TeaGirl

I'm definitely getting a fully pimped out ultrabook. Unless price is an issue or you're looking for high speed gaming capabilities with full-on graphics then that's what I would recommend. However, I also really don't like tiny laptops and small screens either where I have to squint while using a bunch of different programs, so I'm seriously eying the Samsung 15" series 9. My sister got one free at her work and I really liked it. It's a beautiful machine, light, has a big screen, and seemed pretty solid (as long as you're not playing frisbee with it). For the full specs it's expensive, but I only buy a new laptop every 4-5 years so I'm treating myself I would recommend at minimum a 14" screen minimum in general so you can see what you're doing/programming. Few things are worse than using Matlab on a small 12-13" screen with all the windows that barely fit. I did the whole weighing the regular heavier laptop vs. ultrabook for a long time, pros and cons. I figure if my 5 year old Acer (really suprised by its long life and how well it still runs) runs Matlab, LabVIEW, AutoCAD, a virtual machine, the sims 3 (albeit on low graphics) plus some other heavier duty engineering software with no problems, any upgrade is going to be just fine. The important thing is keep your laptop cleaned up (file and application wise) and uninstall unneeded additional background running things as much as possible. I was sold by the light weight after lugging my current 7.3lbs around forever, the doubled or tripled battery life, and the speed of a solid state drive. I thought about touch, but too small screens and not really something I require. If you don't want an ultrabook, I recommend Lenovo. The Thinkpad X1 has good reviews. They don't make beautiful laptops, but they're solid and last. HPs seem poorly engineered (I heard lots of problems with friends) and the batteries fail a lot. My acer does heat up really badly in the summer, but I don't know if this is a persistent issue across models, so look that up before you buy one.

Thanks! It does seem Boulder's the prettier livelier town, if the more expensive of the two. Although the main positive of RPI is a really great POI in my area of interest who I want to work with. I was a little worried the Troy might be this horrible town, but it seems to be quite the opposite. In any case, I don't think CU is going to be a viable choice. They won't give out their funding decisions till end of March and I've got a funding offer I need to accept or decline by March 15 unless I can get an extension or hurry the other program.

Same here. They say it's renewable for up to X years depending on good academic progress and funding availability. It makes me twitchy, but that's the normal phrasing.

Usually beef or lamb. Either ground or more cuts cut into cubes that have been cooked till they're soft. Or you could do it with the meat too, just drizzle some olive oil on top and add some sauteed almonds. Ooh. I started going paleo almost a year ago. I've had to do several variations and modifications to my favorite meals. Still, it's going well. I do enjoy the simplicity of cooking and the richness of the food.

A big pot of southwest chili. There's this soup that I make where I saute some ground beef/lamb and bell peppers in olive oil. Add a chopped potato, water/stock to just barely cover the stuff and some heavy cream. Salt & pepper. Once the potato is cooked ~15min, the soup thickens. Sometimes I'll add some greens right at the end, and toast some almonds to have on top. Fatteh is also great. Combination of chickpeas, sauteed meat, toasted pita bread bits, and yogurt whipped with a mashed garlic clove and some salt. A sprinkle of paprika on top. Very Lebanese food Split Lentil soup. Lentils, stock, salt, pepper, and optional: ground beef, chili, cumin. My go-to meals are sauteed chicken/shrimp in some butter+olive oil and with whatever vegetables I have plus seasoning.

Here's what I will advise, and it's all anecdotal and from experience. I have 2 siblings, both engineers, both went on F1 visas, and both successfully working in the U.S. For the university/ies your are considering, now is the time for the Spring career fair. Go to their websites and check the list of companies which come recruiting. Ideally, you want several major large corporations that hire en-masse in your field (think of really big companies) Alternatively, go to the company websites and check their campus recruiting schedule and see which universities they visit. Some don't necessarily recruit in the career fair but on other days. When you get in, the first year of your Masters/PhD, go to every single recruiting session, prepare your CV, and try to get a summer internship somewhere. This is critical, if you don't get that summer internship at a good company, it'll be that much more difficult to get a job post-graduation. International students on an F1 visa are eligible for a CPT, which lets you do an internship in the middle of your studies. If you do well in job interviews, and impress them in your internship, then you'll find it so much easier to get a job. Additionally, F1 students are also allowed to apply for an OPT after graduating, which gives 1 year in which to work or search for a job, and it can be extended I believe 17months if you find work. In most cases, you can start working soon after graduation on the OPT which will give your sponsoring company time to apply for the work visa.

If money isn't an issue and it'll make you feel better then retake it. I don't think you need to though, your scores are great. For top PhD programs, I don't think that score will decrease your chances. What will be more important is the rest of your application.

Thanks! It seems more and more likely that I will be headed there in the fall. You're pretty lucky in getting to visit. It kinda sucks having to make decisions "blind". Good luck!

Don't think about it all at once or it will feel and seem overwhelming. Divide it up into little bite-sized tasks and write them in a list. Depending on how paralyzed/overwhelmed you feel, start with tiny tasks no bigger than 15-30 minutes (maybe writing a couple of sentence outlines, or writing the titles you need in one task and then each section would be its own task). Face each task one at a time and don't think about the rest of them. Just finish the small one, and once you're done see if you can do the next one. What's also helpful is instead of trying to schedule work-time, schedule the breaks (like every hour, break for 10-15 minutes). I find it makes it easier to focus on work when you know a break is coming up.

I'm considering RPI too. I've never been there but I posted some questions on and got some helpful replies about the city.

It depends what you mean by tier 1. I understand it to be the top 25% colleges in a certain program, and for that you absolutely can get into plenty with a 3.6GPA. I've a 3.6GPA and got into some pretty great programs, although my major GPA is more along the lines of ~3.8. If you're talking about top 5 or 10 schools like MIT, Caltech, Stanford, etc. then yes, realistically it's more difficult to get in with a lower GPA depending on where you did your undergrad (3.6 from X University ranked 100 is different from a 3.6 from Princeton for example). Just looking at the results section here on the gradcafe you can see a few people who've gotten in with lower GPAs. These programs are very competitive to start with and even a 3.8 or 3.9 doesn't guarantee admission. Way more important than the GPA will be recommendation letters, contacts either via your own professors or getting an REU at one of those schools, and of course the research experience that you have.

All/most departments I believe. It says so on the application site where I check the status. I think it's a university policy. You may get an unofficial acceptance from a prof. or something like that, but I believe the official graduate school acceptance only comes through mail (someone correct me if I'm wrong). That makes it extremely bothersome especially when the snail mail has to cross continents before decision deadlines are here

If it's a regular semi-formal/work related email I go with "Regards". If it's a formal super polite email like the ones I initially sent my POIs, then I ended those with a "Thank you for your time" line followed by a "Sincerely."

Haha. Yes. Constantly. When I decided I had enough studying after my Masters and wanted a break, the constant comment was "why don't you go do a PhD?" combined with dire warnings that if I stopped then I would find myself too comfortable in work and never return for that PhD. Finally, after I did decide that I wanted to apply for PhD, that line became "with your research interest and background you'll get in anywhere." That didn't happen the first time around.

Check your vitamin D levels. Blue light during the day is good but you should avoid it at night (i.e. computer screen) along with other strong/harsh lighting. Although, I know there's an add on or application somewhere that removes blue light from your screen after sunset. I think it's called F.lux I also agree that doing some exercises would help. If your muscles are relaxing all day it makes it harder to make yourself to relax at night. You end up too tense for bed. Don't run, just take a walk for an hour or so during the day, or try to do some body weight exercises to release the tension and make yourself a little tired for bed.

Nope. Haven't done the excel file thing at all. Not me

From what I can tell, the assistant coach was indicted for 45 counts, Paterno was fired along with some other high up people who shared responsibility, and the board of trustees forced the president to resign. The football team was also handed punishment from the NCAA with vacating their wins for the previous 11 years, banning them from the bowl for the next 4, fining them for $60m, and reducing their scholarships. Are there additional details that I'm missing? Given all this, I'm not sure why you would have a problem with the university as a body, considering that at least on the surface, the individuals who were responsible are being held accountable by the board and other policy makers in the university, and punished. I guess you can't force the football crazy young undergrads to see what's really important, but really, are you going to need to approve the political and moral views of every student you teach? They can think what they like, learn from life what they do, and be expected to fulfill their responsibilities in your TA/student relationship without excuses. In the end, you are getting a degree from a specific department and university, and working with scholars who likely abhor and were as shocked by what happened as you are. I wouldn't judge them by the actions of those in the athletic dept. As far as the culture or the colleagues are concerned, then I think that's a different topic. Those are things one evaluates going into any program and compatibility with those is pretty important whether one prefers a more isolated community or a big city culture. If you don't like them then that's one thing, but if you love everything about the department including the people and the surrounding area of the university, but have a problem with the scandal, then that's a personal decision one would have to make I guess.

"12 Fingers" by Young the Giant

Considering that picking a graduate school often feels like you're making a decision outlining your entire future, I'm curious what everyone thinks are the important aspects of choosing a program. I'm we all have certain things we value more in one program over another, and also perhaps priorities change from field to field, or whether one is going for a masters or a doctoral degree. Do you consider either the size of the program or the facilities? Pick the best advisor or best research match? Best funding package? Do you just pick the highest ranking place you get into? Or maybe the one in the best city/location? Do you flip a coin or shake an 8-ball and just hope it all works out ? I'll start, although to be honest, I'm not really sure of my own answer. I'm thinking advisor fit may be the most important, at least for a PhD, followed by the connections and reputation of the university. I'm sure liking the location/living situation should factor in somewhere too.

I think it depends what your goals are really. If you want to work in the industry post graduation, you already have experience in a great company and presumably a PhD will only add to that. If you want a research position, then you need to see where exactly you want to go and look at the profiles of people they hire. Sure, maybe MIT or Stanford don't normally hire the average PhD holder from University of X ranked 90. So if your goal is to teach at a top 20 school, then it's not worth it. If your goal is really to teach then a good research output during your PhD and maybe a post-doc at good university would help you land a job in the many many universities ranked below yours. The most important thing I think in going to a lower ranked school is to find the hotshot professor at that school and work with him/her i.e. find the advisor with the grants, the research output with students' names as first authors, and lists of students in his/her lab that have gone on to successful careers and convince them to take you. There's always at least one or two in every department. A good amount of publications is important to your career as an academic or a researcher (if that is where you're headed). Don't go to a place that you'll regret or hate. If you feel it's so important that you get into a very strong program but your GPA or background isn't quite there, and you're willing to work for it, then these are some things that will maybe help if you decide to reapply next year: - You need to get some research experience and some kind of publication out to improve your profile and convince the adcoms that you've got it. I hope it works out for you, but if it doesn't, maybe you can spend some time in a professor's lab somewhere and help with research in return for the experience, a publication, and a letter of recommendation (even better if you can make it paid but don't count on it). - If it's a low GPA you're trying to overcome, see if you can take some graduate level courses in ME as a non-matriculating student somewhere and ace them. - If you have a good GPA, then it would seem that perhaps some weak LORs are holding you back? Goes back to the first point. Work with a professor somewhere and get a great LOR. - You can apply for an MS at a mid level university, do your best and get some research done, then apply for a PhD in some better schools. - Make sure your SOP is focused in a given direction and not too general or vague. Find the strengths of each program you're applying to and customize your SOP to say you want to work in X field specifically on bla bla bla with professors U V and W for ex. If you do most of the above, I'm sure that would improve your chances considerably.

Thanks Ginger Amy I don't know why I find this either really interesting or really alarming I really like the idea of trains. I struggled to visit places when I was in Arizona at first. You really need a car there, and I usually rather get along without one. Also, thanks! To be honest I'm really grateful. After all rejections last year I had zero confidence in myself. Still, I'm finding the decision making part of this sometimes becoming a little overwhelming. After getting another acceptance yesterday (Yay!) I don't really know what I'm going to do It did. I'm an international student so it's a little hard for me to visit first. I figured that the graduate housing would be more expensive but I'm not sure how I could get housing on short notice wherever I go since most places would be gone by August I assume. I was thinking maybe I would just take it for a year and then move later. Four months of grey skies and snow! That would be interesting. I've lived in the Mediterranean and the southwest desert, and trust me you've never seen people as excited about a little rain as people in Arizona I've never lived in a snowy area, just visited. Sounds silly, but I'm a little excited about the idea of living in a place where you could look out the window and see it snowing.

I think something like this would actually be very useful. Let's be honest, market forces are *already* in the academic arena. I know we all idealize the concept of learning for learning's sake seeing as this a graduate forum, but the truth is, most people go to university a. for the experience and b. to have better job than they could get with a HS degree. And while I truly love my field, a big reason of why I chose it compared to some other areas I love and was considering (like studying art) is exactly because I wanted opportunities and a well paying job after all this studying. I know that it has become the norm for many people to live their entire lives in debt, that doesn't make it acceptable. If as a student you are taking out a 100K plus loan to major in some field where you are unaware that unemployment is high and the typical salary is very low, then you need that information to make a good decision. Those who love a certain area will still study it, but others who are studying it because they don't know what else to do and hoping it will lead magically to a great job may find such information useful. At the very least, neither will feel they have been misled. I don't think more data is ever harmful. I don't at all like the idea that we must protect people from information because the information may be incomplete or not the whole story. And who is exactly that will decide what information is suitable to give to the public? You? the State? Academia? Everyone is biased and has a bone in this. Challenge is not bad. If a system designed to improve education and lead to better job prospects is going to be upset by publishing some information about jobs and salaries, then either a. the system is already dysfunctional and an upset will do it some good or b. the data is bad and the system is not dysfunctional, but it will lead to the publication of better data and information to defend itself. Win-win I'd say. Most information is incomplete and needs qualifying statements and explanations from experts, but we need to start somewhere and it's still better than going into things with 0 information about a pretty important aspect of college.

I don't think it should be a problem at all, especially since as you say, you get along great with them and you're doing it for financially responsible reasons. It's not like you're going to be taking pocket money and asking their permission to extend curfew. I'd think of it as sharing a house with your family and being there for each other in an equal relationship, rather than guardian/child one I think.

I've had some students a little similar to that over the last couple of years, although not as much as what you describe. Sometimes they get a little too excited about something and they don't listen while I'm explaining, focus on their question, and then the second I'm done ask a question that I just explained. The silence that ensues when I ask them "so what did I just discuss?" is interesting. The first couple of times I repeated, but now I make a pointed comment that I had just covered that question, so I'm not going to repeat it. If they ask a specific question that shows they've been listening but don't understand then I answer. If they're just asking me to repeat things, I usually ask them to bring additional questions to office hours after they've read the text/notes/etc because there's not enough time during the lecture to repeat material. And during office hours, I ask them about the material a little before answering to make sure they're learning how to teach themselves. I think you're doing the right thing with getting the course coordinator involved. As far as getting the bad measurements, I don't know how that works in biology but maybe when the coordinator is attending your class one of you can observe what is wrong with her technique. Too unfocused maybe and excited about the idea of the experiment but not actually paying attention to what she's doing? If you "go in" once or twice (not more) and show her exactly where she is getting things wrong maybe that will help? I don't recommend focusing on her too much, but if she's confusing the other students, then allow her only one question during the lecture and cut it short before it devolves to a confusing and unending string of questions. Just ask her to bring the rest of her questions to office hours.

I think you got lots of good advice from other commentators about tackling different points in your application and not giving up on your dream. However, I wanted to add something. Keep pursuing your dream and don't give up, BUT do not put your life on hold for it. What you do everyday should not just be something to pass the time year in year out. Until you get that acceptance, invest yourself in whatever you are doing, or find something else to do wholeheartedly. I really can't stress this enough because I know the temptation to just check out of your own life until that *thing* in the future happens. Find something fulfilling to do and focus on the life you are living now so you don't miss it while you wait for that next thing.