I feel your pain kristin_kai. The tolerence I had for my boss and clients is just gone. I'm actually quiting earlier and have already given my notice. But freedom is still 36 working days away.

So how long are you guys giving yourselves between the last day of work and the first day of school? Are you making a trip to figure out living arrangements in advance, or showing up with your stuff and hoping there's somewhere available?

I plan on visiting Houston a month before we move in August and putting money down for rent. I have some connections there so I will also ask a few friends to keep an eye out for places near Rice.

I freelance as it is, so work is not an issue. All of my clients work with me via the good ol' web...man, what was the world like before the internet...I can barely imagine it.

total cost $28,692
student contribution $12,469
financial aid eligibility (aka federal loans) - $16,223

That's not right is it? They're assuming that I'm working and I need to fill out the form that says I won't have any income.. right?... right?!?!?... right?!?!

yeah. Unless you actually can make $13k in a year while in school, which is totally possible.

I just mailed off that form to UW this morning, saying that I'd be making exactly $7300 next school year, courtesy of the art department.

I need to get me some freelance clients...

Thats what I called Syracuse about earlier, to let them know that I wasn't going to have any income as of August this year, hoping that this would reduce the amount of student contribution expectency. It doesn't seem to matter. You are apparently eligible for up to $18.5K in student loans per year as a grad student and anything over that you either need to get through a private loan, pay yourself somehow or get some free money/TAship/workstudy from the arch school. This is my understanding atleast.

what is this from you speak of?

from = form

most schools have a "change in circumstance" form. It's what you fill out any time you think that the next year of your life will be different, financially, than the last, whether because of job loss, paycut, marriage, divorce, having a kid, or whatever, it's all one form.

what does that actually do for you? is it through the arch school (or art school in your case) or is it through the university?

through the office of financial aid. In cases where the financial aid office actually does something other than manage your loans, such as determine grant, scholarship, or work-study eligibility, it helps. Personally, I wouldn't mind some work-study dollars.

There is something about "loss of employment" being a reason for a change of expected contribution but I'm not sure "leaving my job to go to school" counts or (as you said) if it matters since there maybe a cap on fed loans anyway. We'll see. I guess grad school is a privilege, not a right... sigh. Maybe I should try to get money out of the Arch school. Although I'm terribly afraid they're going to tell me I wasn't that strong an applicant and if they really wanted me they would have offered me money to begin with.

$18,500 is the annual cap for graduate Federal susidized and unsubsidized loans. However, there is no cap on graduate PLUS loans, but I think they do have somewhat higher interest rates.

And of course, there's always private loans.

wait, if $18,500 is the cap, how come I was just offered $20,500 by CCA yesterday? $8500 subsidized, $12000 unsubsidized. When one person said it, I just figured they were wrong. But now I'm confused.

it was changed for fall 2007. it went up $1000 a semester.

Ah, ok. Some schools' websites haven't yet been updated to reflect the new numbers.

that is the unsubsidized amount that went up $1000 a semester


These are the new loan limits for grad students:

Subsidized Federal Stafford Loan: $4,250
Unsubsidized Federal Stafford Loan: $5,000 ($6,000 beginning Fall 2007)

Pratt people

MacDonald from Pratt wanted to chat and convince me to come to Brooklyn

Did it work?

Ho hum. Just got accepted to UMN. Final tally: 4/5. Still haven't gotten my paperwork from the Bartlett, which is the only thing I'm waiting on before I send my acceptance back in to USC. Of course if the Bartlett would offer me full tuition and a spot in Madonna's private flat to get me to go there, I might reconsider.

I am sincerely glad we are having meaningful discussion about how we are going to pay for all of this. I thought I was the only one worried about how I am paying for rent next year :-O

what, did you think we were all independently wealthy or something?

No, I don't know what I thought. It's just unnerving thinking, 'ok, I'm quitting on this day, my last paycheck will be on this day, and then after this day, I get no more direct deposits every two weeks.....'. I really don't want to have to go back into credit card debt, but I know I'll be in good company if I do.....

yeah, I probably won't figure out when my last day will be until pretty late in the game, unless work forces me to declare earlier than I'd like.

I found flights to Seattle in early August for around $230, so I think I'm going to shoot for going up there to find housing then.

Pratt is hoovering around my 5th choice right now. I'm going to try getting a significant schoolarship that would sway me to Brooklyn. Probably unlikely though. Top three still- Penn, Michigan and Wash U..

I called UW again this afternoon and finally got through to someone (well, actually demanded to talk to someone). I said I had to know because I have to tell another school by Friday. The woman said that the final letters (rejections, I'm assuming) went today but I was wait-listed and they haven't sent those letters out yet. Apparently, there were 500 applicants and only 25 positions (5% acceptance?) and she congratulated me for being waitlisted (uh…thanks?). Anyway, I said that is fine because I was accepted to 5 other schools and at least now I know. She then said I should email this guy (I forgot his name) and let him know that I have other offers because she would hate to lose me because they took too long to send out acceptances. So weird....just like a guy- they only want you when they find out they can't have you.

Anyway, the only way I would go there at this point is if I got a significant scholarship (full-ride), but considering they waitlisted me, I can't imagine they will offer me that- since they obviously didn't want me in the first place.

Just thought I'd update you guys in case you were waiting too. Just call and demand a decision over the phone....

Their acceptance rate makes me really curious about the other schools rates.

I believe this news item is a fairly good indication.

Interesting article... The three reasons given in the article for such low acceptance rates (except maybe the third one -- people are applying to many more schools at once these days) wouldn't really apply to graduate-level students, at least not yet.

I don't know, I bet that one could extrapolate the second reason into affecting grad admissions. The increased number of high school students going directly to college after their senior year results in the bachelor's degree being far more common than it used to be. This, in turn, causes the bachelor's degree to mean a bit less because, well, every applicant for a job seems to have one. Therefor, the truly ambitious feel more driven to make some higher achievement than simply graduating from college, which results in higher grad school applications.

I got a response from UC - they said that all offers and denials have already been sent. That means that everyone that hasn't been notified yet has been waitlisted. (Yay?)

When they review the wait list, or how long it is (or how many of the first people to recieve offes accept them) was unknown to the lady that responded... but hopefully this will turn out to be good for me. She did say, like said a little earlier here, that the first acceptance deadline is April 6th (Today!).

As stated before, I've been accepted at IIT, their deadline is April 20.
I've got a mixed bag here - it will be cheaper to go to UC paying in-state tuition and stiil living with the folks. On the other hand, there's IIT - I'm begging for a change of scenery (and independence) - after all, it's Chicago; great buildings, culture, and rapid transit...

weird - i guess i'm waitlisted too? i don't understand how they can just not notify at all? it seems like there's quite a few out there who have been waitlisted - if this is the case.

mctwist - i applied to pratt (accepted) and uf (better be accepted). i'm glad to hear the 150 includes all programs. i wonder how big the incoming class is for the 2 yr. i'm sure it's pretty small too.

wonderk - any help would be spectacular! i remember the burecracy being bad when my ex went to cincinnati, but i don't remember it being this bad. i just think it is really rude to not respond to emails and phone calls. even if they don't know anything, it'd be nice to tell me that.

bureaucracy, i mean.

maybe we should start a cincinnati is wack thread too - maybe someone will pay attention to us then.

ok so after catching up...

wonderk- i bought my kilt... although i feel obliged to tell them i am norwegian, but i think the blonde hair/blue eyes might give that away

rationalist + others-
i see all this talk about financial aid... i received my financial aid letter from UVA yesterday and my formal acceptance letter from CMU. whoohoo

UVA's offer letter:

work study: $5,760
federal stafford subsidized loan: $8,500
federal stafford unsubsidized loan: $12,000

plus i have a scholarship from an outside source: $3,000

total cost of financial aid: $29,260

so it looks like UVA is totally affordable + the Arch Dept pays for my health insurance.

i think i'm going to be a total retard and frame all of my acceptance letters hehe

*in other news, there was an anti-war demonstration at the pentagon this morning. i saw it first hand because that's where i catch the metro. it was really disturbing... there were mothers with pictures of their sons who had died in the war. and someone had a life-sized wooden cross with nails (crucifix)... and the marines just marched up and stood right in front of them. it was totally bizarre and disturbing
:(
makes all of this grad school stuff look completely unimportant.

so many ppl seem to be miserable in their jobs (i.e. sick of clients, bosses, cad-ing doorknobs etc.). i'm just curious (as someone with a no arch working experience), if people are worried that grad school might just be a temporary reprieve from the drudgery of the realities of working in the arch field and it's just going to be the same shit again grad. or does grad school somehow provide new/better opportunities? or do you just know that the career will get better as you go along so you're just pushing forward? i mean, i kind of loosely know what my goals are, but i'm just wondering if i'm being to optimistic.

LIG, i think there is also the perkins loan. i believe it has a lower rate than the federal stafford and it does not accrue interest while the student is enrolled in school?

i personally thought i would love working at a large international firm. it's ok. i could stay for another 5 years--- but once i'm licensed i'd be gone to start my own firm. i think my true passion lies in academia: in research + teaching + getting grants for innovative projects + having my own firm on the side... so that is why i'm going back to school. i need/want a terminal post-pro degree because i have wanted to be an architect since i was 15. after facing many people who tried to pull me down, getting a PhD in architecture is my way of saying f-you and gives me a lot of fuel to succeed... thats just my own personal reasons.

i think that getting my license will just open up more opportunities for me - i wouldn't mind teaching at some point as well.

i'm just tired of doing construction documents - but i see myself stuck doing this until i further my education. from my experience (albeit a brief 3 years), if you have your masters (regardless of if you're licensed yet or not) you seem to get better opportunities and more interesting things to work on.

Froccli - I am currently working at an architecture firm and I love it. I'm a little sad to leave there actually. It's the best job I've ever had. But I want to be a licensed architect and I need a professional arch degree to do that, so I have to go to school.

Froccli: Yeah, there's also the Perkins Loan. However, I don't think the maximum annual amount is anywhere near as high as the Stafford/Direct loans, and elgibility is much more restricted. I wouldn't count on it unless it actually appears on your financial aid package.

laurilan, I spoke with my source and they do not know anything. They know that some people who applied within the program (that being current UC undergrads) have been accepted, but that's it. I told them that UC was being crappy and they didn't know what to say, but I think we can all agree that you should at least be formally notified of these things, waitlist or no.

Can you tell me who you have tried to email? I might be able to give you another name to contact....


~~~~~

Tangent: a situation has arisen at work in which I have begun to feel sh*t upon in a very big way. I have started to think about moving up the date when I tell my employer that I am leaving to perhaps a month sooner, which means that I need to be prepared to leave even sooner than that, if things here get any worse. I am curious; those of you whose employers already know you are leaving, what has been the effect on your work load? Are they hesitant to give you important stuff to do since you won't be around much longer?

wonderk - thanks for the info. i tried calling kim lawson (out until monday on her voicemail), but i had emailed her probably 2 weeks ago and she never answered me. and the last time i called her (in the middle of march) she said letters were being mailed out in 7-10 days, which we all know is not correct...

yesterday when i called, i was put through to patricia kucker, but no answer. so i sent her an email and no response.

on the job question: i think my job is hoping to get me back after school, so i haven't noticed any difference, but then again - they don't give me too much that's important anyway. if i don't get into a grad school i want to go to, i'm still quitting.

My boss has known I was leaving since last November regardless of getting into Grad school or not. We've unfortunately had a couple of tiffs since then because he's afraid I've unplugged already. To make matters worse I now leave early twice a week to take calculus. I'm getting the opposite treatment than you WonderK and instead of lessening my responsiblities I'm getting more dumped on me. I guess he feel he has to get as much out of me as he can.

On a good note. Looks like my wife got an internship for the summer in Turkey. So I'll be planning on not thinking about wall section and instead running around ruins all summer.

Laurilan- I email Kucker a few weeks ago with a couple questions and, though she responded, she didn't answer any of my questions (she was very cryptic).

For example, I said "is there anyway to extend the response date from 3/30 until 4/15 because I haven't heard from a few other schools I applied to"

her response: "We sent our letters out a bit early to our 'preferred' candidates. We know that there are other schools across the nation that notify candidates in late March. The admissions period often extends to late April or early May because students apply to multiple schools with varying notification dates"

huh? So, can I....

I also said "I have a few questions about the program, can I schedule an appointment to call you to get more information (because I can't visit the school)?"

her response: "We do recommend that students visit with the school and we have held two open houses [which I didn't know about] and host 3 hr. visits which include tours and time to answer all of your questions. Given your work schedule and the time change, why don't you think about your questions and put them in an e-mail to me. We are currently on Spring Break and classes start next week, so it is a not so busy time and then it will be a very busy time. I think we might be able to answer most of your questions before we talk on the phone."

not so busy and then busy?

Anyway, I then emailed her a couple questions and never got a response...this was weeks ago. Since then I have emailed and called Kim Lawson, amongst other people, and have never heard a response from any of them.

UC was one of my top picks and now I am going to have to decline them because of the lack of information. Maybe they don't care, but don't they realize they are losing some of their "preferred candidates" (her words) by being so bureaucratically impossible. Maybe they had so many applicant, they simply don't care.

I don't know, if it's this bad when they want you to choose them, how bad will it be when you are there. I just don't feel comfortable spending tens of thousands of dollars, when I can't even get a call back.

Sorry to all those experiencing this....

Hey, to those of you who are waiting to hear from/experiencing problems with UC, can you sit tight until Monday, and don't do anything rash?!? I am going to email a couple of my "higher-up" friends and see what I can get out of them, but I probably won't hear anything back before the end of the day....


And actually it's not that I'm getting less responsibility at work, it's that I'm working on something really revolting and it makes me sick trying to contribute in a meaningful way when I realize this project, when built, will probably be the culmination of everything I despise in this profession.

cheers! :o/

whattodo - sorry to hear you're having so many problems as well. and you've been accepted!!

i'm lucky since i am only going to be there for a total of 5 quarters. that is - if i get in. so, the price really isn't too bad. and with becoming instate after a year... that helps too.

wonderk - thanks for your help. it's nice to know that someone cares! :)

+i- now I know that we're working on different definitions of "affordable" I just can't take out 20k in loans per year, I'd be scared to death of it.

WonderK- very little change at work. Just the odd snide remark... "we should get some of the junior people out there to see that (project). Not the ones going into graphic design, the ones actually interested in architecture." Like others have said, I think they're trying to squeeze every last bit of work out of me that they can.

rationalist-
the federal loans are very affordable- my payments if i chose to take out the entire amount would be roughly $100/month (considering i have 14k in federal loans right this second and it's only costing me $68/month). what i meant by affordable was that between the work study and my independent scholarship- all but $1000 of my tuition is covered so that only leaves living expenses.

compared to $16k/semester at CMU, UVA is extremely affordable.

scared to death would be the $50k+/year for school at CMU. that is just nuts. that is why i'm busting my ass to get funding + some other outside scholarships.

LIG, sorry to hear about Cornell. I guess I will be seeing you in the city then, I'll be there through December at AAP's NYC building. Let me know if you end up following through with the Columbia thing.

Laurilan, keep me posted on schools and this summer. I am still searching for my place to be but should be in the city.

Riedell any word on Tech yet?