eklavya
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Posts posted by eklavya
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Done. Anyone else?
here!! plant genetics phd candidate. i hope there's some room for me!
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Hey all
I am currently pursuing my B.S. in Electrical Engineering from Georgia Tech. I have an offer from GaTech for a MS in Electrical Engineering (With full funding). The program I got into is a 1 year program...
two things - full funding, and a year long program. i started an MS with the advisor with whom i had worked as an undergrad because of these two very reasons. and like someone mentioned above, getting an MS - be it your school or elsewhere - is a great thing to do. in fact, i look back and smile at the decision i made. MS is a solid platform to boost up your grades, get papers out, learn thesis writing, expand your network, and most importantly, know exactly what kind of science you want to do later.
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I didn't do a thesis, so I have very few great writing samples to send. My best sample is a paper a friend and I submitted in grad school. Would programs look at me like I'm crazy if I submit this paper? I want to be ethical, and not pretend like I wrote the paper myself.
mention it on your resume. and SoP. once invited for interview, take the sample with you to give to the prof directly. prior to interview, your application materials (minus the sample) should suffice to make a good impression.
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Hey everyone. I'll be taking the GRE on Monday for the first time. I'm just wondering if someone could please explain what the test-taking experience is like. I don't mean "subjectively" but more like, does someone at the test center provide you with pencils and scrap paper? When you return your scrap paper at the end, are you allowed to jot down your scores and percentiles before you leave? Is it true that there are lockers for one's possessions? What about lunch/snack items? (Would that be for the breaks? Maybe this varies by test center?) If someone (with a "typical" experience) could describe in a nutshell how their experience proceeded from the moment they arrived at the test center to the moment they left the test center, I would be greatly appreciative. I just don't want to show up on exam day and be all clueless and then have unnecessary added stress. Thanks in advance!
you go in time. you check in. put stuff in locker. take a coat/hoodie.. sometime they make the damn room very cold. walk into the judgment room. two sharpened pencils and two sheets of paper await you. let the test have its way with you. you can get out for lunch/toilet breaks. you can take breaks when you want. finish the test. before seeing your scores, you will be asked to enter the school codes (you can search for schools if you can't remember the codes). you can't take scrap paper with you when you leave. check out at the desk. get a booze.
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honestly people, i swear, i encountered zero words that i had studied/memorized. so i don't know if you should really rely on this repetition situation. or perhaps little luck is what i lacked!
drifting sideways a bit, i personally think it's in the applicant's best interest to determine how much emphasis the program puts on gre scores. depending on what type of program you are applying to (liberal arts vs science, and anything in between), the weight of gre largely varies. i am some biology student, and i know that the programs i apply to want to see that i do well on the math section than the verbal. of course, doing well overall wouldn't hurt either. moreover, and needless to say, the programs want to see that you have strong academic record and research skills.
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Hi everyone. I was so nervous when I took the GRE last month. I tried to breathe and be relaxed as much as possible.
But, I was just way too overwhelmed.
Especially when I started the verbal section, the first a couple of questions were pretty tough and I was freaked out.
How did you handle the stress?
Maybe my second time taking the test can be a little better.
I try to do yoga and try to stay calm, but you know, it is always hard.
yoga? hehe.. that was pretty funny. to handle the stress, simply assume that there is no stress. i mean, how many times in your life have you taken similar/more important tests? eat well, sleep well, and ask jesus to be your wingman. you'll sail easy.
myself, was in europe partying a week before my gre. came to the states, but studied nada before the test. simply walked in, and took it. wasn't too bad. i excelled on quantitative. verbal? meh. but i got what my top univ asked for.
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Some of the schools I'm applying to request that my former schools send an official transcript directly to their (the schools I'm applying to) office. The thing is, is it ever too early to have them sent out? For example, some of the schools have a deadline in the months of February and March. If I were to have the registrar's office send out my transcripts in December, I'm worried that schools will lose the documents because I've sent them out way too soon.
I know I sound a bit too paranoid but I know these things happen and in the past I've had situations backfire on me for being TOO conscientious about things like timing. I want to get as much done as possible within a good time span that's why.
from my experience, i've discovered that the programs you apply to require you to send them an official transcript with the application whereas the (main) grad admissions does not want you to do this. or vice-versa. therefore i ended up sending official transcripts to all schools i applied anyways.. just to be on the safe side. and most of these have deadlines similar to yours. it's better to get things in early, and make sure they have reached there ahead of the deadline rather than panic at the last moment.
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barren field
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I know this sounds crazy but I am having a real problem with this.
At least four of my schools require that scanned transcripts be uploaded. The problem is that the schools all have maximum size listed for the files. Some only allow you to upload 500kb per transcript. Others are more generous. My undergrad transcript is 3 pages, however, which doesn't help.
I tried scanning at home on a HP C4280 but couldn't get the size down that far. I even had my computer person come and try to do it and he had no luck. He is taking them home to try and scan them on his computer and printer, as he thinks there could be a problem with my printer.
Any suggestions on getting the size down? We scanned in black and white. Does it make a difference whether you scan an official or unofficial transcript? (We did official.)
Can I take this somewhere to do it quickly? I would gladly pay money. Kinko's no longer exists but has been taken over by FedEx. Thought I would try FedEx tomorrow. Any other ideas?
use adobe acrobat professional to do this. if you don't have the program, someone around should have it - parents, profs, university copy center, etc. if no one has it, torrent does
my scanned transcript (4 pgs) was >6mb but allowed size was 800kb. using acrobat, i reduced the size to about 300kb, with no deterioration in quality. good luck
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Hi,
I am an international student applying to PhD programs in the US. Some universities say that they do not require a TOEFL score from international students who studied at universities where the language of instruction is English. I suppose this includes the English speaking universities outside English speaking countries. I am studying at a university where English is the language of instruction. Does this mean it is absolutely OK not to submit a TOEFL score, or should I still send a score to strengthen my application?
the answer is no. read the instructions on grad program website again. toefl is exempt if you study in a school in a nation that has english as its primary language. an example: indians have a long history of communicating in all forms of english, but they still are required to turn in toefl scores. unless you can make the grad program waive the toefl requirement, you are going to have to send the scores.
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Hi guys,
I dont know where to post this since it is a German admission round.
However is there anyone here who has applied to the International Max Planck Research School in Earth System Modeling? They say that by the middle of November if we dont hear from them then it is a No. So does anyone know whether they have begun sending our invitations for interviews yet? The suspension is just killing, especially for the fact that they will be MIA for the rejected ones. I am still yet applying to US schools but a cushion admission in Europe (and this is a great school) would be really nice!
Many thanks,
i am adding my reply with my limited knowledge on the german (esp. max planck) admission procedure. i did an internship last summer with max planck institute for chemical ecology. i gathered this info from the folks (from US and other countries) i worked with. but boy, is europe shweet!!
first off, honestly, european schools shouldn't be regarded as cushion/backup because they are hard to get into. not because they are necessarily better than any US schools we have here, but because the procedure is horribly excruciating and the papertrail never ends. you'll have to jump through so so many hoops and hurdles.
and are you applying for MS, PhD? if you don't already have an MS degree and are applying for a PhD, forget it. germans like to see that you have academic progression in a 'linear' model, i.e., BS - MS - PhD.
about the decision deadline, it differs. as far as i know, all max planck centers are (/have to be) affiliated to local universities. but they don't like to follow university procedures and deadlines all the time. so they do things the way they like.. and is often totally random. if you haven't heard from them, simply email them or just wait. patience pays off sometimes.
that said, good luck! max planck institutes are great at what they do.
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damn, you folks are early birds!! i turned in mine (7 apps) few weeks ago, and the last LoR made it to the schools last week, for plant breeding phd. prior to submitting the applications, i had talked to few profs in few programs via email, and they indicated interviewees would be invited starting late jan/early feb. this means will i get to hear starting mid december? but inside, i know i won't hear squat at least until jan second week. the wait is indeed a killer!
@gatorgirl: from florida?
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Title says it all. I'm a Canadian and am here under the F-1 heading that limits me to 20hrs/wk.
I would like to either work full-time for financial reasons during the summer, or I would like to be able to work full-time to further my career.
Do you have any knowledge that in any way relates to this subject?
If I can only work 20hrs/wk it might be cheaper to fly back to Canada for the summer months. That's annoying--I'd like to not have to constantly shift my life back and forth.
in addition to what the above post says, there are some (all? - idk) states that allow you to work more than 40 hours when the school is not session. however, this is applicable if you secure an in-state co-op or internship and still (have time to) work on campus. you see, 40 on campus and 40 outside.. if you can manage.
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Hey guys,
As I apply to grad schools (cancer research) and start to contact professors I was wondering what a biology resume should include. Right now from my previous resumes I have general education/gpa information, awards, internship/research experience, activities, volunteering, and a "skills" section that includes biological techniques I've done. Should I include extracurricular activities and volunteering, just to give a fuller picture of me as a person, or exclude that since it's not directly relevant to research? I've also never seen a "skills" section in a sample resume so I don't know if I should include this.
The way I've done mine is to have education first, then research experience/internships and under each one of those to have a very short general list of techniques, then volunteering activities/hobbies. Hope that helps!
i do mine this way: education, scholarships/awards, research interests, work/research (this includes internships, ta, ra, etc), publications/conferences, community/volunteer works, bioinformatic skills, and leftover (eca, languages, etc) if there's space left.
i don't necessarily enlist 'skills' or 'techniques' as you guys are talking about, since research and internship experiences indicate that anyway. although, i do mention where and what projects i worked on, and with whom, if 'whom' is a bigshot name in science.
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I am a Bioinformatics graduate and an international candidate.
I recently gave GRE. I got 1200 score. V-530, Q-670. Is it possible to get admission in Phd in genetics or computational biology with this score or should i give it again.
Please someone help me.
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Shivani
1200 should be fine, as it is nothing more than a mere criterion for filtering out not-so-good candidates. my bioinformatics friend got into a top 10 computational biology program last year with ~1200 score. though, he was a US citizen.. and had good grades and excellent research experiences.
still, retaking might be better if you are confident of scoring more.
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hi,
i have completed my graduation in biotechnology and i want to do my msc in plant biotechnology (plant tissue culture) and very much interested in horticulture...can i get colleges in U.S. with this kind of course facilities.
fyi, there isn't (as far as i know) a tissue culture program/degree running solo in US schools. although the concept might be taught during your project/research. browse research sites of the labs you're interested in and see if they have whatever you are looking for.
toefl requirement
in Applications
Posted
'course, there are exceptions. but my point in general was, since literally 1000s of universities around the world teach in english, even where english is not the obligate language spoken, the rule in general is that the nation has to be obligate/primarily english speaking. again, in general.