ktel

I'm not sure how American student loans function, but I know in Canada you qualify for more loans if you have dependents (aka a wife and/or children). If you want to be a teacher/professor, why pursue a Master's and not a PhD? Master's degrees in the States are typically unfunded, but PhDs have funding most of the time.

Some of the profs I e-mailed didn't respond, but when I went to their office they were more than happy to talk to me (for a long time too, and they offered me spots in their lab). So I would e-mail first then go in if they don't e-mail back

I'm doing an 18-20 month Master's degree, and there is so much information to digest about the field I'm into it would take me a lot longer to find a hole in the research than it would for my supervisor to give me a starting point. Obviously my topic will evolve as I start doing more focused lit review and initial tests, but I definitely need a push in the right direction given the time crunch and the fact that my undergrad was very broad.

To add to this, does anyone have examples of significant academic accomplishments that they used? I've included my two research assistantships but not sure if anything else I've done counts. I did a research project that was fairly interesting, but it was part of an elective that went towards my degree requirements. Same with a cool final design project (although I'm mentioning this in my Statement of Interest)

^ Yes, that is customary. I am a month and a bit into my Master's and still waiting for my adviser to give me a topic. It has to integrate well with the mandate he has for his research and with the research that other students are doing.

I don't know, you will probably want to contact specific schools/professors and ask.

Ask the schools, but most outline pretty clearly what their requirements are. You should be able to find it on their website.

You don't mention whether your thermo prof would write a strong letter. If it's just a "did well in class" letter, that's not going to be very good. Since prof © is going to let you write the letter, you have more control over it, which is a positive. I would try to avoid going with the HR person from your company. You may want a PhD in robotics, but that doesn't mean all your letters have to come from robotics people. It would be expected that you've taken more than just robotics courses in your undergrad.

Full funding is the norm for an MS in Canada though...

Your GPA is right on the cusp of the minimum requirement for some schools. Your GRE scores are good, and you seem to have good research experience (I don't think not having a publication is a big deal, because it can take a long time to get a publication). All you can do is try and see. We really don't know that much about the admissions process. Just because some of us are in grad school doesn't make the process any more clear to us.

Sigh...people expect instant responses these days. Two days is nothing, give him some time.

That gives you an indication of how much we really know about the admissions process. You're not stupid, you know your stats look good, what else is there to say?

In the States, typically PhD programs are more funded or more often funded than Master's programs, but there are funded Master's programs. In Canada most Master's programs are funded, as are PhD programs.

The norm is that they are sealed with a signature across the seal. That's what we mean by sealed.

Just because you waive your right to see them, doesn't mean you're not allowed to see them. You're waiving your right to look at them in your file at that school. If the professor who writes the letter for you chooses to show the letter to you, that doesn't affect waiving your right to see them in your file.

^ I can almost guarantee that they won't be accepted if you scan them yourself. There's a certain anonymity that is expected for these letters, and that wouldn't be certain if you've opened them, scanned them and then e-mailed them. Why are you so set on never contacting your recommenders again? It wouldn't be particularly difficult for them to upload the letter online.

My boyfriend did an M.Eng. in Engineering Management. He did this to give him a leg up in the company he works for. He's slightly more experienced and qualified, so can get paid a little more and has a few more credentials to make himself stand out. Similarly I see a lot of M.Eng. students in Aerospace Engineering, because it's a more specialized field and the knowledge you get in undergrad isn't enough to get you into the industry. It's double the credits of an M.S. because you don't do a research thesis, although you may do some sort of final project, but it's course-based only.

A PhD takes longer than that, trust me. I started university when I was 17 and will be 23 when I get my M.S. A PhD easily takes 4-5 years.

^ Don't listen to me? You're a 16-year-old who has no experience with any of this. I have researched MIT's program and know for a fact that they require a Master's first, which is unlike most other American programs. Also a PhD takes 4-5 years...

I see. While his behavior is somewhat rude, some professors are EXTREMELY busy in the summer travelling to conferences and whatnot. I would recommend you try to arrange a meeting now that school is back in.

You can get into a PhD program straight out of undergrad. Otherwise if you don't do that, and you go into a Master's, you will need an M.S. to then go into a PhD program and do research. An MBA and an engineering degree can be a good combination, but the quality of the MBA depends greatly on the school you get it from, and can be quite expensive. An M.Eng. is a very practical degree oriented towards giving you more specialized knowledge to take into the workforce. It's difficult to judge which degree would be more lucrative, as you could be very successful in the business world without any type of business degree.

We had a similar budget discussion in another thread, and there were always the "cut out fun stuff" arguments. This is totally doable for some people, not so doable for me. So much of my social life involves going out for beers or food that it would make hanging out with people difficult for me. Plus a dinner out once in a while is amazing. I just had the yummiest cheesiest gnocchi. I also have the lucky situation where if I can't afford going out for dinner this month, my boyfriend can afford to take me.

One ignored email is nothing, be persistent! But not obnoxiously persistent. There's a subtle line. Some professors, in my experience, are notoriously absent minded, but not intentionally so.

CrazyRedHead perhaps doesn't realize what postgraduate work in engineering is like. It certainly isn't about completing classes only, and research and completing a thesis is completely necessary to get an MSc/MASc or PhD in engineering. While it is more applied, it is still very rooted in theoretical science, and independent research is done in engineering postgraduate study. It isn't necessarily easier or more difficult than a science postgraduate degree.

One of my classes is extremely relevant to my research, so I obviously put a lot of effort in, as it's important I know the material very well in order to have a strong background. The other not so much, and I think the professor realizes that it's not relevant to most of the students (it's in his research area, and he is retiring soon so only has one student). For our assignments we only get marked on the questions we want to do - we can do as little or as much as we want. A lot of the federal and provincial government money depends on having at least an A- average, so in that sense the grades are important. However, I get the impression that grades in grad school tend to be higher and less spread out, so everyone getting As isn't uncommon.