DaniMetroplex

Fair enough. I apologize for reacting the way I did. My main tools for finding security schools have been looking through Microsoft Academic Research (which does have a specific area for security) and seeing where the papers at top security conferences are coming from. UTSA is probably the biggest surprise so far, but it might be in my interests to catch a rising star before everybody else hears about them.

Holy condescension, Batman! Of course I'm familiar with the US News rankings. When I mentioned top 10 schools in previous posts, where did you think I was getting my info? From David Letterman? On a related note, I am a bit surprised that security isn't one of the subfields they have rankings for, but that's another topic for another time. I'm also familiar with the NRC rankings, and Microsoft's nifty Academic Search tool, as well as the criticisms usually leveled at ranking methodologies. North Texas may be a not-particularly-well-thought-of state school, but it's not a cave. We haz teh Interwebs. I'm also well aware that my SoP needs to answer the question, "Why should we let you into our program?" and that the main thing adcomms want to know is, "Can this person do research?" Of course the bulk of my SoP will address those issues. If I do address my, ahem, nontraditional background there, it will only be because there's no other space in the application to do it, and in any case, it will only be a few sentences. Riveting tales of my globetrotting experiences as a musician impersonator will have to wait for my thinly-veiled, gossipy novel on the subject. And yes, I am getting my MS in Computer Science. That's what the GPA I cited in my original post is for. Sincerely, State School Thug

Noted. I'm used to having to explain how I got from my music history degree to where I am now, as pretty much every job interviewer I've had has brought it up. It's not as strange a transition as it might appear on paper. Do applications still have a "anything you'd care to explain" section, or would this go somewhere else, like the SoP?

Glad to see that most of the schools mentioned here have been on my radar. I'll look into the ones that haven't. Funny tidbit: I mentioned that five years ago, I was working as a permit clerk for the state. Ten years ago, I was working at UTSA as a secretary. It was one of the worst jobs I've ever had in my life, but I chalk that up mostly to the particular people I shared work space with. I certainly don't hold it against the university as a whole, much less the CS department.

Boston and Northeastern are already on my medium (not yet short) list. Hopefully this means I'm on the right track picking programs. Anybody know anything about UVA's program?

Thanks for your honest feedback, OH YEAH. This is pretty much what I'd figured to be the case. That said, I want to clarify a couple of things. My bachelor's is in a completely different field, and I didn't just want to get another bachelor's degree. I don't know if that mitigates the situation, but I wanted to put that out there. If there's any other information that would help you understand my background better, let me know. This next issue I was hoping I wouldn't have to get into, but here goes: I've noticed among some on these boards a "top 20 or bust" mentality. I understand wanting to go to the best program you can get into, but it seems like even Ph.D. graduates outside top 20 schools still get decent jobs. This isn't the humanities. While I'd love to be a hotshot professor at the University of the Fancy Pants and have the DaniMetroplex algorithm for Something-or-other taught in textbooks, honestly, I think I'd be ok with collecting a decent salary to do research and maybe teach somewhere. My understanding is that I should be able to do this even outside a top 20 school. Please correct me if I am wrong. Five years ago, I had a BA in music history and was working as a permit clerk for the state of Texas. Almost anything is an improvement over that.

Thanks for the replies so far! I figured that the letter from the Senior Lecturer would be the better choice, but it never hurts to ask around. Any ideas regarding target schools? I'm going to guess that the top 10 schools won't talk to me, even as a female US citizen. What are some decent security programs that I'd have a reasonable shot of getting into? Also, I forgot to mention this earlier, but my advisor knows somebody at Virginia. Any thoughts on that program?

I posted here several months ago asking about my prospects for Fall 2012, and I received some helpful replies. Now that I have a clearer picture of where I am and what my goals are, I'd like to ask for your assistance in helping me put together my short list of programs to apply to. Current stats: Current program: MS at North Texas GRE: 630 V/760 Q/5.0 AWA GPA: 3.8 I've had a TA-ship for the last 2 semesters, and apparently my work has been well-received. For the record, I'm not just grading papers; I handle a lab section for our beginning programming class. I have some research experience, as I am going the thesis route, but unfortunately, nothing is publication-worthy at the moment. Also, I will almost certainly be switching specialty areas between my MS and PhD. From what I've read on these boards, that doesn't seem to be unusual, but please correct me if I'm wrong. My master's work is in compilers, but for a PhD, I think I'm gravitating more toward security (I have at least taken a security class; this isn't out of nowhere). The first two LoR's will come from my advisor and probably another professor who is also the graduate coordinator for our department. I haven't decided who to ask for the third letter and would appreciate your input on that as well. My possibilities are probably a professor who could write me a did-well-in-class letter, or someone who can speak directly to my teaching abilities but is not a professor (I think his title is Senior Lecturer or something similar). Let me know if anything needs clarification; otherwise, fire away with your recommendations!

Is your friend interested in bioinformatics or computational biology? Those seem to be hot fields right now and would allow her to use her biology background. Research experience is not usually required for a Master's. In fact, MS programs are usually good places to get research experience to help people decide if they want to pursue a Ph.D. This is exactly what I am doing. As far as CS credits, I can't imagine that it would matter if she took them before or after she graduates as long as she has them. Something that your friend might consider is a post-baccalaureate certificate that some schools offer, which is designed to provide a CS background for people with degrees in other fields. A certificate program might also help your friend clarify if CS is something she really wants to pursue, as 1 or 2 courses do not a computer scientist make.

Thanks for your response! I would definitely be cool with a top 30 program. Obviously, top 10 would be better, and I'm going to try and make the most of my research to make that happen, but considering 4 years ago I had nothing but a BA in music history from a liberal arts college nobody's ever heard of, for me a top 30 program would be none too shabby.

First, thanks so much for your response. Yes, the grad coordinator is a professor (a full professor, actually). I'm not terribly familiar with his subfield, but he appears to have a pretty hefty publication record. His PhD is from Alabama--Huntsville; my advisor's is from Colorado State. Unfortunately, my department isn't exactly swimming with alumni from elite schools, so pretty much any recommendation I get is probably going to come from someone out of the caliber of schools like my advisor's. Regarding my research, like I said, it's in its early stages, so there's no telling how it will turn out. But from your reply, it sounds like if I can get it published somewhere, that will be a big help, if I understand you correctly (please correct me if I'm wrong). It seems like publication would be the best way to overcome what I'm guessing are my biggest hurdles: I'm at a no-name school and don't know any famous people. If at all possible, I'd like to do a Ph.D. at a higher caliber school than where I currently am. Shifting gears slightly, if I am unable to get anything published, does that kill my chances at a top-tier program? Thanks again for your response.

*bump* Bueller? Anyone?

Currently in the MS program at North Texas (I have a BA in a completely unrelated field, and this was the easiest route). Some stats: GPA: 4.0 in CS GRE: 760Q/630V/4.5AW LoR: Pretty sure I can get my advisor to say wonderful things about my research and teaching abilities (I'll have at least 2 semesters of TA experience). Other LoRs will probably come from the graduate coordinator for the dept and one other prof (admittedly, this one will probably amount to a did-well-in-class letter). The big variable at the moment is research. I'm currently working on something in compilers, but obviously, I don't know what the results will be or how well they will be received. So, based on the above info, what kinds of schools could I get into if a paper of mine got accepted at a Tier 1/Tier 2/publication mill type of conference? Any advice you have is appreciated, and of course, let me know if you need further information.

Remember that for graduate study, the reputation of the department is more important than that of the university as a whole. While SMU has more brand recognition overall, for computer science or any engineering-related program, you're probably better off at UT-Dallas. From my understanding (I'm a student at nearby North Texas), engineering programs are kind of UT-Dallas's crown jewel. If you were getting a business or law degree, SMU would be the place to go. ;-)

I was going to ask how one determines what the good conferences are, but a few quick searches revealed some very useful information on that issue. I suppose the next order of business is to comb through the proceedings of said conferences (and maybe a few of the junk ones for contrast). Regarding the original question, I think I'm going to hold off on Calc 3 for now. If I do end up taking extra math, it will probably be in the differential equations direction. And there's always OpenCourseWare. Thanks so much for your help! DaniMetroplex