Wackstrom

I can't speak for Denise but I don't think she's the primary application reviewer. My understanding is that faculty review applicants for their respective division, so in your case it would have been ECE faculty. Unfortunately, the admissions standards will vary between divisions - some faculty may more carefully scrutinize pre-reqs based on where they were taken (I heard one case where an ECE student had to retake DiffEq - even though he already took it at UCLA - due to differing standards of rigor (?!?!) ... probably an extreme example). From everyone I talked to, though, this has generally not been an issue (I took mine at various community colleges) but ECE may be more uniquely stringent in this respect. As I said already, it's not hard to switch divisions once you get in so it would be worth thinking about applying to another one first and making the switch later on.

I'm sorry to hear that. There's a bit of subjectivity to admissions since the process can be holistic. Grades are one thing, but were there perhaps other areas of your application that weren't as strong? If you'd like, feel free to PM me your stats/statement and I'd be happy to offer some feedback. My suggestion is to maybe think about trying again if you think this is the best path for you. You also have the option of applying for another division and switching later on after getting admitted.

Sorry to emphasize the "sounds like." He basically agreed contingent on me figuring out if the projects are of interest to me + my course availability doesn't absolutely swamp me. I'm planning to reserve one courseload-worth of credits for the research so I told him it wasn't a problem. He threw out a few numbers for weekly hour commitments but left it up to me to find a "comfortable pace" (in his own words). I guess since this isn't a funded position, I just don't know if RAs are typically on-paper official legit employment positions. I may not have a lot of that formal legitimacy, but just wondering if it really matters or not.

I met with a professor yesterday to about working in his lab this coming year, and it sounds like's agreeing to having me help out + supervising my thesis. The caveat is that it's not funded, which I'm fine with (I made clear that I wasn't looking for funding and would be happy to volunteer), but now I'm wondering if I can officially consider myself an RA (AKA list it as a position on my resume, LinkedIn, etc.). I don't want to be the Joe-schmo volunteer who pops in here and there to do grunt work, but actually be seen as a legitimate member of the lab, even if not on paper and unpaid.

Noob question alert, but as a new grad student, I'm getting antsy about finding a TA position next year since the chance of funding is very low. Are TA positions typically offered by professors directly to students they already have in mind? Or are they posted as an open listing for anyone to apply? And is it proper for students to directly contact professors prior to the following term to see if they can TA for a specific class?

Calc 1 is the bare minimum requirement to apply and all the 100-200 level courses in Phase 1 build off of that + the rest of the calc series. I haven't started LEAP yet but my impression is that LEAP students get priority to enroll in the 400-500 level classes so I don't think you should worry too much about it. If you're still concerned that you don't have enough time to finish all the prereqs, I'd recommend doing as much as you can at a community college. At the very least, try to knock out two calc classes + either DiffEq or Linear Algebra. It'll be cheaper in the long run.

Sorry, I don't venture here much anymore! Yes, there are two phases in LEAP: Phase 1, where you basically catch up on the undergrad engineering courses, and Phase 2, which is the actual master's level coursework. Merit-based scholarships are given for each phase separately, I think up to half-tuition. I was fortunate enough to receive a half-tuition scholarship for Phase 1, so instead of paying some 49K the first year, I'll only have to pay around 24K.

I'm a LEAP student who will be starting at BU in the Fall. If you can afford the tuition, you may want to look there. Regular programs are an option but bear in mind that you will be going up against existing engineering/science majors. A lot of these schools actually don't require a Bachelors in engineering, but definitely a science/math one. So taking the STEM prereqs is a good start but you may want to go the extra mile - take more classes than you need or maybe enroll in a certificate program where you can get good recommendations.

Doh, of course I would forget that detail. I'm thinking primarily for those looking to go into industry, where there is obviously a greater breadth of opportunities.

I suppose this question really comes down to breadth vs depth. For those pursuing fairly narrow research foci as graduate students, how do you broaden your employability? My biggest fear upon graduating is being pigeonholed into such a specific skillset/position that my resume will end up in the trash more often than not. Would be curious to know thoughts from anyone who's already graduated or nearing graduation.

I think OP is referring to University of Washington in Seattle, not Wisconsin.

Woohoo! I got my acceptance email yesterday. I wasn't expecting to hear back until mid-March at the earliest. Wishing equal fortunes for you too!

I got 170Q. If you're already fluent in mathematical concepts, then your biggest problem will likely be making stupid mistakes. Of all the practice problems I did, 90% of the questions I missed were because I didn't read carefully or because of some other stupid brain fart. On rare occasion, you will get a genuinely difficult problem but that's actually quite uncommon. If you do enough practice problems, the vast majority of questions you'll get will look familiar to you. I myself didn't get any super-hard problems when I took the real test.

I started studying intensively only about 6-7 weeks before my test. I probably studied about 3-4 times a week with the goal of doing a full practice test weekly. Don't think I actually met that goal but oh well. I read somewhere that you want to avoid beginning your studies more than eight weeks in advance. Not sure how broadly that is recommended but five months is a looong time. I don't think you need to do anything intensive now, but maybe just work on some general math exercises just to keep your analytical dexterity working. Also, if you want to work on verbal, now would be a good time to get on a steady reading diet of NYT, New Yorker, The Atlantic, and other high-intellect publications.

I wouldn't say I'm terrible. I just had never taken math in college. Luckily all the concepts tested is middle school material. Ultimately, the GRE tests how well you reason with those concepts, which makes it easy to practice for. Can't say for GMAT math but I would imagine all the major standardized tests are similarly designed.