NLP2021

Quick info about me MS and BS in CS; graduate GPA 3.71; several publications; 4 projects with one NSF funded (I'm not a part of PIs); interested in HCI subfields and iSchool subfields. I'm planning submit phd applications for HCI, iSchool and CS this fall. Recently, I got a feedback from someone saying schools like Northeastern would be my safe schools. When I searched its reputation and ranking, it's pretty high (20-30 in rankings). The problem here is I'm totally in lost of what would be my safe schools because schools like ex) Princeton would be considered as a safe school if I strictly follow its ranking in HCI and iSchool. Does anyone is having a same problem with me? or if you figured out what's your safe school, do you mind sharing your list?

I'm planning to apply for a phd program this fall and wondering how many applications others have submitted or planning to submit!

I'll be starting my master's this upcoming Fall and having a hard time deciding which school to attend. Here are some information about two schools that I'm considering. Northwestern Johns Hopkins Program Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence Master of Science in Engineering in Computer Science Location Evanston, IL Baltimore, MD Cost of living Evanston/Chicago's cost of living is little higher Academic system Quarter (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer) Semester (Fall, Spring, Summer) Tuition Similar tuition rate Funding No funding available from the department. However, I can look for TA positions in lower-level courses. Duration 5 quarters (Fall, Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall) 3 semesters (Fall, Spring, Fall) AI/NLP faculty Big names. Ex. Ken Forbus, Kristian Hammond There is no NLP-specific lab Quite a lot of NLP papers published and two NLP-specific labs Curriculum All AI-related courses. No algorithms, theory, systems and software courses, which I think is both pro & con. can & must take most CS courses (Theory, Applications, Systems, Software, and Reasoning) Thesis MSAI is more of industry focused program rather than academia. So an emphasis on thesis seems very weak. But I guess it's up to me to contact a professor to conduct a research and write a thesis. No restriction on this by the program. Graduation requirements include: 2 additional (graduate-level) courses in Computer Science, approved by their CS advisor. An original, faculty-approved master’s essay, submitted to the Milton S. Eisenhower Library. A faculty-supervised research project including an approved project report that will be made publicly available. For students enrolled in the PhD program, a PhD qualifying project may be used to meet this requirement. A student must fulfill one of these requirements and I think I can use #2 or #3 to write a thesis. Class size 40 students per cohort Not sure about the exact cohort size, but expecting the size to be larger than NW's Things to consider as I'm planning to pursue Ph.D. in the future MSAI's program overview is somewhat clear that the program prepares its students to become a part of the industry rather than of academia. However, as I mentioned earlier, I'm planning to get my Ph.D. later on. So, I'm wondering if the program's purpose might hinder my plan for any reason. Because this is a Master's in CS, I will be taking most of general CS courses. However, I wish to focus on AI rather than taking general CS courses. On the other hand, when applying for Ph.D. I think having those CS background will be beneficial. Based on the information above, Is there anyone who can provide any thoughts on my concern? Thanks a lot in advance!