sunshine

Hmm. It's hard to say. I would go to the top school. The professors there are probably good, too, and I'm guessing there is a much better atmosphere. I know that for me being surrounded by good students matters almost as much as a good advisor. But then, in life you never know. Maybe it will work out great and having this profesor as a supervisor will be your chance. If you have any time at all to decide, put it aside and let it sink for a while.

Do you say this by having read their webpage, or have you actually worked with that amazing professor? If you don't, go to the better school. The name of the school does matter, especially if you go into academia. Also, it's not only your advisor, but also what options you have if your advisor leaves/gets sick/etc. And the quality of your peers - other grad students - who will make for a wonderful and inspiring, or mediocre atmosphere. Don't underestimate how important this is.

You can do a direct PhD in US. In Canada/Europe too, although it's less common.

It is very hard for someone from outside to give you advice. I would apply sooner rather than later. The application process is draining, I can tell you that. You will waste a lot of time on GREs and writing a research statement - this little essay takes several iterations, hours of editing, deleting and starting over. There is also a psychological factor - it consumed me emotionally, but that depends on the person. However, I encourage you to apply for these reasons: - Get the GREs out of the way (You have to do it anyway), it will ease the pressure later. - It will force you to think about what you really want to do. You might realize that you don't know yet what that is, but that's okay. It's better to know. - Regardless of the outcome, it will motivate you more than not applying and worrying about the future. For PhD - apply to many different places. MS - Very hard to find funding in US. Canada and some European schools(?) do give you money, that's a much better choice(!) MS will also give you a chance to publish, which is a requirement for PhD in top schools. Good luck and feel free to email me if you have other questions.

Well, you have to finish your undergraduate. First of all, do well in your courses for the remaining time in France. Start doing readings, you don't need a professor for this. If you are interested in AI - pick up the AIMA book. Go through conference proceedings - say IJCAI - it has a section on robotics (http://ijcai-09.org/technical_program.html). Read as much as you can, don't just flip superficially through the material, but also don't spend huge amounts of time if you don't get something. Think. Ask yourself questions. Have a notebook and write down notes - the model, theorems, main ideas of the proofs, and anything else that comes to your mind, even if it seems trivial at the moment. The act of writing will force you to think about the material and will clarify your thought processes (I find this true in general, not just when reading papers). Here is some nice advice on how to read a research paper: http://blizzard.cs.uwaterloo.ca/keshav/ ... eading.pdf. Finally, don't get too stuck on MIT or CMU. There is an element of randomness that you can't control in the admissions process, and it is much easier to get into these schools if you have letters of reference from professors known by the admissions committee. It is not fair, but that's how it is. Even if you don't get in for PhD, you may do a postdoc there later. Rather, set your goal to get one or two papers in top conferences before applying. This site has CS conference rankings: http://www.cs-conference-ranking.org. Even if you do all the work on your own, you will likely need the help of a prof when editing the paper for submission.

I guarantee you that the US schools *do* have correct conversion schemas (even though they are leaving us in the dark by not publishing them ). So, do not worry about that. Why are you saying MS/PhD in England/France is not for you? There are excellent schools in Europe and I hear there is much better funding than in US. I know for sure the University of Southampton, England and EPFL, Switzerland are excellent schools. The fact that they are not known overseas only means people from overseas don't know much about the rest of the world. And by the way, there are quite a few graduates from MIT and other schools in your list that ended up working as software engineers at Google. I'm not saying that's a bad outcome, but you can have a PhD from many other places, or no PhD, and still work at Google. Also, if you want to get in a good school, regardless of where it is, get a publication or two. Many strong applicants do.

Hello, I just found out that I've been accepted to Stanford's MSCS. I don't have a guarantee of financial aid, and will have to find it on my own (i.e. a prof to work with). I also understand it is 50% courses and 50% research. Does anybody know more about this program? is it a good choice? My final goal is doing a PhD. Thank you, Simina

Probably. First, it's morel likely they haven't heard of your school. Second, your profs/recommenders are likely not well known on those committees. Also it may be easier to trust someone who is closer geographically and lives in a similar environment. But that shouldn't discourage you. Most of us are international students.

If expenses are a concern, I would do my best to get a job. If not, could you find a lab/professor to do research for, be it as a volunteer? It would probably make for a much stronger application. Either way, don't stay idle.