I noticed recently, in rereading my previous blog posts, that I tend to use a lot of lists and steps and bullets. This is pretty reflective of my attitude toward life in general: I have a habit of making to-do lists, wanting to break things into manageable chunks, and tend towards a fairly linear way of thinking. (I was even a logic model for Halloween…) … Continue reading Thinking Outside of the Box: Personal Reflections of a Recovering Type-A Human

To my dedicated readers (all two of you), sorry for the extended break. I was in hibernation mode over winter break, and trying to avoid the extreme temperatures and bomb cyclones that hit Philly by spending some time on the much milder West Coast. I was not the only IEDPer having a fun time… But, alas, the time for nine+ hours of sleep a night … Continue reading Course Shopping (Not Exactly Retail Therapy)

We have another guest post on the blog this week! Ujjwala Maharjan is a current IEDP student from Nepal, and is one of the founding members of the Word Warriors, Nepal’s first spoken word poetry group. Do you know those moments in life when you look around your group of friends and you realize that you LOVE these people and you have this urge to … Continue reading Guest Post: I Get by With a Little Help From My Friends

It’s very much October. Mother Nature is finally letting us enjoy some crisp weather and fall foliage, meaning that, after months of the stickiness of a long summer, we can fully embrace eating pumpkin-flavored foods and wearing sweaters. What October also means is that it’s very much the middle of the semester. Everyone is walking around with slightly glazed looks, mugs of caffeine glued to … Continue reading Right in the Thick of Things

We have a guest post this week! Toffy, who is originally from Thailand, started IEDP right after finishing her undergraduate degree in California. So for those of you still in college considering a graduate degree, this post is for you! (Though I think everyone else will find it useful too!) We’re plummeting into week 7 of the semester and I still have trouble wrapping my … Continue reading Guest Post: The Transition from Undergrad to Grad

That’s the question I asked myself as we sat in a circle at our IEDP orientation last Friday and shared our backgrounds. The professors all had such distinguished resumes, and all my cohort mates had a cool story about working internationally or coming from another country or speaking multiple languages…what did I bring to the table, besides a love that borders on obsession for chocolate … Continue reading Week 1: What Have I Gotten Myself Into?