandtrains]

which of you smartasses added the university of phoenix entry?

 

really, though, bluecheese, this was a brilliant idea.

[intextrovert]

Just reposting this document, which is seriously great and really illuminating. I wish I'd had this info in such a neat form when I was applying and deciding!

[bluecheese]

I hope people take advantage of this.

 

I might make it into some kind of ranking that takes cost of living into consideration -- if we get some of the major holes filled in.

 

Everything worked out for me, but I definitely can see a bunch of stuff that I would have done differently if this information was as readily available.

[Taco Superior]

I might make it into some kind of ranking that takes cost of living into consideration -- if we get some of the major holes filled in.

 

Everything worked out for me, but I definitely can see a bunch of stuff that I would have done differently if this information was as readily available.

 

Ya, cost of living is crucial (for me, 20k at USC would be nothing close to 20k at WUSTL).

 

And if I had seen this before applying my program list would definitely have shifted (I applied to some big public schools thinking I'd have a better chance with them but ironically those programs in particular seemed to have no use for me--anyway I would have skipped some of them; speaking of which, where's Nebraska on the list, and South Carolina?).

[CabinFever]

Can people share their funding packages?

 

Or, can we start an wiki page where people can enter information about the various funding packages they've received in order to start a database for future applicants?

 

I think it might be a useful resource...

 

 

thoughts?

WORD! It's making me very nervous non-stop that I have to wait for them, keeping other schools on hold. Annoying.

[bluecheese]

Bump!

 

Anyone who hasn't added their information, please add it. Yay!

 

https://docs.google.com/a/umn.edu/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Al9pLrYezRcSdGdUTk0zWk5QVUJFSGxVZ2FJQ1QwWFE#gid=0

[bluecheese]

Bump - please add your info to the google doc if you haven't seen it yet.

 

(I'm just going to keep doing this from time to time for people who don't check the forums regularly)

[Taco Superior]

Bump - please add your info to the google doc if you haven't seen it yet.

 

(I'm just going to keep doing this from time to time for people who don't check the forums regularly)

 

please do: there's still some schools I'd like to see that arent' on there.

 

On the history thread they were debating the correlation between ranking and funding: I dropped your spreadsheet on them, BOOM. They might do one of their own. So, once again bluecheese, great idea.

[Taco Superior]

What about Nebraska, South Carolina, Kansas?

[oij]

Bump again. Anyone have up-to-date info for UNC-Chapel Hill?

[CastineGrrl]

What about Nebraska, South Carolina, Kansas?

 

Info on Nebraska is now up. This is such a great resource!