It is almost the end...... of Term 1!

Tomorrow is my statistics final and after taking that it will mark the end of my first term here. Honestly, it went by super fast! Through the last 10 weeks I have learned the basics of statistics, attended a lot of talks about a variety of psychological phenomena, and finally figured out what my dissertation research question will be.

It is kind of crazy the roads my dissertation idea has gone down... it has changed quite a lot. I came here with the idea of doing something about internet gaming immersion and adaptive functioning...

which turned into doing research on the role of play and learning for adults through online video games as compared to the role of play in children..

which turned in to internet games as a teaching tool for the socially inhibited...

which then became researching the formation of stereotypes..

which then turned in to what is is now which is studying the formation of stereotypes on online gamers. Basically what are the stereotypes of internet gamers and why and how have they formed.

I'm really liking what my research question has landed on since it seems like a perfect combination of my research interests (internet gaming) and my supervisors interests (stereotypes).

Well guess I should get back to studying for statistics.. not sure my brain can take much more of these formulas but I have to try!

Ugg...

So this morning I finally got to sleep in and I go down to have a smoke. While down there, I walked over to the laundry place to see if any machines are open because I need to do my laundry. I peek in and see there are 4 machines that are not in use (4 out of 6 total so it was pretty shocking). So I race back to my room, grab my laundry, my money, and my soap and go back to the launderette. When I get there, there is some guy there putting his stuff into 2 machines. I initially think that is pretty rude considering there are only 6 machines total for the entirety of Wentworth (which is about 400 students) but I figure hey, there are 2 machines still open. I go over to machine number 6 and there is a note on it saying it is out of order. I scoot over to machine number 5 and there is a sign on that one as well that it is out of order. /sigh

We only have 6 machines to begin with and now 2 of them don't work! How is anyone supposed to get their laundry done :(

So...dejected, I walked back to my room and now I have to wait an hour and hope to sneak my stuff into Mr. Rude Guy's machine when his laundry is done.

Oh! And to top it off... the sign on the number 5 machine was on the floor under it.. so I stuck my 2 pounds in there and then when I knelt to put my stuff in I saw the sign... so not only did I not get to do my laundry - I paid 2 pounds into a broken machine (It won't give me my money back - /cry)

I survived week 1!

Well actually, I have survived the first two weeks - the week of orientation and the first week of lectures. Orientation week was pretty uneventful, I went to a bunch of talks that taught me nothing and pretty much wasted my time. Although, I did meet some nice people during that time so I guess it wasn't all for nothing. One of the people I met was Jeff - an American (yay!). He is from Maryland and is getting his MSc in Forensic Linguistics (impressive, I know). Since we met we have hung out a bunch of times and I like him very much. He's fun!

During orientation week I also met Eva and Adele... from Greece and France, respectively. Eva and I have hung out a bunch of times, had expeditions to the local Morrisons, and shared a few dinners. Eva, Adele, and I are even going to dress up and hit up the Halloween Party on Friday. I think Adele is going to be a vampire and Eva is gonna be a devil... my plan is to be a bumble bee but we will see if that costume fits when it arrives :P

The first week of lectures was okay. Stats is pretty much over my head though. What the professor covered in the first lecture is probably what I learned in the first 4 months of my first statistics class in undergrad. So I think I need to focus a lot of time on statistics or I am going to be totally left behind. The Contemporary Issues class is okay... basically every week a different professor will come in and lecture on something pertinent to our research life. For example, the first lecture was put on by Dr. Andrew Monk and he taught us the process of getting our experiment through the ethics committee. I think we will have to write papers for that class but no one has explained that to us, so we'll see if we hear anything about it this week.

I have also started some reading relating to my dissertation... my supervisor suggested that I read "Mind, Self, & Society" by H.G. Mead. I am about 30 pages in and it isn't too bad so far. Some of the concepts make me think "wha?" but most of it makes sense. I think it will provide me with a lot of information to base my lit review on... which is the goal of my 1st year here - produce a 4,000 word lit review.

Well that is all for now! I'm still alive and managing to make it through the days here... athough..the washing machine did eat my money today. Gah, guess nothing can run smoothly.

I am here!

So I arrived in York a few days ago and a lot has happened since I got here. After what seemed like a *zillion* hours of travel my Dad and I finally made it to the city. The first day we explored the town a lot and bought a bunch of things that I needed - a computer printer, a hair straightener, pots and pans, dishes, etc. I also was able to meet my supervisor, Dr. Oldmeadow. I think him and I are going to get along wonderfully! We talked for a little while and then he and I and my Dad went and had a cup of coffee and talked a little more about our backgrounds and whatnot.

The next day Dad and I brought some stuff up to the dorm and started to unpack. I was still feeling pretty uneasy about this whole getting abandoned in Europe thing. It is still overwhelming, being this far from home and not knowing the town or the people or the customs. As we were unpacking though it seemed like the space would be big enough for all of my stuff.... until we came back today with the *rest* of my things.

First of all, the bathroom is TINY and the light doesn't even work properly! When we were here for the first time we noticed the light was flickering... good thing I don't have epilepsy... and reported it to the *go to* guy for the Wentworth building. Well as I write this the light in the bathroom is still flickering at me... and the light above the desk is going out... and I have discovered that the bathroom sink does not drain. /sigh Dorm life I guess?

I met some really nice people today and I am feeling a little more comfortable in these surroundings. Although, I know when my Dad leaves in a few days it is going to become that much more difficult for me. It has been REALLY nice having him here to help me with this whole process. If I had come out here by myself I would have turned around and gone home the next day... seriously.

Well.. we will see what tomorrow brings! Tomorrow is orientation day so maybe I will start to feel better as I learn more about the university.

Polio, really?

So the other day (on my birthday actually) I went and got all the immunizations I need in order to gain clearance for entry into the U.K. I thought I was only going to need 3 shots but I ended up getting 6 :( It made me a little sick... I'm not really sure you should get 6 at once, but at least I am all shot up and ready to go.

I have also received my U.K student Visa! Yay! So there is nothing else needed for me to do until I actually arrive at York! I have my Visa, I have my housing, and I have all my shots. I'm starting to get slightly nervous about actually going over there... moving all the way on the other side of the world knowing absolutely no one! However, this is an experience that not many people get to have and I am going to try to make the most of it. Not many people get to live their dreams, and I am going to be one of those lucky few who do.

Now to just pass the time until I take off (October 4).... since I no longer have to worry about anything related to York until I actually arrive there, I don't know what to do with my time!

Visa update!

Last week I went and got all my biometrics done for my visa - basically I went to this office where they took a picture of me in bad lighting and then scanned my fingerprints into a computer. Now all I have to do is gather all of my supporting documents and send them off to LA to be processed. My only concern is I think they want me to mail them my passport....which would not be cool. I will have to call them in the morning to figure that part out.

Money, it's a drag...

I have finally gotten conformation that my PLUS loan and Stafford loans have been approved! *yay* This means that I have my funding for my first year of studies at the University of York. Now what needs to happen is I need to hear back from the graduate office so I can submit my application for housing. I am hoping to move into my dorm room a week or so before classes start so I can roam campus and the town to get acquainted with my new area.

I'll let you know when I hear about my housing - I hope I get a room with a view!

Money, Money, Money....

So I am *still* trying to finalize all the information regarding my loans for my studies at the University. After about three months of talking to the same people over and over, it seems progress is finally being made. Now I am just waiting for my loans to be certified by my lenders - they have finally be certified by the school. So...still I wait!

Royal Mail

My official offer letter came by Royal Mail yesterday - how fancy! I have officially accepted the offer to study at the University starting in October. I have to say, it was pretty awesome to see my name, my supervising professors name, and my topic of research on an official piece of paper like that. I have been building my research topic for the better part of two years so it is really rewarding to see that my concept is going to become a concrete project.

I am just starting to get annoying that every time I make progress in finalizing all the details, something else pops up. My lender still needs some kind of conformation from the school before the loans can be finalized... which, I think the school will give once they receive the paper I sent back yesterday saying I accecpt the offer to study. Then once the school can give its conformation, I need the lender to write an offical letter to the school telling them how much they are willing to give me in British Pounds.

Its like.. I finally move from A to B...but then realize in order to get to C, I have to go over the hills, through the woods, across a tightrope, then complete a rubix cube puzzle while wandering through a hedgemaze. All in platform shoes.

All this confusion is 100% worth the trouble - I just want to be able to secure everything down so I can relax and revel in the accomplishment I have made in getting accecpted to the school in the first place.

Loan Approved!

It is official - my loans have been approved! *dances and cheers* Now the school has 30 days to get back to my lender in order to confirm that I am indeed a student at the University. I have written the graduate department on multiple occasions inquiring about my acceptance letter as well as conformation for my lender but have not heard anything back as of yet. If I don't hear anything back in a few days I am going to have to bite the bullet and call over the pond. I don't want to have to go through the application process for my loans again... it was actually more painful then I had expected.

But yay - it seems everything is falling into place!

University of York!

As most of you know I have been chasing after a few dreams of mine for the last few years. The first of which being my dream to experience life in Europe. I have had a fascination with Europe, England in particular, for as long as I can remember. In 2005, I visited my brother when he was studying in France and absolutely fell in love - not so much with Paris, but with London during my short stay there before heading to Paris. From the moment I arrived in London, I just felt different. I do not know how to better describe it - London instantly felt like a place I needed to be and never wanted to leave.

The second dream I have been chasing is that of my PhD. Psychology has been my passion since my first day of undergraduate studies at the University of Texas. After receiving my B.A. I applied to numerous PhD and M.A. programs and ended up studying at Santa Clara University. I graduated with my M.A. in Counseling earlier last year - however I had still not attained that elusive PhD. After graduating I set my sights on graduate programs and naturally my sights were set on England.

Initially I was interested in studying at Cambridge. I began browsing the faulty sites looking for a potential supervisor. I needed to find someone whose research I found interesting who would in turn find my research ideas interesting. It did not take long for me to find the perfect candidate. I e-mailed the professor and waited to hear back. The response was sort of bittersweet. He was interested in my proposed research (Yay!) however he was not teaching at Cambridge anymore - he was now a professor at the University of York.

Knowing nothing about this university except that it was in England and my potential supervisor was located there, I began my research. Lo and behold the University of York is recognized as one of the top research schools in the world - just what I was looking for! My heart has always been with the research side of psychology and to have the opportunity to be at an establishment with world class researchers is something most people in my field could only dream of. In my mind getting accepted to such a prestigious university was a long shot - but hey, I had to try. The professor was interested in my research (which is really hard to find), it is a university globally recognized for its excellence in research, and it is a rather small university that really seems more like a community (verses one of those places where you feel you could easily lost in the mix). Every new thing I learned about the University made me more and more drawn to it. So I sent in my application and waited to hear back.

A few weeks later I received word that I was chosen for a telephone interview. I was absolutely excited and terrifyingly nervous. I knew that this was my moment. A collision of two dreams hinged on the outcome of one telephone interview. Getting accepted into a PhD program is difficult on its own, let alone having the chance to interview with your number one choice!

The interview came and I was able to remain calm and answer all of their questions to the best of my ability. With all honesty, after the interview I felt really good. I knew that I had done the best that I could and even if I was not accepted I could feel satisfied with my responses.

Shortly after the interview I got the e-mail saying I had been accepted! I have never felt such pure happiness in my life as I did when I read that e-mail. I could not contain myself at that point - I start crying like a baby. They were tears of happiness and relief. Everything I have worked for and everything I have hoped for have finally come to fruition in a way better than I could have ever dreamed for myself.

This is my moment - it is finally here. These next few years will change my life forever and I feel incredibly blessed to be one of the few people in the world who get to actually live out their dreams.

All there is left to do is secure my funding so I can let out a sigh of relief and finally realize that I am not dreaming (my acceptance was contingent upon funding). I need to prove that I can pay for my education before they will give me a full acceptance which I need so I can proceed with my visa application. I have applied for all the loans and all the scholarships I can find...so the waiting game begins again.