kaykaykay

Maybe other students were honest too they just did not have an issue with the teaching of that prof? Maybe you did not like him/her others did not. I had that sort of class. I think teaching evaluations at the grad level should be constructive criticism if anything. At this level as piglet33 suggests you can talk directly to the prof/ any other people in your department if there is a serious issue with this prof+ you can drop the class if you do not like what you are getting. On the other hand your prof will read your anonymous comments hopefully to improve his/her class. the "you are the worst professor, the quality of this class is really poor" etc comments will not help in any way. you should suggest ways how to improve the class if you think it is remediable. (if not again you can talk to other people)

here is a little secret: http://www.phdcomics.com/comics/archive.php?comicid=469 don't worry. In grad school all your papers/ all your work is for YOU and you only. This is not a test anymore. You are totally allowed to discuss/ brainstorm these papers with your professors, with your peers. You are allowed to think about them as drafts that you can polish later if they are successful and experiments if they are not so successful. Your Professors think about them the same way. You did it, you are over the fence.

I would say help because you can demonstrate that you are interested in their program enough that you researched what the university can offer. you just have to phrase it in the right way. In your SOP in the fit section you can just discuss how apart form the world famous PI and the excellent department (put your target department here) additional resources in the university such as a strong department in.... (put department in other college) or an institute of .......(put additional resources) could advance your research. this unique combination of resources and expertise would specifically help you do what you want to do. and so for this reason this university is the best fit and you are the best fit for them...

yes. it is ok to get an editor's (or a friend's) help for editing your work if at the end they help you convey your ideas.

Sorry not my fields so I do not know, try to talk to your professors. I am not sure what your long story and now another long story has to with anything. Noone will care about this explanation but if they do it will be a red flag so I would leave it out. Try to spread your applications and make sure you get the SOP right.

it seems that you have a serious issue with managing time and finishing things. this is a real concern if you want to do a PhD. In any case you seem to be only aiming for top schools. Given that admission is a crapshoot even with a perfect profile the recommendation is to apply to lower level schools as well . So yes, in your place I would research and apply to places with good programs which ranked lower for sure .

Nobody really looks at the AWA score. I had a 3.5 btw, it was not an issue.

Application, at least it was for me. Make sure you ask it though.

If you really want to offset the GRE quant score , retake the exam. You still have a few days if you really believe you can do better and that was a fluke, even if the official scores arrive after the deadline most departments will be ok. Remember you are competing against highly qualified candidates who will potentially have good quant courses AND good quant GREs.

I was very surprised how much in the US students are helped with their work. They get their "homeworks" free and sometimes they even get a set of likely questions to prepare for their exams. It is what it is. It is quite normal. Proctors usually get the answer keys before the exam to be able to answer questions (interpret them etc) during exam if needed. I highly doubt that a professor's intention is to allow students to cheat randomly (that would get him into trouble for sure) . So if you have concerns about the proctors being careless let them know , or the professor know.

I am not sure that the admission committee will see your list, school administration wants to know which other schools are their "peers" for statistics. This is said, when I got accepted the PI in each school asked me where did I apply and where did I get in. In this way when the decision was on my side they had an idea which programs are they competing against. So to answer your question I do not think your answer will factor in the admission decision in any way. If you have more than one admission in hand and those are from similar programs you might get a leverage when/ if you are negotiating funding (if those terms are negotiable).

Maybe you would like to do a teaching degree instead of a PhD? The problem is with your plans is that usually that schools that have decent funding require decent GREs. AWA does not matter in admissions neither do extracurricular activities, unless it is research. So as a first step you should improve both of your GREs unless of course you are ok with no funding or an alternative path like education programs (although I am not sure about the requirements for those)/

Do not feed the troll.

No. I would call them troll if they do not engage into a conversation, and they condone evidence. You are a troll and I would tell it to you face to face. I am not in a JD program so I think I am fine.

If you can only imagine yourself in a top ten department, i would say give up. Not because of the GREs but because you are probably not interested in the PhD, and research enough. Also with any GRE points the application process is a crap shoot and you might encounter a massive disappointment no matter what. While here everyone wants to encourage you , we do not know your profile and we do not know who else is applying so noone will be able to tell you what sort of chances do you have (GREs aside). If you think you could be happy elsewhere (not top ten) then research some good backups and then you will not stress this much.

you have to send it. but of course you can address all the pros in your personal statement. If you did not speak French well enough that explains the lower grades as well.

yes. you are competing with native speakers with the GRE and if something they take non native speakers' scores more seriously. I am not sure why they even ask for TOEFL.

If you are reapplying (to another school) you will need the GRE as it is a completely new application and you will be evaluated with everyone else, even though it is called transfer. Within your institution maybe different rules apply but no one will know them here, you should talk to your grad division about those. Most schools will accept official scores later than the deadline if you have the unofficial scores by the deadline( ask them before you burn 100$ application fee)

Is Dept B ranked over Dept A because you may run into problems if you are reapplying if it is more popular etc. Also who would give you recommendations? I would recommend looking into building a joint committee, doing a masters in the other field, taking classes etc. When you apply for jobs they will look at your dissertation committee more than the department you are coming from.

Also what would the benefit be of attending Y at all? You may get the name of your CV but you will not get the actual benefits: education, research guidance, professional guidance, professional network etc. With that effort you could just print a diploma, or put the university on your CV without actually attending it. I agree with rising_star try to look around for options in your area. You would have a higher chance of benefiting from your education and a higher chance of getting a job if you actually did the program in a somewhat lower ranked university(or in a program that fits you a bit less).

I was told by top profs that for international students both GREs were very important (verbal too but A does not matter). Just because your home institution's grading scheme/ recommendations may not be as familiar to the admission committee as the domestic applicants', so they trust them less. unfair but there is nothing to do about it.

i talked the grad school person once from my school(in the US). she said they sometimes have concerns about a candidate that a department recommends (actually they are afraid that low undergrad GPA= struggling in grad school too) . In that case they discuss the issue with the department and either make an offer as it is or make a conditional offer (to finish certain classes in time etc). She also said that this is not undergrad so they really try to make no decisions, only raise concerns about GPA and GRE with the department. Long story short- if the department is behind you, you will be most probably fine. I think it is good that you clarified this issue with your POI so it will not be a surprise to them.

It feels like that other prof may be a graduate of (another) good university and they may be able to give you good advice on application strategy and may be helpful on who to get in contact with etc. Don't worry professors like to find good students and if they think you would do good in grad school they will try to help you. If anything it feels like your prof feels like you are a worthy student to get this other prof's advice and help. Of course without taking their class you cannot ask for their recommendation. But you should just go and talk to them. Tell them that so and so suggested that you should you to talk to them, show your transcripts, GRE scores, tell them your research ideas and listen to what they have to say. Ask them what do they suggest where should you apply, whether they have a recommendation who to contact, whether they have a recommendation about which part of the application to improve, maybe.... maybe.... if they would read and comment on your SOP... This can be so helpful you cannot even imagine.

funding may depend on it. as a low income student you should especially consider retaking if you cannot pay for the program.

It's not the title. Your post is incredibly confusing. I am not sure what you want to know.