Applying to Grad School (or My Totally Weird Experience Taking the GRE)

So I'm applying to Graduate School! Which is exciting I guess.... I hope I get in, but I'm not sure if I'll go or not. I really want to but a) I'm sort of tired of school and b) I'm not sure how I'll pay for it (I'm applying for a non-thesis program which means there's little to no funding). But part of me really wants to go! So we'll see what happens, but first I have to get in! So first I want to give you a quick run-down of what the application entails. And then I'm going to tell you about the totally weird experience I had taking the GRE (but NO content of the exam, because that violates the rules of the test and can result in bad things, like my scores on the exam being cancelled. It's kinda like the AP tests and all that).

So for my application to grad school (which is pretty standard)  I had to submit:

• The ApplyTexas application (again?!?!?) (if you aren't from Texas, this is the common application that ALL public schools in Texas have to accept and most private schools accept as well).
• An application fee (which was $50)
• Three letters of recommendation! This gave me a bit of pause, because I am introverted and shy, I don't tend to go to my professors' offices and get to know them. I easily thought of one professor (my go-to for letters of recommendation because I had him for two classes and I knew he knew me fairly well), remembered that one of my professors REALLY wanted all of us to go to graduate school (he told me he thought I would get accepted by the program when I asked him [through email of course - shy, remember] - that was so encouraging!), and thought of another professor who I knew knew who I was (the bar was kinda low here). I can not reiterate this enough: TALK TO YOUR PROFESSORS, it helps your grade and you never know when you'll need their letter of recommendation.
• A statement of purpose - this is basically saying why you want to go to grad school, specificially their program, what you can gain from it, and what you have to offer. It's kind of like an elevator pitch. I feel like I could've done way better, but oh well.
• A resume/CV
• My GRE scores (it costs $150 to take this test by the way)

(For more info about what applying to grad school feels like see this buzzfeed article, it's pretty funny and accurate at the same time).

That brings us to My Totally Weird Experience Taking the GRE. So looks like this post might be a little long. Hopefully, you think this is funny/outlandish/entertaining or something.

So to begin with, I was frustrated because when I started looking into taking the GRE, I discovered that I could not take the GRE in San Marcos (where I go to school), but instead, I would have to take it in Austin or San Antonio. I don't have a car, so getting there would be difficult.  Plus it was $150! Believe me, I don't have that lying around. So I talked to my parents and they said that not only would they foot the bill, but my dad would drive me to and from the test (parents of the year, every year [my parents are awesome - this is not sarcastic]). So I sign up and my test is the following Wednesday which happens to be the week that school starts so no time to study for this super important test...oh well, I'll just do the best I can.

So the day of the test comes, dad picks me up from my apartment, we get lunch, and drive like an hour to the other side of San Antonio (I think, I really don't know most of San Antonio very well). And we go to a nearby Barnes and Nobles because we have about an hour til I'm supposed to be there. Then we head to a nearby shopping center where the Prometric Testing Center is "co-located" (pretty sure they made up that word) with a Sylvan Learning Center, but there are two doors so I'm not sure which one to go in. So I go in the Prometric one and walk down this really weird long hallway to another door which informs me that I need to turn off my phone and send my dad away. So he goes back to the car (where he'll wait for a little bit because I was slightly concerned they wouldn't let me test because the name on my driver's license doesn't 100% match the name I registered for the test with - but I couldn't figure out how to change it for the life of me).

The place is dead quiet. And there's like NO ONE there (but I hear voices coming from the back). It kinda looks like a doctor's office. So I go over to the reception desk that says check in here. And I stand there for a minute before a lady comes out and asks for my ID and asks if my phone is off and tells me I need to empty my pockets (which were empty, thankfully). She gives me forms on a clipboard and a key to a locker to put my stuff in but tells me to keep my ID with me at all times and that I'll need to sign the paper and copy the paragraph on the bottom and we can get started when I finish the form.

So I put my purse in the locker and go sit down to do the form. It's mostly just agreeing to rules. Then I accidentally check a box indicating I'm not a US citizen (which I am, whoops!), only I haven't realized it yet. So when I go to turn in the form (to a different girl) she's like "Do you have your papers or passport?" So I get super confused and say "No, just my driver's license." The girl looks at me like I'm crazy and is like, "Are you a US citizen?" I say I am. She tells me I checked a box saying I'm not...I quickly scratch that out and check the correct box which satisfies her.

She takes me back and has me stand on these two footprints. She has me pull out my pockets to show they're empty, then she has me rub my hands side to side in my back pockets to show those are empty too. She has me push up my sleeves as far as I can. She has me pull my pants up so that she can see that there's nothing on my ankles. Then she has me put my feet together and uses one of those paddle things they use at airports and what-not when you make a metal detector go off to make sure I don't have anything hidden on me, I guess. She also has me take off my glasses so that she can make sure there's nothing on the back of them (I have no idea what they were looking for - a disguised google glass, maybe? I'm way too poor for that and I have no connections so...).

Now I sit in front of a guy at a computer (which I notice shows all of the people at the computer stations in the testing room - um, creepy); he takes my driver's license and has me tell him the address I used to register for the test. And the email I used to sign up for the test, which makes me nervous because I have two and I don't remember which I signed up with and I'm wondering if I tell them the wrong one if they'll make me leave. I tell them my school email, which turns out to be correct (thank goodness). Then he takes a terrible picture of me with a webcam (which I later realize will be sent to the school with my score report, thanks guys). He explains a bunch of rules to me, which I'm fairly certain are the same ones I read and agreed to earlier. Then they have me sign in on a sheet they've made just for me, and of course I sign in the wrong spot (ooops! I'm nervous, guys, sorry).

Then the girl takes me into the room with my four sheets of scratch paper and two pencils that they provide and my ID and locker key. She tells me to stand with my back to the wall while she puts the stuff at my station. I sit down and a little over two hours later, I finish. I sit there at the computer for awhile, wondering if I'm allowed to get up and leave or if I have to raise my hand to let them know, because this is the one thing they didn't tell me. Finally, I decide I'll just stand up and see if ninjas jump on me or something (they don't). Sign out, get my purse out of the locker, put the key on the desk (as I was instructed). And I was SO glad to leave!

I wonder if they were supposed to take a blood sample, too?

Good luck if you ever have to take the GRE,

Sharon

Maintaining Relationships

Hi guys,

So I'm going to try something a little bit different. I made a video! It's on YouTube, but it's unlisted so you can only see it if you use this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLSIx7JR5MU&feature=youtu.be (hopefully it works). The link is hot, so you should just be able to click and go to YouTube, if not, try copying and pasting.

In this video I'm going to talk about maintaining relationships (all kinds of relationships, focusing on non-romantic relationships).

What I hope you'll get out of it is:

• Spend time with your friends
• Let them know they're important to you!
• It's okay to ask for their support (in fact, it's important)
• BUT be sure to be there for them too!

Plus you'll get to see what I look like, which might make this blog a bit more personal, I think?

Anyways, let me know what you think. Should I do more blogs this way? What would you like me to talk about? PLEASE give me feedback. I feel like I'm just talking to myself here.

This video is a bit long, it's around 11 minutes, but please stick it out, I think you kind of get to see my personality.

If you regularly read this blog (and even if you don't), PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE provide me some sort of feedback, I'm trying to do this for you!

Let me know what you think!

Be good to your friends,

Sharon

Spring 2015: The Beginning of the End of My Undergraduate Career

Well the last semester of my undergraduate career begins tomorrow. I have a distinct feeling that I am not quite ready to be done with school, yet at the same time, I am tired of it. I will miss my sorority, the other organizations I joined, the friends I have made, and the beautiful campus.

I won't miss rushing across campus, stressing about tests or grades in general, and listening to people complain about college.

I will miss the routine and the knowing. Knowing what I would be doing next hour, next week, next year.

I don't know what I'll be doing next year. The uncertainty scares me.

I think this semester will be rough. I think it will be a relief to only be taking 12 hours (the fewest I've ever taken).

I don't think that I will really believe that I have finished and earned my undergraduate degree until I receive it in the mail after graduation.

I know that I can be proud of what I have accomplished. I know that I can be proud that I actually managed to graduate in four years (if I do..I hope I do).

Bring it on Spring 2015! I can do this!

(For advice if you are early in your career or if you aren't enjoying college, you can read my post, College Advice for Freshmen.)

Have a Great Semester!

Sharon

Dating Guidelines

So you're entering into a relationship with someone! That's exciting! Maybe you've dated before but you want to proceed in this relationship in a different way.  But do you know how to go about it? I know I'm currently single, but I have dated in the past, I have read books, I have talked to people. What follows is a list of guidelines that I think would be useful in dating, and if/when I date/court in the future, I plan to follow them.

1. Have Non-negotiables:
• Non-negotiables are deal-breakers. Reasons you won't date someone. Define them, know them, and stick to them. There's no point in defining them if you are just going to throw them out the window as soon as you meet someone.
• If you are a Christian, don't date non-Christians. I don't care if you prayed about it and you think God says it's okay. This is the test of all tests. This is the line of all lines. You can't have a Christ-centered relationship if the other person isn't Christian. You don't share the same values. If your faith is actually important to you, it will be a problem to be in a relationship with someone who isn't a Christian. This is Biblical. The Bible tells Christians to be set apart and not to marry non-Christians (this is two different verses). The Bible is the Word of God. If it so clearly tells us to specifically do something (or to not do something), we should probably listen.
• My two biggest non-negotiables are that I won't date someone who isn't a Christian and I won't date someone who smokes. I have other preferences, yes, but if you don't pass those two tests, I won't date you.
2. Set Boundaries
• These boundaries should define what sorts of interactions are or are not unacceptable. For instance, it might be a bad idea to be alone in private together. You may not want to spend time together late at night.
3. Make sure both of you are aware of the boundaries
• Boundaries are easier to stick to if you are on the same page.
4. Tell other people about your boundaries
• Tell the people you spend the most time with or talk to the most, tell the people you live with, tell your parents. They will be able to help you stick to your boundaries.
• Don't get mad when the people you have shared your boundaries with tell you that they think you aren't sticking to your boundaries.
5. Listen to your friends and family
• If they come to you with concerns about the relationship. Listen! Don't get mad, discount what they tell you, or make excuses. Often when we care about someone the chemicals which make us feel as though we are in love (oxytocin, serotonin, adrenaline, and some others) tend to make us perceive the world differently and can cause us to ignore our significant others' flaws which may be detrimental in the long run. What I'm saying is your family and friends may be aware of things that you are completely unaware of.
• In fact, it would probably be a good idea to ask friends and family members what they think, especially people who know you well and who you trust.
6. Don't have sex
• When we have sex, our bodies produce the hormone vasopressin which, among other things, helps to develop a pair bond. It may cause a relationship that should've ended quickly to last awhile. And when you do break up, it will cause extreme pain when that pair bond is broken. It is in your best interests not to have sex.
7. Hang out with your friends
• Should the relationship not work out, it is important to still be close to your friends so that you can have support during this difficult time. And if the relationship is successful, you won't have to search out people to be in your wedding.
8. Don't lose yourself in the relationship
• It is okay to take interest in the things he is interested in, but he should take interest in the things that you are interested in.
• It is also important to be able to do things separately, sometimes we just need some time apart.
• Keep pursuing your interests throughout the relationship. You shouldn't have to give up an interest or a hobby to keep the relationship. He should respect that it is a part of who you are, he doesn't have to take up your hobbies, but he shouldn't prevent you from doing them.
• This is another thing that will help should the relationship end, you won't have to figure out who you used to be before the relationship and it will help you to be able to do things that you enjoy.
• In fact, my mother once recommended that I make a list of things that I enjoy doing and do them throughout the course of any relationship and I think this is a very good idea. 

Remember there's more to life than relationships, but if you are pursuing one or want to pursue one, be smart about it!

Also, you might want to check out my post on Courtship.

Happy Dating!

Sharon

Long Time No See

I'd like to apologize for my absence of just over a month. I've been relaxing over the Christmas holiday with my family and friends.

I am going to try to blog more consistently. I think once per week is a decent goal.

I have been looking into part time jobs as I'm short on money, and I've been looking for summer internships and jobs since this will be my last semester of college. I think I'll talk more about thoughts/feelings on my last semester of college in another post soon.

Looking ahead for the semester on this blog will be:

• Dating Rules/Advice (my next post)
• Thoughts on beginning my senior year of college
• Poetry! During April I plan to be a participant in NaPoWriMo...so hopefully I will manage to post a poem EVERY day during April.
• Probably some thoughts in July when they begin to tear down my old high school.
• Not sure what else, hopefully some cooking posts and maybe some gardening posts when it begins to warm up!

Best Wishes,

Sharon