lemur
-
Posts
20 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Posts posted by lemur
-
-
What do you mean its reputation can't compare? UMN has a much better reputation for applied than CMU.
I know nothing about Applied Math, but based on USNWR rankings alone, UMN is definitely a better program for math than CMU. But...
For applied, ..., CMU is unranked.
No... they're ranked 12th.
-
Wow, that is really bad. I feel terrible for them, I can only hope it works out in the end or that they found some other program.
That's the funny thing. They got accepted (with full PhD funding) at Berkeley and Stanford. It's not a matter of them having trouble getting in anywhere.
-
I know of at least one person at my school who received a full funding offer from CMU ECE over e-mail. However, once the FedEx letters were sent out, his letter said he was admitted conditionally upon receiving an external fellowship. They're now telling him they're sorry for the clerical mistake...
This story is almost unbelievable to me. How could they screw something up that badly? Has this happened to anyone else?
-
I saw some cases from the schools that they would invite the applicants to the universities for a visit and pay the whole travel expense (even the long-distance flight from China to U.S.A). But these all happened after the decision of the offer have been made.
I am curious that for those applicant who want to visit the school during the Review period, like me, what should we do to ask for a chance to go for a visit? Who should we contact to? Is it a proper way to do such kind of thing before the admission/offer?
Appreciate of all the answers.
Whether or not you should do this has been discussed a few times already in this forum--this very thread, in fact. The short answer is, "It depends." Your qualifications, their school, the professor you want to work with.
As far as who you should contact, I would start with a short e-mail to the professor you want to work with. Introduce yourself, say why you're interested in their work, mention that you'd like to visit their campus, and ask if you can schedule a meeting with them while you're there.
To be sure, if you aren't invited, don't expect them to pay for anything.
-
Thus, I was wondering if anyone had any advice as to what is the most we can do in order to try and get in to a school together?
I would think the most you can do is to apply to schools where you both fall into the "obvious admit" pile.
-
But friends who visited Davis in the early-mid 90s said it was a very conservative place.
Davis [is] conservative. That doesn't mean bad things will necessarily happen -- it just means you might get some funny looks if you're one of those sickening people of any sexual preference who insist on excessive public displays. =)
My wife and I (who met in Davis) found these statements were silly.
Davis is a socially liberal place. Sure, you'll have to drive an hour to the Castro Street Fair, but I can't imagine your sexuality ever being an issue there. If you want gay bars, you'll have to go to Sacramento or San Francisco, but if you're happy drinking with straight people, you'll be fine. It's a non-issue.
-
I keep fantasizing about the weather in Berkeley and how it would not get nearly as hot in the Summer as it does here in Atlanta while also probably not even getting as cold during the Winter as it does here. I find that absolutely amazing and beautiful.
Hah. I can't wait to get out of Berkeley. No fall, no winter... The bay area weather is nice, but boring beyond all belief.
Of course, when you live in Soda Hall, weather doesn't matter anyway.
-
Question: Is it a good idea to contact the profs I'm interested in, and say, "Hey, I'm going to be in town, so if you have any questions in your deliberation process, I will be around to answer them"? Or would that be totally gauche?
It's a good idea to contact them, but why not be more direct. Tell them you're going to be in the area and would appreciate the chance to meet with them. It's simple, honest, and non-presumptuous. I've done this and it's worked out to my benefit.
-
Although I would be happy to attend any of the seven or so schools I have applied to, there is this one program I really really really really want to attend.
A few weeks ago, I got an interview invitation and I will be visiting the place next week.
Needless to say, I am super excited (esp. since it's one of the only two schools that have actually acknowledged my existence so far;))
The problem is, although I know there's still a chance I could be rejected after the interview, I can't help myself planning my future revolving around the program.
I've already checked housing conditions, the living standard of the place, what VISA to get, checked the area around the school, attractions of the city etc. etc.
I like everything I see but I'm afraid I will be more than heartbroken if, god forbid, I am NOT accepted....
Anybody else getting way to hopeful?
Checking out housing prices, etc. is probably a good idea. I'd assume the chances of your being accepted are high, so you may as well inform yourself as best you can.
If you get rejected...deal with it then. ::shrug::
-
One of my schools is flying me out for a visit, everything paid for. I haven't been accepted yet, and I'm not sure what this trip means. From some of the other posts, it seems like these visits usually come after acceptances.
The e-mail says they're very impressed... blah, blah, blah, and that it will give us a chance to get to know one another better.
Any insight into what this visit means? If it's just an interview, why not call it that?
I just thought I'd mention that I just got back from my visit. I received an e-mail from one of their professors saying they really hope I'll choose their school. So...even though it isn't formalized (no official letter of acceptance), I think it's safe to say this visit was an indication of my acceptance.
-
If you guys get accepted to your #1 Ph.D. program, will you notify everyone via your facebook status? One of my acquaintances posted that she got into her #1 program, and my personal reaction was that she's a conceited bitch! HAHA. Maybe because she actually is and that was just expressing her personality hehe
I have the same reaction to one of my colleagues. He's got perfect stats at a top-3 school, so he's getting in everywhere he applies. One announcement isn't such a big deal, but when he announces each one (along with funding info), it comes across as bragging.
-
Is anyone else clicking on "Results Search" about 10 times per day, driving yourself mad?
Anyone else at the point of considering laying off GradCafe for a while?
And to the lucky few-- does this madness subside when you have an acceptance in hand?
Be glad you only do it 10 times a day.
I know that aside from the one I'm visiting next week, most of my schools won't start sending out notifications till next week at the earliest, but still I keep checking.
-
Anybody has a clue?
The best I can do is tell you their US News CS Rankings:
UT Dallas: 72
SMU: unranked
-
are there engineers on this website?
Yes.
-
I actually based my choice of LOR writers depending, in large part, on where they had connections. I did research on where they'd been educated and where else they'd taught or had residences. If there was any overlap at all with the schools I was applying to, I used it. I also name-dropped mercilessly when meeting with anyone from any of my choices.
Me: "Yes, so-n-so told me it would be good to meet with you..."
Him: "You know so-n-so?! How is he? Any friend of his is a friend of mine!"
I was told that in the art world, at least, connections are EVERYTHING. We'll see how far it gets me.
Name drop shamelessly. I absolutely agree, and it's equally applicable in Computer Engineering, which leads me to believe that it applies to every field.
-
But I am still quite concerned that applying 5 or 6 days late will put me in the auto-reject pile.
Definitely not the case everywhere. I got an invite from a school where my application was a couple weeks late. It can depend on the department and the school, but I seriously doubt five or six days will matter much. If you're really concerned, you could always e-mail the grad admissions secretary, but I'd think you'd be better off just getting your app in.
-
Is there anything wrong with visiting a department before getting accepted (without an invitation as the OP described)? It seems that departments might think it is presumptuous of an applicant (making it look as though the applicant assumes he/she would be accepted before actually getting a letter). However, if I am visiting relatives who happen to live very close to one of the schools I applied to, would it be bad to drop by the campus or maybe set up informational interviews?
I actually think this is a really good idea. I've met with two professors so far.
The first one was before my application was complete. I actually e-mailed the professor back in October saying I'd be in his area over the break and would like to meet with him. We met, and it ended with him saying that said if I were serious about his school, he could "short-circuit" the admissions process for me. Probably a good thing...
The other one was at a campus I was visiting the other day on my own. I knew the name of a professor in my field there and thought, "What the hell?" Without any prior arrangements, I walked into his assistant's office, introduced myself, and asked if I could just say hi. He let me in, and we ended up talking for an hour. The conversation ended with him verifying that I'd submitted my application and saying that he'd take a look at it. He has a good position in the department, so again, it's probably a good thing...
I'm from a good undergraduate school, and I always make sure to use my campus e-mail address when e-mailing professors. That helps, as does the fact that the second professor also went to my school for undergrad. Still, the e-mails/visits helped, and I wasn't really risking anything if they hadn't worked out.
-
One of my schools is flying me out for a visit, everything paid for. I haven't been accepted yet, and I'm not sure what this trip means. From some of the other posts, it seems like these visits usually come after acceptances.
The e-mail says they're very impressed... blah, blah, blah, and that it will give us a chance to get to know one another better.
Any insight into what this visit means? If it's just an interview, why not call it that?
Visit Before Acceptance
in Waiting it Out
Posted
I assume you're asking because you're going through this yourself this year.
I'm not sure if it helps, but I can say that all of my visits were about the schools trying to convince me theirs was the right choice for me. There was nothing to stress about and no technical questions. Just a lot of free flights, hotels and food.
The only sense in which they were interviews was as me interviewing them (with the exception of maybe one or two professors)
Good luck.