KineticAlfven

Thank you for your suggestion. Can I still bargain if they have already sent out their package (though I don't know the details)?

Thanks. Not for bragging. The admission process is like a blackbox and is mysterious to applicants. I am just interested in knowing if there is a consistent behaviour from the response of 14 schools. I'll probably leave Stanford, Harvard and Caltech just there. Anyone who has a chance to be admitted by these schools should alrealy have a bunch of offers. I care more about the feeling of those who does not yet have an offer.

Hi there, I applied to 14 physics PhD program in US. I applied for so many schools because I am an international student and I heard that domestic students were preferred over the international. It turns out to be rather smooth, currently I received 4 offers and no rejection. (Ohio, Colorado, Chicago and Berkeley). I am pretty much decided to attend Berkeley. Now I am not sure if I should withdraw from schools that have not informed me of their decisions (Georgia Tech, Brown, UIUC, Maryland, Rice, Cornell, Stanford, Caltech, Harvard). I want to hear the opinions of you guys on the following issue. On one hand, I am interested in seeing how my application to different schools will turn out, i.e., do not withdraw my application but decline offers upon receipt; on the other hand, I am a bit worried that in doing so I will take other applicants' opportunities to get admitted. Is it considered a bad deed to take a handful of offers and then decline? Have graduate schools foreseen such applicants?

Hi Francesca, I studied at CUHK. I am not at a position to judge the academic levels of two schools that gave you offers. But in terms of the location, I believe that you will appreciate the fact that CUHK lies in a "suburban" area. Hong Kong is a metropolis, but it is small in terms of its area. The "suburban" or even "rural" areas in Hong Kong is not that far from the "city center"(i.e., Hong Kong island or Kowloon). Plus, Hong Kong has one of the best public transport system in the world, making the city seems even smaller. The second point is, unless you like to live in literally old and tiny room in highrise buildings and walk on crowded streets everyday, you will not enjoy the life at Poly U, which is connected directly with a subway station and a few mega-shopping malls. In contrast, CUHK has a quiet campus, which is also the largest among a dozen of universities in Hong Kong. In fact, quite a number of local residents visit the CUHK campus on weekends to escape from the noise and crowdedness of the city to enjoy a moment of peace and harmony.