LAST BLOG

Well, the year is almost up and this is my last week at my Graduate Assistantship at GSE. Sad face.

A couple of my classes go for another two weeks and then graduation on the 15th! Seriously, this year flew by... It seems like I just got to Philadelphia and Penn GSE...

I will be moving back to Louisiana after graduation and attending graduate school (again, but for much longer this time) at Tulane for a Ph.D. in History and Sociology. I'm excited about moving to New Orleans this summer and really getting to know the city (I lived in Baton Rouge, which is about an hour away from New Orleans, before coming to Penn GSE).

This past year in Philly was awesome and I'm so happy I chose to come here for my master's program... I definitely recommend the Higher Education M.S.Ed. at Penn GSE if any of you are thinking about a graduate degree in education. The experience of being in Philly, the classes at GSE, and the people you will meet in the graduate community are all worth the move if you're from out of town and if you're from the local area, getting to attend UPenn is just awesome...

Last Weekend, etc.

The Open House went well this past weekend... many (about 90) prospective students showed up, several faculty, and students as well. You missed out if you weren't there!

It's definitely feeling like crunch time now... 4 more weeks of school! Woo! Since I don't have any tests, it's just a matter of doing some research and completing final papers for my classes. I can't say that I'm seeing the light at the end of the tunnel just yet, but by the end of next weekend I should be in a better place!

I'm hoping that the weather is good this week/end since the Penn Relays begin on Thursday. I plan on being there rain or shine, but it'd be nice to get some sun if I'm going to be outside for so long... So need some sunshine!

Misc.

Penn GSE is hosting an Open House this Saturday from 10am to 12pm. I would definitely encourage everyone to attend, especially if you are thinking about coming to campus for a visit... At an Open House you'll get to meet with faculty, students, and administrators... :-) RSVP now if you're interested!

Also, I don't know if any of you are track fans like me, but the Penn Relays are happening next weekend! Awesome! Usain Bolt from Jamaica will be competing... Obviously, that is a must see event. I'm also excited to watch the pole vault... I used to comepte in the pole vault and I don't think I've seen a competition in years... :-)

Indy

This past weekend I went to Indy for the Final Four... Unfortunately, Duke won... I was rooting for Butler! If basketball isn't enough of a distraction, I also have some type of senioritis... Since the weather turned warm, I've been procrastinating on homework pretty badly. Seriously, it's really difficult to buckle down lately. I still have some big papers to finish up in the next few weeks so I better get something done this upcoming weekend if I don't want to be over-stressed at the end of April!

Also, in case you're interested... We are hosting another web chat next week on Wednesday, an on-campus open house on Saturday, and another (the last of the academic year) web chat on May 5th. Come join us!

Comps

Comps have finally been returned and I'm officially cleared to graduate in May! Just a matter of weeks...

I'm looking forward to the remainder of teh school year. Hopefully I'm not bogged down with final papers and will have time to hang out with people in my cohort for the last few weeks. I know I've said this repeatedly, but I'm still so surprised how fast this academic year has gone by... Some people are likely to stick around in Philly, but for the most part, we are going to scatter all over the country starting in May. New beginnings!

Rain, rain, go away...

Seriously, stop raining.

Is Anyone Else Ready for the Summer?

Because I am. I'm not sure what I will be doing this summer, but I'm already ready for school to come to a close... Done in May!

Anyway, it is a pretty exciting time in the office right now. The students for the new Higher Education master's cohort had their accepted students' day on Monday. Interviews for the graduate assistantships have begun and it's interesting to meet and interview the people that are where I was this time last year. Other programs are also having events for admitted students, so there's a lot of energy around GSE this month!

Also, Penn GSE is hosting an event for college juniors from historically Black and Latino serving insitutions. That begins tomorrow and ends on Sunday... Hopefully they're inspired to go to graduate school in education after this weekend!

The Final Two

We're already down to the final two months or so of school... Nuts! These last eight weeks should go by quickly. And in case you're wondering, our comps results have not been released yet... Sillll waiting on that. Saying the Final Two reminds me of the Final Four coming up at the beginning of next month (over Easter weekend)... Which I will be attending! Woooooo.

On another note, the weather has decided to take a turn for the worse... It's so rainy and gross outside today. This weekend was beautiful, though. Spring is offically here and at least it's not snowing and freezing otuside. (I just jinxed it).

"Spring" Break Next Week

First... Comps are finally over! Yay! Now I just have to wait and see if I passed the exam.

Second... It's our "Spring" break coming up next week. I say "Spring" because in Philly, it's not like the REAL Spring outside right now. As soon as all of the snow has melted I will admit that Spring is near. I'll be home in Massachusetts for the majority of "Spring" break... Then I'll be in Los Angeles for the last couple of days attending an Open House at UCLA's Graduate School of Education (where I'm sure Spring is actually underway). I had applied to a few Ph.D. programs on the west coast last year and I'm very excited that I may be attending UCLA this fall!

Third... We're hosting a web chat on Wednesday evening from 8:00pm to 9:00pm EST. Come join us! To RSVP to the chat, click here: http://www.gse.upenn.edu/admissions_financial/events. We will have one more in March on 24th and at least one in April.

Comps

This weekend, Higher Education Master's students have comps (comprehensive examination)! Hopefully we're all prepared and pass. I can't say I'm especially excited but at the very least, it'll turn out to be a good learning experience of what I've "mastered" at GSE so far... Wish me luck!

On a side note... Penn GSE just started on Twitter! You can find us here: www.twitter.com/PennGSE.

Saints and School

Well, the Super Bowl happened yesterday... and I missed it because I was about 30,000 feet in the air flying back from visiting Louisiana. Oh well. At least it was 30 degrees warmer and not snowing down there...

Since I didn't metion this in my last post, I think it's important to point out that February is the "Month of Comps"... i.e. the Comprehensive Examination for M.S.Ed. students in the Higher Edcation program. The exam is actually a take-home paper that we are given a weekend to complete. It entails answering a single question (one of two) that basically needs to capture all that we have learned about higher education thus far at Penn GSE. No big deal... :-/ So, we (Higher Education students) are in the midst of preparing for comps, doing course work, and working... A busy month! But, thank goodness, one week after the comps are due is spring break... (smile)

It's February?

Umm... So I haven't been blogging in the past few weeks... Mainly because school and work took off almost too fast! We are already a few weeks into the new semester (the last one at Penn GSE for me). It was nice to have a bit of a break, but it's also good to be back in Philly... With that said, I'm almost over the cold and snow already. Unlike in Massachusetts where it can look like a postcard from Winter Wonderland in the winter, when it snows in Philly, it snows just enough to either melt away the next day or it just creates a thin layer of ice on the ground that makes it difficult to walk around.

Anyway, my classes are great this semester... I'm taking Globalization and the University, Race and Racism in Education, Contemporary Issues in Higher Education, Professional Development in Higher Education, and Adolescent Development. All except Adolescent Development are in the Higher Education Division. Each class really brings something different to the table about education... So it will be nice to see how the classes complement each other throughout the semester.