12.27.2012

What it is; where I am.

So I figure I owe a kind of update to this blog, and an explanation about what's been going on. It's not likely to be terribly amusing, so I'll try to keep my normally long-winded self to the bare minimum. Don't be too hopeful.

I spent the majority of this month in a self-induced frantic tailspin, because I was trying to accomplish something which, while probably not impossible, was definitely ill-advised. I was trying to obtain a scholarship to apply to the spring of 2014 by submitting my application materials by March of 2013.

The problem came in when I realized the scholarship is only meant to apply to students starting in the fall semester. Which is a bit silly if you ask me, but then again, there has to be a way to regulate the application and award periods. It's not my job or field, so I don't know all of the reasons why it  may need to be that way. All I do know is that over the months of November and early December, it began to dawn on me that if I wanted to apply the scholarship to the spring semester of 2014, I had better get my application in during the 2013 application period.

Which would have been fine enough, had it not been for the fact that I need to apply to the scholarship via the grad school I wish to attend. Which is something I haven't fully made my mind up about yet.

Which means I was looking at spending the month of January frantically cramming to get a decent enough TOPIK score to submit, all of my overseas documents ordered and delivered, recommendation letters from hard to track down professors, on top of having to spend my vacation days running around from university to university, trying to have conversations with the faculty in Korean about their programs.

It was looking grim.

So I didn't take it too hard when I finally got an answer back from the scholarship program about whether or not what I was trying to do was even possible. It turns out, it's not. Only students who plan on starting school in the fall (be that language school or a grad program) are eligible. Well. My contract ends on October 15th. So I needed a new plan.

I found this out, definitively, at the end of last week. I took the weekend to think it over a bit, before laying it aside to focus on not being in a mood for Christmas. I've got a new plan tentatively in place until something else comes along to either disrupt or upshow it.

I don't see any option other than just taking the hit: figuring out a way to put myself through language school for the spring and summer semesters of 2014, and applying for the scholarship in the 2014 term. Starting official schooling in the fall. The downside of this is that the scholarship itself accounts for a year of language schooling previous to the grad program, so that may be an opportunity I just eat. But on the other hand, it's comforting to know that even after a spring and summer semester at language school, if I still don't feel comfortable enough with my language level to start my program, I would have the option of taking language classes for another year.

Now. This all presumes that I actually get the scholarship. Which I have no reassurance of whatsoever. So I need to do everything in my power to reduce my spending in the meantime, on the assumption that I could very well end up having to do this all out of pocket.

Which means that right now the new task at hand is researching how on earth to get someone else to eat the cost of my language schooling -- researching scholarships and stipends (some of which are available via a TA position at the language schools). The other (now much less pressing) matter directly at hand is preparing for my first TOPIK exam on January 20th.

In the meantime, I've started a new little side blog, which is more of a public notebook than anything, to keep up with all the stuff I'm trying to start to learn about Korean literature and translation. It will mostly be quiet until after the TOPIK exam, but when I'm able to relax my Korean studying a little, I hope to be posting on it daily.

I'll be back to Blogspot eventually, I'm sure. As I said here, I'm just not much use to this blog right now. I'm too scattered and focused on a million different things. But I will be back.

3 comments:

HL said...

힘네! I really can't say anything beyond that. I guess you could also wear a band around your head that says "힘!" like I saw in a drawing in one of my Korean books.

But really, my sincerest well-wishes for you.

Rude Boy Abroad said...

Good luck! ^-^ This is really interesting to watch, and I'm looking forward to reading the story as it develops!

Maybe you explained this on the other blog, but if you don't mind my asking, what's the plan after grad school?

-something other said...

hello!

Been a longtime follower of your blog and I was wondering if there would be a spot on your blogroll for my mine.

http://www.rok-on.net

I write about life and foodspotting in South Korea.
Make youtube videos about it too.

Thank you,

Noe