On the next five months
So, my plan was to wait until I had all my cards on the table, and then post an update talking about them. But alas, it's a week into March and I still haven't heard back from Georgetown, so I'm still waiting for that before I seriously start making decisions.
As it stands now:
UCSB: Accepted. Funding is pending; they told me I was a strong candidate for funding but were afraid I may decide not to attend even if they offered me money because I mentioned Aaron being unable to get a job down there. I made it very clear that a large funding offer would exponentially increase my chances of attending, because:
Pittsburgh: Accepted. No department-internal funding. I got my acceptance via an email from my prospective advisor last Monday, saying that official information was being mailed to me, including deadlines, etc. However, that still hasn't come in, and I don't know if 'department-internal' funding also means there aren't TA-ships, etc. or if I'd be able to teach and get funding that way - which is something that I really want to be doing anyway, especially since I have 4 or 5 classes that will transfer, giving me some space in my schedule to have time for teaching without getting overwhelmed.
Stanford: Rejected. I don't remember if I mentioned that last time or not. It was expected, and I'm not bothered by it. The only thing that this rejection solidified is that in five months, I won't be living in the Bay Area. Where I will actually be is the next challenge, based on the response from:
Georgetown: Forthcoming. My classmates who applied there have all gotten their rejections from Georgetown, and yet I still haven't heard anything. The consensus is that I'm on the cusp of being accepted, and I can't imagine what the hold-up actually is, but I'm hoping I hear back from them soon. I keep thinking about e-mailing them to ask, but their website said notification will happen by mid-March, and since its not actually mid-March yet, I'm waiting another week or so before I try to get in touch with them.
As for the other stuff that is happening in my life, my workload for the semester has picked up a little bit, now that the class I'm TA-ing for has had a few assignments that I've been grading, and I've done some lectures, and there are actual assignments in the other class I'm taking. However, I still have way too much free time, and am looking for a part time job to help fill the time and save up for an impending move come August. The problem is that the jobs that are becoming available are very specialised, and the run-of-the-mill part time jobs that used to be so easy to find are virtually non-existent. I've found several openings for Retail Management, which would be great given my extensive experience, but I can't manage a 40+ hour work week on top of school right now. As a result, I applied for Unemployment Benefits this week, since my last job was ended by the parent company, leaving me without any work shifts available. I should hopefully qualify for something, which will allow me to continue looking for jobs without stressing about if I'm going to actually find something or not. It's been getting pretty ridiculous - I've gone to a few interviews, sent my resume out to several places, and haven't heard back a single time. Never before in my life has it taken me more than a week to find a new job when I needed one. It's pretty crazy. We'll see what happens with that. I'm hoping that people will be starting to hire for the summer season in the next month or two, which would hopefully increase my chances of finding something.
As it stands now:
UCSB: Accepted. Funding is pending; they told me I was a strong candidate for funding but were afraid I may decide not to attend even if they offered me money because I mentioned Aaron being unable to get a job down there. I made it very clear that a large funding offer would exponentially increase my chances of attending, because:
Pittsburgh: Accepted. No department-internal funding. I got my acceptance via an email from my prospective advisor last Monday, saying that official information was being mailed to me, including deadlines, etc. However, that still hasn't come in, and I don't know if 'department-internal' funding also means there aren't TA-ships, etc. or if I'd be able to teach and get funding that way - which is something that I really want to be doing anyway, especially since I have 4 or 5 classes that will transfer, giving me some space in my schedule to have time for teaching without getting overwhelmed.
Stanford: Rejected. I don't remember if I mentioned that last time or not. It was expected, and I'm not bothered by it. The only thing that this rejection solidified is that in five months, I won't be living in the Bay Area. Where I will actually be is the next challenge, based on the response from:
Georgetown: Forthcoming. My classmates who applied there have all gotten their rejections from Georgetown, and yet I still haven't heard anything. The consensus is that I'm on the cusp of being accepted, and I can't imagine what the hold-up actually is, but I'm hoping I hear back from them soon. I keep thinking about e-mailing them to ask, but their website said notification will happen by mid-March, and since its not actually mid-March yet, I'm waiting another week or so before I try to get in touch with them.
As for the other stuff that is happening in my life, my workload for the semester has picked up a little bit, now that the class I'm TA-ing for has had a few assignments that I've been grading, and I've done some lectures, and there are actual assignments in the other class I'm taking. However, I still have way too much free time, and am looking for a part time job to help fill the time and save up for an impending move come August. The problem is that the jobs that are becoming available are very specialised, and the run-of-the-mill part time jobs that used to be so easy to find are virtually non-existent. I've found several openings for Retail Management, which would be great given my extensive experience, but I can't manage a 40+ hour work week on top of school right now. As a result, I applied for Unemployment Benefits this week, since my last job was ended by the parent company, leaving me without any work shifts available. I should hopefully qualify for something, which will allow me to continue looking for jobs without stressing about if I'm going to actually find something or not. It's been getting pretty ridiculous - I've gone to a few interviews, sent my resume out to several places, and haven't heard back a single time. Never before in my life has it taken me more than a week to find a new job when I needed one. It's pretty crazy. We'll see what happens with that. I'm hoping that people will be starting to hire for the summer season in the next month or two, which would hopefully increase my chances of finding something.