was1984

More or less... but the type of engineering I wanted to do required a more informed decision. As a kid I wanted to build bridges and stuff like that.

Do stuff that you enjoy doing instead of just going to a gym. I stay extremely physically fit and I haven't lifted weights in years. There is so much fun stuff that you can do to stay fit, why make it boring?

PODS are overpriced. There is a moving company called ABF which has a similar product (U-pack) for much cheaper. As a point of reference, I have reserved one of these for my upcoming move from Salt Lake City to Seattle (around 900 miles) for 800 bucks. Uhaul and other truck companies quote me prices around $1000 to rent a truck for this trip, and that doesn't include fuel. It's still going to be expensive to move cross country, but I'd have a look at U-pack. It's about half what PODS wanted for the same move. http://www.upack.com

gtmshine here is proof that plenty of dumbasses get into even places like Stanford. Get over yourself dude.

Wachovia was purchased by Wells Fargo, so you can use a Wells Fargo if you already have a Wachovia account.

This is a tough choice... I'm in analog circuits too and I'd hate to make this decision. I think for me it would come down to which of the faculty had the most interesting research to me. I'd agree UCLA has a slight leg up reputation wise in analog circuits, but both are very strong programs and I don't really think there is a significant difference in reputation. If you're going to be working with Razavi, I'd go to UCLA.

The inability of people to use deductive reasoning to make these decisions is astonishing. It's especially scary to consider that these people should already have a 4 year degree in engineering that trains them to think critically and make decisions.

Choose between the schools you are accepted to, and notify the schools that you don't want to attend. Wait until you receive all decisions to notify the school that you have decided to accept. Obviously you have to decide by April 15th, and if Berkeley doesn't notify you by then, you have to accept your other offer. If Berkeley doesn't respond until late April, you can't back out of a decision after April 15th without burning a lot of bridges and looking bad. That's the way it is. At this point you are probably on an unofficial waitlist at Berkeley if you haven't heard back. I'd email or call them to ask your status.

I'd focus more on a theoretical understanding of computer science than on which programming language to use. You can get a basic grasp of some of the more important algorithms pretty quickly. Concepts can easily be translated from one programming language to the next, but without those concepts you will always write crappy code in whatever language you choose.

Fit.

The city is pretty bike friendly, but I don't think it would be particularly pleasant during the winter, and it's probably more than a little bit dangerous on some days. You'd probably want to ride the bus in the winter.

My understanding is that it's hard to get funding before you pass quals.

[quote name=hello! ' timestamp='1301190638' post='232576] No need to feel bad for her. My prediction is that she will survive just fine. There are plenty of other states in the USA that will be more than happy to welcome her, unfortunately.

I haven't lived in Austin for a couple of years, so I'm a little out of date. Someone else will have to address this.

Far West is the way to go. Alternatively, look further up Speedway around 38th 1/2 or 45th. There's a bus that goes up there too, and some less pricy apartments.

Excited on your behalf!

Agreed! I hadn't spent much time there before my visit days, and I absolutely fell in love with the city.

I'm a masters student currently in transition to a PhD, and I've been doing 'real' research for the past two years. I absolutely love my work. After spending the past 2 years making $20,000 a year doing what I have been, and continuing to make nearly 4 times that much a year in industry like I did the previous two, I find that the last two years have been -far- more fulfilling. I would have done the same thing even if there were no 'degree' at the end of the road. That's why I'm pursuing a PhD.

I was pleasantly surprised by the variety of ethnic food choices in SLC. Mormons come from all over the world to live in SLC and bring their food with them, so there is actually a lot of variety. I can't speak to organic/vegetarian stuff because I don't seek that sort of food out. There are enough progressive people here that I'm sure that there's at least a decent selection.

I have a dog, so I'm looking for a room in a house for around $500 a month or so. What neighborhoods are within 5-6 miles of the University (I'll be cycling to school) where I could find something like this? I'd ideally like a place with a decent sized back yard but that doesn't feel *too* suburban, if you know what I mean.

I didn't realize Ga Tech has a large easy to join M.S. program. In any case, they seem about equal. Stanford definitely has a reputation for having a relatively easy to join M.S. degree, so that was my point. Take the money. Getting an M.S. degree from the same school isn't a big deal, though I'd never do it for a Ph.D.

This is a no brainer to me. Go to Georgia Tech. In my mind, an M.S. from Georgia Tech is much more prestigious than an M.S. from Stanford, because it is much more selective. Plus, you can do a thesis which is a more prestigious degree option. The only way I'd even think about going to Stanford in your situation is if your other admit was from a school that wasn't in the top 20, and even then I'd probably still go the other way. Congrats on Georgia Tech and enjoy your time there!

At this point, sure. A month ago would have been too soon.

Officially accepted my offer today...so it looks like I'm going to be a Husky. Now I can be excited about UW winning the Pac-10!

Thanks for clarifying. I wasn't trying to imply that you can't make Mormon friends. They are great people, and are likely to invite you to do things with them. However, in my experience it's harder to develop really good, deep friendships with Mormons. This is partly because most Mormon grad students are already married, partly because they have a built in network of friends at church, and partly because of differing world views. You'll have no shortage of things to do, right away, if you come here. If you don't like to be outside, though, you'll find that most of the things people will invite you to do take place outside. That was really my point.