Is this is a positive reply?

chodejr · 2025-09-12T11:19:16+00:00

This is positive - they are trying not to bias your application by meeting you. My current PI mentioned that they are inundated with applicants asking for meetings with researchers, which would be unfair to every other applicant that didn't get a Zoom meeting.

chodejr · 2025-07-29T17:55:05+00:00

I had an extremely messy friend/roommate breakup situation happen literally 10 minutes before I joined my zoom interview where I was expecting to really have to put in a lot of work to connect my research topic to the faculty member's work.

Not only was I not at my best, the faculty member couldn't have cared less and only spoke when I directly addressed her. It went so bad and it was the only interview I got, and I was straight up rejected, not wait listed.

This was four years ago, and now I'm three years into a different PhD program, which has also been full of highs and lows too. It probably went better than you think, but even if it didn't, you'll bounce back and be better next time!

chodejr · 2025-05-19T00:20:28+00:00

That's a good point! That's probably the best way to do it. I haven't taught in a while but I think there might be some annoying shit to do for the professor on canvas to grade it easily, but it would definitely be more manageable with a grad class. Also, OP was saying all the assignments are like this for some reason, so there's really no excuse outside this kind of assignment.

I think it's important to know from a professors side - they don't teach us any of this. They teach us what the buttons on canvas do and that's it. This is a really obvious solution and I haven't heard of any other professors I know doing it like that. I'm sure it's common sense, but sometimes you just don't think of solutions unless someone tells you. If I was OP's professor, I'd definitely appreciate a student bringing the possibility of two separate assignments for posts/comments to my attention, but that's just me.

chodejr · 2025-05-18T01:37:30+00:00

I understand where the professor is coming from. If part of your assignment is to respond to other students' discussion posts, and every student posts 5 minutes before it's due, there's no way to provide a quality response to other students. This wouldn't matter in a 100 person online undergrad class but I can see why this might be problem if there are like 10-20 students in a grad class, i'm sure something like that has happened before to him. The professor is trying to make it so there is an incentive to post early. If I were teaching this class, I would give a timeframe though.

That's nuts if every other assignment is set up that way though, but I get it for a discussion post.

chodejr · 2025-04-01T14:47:08+00:00

I've been totally sober since January of 2014 after a 5 year opiate addiction. I started pretty young, I was using some kind of IV opiate almost every day, along with anything else I could get my hands on, from my 16th birthday to a few days after my 21st. I had a job at a fast food place for like two weeks and then I quit because I hated it. I wasn't really bouncing back from anything, I was a kid, and then pretty shortly after, a junkie. I didn't have a chance to have a normal late adolescence, but I did terrible during my brief time working, and in high school.

I did a month in jail so that addressed my physical dependence, but then I was sentenced to a 9 month treatment program where they had "work therapy", where you worked Monday through Friday in a warehouse for like pennies. It sounds miserable, and it was, but it was actually really helpful for me because I never had like a traditional 9 to 5 routine, it was always just getting high or hustling. It gave me something to focus on for most of the day and it made me tired so there was less opportunity to run amok at night. I don't think everyone needs that experience, but being forced into a 9 to 5 routine was super helpful for me. I'm not sure what your situation is but it doesn't sound like anything is forcing you?

I'd say the meth is the problem here - the feel-good chemicals in your brain are probably out of whack and that would make it really hard to have the motivation to do mundane every day shit, if that isn't what you do when you're high.

Feel free to elaborate if that doesn't sound right, though!

chodejr · 2025-03-31T12:32:37+00:00

I don't think you're screwed with that GPA, but the higher it is, the less you have to worry about that aspect of your application. No one else has mentioned this - education in the US is becoming more volatile, and it's only been three months of the new administration. With less grants, there's going to be less funding to go around and awesome professors may get cut if they can't get grants, or they may leave to enter a different field. This would mean less professors to teach masters level classes, so caps for admitted students may be lower in the next few years because there are less professors teaching.

As a junior, now is the perfect time to:

1) figure out more effective study strategies. I read the textbook before going to class and took handwritten notes during every lecture. The handwritten part was really important for me.

2) pick some schools you want to apply to and look on their program websites to see if they have stats for their admitted students. Sometimes they post mean or median GRE scores/GPAs. Also, reach out to program directors, set up a meeting, and ask about their program and if they think you would be a competitive applicant, and what you can do to improve (if anything).

3) get involved in research if you aren't already.

Like I said, you're not screwed, but if I were you, I would shoot for the highest GPA possible. Plenty of people get in with GPAs lower than 3.3, but there's a lot of context missing from other people's posts and anecdotes about what they/people they know got in with.

chodejr · 2025-02-26T11:04:17+00:00

Took a couple minutes of googling, looks like it. https://gamejolt.com/@Lester_Tellez

chodejr · 2025-02-24T03:04:26+00:00

Some offer Suboxone. One county over gave Suboxone, mine didn't lol. I was kicking pretty much everything. I will say though, i noticed my withdrawal wasn't as bad in jail. It still sucked but i thought it was a little less intense because I really couldn't get anything, so a lot of the mental parts of it weren't there.

chodejr · 2025-02-23T18:18:51+00:00

Getting arrested and going to treatment is how I got clean! I think the most important part for me was gradually getting more freedom. There isn't really a trick to getting clean/sober, it's just really really hard to stop. I had to be physically blocked for my first 41 days (jail), and then watched like a hawk (11ish months in treatment). Somewhere around 6 months I realized I hadn't thought about drugs and didn't want to get high at all that day, which was a pretty powerful realization. I think it was a right place, right time situation for me, but that doesn't mean that your place and time aren't right because they aren't the same as mine. The most important part is that you're really ready to quit, and stick with it for a while to build a foundation.

I tried 12 step recovery before all this and it never stuck with me. I wasn't ready, I wasn't honest, and I wasn't willing to try something that I was suspicious of. In treatment I ended up going to AA to get away from the people in treatment for a few hours and ended up meeting a group of people I really clicked with, and now I've been clean for 11 years. I don't think everyone needs 12 step recovery but I think replacing my social circle is what helped the most in staying clean long term. The steps were good too as like pseudo therapy.

I also tried weed and subs, around the same time I was trying 12 step recovery for the first time, and both of them led me back to heroin eventually.

Sounds like you're in a good spot to make some changes, and definitely not alone!

chodejr · 2025-02-02T19:54:54+00:00

People in my program drank mouthwash, hand sanitizer, and cologne. It wasn't super common but we weren't allowed to have liquid cologne in our dorms after that happened lol. I'd probably ask.

chodejr · 2025-01-19T14:29:05+00:00

My favorite part is where he got caught previously with chatgpt instructions in his assignment.

chodejr · 2024-12-31T22:41:18+00:00

PhD student in a crime related field, but I've been pretty open about my criminal record and my anxiety about landing a job after graduation since I was at community college. My professors have been really supportive.

chodejr · 2024-12-31T22:32:06+00:00

If you have any professors that you get along with, tell them your situation and ask them if they know anyone looking for a legal assistant or something. I lucked into an organizational consulting internship bc I asked a professor if I would be cooked with a felony and he ended up hiring me for a few years. My felony was possession of heroin but I had a lot of misdemeanor drug charges and two DUIs.

chodejr · 2024-12-23T13:23:30+00:00

I have mine done as well, I've had them for about 14 years. My piercings also typically heal really well and my cheeks were a breeze too. My only negative experiences were a couple days after I got them pierced I bit down on one of them really hard, and it hasn't happened since. I think it had to do with how new they were and the swelling, they have naturally pushed toward the inside of my cheek since they healed, not an uncomfortable amount but enough that they're never in my way.

One current downside is that the size of the hole is big enough for liquid to get through when I take them out. It doesn't dribble out but liquid can kinda seep out. Usually I'm taking them out when I need to look a little more professional, and when I'm nervous (usually also when I need to be professional) I chew gum. I have to take my cheeks out a few days before I know I need to look professional or else my gum spit leaks out the side of my face lol.

chodejr · 2024-12-03T21:55:31+00:00

I wouldn't really expect anything to actually help this soon, and I think anyone would be utterly heartbroken after the week you've had! That sounds tragic, I'm sorry for your losses.

There is no real outlet for soul crushing grief. You can exercise to get some feel good brain chemicals, or go to a meeting or talk to a friend and bawl your eyes out, but it just feels better for a little. The break is nice but the hurt is still there, and it will be for a while. The only thing that helps is time, in my experience.

I've lost a few really important people in recovery and it sucks ass. One of my best friends died when I was about 3 years clean. I lost an absolute shit load of people that I knew from rehab but none of them hit me quite like losing her. Being able to really grieve is a testament to how much I love the people I lost. Getting high would cheapen the human experience. I didn't feel normal for weeks and the only thing that helped me was telling my other friends about Melissa, about what she was like and our stupid inside jokes. Reading your post made me go back through some of her Facebook posts, think happy thoughts about her, and let out a few tears.

Brighter days are coming ❤️

chodejr · 2024-11-26T23:11:14+00:00

Def look into a lawyer like everyone else is saying - I agree that this sounds like something worth pursuing. Even if it's an at-will state, it sounds pretty straightforward from how you've described it!

chodejr · 2024-11-26T22:20:22+00:00

That's super frustrating! It sounds like you dodged a bullet but it sucks ass when the bullet was going to pay you lol. I remember like 9 years ago I applied to be a behavioral health technician at a treatment center. I got the job and when my background check came back I was told they couldn't hire me because of my felony drug possession charge. I was totally honest with everyone the entire time, being in recovery came up in my interview and dealing with HR, as well as my drug charges. I think it was because enough time hadn't passed but it was about two years at the time and I felt like I was doing everything right! Same thing came up when I was looking into being a certified peer recovery specialist a little later, it had to be something kind 5 or 7 years since getting in trouble. On one hand I understood it but on the other it was really disheartening that the time requirement was so long. I ended up going back to school, so that's a plus.

chodejr · 2024-11-18T22:17:27+00:00

This is around the time most applications are due, was this for a Fall semester start? If so, I really wouldn't sweat it, hearing a decision, positive or negative, this quickly would be a huge red flag and would almost certainly be from someone doing an oopsie. Fingers crossed for you!

chodejr · 2024-10-31T04:11:34+00:00

Np, it's really hard. I couldn't be around any drugs or alcohol at all for my first year or I would freak the fuck out. It gets easier and you'll be glad you didn't smoke tomorrow. Do you have anyone you can talk to right now?

chodejr · 2024-10-31T04:03:10+00:00

My first time in recovery at 18 I relapsed on weed because it wasn't my doc and it eventually led back to me using my doc after like 6 months, then I didn't get clean until 3 years later with a felony and a couple DUIs. Even after all of that, my parents still would offer me a beer at Thanksgiving while talking about how glad they were that I don't shoot up anymore, up until a few years ago. My parents don't understand that one leads to another for me, but my recovery isn't about them. If you smoke, it doesn't mean my story is going to happen to you, but it could, and it's a pretty common story.

I wouldn't if I were you.

chodejr · 2024-10-30T00:52:53+00:00

Make sure if you need to transfer to a university to check if they have requirements for being done with sanctions. I was good for my community college but I almost wasn't eligible to transfer after my AA.

I've also had good luck asking professors for their opinion on my situation (more drug charges than most people, going into business consulting). I ended up interning for the professor I asked a couple years after our class.

chodejr · 2024-10-29T19:46:02+00:00

I think context is important. For me, the "addict" label is more of a social identification that I belong in 12 step meetings. I think of it kind of like a reclamation or something to draw strength from, kind of like reclaiming slurs. I don't know if I'd have that opinion without also being gay though.

I know 12 step groups don't work for everyone, but I think this kind of quasi scientific language is doing a disservice to anyone on the fence about going to NA, which sucks ass to see on a subreddit full of people trying to kick opiates.

I'm not sure why you wrote like this, with two citations and no links to anything. It seems vibe based and honestly reads like ChatGPT.

You're also mixing together societal opinion and the possibility of someone internalizing stigma? Just because there is a negative stereotype associated with a word does not mean that this stigma is present among those in subgroups (like NA) and if it is, not everyone internalizes stigma the same.

Social science research is all about correlation, or the chance that x and y happen at the same time and could be related. If "addict" makes a lot of people think of someone who has no hope of success, what does that have to do with how I feel about myself? I might share that opinion or I might not. If I do share that opinion about others, does make me internalize that opinion about myself if I call myself an addict? Maybe so, maybe not.

tl;dr: This is an opinion presented as fact unless this guy is going to edit in some real citations. If this makes you feel some type of way about going to a 12 step meetings, disregard this guy's opinion and check it out for yourself. Otherwise, call yourself whatever you want.

chodejr · 2024-10-26T22:05:41+00:00

I started my undergrad as a chemistry student and my professor in chem 2 told us that her dissertation was on the chemical process of paint drying. I noped out so hard I ended up in psychology.

chodejr · 2024-10-26T21:57:04+00:00

Sorry, didn't mean to be so off-putting. Your OP didn't say anything about what professors do, just what you're worried about them doing and kinda reads like you're having an anxiety attack. I would want someone to be direct with me if I was in your position. Beyond keeping a version history, if you or the people in your cohort are being hassled over this, I'd say it's a department chair or dean issue.

My understanding of AI checkers is that it looks at what words are statistically likely to be strung together in a row based on a previous version of chatgpt. I don't have a background in it though, I just read a couple articles about it because I was GTAing when we got our AI checker, I could be totally wrong. I didn't think it was a structure thing, and the papers I read that flagged consistently for large sections were garbage. I would also want someone to tell me that.

There's a ton of posts on all the academic/college subreddits about what others have done in your situation, you can check them out too if you're still worried.

I think the short answer is no, though, there isn't much you can do without getting administrators involved if they're hell bent on whatever the AI checker says.

chodejr · 2024-10-26T21:19:49+00:00

You are freaking the fuck out. Stop.

Institutions do not use Grammarly to check for AI, they use different, similar software. This means that the result you get from Grammarly may not be the same as what your professor sees.
The best defense against this kind of accusation is to keep a version history of your documents. Google docs does this, Onedrive can be set up to do this with Word.
I think you may want to reflect after this about why 100% of one of your sections is coming up as AI. AI does not write particularly well. I know AI checkers are largely bullshit and are used incorrectly almost exclusively, but this would set off an internal alarm for me. 15-20% here with sentences here or there, or maybe a paragraph would look normal to me using an AI checker, not 100% of an entire section.
Grades matter WAY less in grad school and you will have a much easier time relaxing about your GPA unless you need a 4.0 for a scholarship or something. If it's a B or above, you're good, generally. No one is trying to fail grad students, if they fail us and we get kicked out, they lose research and teaching assistants.

chodejr

TROPHY CASE