hope4fall2012

A couple of professors mentioned that they would be in a conference in my home country and asked whether I would be attending. Although I'm not presenting anything, I'll be attending the conference, mainly to meet professors. the conference is in 3 weeks time. At this point of time, there have been no plans made regarding the details of meeting them. And I have no clue as to how to go about it. And what do students and professors usually talk about when they meet at conferences? What material should I take with me when I go there? I'll definitely be taking my resume and a write up of my research work, but anything else? Also, I plan to meet with 3 professors at this conference. The conference is not a big one(like AGU). Should I worry about being seen with one of the professors by the other professors. I definitely don't want to be sneaking around, but I dont want my chances at the other universities to be destroyed. I don't know whether this is a silly question, but at this stage, with no admits as yet, I'm paranoid beyond normal.

Two of my college applications have reached some kind of a roadblock. Professors have asked me whether I'm attending this particular conference in a months time and I've replied saying that I would be there and I look forward to meeting them. And the process has just halted there. And I don't know what to make of it. Am I being waitlisted here and treated as a backup option? I know that it's late in the admissions cycle to be meeting professors, but I'm an international student and the conference is a major one and is being held in my home country, so I've got to take what I can get.

Tropical Atmospheric Dynamics, Large Scale Circulation Patterns, Cloud and Precipitation Dynamics.. If at all I get accepted somewhere..

Yup..I guess so.. Within the next couple of weeks is what the past results say.. All the best!!!

I initially started out aiming to apply for 10 universities.. I was able to shortlist 15 based on broad research interests.. I then had to filter out a few because they were too ambitious.. And when I started mailing professors, few of them said they didn't have vacancies for graduate students this coming fall.. And a few of them did not reply.. At the end, I applied to 6 universities..which I feel, for my profile, is 2-3 universities too less.. But there's nothing I can do now but wait..

Princeton AOS??

Are you sure?? This waiting thing is killing me!!! I'm tempted everyday to send out emails, but hold back, consoling myself that tomorrow will bring better news..

Congratulations!!!! Nice job.. ..

I guess you still have time to send out the mails.. But you could do the groundwork needed before you send out your emails now..Read about previous and future projects and publications etc.

I had a very brief phone call with a professor before I submitted my application. It gave me a lot of perspective and other information not on the wensite, which helped me in writing my application. On a completely unrelated note, when I had the actual interview a few days back, I screwed up big time and went into a shell.

I guess the minimum amount of information that you should be thorough with before the interview are a ) Your previous research and research interests. b ) Professor/s previous research (In this case, the profs you have mentioned in your SOP I guess). c ) Know your SOP and resume (and writing samples) thoroughly. d ) Know why you are applying to that particular school and that particular department. I don't really know what kind of questions you should be asking the person who sent you the email. If the person who sent you the email is a prof, then it's likely that he is most interested in your application. So make sure you know his research prety well.

Okies..So, now how many people went infront of a mirror and covered their face withtheir hands!!!!

I know it's a bit too late..But here goes.. Undergrad Institution: Small engineering college in Bangalore, India. Undergrad institution has no impact on my app, since I'm currently doing my Masters. Master's Institution: Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore Major(s): Climate Science Minor(s): None Overall GPA: 3.6 Position in Class: Somewhere near the top Type of Student: International GRE Scores (revised version): Q: 167 V: 160 AWA: 3.5 TOEFL Total: 112 (Bad speaking score: 24) Research Experience: Master's thesis work, A year as a research assistant in the same field before Masters. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: A couple during Masters, A couple during undergrad. Nothing huge.. Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 3 years of software experience, couple of TAs during undergrad Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: None actually. Special Bonus Points: Mailed professors before hand in most applications. Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Applying to Where: a ) UC - Berkeley, EPS, Clouds and Tropical Dynamics b ) University of Miami, RSMAS, Tropical Dynamics c ) Yale University, G&G, Tropical Dynamics d ) UC - San Diego, Scripps Inst. of Oceanography, Tropical Dynamics e ) UC - Santa Cruz, EPS, Clouds f ) University of Washington, Atmos, Clouds I think this thread could be especially useful for students in the following years. I would have certainly loved something like this 6 months back..

I attended the International Summer School at the University of Exeter, UK.. It was a decent trip on the whole.. I didn't get to learn a whole lot (It was on climate change), but meeting a lot of people from different places was quite interesting.. And I got to see UK, so that was good..

I wonder how many people went and checked their spam folders after reading this!!! I definitely did..

Wonder what this is called: The fear of telling anyone other than my parents that I've even applied to grad school because I'm so uncertain of even getting a single admit.. I don't know how I'll feel if my first decision is a reject..

I don't know what the norm is, but I guess I would wait for a week and then send him a mail again.. All the best!!

It's very easy to get worried about such stuff.. But as the person above me replied, as long as you were nice enough in your reply, you should probably hear back soon..All the best..

I had a similar query.. Since some of the deadlines were early, I hadn't finished writing up my research and couldn't submit my research write-up as part of the writing sample.. I now have a decent write-up and would like to update my application.. Any idea if this is possible? If so, how should I go about doing it?? Mail the admissions contact? Or the professor I mentioned in my SOP and had prior email contact with?

Lets hope so.. .. I did have an interview with Yale..Ended up bombing it.. Should have been much better prepared.. All the best!!!

The wait definitely is a pain isn't it?? Well, atleast you have been accepted by one school, so thats a little less of a worry..

I had an informal phone call and a couple of questions I asked were a ) What re the projects I might be working on if I get elected? b ) Is there anything specific that you are looking out for in a grad student? I dont know if they were the smartest questions to ask but I was not prepared for it and I just blurted it out. But I wouldn't say that I regretted asking those questions. Definitely got some useful information.

Has anyone here heard from EPS at Berkeley? The deadlines were pretty early (Dec 21) and decisions from other departments at Berkeley have started going out. Berkeley was a reach school for me and I dont really think I stand a chance of getting in. But not knowing is really killing me.. Infact, has anyone heard from any school at all??

Congratulation!!!! Pretty cool having an interview call this early!!! But your profile is pretty much a standout I need to take this with a pinch of salt though.. I didn't get a call.. This is Yale G&G right?? Also, which professor/s are you applying to?

Thank you guys!! That was very helpful..