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InquilineKea

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Posts posted by InquilineKea

    Is adviser funding more important in the geosciences than it is in other fields?

    in Earth Sciences Forum

    Posted

    See https://www.quora.com/Academia/Why-are-professors-often-unable-to-take-on-new-students-if-they-dont-have-grant-funding-for-the-student-*even*-if-the-student-might-have-the-option-to-TA-their-way-through-graduate-school

     

    But the discussion is mostly veered towards other fields, where students are often expected to TA starting from the first year on (and where the student body is usually more homogeneized, so a student can fit under multiple advisers).

     

    But I've had a completely different impression from emailing advisers in the geosciences. in the geosciences, it often seemed like if a professor doesn't have the funding - they simply can't take me, period. I didn't insist on asking about possible TA positions though (though the geosciences are also complicated in that many people majored in things other than the geosciences, and there also aren't that many undergrad classes to TA).

     

    It also doesn't seem to matter how strong the student seems to be. When I emailed professors, lack of funding seemed to be an especially prevalent issue at the state universities, but not at the top private universities (even though an applicant is less likely to be a "top" student at a top private university).

     

    So i'm wondering - do you disagree with the answers to the Quora question I posted above? And do you see things in a similar way or in a different way from how I see it?

    2013 Applicant Profiles and Admission Results

    in Earth Sciences Forum

    Posted

    Wow.. Caltech sent out decisions already? I was hoping it'd be next week. So no hope for those who haven't heard anything yet? Tear tear...

    And I was wondering, how likely is it that someone who got Yale's open house invitation (expenses covered) actually gets admitted? Does everyone get invited just because Yale has interviews or is it really a "likely admit" thing?

     

    Around 2/3 of those who get invited get in. I got invited last year but didn't get in last year (and it was due to research fit/funding issues - there was really only adviser there who I could work with, and he didn't have the funding for the type of project I had in mind). Although I *really* could have tried broadening myself out (which I sadly didn't since last year I was so certain that I was going to go to another school...). 

    2013 Applicant Profiles and Admission Results

    in Earth Sciences Forum

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    Your advisers encourage you to apply for other programs?

    Sounds incredible

     

    Mostly research funding/fit issues (my advisers don't have the funding for the research problems that I'm interested in), and the fact that I have both Asperger's Syndrome and ADD, which makes things a lot more unpredictable. The funding issues might be solved by NSF/NDSEG/DOE CSGF, but I'll have to wait until April to find out about those.

    2013 Applicant Profiles and Admission Results

    in Earth Sciences Forum

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    Well, the first Penn State admissions committee meeting will be on January 15th (I know since the prof I'm interested in [who I have near-perfect research fit with] told me that he looked at my app and said he said that he's interested in taking me).

     

    It would be difficult to convince me to leave Brown, but at least I'll visit.

     

    I also know that historically, different schools have different timelines. Yale invites people for visits insanely early. Harvard does much of its stuff in January/early February. Caltech is entirely done by late January. Most of the state schools, MIT, and Columbia seem to read apps/make decisions later.

     

    ==

     

    My site is also getting a lot of logs from Princeton AOS (which I decided to apply for at the last minute)

    DOE CSGF

    in The Bank

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    Thanks for the reply again. :) How many courses did you list in your "Other Planned Courses", by the way?

     

    Also - do you think this course below could count under Applied Math? (from http://www.dam.brown.edu/courses/ )

     

     

    APMA 2580. Computational Fluid Dynamics
    An introduction to computational fluid dynamics with emphasis on incompressible flows. Reviews the basic discretization methods (finite differences and finite volumes) following a pedagogical approach from basic operators to the Navier-Stokes equations. Suitable for first-year graduate students, more advanced students, and senior undergraduates. Requirements include three to four computer projects. Material from APMA 1170 and APMA 1180 is appropriate as prerequisite, but no prior knowledge of fluid dynamics is necessary. 

     

    I'm not counting Fluid Dynamics as an Applied Math course per your advice, but one of my advisers is suggesting that I list Computational Fluid Dynamics as an Applied Math one (even after I told him about the standards they expect of the Applied Math courses). Maybe the "basic discretization" methods count as Applied Math?

     

    ==

     

    Also - if you have past research that did not lead to a publication, then do you pretty much have to refrain from mentioning it? Or can I actually list them as extracurricular activities?

     

    Of course, some professors might write LORs about your research experience but you can't be certain about that.

     

    ==

     

    Here are my essays, for anyone to proofread/comment on: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NtwDK2B8kFYfN6beoDSDIT5poUqr5NMdM6KXHgqWLB8/edit . Due tomorrow at 7 PM EST/4 PM PST.

    DOE CSGF

    in The Bank

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    Also - when I'm trying to describe my courses, as shown below...

     

     

    Course description Required Please do not use URLs. (Max characters is 800,  ) 

     

    Is it okay if I simply copy the course description from the course catalog?

     

    ==

     

    Also, how important is it when I list "other planned courses" in my list of courses? The one thing with my school is that it doesn't offer that much coursework in my specialty, so I would have to go over to Harvard/MIT to take more courses in atmospheric science. Would they be okay with my taking courses at other institutions? (there is somewhat more friction with that though, and the course plan may not be believable since I would be even less certain about the course availability)

    DOE CSGF

    in The Bank

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    Also - regarding the course plans - is it okay if I take most of the CS/Applied Math courses in, say, my 3rd year of grad school? Or my 4th year if I'm a current 1st-year student who is applying?

     

    As a side question - what would happen if I actually dropped or failed one of the courses in my POS?

    DOE CSGF

    in The Bank

    Posted

    Could anyone be willing to share their personal copies of the short essays that they wrote for the DOE CSGF? I've never seen any sample essays yet, and all 4 DOE CSGF people I emailed didn't reply to my emails. :(

    DOE CSGF

    in The Bank

    Posted

    Thanks so much for the excellent responses, intirb! :)

     

    Regarding the question that you requested an image of - here is the image (that's where I'm getting the issue between department and academic discipline):

     

    HF45P.jpg

    NDSEG Fellowship 2012-2013

    in The Bank

    Posted

    I just decided to go out and list the name of the department head or the department secretary - depending on which one of them knew me better.

    ==

    Okay - so now that we've submitted our NDSEG apps - does anyone know how we can get a downloadable copy of everything we've sent it? I know that some people got downloadable copies of their "past research" statements.

    DOE CSGF

    in The Bank

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    So the "Additional Comments" section has space for 2400 characters... Would it be a good idea to fill that all out, given that all the other boxes have stringent character limits?

    Also, what is the difference between "Department" and "Academic Discipline" on Higher Educational History?

    Regarding the program of study - are you really expected to follow what you've planned? There are so many changes in course plans that can happen (new courses being announced, a course not being taught anymore) that I'm not sure if it's all that realistic, especially given that grad-lvl courses tend to be more "volatile" in their availability than UG-lvl ones..

    ==

    Also - do they expect "Mathematics & Statistics" courses or "Applied Math" courses? The "Program of Study Requirements" says "Applied Math", while the main form says "Mathematics & Statistics"... Does "Fluid Dynamics" count as "Applied Math" if it's offered under an Applied Math dept?

    ==

    Is it possible to transfer schools while under the CSGF?

    NSF GRFP 2012-2013

    in The Bank

    Posted

    Okay cool.

    How much would a few grammatical errors, missing periods, or incomplete sentences hurt an application? Have people won with those errors? Obviously - too many is BAD, but sometimes they pop up even after proofreading.

    Also - how bad is it if I don't list my GPA? Obviously it will be contained in my transcript anyways but it's not a required field and my GPA is embarrassing so I didn't list it.

    NSF GRFP 2012-2013

    in The Bank

    Posted · Edited by InquilineKea

    I got a weird warning message saying that my education experience (1st year of grad school) might conflict with the number of graduate credits I accumulated at my institution (0). Is this cause for concern? I accumulated 0 credits so far, but somehow it thinks that there is still some conflict...

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