In your feelings about moving?
Our 32nd and 33rd book winners are Sharon Chen (current PhD student) and Tinu Oduloye (prospective PhD student)! Be sure to enter the book giveaway for your chance to win a copy of A Field Guide to Grad School! More details below (at the end of the post).
I recently visited Long Island, New York, to look for housing with my partner. While there, I experienced a lot of feelings—mostly excitement, but also a bit of sadness. Chicago has been my home in some way for over 13 years. Even when I moved away for graduate school, I regularly returned to visit my partner. Chicago is the only place where I’ve felt I’ve truly belonged. At the same time, I’m very excited to embark on my journey as an assistant professor at Stony Brook University. You may also be experiencing conflicting feelings about moving. Know that it’s quite normal and shouldn’t necessarily make you second guess your decision to move.
In general, academia asks a lot of us. Folks regularly uproot their lives to pursue something that *might* be. Take me, for example. I moved from Michigan to Massachusetts for undergrad, then moved from Massachusetts to Illinois for my first job (research assistant), then moved from Illinois to Kansas to start graduate school, then moved from Kansas back to Michigan to continue graduate school, then moved from Michigan back to Illinois for a postdoc opportunity, and am now moving from Illinois to New York for a faculty position. For some, these are just tiny moves (I’m not moving from coast to coast within the United States, nor moving continents as many students do). Nonetheless, moving is hard, time consuming, and expensive. In this post, I share some things you might consider as you move (be it down the street or across an ocean). Note that these recommendations reflect my experience as a student in the United States. And a special thank you to Dr. Tissyana Camacho for helping me generate these ideas!
Know when to look for housing. Depending on where you’re moving, you may want to secure housing sooner rather than later. When moving to Lawrence, Kansas, time was on my side. I was able to visit the city at my leisure and had good housing options to choose from. In contrast, when moving to Ann Arbor, Michigan, time was of the essence. I was lucky that my parents could tour apartments right away on my behalf and help me secure something among the few viable options left. If you’re not sure what to expect, check in with current graduate students. They’ll know best where and when to start looking for housing (and which property management companies to avoid, if possible). If interested in having a roommate (or needing to), ask whether there is a graduate student listserv at the department and college levels that you can join and post to. There may even be internal housing sites (we have one at the University of Chicago).
Set up your utilities. The utilities that you’re responsible for may differ depending on where you live. I’ve lived in buildings where everything was included in my monthly rent and I’ve also lived in buildings (and houses) where I was responsible for everything (i.e., water, gas, electricity, internet). Know what you’re going to need and get in touch with the relevant companies to determine when you need to set your services up. If living with roommates, determine who is going to manage which utilities and how expenses are going to shared. When I had roommates, those with utilities in their name would request payment from each person. Oh, and don’t forget about renters insurance! Renters insurance protects you from disasters (e.g., fire) and even legal liability. I highly recommend getting it even if your landlord doesn’t require it.
Get from Point A to Point B. Know how you’re going to get to campus and other important places like the grocery store, pharmacy, and hospital. Can you walk to these places? If unable to walk where you need to go, is there public transportation you can take? If taking public transportation, does your university offer public transit assistance? At the University of Michigan, students could ride city busses for free. Will you have a car? If so, where will you park it? Will you need on-campus parking? At the University of Kansas, I purchased a parking pass for my car; however, it didn’t make sense to do so at the University of Michigan (although far, my apartment was closer to my building than the parking lot I could use!). In short, make sure you know how you’re going to get around.
Figure out your residency status. Will you be a resident of your new state (if applicable)? When a student, residency requirements may differ depending on the state (and whether you are claimed as someone’s dependent). If attending a public institution, you may consider checking whether you can establish residency to lower your tuition costs. Not all states/institutions are going to allow for this, but some will. When I moved to Kansas to start graduate school, I immediately changed over my license plate, registration, and driver’s license. I also registered to vote. On this point, know how you’re going to continue to vote! You can find more information about absentee voting in the United States here.
Be prepared for emergencies. Beyond knowing where to go or who to call in case of an emergency, make sure that someone in your new area knows who they can contact on your behalf in case you experience an emergency. Consider swapping emergency contact information with a fellow graduate student. Relatedly, make sure your health insurance is sorted out. If changing health insurance plans, know when your new coverage starts and know which hospitals are in-network. If in the United States, you do not want to get caught seeking emergency care at an out-of-network hospital if that can be avoided.
Get settled. If possible, give yourself time to get settled in your new home (even if moving within the same town). If you’re moving to a college town, know that things might be hectic closer to the beginning of the school year, when undergraduates move in. On this point, don’t expect big box stores to always be well-stocked at the beginning of the school year. So, try to plan ahead as much as possible. Of course, only so much can be done before moving. Just do what you can to think things through.
Some final thoughts.
Don’t be afraid to immerse yourself in your new community. Even if only somewhere for a short period of time, it can be quite fulfilling to be a part of the community in meaningful ways (e.g., volunteering, learning local history, engaging in local activism).
Connect with others. Graduate school is much better with friends. Invite other new students to share lunch with you or check out a local spot. Sure, some people may say no, but I bet some will say yes. Find your ‘yes’ people.
Perfection is the thief of joy. You’re going to make mistakes (you might even fail at some things). I hope you also realize the value of “good enough” sooner than I did (perfectionism is a whole other post).
How to reach me: You are always welcome to email me (letstalkgradschool@gmail.com) or find me on Twitter @tweetsbymidge.
Want to support my #hiddencurriculum efforts? Consider “buying me a coffee” via Ko-fi. All funds will be put back into my Let’s Talk Grad School initiatives (i.e., weekend groups, buying/mailing books, etc.). Learn more about my efforts here.
Let’s give away some books: Readers located in the United States and Canada are eligible to enter the book giveaway to receive a copy of A Field Guide to Grad School by Dr. Jessica Calarco. To do so, complete this survey and note that you only have to complete it once to be entered in all subsequent giveaways! I do hope to expand the reach of the giveaway; however, at the moment, the shipping costs are too great to scale. If you’d like to talk about ways your institution could secure an electronic (or hard) copy, please let me know.
Until next time!
Margaret