h.vasilev

I keep failing to understand why do the North American universities keep requiring research experience for a Masters degree ?

Hi again I'm writing an undergrad thesis on n-tier architectures and the importance of developing frameworks for the enterprise (100-150 pages). The stress is on a 5-layer framework developed by me and the profit and time benefits from using it + a lot more ( scalability, security , fault tolerance and so on ). Can a paper based on that thesis be considered a research ? 1) Is the topic appropriate ? 2) Isn't topic too "practical" and not enough "abstract" ( although it has it's abstract parts ) ? 3) Is the topic good enough ? Thank you for your time, Hristiyan.

Speaking of Canadian Universities ..... I'm specifically interested in: 1. U of T M.sc. CS program. 2. Waterloo's MMath CS program. Chances?

HI again. Sorry for writing two consecutive topics in a row, but you guys look like the only ones who can help me right now with my questions and dilemmas. I'm having a hard time choosing a field of interest (a.k.a - what i want to do with my life) and i would like to ask you guys for help or some directions. 1st area of interest) Network Administration. I have a CCNA certificate since i was 16 years old, but i never actually had the motivation and time to get the CCNP. I have two years of professional experience in the field. In my opinion if i graduate some CS MSc, then take the CCNP in some years, and then for the rest of my younght reach for the CCNE, will pretty much determine my life. I have no idea why, but i consider this scenario really boring. 2nd area of interest) .NET developer. I have two MCTS certificates: Windows Forms 3.5 and ASP.NET 3.5 + another one for SQL Server ( nothing fancy ). I have two years of professional experience in the field. In my opinion if i graduate some CS MSc and then just work in the that field, developing corporate applications and just be another developer in the big-ass team, is going to be hella boring and in some point of time in my life i'm gonna commit a suicide. 3rd area of interest) Embedded systems. I have no certificates there, i have no work experience, it's just a little hobby i have creating thermometers and stuff ( really simple stuff ). "It looks cool" from my point of view, but i really don't think i have the necessary knowledge to decide. 4th area of interest) Artificial intelligence. This semester was the first one that i actually took such a course. It looks interesting, but not "super interesting". Actually maybe i want to combine it with the 5th area of interest. 5th area of interest) Entertainment and game development. No certificates, no work experience , but childhood dream! That was the actual reason i started learning about computers, and in my free time i was a Warcraft 3 progamer for a really long period of time. To be hones i want to be a game developer... i want to write game engines. Deeply in my heart i really don't care how hard it is and how much it takes to be a game dev in companies like Blizzard Entertainment or Valve.The bad thing is it is REALLLY hard to get in those companies even as an intern. So please help me out here!!!! From here : http://us.blizzard.com/en-us/company/careers/university.html, i'm given to understand that company has university relations with the following universities: (1)Stanford (2)Savannah College of Art & Design (3)Harvey Mudd College (4)UC, Los Angeles (5)UC, Irvine (6)Cal Poly Pomona (7)USC (8)DigiPen (9)UC, San Diego My most probable results will be: I'm an international student. GPA: 3.5 / 4 ( GPA from the last two years: 4.0 / 4.0 ) GRE: 650V 800Q 3.5W TOEFL: 114/120 LoRs: two professors and the dean. SoP: i think i can write a strong one. Cartificates, diplomas, work experience and undergraduate thesis (that's why i was asking in the previous topic ... lol ) I know that i have no shot at universities like Stanford, but i would like to ask you if i have any chances, with these results, in any of the other universities. I'm especially interested in (4), (5), (7), (8), (9). Which program do you thin is best for my interest? Should i try to become a game dev or should i try some safe areas of interest ? Take care, Hris.

Thank you for your responses.

Question 1: In your opinion, if i don't publish it and just send it out with my application documents to the respective university, can it be considered a research ? I'm from Bulgaria and honestly i have never heard of an undergraduate student publishing an international paper, so we are actually quite bad in that area. Question 2: What are the steps of actually creating and publishing a paper, which will be acknowledged as such by the top 5 US/Canadian universities? I really have no interest in research, but I'm willing to do anything to get into a decent CS Msc program. ( although many universities don't require research experience, there are some really nice ones which do ).

Hi guys I was wondering what exactly is considered a CS Research ? For example : Can an English translated Undergraduate Thesis be considered a research ? Take care, Hris.

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm gonna consider them. However since i want to apply for as much programs as possible, can please someone suggest some universities in the UK with strong CS programs. Is Cambridge, Oxford, Edinburgh a dream for a person which such profile ? Please suggest more. Regards>

Hello, mates! i'm an Informatics undergraduate student at the University of Economics, Varna, Bulgaria. I'm searching for an appropriate Masters degree program suitable for me. - I have a 85% average ( 5.10 / 6 ) - 110/120 TOEFL iBT - MCTS certificates (two) ..... 4 small certificas for completing each CCNA course ( not the actual big CCNA certificate )... several diplomas for winning certain Informatics competitions ( they are local ). - I have no international research. Won 3 out of 4 years the local "students research activities day" ( totally useless i guess ) - During the 4 years of full Bachelor study i've been working 2 years as a Network Administrator and 2 years as a .NET developer - i think i can write a strong SoP - i think i can get 2-3 LoR from not well-known professors ( there are NO well-known bulgarian CS professors ) I have NO intention in teaching or doing acaemic reasearch for now. Can you please suggest an appropriate grad program for me ? I'm thinking about Oxford or Cambridge .... but sometimes i think i'm overestimating myself A LOT . Regards.

I'm an undergraduate student in a small university in Bulgaria. Europe. I'm having a really hard time understanding some of the "admission process" in UK and other foreign universities. I want to evaluate some of my chances for some programs and I'm really puzzled about some topics since our academic practices are so different. For example lets take the University Of Oxford. I'm interested in their MSc in Computer Science program. The documents which are required with the application are as follows: 1) transcript 2) language certificate, if appropriate. 3) At least two references 4) statement of study plan 5) C.V 6) "Applicants are required to submit a personal statement demonstrating their academic ability and motivation for applying for the MSc in Computer Science. " Please help me with information regarding some of the following questions: - "Applicants are normally expected to have achieved an upper second class or first class Honours Degree (or equivalent)". Am I supposed to achieve just the minimum requirements for the specific program? In other words - student's applications are not ranked based on those requirements? Please correct me if I'm wrong. - "For TOEFL an overall score of ........ For the new internet based test we require a minimum overall score of 109.". Am I supposed to achieve just the 109 / 120 minimum requirements for the specific program? In other words - student's applications are not ranked based on those requirement? Please correct me if I'm wrong. - "At least two references". Is that one of the main requirements the student's ranking is based on? In other words - how important is that ? - "C.V." - Is that one of the main requirements the student's ranking is based on? In other words - how important is that ? - "Applicants are required to submit a personal statement demonstrating their academic ability and motivation for applying for the MSc in Computer Science." . Is that a SoP requirement? - "Statement of study plan." - I'm having a really hard time understanding what that requirement is.