Do not click on the link below (addictive website alert).

http://thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php 

I want to know whether I got into graduate school or not already! The feeling is comparable to waiting for a grade after you take a final, except this takes way longer and is much more important than just a grade. As time passes by, I get more and more anxious. Whenever I get a new e-mail, I’m crossing fingers it’s from the admissions committee (I get a fair amount of e-mails per day, so this is painful). Whatever their decision is, I just want to know it already. I know it’s still early, but I don’t like the time uncertainty of the notification. Some students hear back as early as January, while others have to wait until March or even April! I also dislike not knowing for sure what I am going to do after I graduate. If I knew I got in, then I could relax and not worry about anything. If I knew I didn’t get in, then I would start working on applications towards my back-up plans. For back-ups, I’m considering:

• jobs $$$
• research internships at DOE national labs. http://science.energy.gov/wdts/suli/
• Bridge to Doctorate programs. http://www.apsbridgeprogram.org/

I want to elaborate on the Bridge to Doctorate programs because it’s likely you haven’t heard about them. Up until a few months ago I had no idea these programs existed. Bridge to Doctorate programs are one-to-two years long programs designed usually for underrepresented students who plan to pursue a Ph.D. but want/need to strengthen their application. Although it varies from program to program, generally during a Bridge to Doctorate program the student receives a yearly stipend of around 30K/year, works full time in a research lab, can take undergraduate/graduate courses, and gets prepared for the GRE. I almost feel like a Bridge to Doctorate program should be a pre-requisite in order to apply for graduate school. You get to experience what it is to be a full-time researcher for a prolonged period of time, explore and define your research interests, prepare for GREs, and apply to graduate school without having to worry about your classes. And you are still getting a 30K stipend? Definitely worth looking into.

As I wait for graduate admission decisions, I’m trying to figure out what to do if I get a successful response. I only applied to two schools, so statistically wise the odds are against me. Comment if you have any suggestions, I’m open to semi-crazy ideas (i.e. shave my head, jump into the lagoon, ask a professor out for valentine’s in front of class?)

Have you ever felt tired of classes, assignments, exams? I’m sure we all have. I’m also sure we all love learning, but also hate all-nighters and the stress from school which might lower your motivation for school. This happened to me during my third year, and I am trying to prevent it to happening to you. During my third year, my genius approach was to take many upper division Physics courses and get A’s in all of them so I could be a very competitive applicant for graduate school. This genius strategy would soon fall apart. Although getting straight A’s was a pretty genius plan, taking more Physics courses I could handle was not. I love challenges and I hate quitting, so when I run across a homework problem I can’t solve, I spend a long time trying to figure it out by myself before I ask for help. Due to this and weekly homework assignments for each course, I started falling behind classes and sometimes had to turn in homework late, which really affected my grades. As a consequence, I realized I had to just give up on my “no quitting policy” and skip some challenging problems or ask for help sooner. This made the learning experience very boring and plain, causing me to lose motivation and excitement towards my classes. Overloading myself really affected me. If you feel like you’re not enjoying your classes, or you can’t take full advantage of them, consider decreasing your course load. A graduating senior once told me “don’t ever take a class if you can’t take full advantage of it,” and I will repeat it for you in bold don’t ever take a class if you can’t take full advantage of it.

If the course load isn’t the problem, and you’re losing motivation for school, then I recommend getting involved in research. It’s very easy to stay motivated when you’re learning about what interests you. Let me tell you a story about a very successful UCSB professor (who I will refer to as Professor Oak) who also went through a lack of motivation period during his undergraduate career. Professor Oak was very tired of taking classes and tests. During the third year of college (yes, third year of college sucks) the last thing Prof. Oak wanted to do is take another test. Therefore, Prof. Oak decided to take a break from school and was able to find a research position at a national lab where Prof. Oak worked for the next 9 months. Prof. Oak loved the research experience, came back motivated again for school, and then got accepted into a TOP graduate program. The moral of this story is not to drop out if you are unmotivated, but to encourage you to pursue your own interests and become involved with research. UCSB offers many research opportunities (many of which include a paid!) for undergraduates, so please take advantage of them.