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velua

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  1. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from sakimarquis in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    Except when you spend money on an application, possibly $100 or more, they should be obligated to give you a response in a timely fashion. This makes it different from job postings.
  2. Like
    velua got a reaction from NameTK in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    Except when you spend money on an application, possibly $100 or more, they should be obligated to give you a response in a timely fashion. This makes it different from job postings.
  3. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from Carly Rae Jepsen in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    Except when you spend money on an application, possibly $100 or more, they should be obligated to give you a response in a timely fashion. This makes it different from job postings.
  4. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from GeoD in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    Yes, I'm not suggesting what the deadline should be. That's a different issue. But some schools definitely do fail to inform some applicants one way or the other, essentially stealing their money. I think one school I applied to about half a dozen years ago might have done that to me, but I can't remember for sure.
  5. Upvote
    velua reacted to GeoD in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    The exchange of money does create a business transaction and not giving an answer to the applicant is UNPROFESSIONAL (and unprofessional is a really civil way to put it).   
     
    As I see it, it does not matter to the applicant how their fee is ultimately utilized by the institution.  The fee is payed for a yes/no answer, and the argument that the department doesn't receive the fee directly, and therefor not bound to respond in a timely and professional manner, "has nothing to do with the price of the rice". 
     
    I also agree that this is a giant red flag when selecting a program to enter, however I am alarmed by the frequency of this behavior by graduate programs (in my case 3 of 6 PhD programs sent no answer).  I have now received notification from 2 of those 3 programs but only after contacting multiple people, multiple times, over a period of 2 weeks.  If this is S.O.P. than revision is required.
  6. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from GeoD in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    So what? That excuse is completely unacceptable. They know long in advance that they will get applications, and they know roughly how many applications they will get. I don't know if there's technically a stipulation in the fine print that you're agreeing to pay, say, $100 for a yes/no answer, but as far as I'm concerned, it's theft not to give a response.
  7. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from GeoD in April 15th Passed...No Answer....What Does This Mean???   
    Except when you spend money on an application, possibly $100 or more, they should be obligated to give you a response in a timely fashion. This makes it different from job postings.
  8. Upvote
    velua reacted to Icydubloon in What made you choose academia over industry?   
    I'm doing a PhD with zero interest in academia.
  9. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from Halcyon18 in Can I Pursue a Math PhD?   
    For whatever it's worth, I was never very good at PDE stuff when I encountered it. I never took PDEs, but definitely saw them in several complex variables, as well as functional analysis. But I still did very well in algebra, topology, number theory, etc.
     
    Also, my first upper level math class I got a B in. That class was probably what inspired me to go into math, the professor was so great, and the material was so interesting. I actually got near 100% on the midterms, but then bombed the final because I just couldn't get a handle on one of the later topics in the course. Anyway, I basically got all As in my other math classes the rest of the way, and even took several more courses with the same professor, did very well, and got a great LOR from him.
  10. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from ronny3050 in Fear of Grad School Admission   
    Some schools have deadlines after your fall grades are out, and even if not, they likely won't start reviewing apps until after Christmas, so you can rush in a new transcript if you pull up your GPA a bit. Just deal with the GRE this summer so you don't have any distractions (unless you want to take a subject test).
  11. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from ronny3050 in Fear of Grad School Admission   
    3 publications is quite strong, and the LORs are the most important thing, but you should still try to get your GPA up. Definitely above 3.6, try to get closer to 3.7 if you can. Sure GPA isn't the only thing, but the top schools will have their choice of students and they're going to choose the guy with 3 publications, excellent LORs, and 3.8 GPA over the guy with 3 publications, excellent LORs, and 3.55 GPA more often than not. You can look for student profiles at your target schools though. Some of them will have a CV on their page (or a linkedin page), and some of those people will include undergrad GPA, even GRE scores. Maybe you can get an idea of what else the 3.5-3.6 GPA students had to do to get in.
  12. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from Marst in Fear of Grad School Admission   
    3 publications is quite strong, and the LORs are the most important thing, but you should still try to get your GPA up. Definitely above 3.6, try to get closer to 3.7 if you can. Sure GPA isn't the only thing, but the top schools will have their choice of students and they're going to choose the guy with 3 publications, excellent LORs, and 3.8 GPA over the guy with 3 publications, excellent LORs, and 3.55 GPA more often than not. You can look for student profiles at your target schools though. Some of them will have a CV on their page (or a linkedin page), and some of those people will include undergrad GPA, even GRE scores. Maybe you can get an idea of what else the 3.5-3.6 GPA students had to do to get in.
  13. Upvote
    velua reacted to fuzzylogician in CV for Grad School Application!   
    Go online to the website of the program you're applying for. Look for their 'people' tab and find the students, preferably the first-year students. Some will have their own websites. Use their CVs as your example. They will be the closest to what you want to have.
     
    In the meanwhile, run a search on CVs on here, there have been a lot of discussions about how to structure a CV.
  14. Upvote
    velua reacted to Icydubloon in Computer Science, UCSD VS UCLA   
    I agree with everything said here. Especially "the next Silicon Valley" comment. It's just like "this startup will be the next big thing."
  15. Upvote
    velua reacted to TakeruK in TA experience on SOP for Master's   
    My opinion is that admissions committee do not use TA experience as a criteria for MS or PhD program admission, so I don't think it's worth spending time on this in your SOP. Since you do have past experience as a graduate student TA, you could potentially work it into one sentence of your SOP as a demonstration of your experience balancing research, teaching, and coursework commitments**. And definitely include this on your CV.
     
    However, your ability or passion to teach has no effect on graduate program admission. Most programs do not place much value on strong teaching ability for incoming graduate students. Instead, they take the worldview that graduate students will learn the minimum teaching ability to function as a TA when they get here. 
     
    **Note: From my own experience applying to programs with a previous graduate degree, I find that having past experience as a graduate student can be a double edged sword. It's great that you have some experience, and potentially maturity, behind you but if you overemphasize this in your application, it might work against you. For example, grad programs are interested in recruiting people with a lot of potential--a student with potential might be more appealing than one with demonstrated/proven mediocrity. Another reason is that if you come off with an attitude that you already know what you're doing then it might be interpreted as arrogance and/or unwillingness to learn/fit in to a new department--every place is different. So my advice would be to mention your past experience strategically. 
  16. Upvote
    velua reacted to eeee1923 in How important is a visit?   
    I will go on the opposite and say that if the institute is close to you and you got a couple of hours - you might as well visit. I did that for 2 of the programs that were within 1 hr of my institute and it helped give me a better sense of the programs environment. 
  17. Upvote
    velua reacted to Mechanician2015 in Should I Retake the Exam?   
    I always assume that an accomplished professional( he has 8 publications!) takes every bit of advice with a grain of salt.
  18. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from Mechanician2015 in Should I Retake the Exam?   
    ...or make the decision yourself, and don't trust the opinions of others. If they're wrong, it's not their career that takes a tumble. If your LORs are as strong as your stats, another $195 is nothing in the long run.
  19. Downvote
    velua got a reaction from MathCat in Which part of the GRE is of least importance to Engineering schools?   
    Being imperfect is fine, I've made my share of mistakes on the board as a TA, but consistently making computational errors when all you do in your recitation is problems on the board is a significant issue. If an experienced instructor who's taken the class and TAed it (possibly) many times can't do these problems without mistakes, then the students won't respect you and won't care about doing the math carefully.

    One would like to believe that we train our students to learn or think or be independent. Although that notion is romantic, it is far from reality. The fact is, exams take priority over learning in classes, especially when you're talking about the huge public universities, where the basic classes have 3 midterms, a final, and a quiz in every non-exam week. There's just no way for them to leave the exam world and try to learn as one might do without tests.

    It sounds like you believe getting good at mistake-free computation will not improve your ability to do well on the GRE Q section, and I hope you're joking. Double checking things is great, but when a student asks you to do a problem you didn't have prepared in advance, and you can't do it without messing up the calculations, that is a problem.

    You keep on saying the GRE doesn't measure what you need for success as a grad student, and I have not disputed this. It's a fairly useless test, except possibly as a weedout for those who really can't do basic computations (which may be important as they're likely also recruiting you for cheap TA labor).
  20. Upvote
    velua reacted to Meirrin in Computer Science, UCSD VS UCLA   
    UCSD is in a way nicer area and has the beach. There is no difference in academics or reputation in CA. San Diego and Los Angeles are so close anyway, so job opportunities in the area WILL NOT be limited to which school you went to. Any company that hires from UCLA will also hire from UCSD.
     
    People are saying the same thing about San Diego becoming the next "Silicon Valley". People say this about New York, LA, SD, Austin, the list goes on... I would take this with a grain of salt because people claim this about every city. And if any part of Southern California becomes like this, you can bet both UCSD and UCLA will be amazing schools to attend.
     
    Trust me when I say that every tech company in CA knows UCSD, UCLA, and Berkeley. The only reason non-tech people might not know UCSD as well is because they have no football team. You will NEVER find that you won't get great opportunities because you chose UCSD over UCLA. Qualcomm (which is in SD, not SV) prefers to hire from UCSD, but also hires from UCLA. UCSD is gaining a lot of popularity now that enough time has passed (UCSD is only like 50 years old); I wouldn't be surprised if they become a top 10 school in little time.
     
    Anyone who claims UCSD or UCLA is better just has a bias for that school so it is pointless to ask. Just pick based on temporary location/specific program. I would go with whichever area you like more.
  21. Upvote
    velua reacted to hausinthehouse in PhD Stat/Math/Econ Advice   
    yall most of these people haven't logged in literally over four years
  22. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from Eigen in Which part of the GRE is of least importance to Engineering schools?   
    This is true, but I'm sure one of the GREs could be helpful for many disciplines where it's not required. For example, some elite schools in CS mention it could be helpful to take the subject GRE in math or physics if you have the background.
     
    In TakeruK's scenario, I'd go with person C to be honest (assuming all else is equal). The Math part of the general GRE is so basic that anyone in STEM should be able to get a 165+ with a day of preparation to be honest. 80%+ is roughly 159+ on the verbal part, which is far above what STEM programs will care about. They'll likely be happy with 153+, and certainly with 156+. Back when I was applying to Math Ph.D. programs, it was pretty much assumed you should get 800 on the Math section. If you got 780, you were probably still okay (but maybe not for top 20 schools), but if you didn't break 750, you should really retake it. As long as you got 500+ on verbal and 4+ on writing, you were probably in okay shape. Of course it's desirable to score higher, but it's unlikely it'd make much of a difference in your applications. Now for STEM fields outside of Math, there's a bit more room for error on the Math section, but you should still comfortably break 90% IMO.
     
    Edit: For the schools mentioned (Florida Tech and Auburn), unless they're highly ranked in some engineering field (which would surprise me), hitting 160Q, 155V, and 4A would probably be safe.
  23. Downvote
    velua got a reaction from Mechanician2015 in Which part of the GRE is of least importance to Engineering schools?   
    This is true, but I'm sure one of the GREs could be helpful for many disciplines where it's not required. For example, some elite schools in CS mention it could be helpful to take the subject GRE in math or physics if you have the background.
     
    In TakeruK's scenario, I'd go with person C to be honest (assuming all else is equal). The Math part of the general GRE is so basic that anyone in STEM should be able to get a 165+ with a day of preparation to be honest. 80%+ is roughly 159+ on the verbal part, which is far above what STEM programs will care about. They'll likely be happy with 153+, and certainly with 156+. Back when I was applying to Math Ph.D. programs, it was pretty much assumed you should get 800 on the Math section. If you got 780, you were probably still okay (but maybe not for top 20 schools), but if you didn't break 750, you should really retake it. As long as you got 500+ on verbal and 4+ on writing, you were probably in okay shape. Of course it's desirable to score higher, but it's unlikely it'd make much of a difference in your applications. Now for STEM fields outside of Math, there's a bit more room for error on the Math section, but you should still comfortably break 90% IMO.
     
    Edit: For the schools mentioned (Florida Tech and Auburn), unless they're highly ranked in some engineering field (which would surprise me), hitting 160Q, 155V, and 4A would probably be safe.
  24. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from shovonreza in Getting an LOR from a professor in different department   
    I agree, and physics sounds like a semi-related field, so it's fine. I would be hesitant to get a letter from an English professor for a science program, for example.
  25. Upvote
    velua got a reaction from m.cyrax in Lackluster Grade in Real Analysis; Next Course to Take?   
    I'd say Complex Analysis is your best bet as long as it's a "real" (oops) complex variables class, not some easy engineering class where you sit around applying de Moivre's Theorem. Abstract Algebra could also be good.

    Sounds like your analysis class didn't cover too much if you didn't get into derivatives, integrals, or sequences of functions. I don't like Rudin, especially not for integrals.

    I took both real and complex classes at both the undergrad and grad level. I didn't like real at either level to be honest. Complex was alright at the undergrad level, all about computation, the class was mostly engineers, not math majors. The grad complex analysis classes I took were great though. There was a lot of nice analysis arguments in the material, similar to real analysis, but the graders weren't anal about things like showing something is < epsilon instead of 3epsilon, etc. The material got hard when we got into several complex variables though.

    As for real, I want to mention how great Bartle and Sherbert's book is. I used it in my undergrad real analysis class, and I hated the book back then. But then when I was using Rudin in grad school, I pulled out my old Bartle book and it made things so much nicer for me, especially during the integration chapter.

    I think you can do fine in complex even if you didn't get into Taylor's Theorem in real analysis yet. I mean you learn all that stuff about derivatives as limits, Riemann sums and Taylor's Theorem in freshman calculus, even if at a higher level, so you can still understand what's going on.

    I wouldn't worry about a B+ though.

    I also agree with the last poster that a good linear algebra course is important if what you did in your course was just row-reducing and inverting matrices and so on. This is especially true if you still need to take the Math GRE in the fall.
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