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I feel like emailing someone higher up or maybe someone in the department I applied to. It's going to seem like I applied late. There are actually a number of problems I ran into with this school besides this. I fear though making waves won't help my chances. I'm probably going to ask them move my application to next year (second times a charm?) because I don't have a good feeling about my remaining applications.

I applied to a certain school, had all my stuff submitted by the deadline in January. Called the admissions office up a week after the deadline to make sure they had all my stuff. They said it was too soon, they needed a couple weeks to process my materials. They said they would call me if I was missing anything. I didn't hear anything, so I figured everything was ok. I called admissions again today because I noticed some people were receiving admits and rejects. Guess what? There was some an error on their end and my application was not marked as complete even though I submitted everything. They told me they would would fix it now. Problem is the department has probably given out all their admits at this point. This school wasn't my last chance, I still have other applications pending, but I thought it was my best fit and best chance. Feel like I'm going to be sick

One of the schools I was looking at asked for a research statement in addition to a statement of purpose. After many sleepless nights I think I have a nice SOP. Now I'm moving onto the research statement. To me, a "research statement" sounded like something would only be a paragraph or two. I was getting happy thinking I was just about done and I could bang out a paragraph or two about my research interests in a day. Wrong! I started looking at sample research statements and I'm blown away. These are like publishable papers with sources and illustrations. Is this something higher tier schools do to weed out people? This was my far reach school, I don't think I'm going to bother applying now. I'm sure I could write something of similar quality, just not in time for the deadline.I need to have my application and materials submitted within the next week for my recommenders. Should I just say f* it and submit my short research statement or should I not even waste my money? Seeing these research statements also has me doubting my SOP. The sample SOP's I was looking at did not go into extreme detail about research interests. They were more about personal history and reasons for pursuing the degree. I only have a two paragraphs about my research interests in my SOP and after reading these research statements, my research interests stated in my SOP sound vague.

I found the opposite. Now doesn't seem to be a good time. I tried contacting two professors this month, only to be hit back with auto responses that say they are out until fall classes start. It's been a couple weeks too and they haven't answered back. I'm betting they do check their email, but are only responding to urgent messages. Or maybe I'm annoying and they're ignoring me It probably depends if the person you contact is employed year round or not.

I notice most PhD programs have a minimum requirement of a 3.5 graduate GPA and 1200 GRE. Some though have lower minimums of 1000 or 1100 on the GRE and a 3.0 or so GPA. Ignoring fit, would it be safe to assume the programs with lower minimums are slightly easier to get into? Also I notice some only accept applications for fall while some accept applications during spring and summer. Again are the ones that accept applications year round in more need of students?

I went to the same school for my bachelor's and master's for the same reason (cost). I don't regret my decision. There wasn't, however, a big difference between my other options. Your decision is more difficult.

I know it's not uncommon to get a MS and PhD from the same school, except those people usually have a BS from somewhere else. I do plan on applying to several other places besides USC and NJIT, but my application isn't strong and I know my chances aren't good. USC and NJIT are my most realistic options.

noodles, I'm curious what kind of course were you taking a non-degree student? Was this something one on one with the professor? I've never met with a professor just for a normal class before the class even started.

Thanks. I do like SC. I'm going to visit NJIT in two months. Maybe a tour will help me solidify my decision. I must confess, nothing is official yet with either school. I just have an extremely strong suspicion this is how my acceptances will work out. I'm friendly with a professor at SC and said they will back me. I've had conversations with a professor at NJIT, I'm pretty sure I'll be offered there too. I'm applying elsewhere, but I don't like my chances anywhere near as much. Now what if I only get into SC? Is it even worth the time and money? Obviously that would kill my goals in research, but I do have another career path in mind that I think I would equally enjoy . I'd hate to spend five years, only to regret my choice and have few new opportunities open up.

I'm having trouble choosing between University of South Carolina (SC) and NJIT. I think I'd be a good fit a both, do similar research at both, and receive funding at both. The problem is I already have two degrees from the same department at SC and I heard having three degrees from the same place is frowned upon. SC isn't a huge name, but I feel it's more recognized than NJIT. I see "name brands" are a hot topic here, so I hope this doesn't turn into one of those discussions. Currently I'm leaning towards NJIT just to vary my experience.

The Powerprep software is great. It's just like taking the real test and the score is very close. I took a Princeton Review class and they had their own test prep software online. The questions were similar, but the presentation was completely different. The Powerprep software is far better for preparing because it gets you used to the horrible, 1990's interface.