Comps is ALMOST here!

It's almost time for Our Master's Comprehensive Exam! By the time I wake up, get all refreshed, and check my emails tomorrow, our exam questions should already be there waiting for me! I am more excited than nervous at this point, and hopefully will stay this way through the end of the exam. I have definitely learned a lot about access, retention, finance, student engagement, diversity, governance, ethics and leadership... within Higher Education, so I am sort of curious to find out how I can effectively and concisely articulate the major points and takeaways in the essay this weekend.

I will definitely be spending LOTS of time on this essay, but life still goes on. :) I am meeting my mentor, a Higher Ed. alumna tomorrow morning, going to work afterwards, attending our weekly GA meeting in the afternoon, and of course, drafting an outline and gathering resources for the essay in between those events. 

Saturday is the time when I will be devoting most of my time and energy into writing this essay, though it is also when my husband returns from a week-long business trip to California. He has been showing me awesome support during my program so far, and has said that he will be here to take care of me especially during this weekend, for which I am very grateful. 

On another note for those of you who have been accepted, congratulations once again! Please check out our website for a full list of preview events that our office has specifically planned for you. Some are on-campus, some are off-campus, and others are online. I attended several of them when I was accepted, and found them to be extremely helpful. Meanwhile, if there are specific things you would like to know, please feel free to leave a comment here or email me at xixim@gse.upenn.edu 

Here are some upcoming events for accepted students:

On-Campus Events

Friday, March 8, 2013       Preview Day for Teacher Education Students

Sunday-Tuesday, March 24-26, 2013      Preview Day for Higher Education Students

Off-Campus Events

Boston, MA: Satuday, March 2, 2013

Meet Professor Laura Perna, the Director of Admissions, and local alumni

New York, NY: Saturday, March 9, 2013 

Meet Associate Professor Marybeth Gasman, Admissions and Alumni Relations staff members, and local alumni

Online Events

Wednesday, March 13, 2013      Web Chat with current students & alumni for international students

9 am - 10 am (EST)

In Love with Philly - Sarah Mullen (Guest Blogger)

It has been over seven months since my husband and I moved to Philadelphia from Madison,Wisconsin, yet there are still tons and tons of places that we have yet to explore in this city! Since I am not yet a Pro. when it comes to introducing this fun city to you, I have invited my friend Sarah Mullen to blog about her perspectives this week. Please enjoy! :) 

Brief Bio. of Sarah Mullen
Sarah graduated in 2009 from the University of Pennsylvania with a B.A. in International Relations. As an undergraduate, she participated in the Penn-in-Tours summer language program in Tours, France, and spent her junior year studying at St. Edmund Hall, University of Oxford. Immediately after graduating, Sarah received a full scholarship to pursue coursework in International Studies at the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva, Switzerland. Upon returning from Geneva, she worked as a Project Manager for an international translation company in New York City. Sarah is focusing on the international aspects of higher education during her studies at Penn GSE, and plans to pursue a career in international programming and study abroad. She is currently working as the International Programs Assistant for Penn’s College of Liberal & Professional Studies, where she assists with the management of the nine Penn Summer Abroad programs and the International Guest Student Program.

In Love with Philly 
        I’ve been in love with Philadelphia since middle school, and with Penn since high school. At 15, I walked onto College Green and decided I was done looking at colleges. To be honest, I didn’t know hardly anything about Penn when I decided it was the right place for me, I just knew I wanted to be in Philadelphia, and I loved the way Penn was so seamlessly integrated into the cityscape. In retrospect, I have to give my teenage self some serious props for knowing what’s up. After graduating, though, I never imagined that I would end up back here again. I figured that after three years in Philly (I spent a year abroad), it was time for me to move on, live in new places, and see the world. But three years later, here I am. I always forget just how much I love this city when I’m away. Sometimes it’s a bit strange being a graduate student at my alma mater, but no matter what, it always feels like home.

        Prospective students who haven’t lived here before are sometimes nervous about moving to Philly, whether it’s because they haven’t lived in a city before, or because they’ve heard less than stellar things about the city itself. But really, there’s little reason to worry, and I’m going to tell you why. 

Here are some things I love about Philadelphia: 

· It’s walkable. You can get pretty much anywhere with just your own two feet. You can always find your way around, because the street numbering system is logical and consistent. And the grid city blocks are exactly a tenth of a mile apart, so you always know how far you’ve gone. Yet the city itself is big enough that there are always new things to see and new places to discover. 

· It’s adorable. Philly is the homiest city I’ve ever lived in. There are so many neighborhoods, and each one has its own distinctive character. 

· It’s livable. There are open, green spaces, cute markets, and a cost of living that is insanely reasonable for a major metropolitan area. 

· It’s full of delicious food. I cannot stress this enough. The restaurants here are out of control amazing, and are often way more affordable then similar places in other metropolitan areas. 

· It’s full of art. The Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the best in the country, and you can get a student subscription with unlimited free tickets for a whole year for $25. There is a thriving theater scene with great student ticket options. Lots of great artists perform here – no joke, I once saw the Roots pull up on a trailer in the middle of the street and play an impromptu show. The museums are full of amazing things (see: arms and armor in the Philadelphia Museum of Art or the Barnes Foundation – one of the world’s largest collections of impressionist and modern art). And I couldn’t possibly forget the murals. This one is my favorite: http://explorepahistory.com/displaygallery.php?gallery_id=1-7-37&bcolor=tan 

· It’s full of history. Whether you’re near independence hall, at a museum, or just walking around, it’s crazy how long this city has been around. 

        I could probably keep going, but instead, I’m going to end with this video, which pretty much sums up everything I’m trying to say in under five minutes: http://vimeo.com/58032782. Enjoy!

Happy Year of the Snake!

I have always appreciated the luxury of having two new year celebrations every year. During the celebration of Chinese new year, it has always been bittersweet to me. I wish I could enjoy some quality time with my extended family during the holiday, but the time is still yet to come. 

This year is a little easier to me, thanks to the great Chinatown here in Philly! I was able to eat almost anything that I wanted to, and everything tasted just like home! I guess good food does have some magical power of comfort. 

As I have stepped into the Year of Snake, changes (big events) are anticipated to take place one after another. Next weekend is when we will have our Higher Ed. Comprehensive Exam. Surprisingly, I am not stressed out about it (yet). We will have a prep. session next Wednesday, and I should have more clues about the exam then. 

Quite a number of my cohort members have started their job search, but I am still in the process of improving my cover letters. Part of me starts to feel a bit stressed with the thought of the job search process, but the other part of me seems to intentionally delay the process because I just cannot believe that we will all be graduating in less than three months! 

One of the questions I typically get from prospective / accepted students is whether I like the one-year format of the program or not. Initially, I would find it super easy to say, "Well, I absolutely love the one-year time frame! I come in to learn, explore, further my skills and extend my network, and then I get back out into the professional field to apply and enjoy my professional life again, all within one year." However, I might just have forgotten the fact that there is another crucial step in between the graduate program and the professional job - the job search process, which can take up a significant amount of the already limited time we have during this rigorous program. That said, if I were to choose again, I would probably still choose to finish the program in roughly one year, by taking one or two courses in the summer prior to the Fall semester to leave some extra time for job search and continued enjoyment of Penn's wonderful resources. 

As much as I look forward to graduating and finding a job in the very near future, I am feeling very sad with the thought of not being able to take classes with my wonderful cohort or working with my supervisor and other staff in the office then. However, on the flip side, this early sadness has indeed motivated me even more to cherish every opportunity with them. To me, it's been very sweet waking up (most of the days), knowing that I am about to do something that I enjoy doing, especially with the people that I truly appreciate. 

Have a great week, everyone! Happy Year of the Snake!

"Highs" of the Week

This semester has been wonderful so far. I'm loving the classes because they are all focusing on the two fields (Admissions and Student Affairs) that I am passionate about. I'm also continuing to learn something new every day at my assistantship, and I am so grateful that I am coached by amazing professionals like my supervisor and the office staff on a daily basis. Life in general is so much better when I do what I love despite of the challenges along the path. Below are the "highs" of my week. 

Penn GSE Chinese New Year Celebration - 

Teaching my friends some moves! :D

This year marks the 8th year when I am not able to 

celebrate Chinese New Year with my family back home. It has always been very emotionally difficult for me at this time of the year since I came to the U.S., but I have found a relatively effective way to cope with this unavoidable challenging period of time - to actively be part of the new year celebration in my community. Tonight, I was honored to perform a Dunhuang solo dance at  TC@Penn's third Chinese New Year celebration in Houston Hall at Penn, part of this country's first student union. Other students also danced, sang, and performed Kungfu talents in honor of this special time of the year for Chinese around the world. I've always felt closer to home when I am able to share some of the rich Chinese culture with others in my life. My husband also treated me to a fabulous lunch in Chinatown today when I learned that starting next week, there will be a new year's parade in Chinatown every Sunday morning. I am so glad that there is a Chinatown here in Philly!

Ph.D. Weekend - 

I had a long but fun and meaningful day yesterday. My teammate Kevin and I greeted 31 Ph.D. applicants at the hotel at 8a.m. and brought them back to campus to join the rest of the group for a whole day of events ending at 10p.m.! Altogether, we welcomed 41 Ph.D. applicants yesterday and had a wonderful time meeting them at various times. I always find it fascinating to meet different people with different background stories, and it was such an easy time connecting with those applicants! It is events like yesterday that once again affirmed my passion for Admissions. :) I am loving my GA job as I complete this program. Nothing is better than applying what I have been learning in class right in the field! 

Admissions Workshop for Chinese high school students - 

Last semester, I wrote a research paper on U.S. College Preparedness for First-Time Chinese International Students for my Qualitative Modes of Inquiry class. This past Wednesday, I had the privilege to present a workshop on the topic of U.S. college preparedness and application strategies for a group of 17 visiting Chinese high school students. I am deeply touched and inspired by their curiosity of U.S. higher education system, their enthusiasm of learning new things, and their high level of energy during participation. I cherish every opportunity, formal or informal, to share my experiences with university-bound and university students, and enjoy seeing the spark in their eyes whenever something clicks. 

It is one of my goals to be more intentional about networking during this semester, and so far, I am pleased with my progress.