Catch-Up

I made a similar post just a few days ago, but that was before I dropped WordPress and moved to Movable Type. (I know I’m unusual in that regard. I do have my reasons, promise.) So, here’s a catch-up on what I’ve been doing, and what I plan to do:

I’ve been working on my MBA for the past year, will continue to do so this summer and through the next academic year, and hopefully, will start a PhD in marketing come Fall 2007.

So, there’s the short version.

Long version: I’m trying to find a PhD program that 1) matches my field of interest, 2) I could plausibly get into without playing Powerball-like odds (see: UCLA), and 3) is not in a place that is really warm, especially somewhere that’s not really warm and really humid.

Maybe I should have had #3 as #1. Seriously, my one year spent in Maryland was hell on earth. If you’ve ever seen the episode of Friends where Monica’s hair gets progressively larger from the Caribbean humidity, you’ve seen a darker version of what happens to my own blonde head.

The current frontrunners — very early in the searching process, as this still is — are the University of Utah and the University of Oregon. Utah would be the most convenient, has a really fantastic business program, and is part of Salt Lake City, granting access to lots of (no, really) cool events and businesses. The condo prices in SLC are also insanely low. Furthermore, its website claims more prestigious teaching placements than Oregon. Oregon claims the better climate for my tastes, events and shops that are just as cool in a town 1/10th the size of SLC, a less strict entry policy and a lower stipend to follow, and a much higher cost of living. There’s also a chance it would match up a little better to my tastes, and I don’t know that I necessarily want to shoot for the stars; I like where I am now, and research and writing can be done anywhere. That said: it’s always better to have more choices than find yourself limited.

Of course, I may find a perfect program in, say, Ohio and this entire line of thinking will turn out to be moot.