i’m getting my masters at a prestigious university (top 20 according to those bullshit us news and reviews rankings). the 3 semesters of courses + thesis degree is through the medical school and requires my thesis to be done in a foreign country. we had two options: do a semester abroad through the school (do classes at abroad university and complete thesis with the abroad institution- it’s affiliated with out school for a joint program) or take all the classes here, and go abroad just for the thesis.
my issue is this. i chose the university because i liked the all inclusive semester abroad program. i applied for the semester abroad the moment the window opened- i was super excited and had my advisor review my application before submitting. months to go by- no acceptance, while my peers have been accepted. it turns out they lost my application (i was the FIRST person to submit it) and i was denied the opportunity because i was asked to resubmit, months after the deadline when the program was closed. after rearranging my schedule because the second semester is about to start, i find out i am denied entry into the program because of “grades”… bullshit. i passed all my classes, while not stellar, with B+s. my concentration leader lost my application and i feel like she’s trying to cover up for it. i filed a complaint with my advisor and found out my complaint was bounced around the department, and got back to the woman (the head of department) who lost my application in the first place. today, i was just denied the travel grant to do my thesis abroad (after having THIS application reviewed and okayed by my advisor too). the head of department approves the grants, and she denied me after i started an informal departmental investigation into the matter of losing my semester abroad application. she’s also my professor in one of my classes, and she is trying to fail me.
i know this sounds like “she’s out to get me!”, but the other students have noticed it too, and seeing as how they all got the travel grant, and didn’t have any applications lost, and don’t seem to be getting unfair treatment, i feel like something really is wrong with this picture. this masters is costing me $70,000+… i had opportunities to go to different schools that offered me scholarships and i regret this so much, i want to cry. i’m on the verge of breaking down, and don’t know what to do. has anyone been in a situation like this? since when did grad school become so personal? you would think for tuition like this, the professors would do everything in their ability to help their students 🙁