profound_g

If I get started with the SOP anytime soon, I hope to finish all apps by the end of November. Letter writers have been warned too. I think I'll have an issue with getting transcripts like I need them though Then comes the waiting..

I've seen this new IPB look in other places as well. For me it's too light, and even too polished. Then again, as always with changes like this, it's not like things are ever reverted so not much point to discussing too much.

Haven't requested scores be sent yet, but I do second the conclusion the OP arrived at.

I'm sorry, but the pointless tag has been taken. You can have random.

Be extra careful about choosing proofreading services, especially if you currently reside in a country where English is not a native language. Just because they advertise themselves as being professionals doesn't mean that they are, even if their knowledge level is above yours. I known people who got burned like this.

I've switched to care less mode. It's nice. This forum is great.

Also known as whining. I have identified three profs. to ask for recommendations. Only one of those knows me well; the other two agreed to give me a rec., but I expect them to be just OK at best since they're not that familiar with me. Now, all of a sudden, the one who knows me well says that he might not be able to do it (out of the country bla bla). Frankly, the reasons are not relevant. The point is that I'm potentially going to be left with 2 lukewarm recs, and my writing skills are not that great, so the SOP is probably going to be not stellar either. Argh! Please tell me that my really good GRE along with a really good GPA are going to compensate. (Yes, I know that they're often described as being least important ) Oh, and research exp is also good.

Thanks for writing this. If I have to report percentiles I'll keep this in mind.

I've received about 10 replays by now. Almost nobody signs "Dr. Lastname". Some use their full name without the title, some just a shortened version of their first. I keep referring to them as Dr. Lastname. So far nobody complained

Now we need to ask ourselves what it is about our culture that makes people feel like too old at 24 (or 42 for that matter, it's just stronger for 24). Yes I know that the post is about grad school, but this is seen in all areas.

Pretty much all of the people I emailed answered in a positive way. Some were extremely brief, one said he wouldn't be accepting new students, and with others a discussion began. So yeah, it's going well.

I wouldn't recommend submitting more than required. I've seen one place that specifically stated to send no more than 2 (they used exclamation marks so I think they were serious).

Applying early might get you an early admission offer I think right now it's a bit too early, and hope to finish mine by mid Nov. ..I think I should begin writing a SOP.

Oh, but what if they make a mistake? A bad, bad mistake. :evil:

You're right about worrying about being admitted first and before making choices later. I didn't even contact them yet; I'll go do that. Thanks everybody.

There's one program where there are many people doing things I'm extremely interested in, but the school is really low ranked compared to a few of the other programs I'm applying to (they also do things that are interesting to me, of course, but somewhat less than this one). I wonder if I should even apply. I know that the 'rule' is not to apply to a school one wouldn't really go to, but I just don't know in this case. What are your thoughts?

You could skip 50 if you wanted to. You won't get any points for them, so obviously your raw score is going to suffer (though less than it would from being wrong on them).

I agree with the previous poster who said the either the schools provide exact instructions or do it themselves. Having said that, you might want to calculate something approximate to see where you stand. Check if your university provides a conversion scale with the transcript (you might want to ask for the English version specifically). You calculate your GPA by first converting each mark on the 100 point scale to the corresponding one on the 4 point scale/letter grade, and then proceed to calc weighted average as usual. Rough guidelines: 85-100 - 4 ..-84 - 3 ..65- 2 ..55- 1

You're right, but It was the fact that I contact more than one person at the same place that concerned me. It was doing it with practically the same letter. I got over it, though.

I have no way of assessing your chances, but it does seem that you're doing all the right things with gaining research experience and preparing for the GRE. You're going to need more than one LOR. I've seen programs that allow, for people like yourself who have been out of school for a while, to get a LOR from an employer.

Skip the first paragraph then. Go back to it in the end. Running a search engine query on "writing statement of purpose" would give you more than enough tips. Good luck to us with this uneasy task.

Sedulous. Hey I remember something, and it was over 6 months ago! It must be a non-representative sample. And as English is not my first language either, I'm with you, regardless. I studied for about 2.5 months. I don't think this is cramming though. I learned many many words. I got a very good score. Bottom line - you need to have an excellent GRE vocab, not just an excellent vocab period. Even if you're confident in your knowledge, take a sample test and see how it goes. If you get a low score you can either study despite your naturally great vocab, like Biff put it, or not, but if you don't choose to put in the effort know that it's your responsibility.

That's what I've been saying. The test is messed up. People like you got the same score as I did, and I'm not a native speaker, nor am I even a remotely "talented" writer (Which I would want to be, by the way). They're looking for a very specific format that's "right". I find this prescriptive approach ridiculous in this case. I would so much prefer to do the old format which was more about a specific thinking ability. Maybe I should ask my programs if they'd cut me some slack as a non-native speaker. That's kind of reassuring, so thanks peffy1962.

I've decided that 5 is going to be the absolute maximum number for me. I'll easily use climate to whittle down my list. But first, I'll contact potential advisers and use their responses. Unbelievably! I think I deserve some kind of Master's of Grad School reasearch.

HI all, I have prepared a template for contacting potential advisors and I have a paragraph there which is to be adjusted for each. But what if I want to contact more than one in the same program? If they share info, how would they take it?