cabbysaurus

I think I found someone to take it already, but will let you know if it falls through.

I got a bunch of GRE prep stuff that I don't need anymore. Some penciling throughout but still in good condition and I think the Kaplan book gives access to online tests. Would love to give these to someone in the San Diego area if you're willing to come pick it up. I have: Kaplan GRE Premier 2017 Manhattan Prep GRE 5 lb Book of GRE Practice Problems Manhattan Prep GRE Flash Cards 500 Essential Words and 500 Advanced Words In case you're wondering on the effectiveness, I took the GRE once and did well so I think it helped.

Thank you for the input! I ended up choosing Harvard so will maybe see you at some Boston/Mass area hangouts. I know you're interested in ML and NLP - I'm more of HCI but have done a lot of NLP stuff so am happy to get in touch

I received an email from GEM today saying that I did not receive a Full Fellowship, but am being recommended for the Associate one. The deadline to sign an offer with a University is April 25th, so there is not a lot of time to get it figured out. The university I've chosen to attend says "Willing to admit as GEM Fellow" next to it, so I'm hoping it just goes through. Anyone else get a similar email today? Tips about asking for the Associate Fellowship?

Thanks for the input. I really appreciate having an insider's view. It was a tough choice, but I ended up choosing Harvard so will see you in MD this fall!

Thanks for your response, I appreciate it. I agree with a lot of what you said and actually do not want to go into industry, so I guess that the location does not matter so much in those terms. I think you're right that the professors at UW are trying to be honest and helpful. I'm not upset with them and actually appreciate their honesty - I just wasn't aware of all of the different factors and implications at play. I am definitely worried about the potential competition for funding and labs, as you mentioned. At this point, I am probably just letting my preference towards Seattle get in the way. Harvard is definitely a great program, the advisor is well-known and we get along well, plus I have the funding and actually feel wanted there. It seems silly to let location be the deciding factor. I guess I just needed to write this all out and see someone else's thoughts to come to that conclusion. So thank you!

TLDR: I'd rather go to UW because I love Seattle and it is a really great school for CS, but I don't have any guaranteed RA money or an advisory yet. There are a lot of faculty there I'm interested in working with, but none of them can guarantee me time or money at this point. At Harvard, I have a six year fellowship and an advisor who seems really great and says that I can work on pretty much anything. There are other professors who have work I'm interested in, but not as strong interest as those at UW. Any advice on what to do? I am currently torn between two great options for a Computer Science PhD and would love to get some input please. Below are the schools and some of my thoughts at this point about them. School 1: University of Washington Pros arguably one of the top schools for Computer Science lots of faculty members doing research that I am interested in large program with a lot of resources more students doing the type of research I'm interested in, so possibly more help/collaboration lots of connections to industry nice, new facilities I used to live in Seattle and have lots of friends there still Cons even though there are a lot of potential advisors for me, the people I'm interested in working with have all expressed that they may not have time or money to support me the program is quite large and I'm worried that it may be hard to have a voice or that I may fall through the cracks some of the people I'm interested in working with have not been terribly responsive though funding is guaranteed, I don't have guaranteed funding through an advisor so may have to TA a lot School 2: Harvard University Pros my initial advisor is really great - in fact people I met at other schools even say how great he is. We got along well in person and he is smart, responsive, and willing to let me work on essentially anything I would like the funding offer is awesome. I got a university fellowship for five years plus the university has a special fellowship for the final year, so I'm essentially covered for six years. It also pays more than UW and includes relocation I can get a co-advisor or choose to switch advisors if I would like, especially since I have funding already students there seem to collaborate with other faculty a lot, both in the department and also throughout the university and with MIT the program is smaller, so I feel more confident that I will have a voice and not fall through the cracks better/more job opportunities for my partner Cons there is really just the one advisor I'd like to work with (at least at this point). I did meet other professors there who were nice and working on interesting projects though, so imagine that may change it's not as well-known for Computer Science as UW is the program is much smaller and there are very few students doing the type of research I'm interested in so there's less chance of collaboration the facilities are kind of old and cramped, but they are building a new building that will open in about two years. But that building is off campus, so I worry about how that will affect relationships across the university I don't know if I can handle winter and snow for six years straight I'm really torn. I know that many people say that the advisor is the most important, in which case it seems that Harvard is a better choice since there is a professor there who is a good match for me and who really wants me there. Also the funding package I would get there would make things much less stressful for me, plus I would not have to worry about finding an advisor who has the time and money to support me. However, my partner and I would both rather live in Seattle. I'm worried about the amount of uncertainty there, though, in terms of both an advisor match and funding. Two of the four professors I spoke to even brought up the option of getting a Master's there then a PhD elsewhere, which makes me feel that maybe they think that I will have trouble finding a match there. A third professor said that she would be concerned about me going there since the professors I most want to work with (herself included) may not be able to support me. I know that there are many different paths to getting a PhD, and that there are nearly a hundred faculty members at UW, so I would likely find someone to work with, but I don't know if that level of uncertainty is something that should make me go to Harvard instead. Any thoughts, advice, or words of wisdom would be much appreciated. Thank you!

I'm the type of person who prefers having options and fallbacks, plus I love Berkeley, so would definitely choose that. It seems like you have more potential advisors and projects there. Were you able to chat with the students in PI 2's lab there? My main concern about Berkeley would be the cost of living there, especially on a grad student stipend.

Are you set on researching protein NMR? Did the advisor at school 1 suggest other projects that you are interested in working on? Also, what are you planning on doing over summers? If you're looking to do internships off campus, then maybe where you live for 9 months doesn't matter so much. Or maybe you make so much during your internship that you can live comfortably at school 2. If all else fails, you can flip a coin, and when the coin is in the air you will know which way you want it to land and that's where you go.

I am currently torn between two great options for a Computer Science PhD and would love to get some input please. Below are the schools and some of my thoughts at this point about them. School 1: University of Washington Pros arguably one of the top schools for Computer Science lots of faculty members doing research that I am interested in large program with a lot of resources more students doing the type of research I'm interested in, so possibly more help/collaboration lots of connections to industry nice, new facilities I used to live in Seattle and have lots of friends there still Cons even though there are a lot of potential advisors for me, the people I'm interested in working with have all expressed that they may not have time or money to support me the program is quite large and I'm worried that it may be hard to have a voice or that I may fall through the cracks some of the people I'm interested in working with have not been terribly responsive though funding is guaranteed, I don't have guaranteed funding through an advisor so may have to TA a lot School 2: Harvard University Pros my initial advisor is really great - in fact people I met at other schools even say how great he is. We got along well in person and he is smart, responsive, and willing to let me work on essentially anything I would like the funding offer is awesome. I got a university fellowship for five years plus the university has a special fellowship for the final year, so I'm essentially covered for six years. It also pays more than UW and includes relocation I can get a co-advisor or choose to switch advisors if I would like, especially since I have funding already students there seem to collaborate with other faculty a lot, both in the department and also throughout the university and with MIT the program is smaller, so I feel more confident that I will have a voice and not fall through the cracks better/more job opportunities for my partner Cons there is really just the one advisor I'd like to work with (at least at this point). I did meet other professors there who were nice and working on interesting projects though, so imagine that may change it's not as well-known for Computer Science as UW is the program is much smaller and there are very few students doing the type of research I'm interested in so there's less chance of collaboration the facilities are kind of old and cramped, but they are building a new building that will open in about two years. But that building is off campus, so I worry about how that will affect relationships across the university I don't know if I can handle winter and snow for six years straight I'm really torn. I know that many people say that the advisor is the most important, in which case it seems that Harvard is a better choice since there is a professor there who is a good match for me and who really wants me there. Also the funding package I would get there would make things much less stressful for me, plus I would not have to worry about finding an advisor who has the time and money to support me. However, my partner and I would both rather live in Seattle. I'm worried about the amount of uncertainty there, though, in terms of both an advisor match and funding. Two of the four professors I spoke to even brought up the option of getting a Master's there then a PhD elsewhere, which makes me feel that maybe they think that I will have trouble finding a match there. A third professor said that she would be concerned about me going there since the professors I most want to work with (herself included) may not be able to support me. I know that there are many different paths to getting a PhD, and that there are nearly a hundred faculty members at UW, so I would likely find someone to work with, but I don't know if that level of uncertainty is something that should make me go to Harvard instead. Any thoughts, advice, or words of wisdom would be much appreciated. Thank you!

I think, to some extent, ratings are overrated (no pun intended). Of course it is good to go to a reputable program, but ratings change from year to year. In addition, I would take the US News ratings (as all ratings) with a grain of salt since their methodology for rating is not well known. It is also difficult to rank on all of CS when there are so many subfields. There are other rating sites you can look at such as CSRankings, QS, and Shanghai Rankings to get a more broad view of the way each department is viewed in academia and industry. Additionally, CSRankings lets you see the number of papers published per research area, which may be helpful for you. I also wouldn't worry about the location for post-graduation. You may find that you would like a change of scenery after 5-6 years, no matter where you end up for school. I know it is tempting to just pick the highest ranked school you get into, but that doesn't mean that it's the best school or the best school for you. Since you cannot visit, I would recommend trying to Skype with as many people from each university as you can. In particular, try to talk to current grad students to see how they feel about the program and the advisor. You can also reach out to graduates from each program to see how easy it was for them to get the jobs they wanted. Good luck! I know it is hard to decide (at least it is for me), but I think you will have a great time either way.

I applied to PhD programs this year in a similar situation. I finished my undergraduate nearly 6 years ago and have been working since, first as a software engineer then as a CS teacher. I also completed a Master's in a related field (Computational Linguistics) part time. I've been lucky enough to be admitted to a number of great universities (UW, Harvard, NYU to name a few) even despite a low undergraduate GPA. I don't say this to brag - just to let you know that it is certainly possible (as mentioned by @spamhaus as well). Here are the things I think helped my application greatly: Research experience - this cannot be stressed enough. I did undergraduate research experience, a quarter worth of graduate research experience, and did a full research internship this past summer. None of this research resulted in publications, but by having done it I showed that I am invested in it and aware of what it entails. Letters - I got one letter from my undergrad research advisor and one from a professor who supervised me this summer. The third letter was from my old manager at Microsoft. I would recommend getting one letter from an employer, but the other two should definitely be from academia and the more well-known the better (as long as they're good of course). The letter from an employer should preferably be someone who has a graduate degree and thus can attest to your abilities to do research. They can also mention how great it is to work with you. Statement of purpose - I spent SO much time on this. The key was making it unique, showing my passion, and linking all of my past experiences (work, research, and teaching) to my desire for getting a PhD and success in getting it. GRE - I did at least average to all of the schools I applied to. Definitely study for it, especially having been out of school for a while. The math is not hard, but the way they ask the questions can be, so going through a lot of practice teaches you the tricks. Also take a lot of practice exams. Sitting for 5 hours straight is hard and I would not have made it had I not done a number of practice tests before hand. Now to answer your questions: I think you really need to try and get research experience. This could be a long-distance project with a professor as @spamhaus mentioned, a summer opportunity as I did, or maybe even something at your job if possible. Without research experience, I don't think you will be a competitive candidate. I also think that you need to be prepared to quit your job in order to gain research experience if necessary. For letters, you really need to get at least two people who can talk about your research. Those people should be professors or researchers with PhDs themselves. I think at least one of them should be recent (within the past year from your application). For where to apply, that depends on a lot of things like where you can relocate to, if they have things you're interested in researching, size of the program you want, etc. Some less competitive schools you could consider are Boulder and Northwestern. The most important thing is to find professors who have research that is aligned with yours, then to mention them in your SOP and say why their research interests you and how it aligns with your goals. As for getting another Master's, I think that could be definitely be helpful for getting better LORs and some research experience. However, you then have to think about how you would balance that with work and how you would pay for it. I think you may be better off looking for other research opportunities instead. I hope that helps! Of course, I'm not an admissions expert, just sharing my experience. Please feel free to reach out with additional questions.

In regards to fellowships being more prestigious - does that mean that going to a lesser ranked school (in terms of department reputation) with a fellowship would be comparable, or at least worth considering, vs. a higher ranked school with an assistantship? I know that I can apply for external fellowships in the future, but had one good school offer me a 5 year fellowship... I'm wondering if this is something I should seriously consider over going to a top 10 school in my field where I will have to be a TA/RA, at least for a year or two.

I agree with @spamhaus. You should definitely visit them both before deciding if you can. I have already visited a few schools and it has completely changed my view of things. If you cannot visit, you should at least try to Skype with professors you think may be your advisor and some of their current grad students.

Did you get invited to visit? They sent out invitations a few weeks ago to visit earlier this month for North American candidates. I'm not sure if they had anything for international candidates, so I wouldn't worry if that's the case. BTW, I am the one who posted an admission without an interview. I was unable to attend the visit weekend and was surprised to hear from them so soon based on data from previous years, which show that decisions were all sent out in March. I think maybe I heard from them earlier because they nominated me for a scholarship that I then had to fill out an application for. Regardless, past data shows them sending out decisions in March so I think there is still hope. Good luck!

Great, thank you!

This may be a silly question, but is it appropriate to send a thank you after receiving an admission offer?

Congratulations, @collegesista ! Did you have an interview before the informal acceptance? I'm trying to determine whether not having an interview request by now equates to a rejection...

I don't think the location will matter very much at all. You will likely only be participating in internships over the summer, when you will be able to relocate. In addition, companies recruit from all over the country and will certainly fly you out for interviews if they think you are a good candidate. Furthermore, many large companies, such as Google, have a number of offices across the country. There are also a variety of startups in many cities, particularly near universities.

About two weeks ago, I got invited to visit and interview at a school (school A). I was really excited, as it was the first school I heard from and is a very good school. I did not commit right away (based on advice I saw here), but had to let them know this week and said that I would attend. This morning, I was invited to visit another school (school B) on the same days as school A. I think that I would rather attend school B than school A, plus would only need to take two days off of work vs. the three I would need to visit school A. However, I know it will look bad if I cancel on school A now. I'm wondering how I should go about handling this situation. I realize that it will negatively affect my admissions decision at whichever school I choose not to visit, but just want to ensure that I turn down one (preferably school A) in the most respectful way possible.

As for not leaving them hanging too long, I would recommend asking them for a deadline to respond. I said something like "I am excited for the opportunity to interview at ___. I need to double check that those dates will work for me before I commit. When do you need to receive an official response from me?"

I think it also depends on the universities you applied to and how competitive they are. Schools like Berkeley and UW receive thousands of applications so naturally it takes time to go through all of them. Some other schools receive only a few hundred though, so are able to go through them more quickly. So far I have heard from two schools, both of which I believe only get a few hundred applicants each year.

Interesting thread! I agree with Bayesian above that it should be (and hopefully is) random though. I only took the GRE once (thankfully) and got three verbal sections. I would have much rather had three quant sections though. The verbal sections really exhausted me because I had to stare at the computer so much. The quant problems, on the other hand, involved more work using paper and pencil so I felt that my eyes got a break. One thing that was frustrating for me was that all of the practice exams I took, even the ones from ETS, only had four sections of verbal and quant. Adding in a fifth section on test day was a lot worse than I expected.

I'm in a similar situation - I got invited to an open house for a school I'd really like to go to, but already have an international trip planned at that time. I am worried that declining the visit will result in me getting a rejection from the school. Does anyone have any thoughts or tips on this? Am I just being overly paranoid?

Disclaimer: I do not have any experience with CS admissions, just a student sharing my thoughts. I think it depends which degree you are looking for (Master's or PhD). If you are applying for a Master's program then I think you will be fine. Many Master's programs are easier to get into because they don't provide funding. Completing a Master's will allow you to get some research experience and also to prove that you can do well in higher-level CS courses. This will be a huge help if you decide you want to apply for a PhD. For example, I completed a B.S. in CS at a top-ranked Ivy and got < 3.0 cumulative undergrad GPA. I then went on to get an M.S. at a public university, did some research, and now already have interview invites for top ranked PhD programs. If you are looking to apply for a PhD, I don't think it will be enough. You will likely want to either take some higher level courses, conduct some research, or both. Getting a job in industry may also help. Since you are still in college, I would recommend looking for summer opportunities to complete some of these things. Many universities offer research opportunities for undergraduate students. You could also ask your professors for recommendation. I hope that helps!