Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with university and resolved

Group assignment advice

mattoxic — Sat, 17 Oct 2009 23:58:17 -0800

I've to hand in a group assignment tomorrow and the input from one of the members is crap- terrible writing, no references, no clue, nice guy. I want to remain friends but want to dramatically edit his work. How can I break it to him that his work needed treatment? I'm terrible at this sort of thing. btw, this thread doesn't really answer my question as we're handing in tomorrow. Also- he's old buddies with the other group member who I don't know very well.

"student often made rude and inappropriate requests"

hector horace — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 10:46:35 -0800

A question about university reference letter etiquette. I'm about to ask a few of my former university professors for references letters. Is it customary for professors to provide a copy of the reference letter to the requesting student before they submit them to the relevant party, (i.e. the school that the student is applying to)? If not would it be bad form to request to see the letters before they are forwarded?

I'm not worried that the letters will be negative but I'd rather have a look at what is said before it becomes part of my application. I'm sure I'm just being paranoid but I hate the idea of not having control over such an important part of my application.

thanks

For those of us who didn't go to Harvard. . .

Ndwright — Sun, 27 Sep 2009 23:26:53 -0800

Are there any sites or blogs dedicated to pointing out great courses and lectures not to be missed on iTunes U? The Mefi post with this question's origin.

What's a good university town for a non-traditional student?

patheral — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 22:50:26 -0800

Looking to go to grad school for Linguistics or TESOL, but I'm a non-traditional student. I have a few schools picked out but don't want to end up in another tiny "college town." Help? Here's the long and short of it. I'm 43 years old and finishing up my BA in English in a small town down here in the South (exact location withheld for personal reasons). In this tiny town, I stick out like a sore thumb amongst these 18-23 year-old kids, not to mention that there is *nothing* for people my age to do around here - especially a non-drinker like me.

I want to go to grad school and get my MA in either TESOL or Linguistics (the degree changes depending on the school I'm looking at). However, I don't want to end up in a tiny college town again. I don't really trust city websites because they're made to look the town look good, as are the college websites.

So here are four of the colleges I'm looking at:
Kent State University in Kent, OH
Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ
University of Colorado at Boulder in Boulder, CO
and
Oakland University in Rochester, MI

I'm also considering Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA... but I already know about Norfolk because I've lived there before.

Any information anyone can give me about these cities or even the universities would be great.

Metafilter:Guidelines :: Apartment:???

yaymukund — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 12:40:08 -0800

What are some things you wish you knew (or were glad you knew) before you moved into your first apartment with roommates? I'm looking for methods of splitting up chores, cooking, finances, resolving disputes, and dealing with common problems.

Keep the black dog at bay

teraspawn — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 02:08:47 -0800

Depression in University/College: most of you seem to have been through it, do you have any tips? According to my research, about 90% of Mefites suffered from depression while they were in university ^{[citation needed]}. You gave me some amazing advice in my previous question about taking a year out from my course, and I'm happy to say I feel like I'm mostly out of the woods now and ready to start second year again in September.

However, as someone who's fairly prone to depression, I'm a little apprehensive about trying to keep up with my work, socialising and looking after myself (when I don't have my mum on hand to feed me!).

I've read this question on a similar topic, but I'm looking for general advice and tips on how to depression-proof my time at university, and how to do well academically without driving myself absolutely potty. What do you think, Hive Mind?

Clinical Psychology reading

curious zoe — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 13:44:47 -0800

My friend is applying for clinical psychology postgraduate study at the end of this year and she would like to make sure she is well read on relevant books (nb. not text books) and blogs etc before the interview. Can anyone reccomend any books, websites or blogs that would be good for my friend to review prior to her interview?

Give me a career direction!

Phire — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:36:00 -0800

What kind of job can I get with this business degree that would let me have a degree of autonomy over my work, interact with my coworkers, and provide a measure of stability in this unhappy economic climate? I'm going into my third year of undergrad at a Canadian university in Ontario, currently working towards a Bachelor of Commerce with a BA Minor in Sociology. My tentative plans after graduation include getting a CA (Chartered Accountancy), working a few years, and then maybe studying law if I'm still interested at that point. I don't think that I want to stay in Canada indefinitely, mostly because of the climate, and I'm toying with the idea of either working in the States or going to Australia.

For the past two summers I've worked at a federal government job. The department I'm working at is related to my field in name, but not so much in practice. Mostly I've been doing clerical and documentation type work - writing procedures, updating files, translating, etc.

I am a very risk-averse person. I picked a Commerce degree in favour of the traditional liberal arts education that I probably would've enjoyed a lot more because I was concerned about my future job prospects. I'm also not your typical "passionate" person - not to say that I'm wholly emotionless, but I tend to subscribe to the philosophy that you can find enjoyment and misery in any job, no matter what it is, and I figure I don't really love one thing enough to give up stability in order to pursue that one thing wholeheartedly for 30+ years. That's also the main reason I would be getting the CA designation. I haven zero interest in investing and trading, but I don't mind accounting and find the policy kind of interesting. I think I might genuinely enjoy law, but the high cost of tuition makes me want to wait and see for now. I will be taking two business law courses next year to give me a better sense of what the field is actually like.

My rationale for working in the public service involve finding a job that I can leave at the office once I do get off work, leaving me enough disposable income to enjoy my hobbies without too much concern about financial shortcomings. In my spare time, what little there is currently, I read, draw, write, play and listen to music, and get too invested in reading interesting online debates. At school I'm part of a debate team, an auditing committee, an international affairs club, and some volunteer gigs. I have a pretty solid social circle, but we're the nerdy video game type, and don't go out much - I've always also considered myself a fairly introverted person. Being in Commerce and fielding the associated networking events I find that I've gotten much better at staying calm in unfamiliar circumstances and talking to people I wouldn't otherwise have talked to, but I don't thrill at these situations by any means.

However, recently I've realized that as much as I like my alone time, the cubicle-farm environment of your typical office job kind of depresses me. Things are very much isolated in my current work environment, and apart from giving me assignments and receiving my finished products, I don't interact much with other people in my office. I've tried to reach out and chat to a few of the younger workers, but while they're always friendly, there's been no overt reciprocation of friendliness. Everyone is pretty much content keeping to themselves.

I had an interview with an ad agency earlier this summer and I really liked the casual, friendly atmosphere at that office, and I feel (perhaps mistakenly) like that type of atmosphere is mostly prevalent in the private sector. I think I would like a job that allows me control over my final output and the quality thereof, but still lets me interact with other people on the team/in the office. The Canadian government has a system of bridging in summer students, and this is most feasible if they worked at that department summer between third and fourth year. My questions are as follows:

1) Given the above back story, what type of work is out there? I'm sure there are tons of jobs I haven't even thought of, beyond "accountant", "investment banker", and "office drone".

2) Would it be unwise to give up a two-summer history with this department right before my final summer (and thus potentially crucial bridging term) and try to go for a private sector job for next summer, when the private sector is unstable and will in no way guarantee me a position after graduation?

Any input is appreciated. Thanks very much!

1. ??? 2. Ph.D. 3. Profit!

ailouros08 — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 12:05:09 -0800

The eternal question: A 2d bachelor's degree, or straight to grad school? Another rehash of a fairly common question on AskMe, but with a fun, crushing-financial-burden? spin.

My darling girlfriend is considering going back to school for a Ph.D. in Ecology or Environmental Science. She is currently the not-so-proud owner of a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies (her particular brand includes a mixture of biology, chemistry, environmental science, sociology and anthropology). She's been out of school, working in retail, for about five years. While she has managed to avoid the lay-offs so far, the chances that her company will still be around by next February are vanishingly small. So, she's finally mustered the courage to take a stab at her dream: Getting her Ph.D. in Environmental Science.

Complications? Her graduating GPA was a mere 2.3, so it would be difficult, if not outright impossible, for her to get into grad school without some prep work. So right now she's trying to decide between getting a 2d bachelor's in Biology, taking classes as a Post-Bacc at a local university, or taking classes at a local community college in order to boost her GPA.

Her question really revolves around the cost-benefit of each of these paths. The financial considerations, while still significant, will lessen considerably once I finish school in May 2010. Though I won't be earning the big bucks, I'll be able to replace her earnings (we live quite frugally) and she'll be able to focus entirely on being a student.

1. A 2d Bachelor's would take longer, but it would be easier to get financial aid. All the past AskMe's we've looked at suggest that its effect on admissions to a graduate program would be negligible.

2. Post-Bacc classes would be the fastest way for her to beef up her GPA. Additionally, she would be taking them at one of three great research universities in the area, so she'd have networking opportunities. However, Post-Bacc students aren't eligible for financial aid, so this would be the most expensive option (and she would probably have to work part-time to help defray the cost.)

3. Taking community college classes is the cheapest option by far, but unless she actually enrolls in an Associate's Degree program, she won't be eligible for financial aid. Her worry with this option is that the rigor of the classes (or lack thereof) may hinder her when she applies to a grad program.

I apologize for the long question, but she is at a very big crossroads in her life, and needs all the advice and encouragement she can get. So, fellow mefites, have you taken any of these paths? What would you recommend? Should she focus on quality or affordability? Advice/warnings? Alternatives?

COME ON!!!

gergtreble — Fri, 29 May 2009 16:39:02 -0800

So... I may be going on television... There is a chance that I will be going on University Challenge (College Bowl for you Americans) in the next month or so. So I need the most bad-ass awesome T-shirt to wear. Can I buy an AskMefi shirt? Also any other tips you want to send my way would be well received!

What topics should be covered in a "new media" class for journalists?

Lownotes — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 07:22:12 -0800

What topics should be covered in a "new media" class for journalists? I am putting together a class on "new media" for journalism students at the university level.

I am a journalist with lots of experience in the field of convergent/Web 2.0/new media - and that's why I'm asking the hive mind to help.

This class will be a companion to The History of Journalism, and will probably be listed as The Future of Journalism.

It will be for journalism students who have already covered all the basics - AP stylebook, ledes, nut grafs, interviewing, writing and so on.

If you were to teach or take a class like this, what do you think should be the topics covered?

Feel free to go into great detail and include links - also, if this turns out well, I'll showcase to students how I used AskMeFi to help create the class.

Note to myself: Use better notes

ddaavviidd — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 08:00:05 -0800

I'm doing my comp. exam (also called doctoral exam here) this summer. This involves reading a whole bunch of books and articles (about 30), and writing a long paper that answers a few questions from my committee. I am looking for good note-taking methods. I've made it to the PhD with not much of a technique. Sometimes I write in the margins, sometimes I hand-take notes on a separate sheet for each text, and sometimes I just read, no notes. I'd like to have a better system this time to be able to do the readings and then be able to use principally my notes for the writing. What is your preferred method?

I'm okay using a computer for note-taking (os x), but not online tools, as I'll often be in dead zones. I have Zotero, but I'm not sure I'm using it to its full capacity.

(also, not to derail, but any tricks for the reading-writing of the exam would be appreciated-this is in communication studies)

University of Salamanca Housing

PaulingL — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 12:56:48 -0800

Help me choose living accomodations while studying abroad in Spain! Starting at the end of August, I will be studying abroad at the University of Salamanca.

This involves a one month "intensive month" and the Fall Trimester and Winter Trimester.

As of now, I have planned to live with a host family for the first month and the Fall Trimester, and then switch to the Residencia for the Winter Trimester to get the best of both worlds.

What do you think? Any suggestions? Any experiences with anything similar?

Should I drop out of university?

pocketfluff — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 15:23:18 -0800

Should I drop out of university? I'm a physics student in my third (and final) year. I started to think that physics might have been a bad choice in first year, but felt that it wouldn't be too bad and I'd be able to get a good degree - I was still getting decent marks, so I didn't change my degree course then.

As I got further into the course, I began to really struggle with the maths involved, and my interest in physics waned even further. I failed a class in second year, but still had okay grades (53% - a 2:2) and still didn’t know what else to do so stuck with it.

I worked hard last semester, but most of the modules were mostly theoretical/mathematical and I struggled with a lot of the content. Now my interest in physics is almost zero. I feel increasingly stressed out about the course and my performance in it, and have been looking forward to graduation, mostly because it would mean I never have to think about physics ever again!

But, I recently received my exam results from last semester: I failed 5 out of the six modules I took.
This is a lot worse than I had expected.

I can no longer graduate with an Honours degree, but if I pass all of my modules this semester, I can get a pass degree (which is still something). Most of this semester plays more to my strengths, but there are still two that I feel it is unlikely I will manage to pass, as I can’t get my head around the maths involved.

I’m considering dropping out. If I can’t pass all the modules, I won’t get anything anyway. Would it be better just to give up now and start applying for jobs? Perhaps it might help to get a headstart over the other graduates? I have no real career plans at the moment, and was planning to just apply for lots of jobs and see what happened after I graduated anyway.

I feel like I need to hear other people’s opinions. What do you think? Should I try to finish the year (and possibly end up 6 months later with nothing for it)? Did you drop out? How did things work out for you? This is in the UK, if that's important.

The Bank of Mum and Dad

Wilder — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 10:41:21 -0800

How do we best finance our daughter's Irish University career (we're in the UK)? We're Irish, 8 years resident in UK. Daughter started a university course in Ireland last September.

Problem: we had saved enough for year 1 and Grandmother always offered to finance the rest. (Daughter contributes 20% through a summer job) But she very recently changed her mind as our daughter's focus has gone more towards the language and linguistics part of her degree course, as opposed to the Psychology part which Grannie favours.
We're very happy that she has discovered something in her first year that makes her passionate, so we support her choice and her results speak for themselves.
Daughter perfectly happy to get student loan but she has been turned down here in the UK as the course she accepted is in the Republic of Ireland. There is no student loan system in Ireland that we can identify.

So, as we had not planned on being in this position, we hadn't researched it enough, (and we are too ignorant of the tax system here. We are both PAYE workers) so Mefites, what are our best options?
We have good equity in our home and presently have a mortgage for about 50% of the current market value. Should we remortgage at these historically low rates and give her a loan from the Bank of Mum & Dad?
Do we gift her some money which might have tax advantages for us?
She will need approx 10,000 Euros a year as she gets a summer job that earns her a 2,000 euro surplus to put towards the costs

An American in Montreal

nax — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 07:31:15 -0800

miss nax, an American, is interested in going to university in Montreal starting with online courses this year, and matriculating FT in fall 2010. She's asked me to help investigate (she's living in China right now, making some of the research challenging.) What are some of the issues she'll encounter? Her French is rudimentary, but she's working on it, and will be living in France for several months next year-- can she get a job (for instance, teaching figure skating which is her current profession) without strong French language skills? Is there financial aid for foreigners? What are some questions she/we need to be asking? We live in Chicago, so the distance is not an issue.

Where is class gonna be?

soelo — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 13:21:00 -0800

Who decides when and where (and which) classes will be held in a typical public, American University? I am frustrated with many aspects of my University's class schedule and have been for years. I want to know more about the typical process for assembling this schedule, specifically when multiple campuses are involved. It's a state school, but not the Big One.

There are whole departments that never hold a single class on my campus (we have 3 different ones). I have been asking around and emailing various people but I have not had any luck in getting answers as to why, and how I can get this changed.

I have been working with the Student Senate, who put me in touch with a Campus Rep. She has not been very forthcoming, and told me I must go to the other campuses. I have told my teachers that I appreciate them holding class on my campus.

Is my adviser the person to ask? Each department head? The Office of the President?

Thanks

Unmarried academics seek UK immigration advice

tractorfeed — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 19:55:23 -0800

How can I accompany my unmarried non-same-sex partner who has been offered a job in the UK? We're both US citizens, we've been living together for over a decade, and now my partner has been offered a job as a professor at a university in the UK. I'm in the process of getting my PhD, I'm happy to move overseas, and it's feasible for me to do so financially and academically, but I'm unsure as to what my visa status might be. We're not married, nor do we live in a state that allows heterosexual couples to enter into civil unions or domestic parnerships, which is what we'd do if we could (marriage is not for us, for a variety of reasons). His visa situation is going to be handled by the HR department of the university, but we'd like a little more information before we consider asking them to help with my visa. His job is permanent, and falls under the category of "highly-skilled" (i.e. they did an international job search and he was considered the best candidate). Basically we don't want to find ourselves in a situation where we feel pressured to get married just to make things easier. Is my situation any different from any random US citizen with half a PhD who wants to live/eventually work in the UK? Or is my situation different because we're together (although we're not in any legal sense)? I think we'd be ok with a civil union in the UK if that would help.

Presentation tips and advice

philsi — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 13:47:06 -0800

What are the best ways to encourage audience participation and reception of potentially boring presentations? I have two presentations late November / early December and want to keep people alert and do a memorable presentation. What tricks did the best / most memorable presentations you have seen use? I have two presentations to give in late November and early December, one as part of a group of four people on "Ethical Fashion in the UK" with an emphasis on child labour, and the other as part of a group of three people on the financial impacts of organisations going green. Both are around the 20 minute mark.

We have all the material we need, and are just organising into a suitable order, but need some interesting ways to encourage audience participation, and keep everyone interested (other than the usual "don't just read slides" / "don't mumble" / "don't put too much on slides" advice)

I've tried googling around, but have only found the usual "PowerPoint no-nos" and usual tips about talking clearly / not relying on PowerPoint too much. Any links to websites greatly received.

If it makes any difference, this is for a final year Business Management degree in the UK.

Cartoon and comics major programs

zainsubani — Sun, 12 Oct 2008 16:17:16 -0800

Are there any US colleges or universities that offer majors in comics and cartooning (the traditional 2D variety, not 3D animation)?

So what do academics interviews consist of?

Mutant — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 13:37:40 -0800

What to expect at an interview for an academic teaching post? As a follow up to this question regarding changing my CV to pursue another teaching post (I already have a part time slot teaching at the Masters level), I've got my first interview tomorrow. The specific job is Lecturer in Econometrics at a UK University.

Great news, but I don't know what to expect. Corporate interviews are no problem, done hundreds of them in my time, from both sides of the desk.

But academic? I have no idea. A clue is they'd like me to bring along and present a lecture of my choise suitable at the Masters level, and that's fine. It's a one hour interview and they expect the presentation to take up twenty minutes, and I plan to approach this part of the interview as an actual lecture, complete with me asking the "students" (interviewers) questions, peppering the presentation with historical market anecdotes relevant to the topic we're discussing, etc.

Before and after that? I'm sure pleasantries, brief review of my CV, a cuppa & some biscuits, discussion of my previous lecturing experience (two years, four terms in front of the class), talking about my current academic assignment, some bitching about the rotten English weather and what else can I / should I expect?

I never get nervous at these things, regard them more as an opp to meet some (hopefully) interesting people, score some free eats and nothing more. But the more I know about what to expect the better things will go. TIA for any help!

Writing a Travel Grant

tickingclock — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 02:34:19 -0800

I am applying for a small travel grant to fund a trip to a semi-local conference. The problem is that I have no idea how to write one! I am interested in presenting the results of my undergraduate research project at a small conference taking place at a nearby province. To help fund this trip, I would like to apply for one of the undergraduate travel grants available at my university -- but I have no idea what I am supposed to say. The application instructions are fairly minimal: "attach a one-page explanation of your role at event and title of presentation."

Some specific questions:
* Do travel grants have a standard format that I should follow?

* What kind of information are they looking for in the grant proposal? My role at the event and title of presentation will not take up a whole page -- what are they actually asking me to say?

* There is a separate application cover sheet that contains the important information such as the name of the conference, the amount of money requested, as well as the proposed dates of travel. Should I repeat this information in the proposal?

* Should I attach some documents that are not explicitly requested? I am thinking of things like the abstract, a proposed budget, and my resume.

This is my first time writing a grant, travel or otherwise (see: undergrad), so any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

Personal Statement Woes

tickingclock — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 21:33:32 -0800

Applying for a university summer school program, which requires a personal statement of 150 words. What could I say with such few words? I am applying for a rather competitive university summer school program designed to train undergraduate students interested in pursuing graduate studies in the cognitive sciences. Most of the application is fairly standard -- a transcript, a letter of recommendation, &c. -- but I am stumped at the personal statement, which has a rather restricted limit of 150 words!

The personal statement field asks for "academic experience, research experience and interests, [and] career plans" -- I have no idea how I could describe all of those in 150 words or fewer. This is particularly difficult because I am in a rather unusual multidisciplinary program that is not really offered at other universities, so it takes me a few sentences to even describe my undergraduate degree, never mind explain my interest in it and why my education is appropriate for the summer school. Furthermore, having a lengthy description of my academic background prevents me from delving into my involvement with research projects, which are very much related to topic of the summer school -- although, I suppose the letter of recommendation from my supervising professor could probably cover that fairly well.

The application form does not ask for a CV, nor does it have a section for attaching other documents, so I am not really sure of how to best discuss my academic and research background outside of the personal statement section. It does, however, have a free-form "other comments" section, whose purpose I am not entirely sure of at the moment.

I really, really want to accepted into the summer school this year and I feel that improving my personal statement would definitely help. Last year, I wrote one or two sentences tackling each of the categories listed in the personal statement; I was not accepted into the program. To be honest, I thought my personal statement was rather boring and did not express my aspirations very well -- it gave a rather dry overview of who I am as a student.

How could I best tackle the personal statement? Should I be enthusiastic? Should I focus on one aspect of the personal statement, such as my research aspirations, and rely on my letter of recommendation to describe other relevant experiences? Should I go crazy packing my background information in the "other comments" section? How do I limit myself to 150 words and yet still stand out among other applicants, many of whom are likely more qualified and interesting than I am? I should add that I have a rather dry, boring writing style, which really does not help my cause.

Most of the advice that I found on the internet seem to be geared towards longer personal statements, in which there is more wiggle room for being interesting. I'm really not sure of what to do. Ask MetaFilter, please hope me!

Do I make the most of my four years here, or do I keep my sanity?

Phire — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 21:16:47 -0800

I'm a first year business undergrad. Not even a month into University, and I feel overwhelmed and suffocated. Help me deal? Background: The business program that I'm in is one of the most competitive programs in Canada, which I almost didn't get into. I was an IB student in High School, so I do have some experience with stress management. I also live off-campus (as opposed to residence), which makes me feel really isolated at times, though I'm a 10 minute walk from most places on campus.

Academically: It feels like I'm already falling behind. There is a ridiculous amount of reading to be done, and I've given up taking notes on them. Instead, I just read the assigned chapters (either before or after that class) and take notes in lectures, though I'm paranoid of missing something the professor only skimmed and that's covered in detail in the reading that will be tested on a midterm, or something.

Socially: I'm in two clubs primarily, Samba and Badminton. There are two other clubs that I'm also interested in, but that may conflict with my schedules. Were it up to me, I would feel completely happy with these two clubs as it is. But since I am in a competitive business program, I feel obligated to join business ventures/conferences/clubs that look good on my resume. I've got little to no interest in being the frosh rep for the Accounting Association, for example, but it will probably look good on paper in my CV and I feel like I need to do as much as possible to build my resume, otherwise I would be wasting my money. (Oh, that, and I'm finding it hard to make friends.)

So the feeling of struggling to keep up with my work combined with a sense that I have to join all these 'voluntary' committees is ... stressing me out. (Did I mention I'm thinking of looking for a part time job to off-set the cost of tuition?) As a result, I'm either lethargic, doing my work in a sullen stupor or sleeping 18 hours a day and waking up only to go to a lecture. My two close friends on campus are Engineering majors, so they don't really relate...

Ambitions-wise: I want to work in International development/relations with either a company or the government when I eventually graduate. Failing that, I'm enjoying accounting so far so I guess a CA designation would be a good fall-back. I also want to do a Dual-Degree in political science, though I'm not allowed to pursue that till Spring year 2.

Hence, any advice regarding how to cope with a lot of reading, or how to make friends (it's really not as easy as 'joining a club' or 'talk to people in class', really.) would be appreciated. In addition: I have this mindset that business is about networking and reaching out and building yourself up. Is it absolutely crucial to start this first year? Will I be eons behind my other business competitors (read: classmates) if I don't get involved in a couple hundred clubs that all require applications and that I have little to no interest in anyway this year?

How to make first year living easier

Phire — Thu, 07 Jun 2007 12:13:45 -0800

Are there any faux-pas to watch out for when looking for accomodations for University? Snag: I'm going into first year Undergrad, the year most people either spend at home or in University provided residence. I'm going out of town for University, but residence is rather more than I can afford. I've been keeping an eye out on craigslist for potential apartments and shared-rooms situations, and I've found a few that involve renting one room in a bigger house that seem quite nice.

Besides asking about location, amenities, utilities, and house rules, is there anything that would make my first year a living hell? Rules like "don't live with people who're all in the same major", say?

For example, the one I like the most has five other girls going into their last year of Teacher's college, whereas I'm going into first year Undergrad. Would the age gap make that big of a difference? Other potentially 'hidden' issues?