Finally! I'm in Delft!

Technically speaking, I arrived in Delft 5 days ago, but the last few days have been so busy that I haven't had time to post anything. So, as I sit here sipping wine and waiting for my dinner to cook, I finally have a chance to summarize my trip, arrival and first few days of settling in.

The week before I left was BUSY. From the time I came back from a trip to visit extended family to the time I left, I ended up meeting up with friends for every single lunch and dinner. There was last minute preparations, packing and shopping for necessary gear. All in all, I didn't get much sleep.

My flight was in the afternoon on a Friday. The check-in counter was less than pleasant. The lady at the counter first weighed my carry-on, then informed me I'd have to reduce the weight by 2kg. Fair enough... Once I repacked my bags, she then asked me to measure its dimensions in the device they had. It was very very close, only one of my wheels got caught on the top rail. Because of this she made me pack as much as I could into my backpack and check the bag. I was not pleased, to say the least.

Once I got though security, however, things got significantly better. I was called to the flight desk, where I was informed that I was randomly chosen to be upgraded to first class for free! Needless to say, this was the most pleasant flight I've ever been on. To top it off, I had some great conversations with the Dutch guy in the seat next to me.

After I arrived, collected my luggage and went through customs, I was greeted by TUD volunteers who brought me to the Welcome desk where I was given important documents. Shortly after I was taken by shuttle to my residence in Delft, where another volunteer was waiting to guide me to my apartment.

My first weekend involved some pre-organized evening activities and unpacking my bags. The was a daytime city rally organized, but my cell battery died, and so I ended up sleeping through it. It was just as well, since the extra sleep likely helped me to be more energetic at the welcome party that evening.

This week is introduction week. I've attended some lectures, met up with and worked with a project group, met a tonne of people and bought many things for my apartment. Today I (finally) found a bike. Now, I need to get a local cell phone, buy a few more items for my apartment and take care of a few more things.

Tomorrow (Thursday) is my last day for this week. Next week my faculty has organized a four day camp in a "secret location". All in all, I'll say that my trip to Delft has been great so far. I've met some wonderful people, seen some of the beauty of the city and I am becoming more organized. I am almost ready to begin my studies. I am so happy to be here, and I'm sure the next year will be great!

Application Time Line

Creating effective applications for schools and scholarships is no trivial task. The criteria for an "ideal application" varies. It is critical to know your audience, what they are looking for, and the deadlines by which you must submit your application. Here is a my application time line:

Making the decision to apply: June - July 2009
Deciding whether or not to apply for school abroad was probably the hardest part of this whole process, emotionally speaking. A past professor, family and friends were a great support. Once I finally made the decision, I felt so great about it.

Research schools and funding: July - August 2009
With my new life plans in mind, I made a detailed list of the applications I needed to fill out, the dates they'd become available, due dates, required documents and qualities that they were looking for. When I had questions, I contacted program administrators.

I also registered for the GRE (Graduate Record Examination). It was required by one of the schools I was planning to apply to. I got my GRE study book and began preparing. After discovering that I did not meet the minimum course requirements for that school, I canceled the test.

Scholarship application: August - October 2009
Scholarship applications became available in August. Gathering official documents and filling out the application form is easy. The more challenging task is writing personal statements and acquiring high quality reference letters.

Well thought-out personal statements are crucial. If a personal statement is poorly written it is likely to be quickly forgotten. I re-wrote my personal statement several times, sometimes with help from friends, family and past professors.

When it comes to reference letters, you don't have control of the content. All you can do is find relevant referees that are willing to write you a positive letter and give them plenty of notice. A word to the wise: Don't assume that your referees will remember the application deadlines. Polite reminders may be necessary. I even had to chase down one of my referees in person. In the end it was worth it.

Prepare school applications: September 2009 - November 2009
This process was pretty much the same as the scholarship applications. I gathered documents, adapted my personal statement to the schools I was applying to and got more reference letters.

Wait... wait... wait....: November 2009 - March 2009
Whew! Finally.... done applying! All I had to do was wait.... and wait.... and wait some more. Just like making the decision to apply, waiting was emotionally trying.

In December, some progress. One of my scholarships made it past the first round of decisions. Yay! More waiting.... In January I received news that I had been accepted to one of the schools. Hurray!

More waiting... February came with some disappointment: 2 rejections. What a blow to the ego! Fortunately, March was much kinder to me: I was accepted into another school and awarded two scholarships, one of which was a full scholarship to one of the schools. This made my decision easy... This fall I will study for one year in the Netherlands, then one year in Sweden.



Get ready to go!!: March 2009 - now
The last few months have involved receiving and sending documents, arranging a one-way flight, arranging accommodations, researching the Netherlands and Sweden, amongst other things. It has been a year since this application process started. The hard work and waiting were worth it. I can't wait to board my flight in August!

Spilling the Beans

Today was a first for me. I handed in my resignation letter for the first "real" job I've ever had. Don't get me wrong. I like my job. I work with many great people, have learned a lot, have had opportunities for advancement and I am good at what I do. However, in the three years that I have been working, I realized that life has become quite predictable: get up, go to work, go home, make dinner, relax for an hour or two, go to bed, then do it all again. Since I have nothing to tie me down to my home town, I decided that its time to do something awesome!

With a need for change, I entertained a few ideas. At first, going back to school was not part of the plan. When I finished my Bachelor's degree, I definitely needed to get away from the student life. There was a time that I thought about getting a job abroad. After a previous experience of living in Switzerland for four months during a spring/summer break from school, I knew that I wanted to travel more. However, when the world wide economic crisis hit, I decided that I'd rather not run the risk of being laid-off on the other side of the world.

The next best option at the time was to focus on buying some property. I still had travel in the back of my mind, but planning trips with my 15 days of vacation per year would just have to do. Searching for property kept me entertained at first. When it came down to it, though, I really was quite bored.

I toyed with the idea of pursuing a Masters part time while continuing to work. Then I thought, "What the crap is the point of this?" When I first started working, I could not wait to get away from school and finally have some spare time. If I combined school and work, I'd have no spare time and likely would not travel. That was it... after much deliberation I came to the conclusion that I am really a keener at heart, and I have a bad case of the travel bug.

So here I am. Over the last year I've applied for schools and funding. The hard work paid off. Starting in August, I will be a Masters student for a year in the Netherlands and then a year in Sweden. In this blog I will share anything and everything related to being a student abroad. In the coming weeks before I leave, I will post about the application process and previous travels.

I really have no idea where I will end up, both geographically and professionally. All I know is that I'm ready for my new adventure.