2015 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[ExploitEarth]

Would you consider deferring?

 

I was admitting into CSM for a geology masters without funding. I am thinking of deferring and working for a year in Denver to save up some money and get in state tuition. I am cautious that I might forget some parts of geology and have to work harder to maintain my skill sets. But on the other hand, not having 50K in debt sounds appealing. Any thoughts, opinions or advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

[columbia09]

Would you consider deferring?

I was admitting into CSM for a geology masters without funding. I am thinking of deferring and working for a year in Denver to save up some money and get in state tuition. I am cautious that I might forget some parts of geology and have to work harder to maintain my skill sets. But on the other hand, not having 50K in debt sounds appealing. Any thoughts, opinions or advice would be appreciated. Thanks!

Are you going to get funding next year though ?

[columbia09]

Are you going to get funding next year though ?

Also did you ask your POI about a waiting list for TA positions

[idiochromatic]

I got rejected from CU-Boulder last week, but I'm so excited to say that I'll be going to MIT for environmental engineering!

I'll be in EAPS! See you around Cambridge!

[teddybrosevelt]

I accepted my offer from CSM!

[talkcherty2me]

I'll be in EAPS! See you around Cambridge!

I'll definitely be around! I'll probably be taking at least a class or two in EAPS.

[IamLorde]

I accepted my offer from CSM!

Congrats Teddy!!

[teddybrosevelt]

Congrats Teddy!!

Thanks, Lorde! It's nice to have this whole thing over and done with!

[ExploitEarth]

Also did you ask your POI about a waiting list for TA positions

 

Yes I asked my POI about the possibility for TA positions, but the odds are very very slim. I am not sure about the possibility of funding the next year, but if I take a year off, I can work and save up money so I would not need funding.

[columbia09]

Yes I asked my POI about the possibility for TA positions, but the odds are very very slim. I am not sure about the possibility of funding the next year, but if I take a year off, I can work and save up money so I would not need funding.

This might just be me but like a lot of people on here, grad school isn't worth it if you don't have funding. Especially if you have a huge amount of debt like me from undergraduate. I would've found a job, retake my GRE (hopefully improve) and reapply. Again that's just me I was thinking about going to grad school and self fund but a lot of people turned me off from it

[LetsHike]

This might just be me but like a lot of people on here, grad school isn't worth it if you don't have funding. Especially if you have a huge amount of debt like me from undergraduate. I would've found a job, retake my GRE (hopefully improve) and reapply. Again that's just me I was thinking about going to grad school and self fund but a lot of people turned me off from it

What about TA funding (~15k/yr) but no tuition waiver (~15k for tuition/yr)? Or what about very low funding (~5k/year) and a three quarters tuition waiver (~10k/yr)? These are the two options I am currently faced with and am not super excited about either since they are not fully funded in every sense. I'm hoping a better offer pops up but I cannot count on that happening. This is frustrating as I am not sure these offers are practical financially.

[mkd17]

Well im still waiting .  Utah's site says they sent the notification on April 8 and I'm still sitting here.  Guess tomorrow I might find out what I might be doing for the next 5-6 years.  nbd.

[columbia09]

What about TA funding (~15k/yr) but no tuition waiver (~15k for tuition/yr)? Or what about very low funding (~5k/year) and a three quarters tuition waiver (~10k/yr)? These are the two options I am currently faced with and am not super excited about either since they are not fully funded in every sense. I'm hoping a better offer pops up but I cannot count on that happening. This is frustrating as I am not sure these offers are practical financially.

Personally unless I get a full tuition waiver I wouldn't take any of those

Edited April 15, 2015 by columbia09

[MechRxn]

So realistically do a lot of offers go out tomorrow? I was wait-listed at UNLV and am still waiting to hear about funding from some schools I was accepted to

[mkd17]

i really dont think it can actually be tomorrow because they're waiting for responses so they know where their funding is going.  like, if everyone's deadline is the 15th, it doesnt make sense.  i dont know/care anymore.  ok i care but i definitely dont know.

[columbia09]

Anybody here get into Nebraska ? Are you going or are you turning down your offer ?

[SedRocks]

Personally unless I get a full tuition waiver I wouldn't take any of those

I understand why you wouldn't take those, but I would. Especially in oil and gas, it's almost impossible to get a job/internship without a masters degree. I think at those costs, the benefits of the degree outweigh the costs. Also, it's extremely competitive to receive full funding from mid tier schools or higher. Retaking the GRE will also do little to improve chances unless you do dramatically better. I have a friend who took a year off to work a mudlogling job and retake the gre. He ended up doing both and still didn't receive any funding.

Edit: yes, mudlogging can be counted as an O&G job, but no one wants to do that for a living.

Edited April 15, 2015 by SedRocks

[talkcherty2me]

Just curious, has anyone else not received answers from any of their schools? Obviously I made a decision anyway, but today IS April 15th.

Edit: Nevermind, saw a lot of posts above. I don't get why geo programs take so long to give out decisions...

Edited April 15, 2015 by talkcherty2me

[columbia09]

I understand why you wouldn't take those, but I would. Especially in oil and gas, it's almost impossible to get a job/internship without a masters degree. I think at those costs, the benefits of the degree outweigh the costs. Also, it's extremely competitive to receive full funding from mid tier schools or higher. Retaking the GRE will also do little to improve chances unless you do dramatically better. I have a friend who took a year off to work a mudlogling job and retake the gre. He ended up doing both and still didn't receive any funding.

Edit: yes, mudlogging can be counted as an O&G job, but no one wants to do that for a living.

 

It's not a guarantee though that you'll land a job in oil right after grad school. If it was then that would be a different story. In my case the GRE kept me out of a lot of schools so improving might help. Overall I see a lot of grad students, including everyone at my current school, who aren't paying a dime for their degree. Wh should I ? I worked hard for four years I shouldn't have to pay either and luckily I won't. That's my opinion though   

[teddybrosevelt]

It's not a guarantee though that you'll land a job in oil right after grad school. If it was then that would be a different story. In my case the GRE kept me out of a lot of schools so improving might help. Overall I see a lot of grad students, including everyone at my current school, who aren't paying a dime for their degree. Wh should I ? I worked hard for four years I shouldn't have to pay either and luckily I won't. That's my opinion though

I think it's pretty unfair to address these issues as if they are simply black or white, Columbia.

For instance, let's say hypothetically you REALLY REALLY wanted to go into O&G and your only admit was to UT-Austin with the caveat that funding for your first semester, or first year, may not be guaranteed. Requiring you to pay out of pocket for some period of time. Let's continue this by saying your hypothetical prof has all sorts of connections with the industry.

Would you not accept this offer?

It's easy to say you wouldn't, sure. But I think what's best for each person individually is what's really important.

[teddybrosevelt]

Also, I was admitted to Indiana Bloomington with full support as an RA. They made me an offer I couldn't refuse

I'm extremely excited and proof that good news can come late in the application season, as all of my admits were in the last 3 weeks!

[SedRocks]

It's not a guarantee though that you'll land a job in oil right after grad school. If it was then that would be a different story. In my case the GRE kept me out of a lot of schools so improving might help. Overall I see a lot of grad students, including everyone at my current school, who aren't paying a dime for their degree. Wh should I ? I worked hard for four years I shouldn't have to pay either and luckily I won't. That's my opinion though

I think the honest truth is that a lot people expect grad school to be paid for fully, but it is more competitive than people think. I personally don't feel another 10k in debt would be that bad considering the 4 years of undergrad that was already spent. Also, the connections many of these schools have is what you are really looking for in a program.

[teddybrosevelt]

I think the honest truth is that a lot people expect grad school to be paid for fully, but it is more competitive than people think. I personally don't feel another 10k in debt would be that bad considering the 4 years of undergrad that was already spent. Also, the connections many of these schools have is what you are really looking for in a program.

Bam! Nailed it!

[GeoDUDE!]

I think the honest truth is that a lot people expect grad school to be paid for fully, but it is more competitive than people think.

 

I don't know what people think. My stats were pretty mediocre and I found a way in, twice. 

 

Thats not to say you shouldn't take the offer. 10k Debt isn't a lot when you compare it to the national average for students, and the market might rebound in a few years.

 

That being said, it really depends on WHAT you do with your masters. People with geophysics backgrounds are still getting hired, but I think its a bit worse for geochem, tectonics and economic geologists.

 

Also, i'd be weary of placing a lot of faith on connections: usually people with good connections to industry also have funding through said industry to give their students.

 

It is really important for anyone to have a plan of how they want to achieve those goals before they enter graduate school. It's not only important for making a decision about where they go, but so they can convey it to their advisor/program so that they can help you achieve these goals. 

Edited April 15, 2015 by GeoDUDE!

[TakeruK]

I think the honest truth is that a lot people expect grad school to be paid for fully, but it is more competitive than people think. I personally don't feel another 10k in debt would be that bad considering the 4 years of undergrad that was already spent. Also, the connections many of these schools have is what you are really looking for in a program.

 

Just to play devil's advocate -- if you aren't competitive enough to get the funded grad school positions now, what makes you think you'll be competitive enough for jobs later?

 

To be clear, I agree that in some specific cases (like the one teddybrosevelt outlined above), choosing to take on (more) debt for the opportunity to earn a lot more later might make sense. This is why lawyers and doctors pay their own way through law and med school.

 

But I don't think it's a sound leap to go from "funding for grad school is really competitive, so I might not get funding now but it will pay off later" because later job searches will also be competitive!