As I said in my previous grad school planning post, a career in teaching and research at the university level just seems to be the ideal mix of my interests, desires, and even my personality. I am a thinker; therefore, I would be so happy in a job that lets me think, I think. Plus, the autonomy that is allowed in a university professorship would allow me to work when I am sharpest according to my own biorhythms. Case in point: it’s currently about 1pm and I would give anything to be able to just close my office door and take a nap, because I am very tired. It always happens mid-afternoon. (Of course, it would probably help if I didn’t eat a huge lunch, but that’s not the point!) Unfortunately, I can not close my office door and take a nap for two reasons: 1. my company does not like people closing their door, because we have an “open office policy,” and 2. I have to remain billable 8 hours every day or the bosses aren’t happy. As a professor, I will be able to shut my door and focus on my work without anyone fussing at me, and I can come and go as I please all day, as long as I do what is expected of me. I would be able to only see visitors during set office hours if I wanted to. Now, let me make it clear…I believe I would be a much more friendly professor than that, but the point is that I could do it if I wanted to. If I sent out an email here at work saying, “I now have set office hours on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9am to 12pm. Plan your meetings with me accordingly,” I would be laughed at, not to mention lightly scolded for it.

My list of schools that I will apply to has remained largely unchanged since the last post, although I may add additional schools to the list to increase my chances of being accepted. I would prefer to stay in the south, since I’ve always lived in the south, but I may have to suck it up and move out to California or New England. It wouldn’t be a terrible thing, and it would only be temporary. I am sure that once I finish the Ph.D. I will be moving wherever I can get a job, so I better get used to it.

1. Georgia Institute of Technology
2. Harvard University
3. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
4. Portland State University
5. Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
6. Texas A & M University
7. University of California, Berkeley
8. University of California, Irvine
9. University of California, Los Angeles
10. University of Maryland
11. University of Michigan
12. University of North Carolina
13. University of Southern California
14. University of Texas
15. University of Washington

I have narrowed this list down even further by eliminating schools in places I would not want to live, such as California. I’ve basically narrowed it down to seven schools:

1. Georgia Institute of Technology
2. Massachusetts Institute of Technology
3. Rutgers
4. University of Texas
5. Texas A & M University
6. University of Washington
7. University of North Carolina

I may add others to the list as I do more research, but those are the ones I will start with. It’s not going to be cheap applying to all these schools. Every school has an application fee of at least $50. In addition to that fee, I have to pay $10 per transcript request to send each school my transcript from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and Reformed Theological Seminary, even though I took only one class each at those schools. Thankfully, Georgia Tech, where I did my undergraduate studies, does not charge for transcript requests.

I’ve always had an interest in research, so I’ve been leaning heavily towards pursuing a career in teaching and research at a university. It seems to be the ideal mix of my interests and desires:

- Teaching
- Researching topics that interest me
- A level of autonomy
- Interaction with some of the brightest minds in their field, and
- Interaction with students, which I think I would really enjoy.

This would mean that not only would I need to get a Ph.D., but I would also need to go to a school that is a strong research university. I discovered an organization that offers classifications of universities according to several criteria — one being its level of research activity. The organization is called The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The highest level for a doctorate-granting university is “Very High Research Activity.” All fifteen schools on the list above are universities with “Very High Research Activity,” so that is good.

I have to be patient, because it’s going to be a long process. First, I have to take the GRE this May, and then I have to get all my information together. I will have to get three references for each application. I’m thinking I will use Dr. Nelson Baker, my supervisor at Georgia Tech when I taught the engineering graphics lab, and at least one of my former work supervisors. I may need one more. I will then submit my applications late this year for Fall 2010 admission. Most of the schools have deadlines of early January for Fall admission if you are applying for a research assistantship position. That’s something I really need to get, because I do not want to take out more loans for graduate school. I have a feeling my final decision about which school to attend will come down to who offers me the best financial aid package.

Overall, I’m pretty excited about the prospects — moreso than about anything I’ve planned in my life up to now. I think I may have finally discovered what I am supposed to do for the rest of my life.

I’ve never read a book that described my personality more accurately than The Renaissance Soul: Life Design for People With Too Many Passions to Pick Just One. I am a Renaissance Soul. I have too many interests to settle on one. I typically don’t follow through with things I start, and that’s just fine with me. I am excited by the pursuit of knowledge on a particular topic. I hate long term goals, because I’m most likely to change interests long before I would ever reach those goals. I don’t like planning things too far into the future, because I’m not sure I would want to do that thing when the time comes. I like to go with my own flow.

If any of these statements sound like you, then you may be a Renaissance Soul, too. I urge you to read the book. It was an eye-opener for me, not to mention a huge relief to finally realize that I’m not weird. I’m just wired differently than others. People look at Leonardo DaVinci and Benjamin Franklin and see geniuses because of their many passions, but those same people look at Renaissance Souls today and say, “He’s just flaky. He can never stay focused on one thing.” It’s considered normal to be like Mozart who stuck with his one passion — music — for his entire life. He made a great contribution to the music world. But I would argue that the contribution from the Renaissance Souls of history have been even greater, because they cover a much larger variety.

Thoreau said it best when he said, “If a man loses pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away.” This is my theme. I march to the beat of a different drummer, and, quite frankly, I prefer my drummer’s beat. It’s more liberating. It’s who I am, and it suits me perfectly.

Back in November, I emailed the director of the Georgia Tech City Planning program, Dr. Bruce Stiftel, to get information on their admittance standards. I asked how competitive it is to get admitted and how much weight is placed on undergraduate GPA vs. the other non-quantitative criteria. This is his reply:

Mr. Eaker: In the Fall 07 cycle we had 149 applications, accepted 86 and enrolled 46. I don’t have final numbers for Fall 08 easy to hand, but they were in the same general ballpark.

We use nominal minima of 3.0 undergrad GPA; 550 V, 550 Q and 4.5 AW GRE scores; but we consider a wide variety of factors in our decisions, including the content of your personal statement, the letters of reference, past work experience, and any portfolio materials or writing sample you send us.

The effects of the non-quantitative factors cut both ways. So, it is not unusual for the committee to recommend admission for an applicant whose scores fall below one or more of our minima if they have outstanding promise as suggested by the non-quantitative portions of the application. It is also not unusual for the committee to recommend denial of someone whose scores are above the nominal minima if the non-quantitative factors are weak.

I should add it is quite rare for the committee to recommend admission if both the GPA is below 3.0 AND the V+Q GRE is below 1000.

I hope this information is helpful. Please let Ms. Blackwell or me know if we can help in any way as you move toward your graduate studies.

Since my undergraduate GPA was below 3.0 (2.57), then I am going to put alot of effort into acing the GRE. Plus, my work experience, the fact that I am a registered professional engineer in Georgia and Tennessee, and my personal statement should help. I hope that they are enough to compensate for the low GPA. However, I’ve been told that undergraduate GPA is not as important for those of us who have been out in the working world for several years. It’s more important for someone who is applying for graduate school right out of undergraduate school, since that is the only piece of information the admittance committee has to evaluate the applicant’s potential.

There were about 50 people there. The music was quite laid back — just two guitarists, one of them singing. The pastor, Sean Alsobrooks, talked about something called Advent Conspiracy, which apparently is taking off all over the country. It is basically trying to get the focus of Christmas off the consumerism and back on Christ and serving others. I like it, and I plan to attend again next week.

They plan to open the coffee shop and let it be a place for people to come and relax, have a cup of coffee, read a book, study, chit chat, or whatever they want to do. It will be called Remedy Coffeehouse. It sounds like it will be a great place once it’s open. I can’t wait to visit it.

Fiction
1. 1984 by George Orwell
2. The Scarlett Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
3. The Stranger by Albert Camus
4. The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
5. Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen
6. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie
7. Strangers on a Train by Patricia Highsmith (Highsmith wrote The Talented Mr. Ripley, which is one of my favorite books AND movies of all time.

Personal Development
1. What Should I Do With My Life? by Po Bronson (I’ve read this twice already, but it’s good enough to read a third time.)
2. On Writing Well by William Zinsser (currently reading)
3. Put Your Life On A Diet by Gregory Johnson (current reading) DONE
4. The Renaissance Soul by Margaret Lobenstine (I’ve read this one already, but need to read it again. It describes my personality to a “T.”)
5. Your Money Or Your Life by Joe Dominguez and Vicki Robin (I’ve already read this once, but need to read it again.)
6. Voluntary Simplicity by Duane Elgin (I have a hard time getting past the liberal propaganda, but there is really some good stuff in there.)
7. The Not So Big Life by Sarah Susanka (I started reading this one and decided to put it down, but I will give it another shot.)

Urban Planning
1. The Life and Death of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs (I’m in the middle of this one, but it’s slow going.)
2. The Great Neighborhood Book by Jay Walljasper
3. Livable Cities Observed by Suzanne and Henry Lennard

Miscellaneous
1. Reagan, In His Own Hand by Ronald Reagan (I hope to learn a few things from him.)
2. Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser

This is a phrase with which I am very familiar. I have come to the realization over the last couple of years of my life that I am a chronic sufferer of the “Grass is Always Greener Syndrome.” I’m always on the lookout for the next bigger and better thing in my life. It doesn’t matter which area of my life, there is always something that looks better to me than my current situation. This is a dangerous position to find myself, because it will cause me to never be able to settle down and enjoy life. For example, since moving to Knoxville, I have caught myself thinking there is probably a different place I could be living that is better in any number of ways than where I live. I have a new job, about which there is nothing to complain, and I am thinking that there is a better job somewhere out there for me, even a better profession than engineering. Someone wiser than I once said that if you find yourself unhappy in circumstance after circumstance, you must realize that the common denominator is you. I must be the reason that I can’t find contentment.

Paul said in Philippians 4:12, “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Paul knew contentment. He was content in knowing that in whatever circumstance he found himself, his focus was on something bigger than those circumstances. This is what I desire – contentment in whatever circumstance I am in. The great Puritan theologian Jeremiah Burroughs wrote a book about contentment in 1651, so this is not a new struggle. The book is called The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment. I think the title says much about contentment: 1. That it is rare. 2. That, once obtained, it is like a jewel. I happen to have a copy on my shelf that I have not yet read, so that book will be the next on my reading list. It will be a long and arduous read, but I’m sure will be well worth the effort.

There…I feel better.

I began attending Faith Promise because I was put in contact with some family of some friends from Newnan. When I got here, I knew no one (and still don’t know many people), so I attended the church they went to. It was fine for a while, but I slowly started to realize it wasn’t what I wanted in a church, but I had already started the process of getting hooked up with the band and going through their membership classes. I haven’t become a member of the church yet, but I have actually played in the band one week so far. So, I found myself at a crossroads. Do I continue to play since I’m already somewhat committed or do I let them know I’m out? After consulting with family and friends, I decided the right thing to do would be to be honest and break it off now.

I never gave any other church a chance, so my new task is to visit churches and not make a decision about which church to join until I feel like I’ve visited enough churches to make a qualified decision.