tangledc

I've been accepted into a decently ranked school in the 10-20 range, and actually really like the group. I have also applied to CMU (ranked 1) and Cornell (ranked 6), but have not heard anything from them and honestly doubt I ever will. I am very tempted to immediately accept the offer I have instead of waiting. Is this a good idea?

Phd interviews/visits are coming soon, and I wonder what is the policy for side visits? Say I have family in a different city nearby whom I can stay with for a few days before the interview. Would the school still reimburse me for my cost if I do so? Would it leave an negative impression on the school? If I were to do so, should I contact the school beforehand to let them know of my plans?

My interest lies in data science. Assuming I applied to 1 school from the top 5 ( MIT, CMU, Stanford etc), 1 from 5-10 (Cornell, Washington) and 1 from 10-20 ( NYU, Columbia, UCLA etc), and received an admit from those ranked 10-20. Does the school ranking really have a huge impact on my future chances in academia? At what point should I stop waiting for a possible response from the higher ranked school, and just accept the lower ranked one?

Thanks, I had a feeling that a top 20 phd degree is a reach for me. I think I'll still apply to 2 phd programs from the top twenty, 5 master programs from the top 20, 5 phd programs between 20-50 and my current school, which I'm pretty much guaranteed to be accepted to.

To have a chance at a career in academia, a phd from a top 20 school/ amazing connections is pretty much required. My interests is in data science/ML, and to my knowledge the best professors are found in the top schools (would love other suggestions though). For an Phd applicant, my stats are pretty average, and wonder if I have a chance at been accepted at schools like Cornell for a Phd. If not, what are some Phd or Ms programs I have a shot at, which could feasible give me a shot at academia long term? Bio: I was pretty undecided as an undergrad when in regards to my path - started out with an unrelated major, ended up double majoring in CS. Did some volunteering and leadership stuff in my 1st 2 year, before doing an REU my junior summer at an unknown school. Did an industry internship this summer at a local company and realized I vastly preferred research vs working for a company. Doing research again my senior year with a new faculty at my school. GPA: 3.87 Gre: ?, but probably pretty high Current school: Ranked 50-100 in CS Recommendations: Average. 1 from a professor I TAed for (Tenured but completely unrelated), 1 from my REU supervisor (new associate professor) who works in a different field, 1 from my current adviser (new associate professor) who works in a mildly related field. Research: REU paper (doesn't really count), mentioned on a conference paper by REU professor. 2 brief stints of research (3 months each)