Last week I was asked for some dirt on a couple of the professors here and about the graduate housing. I finally realized that some of you may be wondering about some of the same things. So here is what I wrote to Sam, along with a few extra notes. When you see Sam in class next year, make sure to thank her for asking about all this:

Dr. Cascio is a great professor. I had her this fall for a different class, and everyone in that class said how they wanted to take another class by her. We agreed that she is a thorough, effective teacher and is willing to be accommodating if you talk to her beforehand about any
problems. She had a good background experience for our class.

McDermott Lane. Well, I couldn't find anyone who had her as a teacher, but she was said to be a good internship adviser. She was said to be open to helping students and will call you back quickly for anything you need. If I ever find out more about her, I'll let you know.

Collins for psychopathology was also highly thought of. In her class, she does not have many written papers, but has a creative arts project (where you get to write a poem, make a collage, etc. on a topic), a group project, lots of discussions on-line, and read a novel. She is easy going.

Smith is the mostly highly sought after professor for Human Behavior 1 and 2. Enough said.

Resta, who I had for Human Behavior 1 (this is basically a psychology class), was good when he got to the actual content of the lesson. At first his long introductions were painful, but he tells stories as examples for what he is trying to explain that help you remember. He is obsessed with UFOs and happy to help you.

For psychopathology, Resta and Belcher will not make you memorize the DSM-IV. Very good. No therapist really memorizes the DSM anyways.

Altstien for research is enjoyable to have for class. Like I said in my last entry, everyone recommends him. I have heard that people who take his intro research class are less equipped for the next level of research class than students who took their research intro from someone else.

Not that you asked about it, but I have been told that Title-IV students either LOVE the program or HATE it. One person said that it does vary by the field placement you get. In hers, she has worked many long hours into the evening and often hates the program and often feels like the work and pain it involves is not worth the benefit of having her tuition paid. But at the same time, she is so passionate about what she is doing that she knows she needs to pursue this field. So if this is really what you want, go for it! If you find out it is not, she says to get out quickly.

On graduate housing, I have not found too many people who live there. Graduate housing is also used by the dental school, medical school, and nursing students as well. On the positive side, the location is very convenient to the school and the inner harbor and makes it easy
to get involved in the many activities put on by the different grad schools. All utilities are included which could make the price more worth it and it's very safe as they have staff always checking the grounds. On the downside, several people have said it is quite expensive and have thus prefered to live elsewhere. There are nicer areas of Baltimore to live in, but it can depend on if you have a car and how you feel about public transportation, which can be unsafe around here when it gets dark. There are plenty of apartments available in the area, and one girl went this route by using an on-line apartment finder and using the school's website to find a roommate who is also a grad student.

I hope that helps. Sorry if this info comes a little late for some of you. Like I said to Sam, if you want to know more or have a question about some other part of student life, don't hesitate to contact me. Just leave a comment on the bottom of this blog entry.

-Sharon