newms

Most places recommend that if you want to get a PhD eventually, that you should just apply straight to the PhD. As truediarist mentioned, some places don't have research based MS because they expect people who are interested in doing research to apply for the PhD - so you should consider that. For applications to research based degrees, the most important thing the admissions committees consider is your past research experience and your readiness to do research in grad school. Do you have research experience? Without research experience, it is going to be very difficult to get into a top 10 school.

I came across this article about feeling stupid in grad school. Basically it says that if you don't feel stupid in grad school, then you're doing it wrong. You'll probably feel inadequate surrounded by brilliant people, but these same people are likely either going through or have gone through the same struggles with feeling stupid as you are, and are too ashamed/afraid to say so.

I'm sorry that this has happened to you. This did happen to me, and not in a joking way. My ex-advisor seemed to think that I was intellectually capable of completing a graduate program, but not emotionally capable. She told me I needed to get over my "fear of ambiguity" and that some people can't. "That's the reason why not everyone has a PhD." I was and still am, to be honest, kind of an emotional, neurotic mess. However, I became that way after dealing with this bullying from my advisor for months (you can see my other threads for a summary of that). It's hard not to let harsh words like that affect you. I, for one, have decided to take a leave of absence to reconsider if I want to be part of a culture that allows behavior like this from people in positions of power, but I admire the people who can use this as motivation. To me it is incredibly demotivating.

I don't see how any aspect of this is acceptable?? I mean 20 year age gap ok whatever.. Weird to me but hey. However the person who is giving her tests and grading her papers is also sleeping with her, how is that not a conflict of interest? REPORT IT REPORT IT!! At least see what happens

Glad to help

I should add that in my department many of us have other students from the department as roommates. That's very convenient for many reasons, not the least of which is that it weeds out most of the crazies and it ensures that you are living with someone who you know has funding and who is generally interested in the same things as you and has a similar schedule. It doesn't guarantee you'll get along, but it mostly works great in our case. You could try to find out if someone in your department or any of the admitted applicants are looking for a roommate. In some cases you could have an arrangement where you share an apartment with an American student who can come earlier and do most/all of the apartment-hunting, or with someone who already has a place and is just looking to replace a roommate. Again, there is some trust/luck element involved here. The idea of coming early for a visit and finding a place is also great, if you can afford it. And again, you should ask current students for advice about available places, where they recommend living (or avoiding), how much rent should generally be, etc.

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

Don't sell yourself short - I absolutely think you can get admitted to a good PhD program with your qualifications. Berkeley would be very unlikely but the other schools you listed are possibilities for a PhD application. You may not have good research experience, but that is not absolutely necessary, What is necessary though is that you can show enough promise to convince the admissions committee that you're worth a shot. To do so, think about a problem (i.e. not just an area, but a specific problem or problems) that you would be interested in working on in grad school. Find out as much as you can about it, and about the researchers working in that area. Apply only to schools that have profs actively working on the problem(s) you are interested in and when you write your SoPs write as if you are writing to those profs. By this I mean, write with detail about your problem and with enough grasp of the issues involved with the problem that you can get the attention of the profs at that schools who are working in that area.  
 
So my advice to you would be, if you eventually want a PhD, apply directly to PhD programs - even if you don't have stellar (or even much) research experience. 

A tip I've found helpful is to write out your talk before. Not for the purpose of memorizing it, but to make sure you've thought out how you want to say things and how you transition between slides. And of course, practice, practice, practice giving your presentation.

I fail to see the problem.

Since I just gave mine today, here's some lessons learned:
 
- Be overly prepared. Have backups of notes in case the PP doesn't work correct or if all of technology fails. Borrow the laptop and projector you'll be using, and practice on it. Make sure that you can see your notes as expected (set up presenter view on the laptop). If anyone is Skyping in, set that up on the computer. Think about how you'll set up the room and get it ready. Pack up everything a day or two before, including printing out your thesis. I even brought a second pair of clothes, I have no idea why- that's how paranoid I was. :-D I also brought my analyses, all organized just in case. My appendix had about 30 extra slides in it- just in case. If I did an analysis and didn't include it in my thesis- I stuck it in the appendix. Same with distributions, tables from my thesis (copy and paste- appendix doesn't have to look as nice). This way, if anyone has a question, or asks you anything about your data and you don't remember offhand- there's a slide. It will also look impressive that you have slides for various questions. Get to your thesis an hour early and set everything up, rearrange the room, change the room temperature, get yourself something to drink, use the bathroom, etc. Leave nothing to chance. Also, being OCD-like eases my anxiey- I'd rather be overly prepared than underprepared.
 
- Write out your presentation in sections and time it. For example, 30 seconds for this slide, 2 minutes for this slide, etc. Practice it in chunks, and add in notes and update slides accordingly. You can also set up a timer on presenter view and have little comments in your notes like "5 MINUTES HERE" on separator slides, so you can see where you are timing-wise- too fast or too slow to hit the 40-minute mark. If you practice this enough, though, you will have a sense of where the timer should be at various points.
 
- Bring some hot tea in a mug that isn't easy to spill. The small amount of caffeine will keep you alert, and the hot water will soothe your throat :-). Sip it at separator slides or intermittently. You can even make a joke halfway through that you are losing your voice- they will understand. I drank water, but only after the formal presentation was over- but mine was only about 30-32 minutes. My throat hurts from practicing the talk and then giving the talk, but you'll be running on adrenaline and won't notice/care as much as you think. Spread out practicing if you can, so that your throat is in good condition :-).
 
- One thing I've practiced due to my fast talking is sort of a speaking voice. It rises, and falls, and it's almost like a performance- where I'm reading my notes, thinking ahead, looking at the slide- all the while, my voice is coming out as if I'm genuinely interested in what I'm saying. You can practice this by reading a script of your presentation and making sure your sentences and voice are natural while script reading. This forces me to slow down my pace and sound a lot calmer than I would otherwise.
 
- Anticipate and practice questions/answers out loud to yourself. I did that, and while I didn't get many questions that I expected, it turned the Q&A into the easier part of the defense compared to the 30-some minute presentation.
 
Lastly, try to be natural and make some jokes. It will put you, your committee, and your audience at ease :-D
 
Honestly, after you write your results, write your discussion, write any revisions your advisor recommends, write your presentation slides, and write your presentation notes, you will basically have this presentation down pat :-).
 
Good luck! Let me know if you have any specific questions.

Are you sure that by having a high GRE score alone would get you into a decent program? I think your score is fine, you need to focus on publications if you don't have any, or relevant research experiences. For most of biological/physical science programs, the admission committee tends to focus more on your LoRs, SoP, and other accomplishments because they know that most of the GRE questions are pretty irrelevant to the scientific community.

Nice. I was expecting to see UMass results today since they started sending them out on this day last year. There were also acceptances reported each day for the rest of this week last year, and a couple later on in February, so we might be anxious for a while yet. I'm in machine learning and I applied to 3 of the same schools as you - UMass, GaTech and Rutgers.

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

Scan them and have them digitized? At least that's what I would do.

Hey everyone,

I thought I'd share this site that was put up by Katherine Sledge Moore, who has sat on admissions committees, about what to do to get into grad school. It has lots of information about all aspects of the application process, including a sample SoP and CV from Moore when she was applying to 19 (!) schools. She is in psychology, but the advice is very relevant to most, if not all, fields. I came across the site by browsing her sample SoP that Deven pointed out in

It may be possible to put GRFP into your email signature without actually being pretentious but I don't think it's possible without seeming so. Why not just have your website address in your signature and have your resume/CV on your site?

It may be possible to put GRFP into your email signature without actually being pretentious but I don't think it's possible without seeming so. Why not just have your website address in your signature and have your resume/CV on your site?

We really need a glossary of commonly used terms and acronyms on here. POI = Professor (or Person) of Interest. See this thread:

PS. You're not stupid

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

May I suggest this template for your email rejection?



Just kidding In all seriousness, I know that feeling as I'm talking and meeting with potential advisors at the schools I've been admitted to, I know it's going to be hard to turn down offers, because each one is like a dream come true (at least for me). Just remember though that we're not indispensable to them. They'll find another student and their program will be fine. Just send them a simple email thanking them for their offer and explaining that you've chosen to go to another school.

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

I think if you end up working 24/7 then you're doing something wrong.

Sure grad school will require us to work at odd hours but we still have to make personal time for ourselves/our family. Otherwise you'll burn out.

I just passed my qualifying exams two days ago. Ever since, I have been an emotional wreck! The entire process left me with absolutely no confidence in myself as an academic or a human being.

Our qualifying exams consist of two days of written exams, then a week later an oral exam. Following the writtens, I felt absolute joy - I answered the questions to the best of my ability, I even stunned myself with the knowledge that seemed to just come gushing out for four hours straight. I was thinking 'this is what it's all about! It's a gruelling process, but now I know more about this subject than I ever have or ever will again!'.

Next thing I know, I'm sitting in a room with my committee while they tear to shreds everything I was so proud of, and while I struggle to answer even the most simple questions. I felt like a fool, and so embarrassed that they had exposed me as a fraud. This girl can't even answer the question 'What is a gene?!!'. I had studied my subject in such depth but had forgotten how to even string a sentence together.

Having spoken to others it sounds like this is the purpose of an oral qualifying exam - to break you and find out what your limits are. It's a rite of passage I suppose. I've just never felt so low! Is this character building? After it was over I was brought champagne and flowers, yet I felt like I did not deserve it one bit. I'd love to hear from others who have recently gone through quals and if they are reeling in shock like me, or are (as they probably rightfully should be) out celebrating a victory. Sheesh, what is it about grad school that makes one consider even the successes a failure?!