Grad School?

[oyolar]

When I did my statement of purpose, I wrote about what I want to research. That way, it proves to the people in my department that I am capable of creating new problems and questions and that I will be able to contribute something to their body of research and the department itself.

[macgruber]

i kind of screwed the pooch in my last year of school, but i've been working in my field for a couple years. i want to get a MFA in creative writing so i can maybe teach one day, and also have a body of work that I'm committed to finish by a certain date, I just don't know how realistic it would be to think I could even be accepted in an MFA program with less than a 3.5 GPA

[steve]

i kind of screwed the pooch in my last year of school, but i've been working in my field for a couple years. i want to get a MFA in creative writing so i can maybe teach one day, and also have a body of work that I'm committed to finish by a certain date, I just don't know how realistic it would be to think I could even be accepted in an MFA program with less than a 3.5 GPA

jack kerouac school of disembodied poetics at Naropa, in Boulder.... maybe

[Ronald Wilson Reagan]

Gave my thesis presentation last night. I'm done. Fuck yeah.

[Prison Wallet]

Congrats, what was your thesis on?

[Ronald Wilson Reagan]

Thanks man. In just a month I'll be done teaching for the year and its going to be FUCKING AMAZING. My thesis was "Creating an activist community of learners to empower students." I did a research based unit where I had students design and carry out a community service project as a class. The kids decided to renovate a local park, raised the money, figured out how much paint and plants they needed and went and painted over a wall that was covered in graffiti and neither the city nor the business that owned the wall would cover, and planted a bunch of plants in an unused garden. The goal was that supporting them in carrying out something like that would help them understand what they could likely do without me. It was based on a model inspired by the freedom schools.

[Prison Wallet]

^^^Cool stuff. I think project based learning like your park rehab is really valuable for kids.

I just wrote/received a grant to start doing vegetable garden and fruit tree installations in the backyards of low-income families. I'll work with student teams who will do the site design installation work, and we'll provide training for the family, tools, and plants. Then we'll commit to a year of maintenance and consultation.

I think the program has legs because it's a Mexican barrio and it's a step back culturally to what was happening there 40 or 50 years ago. A lot of grandparents still live with their kids, and were of a generation that grew a lot of it's own food.

[pugmaster]

Well, I got accepted to University of Kansas so far.   They have a program where I can get a stipend if I decide to work out there for 2 years after graduation. 

Do stipends fuck up eligibility for financial aide?

I am concerned about being a slave for 2 years just to have guaranteed cash.... anyone have experience with this stuff or apprenticeships or whatever?

[steve]

Well, I got accepted to University of Kansas so far.   They have a program where I can get a stipend if I decide to work out there for 2 years after graduation. 

Do stipends fuck up eligibility for financial aide?

I am concerned about being a slave for 2 years just to have guaranteed cash.... anyone have experience with this stuff or apprenticeships or whatever?

what's this, a TA gig? take it and run with it.

i'm working hard on some research that will lead me into such a situation. the best thing about finishing undergrad a little later that i've been able to become friends with some professors who back me up and endlessly encourage me to take advantage of even the smallest opportunities. It's been been empowering. I enjoy grant money.. hahah

[Random Matt]

Well, I got accepted to University of Kansas so far.   They have a program where I can get a stipend if I decide to work out there for 2 years after graduation. 

Do stipends fuck up eligibility for financial aide?

I am concerned about being a slave for 2 years just to have guaranteed cash.... anyone have experience with this stuff or apprenticeships or whatever?

Congrats on the acceptance.

Stipends will lessen the amount of financial aid you are able to take out, they figure it is money they don't have to help you out on.  Tough decision on staying in Kansas 2 extra years, or you think of it as having a job guaranteed for 2 years after graduation.

[pugmaster]

thats the thing, speech pathology jobs are in high demand all over the nation.  The allure to me, is having a job before I even move out there.  I plan on going for the PhD after the master's so I am thinking that I can use up those two years before i'm even really "done" yadadamean?

[Donkey Lips]

Friend is a speech pathologist at a local school. She gets beat up by gigantic kids with developmental problems all the time, goes home, and still comes back to work the next morning. Everything from kids biting and scratching her for no reason, to kids that don't know their own strength, just going nuts on her. I have no fucking clue who she does it. One of the gnarlier jobs I've heard of. Must be one hell of a pay of when  you can connect with a kid and break new ground for them.

[pugmaster]

Thats what is so sick about it.  Being able to give someone a voice (as cliche as it sounds), is pretty heavy.  The behavioral problems are not exactly fun to deal with, but when you can help a person express themselves it can diminish the frequency and intensity of them.  I wanted to be a behavioral therapist but I knew that in order to be effective I would have to understand the communication disorder itself.  In addition to the rewarding nature of the profession and creativity it allows you to use, it does pay decently.  LAUSD starts off at 60k I know, and then you get increases with the more experience you have. 

One really gnarly professor that is an international authority on a certain topic at my school (specific language impairment) makes like 250k.  Plus benefits and all that no matter where you work.  If anyone is interested I highly recommend checking out speech pathology as a career. It is a "recession" proof type of thing and the most job growth is estimated to be working with older adults (aging baby boomers having strokes/ traumatic brain injuries, Etc) but they are ALWAYS looking for people in the schools.

For whatever reason, there are few men in the field.  95-98% of every class is female. 

If you do go down the speech path route, make sure you don't try to start dickin' em all down because once you hook up with 1 then word travels like wildfire and might screw you in the long run.  At least wait till AFTER graduation.

[pugmaster]

btw I DID end up taking the stipend program.  Thanks again SLAP PALS for all your insight throughout this process.

[HairyCunt]

You can make 300k a year in the oil fields with a high school education and have 4 months off a year to blow on whores, travel, and whatever else you like...good luck with your creative writing MFA.  

[brycickle]

Yeah dude. Good luck being happy doing what you enjoy doing for work. Fucking dweeb.

[Fairy Boy]

Yeah dude. Good luck being happy doing what you enjoy doing for work. Fucking dweeb.

Please don't feed the troll.

btw I DID end up taking the stipend program.  Thanks again SLAP PALS for all your insight throughout this process.

Pugmaster, congrats on the decision and on having such a strongly developed purpose, I envy that greatly. I hope Kansas doesn't suck too much!

Has anyone had the experience of not being able to choose a field of graduate study because virtually everything seems interesting in the right context, then somehow making a decision despite your indecisiveness?

[HairyCunt]

Yeah dude. Good luck being happy doing what you enjoy doing for work. Fucking dweeb.

That's more cliched than the idea of doing something "just for the money"

[brycickle]

[pugmaster]

You can make 300k a year in the oil fields with a high school education and have 4 months off a year to blow on whores, travel, and whatever else you like...good luck with your creative writing MFA.  

I was not trying to say I will be making anywhere near 250k, I included the pay range because I know people usually ask about that.  Its like assuming you are going to be a millionaire pro skateboarder simply because of P-rod's well endowed checks.  To be honest I am looking forward to making anything above 20k.  Goodbye spaghetti, top ramen, and oatmeal! On second thought, i'll keep the ramen.

[steve]

Pug- congrats on getting it done!

I'm in a situation similar to where you were when starting this thread. I finished my BA in English this July and am looking at grad programs for next year. I've got a solid GPA, a CV with grants, research, and presentations, and some professors who are going to write bang up rec letters. Part of me feels that getting into a program is on lock, as long as I do well with the statement of purpose, but at the same time I'm bugging out over assistant/fellowships.

I gave a paper at one school in April and it's where I really hope to get into, but otherwise, I'm not so sure of where I would like to go.
What do you guys think about applying to bigger v. smaller schools as far as acceptance, money, place, faculty, etc?

[5barsdeep]

i kind of screwed the pooch in my last year of school, but i've been working in my field for a couple years. i want to get a MFA in creative writing so i can maybe teach one day, and also have a body of work that I'm committed to finish by a certain date, I just don't know how realistic it would be to think I could even be accepted in an MFA program with less than a 3.5 GPA

You've got a chanve bro. I know folks who have gotten into top tier schools with under 3.5 in fields like econ and law. Do you have to take the GRE for MFA or is it completely different? Just don't give up if thats your thing man.

[pugmaster]

Pug- congrats on getting it done!

I'm in a situation similar to where you were when starting this thread. I finished my BA in English this July and am looking at grad programs for next year. I've got a solid GPA, a CV with grants, research, and presentations, and some professors who are going to write bang up rec letters. Part of me feels that getting into a program is on lock, as long as I do well with the statement of purpose, but at the same time I'm bugging out over assistant/fellowships.

I gave a paper at one school in April and it's where I really hope to get into, but otherwise, I'm not so sure of where I would like to go.
What do you guys think about applying to bigger v. smaller schools as far as acceptance, money, place, faculty, etc?

I would try to find information on how different programs rank within your discipline. Also, research research.  What I mean by that is, look at the research that faculty members of different departments have done (or more importantly) are currently doing.  This can be found under the "faculty" section of the departments website.  When you find some schools that look interesting, email the professors and ask them (if you didn't already find an answer) your questions.  I'd keep it concise as possible but they usually respond within a day or two.  

Thanks btw! 

[UgolinoTheSignificant]

bumping this thread cause i got accepted into a top program for optics and am psyched to change gears as far as careers go, starting in the fall

[steve]

anyone know much about the University of New Orleans? I've been in contact with the director of the English MA and he's encouraging me to head that way. It seems that I qualify for a grant that will give me instate rates around 5800/year.

[weedpop]

Why? Because it was fun? Or was your degree a masters in skateboard journalism? Unless yo plan on going into a high paying, expanding field Grad school just seems like a huge gamble to me - that is unless you have enough money to pay for it without taking out student loans.

[pugmaster]

Tell em' brink


I have some related questions, is the deferment process of student loans following graduation difficult?

Also, how did your dept evaluate you?  We have grades, but now we also have a portfolio thing that we are supposed to add "artifacts" to and present on at certain times throughout the second year.

Finally,  do you have any particular tips that you wish someone would have told you at the outset of your grad school experience?

[pugmaster]

Thanks brink,


I had no intentions of going to college until I was I was about 21 and I agree, when you are interested in the material it makes all the difference in the world. 


I was unaware about your responses to those specific questions in other interviews, I'll have to check them out.

[steve]

Expand Quote

Why? Because it was fun? Or was your degree a masters in skateboard journalism? Unless yo plan on going into a high paying, expanding field Grad school just seems like a huge gamble to me - that is unless you have enough money to pay for it without taking out student loans.

[close]

It was fun actually. And I learned a lot. It was a huge turning point in my life where I shifted from dreading school to enjoying it and learning honing skills and discovering what I loved doing ... I gained a lot of confidence there too.

Coincidentally, I had a professor who got me my first publishing job as well, which was an amazing foot in the door.

What I learned there and in grad school are skills that apply to what I do every day in my career.

My Master's is not in "skateboarding journalism ... it's in English (Writing concentration), as opposed to Literature. I went to a smaller university in NJ. Nothing extravagant. Wasn't too much money. The school doesnt mater, its what you do with what you learn that does.

Any money you spend will come back to you 10 fold if you handle it right. If you view grad school as a risk or are skeptical, then you probably won't go into it with the right attitude and perhaps it wouldn't work for you. That part is entirely up to you. You determine your own level of success and the success of your degree.

Could it happen without a master's ... sure. But for many reasons, as I said before, it was one of the best things I ever did.

As for "risk" ... well, I'm sure you are taking risks daily. We all are. And sometimes risk is a huge part of success, growth, evolution ...

If I didn't go to grad school I'd never be where I am now. No way.

did you get an MA with a writing concentration or the MFA? I've debated the MFA process for a while, I've got some poetry published, but I'm leaning toward the MA with a focus in literature. When I went back to school as an undergrad at 25 a new world of working with literature was opened, and that is, using literature and complimentary primary source documents as, as is the subject of Elizabeth Ammons book Brave New Words: How Literature can Save the Planet,"an activist teaching tool as opposed to traditional literary criticism. I'm psyched.

Tell em' brink


I have some related questions, is the deferment process of student loans following graduation difficult?

Also, how did your dept evaluate you?  We have grades, but now we also have a portfolio thing that we are supposed to add "artifacts" to and present on at certain times throughout the second year.

Finally,  do you have any particular tips that you wish someone would have told you at the outset of your grad school experience?

Depending on what kind of loans you've got, there's no reason for a deferment. If they're Fed loans anyways, it's possible to get linked into an income based repayment plan where you will pay according to how much dough you make over the next 20 years. If you make very little you can pay NOTHING and it will count toward a payment. I think that works for up to 3 years. Then there's another sweet deal, well as sweet as US loan repayment can be, concerning the type of work that you do. If working for a non-profit or in public service (teaching school, university, comm college, police...) you may qualify for the 10 year repayment/loan forgiveness program. In this program, if you make 10 years of payments, your remaining debt will be forgiven. This plan can be coupled with the income based repayment plan, and feasibly, you will pay far less on your loans than you owe. Call the lender too, the service techs are much easier to work with than the website. 

[formeitscrazylike]

Posts are too long to sift through all of them, but does anyone have any info on grad school in math/physics/neuro/engineering?

I got no problem at all working like a savage, I've grown well accustomed to it. But I'd hate to invest a bunch of time/money into something that either won't pan out or isn't worth it.

I'm not talking right after graduation though, I plan on working for years before even thinking about it, I just wanna make sure I can keep the learning ball rolling. It'd be a fucking shame if I did shit work after college and all my strength in math just atrophied away.