starofdawn

I'm not sure if you're geographically located near a university, but if you could use their internet/computers to download a few articles and email them to yourself, it could be a low-cost/free way to read literature.

Fantastic idea... I should do this.

I posted this the other day on another thread - hope it will help you too! ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Hi! I'm did chemistry in my undergraduate studies, and now I'm in an engineering MS program (Materials Science, to be specific). All of the programs I applied to said that I needed a certain number of prereqs, and I'm sure I didn't fulfill those prereqs (I never took Differential Equations or Linear Algebra. I only took one class was cross-listed with an upper division engineering course). But, for all of the programs that accepted me, none of them required that I had to take any make-up courses before starting the program. I was pleasantly shocked! But here's the bad news: one of the schools that rejected me said that I didn't have the necessary undergraduate reqs - so they didn't give me the opportunity to makeup the courses before starting the program. (I wouldn't have done that anyway, but that's besides the point) Having a non-engineering BS will work against you, but there are schools that are willing to look past that (even if their website is discouraging). And while most MS applicants have an engineering degree, it's not uncommon for a non-engineering BS applicant to apply to an engineering graduate program. IIRC UC Berkeley's website said that ~30-40% of their applicants are non-engineering BS.

Oh no! I looked into Santa Clara University, and decided not to apply because their website specifically said that they only accept engineering BS applicants! I just goes to show how the website is not always truthful...

Hi! I'm did chemistry in my undergraduate studies, and now I'm in an engineering MS program (Materials Science, to be specific). All of the programs I applied to said that I needed a certain number of prereqs, and I'm sure I didn't fulfill those prereqs (I never took Differential Equations or Linear Algebra. I only took one class was cross-listed with an upper division engineering course). But, for all of the programs that accepted me, none of them required that I had to take any make-up courses before starting the program. I was pleasantly shocked! But here's the bad news: one of the schools that rejected me said that I didn't have the necessary undergraduate reqs - so they didn't give me the opportunity to makeup the courses before starting the program. (I wouldn't have done that anyway, but that's besides the point) Having a non-engineering BS will work against you, but there are schools that are willing to look past that (even if their website is discouraging). And while most MS applicants have an engineering degree, it's not uncommon for a non-engineering BS applicant to apply to an engineering graduate program. IIRC UC Berkeley's website said that ~30-40% of their applicants are non-engineering BS.

The verbal will almost certainly hinder your chances of acceptance to a top program, even if it is in the math/sciences/engineering. I highly recommend you take it again and practice reading comprehension and word roots.

Wow! Already publishing, and getting ready to start on your next one? I'm jealous! Sounds like you're doing so well!

Unfortunately OP's attitude is common here at UCSD. A lot of undergraduates joke that the only reason they chose UCSD is because they didn't get accepted to Berkeley or UCLA. To be honest, it's the reason why I went to UCSD for my undergraduate degree; when I had zero idea which career path I wanted to pursue, name recognition (and inexpensive tuition) was everything to me. Initially, I felt bummed. I knew I was "good enough" for Berkeley and UCLA, but I found myself at UCSD, a college name that a lot of people treat as "almost prestigious". It took a while for me to realize UCSD's own unique strengths: we don't have the same history and wealth as Ivy Leagues like Harvard and Yale; we don't have a captivating school spirit or fantastic football team like USC (which I believe has a big influence on overall student happiness); but the academic and research opportunities are ENDLESS! Almost every undergraduate who wanted to do research, found a professor willing to accept them. My classmates had an intellectual curiosity that drove them to study many subjects, whether or not it was related to their major. The majority of UCSD students have a thirst for learning/academia/research, and our school bends backwards and forwards to satiate our thirst, even if it means giving up Division I sports and a trendy campus town. UCSD is an unassuming school in that regard. When I was deciding between graduate schools, it came down to UCSD and USC. I was very tempted to pick USC... the lack of school spirit at UCSD was depressing, and I wanted so badly to attend a school with a phenomenal alumni network, a famous football team, and pretty brick buildings with growing ivy. So many famous celebrities went to USC, too, like Steven Spielberg and George Lucas! Exciting! But in the end, I knew USC wasn't going to be enough. USC wasn't going to give me the same research opportunities; they even discouraged doing a thesis. No doubt that USC was the right choice for many people, but with less academic research opportunities and twice the cost, UCSD was a superior choice. Only this time, I wasn't sad about my decision. Unlike my undergraduate days, I was confident in what I wanted to study, and confident that UCSD was going to provide that for me. I'm confident in myself, and therefore confident in my decision, and don't need the shower of compliments from the public to validate why I'm here. OP, it's mind-boggling that you're at the #1 school for neuroscience, but can't find the pride in that. I agree with other posters here that perhaps you should take a step back from academia and figure out what's really going on. It's possible you might have some emotional issues that are being projected onto something unrelated. Or if stopping your academic program is out of the question, I suggest seeking a counselor - we have great counselors here.

I was rejected from a school because my letters of recommendation weren't strong enough (they said that, among with one other reason). I don't blame them for that, I agree my letters were among the weakest part of my application - but you answer your question, yes, LORs are important.

Rice University(CS ranked #20): their MS in CS is one year (3 semesters): http://compsci.rice.edu/academics.cfm?doc_id=4432 University of Chicago(#34): http://csmasters.uchicago.edu/page/general-program-questions University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign(#5): http://cs.illinois.edu/current-students/graduate-students/professional-masters-mcs Carnegie Mellon(#1): http://www.csd.cs.cmu.edu/education/master/index.html University of California, Davis (#34): http://gradstudies.ucdavis.edu/programs/gcsi

Hey all - just curious to see if any grad school students have had experience with ebooks vs regular physical textbooks, and would like to recommend one or the other. My thoughts: ebook advantages: cheaper, less paper waste, don't have to worry about carrying it around disadvantages: makes me even more attached to my computer (may not be able to study on an airplane, if my computer gets stolen I'm even more screwed, might be nice to have a medium that doesn't involve screens) I welcome your thoughts!

I need to sign up for 12 credits, but 4 of those credits will be through a research position in my professor's lab. I'm only taking 2 classes, but one of those classes starts at 7:30am.... oy

Call the department. Although I'm not sure why it matters at this point.

My bedroom is much larger (10x11) but I'm able to comfortably fit a queen-sized bed, a large desk, a dresser, a few lamps, and some (but only some) room to spare. I think a small desk, a double bed, and a small bookcase isn't impractical (but maybe not multiple bookcases?) Will your bed be raised? Can you store shoes, or some books under there?

Not a biologist, but I applied to Materials Science programs with no research experience and was accepted to a few schools. As the previous commenter mentioned, MS programs are a lot less stringent.

My boyfriend and I bought our laptops around the same time. I purchased a SONY VAIO, and he purchased a Macbook Pro. They were around the same price... the SONY was awesome and a great computer. But today, my SONY is dead, and his Macbook Pro still works fine, except for the slight lag and low battery life as you mentioned (and it's been 5 years). This has convinced me to shell out the extra cash for a Mac, although I'm worried about installing programs for my major that only work on PCs.

@TakeruK - I don't agree job applications are a good analogy. Job applications may take an hour to complete and do not cost anything. Graduate school applications can take over 100 hours (between studying for and taking the GRE, writing personal essays, coordinating LORs) and cost approximately $40-$85. I also agree that applicants should follow-up in a timely manner and not wait until it's too late, but we are not sure the first time OP reached out to GWU.

Maybe I'm the minority opinion, but I would also be upset if it was mid-July and I had not received an answer. I would have worded my emails differently, but I agree that universities owe applicants an answer, especially since the applications process is time-consuming and expensive. I just saying... mid-July! Wow! That's shocking! I may not be able to attend if they gave me an answer that late!

Moving to SD tomorrow! Found a lovely room in a house that is 0.5 miles away from the intersection of La Jolla Pkway and Torrey Pines. Has anyone else received the email for Graduate Student Orientation? Also... if you want to submit a photo for your student ID card, don't forget the deadline is August 1st