liszt85 Posted February 27, 2009 Share Posted February 27, 2009 W: 4.5 (58%) WTF? I've seen people who can barely put a sentence together on these boards with 5.5's, so I don't really understand this. They probably are better at putting together sentences. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
was1984 Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 They probably are better at putting together sentences. Maybe, but I have letters of recommendation lauding my ability to communicate both orally and in writing, so I kind of doubt it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twocosmicfish Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 Maybe, but I have letters of recommendation lauding my ability to communicate both orally and in writing, so I kind of doubt it. Nobody reads too much into the written section - it is testing a very specific form of writing, and is evaluated very briefly. A 6.0 does not make you Shakespeare anymore than a 4 makes you an illiterate thug. As long as you get 4.0+ it should not matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
liszt85 Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 Nobody reads too much into the written section - it is testing a very specific form of writing, and is evaluated very briefly. A 6.0 does not make you Shakespeare anymore than a 4 makes you an illiterate thug. As long as you get 4.0+ it should not matter. True for Engineering/Science PhD aspirants. I hear some depts in the Humanities require/recommend 5 and above on the written section. I just scraped through with a 5 and I don't think my LORs (one of which explicitly contains a paragraph about my communication skills) would have helped in any way had I scored a 3.5 or 4.0. In any case, was1984 had no reason to be concerned about his writing score as its probably higher than the Engg/Sc test takers' average score on that section. Percentiles look bad because I'd say 99% of the people end up getting a score between 2.5 (or 3.0) and 6.0. So there are only 7-8 possible scores. 5.0 is a 77th percentile this time. Makes sense: 6/8 * 100 = 75 (assuming the scores are divided equally among the test takers for ease of calculation). Let me know if you think my reasoning makes sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boneh3ad Posted February 28, 2009 Share Posted February 28, 2009 Undergrad Institution: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Major(s): Mechanical Engineering Minor(s): N/A GPA in Major: 3.5 Overall GPA: 3.25 Length of Degree: 4 Position in Class: Not really sure... top 3rd or so I suppose Type of Student: Domestic male GRE Scores: Q: 800 V: 550 W: 5.5 Research Experience: 2 yrs in field with two different professors Awards/Honors/Recognitions: None that are pertinent Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Internships at Halliburton and Rolls-Royce Applying for M.S./Ph.D. at: Purdue University - ME - Accepted via email for MS on 1/8/09, No funding University of Illinois - ME - Accepted via snail mail, then email for MS on 2/16/09, No funding University of Michigan - ME - Rejected from M.S./Ph.D. on 4/8/09 Cornell University - ME - Rejected from Ph.D. on 5/21/09, Offered admission to M.Eng instead. Declined. Texas A&M University - ME - Accepted via email for Ph.D. on 3/16/09, Full tuition (TA/RA) Johns Hopkins University - ME - Rejected from Ph.D. on 4/10/09. Offered admission to MSE. Declined. Georgia Institute of Technology - ME - Accepted via snail mail for MS on 12/3/08, No funding Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute - ME - Accepted via email for Ph.D. on 3/5/09, Full tuition (TA) University of Maryland - ME - Pending... University of California - Berkeley - ME - Rejected from M.S./Ph.D. on who knows when, I called 4/2 though. It says I was accepted as an MS, though on my application I marked that I intend to pursue a PhD after completion of my MS. I applied at a lot of places since, as you can tell, my GPA is quite low. I was actually pretty surprised to get into a couple places so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noojens Posted March 1, 2009 Author Share Posted March 1, 2009 Thanks to all who've posted so far! Lots of good information here. Boneh3ad, for the programs you've been admitted to without funding, were you accepted to the MS or PhD program? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boneh3ad Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Thanks to all who've posted so far! Lots of good information here. Boneh3ad, for the programs you've been admitted to without funding, were you accepted to the MS or PhD program? Fixed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matguy Posted March 1, 2009 Share Posted March 1, 2009 Undergrad Institution: Mid-sized state school Major(s): Physics, Mathematics Minor(s): none GPA in Major: 4.0/3.84 Overall GPA: 3.93 Length of Degree: 4 years Position in Class: toppish Type of Student: Domestic male GRE Scores: Q: 760 (86%) V: 630 (90%) W: 5.0 (77%) P: 730 (62%) Research Experience: One year of condensed matter/nanotechnology experiment research Two computational physics research projects Co-author on submitted publication 2 poster presentations Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Several Math and Physics scholarships Tuition scholarship Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Lab technician with company working with CNTs SPS vice president Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Attended several conferences Special Bonus Points: Good, personal recommendation letters Applying to PhD at: MIT - Materials Science and Eng. - Rejected via mail 3/10 Urbana-Champaign - Physics - Rejected via email Northwestern - Materials Science and Eng. - Accepted via phone call and email - 1/23 - ACCEPTED OFFER Penn State - Physics - Accepted via email 2/18 - declined Colorado School of Mines - Materials Science and Eng. - Accepted via email 2/14 - declined CU Boulder - Physics - Rejected via email 3/10 Drexel - Physics - Accepted via email 2/25 - declined Emory - Physics - Invited for interview via email 2/27 - declined Mizzou - Physics - Accepted via email 1/30 - declined Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky2 Posted March 2, 2009 Share Posted March 2, 2009 matguy - u applied for Phd or MS? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
intlgrad Posted March 3, 2009 Share Posted March 3, 2009 Undergrad Institution: foreign, Mexico Major(s): Mechanical Engineering Overall GPA: 9.87 / 10 Length of Degree: 4 years Position in Class: top Type of Student: international, male GRE Scores: Q: 800 V: 460 W: don't know, never received the results through snail-mail TOEFL Total: 103 Research Experience: Research assistant for 2 years, publication on its way Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 3 scholarships, maybe getting magna cum laude Applying for PhD at: MIT - Aeronautics and Astronautics - Admitted / 29 - 1 / no info on funding yet CalTech - Aeronautics - waiting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matguy Posted March 4, 2009 Share Posted March 4, 2009 matguy - u applied for Phd or MS? Oh, whoops. I'm applying to PhD programs. I just updated my profile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lm776c Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 Masters Institution: Private, Top 10 Engineering Undergrad Institution: Private, Top 10 Engineering (different from Master's) Major(s): Astronautical Engineering Undergrad Majors(s): Engineering Physics Minor(s): Mathematics Graduate Overall GPA: 3.386 Overall GPA: 3.606 Length of Degree: 4 years undergrad, 2 years Master's Type of Student: Domestic white male GRE Scores: Q: 770 V: 500 W: 5.0 Research Experience: REU, lab at school Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Cum Laude Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Physics lab TA, Grader, Industry for two years. Applying for PhD's at: CU Boulder - pending UT at Austin - pending Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenguin Posted March 9, 2009 Share Posted March 9, 2009 Undergrad Institution: Big state school with great engineering reputation Major(s): Bioengineering GPA in Major: 3.8 Overall GPA: 3.8 Length of Degree: 3 years, followed by 1-year thesis-based masters at same school Position in Class: Near top Type of Student: Domestic male GRE Scores: Q: 800 V: 660 W: 5.5 MCAT Score: 42S (15 Biological Sciences, 14 Physical Sciences, 13 Verbal Reasoning) Research Experience: 4 years research at my institution, 2 summers at MIT/HST. Amazing recommendations, one publication. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Lots of honor societies/awards, but nothing major. Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Teaching AIME/USAMO competition math to high school students, also an MCAT instructor. Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Medical volunteer work in Costa Rica and Tanzania. Applying for Bioengineering/Biomedical Engineering PhD at: Washington University in St. Louis - Accepted 1/16, Declined, 1 year fellowship ($27,000) Boston University - Accepted 1/23, Declined, 1 year Distinguished BME Fellowship ($27,300) USC - Accepted 2/23, Declined, 5 year Provost's fellowship ($30,000) Caltech - Interviewed 2/20, Accepted 3/2, Declined, 1 year DEAS fellowship with guaranteed funding for 4 years ($28,000) Stanford - Interviewed 2/27, Accepted 3/8, 2 year Bioengineering fellowship ($29,600) - MATRICULATING HERE THIS FALL! Berkeley/UCSF - Interviewed 2/23-24, Accepted 3/9, Declined, 1 year fellowship ($27,000) U Penn - Interviewed 3/6, Accepted 3/24, Declined, HHMI-NIBIB Interfaces Fellowship ($27,540) Johns Hopkins - Interviewed 3/13, Accepted 3/22, Declined, NIH fellowship ($26,855) Duke - Offered interview, withdrawn University of Washington - Offered interview, withdrawn Columbia University - Offered interview, withdrawn MIT/HST - Rejected 2/15 - Saddest day of my life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jordan+AirForce1 Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 wow fenguin, your stats are ridiculous. (42 on MCAT???) congratulations on your achievements, and hope you find a good program! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ponja Posted March 10, 2009 Share Posted March 10, 2009 Yeah, good job on all your achievements. Sorry about MIT but that probably won't hinder you in any way. On the bright side if you decide to go Cali-ways you might even get to enjoy some real weather =) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whophil Posted March 11, 2009 Share Posted March 11, 2009 Undergrad Institution: Mid-tier engineering program at a large public university Major(s): Mechanical Engineering Minor(s): None GPA in Major: 3.80 / 4.00 Overall GPA: 3.67 / 4.00 Length of Degree: 4 Years Position in Class: Somewhere in the top 15% Type of Student: Domestic Male GRE Scores: Q: 790 (92%) V: 620 (89%) W: 5.5 (90%) Research Experience: - A few months with a postdoc researcher in a field unrelated to my area of interest, no publications. - Summer course/research abroad in my area of interest, no publications. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: B.S. Awarded with Honors, Department Citation for Performance, Tau Beta Pi Pertinent Activities or Jobs: - ASME Officer - Summer internship in medical devices industry - Summer internship abroad, mechanical engineering Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Some graduate-level coursework in my area of interest. Letters of Recommendation: Graduate coursework professor, Summer course advisor, Summer internship mentor Applying for MS at: (see sig. for status) MIT - Georgia Tech - Virginia Tech - Penn State - University of Pennsylvania (UPenn) - UCLA - CU Boulder - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
impatience Posted March 14, 2009 Share Posted March 14, 2009 Undergrad Institution: Large Private, OK reputation Major(s):EE Minor(s): none GPA in Major: 4.0 Overall GPA: 3.98 Length of Degree: 4yrs for BS 1.5yrs for thesis MS Position in Class: top 1% Type of Student: white male GRE Scores: Q: 800 V: 550 W: 5.0 Research Experience: Good Advisor, 2 years, 3 conference papers, 1 journal article + 1 more in review Pertinent Activities or Jobs: RA / TA for the past 4 years. Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 1.5 years of good experience at a noteworthy startup Applying for PhD at: MIT, Stanford, GA Tech, Cornell, UIUC MIT - EE - Rejected - 2/14/2009 GA Tech - EE- accepted 1/31/09 funded Cornell - EE - accepted 2/18/09 funded Stanford - EE- accepted for MS only option :?: UIUC - EE - waiting... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twocosmicfish Posted March 16, 2009 Share Posted March 16, 2009 Final status and corrections Undergrad Institution: Penn State (top 25-ish for EE) Major(s): Electrical Engineering Minor(s): None GPA in Major: 3.9 Overall GPA: 3.85 Length of Degree: Um... honestly? 13 years all told, but there was a 6 year break in the middle. And I started in aerospace. Position in Class: top 5% Type of Student: Domestic white male GRE Scores: Q: 800 V: 720 W: 6.0 Research Experience: One summer REU (basically a meaningless publication), 2 years of R&D at work which is unpublishable. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Graduated with high distinction, Tau Beta Pi, Eta Kappa Nu (chapter Prez), Phi Kappa Phi, Boeing scholar, some university awards. Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Undergrad TA for 1 year, 2 1/2 years as a working engineer Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I look snappy in a fedora Applying for PhD at: MIT - EECS - Rejected / 2-17-09 / NA UIUC - EECS - Accepted / 3-16-09 / possible RA (otherwise nada) Northwestern - EECS - Accepted / 3-6-09 / IGERT fellowship At this point, no longer waiting on anything from the schools... hallelujah! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amul1umt Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 Undergrad Institution: Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee Major(s): Metallurgical and Materials Engineering Overall GPA: 8.945(on 10 point scale) Length of Degree: 4 years Position in Class: Topper Type of Student: International, male GRE Scores:1310 Q:800 V:510 W:3.0 TOEFL Total:101 Research Experience: Doing my undergraduate thesis on ZnO thin films by sol gel spin coating method. Did summer internship at Fraunhofer IISB, Germany on Ion implantation of SiC. One more research project on ZnO and ZnFe2O4 nanostructures by chemical vapor deposition (published in the proceedings of Annual DAE Symposium on Solid State Physics, organized by Bhabha Atomic Research Center) Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Received DAAD scholarship for my internship in Germany Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Good sop/ good LOR Applying for [ MS ] or [ PhD ] at: Northwestern University - PhD in Material Science and Engineering- Reject :cry: :cry: :cry: :cry: Ohio State University - MS in Material Science and Engineering - File shifted to second round UT Austin - PhD in Material Science and Engineerng - Pending Purdue University - MS in Materials Engineering -Reject :cry: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ponja Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 alum 1umt wow man, I thought you'd be admitted for sure with that profile. Good luck with the rest of the applications!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
13thnct Posted March 22, 2009 Share Posted March 22, 2009 Undergrad Institution: Big State School (NCSU) with above average reputation(?) Major(s): Civil Engineering (geotechnical focus) Minor(s): Not so much GPA in Major: 3.83 Overall GPA: 3.75 Length of Degree: 4 yrs Position in Class: top 10% ish Type of Student: Domestic GRE Scores: Q: 730 V: 550 W: 4.0 Research Experience: Semester researching for my academic advisor, Summer internships doing engineering modeling for the DOD. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Free ride in the form of multiple scholarships. Pertinent Activities or Jobs: University Tutor & SI leader, civil clubs. Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I have the strength of a bear with the strength of two bears... Applying for [ MS ] or [ PhD ] at: PhD (in the case of some schools, I was forced to apply for Masters with the option of continuing on for a PhD). In the order that I heard from them: University of Colorado - Boulder - Civil & Environmental - Accepted/full funding University of Wisconsin - Madison - Civil & Environmental - Accepted/full funding Georgia Tech - Civil & Environmental - Accepted/ Interview this weekend (I'm 90% sure I'm funded) Purdue - Civil & Environmental - Accepted/full funding MIT - Civil & Environmental - Rejected (You sunk my battleship!) University of Illinois - Urbana Champaign - Civil & Environmental - Accepted/funding is pending (I'm pretty uncertain on whether or not I'll get funded) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amul1umt Posted March 23, 2009 Share Posted March 23, 2009 alum 1umt wow man, I thought you'd be admitted for sure with that profile. Good luck with the rest of the applications!! Thanks for the appreciation though, :wink: , i'm yet to receive one :cry: .... and desperately waiting Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watereverywhere Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 My not so stellar stats: Undergrad Institution: Public Liberal Arts University (Research University) Major(s): Environmental Health Science / Environmental Engineering (in school of public health) Minor(s): Mathematics Overall GPA: 3.24 (terrible, I know... the Env. Health Science track = Pre-med track = struggle :oops: ) Length of Degree: 4 yrs Position in Class: unranked Type of Student: Female GRE Scores: Q: 770 V: 630 W: 5.0 Research Experience: Spent 2 years in Environmental Microbiology Lab (will complete undergrad thesis from it this year), 1.5 years research in Applied Math lab, 1 year in Marine Modeling, a summer working with a LEED group, and a summer in high school in Civil Engineering (at NCSU). I know, I'm a lab-hopper, it took awhile for me to find what I wanted to do. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Multiple scholarships, Deans List a few semesters. Name on many posters from the Microbiology Lab, one from Math lab. Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I've held leadership positions and/or participated in many non-math/science things...tons of student organizations, jobs as a resident adviser, tutor, played club sport for a year, etc. Applied for MEng at MIT - Civil & Environmental - Accepted! :shock: (also applied for public health masters degrees, not relevant to this thread though...) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
noojens Posted March 27, 2009 Author Share Posted March 27, 2009 Applied for MS at MIT - Civil & Environmental - Accepted! :shock: Wow, CEE at MIT! Congratulations! Your letters and SoP must've been kickass. Any news on funding for the MS, if you don't mind my asking? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watereverywhere Posted March 29, 2009 Share Posted March 29, 2009 Wow, CEE at MIT! Congratulations! Your letters and SoP must've been kickass. Any news on funding for the MS, if you don't mind my asking? Thanks, noojens! I worked pretty hard on the SoP. My letters were from my work boss, lab coworker, and school adviser - I can't thank them enough for writing such good recs. Just goes to show you don't have to have the Dean or someone in a powerful position to write the rec - it's the actual material that counts! Ah sorry I was wrong, I was admitted to MEng (not MS!) Assuming your question is still the same - nope, no word on funding. They indicated in my admissions letter that they wouldn't be funding me. No surprise, it's only a 9 month program! I know they don't really fund many masters students. Are you inquiring about merit or need based aid? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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