TakeruK

I think most people just need to take the GRE once. Taking it multiple times is what ETS wants from you to get more money. Prepare appropriately and one test is enough. Also, unless you are applying to rolling admission programs, it doesn't matter if you submit your application 1 month early or 1 minute before the deadline.

Predoctoral means prior-to-getting-your-doctorate, so predoctoral fellowships are for current graduate students. (Unless this is one of those weird English things where Americans and Canadians and the UK all have separate meanings )

I think this is a good third letter and you should just ask her to meet with you to talk about grad school. Ask her for advice and her thoughts too, not just for a letter because it sounds like this person could be a good source of advice for you too!

This is very very good advice!!! --- Also, as much I don't like being the negative one, I think the truth is that age will be a factor in your admission decision. Whether it's fair or not and whether we want to believe it or not, an applicant's age will probably be something that the admission committees will think about (maybe only internally, in their own heads, maybe discussed amongst the group). However, I agree that age is not necessarily a negative factor and that there are lots of positives that come with age (as others said above). I don't think any good candidate will be rejected because of their age. But I do think it's naive to think that the admission committees will be "age-blind" in their decision.

You don't have to print anything. I keep most of the information on my phone. I save the emails as a PDF, put it in my Dropbox, and "favourite" it in my Dropbox app so that it is accessible offline. I have a folder in my Dropbox for all of my travel confirmations such as flight, car rental, and hotel confirmations. I unfavourite files after a trip so only relevant ones show up on my phone. Personally, I also like to print the itinerary because it is handy to have when traveling. Sometimes, while traveling, I need to do something on my phone (e.g. checking into my flight on my phone app, or call someone and tell them my flight info, or try to book a shuttle on my phone and needing my flight arrival time) so having a paper copy to refer to while using the phone is helpful. I'm also a little paranoid and would rather take the 2 minutes in my office to print out a paper. If you don't have room for lots of printed stuff, then just write down the booking confirmation somewhere, because that's the most useful and most requested part. If you want a boarding pass, that's the number you usually enter into the machine as well (sometimes they can look it up if you scan the credit card used to make the purchase but you might not have that with you).

I think the Quant section can be tough for people who know more advanced math and don't think about the concepts tested in the GRE anymore. This is why you'll see lots of physics majors, who certainly know a lot more math than the GRE tests without perfect scores! There are also some obscure stuff on there--in my real GRE Q test, there was a question that I could not get so I literally had to just guess at the very last second. My advice would be to just do as many practice questions in as much depth as you can. Read the solutions carefully, even if you got the questions right. You will learn a lot from the questions you got wrong but you might also learn a different way to approach/think about the question. Sometimes when people are preparing for the GRE, they are just racing through as many practice problems as they can and move on as soon as they know they got the right answer. I still time myself during a practice section to make sure I can solve them fast enough. But then, instead of moving onto the next one right away, I'd analyze the questions and their solutions. I ask myself "What is ETS trying to test for here?" and look at the logic behind the solution. I try to incorporate these approaches into my problem solving toolbox. I try to understand what ETS is testing for so that when I see a different question, I can recognize that it's that same concept again, but presented in a different way. Finally, the GRE Q is not really about computational ability, but numerical reasoning/logic. Just like the GRE V isn't really about how many different obscure words you know, it's about testing your ability to process and understand written text. Of course, knowing basic math and having a large vocabulary will help you get a good score, but I think to get an excellent score (what you're aiming for), try to spend time understanding the test, not just the material.

Not in your field, but something true for Canadians (and other international students) applying in almost every field: private schools accept more international students than public schools. Mostly because tuition at public schools is a lot higher for non-Americans but everyone is expensive at private schools. Schools in the University of California system (UCLA, UC Berkeley especially) are very popular with international students and very competitive. I applied to a few UC schools and got rejected from all of them yet "higher ranked" private schools did accept me. Also, most Canadians I know only apply to top US schools, unless they have other reasons they want to be in the US, because it's only worth the trouble of moving countries etc. if you're going to get an opportunity you can't get in Canada! So, for an international student, there may be extra reasons to choose a top tier schools (but not all top tier schools are private schools, so personally, I would ensure my list is private-school heavy).

The only "required" documents are your passport, your visa, and your valid* I-20 or DS-2019 as proof of status. However, admittance to the US (or most countries really) happen at the discretion of the border agent. The border agent can deny you entry if they have a reason to suspect your documents, so most of the advice is, when you are entering for the first time, to bring all of that with you. You would only have to go through this if they decide they want to see a lot more or if you get a secondary screening. (*valid I-20 or DS-2019 means you need to have an authorization signature on this form within the last year from your school if you are re-entering the US) I have never had to show any additional documents besides my passport and DS-2019 (no visas for Canadians). After the Boston Marathon terrorist attack, it seemed like the border became a lot stricter for international students and my school notified us that we might be more likely to be selected for secondary screening. They also suggested that it would be a good idea, but not required, to carry a copy of a letter from the Registrar stating that we are a registered student. They did not recommend carrying additional documents though, especially if there is a risk you would lose them. They have also informed us (in general, not just for the above incident) that if you are missing something that they want, it does not mean that you will be denied entry. For example, if you lost your I-20 or DS-2019 while traveling (or forgot to get an updated signature), they might still let you enter but require you to submit a copy to DHS within 30 days. So, this might happen if they wanted to see some of the non-"required" documents but you don't have them. (Of course, another alternative is that they simply deny you entry untii you can get the right paperwork). Finally, for things like the financial documents, I would bring them with me for the first entry to the US. I don't know about you but I would want to keep those kind of documents with my current address, not in my home country. So, since I would be taking them with me when I first moved, I just made sure they were in my carry on bag instead of checked luggage so that I can get to them at customs. I don't bring extra documents other than for the first trip though.

Right, it's just that most airports call the whole process "Immigration" and/or have signs that say "Immigration" as a shorthand for Customs, Border Control & Immigration etc. Definitely make it clear to the border agent that you are not immigrating and be sure to say that you are entering on an F-1 (or J-1) status and provide documentation. But for airport logistics, the signs might say Immigration for short.

You have more or equal research experience than most North American undergraduate students. You have comparable experience to the majority of students with some research experience so I would not worry about that. Also, it is fine and very normal for non-Americans to apply to American PhD programs at the start of your 1 year Masters. You won't be the first student applying from a UK MSc program You should try to get at least one good reference from your MSc program by the time you apply. The difference between an application from you and someone in a 2 year MSc program (like me) is that the application will be weighted more on your 3rd and 4th years of your undergraduate degree instead of your final year of undergraduate and your first year of Masters (for direct-to-PhD American students, the weight is mostly on the third year of undergraduate). I defended my MSc thesis, submitted requested revisions and moved to the US all within 7-10 days. So it's not a big deal, but it would help to plan ahead (was very busy during the MSc thesis writing part), so I just set aside a set number of hours per week to slowly pack my things in the month leading up to the move.

1. In theory, you can study the airport maps. In reality, you will be jet lagged and super tired. I've never been to JFK but in every instance where I cross borders on a flight, the airport security is very good at making sure you do not escape without going through customs/immigration. Once you get off the plane, you should just follow the crowd of people and the signs for immigration/border/customs because there will be only one route. They close off all the side doors. Right after immigration, there is almost always a giant wall of screens showing the connecting flight information and some kind of airport map. Find out the connecting info (if you don't already know it ahead of time, it will depend on how early your flight to JFK left) and use the map to get to the right place. For many airlines, when you are on the plane, they have a magazine/booklet in the seat pocket and in the back of this magazine, they often have airport layouts for major airports, such as JFK. So, if you are bored on the plane, you can take a look at that too. 2. They are a reputable and decent airline. You can find tons of negative reviews about them online but people hate airlines in general and like to complain about airlines so this will be true for pretty much every airline.

Yes, some schools will consider postdocs as "advanced students on practical training" while others consider them as employees. MITACS in Canada did a survey of Canadian postdocs and one of the big questions is how their school classified them. The majority are employees, treated more like staff and faculty, but there are some places that consider them in the same class of people as graduate students. It also varies on field. But either class can be considered for preference in admissions for their children. Employee benefits may include these preferences. So just because you aren't a "student" doesn't mean that you can't get benefits for your children. However, most employee benefits are only valid while you're an employee there, not "legacy". In any case though, if you wonder this about a particular school, you should just check their policies. I think it will vary a lot from place to place. But if you are planning for future children, if you don't already have close-to-college aged children now, keep in mind that admissions/legacy policies can change over decades and your children might not even be interested in the opportunity!

When you make the purchase online, you usually get a reservation/purchase confirmation within minutes via email. However, you are right that the ticket does not get issued right away and can actually take up to 24 hours. The initial confirmation email says "THIS IS NOT A TICKET" clearly. It may depend on which airlines you use, but I usually get another email anywhere between 1 to 12 hours after my purchase with an actual ticket. If you have a eticket number, then you have a ticket. If you cannot find this number, then probably best to call them and confirm it (and write down the number) and/or log into your online account and see if it's there, as rising_star suggested.

Sorry, it was just a joking comment! Definitely should depend on each person. Probably depends on the norm of each department/field too! In my experience, all of my professors prefer the title "Professor" over "Doctor". Maybe 9 out of 10 profs also wanted us to use first names rather than a title + last name, even when they were teaching undergraduate classes. But if you aren't sure, definitely err on the side of caution and use "Prof" and "Dr" until they ask otherwise!

In my classes, many students often have laptops while in class. Sometimes students are even working on other things while in the lecture. I think it's a poor use of your time to go to one lecture but work on stuff for something completely different but in general, we are treated as adults that can do what we want (as long as we are not disrupting others). I would say that for most of the graduate classes here, the environment is more like "conference presentation audience" (i.e. there are people working on their own talk slides, checking email, writing code etc.) rather than typical undergraduate classroom. But I do know this conversation have been had here before! I definitely agree that if the classroom is meant to be mostly a discussion space, then having computers/electronics out can be disrupting to that. And, depending on how the room is laid out, laptops can be distracting to people behind them (in my classes, it's often like a conference room or there are only like 5 students so we can all sit in a row etc.). One new thing I read today was this post about accessibility: https://tenureshewrote.wordpress.com/2015/07/27/guest-post-every-student-uses-your-access-statement/ It basically encourages instructors to be aware of their students' accessibility needs and that electronics can sometimes help that. But I especially like the parts that highlight (and remind the instructor) that seeking help/documentation for services like this can be very stressful and not always easy for a student. I like how it encourages instructors to respect the fact that the student is their own best advocate and trust that they do know what is best for them. In most cases, the instructor is not going to be qualified to determine whether or not a student with a disability "needs" that electronic device or not...why not trust they are using it because they need it and let it be?

I am in agreement with you! (With everything you wrote, but especially the quoted part here).

You're right and I think LORs still do a lot of the good that you mention here. But I did think LORs are secret that only the people involved in the admissions decision (not just the committee, but perhaps those who might be supervisors of incoming students) would see them. Good to know though and I am glad to learn that a large group will see most of the LORs that come in. In Canada, the concept of everyone having student loans for undergraduate education is much less common, at least in the group of people I knew. Tuition is about $6000 per year so many people pay their way through college by living at home, commuting 1-2 hours to school, and working part time jobs. This usually means there is a chunk of students who can only be on campus for their classes and immediately leave afterwards, sometimes only scheduling classes to be on 2 or 3 days per week so that they can do the other things they need to do. For these students, the advice to "go to more office hours in order to build relationships" doesn't really work, and taking on volunteer research work or even part-time research work during the school year might not be possible if it doesn't pay the bills and they need another job. I completely agree with you that for some people, managing to get a strong LOR out of this situation can go a long way. Maturity in supporting yourself (especially compared to a peer student chose to take their work less seriously as their parents are paying for everything) is certainly noticed. I'm not saying it's not possible, but I'm just saying that it doesn't always work. I still believe in the "spirit" of the advice that one should ideally only get LORs if you already know they will be good, but now recognize the reality that this is an idealism that won't work for everyone. But other examples could just be personal things, like a faculty member who thinks more highly of students who spend time with them in a pub on an occasional Friday night or something. There's certainly a lot of folklore in my field about how great collaborations and brilliant ideas are thought up in some pub or bar, written on a napkin or something like that. Is it fair that people who choose not to drink (whether it's personal, an allergy, a religious belief, etc.) would miss out on these opportunities? There's discussions in my field whether or not we should stop trying to romanticize or tell glorified stories of such exploits as they can add to the idea that there are things you "should" do to succeed in academia when these things are not related to academic ability at all.

Maybe this is a different-field thing, but there are journals that are based out of specific institutions? I had thought the majority of journals are published by national societies for the field? Just curious.

I agree that in the ideal world, I would even give the advice "If you feel like you have to ask for a 'strong' LOR instead of just asking for a LOR, you probably should not be asking this person" to undergraduate students. I myself believed it once too. But then I started seeing and reading more perspectives where not every student fits into the "typical academic" mold that benefits from this kind of thinking. So now I no longer give such advice, because now that I think about how I got to the point where I never had to worry about LOR, I realise that some of that was due to having some privileges. Not to say that I didn't also work very hard in order to earn these LORs but I can easily imagine someone else who did just as much work to prove themselves but not end up with as many strong LORs. For example, it would have been a lot harder for me to gain my LORs if I was not able to work on research projects in the summer (but instead had to work a different job to pay bills or tuition etc.) So, now I am just a little more careful of taking many of the things that went favourably for me for granted. I agree with the rest of what you said! I definitely think there is some value in subjective and non-objective measurements/evaluations. I am just wary of secret and subjective evaluations because that gives prejudice a powerful weapon and hiding place. For example, a non-secret but still subjective evaluation would be interviews.

I would find a company to buy it from online and then their websites usually tell you how to get it. Some sell them online, but many big companies also sell them in convenience stores, gas stations etc. You can also get some of them from machines or shops or kiosks at the airport. It will probably cost more though but it might save you time.

Unfortunately these types of scam/spam are very very common. The other sad thing is that pretty much every time I've been mistakenly called "Dr.", it was by these scammers. Maybe that's why many academics prefer not to be addressed by Dr. because of these bad associations

I didn't use Magoosh, but another useful website (majortests I think?). However, I only memorized their 500 most commonly listed words and that was more than enough (the site had 1500 words but I just started with the most common ones and went as far as I could). I think it's far more important to memorize the most common words instead of just going for the largest total # of words. After all, you will probably only see like 50 words total in the real test and the "most common" words are "most common" for a reason

On our first day of grad school, an older grad student told all of us newbies about Mendeley and it was one of the most valuable pieces of advice I ever received! (Of course, it could be any other reference manager software). I was very glad to have learned about it prior to amassing a large number of PDFs to track manually

I think you can look forward to more of the types of events you're seeking once the summer is over and school-wide grad events get into gear. Maybe it will not quite live up to your previous life, but it will certainly be a lot more active than what it's like now. I might have more information for you if you'd like to send me a PM. However, you are also not limited by school events Many students find form social groups and make friends outside of academia because sometimes it's a lot more fun to hang out with non-grad students after spending all day with grad students! There are things like meetup.com, or maybe through your college's alumni network, and other social groups in your city. Some of my friends purposely sought out non-grad student roommates (mostly other young professionals though) in order to expand their social network and make more connections.

I'm not Eigen, but my field (planetary science) is close to yours so I thought I would answer anyways! I agree with Eigen that you should not list it twice. The usual format for listing presentations include the date of the conference, and the published proceedings also include the date, so it's really redundant to list it twice. The way I do it is: 1. If it's a conference with published proceedings that are collected after the meeting, then I would list it as a (non peer reviewed) publication (or a conference proceedings if you have a section for that separate from journal articles) and not a presentation. For example, I've been to some meetings where all oral and poster presenters are then asked to provide a 2-4 page item to be published in the published proceedings. Usually in this case, the organizers collect hand written questions for the presenter from the audience after each talk and the presenter includes some of these questions and their answers in the published proceedings. These are still not peer reviewed though, only editorial review. **Sometimes these published proceedings books take about a year to come out after the meeting, so it usually appears as a presentation in my CV until the proceedings are published. 2. If it's a conference that simply publishes the abstracts online (abstracts you wrote when you submitted your presentation prior to the conference), then I would list it as a presentation. I don't have separate sections for oral vs. posters like Eigen does, but I just indicate the type of presentation in the bibliographic entry.