Category: The Great Grad Hunt

I was so optimistic in when I’d have things done by, in this post. Heh. Woops.

Signed up to take the GRE at 8am on Nov 28th.

Go me?

I had a very interesting tarot reading done last night. For a few reasons, I didn’t want to ask any specific questions of the cards, but instead picked a tact started long ago – just let the cards tell me what they want, and go from there (typically I would then ask more specific questions, but for said few reasons this wasn’t possible last night). The funny thing was, had I opted to ask about anything, I would have asked about academia, and that’s all the cards talked about. Passions for teaching, pride in intellect, strength and survival. It was the future-path card that was most interesting, though – it warned of academic selling out for money.

And it made perfect sense. I’ve been thinking a lot about graduate school lately, what with needing to take the GREs and start my applications and Phillip and I talking a lot about where I should go, and trying to figure out myself what exactly I want to study. Something I’ve been using as a mental barometer, in perhaps not the most serious manner, is that I’ll go wherever pays me.

I honestly feel like one of two things will happen for graduate school. I will either get in to lots of places, or nowhere. I tend to assume the later, while more deeply believing the former. And money – aid packages – does become a consideration. In that considering, I need to keep in mind the fit of the program, educators and education, and not just funding and prestige of school (which would be another form of selling out).

It’s a good thing to keep in the front of my mind as I go into this whole process.

So last week I bought myself a GRE prep book. It’s sitting on the printer, sort of glowering in a faintly menacing way, as if to say “I hold the key to your success in my pulpy little hands, and I’m going to give you a paper cut if you get too close.” I’m thinking about making Wednesday evening, from 6-8, or something like that, my study times. I got so brave as to look up testing information yesterday, but discovered (to my horror) that the nearest computerized testing center is in Mountlake Terrace. A beast to be slain another day – first, I’ll just focus on the whole not remembering algebra thing.

Of course, prepping for the GRE is pointless if the school wants a subject test instead of generalized, so now the great school hunt begins. Today, I looked at the following:

* Duke University, at least the programs I’m interested in, only wants the generalized test. This is good. They also publish what the average test results are – perhaps not so good, at least for me. Then again, I know I have a competitive GPA, so… they also seem to offer funding in all the departments I’m looking at, so long as I do the PhD route. Screw paying for a masters; gimme that tuition waiver plus $20,000. Looks like I should have any application completed by November.

* Rutgers. I’m not sure what department I’d apply to here; looks like some of the philosophy folks are doing work that’s compatable with my own; at least on days when I know what my work is. The reason to go here would be Elizabeth Grosz, but I’m not certain how much time she’d have for someone outside Women’s Studies, and I’m not crazy enough to want to PhD in that. Looks like Dec 1st is a good application date.

* UCSC. I have some doubts here. Although I know I’d love to work with Jenny Reardon, I’m not certain I can see myself in a sociology program, or getting a degree in such. The History of Consciousness program, although always sounding fabu, has me a bit apprehensive – zero funding, limited TAships, and a retiring faculty of knowns with most of the other faculty quite unknown. November would be the earliest date I’d have to consider handing in applications, at any rate…

At this point, the sheer, blind panic is starting to set in, which means it’s beyond time to stop doing any sort of research for the evening.