SIUC

So, I made my choice about which grad school to go to. After being accepted by Southern Illinois University Carbondale, Minnesota State University Mankato, and University of Memphis, I've decided to go to SIUC. Their program is ideal for my needs and goals and the funding package is great. I have yet to hear from University of North Carolina Greensboro and Bowling Green State, but an acceptance from either one of these programs, great though they are, will not change my decision. I've gotten used to the idea of living there.

I was going to visit this weekend at attend part of the first Little Grassy Fesitival, but various things came up and I ended up not going.

So I simulated my own visit:

-Read a ridiculous chunk of their website and reviewed the list of course offerings for MFA students.

-Googled photos of the campus and looked at the map.

-E-mailed a current student and asked various questions.

-Reread a story by Pinkney Benedict from New Stories From the South and read all the poetry by the faculty that I could find on the internet.

- Checked out Craigslist and carbondalerent.com to check out apartments and cost of living in the area.

-Had my dad look at the atlas and show me how to get there in the fastest way possible for when I am able to visit.

I am pretty excited about all of this, I tell you what.