victor.s.andrei

Your reasons are likely insufficient if you want to go into a PhD program straight out of undergrad. Why exactly do you want to get into a PhD program, much less a funded one? You can do research in industry and teach at community colleges with a strong MS, but you will need a PhD if you want to become a professor. Keep that in mind.

Why move a printer? Just find the one you want on Amazon, sign up for the free Amazon Prime student membership, and have it shipped to you for $3.99 overnight (or less for two-day). I personally use a Samsung ML3312ND black-and-white laser printer with duplexer and Ethernet...usually runs about $100-$125.

Sorry for bringing up an old thread, but I finally saw your comment. Thank you for vindicating my comment - which drew a few negative points from people here.

Uh huh. Sure. http://ask.slashdot.org/story/13/01/06/1649232/ask-slashdot-advice-for-getting-tech-career-back-on-track "After the dotcom bubble burst so long ago,when tech jobs were so scarce, I went back to school and finished my PhD in Physics. They lied — there really is no shortage of scientists. Before the downturn I was a product manager for home networking equipment. Since getting the degree I have been program/project manager for small DoD and NASA instrumentation programs. I desperately want back into network equipment product management, but my networking tech skills aren't up to date. I find networking technology absolutely trivial and have been retraining on my own, but hiring managers see the gap and the PhD and run screaming. I'm more than willing to start over in network admin but can't even get considered for that. Suggestions?"

Yes. It does help. Make sure you discuss your experience in your SOP and how it - plus your degree program - would help you further your career goals.

2.3 is a very low GPA. Take the GRE. Do well. Sign up for non-degree status in the master's degree program. Take core classes. Do well. I'm more concerned with your LORs and SOP at this point. With that low a GPA, you probably don't have LORs from undergraduate, so you will have to get them from non-degree graduate. Good luck.

All of your stats are fine. Your GPA is not mediocre. Good luck with your master's applications.

Penn State has a few sample letters of recommendation: https://www.e-education.psu.edu/writingrecommendationlettersonline/node/154

This depends on what sort of engineering program you are thinking about. EE...you probably will need physics and chemistry. Systems Engineering...you might make for an interesting candidate straight up. CS...that's a toss up.

You are correct: a master's degree is better to have than a second bachelor's degree. As for funding, once you find a good employer with sufficient tuition assistance, you're set.

Manhandled, LOL.

1. Your GRE quantitative score is a bit low. 2. Please translate your CGPA into the U.S. 4.0 grading scale, if you are planning to apply to a U.S. university.

Depends. If you're in technology or engineering, there are plenty of companies here that offer paid internships. Not sure about other fields, though.

Common first semester experience. Did you try petitioning for a medical incomplete? There's another poster here who said you should finish. I agree with that poster. Don't quit now.

Maegan, I don't live in Philly, but I have friends there (including one in the Library and Info Science program at Drexel) and every time I've been up there, I've had a ton of fun, so I'm sure you will too, especially if you are planning on staying close in. After all, you're in the middle of everything: 2 hours to NY and DC, a flight away from Boston (and most major cities, for that matter - flights out of PHL are less expensive than IAD/DCA, where I am). Good luck with your move!

If I were you, I would not look down on the "simple programmer" - a lot of those folks actually do the stuff that makes this world run. A Ph.D. will open up some doors - like at research labs - and close other doors. Just be careful and know what you're getting yourself into.

Lots of times the best graduate programs in a particular field are not at the "name brand" schools. Do not go by the reputation of the overall school. Go by the reputation of the program that you want to attend. By the numbers, I think you have a chance, but if you don't have a good reason for applying - that's reflected in your letters of recommendation and your goal statement essay - you will get turned down.

What school did you attend? Your profile looks fine. Your ability to pay with employer tuition assistance might boost your chances a bit. Keep in mind that for UMd. College Park, I would bet that your chances will improve if you take a few non-degree graduate classes there and get a recommendation from a professor there.

Write a research paper and send it in with your application as a writing sample.

1. Low GPA due to intense technical courses is more tolerable than a high GPA filled with fluffy courses. 2. You are in Ann Arbor...at the University of Michigan, right? Your GPA will be weighted by the quality of the school you attended. 3. UVa.'s CS department told us undergraduates that the CS GRE is a really tough test and many people don't do terribly well. You should include the score in your application, but know that it probably won't help too much. If you want to compensate for an undergraduate GPA on the lower side, take graduate courses in non-degree status at your target university.

Be careful. Having a Ph.D. can hurt your employability outside of academia.

Your AW score is a bit weak, but then again, the AW part of the GRE is garbage anyways.

1. Your GPA is fine, especially considering that you are in EE. 2. McGill is a known university here in the States with a good reputation. 3. Get research experience now. Make sure you write an undergraduate thesis if that's part of your program. 4. When you pick a graduate program, pick based on which one supports your research interests. UT Austin has a great social scene - which may matter to you - but if the research there doesn't fit with what you want to do, no dice.

The state in which you reside will impact your choices. If you live in Virginia, George Mason's CS program is a winner, hands down, or the following reasons: 1. Tuition and fees are relatively inexpensive at $578.75 plus a $12.00 course fee, per credit hour. Many students take advantage of their employers' tuition assistance programs - which are tax free and hopefully will remain so, unless Congress fails to get its act together on the future of the 2001 tax legislation. 2. George Mason is part of the Consortium, which allows George Mason students to take up to six graduate credit hours at other Consortium universities (like GWU, Maryland, Georgetown, American, and so forth) while paying George Mason tuition and fee rates. George Mason students can also access Consortium libraries. 3. George Mason's CS program is actually quite good - and I speak from having taken several CS classes at George Mason before switching to CpE. That said, if you live in Maryland, apply to Maryland - specifically, the College Park campus. If you are uncomfortable applying directly to the degree program, then apply to take classes as a non-degree student. Your GRE scores and grades will let you in just fine. After you have taken a few courses, apply to the degree program. I did not apply to GW due to the cost. Tuition ranges from $885 per credit hour to $1,310 per credit hour at the Science and Technology campus here in Ashburn. Also keep in mind that you can obtain a CS graduate degree from Virginia Tech at its Northern Virginia Center in Falls Church. You may also want to look into an online MSCS from Colorado State or the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The latter is a top 10 institution. Note that these last two programs are terminal master's degrees, so if you are eventually looking to get a Ph.D., that part may impact your choice of program.

As my undergraduate advisor once told me, go get a cup of coffee, take a walk, and then come back and go back to work. Or, my version: take a break for a day. Spend an afternoon at your nearest national park. Do something other than school. Then, when you return, make a list of everything you need to get to the end of the semester, and start working again.