You are browsing the archive for graduate applications Archives - Magma Cum Laude.
2 November 2008
Strumpeting
In the process of applying for extra funding for my graduate studies, I’m finding myself again stuck writing a “personal statement” essay, and I can’t say that I’m fond of it. Oh, I have plenty of motivation to write the thing – what grad student doesn’t want to, say, earn an NSF fellowship and not have to worry about their funding for the next three years? But I’m never comfortable …
12 March 2008
I hate mood swings
So, it really stinks when you hear news from people you’ve taken field courses with, and it turns out that not only have they applied to some of the same grad programs that you have, they’ve been accepted. And you haven’t. I’d like to be happy for this person, but I am just the teensiest bit bitter to hear about their acceptance (AND paid visit), when this particular grad program …
28 February 2008
Time for therapeutic chocolate
So, the first notice that I haven’t been accepted to a graduate school has arrived. To be perfectly honest, I was prepared for this one; I was warned beforehand that competition for funding spots in this department was stiff, and that the profs I was interested in working with might not have space for me. (Actually, I was told that some students are considered for this program years in advance, …
22 December 2007
A journey of a thousand miles…
I’ve been contemplating, for some time, starting a blog about my experiences as a female geologist (and continuing geology student). I’ve recently discovered a number of other geology and science-related blogs, and I find their discourse stimulating, informative, and in many cases enlightening. It’s useful to me as a student to have insight into the thoughts of professors and older scientists, and it’s often easier to discover it through print …
Jessica Ball is a volcanologist at the U.S. Geological Survey, researching volcanic hydrothermal systems and stability, and doing science communication for the California Volcano Observatory. She previously worked at the Geological Society of America's Washington DC Policy Office, learning about the intersection of Earth science and legislative affairs. Her Mendenhall postdoc and PhD focused on how water affects the stability of volcanoes, and involved both field investigations and numerical modeling applications. Her blogging covers a range of topics, from her experiences in academic geosciences to science outreach and communication to her field and lab work in volcanology.