uromastyx
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Posts posted by uromastyx
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Personally, I can't imagine that the politics of this matter are idiosyncratic.
If it's a great program then I wouldn't decline their offer solely on the knowledge of this scandal.
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So who received a place at Oxford? Will you be attending? Waiting on funding?
What is your field? Have you heard from a college yet? Have you visited?
Cheers
- John_Duble_E and uromastyx
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I think it's really up to you. I had four interviews and emailed after one of them. This was a particularly enjoyable conversation, so I sent them a quick three sentence email.
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So my thing is, will my disadvantage background be a good reason for my low GPA? I don't want to say its an excuse or a reason, but my disadvantage background will always haunt me and I want to show them that I will do whatever it takes to overcome it.
NO. All you need to say is that you it took you a bit to develop academically (which your current work shows). Plus, this should be a tiny 'paragraph' in you SOP. It should be mentioned, but the SOP should illustrate past/present matters as they relate to your application and illuminate your potential for PhD work, not focus on problematic matters of the past.
IF a school requires a diversity statement or personal statement, then you can address overcoming hardships. Again, be careful here to not create a sob story. These are very tricky to write.
So, no, I wouldn't get into the disadvantages. I had a 3.16 undergrad GPA, with a brutal first two years. I addressed it in my SOP and emphasized that it was a thing of the past. I too did a master's with a solid GPA, like you, and therefore, it was self-apparent. It wasn't, "I promise I'll do better." It was "Look, I've done better. My trajectory has changed."
That strong graduate GPA will really allow adcomms to look past the undergrad.
Best of luck.
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I am not in your field so I can't offer much advice. I will say that publications will help your cause greatly, but often only if it's in a reputable (i.e. good/great) journal.
Also, publication seems to be the thing to do these days. But it is tough. IF you have a paper that is publishable, or you are capable of writing a publishable paper, then go for!! But it seems that many grad students are attempting this and truly aren't ready.
When I began publishing as a MA student I spoke with professor about where to submit (after he encouraged me to publish a term paper). I took a list of journals that he provided and began to research these journals (as well as others). You need to understand the field, understand the journal. What type of research does a particular journal tend to publish? What is their estimated review time? Submitting a paper only to have it rejected 8 months later won't help your CV.
Also, avoid this common mistake: don't submit a slew of papers and list them all on your CV as "under review." No one cares, and typically it looks as though you are simply submitting papers just to add it to your CV. If a paper is genuinely under review then ok. So because of this, and the turn-around time, I recommend getting stuff sent out as earlier as possible.
I will add that I am currently applying to my PhD and have 3 solid journal publications and a book chapter (and a professional blog). Adcomms have mentioned that they are impressed by this.
Best of luck to you.
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SO many applicants go through this. You must stay positive, but also realistic. I mean, you've had multiple interviews. That means that programs are interested in you. You will get in somewhere.
Also, if you felt that the first school wasn't a great fit, then chances are they did too. Nothing more.
Best of luck, and remember:
Keep calm and carry on!
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I think there are many factors to consider here, and thus a truly subjective decision.
Which program has waitlisted you? Is it a top program? Is it well respected? Are there people there that you'd like to work with?
What does their particular waitlist mean? Are they selective? i.e. do they admit 2 people and waitlist 2 people or do they admit 20 and waitlist 5?
Was competition stiff? If so, then a department may be very happy to have you.
But it's a simple matter of whether that is a school that you want to attend. If it's your top option then I don't understand declining an acceptance after being waitlisted. (I can see feeling bitter, of course)
If they didn't want you then they would have rejected you outright. Ok, you aren't mommy and daddy's favorite, but I believe that almost all profs will judge your academic performance, your character, your potential, etc. And many people blossom in grad school, that is, the "top candidate" isn't always the top candidate.
Whether to accept an admit after being waitlisted is a personal opinion. What do you want? Where do you want to be? How do you personally feel about being waitlisted?
It all depends on your perspective and your desires/goals.
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Mine have all been somewhere between casual and downright enjoyable.
Some were more geared towards an actual interview, while some were more of an opportunity for them to describe how their program would suite me well and allow me to ask questions.
(And in my field most also want to speak a bit in the target language.)
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Happy Valentine's Day!
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I have also been told that you can say, "Hey, School X gave me $$$. You are my top choice. Can you match that?"
Programs understand that money is a factor and it's perfectly ok to ask. Plus, if program X competes often with program Y then they very well may try to match the offer.
But you can't try to get 5 schools in a bidding war. If there is a discrepancy between my #1 and my #2 I will try to get #1 to match it, or at least sweeten the pot.
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If it helps any, you shouldn't feel at all pressured to respond right away. Technically, you have until April 15th to make your decision... In fact, even if you make your decision now, you're 100% allowed to withdraw as long as it's by April 15th. Though it's not a "policy", the CGS April 15th Resolution was enacted for this very reason - to give students the time and space they need to make the decision that is best for them. You can find it here if you're interested in reading the resolution itself: www.cgsnet.org/ckfinder/userfiles/files/CGS_Resolution.pdf
Good luck!
But the issue seems to be that chron will only receive an acceptance if (s)he pre-commits to the program.
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From what I've heard of my peers, there has been only one truly negative letter story, and that was from a professor with a hidden agenda (long story..but a good, funny story.. well not for that student).
That's terrifying.
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It depends on the field/programs, BUT often this is not a good sign. The only way to know for sure is to wait and see.
IF the department has notified some candidates with BOTH acceptances and rejections then I wouldn't totally stress out yet. That may very well mean precisely that you haven't been accepted, but you haven't been rejected.
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I have only been told (by profs) that yes, they will write 'good' letters. Keep in mind though, you could certainly get lukewarm letters. The odds of getting a poor LOR are slim. But if a PROF doesn't feel comfortable writing a 'good' letter then they will find a way to let you know that they don't want to do it.
There is, of course, a difference between a 'good' letter and a 'great' letter.
Nevertheless, this is why *almost* everyone mentions in their profile that they have 'strong' letters.
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Well, no news is no news. There is no way to be certain. However, if acceptances to these programs have gone out awhile ago, chances are that no news is bad news. But all you can do is wait until an official notice is made.
Kent is a fine place, although moving the family can be tough. Best of luck to you all.
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If you know that you're not going to attend the program, it's never too early.
Agreed. If you're certain then it's better to let them know.
- La_Di_Da and FertMigMort
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Yes, when a program does interviews it means that those are the current students of interest. Chances are that if you didn't get a request for an interview you won't be accepted. But perhaps they are still doing interviews. It depends on when people were contacted. If it was today then sit tight. If it was last week then you probably won't receive an interview.
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Surely I'm not the only one...
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Personally, I bought multiple books. This truly helps, as some books emphasize some things more than others. I also spent about 8 months studying. So if you plan to put significant time into it then you will definitely want more than one.
I had variations of ETS, Kaplan, Princeton, Barron's, as well as Barron's book for Verbal, Kaplan's book for Quant, and Kaplan/Barron flashcards.
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How is a post asking about choosing between two very good options insulting? It's no different from asking about choosing between any other two schools, and I don't buy that we can't help with that choice. Some posters on this board may attend these top schools and know about then or else we can always help with the general questions that go into making a decision. You realize that asking for help choosing between two good options is not meant to sting those who didn't make it but to help the person with these great options to choose the best one?
You are discouraging people and posting definitive answers that are no more than unfounded opinions. Unless you know something about MIT CS admissions *specifically* then you can't help here. Even Usmivka, *who currently attends grad school at MIT*, is telling you she can't necessarily interpret the way CS releases their admissions information. As a fellow MIT grad (at another department), I don't know either, and I would never presume to interpret another field's results unless I had clear relevant information.
The reality is that the top graduate programs are really competitive, and that the vast majority of people that apply to programs like MIT CS are going to be rejected. This is true regardless of whether acceptances have been sent out or not. I don't think it's helpful to just go around telling everyone they're probably going to be rejected, even though that's true. You can't base this off grad cafe posts because first of all, some of them are fake, and second of all it is absolutely true that some schools accept people in multiple rounds. Unless you have specific information about MIT CS, or even MIT as a whole, you saying that people are probably rejected isn't helpful even though it's true.
I am here to offer my honest opinion. I mean absolutely no offense. I'm helping my fellow swimmers in the shark tank. I say swim. You say tread water. To each their own.
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I would also caution against this. Indeed, it may seem a bit desperate.
Also, it's really hard to get a feel for how an interview goes. Most likely, it was better than you think.
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I'd suggest that uromastyx doesn't know any more than you. He's been going out of his way to put down and downvote folks asking about admissions to "brand name" schools, which I suspect is the reason for that response. I'm sure he'll downvote me for saying so, but that is my honest assement.
Come on, people are asking about the probability of acceptance/rejection. And everyone here wants to sugarcoat it. I believe people deserve better than that. If people have been accepted and I haven't received word, then I need to be realistic and accept the fact that I most likely (almost certainly) haven't been accepted.
I am new to Gradcafe this year and have tried to help people in an honest way, because last year I was rejected from every school that I applied to. I sat around saying, "I see people have been accepted, but I haven't heard anything. There is still hope." I would have appreciated some real honesty.
Regarding brand name schools, here's the problem:
People that have been accepted to the top two programs in their field don't need our help to make this decision. Nor can we help them with that decision. I find these posts insulting to everyone, especially the people who had hopes of such acceptances.
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Are you sure?
There is always a chance, but I'm trying to be honest. IF you've seen acceptances posted on the results board (which I'm assuming here), then it's almost certainly a rejection.
chance for admission?
in GRE/GMAT/etc
Posted
V=32nd percentile, Q=77th (for CS!) percentile, and AW=11th percentile.
Harsh is an empty bank account and a stack of rejections letters.