newms

Is there a particular reason that you are applying for a MS and not a PhD? I ask because there isn't a lot of funding available for MS students, while most (top) schools will fund PhD students or offer assistantships. Could you break down your GRE scores? It might be a good idea to redo your GRE depending on how high your quantitative score is, or if your verbal score is particularly low.

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Congrats Strangefox! Hope they give you 5 years. My visa was approved too, and it went pretty much like everyone has been saying here.

Frozen Tundra

Hey Strangefox, I looked up the $200 reciprocity fee and it's applicable only to some countries as bhikhaari says. You can check for your country here: http://travel.state.gov/visa/fees/fees_3272.html

Hey Strangefox, that's what I paid as well - $140 + SEVIS ($200).

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Thanks kroms! I'm not even going to entertain the thought of them not approving the visa.

It's tougher to switch from Math to an area in Software or Architecture - if it were Theory you were interested in, then the transition would be easier. At a visit day I went to earlier this year, I met someone who was admitted to a CS PhD with a Math undergrad, but she was in Theory. Does Columbia have specific requirements for Computer Science background for their Master's program? Usually schools will list what they expect in terms of CS background, so you could check their website to see if a bachelor's degree in Math would be adequate.

I was wondering that too. Where I'm from I'll have to pay DHL at the embassy to deliver it.

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Haha - no criminal records Good luck to both of us then!

I'm going to read texts for the Fall semester later on in the summer (perhaps a couple weeks before classes start). Right now I'm more concerned with reading papers and other material related to my intended area of research, so I won't be starting from scratch in the Fall while I have to juggle classes and possible TA duties.

So I have my interview on Friday morning and while I think everything should be ok from everything I've read and seen, for some reason I'm getting a nagging feeling that perhaps I shouldn't have signed an apartment lease already without getting my student visa first. Has anyone had any negative experiences at a F-1 interview? Has anyone been (gulp) denied?

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I think you're exempt from needing a visa, so no need to book an appointment for an interview. See here: http://canada.usembassy.gov/visas.html Also see information particularly for Canadian students from Columbia University: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/isso/visa/F-1/F-1_canada.html So it seems that you're all set. Perhaps you could double check with the international centre at your school to make sure.

What area in Computer Science are you interested in?

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Congrats on your awesome quant score! It's too bad that the verbal went down this time, but wouldn't the schools you apply to see your previous 800? Also, when I was applying some schools allowed me to list my best verbal and best quant scores, so maybe you'll be able to put 800 V 770 Q when you apply. Those would look great on an application! Good luck to you too.

Is it really that bad to wear a baseball cap in a classroom as a student? I wouldn't do it myself, since I don't wear headwear indoors, but I've seen students in classes with caps on and I wouldn't mind if a student wore one if I were the lecturer.

The top public universities usually guarantee funding on acceptance as well, I guess UW-Madison was in a financial crunch this year.

It's really tough to get into top 5 schools. There will likely be hundreds (if not thousands) of applicants with similar or better qualifications as yours. Top universities care about your research experience and potential, so anything (such as more research experience and quality publications) that can help to demonstrate your research ability would be a plus. Your letters of recommendation are important, and it is a big plus if your letter writers are known to the admissions committee. I'm going to a top 20 school in the fall, and I don't think my letter writers were known to the adcomm, but for a top 5 or top 10 school, it's probably best to have at least one letter writer who the admissions committee knows about. Top universities also care a lot about fit, ie how well would you fit in with the research that is already being done there. If your interests aren't a good fit for that school, then they are likely to reject you, even if you have sterling credentials such as first author publications. So do your research well in choosing schools that would be a good fit for you and don't apply to schools solely because of their reputation. I'll also second what has been said here already - improve your quant GRE score (although it's not important at top schools, about 50% of all CS applicants score an 800 on the quant, so your 720 won't look so good). Also consider other schools beside the top 5. So perhaps you could also look at applying to a few top 20 schools and some top 50 schools that would be good matches for your interests.

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Congrats!