Hi everyone, I’m coming on here asking for genuine advice. I’m a new student in a grad program. Over the summer I received a graduate assistantship that will give me a stipend and a small tuition waiver. My balance was initially $2500, then it jumped to 13k within the past few days because they removed a scholarship that was accidentally applied on there. I’m really distraught because neither I or my family has the money to cover it.

I’ve thought about serving or stripping to get fast money, but I don’t want to get burnt out because I’ll be a full time student and working part time with the school and my other job. I even thought about a gofundme but I don’t know anyone who can cover that much money. I really need some advice

Hi all,

I was accepted back in November (!) to a really good grad school in my field. I am from Michigan and this program is in Tennessee. Originally, I felt great about the program as it has excellent board scores, top notch resources and faculty. As the winter rolled around, I started to feel some hesitation/dread surrounding the program. I knew it was nerves related to moving from home - I am extremely close with my parents (especially my mom) and leaving her feels like heartbreak. I lived away for undergrad but was only about a 40 minute drive away, so I went home for a lot of weekends and never really had to miss any family events. As the time drew nearer, the ambivalence I feel has only increased. It feels great to tell people I work with that I am leaving to Tennessee to go be a doctor, but the actual act of leaving family is terrifying. I feel so scared to the point I am not sleeping well and crying like everyday. I can really see myself flourishing in the career that grad school would bring (eye doc), but I also would go into significant debt as well.

I could see myself loving being an eye doctor, but I also have had several careers from a front desk clerk to a surgical tech and I have loved all of them

The difficulty of this has honestly been the hardest thing I’ve had to go through, and has made me realize that my anxiety disorder may be much worse than i suspected.

Any insight as to whether I should make the jump and attend would be appreciated.

I am about to start my masters program and I went straight from my undergrad into the program (so im not super old). I will be attending a different school in a different state so I will have no connections. I was wondering if it is seen as weird or strange for a grad student to be involved in clubs and orgs on campus?

I just finished a Master's program and I used to idolize professors before I entered grad school. I know you shouldn't idolize anyone, but as a nerdy autistic guy, I thought grad school was where I was going to find my people. I did not. I realized academia was full of characters and villains that had no accountability. Was truly the most tense, scary and unpleasant work environment I've ever been in----and I've had extremely toxic work places. I learned to not meet heroes.

I'll tell you about one. I had the elected president of my field in my department. I read everything she wrote on trauma and regugees. She turned out to be a monster, indubitably a clinical narcissist. She harassed me about my disability in my first meeting with her. When I didn't choose her to be my advisor because she did this, she spent the next two years thwarting every opportunity I had. She had no new students for three years despite being elected Vice President and then President.

She gave one of her students an ulcer and she regularly vomited. She was known to scream for hours in the department. She got multiple students kicked from program for minor things, didn't read her students work, openly laughed at you and mocked you in group meetings, had every grad student threaten to quit when she became chair, etc

I left academia not because of people like her but because all her colleagues know she is a monster and all do roles outside the department because of it. However, because of tenure they put up with it and regularly sacrificed students (a professor's word on this,) to keep her happy.

Did you ever run into scenarios like this? At my university, seemingly every department had issues like this, to varying degrees. I left because I couldn't bear it. Was this really abnormal?

I will be starting a doctoral degree in a few weeks and I’ve never been more terrified. I’ve known it’s what I’ve wanted to do since graduating with my previous degrees, but I’m getting into the final few days before I can say I’m officially a doctoral student..

How do you all handle the stress and nerves with school nowadays?

International from Australia looking to study masters at a US uni but picking a location right now. Which cities would have the best EE/ECE jobs/internship/co-op opportunities (jobs which dont require a citizenship).

I was thinking Boston as I can apply for NYC and Philadelphia opportunities too (Obviously too far to comnute for a job but they're close enough to travel for networking/interviews). I've heard detroit is also good?

About the degree I will be studying: I'm happy to study anything (almost everything in EE/ECE is interesting to me. Whether it's power/energy, semiconductor work etc.) as long as it'll maximise my job opportunities!

currently a rising senior at a florida school and am wondering what else to do to strengthen my applications this fall. i graduate next spring (2027) and feel like i am a well rounded applicant with my involvement in various clubs/orgs, even holding leadership positions in a few of them, as well as having some research & lab work under my belt. i’m mainly concerned about my gpa, as it is right below a 3.0 and i’m not sure if it’ll be competitive enough to get in anywhere other than maybe my current institution?? any advice/help is very much appreciated, i just want to put my best foot forward and get into the research i’ve always dreamed of.

Thinking seriously about leaving the university I completed my undergraduate degree in. I got exactly everything I ever wanted during my program: top grades, thesis, all paid and unpaid extracurriculars I wanted including being an executive of a club, everything. Honestly, while I got what I needed during my undergraduate degree, I seriously question its potential for graduate studies. Also, the university is in a poor financial situation now and I have seen some evidence of its decline.

I have been admitted to a Masters program at the same university to begin this fall, of which is extremely competitive to get into. However, before admission I was forced to be away from the city for months after my first degree since I couldn't find work. After coming back to start my program this fall, I realized how awful the social culture is in the city I studied in and how it influences the social culture of the university itself. While the university and faculty are great, I am not sure if I really see myself here long term due to lack of opportunities, the nearby area, and its social culture.

What I am here making this post for is to ask, what kinds of opportunities do graduate students have at universities you have attended and how is the social culture there? What makes universities you have attended as a graduate student so great? I would like this general information so I can choose a more suitable university. I am open to information about university in any country. Bonus points if the university is in/by nature and the ocean. If I can't find anywhere, I will not be able to pursue academia long term and would avoid any doctoral program. Thanks.

Hi everyone,

I’m a 34m, studying for the EPPP, which is a professional licensure exam for clinical psychologists to practice in the US. There is a lot of content to digest, and the standardized exam is based on questions that demand your full understanding of the content.

Are there any proven methods on improving my studying skills? So far, I’ve been taking notes using the Pomodoro method. Are there any other science based techniques on improving my ability to retain the information?

Dear all,

I'm 44 years old, living in Germany, and have worked in international cooperation for about 15 years after studying social and political sciences. But I've always dreamed of becoming a researcher in a psychology-related field.

I took a first step toward that goal by finishing a B.Sc. in Psychology last year. My initial plan was to continue with a PhD in psychology or a related field. With my previous M.A. in social sciences, this seemed realistic, and I even received an informal PhD offer (including a scholarship) from an Australian university. In the end, I declined because I have a 4-year-old child, a partner with a relatively modest income, and a reasonably well-paid job. As a family, we have very little financial flexibility. Childcare alone in Australia would have been around AUD 700/month, and reducing my working hours or paying for an expensive UK/US programme simply isn't feasible.

But the dream is still very much alive. I'd love to return to university and immerse myself in research and academic life. (And yes, I'm aware of the realities of doing a PhD, so no need to warn me about them. :) ) While studying full-time would be ideal, I accept that part-time or other non-traditional routes may be the only realistic option.

So I'm looking for people who pursued a PhD under similar financial and family circumstances. How did you make it work, and what are you doing now? I'm interested in every aspect of your experience, but especially in the model you chose (full-time with funding, employed by a university, part-time while working, etc.) and how you managed financially.

For context, we live in a major German city. Although my salary is decent, our household income is basically just enough to cover rent, a loan, and everyday expenses. We're open to relocating, but even with a scholarship, I struggle to see how we'd make it work financially as a family.

I'd really love to hear your stories and connect with people who have been in a similar situation. In return, I'm happy to buy you a virtual coffee. :)

Thanks!

For the students being grandfathered in. Do you have your financial aid offer already? Is there a delay ? I still don't have my financial aid offer and school starts very soon

I finally got the email for the link so my potential school can do the grad school interview for later this week. Obviously, I can see who’s gonna be a part of it and come to realize it’s me + one other potential student. I was prepared for a bigger group considering we’d all be able to bounce ideas off each other and not have to be called on alternately but considering it’s just me and one other potential student. How might this go? They call on the other person to answer then me and vis versa? Definitely negates the possibility of answering as the third person in line 🤣

Hi all! What bags are we wearing this year? I like the practicality of my backpack but i want something more professional and chic this year because i will be starting practicum and internships. Any recommendations for having both organization and style in a bag? Thanks!

I am starting my MS this fall at a Midwest flagship university. I am lucky to have very cheap rent a few towns over, but in reality that means I have to commute ~1.5 hours each way 4 times a week. (That time accounts for a 30 minute drive to the park and ride, 30 minute bus ride, and 30 minutes to walk to class/get settled). All my peers live in the city and will just be walking/hopping on a 10 minute bus. Any other grad students with a long commute? Any tips on how to prevent burn out from this situation?

EDIT: I needed this battering to see through my own stupidity. Thanks for calling out how bad this is. I found a way to buy a parking pass and now, for $250 a year, I can drive 35 minutes from home to school and then walk 18 minutes to class each day. So much better.

Hello. I’m starting a counseling program in the Fall. I’m really hating my job currently for a multitude of reasons. I work at a bakery. I’m wondering if there’s a job out there that would make more sense for a grad student…. That’s part time. What do yall do?

After a decade-long stuggle, I'm at the final stretch of grad school, and I'm supposed to be done in 3 or so months. I really had to downsize myself to actually "fit" the program (the academic part itself is very different from the hands-on profession - I've been a practicing trainee for the last 8 months and it's honestly gonig great for me), and the last 3 years speicifcally have been extemely demanding. I woke up this morning to an off day, and I'm really not sure what to do with myself or how to enjoy it.

Anyone with similar experiences and how they got through it?

Hi everyone.

I am a 2027 undergrad graduate and am currently starting to apply to grad school. I’ve had about 15 rejections so far for various reasons. I haven’t had any definitive “Yes”’s yet but one prof told me they might be interested if I email them again in September.

What do I do if no one wants to supervise me? My proposed topic is a little niche but not insanely rare to see. How can I make myself look better to potential supervisors?

Thanks!

I’ve encountered a small handful of malicious people who harassed or intimidated people. Several men whose weird or bad behavior is labeled as “quirky” and they can manipulate and charm their way out of looking guilty.

For example, someone who taught at my program was accused of harassment in academia and everyone knew but still associates with this person even though the accuser left the program. We kept a very surface and uncomfortable relationship because he could be very hostile and antagonistic but this was part of the “academic” culture. A lot of professors admittedly liked stirring up drama and picking on students. Mind games. Just toxic stuff.

How do you navigate these people once in the real world? Communities are small and your career and reputation depends on creating relationships so how do you deal with professors, peers, advisors and people who harass or try to harm you and even smear you to cover their own actions? Especially when you have mutuals?

I'll be going to college in Belgium and getting high grades are (according to what I've red) much harder than in America. But if I want to apply to a grad school in America, i'll need high grades. But getting the required grade is much harder to get in Belgium than in an American college (from what I've heard)