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Mechanician2015

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Posts posted by Mechanician2015

  1. Toefl or GRE scores are valid for 5 years. So you'll be fine. Check on the ETS website to be 100% certain.

    As for retaking the test - only you know what your scores are and if you'll need to do it again in order to meet the requirements for your different schools. Just check because these can differ!

    TOEFL is valid for 2 years.

    GRE for 5.

  2. Powerprep and the actual GRE are practically identical(not only in difficulty, also in style). Powerprep is the actual test.

     

    What might happen is that, if you didn't do well on the first quant, the second quant will be easier(but due to the equalization process you might still not score that high).

     

    To increase the quant, I suggest training with HARDER material: IE, Manhattan Prep.

  3. Here, in no particular order:

     

    1- Identify and inform your potential recommenders about your plans.

     

    2- Not only contact PIs, read some of their material(papers, articles, books). If you visit, is a good idea to mention some of his current research.(also, this is how you will find out if you really like their research).

     

    3- Start brainstorming for your SoP. Although you should follow the guidelines of each program when writting the SoP, a solid brainstorming exercise will give you the material to start with each one. This is a long and maybe hard process, so start early.

  4. God, it just feels so unfair to have to include it all forever. At what point can people move on from difficult periods in their life :(

    I won't recommend that you buy THIS. But it is an example on how, once you have a PhD, you won't be willing to forget that period. You will be writing about how you overcame that period(or willing to do so).

  5. I applied to Cornell and they don't usually update the website when the result is made. They sent me an email with the decision.(Maybe they updated the website later, but I didn't check again).

     

    In my experience, their office work is extremely efficient. Send them a short email with your doubt and they will reply in no time( really, I never waited for more than 24 hours during my application process).

  6. Shows I DVR/binge watch when on include, but are not limited to: The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore, Fixer Upper (HGTV), 19 Kids and Counting, Naked and Afraid, Grey's Anatomy, Sister Wives, Jeopardy!, and Chopped. Other shows I enjoy: Babylon 5, ST: TNG, ST: DS9, Eureka, NCIS: Los Angeles, and House.

    Geekness is strong in this one :P

     

    I have on schedule the ST:TNG marathon.

  7. I think you would risk being late. It takes 4 to 5 weeks for ETS to report your grades and send them you each institution. So even if you get your transcripts and recommenders on time, your GRE scores would probably be late.( although who knows? heard of people that completed application, requested an extension for the GRE scores to arrive and still got admission...)

     

    If you could apply for spring 2016 would be a safer bet.

     

    As for test prep, it hugely depends on how you are on each section. I spent 2 years without doing math(not composing essays) and I had to work a bit on prep. Some people take 1 week and do good because they are fresh. 

  8. I contacted the graduate admission office.

    When she checked my status she stopped for a seconds like she know something but then she said you will hear in two weeks.

    I was not informed of any waiting list.

    I have an external funding. Hope this will help get in.

    Thanks guys.

     

    Just keep in mind that if a grad program wants you, a phone call or a couple of emails won't change that fact. Just try not to be a pest.

     

    My conjecture is that they are trying to get you in, but need a couple weeks until "something" is defined.

     

    Keep us informed, I hope you make it! :)

  9. Mechanical Engineering, PhD (F15) Rejected via Website on 15 Apr 2015 I 15 Apr 2015

    • 15 April deadline followed nicely by UCB giving mass rejects. Some people just want to watch the whole world burn...

     

    The dark knight... see what you did there...

  10. At this stage of the admissions period, absolutely contact through Email.

     

    Remember ettiquete: allow 1 or 2 days for the PI to reply, then forward the previous message with some note like " I'm not sure you received my previous message. such and such". 

     

    I guess... you might be in some sort of waiting list(formal). If you don't have a rejection, you are still in the game.

  11. Hi all. I'm new to the forum, so I apologize if my post is out of place.

     

    So I'm currently a senior at a university in Texas. I'm a double major in sociology and political science with minors in women's studies and community & urban studies. I'm having that sort of pre-applicaiton anxiety about applying to graduate school for a PhD in sociology. I'm currently working on a senior research project for sociology with a decent overall GPA (3.6 with one more year to get it up; started out as a biology major and nearly failed first year chemistry and stuggled in a few other courses not related to any of my majors or minors). Ultimately, my goal is to get my PhD from Emory. All in all, I guess there are a few main things I'm scared about.

     

    1. I'm terrified of the GRE because I'm not even sure how to go about preparing for it. Also, I get super bad testing anxiety, but I know that applicaiton committees don't care about that. I'm scared that my GRE scores won't be high enough to even get me past the first round of applicaiton reviews.

     

    2. I'm scared my writing sample will just be seen as another rehash of former research. My project has to do with measuring college students of color and their attitude toward the Confederate flag in modern settings and how that relates to racial identity formation. I plan on using my senior project as my writing sample, but I'm scared people will read it and think, "Great, another piece on racial identity." Is there any way to avoid falling into that sort of niche that comes with researching and wiriting about racial identity?

     

    3. I'm really scared that regardless of my GRE scores, writing samples, GPA, SOP, LORs, and everything else that goes with my application that I won't be accepted anywhere simply because of the school I come from. The person directing my senior research project has indicated she thinks I have a great chance of getting into Emory with the completion of my research project, but I really feel like she feels obligated to say that. Plus, I get the feeling that people from the top schools will see the school I come from, think it's some rural school from Texas and instantly discount my applicaiton.

     

     

     

    In general, GPA+LoR weight more than GRE. The advantage you have is that you can start prepping on the GRE. With adequate time and prep, you can get a decent GRE score without much effort.

     

    You research interest is what it is. You can't get to change it(or in any event, it's not advisable). Instead of looking at it that way, think that your research interest has "a grand unifying theme with many instances"... that is the ultimate point you need to show to get your PhD(you just need to show that "theme" through publications and a thesis).

     

    I'm almost sure that your college is more reputed than mine(I'm international, my degree was taught in spanish, etc...) and I got in 2 decent programs with a minimum of research experience(more or less 2 years, combined). They won't discard your application just because of your school. It might diminish your chances, but you can compensate that with the rest of your application.

     

    PD:My background is engineering, not sociology. extrapolate accordingly.

  12. Mostly I spend my time explaining that no, getting a Ph.D in accounting does not mean I get to charge more to clients, it means I'm going into a completely different area and I will be researching accounting.  And, no- I don't do taxes. That is about as far as the conversation goes.  No one cares what an accounting researcher researches except other accounting people.  And everyone thinks they know what an accountant does, so I don't have to explain much.  In fact, I could probably say that I'm a certified public accountant for the next 5 years and bypass the whole conversation.  Does getting your Ph.D count towards CPE?

     

    But, if I were to need a pitch. As of now, for what I want to study-

    I study how auditor bias affects risk assessment and the decision making process, with particular emphasis on political and cultural bias.  This is an important area of study because it affects the timing and reliability of an audit. For instance, does an auditor of an international company need to understand the culture in order to audit effectively?  And, if a company has a strong political stance, such as Hobby Lobby with birth control, if the auditor disagrees with them, are they more likely to asses higher risk?  If they agree, are they likely to asses lower risk?

     

    A lot of big words, but if someone asks, they probably understand big words.  Everyone else is still trying to grasp the fact that I'm researching accounting, not doing it.

    Always wondered what a PhD in accounting would research. This makes a lot of sense, thank you![ I was under the impression that you merely focused on developing new/more efficient methods of auditing!]

  13.  

    @Mechanician2015 Because I have no interest in applications, I'm also quite unaware of them when they do exist. To me, and most of the professors who taught my courses (also pure mathematicians), an application is a use of this theorem in some other area of pure math, haha. 

    I will... keep that in mind next time I read a mathematician talking about applications :D 

     

    I knew the stuff about Perlman's theorem because I have some (personal) interest in the divulgation of STEM knowledge(I don't know topology, so I have a vague, amateur understanding of even the definition of the problem/conjecture). My advice to OP was that if you are doing reaserch on X, you might take a couple hours(spread along many months, sure) to read about possible applications. I do this out of personal interest, you guys(and girls) can do it just for the sake of having an easy time when talking about your job with non-academics.

  14. Well in my country, most people think that my career (mechanical engineering) is about cars. The irony reaches a maximum when (1) there is zero automotive courses in the program I completed. It's mostly thermal sciences and manufacture. (2) The terminology is not used in my school, but if it was, my thesis and course work is more focused on theoretical mechanics, numerical modelling and simulation and theory of mechanical vibrations (3) I have zero interest in cars :-/ 

     

    As I am interested in scientific literacy, I try to develop ways of explaining people what mechanics (as science) is, what the job of an engineer is, and the difference between a theorist and an engineer. It's hard to do, but I try to keep it pragmatic.

     

    I am not a graduate student, but even outside of my academic interests, my personal interests are weird and most people don't even know about their existence(had such a hard time finding someone that at least KNEW who Soren Kierkegard was...). When stablishing a conversation, I kind of "switch" and try to keep things trivial, and ask the other person to elaborate on their opinions and experiences. (Presumably) Unlike you, I have a couple years of experience in the industry, and as a supervisor you need to learn how to develop these conversations. Practice is essential. Also, forget you need to "do well" in a conversation.

     

    The question "what are your interests/what do you do in your free time?" Is really useful. If you ask it first, you will have an idea of what you can work with (“you watch TV series? Have you heard of game fo thrones!?"... Even if they don't watch it, they will tell you that they have been told it's good/too aggressive/whatever). If you are asked the question, you can always keep it general to see what comes up. I tell people that I like to read, watching movies, cooking and listening to music.(I don't tell them I read mostly Sci Fi of the 60's and philosophy of the 40's, nor that I almost exclusively watch independent movies, or listen to Goa Trance and Black metal). This general description of yourself allows you to get an idea of what might be a common point with the other person.

     

    I do understand Mathcat in that he is a theorist. However, you would be amazed how easily can you explain the potential implications of very theoretical work. (Say, the "Perlman-Poincare" theorem has implications in medicine and tumor growth. How? I have no idea, but in my experience, most people won't ask for a very complex explanation. A vague explanation suffices most of the times). But I do understand the "I couldn’t care less about the applications", I feel the same way about dynamics.

     

    The best response I can give to "gee, you must be very smart/a genious", is to ignore the expression and appeal to humanity (food, drink, music, family). I am fully convinced that Ed Witten can have a conversation with an illiterate monk about how they both enjoy having tea, and how one prefers it with a splash of milk or honey.

     

    I love when I am forced to tell someone I plan to go to grad school and they react as described by  victory dance. It's just a job. It's just a decision.

     

    TL;DR: Try to listen carefully and use it to follow the conversation. Keep things relatively general, until you find something in common. Try to find general( vague, if you will) applications of your research. Most people don't want a class, they'll make a couple questions and the conversation will move on.

  15. My mp3 player (yes I use one) is changing genres at breakneck speed:

     

    Flobots - Handlebars

    Tupac - Ambitionz az a Ridah

    Avenged Sevenfold - Unholy Confessions

    Queen - Radio Ga Ga

    Jason Mraz - Sleep All Day

    That's what I call a mix xD

     

    Manuel Le Saux on trance.fm - Top Twenty Tunes 547 (Apr 27, 2015)
  16. right. phd physics, Yes I'm international! research areas : plasma and laser optics!!

     

    I think you do have a good chance of admission, you are applying to top 10 programs, then some top 15, then BU(relatively low in ranking, but good institution overall and still over the mark of the top 50).

     

    Your stats are really impresive, so if you could contact faculty early, you might not have to retake the GRE(your subject score is impressive).

     

    I think if you can get a >110 TOEFL, you need not worry.(If Princeton or Caltech are your dream school, I guess it wouldn't hurt to retake the GRE).

     

    Usually, funding for international students is hard to find at public institutions. Keep an eye on that.

  17. I wouldn't give that person the chance. Period.

     

    I, however, suggest you contact a professional. I didn't believe it, but psycologist's got some amazing tools to deal with this kind of issues.(For instance, they have some exercises that will allow you to understand if you want to give him a chance or not, at the bottom).

  18. I was accepted for gepphysics at Texas Tech and will be taking Calc 3 and introductory Geophys this fall. How can I best prepare for calc 3? I am a bit nervous to say the least given that my background in calc 1 and calc 2 is not strong at best. I will have two months in July and August to prepare before I arrive there and any lesson plan or something I can follow would be GREATLY GREATLY GREATLY appreciated.

    Do you have access to the syllabus of the course you will be taking? 

     

    Calc 3 could be "Vector analysis and multivariable calculus" or "integal calculus" in case that school split differential in two( one for derivatives and another one for series and succesions).

     

    I can recommend books accordingly, and also provide courses at Coursera/EDX with good content. Get a quick review of your first 2 calcs and take a look at a couple videos. 2 months is plenty of time, so keep it positive! :)

  19. guys, I gonna apply to these univ. is there any chance ?

    Princeton 

    caltech 

    Chicago 

    university of California, San Diego 

    Texas Austin 

    Boston 

    Maryland college park 

    Wisconsin-Madison 

    What program? What degree? What research area?

    Give us something to talk about :)

  20. ...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.

     

    I always assume that an accomplished professional( he has 8 publications!) takes every bit of advice with a grain of salt.

  21. No!! it's not a joke)

    it is a shameful fact!!

     

    Where are you applying? what are their stats? Their graduate admissions websites say anything about GRE-V or combined? Are you below a cutoff? 

     

    How is your research fit at those programs?

     

    Do you have the extra USD$200, time and energy to retake?

     

    The answer(to your initial question) can be anything from "retake or the V will have you rejected" to "are you insane? you will be accepted 1 hour after you submit your application!" so...

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