If my EFC is 0 i should get a pretty substantial finaid package right?

Got a rejection from Penn in the mail today. Oy.

Did anyone on here get a letter about AP at UT?

hobopajamas _ i'm not going to the open house,i wish I could but i don't live in the US,are you going?

watanabe：

When did you get you MIT admission notification? Annette sent you the email? I still have not heard from them. So a little concerned about rejection.

sunshy: Wasn't me, i'm just so addicted to gradcafe I'm cross-posting updates from there on here.

watanabe,

Have you decided which school to go now?

I emailed Annette on Friday and she said most responses were sent out that day...

RESPONSES mean admission?

Hi all,

So I was planning on doing a dual-degree with architecture and urban planning but I got into urban planning and not architecture at Harvard and I got into architecture and not urban planning at MIT. So confused with life! Does anyone know about the possibility of enrolling in a dual-degree program after you're already enrolled in one of the programs at the school? MIT was my top choice so I'm hoping that this is a possibility. I know on the website it sort of suggests that this can be done but I was wondering if anyone knows anyone that has done this or has any like non-website, human knowledge about this. Thanks!

Has anyone else yet to hear from U of Minnesota? That is my last hope for this year, and really all I want is closure one way or another.

alphabetical - i got into MLA at harvard and asked the professor that called me about the possibility of a dual planning degree and he made it seem like something that is often done after the initial acceptance. and from what i've gathered from Penn, they love it when people do a dual degree after they've started because they get more of your money. don't know exactly how this will translate to your situation, but my feeling is that once you prove yourself in the area you were accepted for, they'll be willing to admit you for a dual degree. and seems like MIT would be the better choice for you. are you going to the open houses? probably best to ask there.

sunshy: think you misunderstood me, I've only been accepted at U of Mich.

I don't know if some are acceptances, but I have a feeling the majority are not...

i may be bringing a gf from memphis up to gsd this fall. anyone else dragging a significant other along and wanna troubleshoot?

yeeeessss, I'm in the same boat as you juut. except it's bf.

he's actually going to be going thru the app process for '10 while I'm in school. we are crossing fingers that he will be able to snag a spot at one of the programs in the same area. but aside from this, I also cannot help but worry that adjusting may be harder for him than me w/o a concrete 'plan' (aka job).

is your gf also a fellow archi? i'm guessing she will understand the demands of the program and your consequential schedule

Yihaa! PennDesign: Accepted! Feels soo good.

Andreas - congrats! how did you find out?

Hey Andreas AT, I'm in at Penn too, you going to the open house?

watanabe,

Sorry for that. I am also considering about attending umich. Will you attend the open house? I thought the first year's cost of $60,000 is really shocking....

congrats to who have been accepted to Penn~~

Accepted at Penn!

Still no word on MIT or GSD though. Have any M. Arch's received rejection letters from either of those programs yet?

ilseve did you get an email at all? i'm at school so the mailbox won't be open til tomorrow morning. i'm nervous.

Thanks. I was notified by email. Guess I receive the official letter pretty soon.

Unfortunately I cannot attend the open day, but would love to hear from u how it was, if u plan to go there.

ilseve, I'm also waiting for GSD and MIT to talk to me.

Congrats thedudeabides and ilseve.

Sunshy: No I won't, tickets to detroit from tokyo are a bit too expensive to just stop by.

On another note: Maybe it's just my situation (moving with wife, baby and a dependent mother) but I'm curious if anyone is considering buying(!) a place to live. It's something I'm considering as a possible way to recuperate some living costs. Of course it wouldn't be as workable in a place like NYC/Boston, but looking out in ann arbor i ran some numbers and it seemed to be feasible:

Using my savings towards a down payment, I would have the possibility of building equity in a home instead of throwing away an estimated $1000/month rent for 4.5 years (3.5 years in the program, plus a possible 1 year before I start due to deferment in order to complete some pre-reqs/finish undergrad thesis) which would be $54,000.

Of course, whether or not home prices have hit the bottom is another factor but it's something I'm looking at. From looking around, it looks that we may be able to swing a home under $100,000 and with a fixed 15-year/5.5% interest rate our monthly payments would be: ($732mortgage + $259taxes + $40insurance + $31PMI= $1,061/month, same as rent) Savings: (Equity +/- any changes in price of house)

The idea being to use a parent/relative to cosign, and instead of using your student loan to pay rent just put it towards the above...

unworkable? stupid? risky? Am I missing something?

imsleepy: i got my acceptance from UMN about two weeks ago...


woo hoo! i got accepted to all 4 schools i applied to:

U. of Minnesota
Wash U- St.Louis
Tulane
Catholic University

i've got to visit the first 3 in the next 3 weeks (i'm currently at catholic). going to the UMN open house this thursday. definitely excited about Tulane though. they're going to give me a decent amount of aid + GSRA. i'll also have a free place to live... that's a huge plus.

i wish i had applied to more schools. i regret not applying to yale. i guess i'll never know what would have happened.

I finally got my GSD acceptance in the mail today - fede, why can't you just drop it in my mailbox?

I got cornell acceptance package today.

cornell sent me an open house invitation via email first.
and then emailed me to inform it is not only for accepted student.
then, sent me an email let me know I'm accepted.
next email was with scanned file of acceptance letter.
finally, the official package came.

anyone went through the same story with cornell?

Are you guys worried at all about the hefty sum you'll accrue by going to school for 3 years? Then getting a 20,000-30,000 salary job afterwards? (is that a fair estimate of salary, or is it not correct?) Not to be negative, but I'm currently weighing those options. How do you justify going for it?

frankly speaking, petrified. trying to escape from reality.
some posting from gradcafe - about rejection mail from gsd even makes me more nervous.

I was thinking that was the salary but I got an email from those DesignIntelligence people which stated the avg starting salary for someone w/an M.Arch was something like 41k? Or 47k, I forget.

No idea how accurate that is though.

i just checked my po box expecting an mit rejection, and instead got a penn acceptance with a big merit scholarship! woohoo!

watanabe, i'm thinking similar thoughts with my wife, even to the point of using her leftover loans from this year (took out way too much) to help with a down payment, thinking that consolidating them at today's interest and using it buy a house that would likely appreciate greatly over the next 4+ years.

i did hear on NPR just now that homes have started selling a bit in the midwest recently, so it may have bottomed out, but maybe not. it's a gamble, no matter what. but i can't imagine interest rates getting much lower than they are right now.

your breakdown is a helpful framework, so thanks. a desirable home (very relative, of course) under 100k is pretty tough, though. unless maybe you're moving to Cleveland or Mesa, AZ or something.

passerby1ce, i think that depends on where you work because i have heard of $50,000 starting salary in nyc before.

passerby1ce, i think that depends on where you work because i have heard of $50,000 starting salary in nyc before. not that that's so much better, comparatively speaking!

I have seen $50000 starting salaries + benefits and overtime in NYC for BS Archs. Though this was pre-crash at VERY corporate firms.

terrified... mortified... petrified... stupefied... by future..

and... also exited.

Got my acceptance package for Penn on Friday! :) They gave me chump change though. Does anyone know if the financial package is typically negotiable? My financial situation has changed dramatically since I applied and I'm hoping they might be able to offer more on the need-based front. How does this process work?

ilseve, I'm also waiting to hear from GSD and MIT - haven't heard from them either. Has anyone?

watanabe, I think getting a home is a great idea. It's a good time to buy and like you said, you'll be building equity in the meantime. I actually took a similar approach when I was in undergrad and it worked out well bc of the fortuitous timing. It's definitely doable in the midwest, but most homes <100k on the East coast will likely be in questionable neighborhoods. Good luck with house hunting!

has anyone who has gotten into penn only heard via post? or have all of you received emails in addition to packages in the mail?

also, anyone go to the michigan open house this past weekend? i couldn't make it but would love to hear what you thought...

i only heard by post and didn't get the mass email saying that my app was in either.

Has anyone who RSVP'd to the GSAPP open house gotten the itinerary yet?

is it a bad idea to email/call penn, mit, and gsd since i haven't received anything (good or bad)???

wantanabe: I can empathize about the desire to buy a home. I haven't thought too much about it or done any serious research yet, but I did come upon this interesting discussion that had me start asking better questions about the feasibility of it all. Perhaps it may help you as well....?

http://forum.thegradcafe.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13986

Keep in mind this is from one year ago.

NotAnArchitect-

Finally, I got the GSAPP itinerary. 9:00 sign in, followed by Q&A, tour, lunch (@ 1:15), then studio visits, closing remarks, and at 6:30 an optional lecture by Doug Aitken.

Minnesota's Open House is Thursday. I still have the dates set aside to travel, just wanting some good news...

Not looking very likely thought.

Doug Aitken? Is that supposed to be a sign?

I dunno but its gonna be rad

Thanks GiantClam, I just got it as well...Along with the email telling me to RSVP again? I thought that's what I did to get this letter...

I know right? I RSVP'ed-again-just in case.