budgie

I write the first chapter of fiction novels. Of course, I always mean to write the whole novel as it is in my head, but by the time the first chapter has been fleshed out, I'm bored, and move on to the next. Maybe one day I'll make it into chapter 2. I also play guitar, poorly.

No supermarket?! Ithaca has one of the best supermarkets in the states; We have Wegmans (other supermarkets in town: Tops, GreenStar, Walmart, Target). IMO Wegman's is better than Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Raley's, etc.. Wegman's offers locally sourced food, cheap Wegman's brand ripoffs of almost anything you can dream of, as well as all the food you would find at normal supermarkets still at the same cheap prices.

You may also want to consider accepting the offer to work towards a PhD in materials science, but do research in an electrical engineering based lab. Many EE labs would love to put someone on projects with materials science knowledge. If the name of the field on your degree really matters to you, maybe then try to apply to EE programs, but if not, do explore the labs at the schools you're interested to see if there's a good fit for your new interests. Just for perspective, I'm in BME, but work in MAE and I'm very happy with my situation. Good luck in whatever you decide to do!

Press release from the NSF about this years awards: http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=130974&org=NSF&from=news

Honorable Mention E/E E/E G/VG Last reviewer didn't try to understand my project at all! Oh well, I'm satisfied with my honorable mention. Didn't get anything last year, so this a a step up. One more year to perfect my application package and nail it. Congrats to all other HM's and awardees!

Last year, I received a generic rejection letter in email and had to log into Fastlane to view comments and scores from the reviewers. I expect it to be the same this year. p.s. can we talk about how awesome it is that we actually get feedback from the reviewers, unlike other fellowships. The comments aren't much, but it's still better than trying to guess why you didn't receive the award.

Also, you've got at least 5 years before you have to worry about employment. Having a well-connected PI in a reputable program is beneficial, but when the day comes, it'll be the work you did and the connections you made in grad school that determine your ability to secure a job.

Last year I was in the same situation. I went for the best-fit school and haven't regretted my decision at all. That said, my idea of which school was the best-fit for me dramatically changed after visitations. Don't make a decision too soon!

I was invited to interview at UMich last year with GRE scores in the 77th percentile. Based on my own profile and the people I met at the recruitment weekend last year, I'd say their admissions process is very holistic. To me it seemed that they care most about carefully matching students to faculty members.

Inside Information: Cornell is doing rolling admissions over the next few weeks, keep your fingers crossed

I got into most schools I applied to with worse GRE scores than yours. So long as you've got good research experience under your belt (and good LORs from that), with a gpa like yours, I think you'll be fine

If you're on a time crunch, at least make sure the schools that you're interested in have a focus on signal processing. You should be able to tell by a quick trip to the department's website and looking for a signal processing subcategory underneath research. When writing your personal statement, it often helps your situation to name a few specific professors you want to work with and why. Maybe wait until you choose a few schools you're definitely going to apply to before digging this deep though. And don't get too stressed, application season is exciting

If you're still in need, bump me a message