Vene

I don't think I'd contact them.

I have a hard time seeing a good reason to go to a program where I'll be guaranteed to need loans. Maybe if the education in question gives me a strong ROI, but that tends to be for professional programs, not academic ones.

For the same reason that every lawyer tells their clients not to consent to a search, even if they are 100% innocent of any wrongdoing.

Pretty much, you don't want to start talking about the vacation you just took or your pets. Keep everything in a professional context.

I'm admittedly in a different field than you, but my inclination was actually the opposite where if you want to work with a terminal masters it's best to go for prestige in order to stand out on the job market. But, if you're good enough now to study at [top university], your work during the funded MA will still be of top quality and enable you to apply to a very good PhD program. Another thought is that when doing a PhD application you can say that you were in a funded program, I imagine that's going to look a hell of a lot better than an unfunded degree. But, again, I'm in a different field where it's actually the norm to go from BS to PhD instead of BA to MA to PhD and where an unfunded offer is a very strong red flag.

Even if you thought you were 100% certain about that professor, I'd still think a rotation is worth doing. You never know if there will be some form of personality conflict when actually working together. You can include that professor in your rotations if you so desire, but it is always good to fully explore your options.

I doubt a computer science program cares much about verbal GRE scores in the first place. You're above average and a non-native speaker, I don't see any cause for concern.

That is excellent, Van Andel does amazing work. Enjoy Grand Rapids.

I realize now that I totally forgot what section this topic is under. Ignore everything I said in here.

For a program that rejected me (by email) their website still says "Awaiting Program Decision." Lies! There are lies on the internet.

I can't really speak for the important of different grades for somebody moving from a MS program to a PhD program.

Your credentials look quite good to me, I don't think they will get in the way at all. The biggest challenge I could see is the maturity factor. There really is a big difference between the attitude of somebody right out of undergrad versus somebody who has worked full time for a year or two. You'd also be surprised at how many employers are ok with a technician heading off to further their education, especially if your supervisor has an advanced degree, just don't bring it up in an interview. But, if you think are have enough maturity, by all means apply to different programs of interest.

Personally, I'd contact the program on something like April 7th to inquire about waitlist status. I really would not want to wait until after the deadline for the possibility of a program saying yes versus accepting the offer already granted. I also don't think any reasonable person would be upset at you for saying yes on April 15th to meet the deadline and then declining the offer on April 20th when Top Choice University invites you to their program.

I got in without any problems with a couple of Cs and I'm in basically the same field as you are. Granted, those were during my sophomore year and I both raised my GPA and gotten work experience since then, but wasn't lead to believe it was a problem during interviews. It could have been a problem if I was dead set on a place like Stanford, but that's a different discussion entirely.

Wouldn't it be at least somewhat comparable to an open house after graduating from high school regardless of the education level of various family members?

But it's certainly nice to be able to say that you'll be attending a specific university this fall and putting the application process behind you.

Does the program do rotations? If it does rotations, I'd speak with both of them. If not, that's a little trickier to handle.

I think this is really solid advice. It may well be possible that there is something in your application, maybe in your SOP or a LOR, which is acting as a kiss of death. Another thought is you may need to work on your interview skills and evaluate how you conducted yourself there.

Well, I applied to 4 universities and 5 programs because the GRE let me send out my scores to 4 schools for free. I have absolutely zero regrets about this (probably because I got into one of them). It probably really depends on how strong of a candidate you are, the competiveness of the schools which interest you, and your comfort handling risk.

At least Ann Arbor is far enough east that it doesn't regularly get pounded by lake effect snow. But, really, it's just winter. You get warm clothing and life goes on. The city has the infrastructure and experience to keep everything running.

I had both professors write me LORs as well as industrial scientists. It is amazing how different the turn around time was between the two groups.

Maybe instead of looking at a sole professor, look for 3 or 4 professors who do research that interests you. You can also send out emails saying you are trying to decide where to go, that their research looks interesting, and ask if they have any interest in taking on a new student next fall. If there are a few professors at one university who do interesting research and and want to take on a new student whereas the other university doesn't the decision becomes a lot easier.

I live in the Twin Cities, you can get a very nice 3 bedroom for $1600. The money Minnesota gives will go a lot further in the midwest than what Irvine gives will go in California.

No, do not wait, look now. You don't have to buy anything now, but you really should look at what realistic prices for these things are so you can get an idea of how much money you will have available for other expenses. And as for a car, charity and police auctions are a great way to get something inexpensive. I got a year and a half out of a car I only spent a grand on. Also keep in mind that a lot of the cities universities are in have public transit and you may well be able to get by without a car for a while so you can save up money instead of having to make payments.

Accepted an offer from UVM. I didn't hear from SUNY-Buffalo or from UMN. No interview offer, no contact of any sort. Even if by some freak chance they do accept me, I don't care at this point. I like what I saw at UVM.