brahmin

I will be graduating with a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering in about 6 months from Stanford and I'll be applying to other schools this December for PhD and wanted to know what to expect. I have seen similar posts online but with my profile I'm still not sure. MS GPA = 3.6 UG institution = Georgia Tech UG GPA = 3.85 GRE = 800/520 3.6 isn't all that great but it's improving. It took me a while to kinda get used to the rise in standards and to figure out how to study better. I got rejected from all PhD programs I applied to when I applied after UG, I should have had some safety schools. The worst school I applied to was UMich. This was partly because I had a spot in Georgia Tech. I was told though that I was really close to getting into Cornell. In stanford, I did research with 3 profs (working on a project with a third one right now)...I have no exceptional results to show from my research, like publishing reports. And in both cases, my work didn't lead me to a funded position in the prof's lab which kind of hints to the quality of my work. However, I liked the projects I worked on and on a personal level, was satisfied with my results/reports and took a good amount from my experiences. They are also much more related to the field I am interested in. My research experiences in Georgia Tech were from different areas. The 3 LORs I will be submitting this time will be from prof's who I did research with as opposed to 2/3 from Georgia Tech so I have that going for me. I will be widening my selection of schools this time. Any advice and thoughts on my application will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

Hey, I've been accepted for the MS program in Stanford but without funding. A lot of people want me to go there but I want to make sure it will be worth it. Firstly, I am keen in getting a PhD. Do do you guys know if MS students who want to continue to PhD have no trouble finding an advisor for PhD? This is the most important as my parents are willing to pay. But I would really prefer if I can get an assistantship as soon as possible to help me through my M.S. I know Stanford rarely gives assistantships to newly admitted students but how does it look for continuing MS students. Do most of them get funding for MS? What are the chances of me becoming a TA or a RA after the first quarter or at most the second? What is the course of actions that I should undertake to find a professor for a TA or a RA? Are professors ok with hiring MS students for research even if they haven't completed a lot of graduate course work? Should I suggest doing research for them for credit before asking them whether I can become a RA? Will I be able to find a professor for whom I do research for credit before my first quarter? How about TAs? Are they hard to get? Don't MS students TA for undergraduate courses? One of the professors said he picks from students who take that class...how would that work for undergraduate classes?

Ya that's what i thought too...I know a friend from my same university who got rejected..so I guess we still have a chance...but I think its slim now..which sux Yes, I'm international but finished my undergrad from Georgia Tech.

http://thegradcafe.com/survey/index.php?q=mechanical+engineering&t=a&o=&p=4 According to this website, quite a few Mechanical engineering majors got into MIT. I was following this website, but missed quite a lot of posts in which people got admitted into MIT. I realized only today more than a handful of you got admitted. Though I have not received their decision yet, now it looks like I will not get in. Can some of you share your profile in this thread. I just wanted to know where I fell short.

eh? Is this true for Mechanical Engineers as well? The meet and greet in early March and the RSVP date is same for all majors? From college confidential, I heard they give sure rejects and admits first. Yes, they have given some acceptance letters out, but I thought there are still a lot more spaces and they are hanging back with the rest of them to have an eye on the class size before making further decisions. I thought it's a good thing I didn't get a letter from them and that they are still debating cuz I noe a friend who got a rejection letter form them and I haven't received one yet. Plus, their website says people will get to know at the latest like March, so there's hope till then! Right?

I got 450 v/800 q in my GRE. Do you think this will hurt my chances to MIT/Stanford?? Should I take it again?

I have started writing my SOP for mechanical engineering and wanted to confirm my outline, or the general idea of my paragraphs, with you guys. 1) Why chose to pursue what i want to pursue? A brief statement of the areas of my major that I want to pursue. 2) Experience of 1st main research experience 3) Experience of 2nd main research experience 4) What makes this uni the best for me? 5) My motivation and goal in pursuing research in general. I have a few concerns: 1) The order...does it prioritize the important stuffs? 2) Do I need to include detail about my vision in my area of interest? Or is it bad to do this because the net I cast becomes smaller? If I should, where do I put it? Do I integrate that with the paragraphs that talks about my experiences? But I feel like I need to have a new paragraph for that because I feel like the two main areas of my experiences can be related and I have done extra course work which will directly contribute to what I want to do, which may make the SOP longer. What is a general limit to a SOP for engineering? 3) Lastly, what specifically should I focus on when talking about why this particular uni? When listing the labs and profs I am interested to work with, should I mention their past work, or their current projects or general interests? Thanks for your suggestions....they mean a lot

hey superstar, I am in the same boat as you are. I have a similar profile that I posted in the same engineering page. I also worry that I haven't published anything or presented my work in a conference or something. I looked at some of the profiles that got accepted into the elite schools you mentioned..and quite a few didn't i don't think. I have asked the same question in other forums and ppl have said that the committees don't really look for published material. It would definitely boost your profile but they understand that we are just undergrads and plus things that undergrads publish no one cares about it anyway. Your recommendation letters are the ones that are going to show your research skills. I hope this helps

Thanks a lot for this advice chemdoc. But won't the subfields that the university is known for have more competition. Won't it be harder to get admitted for that lab or subfield? The more ppl that apply for that subfield, the less money is available for one...right? And second that raises another question. What you are talking about..isn't it for funding? Does the admission committee really look that deep to see the slots to think about admitting a student?...It's not like you get admitted first? Lastly, how do you propose I find what the university is famous for? Looking at where most of the research has been done? Or talking to the grad students there? Thanks, and for others, if you answer my poll and its not high chance, could you please write and tell me where my app needs strength. Thanks

I'll be applying to these schools this coming winter for M.S. with the intention of completing PHD. I will be done with undergraduate next spring (total of 3 years) School: Georgia Tech Major: Mechanical engineering and minor in computer science GPA 3.90 (most of my curriculum over now) Major GPA also 3.90 By the time applications come: -2 semesters (and counting) in one lab (on design and modeling) -2 semesters in another (on fuzzy systems and control, a bit of mathematical modeling) -1 semester (2 years ago) in another (on material science..hated it lol) ...all labs in georgia tech, under the guidance of a professor LOR's : 1)Professor of the first lab (Associate prof graduated from CMU) I will be applying to CMU because I want to focus on an area that requires the integration of cs and ME 2) Professor of the second lab (Prof graduated from Berkeley) 3) Professor who taught me fluids..We got to know each other in a more personal level (Prof graduated from Stanford) The first two were also professors of one of my classes, so they will touch on both aspects Awards: Presidential Undergrad research award (nothing big, just a stipend for my research, but an award nonetheless) Pubs and Presentations: Again nothing big, I presented my work to couple of labs in tech. Nothing at a conference or anything. Planning to present during an event in spring but this will be after the application so... (this isn't that big too, its just undergrads presenting their work to whoever attends the event at Georgia tech) Seeing if I can publish a paper by this winter or at least making a thesis..but unlikely GRE: haven't taken a real one yet...I took a trial one before I started studying I got 400/700 (V/Q)... Let's say I get 550/800 (V/Q) Other: Tutor for core classes and ME classes for 3 years, vice president of ASME chapter in Tech, program coordinator of a club called Student movement (service), Freshman Seminar Class team leader Calc Class TA. Your input on my chances of getting into my top choices would be great. I really need it. My worry is that only through LOR's will my research skills be shown, no pubs or cool presentations in a conference. Second is my GRE...I hope 550 for verbal is enough. And another thing, I finished undergrad in 3 yrs..at first I was thinking that this might play to my advantage because it shows my academic strength but I realized I could have strengthened my application even more..Is my research profile strong enough? Please also fill out the survey. One of my the answers have to do with demographics. Are M.S. admissions dependent on demographics? In other words, does my research interests have to coincides with what the university needs most? My last choice is if , assuming that I get good LOR's, (as I have enjoyed my time researching and have produced fruitful results and expectations), you believe my SOP will make the all the difference. I really need your input. I have only 6 months left and that would tell me what I need to focus on. Thanks a lot

Hey, So I will be applying to like the top 5 mechanical engineering programs in the U.S this winter. Everything in my resume is pretty good. I haven't taken the GRE yet but I took like a trial one without starting to study. I got 400/700 (v/q). I know I need to get very close to 800 for q. But for verbal, I wanted to know what is the least I need to get. I want a benchmark because my english and vocab is not that strong. Isn't GRE more like a cutoff requirement. Would 550 for verbal be enough? Thanks