dukkessi

Hi, I'm an MEng student in a respected school and will be applying to phD programs this winter. I've come up with a list of schools where I have some faculty members with research interests similar to mine, but I'd also like to figure out what my "safety schools" are. I've read that programs ranked below 25 are actually not safety schools since most of them have small programs and don't have enough funding. I am looking for programs that are less competitive and can support my study. I've chosen mostly private schools because they seem to have better funding than state schools. Here is my list: Stanford Cornell Georgia Tech Columbia Princeton Rice USC WashU NYU Poly Clemson University of Notre Dame All of these schools have been carefully chosen after reviewing each faculty's website. But I am afraid my chances at admission are low or may not get funding. Any suggestion on choosing safety schools? My stats are solid, but is nothing outstanding and would like to increase my chances of getting into a phD program..