TeaGirl

Give it 2-3 weeks from when you submitted the application. Also, I'm not sure how it is in other departments, but usually you don't contact the department for this, you contact the graduate school (whatever all-purpose contact email address they provide for questions like this). I did this for a couple of schools and they responded usually within a few days.

Yes. You can go, talk to your manager, tell her that you've been given a stipend, the you are overstressed from doing both gradschool and this job, and that you can't continue. It seems like a really simple decision.

Nope. But, you should try figure out some concrete reasons for pursuing higher education and goals you want to accomplish from it. Write them down. Take it as a real opportunity and don't put on blinders with respect to the real world going on outside. It's also best to let go of any assumptions when going in to grad school and face it head on. Grad school is not an end goal, it's a stepping stone. It's not gonna be the intellectual paradise of your dreams where things magically work out after you graduate. On a few rare occasions, you do encounter that bit of inspiring intellectual work/debate/accomplishment/guidance, but mostly you have to guide yourself and be self reliant. It's just a place where professors are trying to handle publications/teaching load/students, and grad students are trying to cope with course and thesis work, TA/RA load, and financially scraping by to get a degree that will hopefully allow them to pursue the career of their choice.

Perfectly fine and none of your business?

For computer science, it doesn't matter what the total GRE is, you should check the minimum Quant. and Verbal scores required by the program and see if you got that. Although 1300 is likely more than fine depending on how it splits (for CS, it's important to have good Q scores).

Some of the schools I applied to required all college-level transcripts including those from a community college, and others only required them from places where I earned a degree. Like Sareth said I would contact the graduate office if you're unsure and ask.

I think at the undergraduate level, you need to list your education, work experience if any (a few brief sentence on each detailing the responsibilities, etc.), and projects. Projects don't have to be big research projects, they can be ones that you completed as part of your courses or curriculum, or the senior project you may be working on, and write a sentence on each that shows what you did, skills you used, and what was accomplished. You can also include any computer related skills or specific software, and relevant courses that you've taken, such as graduate level courses or technical electives related to your chosen sub-specialty.

This is a little depressing. Well, a lot actually. Now that you mention it, I can see its effects though. When I was doing my Masters I easily found an RA ship 1 semester in, at the beginning of 2009 to fund my education. Funding came from the DOE and the academic word on the street was that there was plenty of funding and grants for STEM from the government up for grabs, and they didn't even know what to do with it. Contrast that to my sister in Cali, also an engineer, started in 2011, just could not get any funding at all for her Masters and had to take out loans. Funding was strictly for PhD students, and not even all of them got it for that matter. Luckily, she found a pretty good job afterward, so for her, the investment paid off.

You're welcome! I'm glad I was able to help

I don't know, maybe you're right. But I've often heard the term "passion" and it seems to imply no down sides. It should definitely make you feel good though. If you're doing something just for the challenge when you don't actually like it, what happens once the challenging part is over (i.e. you graduate, get your doctorate, land that job) and you feel like settling down? Unless the goal to constantly be struggling, but I don't think most people strive for that.

I am currently working a full time job and doing research at the same time to improve my profile, and I'm working on applications. It's not easy, and it sucks up 90% of my time. That's the point though, I want the end result badly enough that I'm willing to deal with it. The are a hundred and one reasons that you'll be able to come up with why you can't do what you want, why it's hard, etc. There's also a solution for each one of them. Too much sitting? Incorporate exercise into your day, on your breaks. Lack of attention? You can find an expert who can help you figure out if it's an actual condition or lack of motivation. What do you mean chance has passed you by?? You're never too old to do anything. There are people on this forum who are in their 40's and going back to school to change career paths and do what they want. You are 25. You've got decades ahead of you. A few years worth of hard work are definitely worth living the rest of you life doing something fulfilling.

Sure apply to Stanford and Berkley, but you're gonna need better GRE Q scores than that for an engineering program there I think. 2 journal publications while still an undergrad is pretty impressive. But make sure you apply to other programs as well and not just in the top 20 either, because most of these schools can be very competitive, at least in my field, and I suspect in chemical engineering as well.

Usually, you should write a well thought out introductory polite email. Start it by mentioning what your goal is (masters, phd, etc.), what you want study and focus on in your field, and why this particular professor interested you. Ask if s/he is accepting grad students. Then, briefly mention your academic background, relevant experience, and any impressive highlights. Btw, adcoms have different admission criteria for someone who has a Bachelors and someone who has a Master's. They usually focus on grades and other achievements for undergrads because they know they haven't had a chance to do much research. They can be a little tougher on applicants with a Master's degree because they expect them to have already completed some research. I think what you are talking about seems like a Direct PhD program where you are accepted for a PhD program but get a Master's degree along the way.

Forget passionate. It's such a vague term that fails to mention that even when you're working in your dream job, it can often get pretty sucky and you'll be as un-passionate about it as anything, especially when you get down to the gritty details. The goal is to find something interesting and makes you feel good enough that you'll be willing to suffer through the rough times and stick with it. One way to do it is to establish a goal. What do you want to be? What idea sounds great to you? A chemist, art historian, school teacher, social worker, nurse, engineer, chef, HR, consultant, open up your own business? You may need to do a little research on different jobs to figure it out. Once you have that goal, make a list of the things needed to get you there. Having an end goal helps put things in perspective and keeps you more motivated. If that includes taking more classes or going to graduate school, then great! At least then you'll know exactly what you're doing it for and probably will work harder at it and enjoy it along the way, rather than hoping it'll be a lottery ticket.

Most universities I was applying to say it is recommended that GRE scores be no more than 2 years old unless it's a financial burden to take the test again. I would wait a year or 2 before taking the test.

Why would you email a professor for a M.Eng.? Since you won't be doing research it's not likely that you'll get any type of research funding, nor are you looking for an advisor for a MS thesis, so emailing a professor is not really going to accomplish anything. If it's to improve your admission chances, I don't think it matters much. I think it would be better if you work on building a really strong application.

emergency kit

0% so far I'm still waiting on one last decision, but I don't know how likely it to be a positive one. In all likelihood, I'll trying again next year.

Actually, this forum has been really helpful to me personally, especially when it comes to managing expectations regarding admissions, getting emotional support throughout the waiting process, and figuring out that it's not the end of the world to have to apply again (just as a few examples). People I know in the real world are not going through the same things, and wouldn't be able to understand much. I've already completed my Master's a couple of years ago and view this forum differently. It's just a nice place to waste a little time, empty your head of day to day stress, occasionally find a gem of a thread (sadly not this one) and just relate to random anonymous people going through similar stuff. It's called socializing, albeit a little anonymously and on the internet.

Oh wow. I would never go out in sweatpants. Maybe to the gym. I'm a very casual person, but my casualness limits itself to a shirt and jeans (the button kind, none of that elastic waistband stuff). Occasionally I do like to dress up, put on a little make up for fun, wear some jewelry, even if it's just to school. However, for conferences, presentations, etc. I always wear proper formal attire.

I got put on the waitlist at Carnegie Mellon for a PhD and got rejected today. Short of a miracle, I guess I'll just have to try again next year.

Lots of good tips here. I don't think I had ramen once during grad school honestly. I ate out only about once or max twice per week with friends. Learning to cook is the best money saver there is. For breakfast I did eggs with some fruit (bananas were pretty cheap) and a little plain yogurt. I did a LOT of stir-fry (bought family sized frozen veggies) with some type of protein. I also bought dried lentils, beans, spices and other items like EVOO from middle eastern stores which were so much cheaper. I made big pots of chili and lentil soup which would last a 2-3 days. Lots of soups where I lightly sautee whatever meat and veggies I had, add water (or broth which I had frozen), seasonings and leave to slow cook for a while. Canned tuna or salmon for those days when I didn't feel like cooking. I'd buy a loaf of whole wheat sourdough from a bakery, ate a slice per day, and stored it in the fridge. Lot's of stick it in the oven dishes: put some chicken or fish (straight from the freezer), frozen veggies. Season, salt and bake. Big salads. I bought the cheap whole heads of lettuce and greens, roma tomatoes, with whatever cheese, boiled egg, or meat leftovers I had around. Oatmeal, soaked in some water and a tbs of yogurt overnight, drain a little, add milk and cook on the stove (or microwave), and add a little honey, fruit, and lots of butter .

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious

charcoal pencil

Has anyone heard anything from CMU's waitlist? I saw a couple of rejections on the results page. Did they accept anyone, or should I just assume a rejection at this point?