Well, the general response from people is that Beam Reach sounds like quite the opportunity! I definitely agree. It is. I get excited thinking about it. Sooo.... this weekend will be spent working on the application. Granted, the application is only my contact info and a paragraph as to why I want to participate, but I feel like it has to be one damn good paragraph for them to accept me!
This of course does raise other questions. I need to figure out the financial side of this. Questions such as "how long will I stay at Concordia?" and "will my loans go back into deferment?" and "who will give me another loan to pay for it?" are all going to come into play. Money is something that really makes me nervous... and a bit excited. I like trying to figure out my finances and how to save my money, but at the same time, it freaks me out because I have so many loans to pay back. Thank you Concordia. You have taught me many things, not the least of which is how expensive a private education is!
I wouldn't take it back. For all you Concordians reading this, I'm not complaining about my time there. I'm just complaining about my money (or lack thereof).
Hopefully, with completing the Beam Reach program, I will have a better idea of what I want to do. I'm assuming that one of two things will come out of it.
1) I will love it, and love research (or tolerate research), and will make enough connections with the UW campus that I can find a professor to supervise me for a MS or PhD.
2) I will discover I don't like research, but can still use this for my resume and hopefully network enough to get a job in the field.
I shall keep everyone updated!
29 December 2010
13 December 2010
A Potential Solution
So if you read my last post, you'll know that I had a big decision to make about whether or not to go forward with grad school. While I haven't really made a decision, I think I've found something that will help me decide!
Back in October, I went to a fundraiser for Killer Whale Tales, this non-profit group in Seattle. They. Are. AWESOME. I want to work for them one day, and they are seriously some of the nicest people I've ever met. I am SO glad that I went to it! One of the girls I was introduced to, Libby, told me about a program called Beam Reach, offered through University of Washington. It is a 10-week program up in the San Juan Islands that gives me college credit, allows me to live on a sailboat and learn to sail, and gives me firsthand experience in a research setting. I believe that Beam Reach would give me a good idea of whether or not I could commit to a research program. Plus, I would hope that it would have the added benefit of networking me with some of researchers, professors, and students that would be necessary for picking a grad program. Libby had nothing but great things to say about it, and mentioned that this program helped guide her in what she wanted to do.
If I participated, I would go for the Fall 2011 session, which would run from roughly August 22nd - October 28th. This would be great because it would allow me to continue to work at Concordia for a bit over the summer to continue to save money, as well as finish in time to apply for graduate schools to start Fall 2012.
It does cost a bit of money, so I'd probably have to take out another loan. But let's face it. I'm going to be paying back loans until I die anyway, so I may as well invest in a program that is going to help me make a decision, give me experience, and give me networking tools.
The more people I talk to about it, the more affirmation I get that this is a good decision. Thoughts from you guys?
Back in October, I went to a fundraiser for Killer Whale Tales, this non-profit group in Seattle. They. Are. AWESOME. I want to work for them one day, and they are seriously some of the nicest people I've ever met. I am SO glad that I went to it! One of the girls I was introduced to, Libby, told me about a program called Beam Reach, offered through University of Washington. It is a 10-week program up in the San Juan Islands that gives me college credit, allows me to live on a sailboat and learn to sail, and gives me firsthand experience in a research setting. I believe that Beam Reach would give me a good idea of whether or not I could commit to a research program. Plus, I would hope that it would have the added benefit of networking me with some of researchers, professors, and students that would be necessary for picking a grad program. Libby had nothing but great things to say about it, and mentioned that this program helped guide her in what she wanted to do.
If I participated, I would go for the Fall 2011 session, which would run from roughly August 22nd - October 28th. This would be great because it would allow me to continue to work at Concordia for a bit over the summer to continue to save money, as well as finish in time to apply for graduate schools to start Fall 2012.
It does cost a bit of money, so I'd probably have to take out another loan. But let's face it. I'm going to be paying back loans until I die anyway, so I may as well invest in a program that is going to help me make a decision, give me experience, and give me networking tools.
The more people I talk to about it, the more affirmation I get that this is a good decision. Thoughts from you guys?
29 November 2010
Decisions Decisions...
I've never been good at decisions. In fact, I hate making big life decisions. Choosing a college was difficult enough. Now I have to decide what I want to do with my life? Ugh.
This is why I haven't posted in a while. Part of me feels like committing to a graduate program feels like I'm signing on for a career (and if I go into a research program, that means a career in research), and I don't feel like any 23-year-old should be in a career. I'm still at a job, but a career sounds so permanent. I don't like that. It makes me nervous. Another part of me wants to be financially settled, and a career would certainly lend a helping hand to that cause. So I long for a career, but I fear it.
After my meeting with the WWU professor, I went back to my job in Portland. One of the professors here, whom I respect and admire, asked me how my interview went, and I described it for him as I did for you. He was a bit shocked that it was only for a master's degree. He has been saying for 2 1/2 years now that I shouldn't be in a master's program, but should go right into a PhD program. Fun fact about science: You don't always need a masters to do a PhD. I could go straight into a PhD program if I found the right fit. Dr. P. said it's ultimately my decision about what program I go into, but he feels that if I'm going to earn another degree, I may as well invest the time and energy into a doctorate rather than a master's. Makes sense, right?
NO! It's even more intimidating! A doctorate means 5-6 years of study, for one project, and a fairly clear idea of what to do afterwards. I mean, it does make sense that if I'm going to go back to school, it should be for something that I want to spend a lot of time doing. If I were to go back, I would really like a research project to be focused on killer whales. That is the whole point of going back. If I went to WWU, I don't know that I would get to do research about whales. It'd probably end up being seals, sea lions, or something else. Great experience, but not what I want to do.
So now I still have to figure out what I'm going to do. I was hoping to meet with Jeff again from Killer Whale Tales to talk about how to get plugged into the whale world (for lack of a better description). Sadly, it may have to wait until after Christmas, if not in January.
Right now, I'm still not jazzed about the idea of jumping into research. I'll probably end up not applying this year. Again. And I'm trying to figure out what I want to do. Perhaps I should change the title of this blog to "Ashley Searches for a Career!"
My mom and I discussed the idea of veterinary school, which could be interesting. If I did that, I would want to focus on exotics and eventually work in a zoo, aquarium, or working in wildlife rehabilitation. Think oil spill rescue work. I'm also looking at education (think Pacific Science Center/OMSI) or even volunteer coordinator (organizing volunteers at places like zoos, etc.). I dunno! I'll definitely be spending time researching careers and job searching.
Thanks for reading! Thoughts/opinions from faithful friends? :)
This is why I haven't posted in a while. Part of me feels like committing to a graduate program feels like I'm signing on for a career (and if I go into a research program, that means a career in research), and I don't feel like any 23-year-old should be in a career. I'm still at a job, but a career sounds so permanent. I don't like that. It makes me nervous. Another part of me wants to be financially settled, and a career would certainly lend a helping hand to that cause. So I long for a career, but I fear it.
After my meeting with the WWU professor, I went back to my job in Portland. One of the professors here, whom I respect and admire, asked me how my interview went, and I described it for him as I did for you. He was a bit shocked that it was only for a master's degree. He has been saying for 2 1/2 years now that I shouldn't be in a master's program, but should go right into a PhD program. Fun fact about science: You don't always need a masters to do a PhD. I could go straight into a PhD program if I found the right fit. Dr. P. said it's ultimately my decision about what program I go into, but he feels that if I'm going to earn another degree, I may as well invest the time and energy into a doctorate rather than a master's. Makes sense, right?
NO! It's even more intimidating! A doctorate means 5-6 years of study, for one project, and a fairly clear idea of what to do afterwards. I mean, it does make sense that if I'm going to go back to school, it should be for something that I want to spend a lot of time doing. If I were to go back, I would really like a research project to be focused on killer whales. That is the whole point of going back. If I went to WWU, I don't know that I would get to do research about whales. It'd probably end up being seals, sea lions, or something else. Great experience, but not what I want to do.
So now I still have to figure out what I'm going to do. I was hoping to meet with Jeff again from Killer Whale Tales to talk about how to get plugged into the whale world (for lack of a better description). Sadly, it may have to wait until after Christmas, if not in January.
Right now, I'm still not jazzed about the idea of jumping into research. I'll probably end up not applying this year. Again. And I'm trying to figure out what I want to do. Perhaps I should change the title of this blog to "Ashley Searches for a Career!"
My mom and I discussed the idea of veterinary school, which could be interesting. If I did that, I would want to focus on exotics and eventually work in a zoo, aquarium, or working in wildlife rehabilitation. Think oil spill rescue work. I'm also looking at education (think Pacific Science Center/OMSI) or even volunteer coordinator (organizing volunteers at places like zoos, etc.). I dunno! I'll definitely be spending time researching careers and job searching.
Thanks for reading! Thoughts/opinions from faithful friends? :)
03 November 2010
Meeting with a Prof
DISCLAIMER: This post is long.
I met with a potential advisor on Monday. I decided that meeting new people in a new setting is rather stressful. My mom was surprised to hear that. I guess she sees me as a social, outgoing person, which I might be, but I think it's only in a comfortable setting. For instance, I'm outgoing in my job because I know what I'm talking about and I'm confident in my position. Anyways, I digress.
I think the meeting with the professor went well. His name is Dr. Alejandro Acevedo, and he is a biology professor at Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA. He was very nice and informative, so I'm just going to share some of the info he gave me.
The first big thing we talked about was the differences between different schools. I told him that I am also looking at Oregon State and University of Washington, which are considerably bigger than WWU. He told me that at a bigger university, professors have a higher obligation and expectation to be involved in research. They will be applying for bigger grants, have more research going on, and will most likely not be too involved with their students' research. It will most likely be a post-doc working closely with me. At a smaller university, like WWU, the professors are expected to teach more than at a bigger university. They are definitely expected to be involved with research, but they will also teach, and thus going to a smaller school like WWU would result in working with a prof in more of a mentor role. (I like this!)
The next big thing we discussed was funding. He said that if I were a student of his, I would work during the school year as a Teaching Assistant (TA) to fund my program. However, right now he does not have any grant money to fund a student over the summer. So that would be something I need to consider when I decide if I want to apply. It would be kind of a risk to apply and go to Western but then have no funding for summer. And depending on the grant, he said that my research could go one of two ways. If he gets no funding, then I could develop a thesis based on what I want and what his expertise is (what he would be willing to supervise). However, if he gets a grant, it could dictate specific research projects. (Side note: I actually had a dream last night that he sent me an email saying he did not get any funding. GAH!)
After that, he wanted to know a bit about me, especially in what kind of experience I have. I don't have research experience, and I don't have as many upper-division biology classes, but I do have organizational skills and time management. He said at one point that he would rather take a good student with good timelines than a brilliant student that he couldn't work with. It is one of the reasons he likes to meet his potential students in person. He wants to see if he could work with that student: can they take criticism, are they afraid to ask questions, do they speak articulately? I hope that he liked me based on those questions!
I had a hard time being able to tell if he liked me or not. He spoke in rather neutral terms like "a student I would work with would do this..." rather than "you would do this." I also felt like I was rather quiet, rather than my usual talkative self.
He said that he would like all of his potential students to let him know in December what their intentions are in regards to actually applying to Western. If I process all the info he gave me and decide that I would still like to apply, email him and let him know so that he can decide if he wants to take me on as a student.
I'm pretty sure that I want to apply to go there. I'll need to go through stuff and make sure it's really something I would want to commit myself to for 2 years. But that is another post for another day. :)
I met with a potential advisor on Monday. I decided that meeting new people in a new setting is rather stressful. My mom was surprised to hear that. I guess she sees me as a social, outgoing person, which I might be, but I think it's only in a comfortable setting. For instance, I'm outgoing in my job because I know what I'm talking about and I'm confident in my position. Anyways, I digress.
I think the meeting with the professor went well. His name is Dr. Alejandro Acevedo, and he is a biology professor at Western Washington University in Bellingham, WA. He was very nice and informative, so I'm just going to share some of the info he gave me.
The first big thing we talked about was the differences between different schools. I told him that I am also looking at Oregon State and University of Washington, which are considerably bigger than WWU. He told me that at a bigger university, professors have a higher obligation and expectation to be involved in research. They will be applying for bigger grants, have more research going on, and will most likely not be too involved with their students' research. It will most likely be a post-doc working closely with me. At a smaller university, like WWU, the professors are expected to teach more than at a bigger university. They are definitely expected to be involved with research, but they will also teach, and thus going to a smaller school like WWU would result in working with a prof in more of a mentor role. (I like this!)
The next big thing we discussed was funding. He said that if I were a student of his, I would work during the school year as a Teaching Assistant (TA) to fund my program. However, right now he does not have any grant money to fund a student over the summer. So that would be something I need to consider when I decide if I want to apply. It would be kind of a risk to apply and go to Western but then have no funding for summer. And depending on the grant, he said that my research could go one of two ways. If he gets no funding, then I could develop a thesis based on what I want and what his expertise is (what he would be willing to supervise). However, if he gets a grant, it could dictate specific research projects. (Side note: I actually had a dream last night that he sent me an email saying he did not get any funding. GAH!)
After that, he wanted to know a bit about me, especially in what kind of experience I have. I don't have research experience, and I don't have as many upper-division biology classes, but I do have organizational skills and time management. He said at one point that he would rather take a good student with good timelines than a brilliant student that he couldn't work with. It is one of the reasons he likes to meet his potential students in person. He wants to see if he could work with that student: can they take criticism, are they afraid to ask questions, do they speak articulately? I hope that he liked me based on those questions!
I had a hard time being able to tell if he liked me or not. He spoke in rather neutral terms like "a student I would work with would do this..." rather than "you would do this." I also felt like I was rather quiet, rather than my usual talkative self.
He said that he would like all of his potential students to let him know in December what their intentions are in regards to actually applying to Western. If I process all the info he gave me and decide that I would still like to apply, email him and let him know so that he can decide if he wants to take me on as a student.
I'm pretty sure that I want to apply to go there. I'll need to go through stuff and make sure it's really something I would want to commit myself to for 2 years. But that is another post for another day. :)
31 October 2010
GRE Results
Well, I took the GRE on Friday the 29th. To be quite honest, it didn't go as well as I had hoped. My verbal score went up from last year, but not by a huge amount, and my math score actually went down (which was quite disappointing). Since it's on the computer, it automatically gives you the raw score when you are finished with the math and verbal, but it takes 2-3 weeks for the writing sections to be scored. I felt like my essays were far better this year now that I have a better understanding of what they are looking for in these essays, so hopefully those scores went up. I'm also hoping that my percentile scores went up from last year.
I certainly felt more prepared than I did last year, but it was also more important to me this year. I don't know. Regardless, it's behind me and I really doubt it will be the make-it-or-break-it part of my application.
Today, I am spending some time with puppies on my lap, reading up on the professor I'm going to meet with tomorrow. I'll definitely post another update about that tomorrow night... maybe Tuesday night. Wish me luck!
I certainly felt more prepared than I did last year, but it was also more important to me this year. I don't know. Regardless, it's behind me and I really doubt it will be the make-it-or-break-it part of my application.
Today, I am spending some time with puppies on my lap, reading up on the professor I'm going to meet with tomorrow. I'll definitely post another update about that tomorrow night... maybe Tuesday night. Wish me luck!
21 October 2010
GRE Merriment
This title is actually fairly sarcastic. "Merriment" does not classify my mood with the GRE right now. I've spent every night this week studying for the GRE, and I can't tell if I feel more prepared or less prepared. I'm definitely psyching myself out with the practice questions. I feel like there is so much I don't know, but in reality, I could be doing better than I think. It's something I was talking about in a staff meeting in regards to my students. Students have a fantastic way of psyching themselves out, thinking that nothing they do is good enough, which is why they start to fall behind. I think I'm eating my words right now. I'm not immune to this, as much as I would like to believe that I am!
However, I do find that I have weird little tricks to help me learn new vocab words. My current favorite is putting a "GRE Word of the Day" up on Facebook. Just by posting it and seeing it every time I open Facebook helps to reiterate the definition. Plus it's kind of fun, which always helps make things stick in my head.
I'm also using my timeless technique of flashcards. I'm such a fan of flashcards. I keep telling my students that it is one of the best ways to learn because you can take it everywhere!
Last night I worked on math. I like math. I enjoy algebra and geometry is kind of fun. But I hate fractions and decimals and patterns. I've never been good with these. I had a really terrible 4th grade teacher, so when it comes to certain fundamental skills, I have none. I don't know how to solve decimal problems to save my life. And I have the weirdest multiplication technique ever. Ask me sometime and I'll show you. Therefore learning these skills right now is killing me. Tonight I plan to spend a good 5 hours in the library, brushing up on my math. Woo-hoo.
However, I do find that I have weird little tricks to help me learn new vocab words. My current favorite is putting a "GRE Word of the Day" up on Facebook. Just by posting it and seeing it every time I open Facebook helps to reiterate the definition. Plus it's kind of fun, which always helps make things stick in my head.
I'm also using my timeless technique of flashcards. I'm such a fan of flashcards. I keep telling my students that it is one of the best ways to learn because you can take it everywhere!
Last night I worked on math. I like math. I enjoy algebra and geometry is kind of fun. But I hate fractions and decimals and patterns. I've never been good with these. I had a really terrible 4th grade teacher, so when it comes to certain fundamental skills, I have none. I don't know how to solve decimal problems to save my life. And I have the weirdest multiplication technique ever. Ask me sometime and I'll show you. Therefore learning these skills right now is killing me. Tonight I plan to spend a good 5 hours in the library, brushing up on my math. Woo-hoo.
18 October 2010
Good Stuff!
GRE Word of the Day:
erudite (adj)--having or showing great knowledge in learning
True story, I just picked that word out of a list from my study book, not knowing the definition. And I have to say, it is quite appropriate for studying!
Oh, there is lots of good stuff going on right now!
FIRST: I have a meeting with Dr. Alejandro Acevedo from Western Washington on November 1st! He received my information that I sent him last Friday, and he responded saying that my application is not as strong as others, but he liked my ideas for research projects! That's really exciting. So between now and then I will be reading some of his articles of recent research, and I will be spending time articulating what exactly I would like to research so that this meeting can go well. Yay for Bellingham!
SECOND: My Saturday night adventure at the Killer Whale Tales fundraiser was amazing. I got to meet the director, Jeff Hogan, who is just awesome. He is incredibly nice, remembered my name every time he saw me, and introduced me to two current graduate students at the University of Washington. Also, thanks to my amazing parents, I get to have a meeting with him. This fundraiser was an auction, so they bought me one of the items, which was to pick out one of Jeff's pictures for him to professionally print for me. He has a library of about 27,000 pictures! Plus, I get to pick his brain about how to get plugged into the killer whale world (for lack of a better term) and how to get into a career that I would actually want to do.
Ideally, my career path would lead me to an organization like Killer Whale Tales. I would love to work as a naturalist and educator, teaching people about whales, the Pacific Northwest ecology, and conservation. I think I like this idea best because I would still get to be a semi-student, keeping up with all of the latest research, but I also get to interact with people.
THIRD: I am now looking into the School of Marine Affairs at University of Washington. The two ladies I talked to at the KWT fundraiser were students through that program and both of them really like it, so I'm considering this as an option as well.
One of the most important things that I've learned, which was always lingering in the back of my mind, is that volunteer experience is probably going to be the deciding factor in getting into a program I want. This won't necessarily be because I need volunteer experience as a pre-requisite to admission, but because volunteering will establish the contacts and networking web that I need. This means that if I don't get into grad school this year, I will probably still quit Concordia and move up north to Seattle or Bellingham. I will probably end up working some place like Starbucks (ahem, Tara, that would be great!) where I could make enough money to pay rent, but focus a lot of my free time in volunteering.
Decisions to be made later! For now, back to studying GRE words.
erudite (adj)--having or showing great knowledge in learning
True story, I just picked that word out of a list from my study book, not knowing the definition. And I have to say, it is quite appropriate for studying!
Oh, there is lots of good stuff going on right now!
FIRST: I have a meeting with Dr. Alejandro Acevedo from Western Washington on November 1st! He received my information that I sent him last Friday, and he responded saying that my application is not as strong as others, but he liked my ideas for research projects! That's really exciting. So between now and then I will be reading some of his articles of recent research, and I will be spending time articulating what exactly I would like to research so that this meeting can go well. Yay for Bellingham!
SECOND: My Saturday night adventure at the Killer Whale Tales fundraiser was amazing. I got to meet the director, Jeff Hogan, who is just awesome. He is incredibly nice, remembered my name every time he saw me, and introduced me to two current graduate students at the University of Washington. Also, thanks to my amazing parents, I get to have a meeting with him. This fundraiser was an auction, so they bought me one of the items, which was to pick out one of Jeff's pictures for him to professionally print for me. He has a library of about 27,000 pictures! Plus, I get to pick his brain about how to get plugged into the killer whale world (for lack of a better term) and how to get into a career that I would actually want to do.
Ideally, my career path would lead me to an organization like Killer Whale Tales. I would love to work as a naturalist and educator, teaching people about whales, the Pacific Northwest ecology, and conservation. I think I like this idea best because I would still get to be a semi-student, keeping up with all of the latest research, but I also get to interact with people.
THIRD: I am now looking into the School of Marine Affairs at University of Washington. The two ladies I talked to at the KWT fundraiser were students through that program and both of them really like it, so I'm considering this as an option as well.
One of the most important things that I've learned, which was always lingering in the back of my mind, is that volunteer experience is probably going to be the deciding factor in getting into a program I want. This won't necessarily be because I need volunteer experience as a pre-requisite to admission, but because volunteering will establish the contacts and networking web that I need. This means that if I don't get into grad school this year, I will probably still quit Concordia and move up north to Seattle or Bellingham. I will probably end up working some place like Starbucks (ahem, Tara, that would be great!) where I could make enough money to pay rent, but focus a lot of my free time in volunteering.
Decisions to be made later! For now, back to studying GRE words.
15 October 2010
Update
Newest update: I have registered for the GRE. I'm going to be retaking it on October 29th. That means it is definitely time to get my butt in gear and study for it!
Also, I just sent my information to Dr. Shawn Rowe (OSU guy) and Dr. Alejandra Acevedo (WWU) guy. This info includes my transcripts, GRE scores (embarrassing), references, resume, and a 2-page introduction of my career goals and research interests. Shout out to Holly Goodrich for helping me edit that! I really appreciate it!!
Hopefully I will get a reply back from one (if not both) of those professors.
A little off-topic, but still really exciting! This weekend I am going to a fundraiser for Killer Whale Tales with my parents! I'm so excited for this. Killer Whale Tales is a non-profit organization that goes to schools around Washington educating kids about killer whales, salmon, and their environment. Just looking at this website, it looks like my dream job. When I was at Concordia, I worked with the Audubon Society for my senior practicum, and I got to go to elementary schools in the Portland area with an environmental educator from Audubon to teach kids about Pacific NW animals. We brought in birds skeletons and wings and animal pelts and just talked about the different ecosystems. It was AWESOME. So if I were to ever work with KWT, I would get to do the same thing, but for WHALES! Hence, dream job.
The idea is to go to the fundraiser and hopefully talk with the director, Jeff Hogan, about what I would need to do to get a job there. Wish me luck on that one!
Also, I just sent my information to Dr. Shawn Rowe (OSU guy) and Dr. Alejandra Acevedo (WWU) guy. This info includes my transcripts, GRE scores (embarrassing), references, resume, and a 2-page introduction of my career goals and research interests. Shout out to Holly Goodrich for helping me edit that! I really appreciate it!!
Hopefully I will get a reply back from one (if not both) of those professors.
A little off-topic, but still really exciting! This weekend I am going to a fundraiser for Killer Whale Tales with my parents! I'm so excited for this. Killer Whale Tales is a non-profit organization that goes to schools around Washington educating kids about killer whales, salmon, and their environment. Just looking at this website, it looks like my dream job. When I was at Concordia, I worked with the Audubon Society for my senior practicum, and I got to go to elementary schools in the Portland area with an environmental educator from Audubon to teach kids about Pacific NW animals. We brought in birds skeletons and wings and animal pelts and just talked about the different ecosystems. It was AWESOME. So if I were to ever work with KWT, I would get to do the same thing, but for WHALES! Hence, dream job.
The idea is to go to the fundraiser and hopefully talk with the director, Jeff Hogan, about what I would need to do to get a job there. Wish me luck on that one!
05 October 2010
GRE Scores
I took the GRE last year, sort of on a whim. In fact, my whole grad school process last year was on a whim. I decided about mid-October that I would apply for grad school and see what happens, not quite realizing the amount of work it takes to get into a program. So I registered for the GRE 2 days in advance and did moderately well on it.
"GRE" stands for "Graduate Record Examinations." It is basically the graduate level SAT, designed to torture you and make you jump through yet another hoop. It's scored like the SAT, with a verbal and quantitative section measured on a 200 to 800 scale. There is also the Analytical Writing section, measured on a 0 to 6 scale (in half-point increments). It gives you your score and your percentile ranking.
My scores from last year were:
Verbal: 540, in the 72nd percentile
Quant: 600, in the 48th percentile
Writing: 4.0, in the 41st percentile
These met the minimum for the program I applied to last year, but they aren't great. I went into the exam without studying, and only moderately prepared, so I scored moderately well. The percentile scores are reflective of the percentage of people who scored below me. So being in the 72nd percentile is reasonable, but being in the 48th or 41st percentile is a bit embarrassing for me. I could do so much better on those sections.
Therefore, I have decided to retake the GRE. I still need to register for it, but I will definitely be retaking it AND studying for it this time around. I already bought the Kaplan study guide, and it will be my constant companion.
"GRE" stands for "Graduate Record Examinations." It is basically the graduate level SAT, designed to torture you and make you jump through yet another hoop. It's scored like the SAT, with a verbal and quantitative section measured on a 200 to 800 scale. There is also the Analytical Writing section, measured on a 0 to 6 scale (in half-point increments). It gives you your score and your percentile ranking.
My scores from last year were:
Verbal: 540, in the 72nd percentile
Quant: 600, in the 48th percentile
Writing: 4.0, in the 41st percentile
These met the minimum for the program I applied to last year, but they aren't great. I went into the exam without studying, and only moderately prepared, so I scored moderately well. The percentile scores are reflective of the percentage of people who scored below me. So being in the 72nd percentile is reasonable, but being in the 48th or 41st percentile is a bit embarrassing for me. I could do so much better on those sections.
Therefore, I have decided to retake the GRE. I still need to register for it, but I will definitely be retaking it AND studying for it this time around. I already bought the Kaplan study guide, and it will be my constant companion.
Application!
I started my OSU application today. I went online to check out due dates and whatnot, and ended up signing in to OSU's admission page and started my application. I need to figure out if I qualify as an Oregon resident or not. I've lived here 5 out of the last 6 years pretty continuously (with the small exception of living in Redmond for a summer and living in Vancouver for a year), but I have never obtained an Oregon driver's license. By the time I start grad school I will have paid income taxes (which are obscene) for 6 years, but I still don't have an OR driver's license. Stupid residency requirements. Looks like I'll be spending some time searching the DMV and OSU webpages to see what actually qualifies me as an OR resident. I don't think it matters either way because I should be able to get funding that will cover most, if not all, of my tuition, but it's still annoying.
Right now, I'm focused on creating checklists and due dates for when all of the different applications are going to be due. OSU is top priority because I like this program the most so far. This is what I have to get done:
1. OSU Application (currently in progress)
2. Submit GRE scores (going to retake it, need to register)
3. Submit transcripts (need to do)
4. Three Letters of Reference (need to talk to my professors again to update LoR from last year)
5. Statement of Intent and Goals (working on 1st draft)
6. Application for Assistantships (emailed Dr. Rowe to see if he has any to offer)
7. Find a major professor (in communication with Dr. Rowe)
I'm also working on trying to contact a professor from WWU, which I mentioned in my last post. In reading his website, I need to prepare the following documents to submit to him as I ask him about the possibility of working with him:
1. Unofficial transcript of undergraduate work
2. Resume
3. Statement of Purpose
4. Unofficial GRE scores
5. Names, addresses, telephones, and email for 3 references
I also still want to spend some time looking into UW. I just spent this last weekend in Seattle with 2 friends and was reminded of how much I love that area. Not that I really needed a reminder of why I love being near home and my family and my puppies, but I forgot how much I like Seattle.
I'm proctoring 3 exams today, which means I get to sit in silence for quite a while. That means time to research, research, and write!
Right now, I'm focused on creating checklists and due dates for when all of the different applications are going to be due. OSU is top priority because I like this program the most so far. This is what I have to get done:
1. OSU Application (currently in progress)
2. Submit GRE scores (going to retake it, need to register)
3. Submit transcripts (need to do)
4. Three Letters of Reference (need to talk to my professors again to update LoR from last year)
5. Statement of Intent and Goals (working on 1st draft)
6. Application for Assistantships (emailed Dr. Rowe to see if he has any to offer)
7. Find a major professor (in communication with Dr. Rowe)
I'm also working on trying to contact a professor from WWU, which I mentioned in my last post. In reading his website, I need to prepare the following documents to submit to him as I ask him about the possibility of working with him:
1. Unofficial transcript of undergraduate work
2. Resume
3. Statement of Purpose
4. Unofficial GRE scores
5. Names, addresses, telephones, and email for 3 references
I also still want to spend some time looking into UW. I just spent this last weekend in Seattle with 2 friends and was reminded of how much I love that area. Not that I really needed a reminder of why I love being near home and my family and my puppies, but I forgot how much I like Seattle.
I'm proctoring 3 exams today, which means I get to sit in silence for quite a while. That means time to research, research, and write!
01 October 2010
Statement of Purpose
Since Dr. Rowe said that one of the strongest components of my application should be my statement of purpose (or personal essay or whatever you chose to call it), I find myself a bit intimidated to start it. I know that it has to be really good and really comprehensive.
I have thought about it though. I've tried to think of what the questions are that I would like to answer while I'm in graduate school, and they all seem to focus on how and why people interact with nature, and how that can influence their values and beliefs. I read an article of Dr. Rowe's (actually one of his grad students) that used Whale Watching Spoken Here, a volunteer whale watching program on the coast, and conducted surveys on visitors to see how interacting with whales and wildlife affected their beliefs and values about conservation. This sounds so exciting to me!
One of the great things about working with Dr. Rowe would be that I could really work on picking my own research topic. He said that he has a lot of partner agencies and internship sites and he works really hard to pull sites and student interests together. So I could potentially work with a whale watching site. Which is what I have always wanted to do. Hence the intimidation.
I plan on working on it more on Sunday. I'm also working on putting together a bio packet about myself to send to a professor, Dr. Alejandro Acevedo-Gutierrez, at Western Washington University who works with marine mammals in the biology department. He's my next target. :)
I have thought about it though. I've tried to think of what the questions are that I would like to answer while I'm in graduate school, and they all seem to focus on how and why people interact with nature, and how that can influence their values and beliefs. I read an article of Dr. Rowe's (actually one of his grad students) that used Whale Watching Spoken Here, a volunteer whale watching program on the coast, and conducted surveys on visitors to see how interacting with whales and wildlife affected their beliefs and values about conservation. This sounds so exciting to me!
One of the great things about working with Dr. Rowe would be that I could really work on picking my own research topic. He said that he has a lot of partner agencies and internship sites and he works really hard to pull sites and student interests together. So I could potentially work with a whale watching site. Which is what I have always wanted to do. Hence the intimidation.
I plan on working on it more on Sunday. I'm also working on putting together a bio packet about myself to send to a professor, Dr. Alejandro Acevedo-Gutierrez, at Western Washington University who works with marine mammals in the biology department. He's my next target. :)
28 September 2010
Talking to a Professor
ADVICE: Before ever talking to a professor, read some relevant and recent publications by that professor or some of their current grad students! It shows you know what you are talking about, and a sincere interest in the field.
I talked with Dr. Shawn Rowe today at Oregon State. It went really well! He was incredibly helpful in describing the different areas that I could pursue at Oregon State. The first big piece of information that made this helpful was that he pointed out that the Environmental Science program is an interdisciplinary program, drawing on students and faculty from three academic areas of ecology/biology, policy, and education. While this may not be what other students are looking for, this sounds great to me. I am far more of an interdisciplinary student that anything else. I love biology, but anyone who knows me knows that I bounced around to 3 other majors (and was undeclared for a period in between) before landing on biology. An interdisc program sounds FANTASTIC to me.
If I were to go into this program, I could obtain a Ph. D. in about 5 years. Dr. Rowe said that 5 years is a realistic expectation. Some students come in wanting to complete their degree in 3 or 4 years, but the expectations of workload for graduate students is significantly higher than what people expect, so 5 years is a more realistic goal. The breakdown looks like this:
I talked with Dr. Shawn Rowe today at Oregon State. It went really well! He was incredibly helpful in describing the different areas that I could pursue at Oregon State. The first big piece of information that made this helpful was that he pointed out that the Environmental Science program is an interdisciplinary program, drawing on students and faculty from three academic areas of ecology/biology, policy, and education. While this may not be what other students are looking for, this sounds great to me. I am far more of an interdisciplinary student that anything else. I love biology, but anyone who knows me knows that I bounced around to 3 other majors (and was undeclared for a period in between) before landing on biology. An interdisc program sounds FANTASTIC to me.
If I were to go into this program, I could obtain a Ph. D. in about 5 years. Dr. Rowe said that 5 years is a realistic expectation. Some students come in wanting to complete their degree in 3 or 4 years, but the expectations of workload for graduate students is significantly higher than what people expect, so 5 years is a more realistic goal. The breakdown looks like this:
- 2 years of coursework (dependent on the sequencing, so it would be difficult to speed this up regardless of how good someone may be)
- During this time, I would be working on pilot projects and assisting in smaller research projects to get experience in full-fledged research as well as lead to ideas for my dissertation
- Upon completion of coursework, taking qualifying oral exam with committee
- If successfully pass, then write a research proposal and present this to committee (exams and proposal takes about a year)
- Start collecting data (about a year)
- Write thesis (about a year)
However, if I started all of this while I was 24, then in theory I could complete a Ph.D. before I'm 30. That's exciting!
So, in order to be a competitive candidate for this program, I should have a very strong statement of purpose that illustrates that going into a Ph.D. program is the next clear, logical step in my life goals, not simply a ploy to stay in school. :) Dr. Rowe encouraged me to spend some time thinking about and journaling about what it is in science that fascinates me so much that I would want these questions answered irregardless of if I'm accepted into a program. The desire to learn and research these questions are going to be the driving force behind my application. It will also help me figure out what direction I want to go for my dissertation!
I should also have a strong academic background (including some psychology classes), work experience, volunteer experience (meaning I'm definitely doing whale watching this winter!), and a solid understanding of what this degree entails. This is a research degree, not a teaching degree.
I've got my work cut out for me! Next up, starting a really good statement of purpose. I highly recommend Graduate Admissions Essays by Donald Asher for your essay writing. It includes exercises to help guide you in what to write, and how to polish your essay to make it stand out to an Admissions committee. This book and the Kaplan GRE Premier study guide just became my new best friends.
Until next time!
27 September 2010
Grad School!
Hello everyone! So, I've decided to start keeping a blog to document what I'm doing for graduate school. I have been blessed to have so many people in my life who are interested in where I'm going and what I'm doing. Yet the curse of that is that I can't remember to update everyone consistently, especially since people are living in Oregon and Washington and Colorado and British Columbia and China and Mexico and the Ukraine and who knows where else! But, I am so thankful that you are all so interested in where I go, and I definitely appreciate your support!
Just to give you a small update for now, my biggest challenge at the moment is getting in touch with potential faculty advisors. Since I want to go into marine biology (of some sort), I need to have a faculty advisor agree to take me on as a graduate student before I am officially accepted to any university. I can go through the application process as much as I want, but if I don't have a faculty member who agrees to supervise and fund me, then I have no shot at going.
I've emailed professors at Oregon State, University of Hawaii, University of Maine, and University of Washington. I think I've emailed 6 profs total so far. I'm also looking at programs are Western Washington and (maybe) University of British Columbia. The exciting part is that I've heard back from one at OSU and I'm talking to him on the phone tomorrow! His focus is not marine biology per se, but on science education. If I were to work with him, I think my direction would be something in environmental tourism and how people learn through other avenues such as whale watching. If you're interested in looking him up, his name is Dr. Shawn Rowe at Oregon State University.
I actually got in touch with him through one of his current graduate students. This might be one of the most valuable things I have done yet, and I highly recommend to everyone looking to go to grad school. Find current graduate students of the professors you want to work with, and send them a friendly email asking for advice, information about the program, and information about the professor. The grad student I emailed, Michelle, has been SO helpful. She told Dr. Rowe that I would be sending him an email and she offered to let me come visit Corvallis in November. I can't even tell her how helpful she has been, but I think I'm going to try and send a thank you card. :)
I plan on making regular updates so that you guys can follow this epic quest, and hopefully glean some useful information if you are also looking to apply to graduate school. If you have advice, I am MORE than willing to accept it! Thanks for your support!
Just to give you a small update for now, my biggest challenge at the moment is getting in touch with potential faculty advisors. Since I want to go into marine biology (of some sort), I need to have a faculty advisor agree to take me on as a graduate student before I am officially accepted to any university. I can go through the application process as much as I want, but if I don't have a faculty member who agrees to supervise and fund me, then I have no shot at going.
I've emailed professors at Oregon State, University of Hawaii, University of Maine, and University of Washington. I think I've emailed 6 profs total so far. I'm also looking at programs are Western Washington and (maybe) University of British Columbia. The exciting part is that I've heard back from one at OSU and I'm talking to him on the phone tomorrow! His focus is not marine biology per se, but on science education. If I were to work with him, I think my direction would be something in environmental tourism and how people learn through other avenues such as whale watching. If you're interested in looking him up, his name is Dr. Shawn Rowe at Oregon State University.
I actually got in touch with him through one of his current graduate students. This might be one of the most valuable things I have done yet, and I highly recommend to everyone looking to go to grad school. Find current graduate students of the professors you want to work with, and send them a friendly email asking for advice, information about the program, and information about the professor. The grad student I emailed, Michelle, has been SO helpful. She told Dr. Rowe that I would be sending him an email and she offered to let me come visit Corvallis in November. I can't even tell her how helpful she has been, but I think I'm going to try and send a thank you card. :)
I plan on making regular updates so that you guys can follow this epic quest, and hopefully glean some useful information if you are also looking to apply to graduate school. If you have advice, I am MORE than willing to accept it! Thanks for your support!
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