Graduate Students Eating (and drinking) for Free

As everyone affiliated with graduate programs knows, graduate students often have to eke out an existence with a lot of work and not so much money. If you're responsible and don't go on shopping sprees or spend your stipend frivolously, you can get by fairly well with money left over for that savings account. Food, however, is a perpetual cloud waiting to rain disappoint and dissatisfaction on your already paper-cluttered mind. Here at the University of Chicago, the Biomedical Sciences Cluster has developed a means of combating such disappointment and saving us grad students some money in the process.

Twice a week, every week (except midterms and finals), we are served a delicious lunch catered by a local establishment. On Tuesday we had ravioli, pasta, salad, and bread; on Thursday Giordano's Chicago-style deep dish and thin crust pizza. To top it off, every 1st and 3rd Monday of the month is a student presentation seminar for CanBio student at which food is also served. What I ate this Monday: Indian food! (Mutter paneer and paratha) And, every Friday at 4 p.m. a graduate student organization hosts what are known as "Liver Rounds" in the Biological Sciences Division (BSD) student lounge. Free food and beer are served and it's a chance for students to mingle and sometimes enjoy entertainment provided by fellow students.

I knew going into this program that food would be one of my chief expenses. I thank UC for saving me money for more important things. Like a bike. Or some really-hot-leather-boots-I've-been-eyeing-for-about-five-years. You know, the usual.