grendel

Yes. It was a (poor) joke.

I believe the correct term is "native Americans"!

PhD in Mathematics (MCS). Anybody got any clever ideas about housing? I don't know whether I should go for a quick trip in May or June or just arrive a week or two in advance. I live in Europe so I'd rather not waste any money travelling!

I'll be going to Carnegie Mellon. Field is mathematical logic (most likely set theory).

Just a thought: Schools pretty much in all of Europe (the UK is the exception) have deadlines much later than the US, perhaps in April/May or even later. And what's more, there are no tuition fees (again, the UK is the exception). There are some very good schools for mathematics in Denmark (DTU, Copenhagen University), Sweden (KTH, Chalmers/University of Gothenburg, Lund, Uppsala), France (Paris VI, Bordeaux, etc.) and Germany. I'm just naming a few countries and schools where I would hypothetically be interested in staying. I guess you would have to know some French or German for the schools in France or Germany respectively, but I know that the Nordic schools are very welcoming to international students and offer courses in English. If you're really set on going to the US you could try to find a one or two year master's programme in Europe as a springboard. Or you could just stay there for your PhD. Keep in mind that you will often have to have a better idea of what you would like to study when you apply at European institutions compared to American ones. For example, you often apply for a specific PhD position with a specific advisor as opposed to a general "PhD Programme". I have no idea if visas will be an issue but I can't imagine that they will be if the schools are willing to have you as a student.

Am I the first man to respond? Congrats on the accolades. You deserve some praise and encouragement, especially from your husband. You're right, he really should be more supportive, but I think timuralp may have hit the spot: he might be insecure or even miserable in his own academic situation. I felt this way once, when I was miserable in school (pursuing a useless MS-course) and consequently sneered at my friends' and family's success, perhaps doubting their worthiness. I'm over it now (on the right track again) and am again confident enough to take joy in others' success.

Well, I probably would be going there for a DPhil in maths, were it not for the lousy funding opportunities. I'm a non-EU european student and most of the scholarships seem to be reserved for people from developing countries (or their descendants). However, I might be able to scrape together some money. I have a fully funded offer from a very good university in the states, so I'm not too upset.

I will be moving to the States from Europe, so I'm limited to whatever I can bring in two suitcases (and whatever I or my friends/family can bring on subsequents trips to the US), so I'll mostly be taking my clothes and a few books. Maybe a few things for the kitchen, but obviously very few electronic devices or furniture. I would like to take the opportunity and complain about the American customary system of units and the 110 V voltage in the US!

To make good looking documents you really should be using LaTeX. No word processor comes close. Also great for bibliographies, indices, tables of contents etc. Check out the "Not-so-short introduction to LaTeX": http://www.ctan.org/tex-archive/info/lshort/english/lshort.pdf

I'm an international student moving to the US in the fall. I'm in the same position, except my Macbook Pro will be 4 years old in the fall. I will be buying a new iMac to use at home (and with an eyeTV hybrid it might double as a TV) and be using my MBP in the office (I'm not sure if my prospective school will provide me with a computer). And with dropbox, synchronizing a laptop with a desktop is no problem!

I can't fathom how the AW score on the GRE could matter much (the SOP is much more important and should adequately demonstrate your ability to write an essay). You have very good scores on the other parts of the GRE. You should probably take the subject GRE (especially if you're confident you can get a good score) but not being in CS, I don't know how important it is. Good luck!

It sounds like you have a good chance at getting into any program you like! Especially if you can publish something. By now you should probably start thinking about (roughly) which areas you'd like to study and where. A few remarks: * Start preparing (register for the GREs, take notes on when the deadlines are, pick out recommenders, order transcripts from institutions abroad if applicable) early (late summer/early fall)! * Study for the subject GRE (it's not so much hard as it is long with just about 3 minutes per question) * Apply to many (>=10) programs and some safety schools * Write a good SOP These are all things I should have done but didn't.

I wasn't too hopeful about getting into any programs this year (I received only rejections last year) so I made a bet with my fiancée: If I would get into any of the programs, I'd get a tattoo. Now that I've been accepted I have to decide on what to get and where (much harder than picking the Ph.D. program!)

I assume you've already been accepted, so I wouldn't worry about it. Black jeans and a buttoned shirt should be fine. Personally, I wouldn't be caught dead in khakis or a polo shirt anywhere but on a golf field (and I don't golf). Anyway, I second hubris' suggestion: dress comfortably.

How about "No secret GRE/GPA cutoffs?"

Thanks for the input! It was nice to hear gollux's point of view as well as the positive things. Is the pollution that serious? Apparently it's number one in the country in terms of short term particle pollution, and number two in terms of year-round particle pollution (American Lung Association 2009: http://www.stateoftheair.org/2009/city-rankings/polluted-cities-particle-pollution-short.html).

You definitely have a point about category theory. It's not really logic, but it's a part of the "foundations of mathematics" and for example it is the domain of Peter Freyd, director of the logic and computation group at Penn. As for set theory being difficult: I hope it is!

I'm interested in logic, particularly model theory and set theory, and perhaps universal algebra or category theory. I applied to Berkeley's math program (seemed a better fit than the program you named), and haven't heard anything yet. I also applied to CMU, Penn State, Cornell, UPenn, UIC, UChicago and MIT (the latter two I applied to mostly because of some of my other interests, and I've already been rejected from those two). I was starting to despair last week when I received an acceptance e-mail from Carnegie Mellon! I also applied to some schools in England and was planning on applying to at least two in France, but now that I've heard from CMU, I might not.

I received my acceptance to CMU on friday, to the program in Pure and Applied Logic. Had already been rejected from Chicago and MIT (no real surprise). Am still waiting on Penn State, UIC (will probably decline these two if accepted), Penn, Cornell and Berkeley (which I realize is a long shot by now). Fingers crossed!

Hi yall! I just graduated from "waiting it out" to "decisions, decisions, decisions" when I received my acceptance from Carnegie Mellon. I am very excited about coming to Pittsburgh to study, although I've never been (but I plan to visit before I accept). I appreciate all the advice so far, but perhaps the Pittsburgers (or is it Pittsburghers? looks a bit odd) out there could offer their views on a few things: * How easy is it to get by without a car? Obviously it's possible to get by without one (it appears to be a fairly dense city with a bus system like any city its size), but I guess I'm really asking if there are any compelling reasons to get a car. This brings me to my second point * What's there to see or do nearby? I would love to be able to drive to New York, Philadelphia or Chicago when I get bored, but it seems quite far! Then again, Pittsburgh seems quite big, and I might never get bored. * Outdoors activities. Things like skiing, hiking, camping or bike tours nearby. Any thoughts?

I'll be 24 (almost 25). That'll be after a Master's (straight out of undergrad) and a year at a job in research. I've been bummed out (noticing new wrinkles, receding hairline, etc.) on each of my bearthdays since I turned 21!