How are the 2019 applications coming

[kronotsky]

16 hours ago, rocksandstuff said:

 

Hi! Excuse me if I did this wrong, it is my first time posting on Grad Cafe. 

Congrats @kronotsky on getting accepted to UWash! I was wondering if you've heard from Caltech GPS at all (or know anyone that has?), given that you did your undergrad there? Also, who are you looking to work with there? I ask because it's my top choice and it's the only school I haven't heard a peep from them since applying.

So long as I'm commenting, I will fill out my profile. I hope it doesn't give anyone anxiety, because I've heard from 4/5 schools already... I visited and had interactions with every school except Caltech well before the deadlines so that is probably why I heard so soon!

Undergrad Institution: University of Wisconsin
Major(s): B.S. Geological Engineering, B.S. Geoscience
Overall GPA: 3.585
 

Graduate Institution: Texas A&M University
Major(s): M.S. Geology
Overall GPA: 4.0

Type of Student: White Female
 

GRE Scores (revised):
Q: 166 (92nd)
V: 159 (82nd)
W: 5.0 (90th)

Research Experience: 3 years of oil and gas geology work experience for a mid-size oil and gas company. I was identified as a more "academic" geologist and have been put on a lot of more research-based projects involving chemostratigraphy, geochemistry, sequence stratigraphy, petrography, core description, etc. I worked on my MS at A&M on nights and weekends during the past 3 years. My company let me use their data for my MS thesis research and also let me publish it. So I have 1 accepted (AAPG Bulletin), first author paper and 1 in preparation second author paper. 

I also did 2 years of undergrad research at Wisconsin in structural geology of serpentinized ultramafics, was awarded several grants for that, did field work in Greece, and wrote a senior thesis. No publications from that work. 

Applying to where:

I have zero planetary science experience but a lot of skillsets that lend themselves well to planetary science. I'm interested in using my knowledge of chemostratigraphy to paleoenvironments from interpret Mars rover data and branch into the remote sensing world. I'd also love to work on Earth-based geologic analogues for Mars.

Here is where I applied, and the interactions I've had so far:

Caltech - GPS Geology Option - I spoke with PI about research opportunities on the phone in October. Have not heard anything since applying.

Brown - DEEPS Planetary Geoscience Group - Visited back in October, went very well, received an email in very early Jan (5th maybe?) from PI saying that he intends to admit me and that I can come visit again if I wanted (I declined the return visit since I'd already visited for a full day). We are "catching up" on a phone conversation tomorrow, where I anticipate a more formal offer.

Rice - Visited several times in the fall since I live down the street. Formally accepted Jan 15thish with full funding offer. Will be visiting Feb 5th.

Stanford - Geological Sciences - Unofficial admittance from PI last week, scheduled a visit for the end of Feb.

Stony Brook - Geoscience - Accepted, full funding offer, visit will be March 7th. 

 

Really just waiting on Caltech here... but super super thankful that I have lots of really good options! If I don't get into Caltech, my decision will be very very difficult (but good!). Caltech is my top choice not only because of the program but also because my partner has a lot of opportunity in LA. 

Good luck everyone!!

 

Hi @rocksandstuff ! Unfortunately I'm totally out of the loop, so I really don't know anything more than what I've learned by scouring the internet. It seems that some people have heard back this cycle, though I've only verified that one of these people is real (a geophysics admit last Tuesday). You're not the first to ask me about the PS option, and it seems as though there are people waiting to hear back everywhere I look, so I hope that means they're not done yet haha. One of my recommenders is from the department, but I'm a little scared to ask him what's going on... Anyway, best of luck! Hopefully the few of us waiting on them will get good news this week.

Edited January 29, 2019 by kronotsky

[Camillalxy]

1 hour ago, rocksandstuff said:

@Camillalxy All the PI really said was that it was too early in the admissions process to say for certain but that he plans to admit me along with two other prospective students. And then he coordinated a visit for all three of us and him. So it's still really early!!! 

Thanks! That's a relief?

[rocksandstuff]

1 hour ago, kronotsky said:

Hi @rocksandstuff ! Unfortunately I'm totally out of the loop, so I really don't know anything more than what I've learned by scouring the internet. It seems that some people have heard back this cycle, though I've only verified that one of these people is real (a geophysics admit last Tuesday). You're not the first to ask me about the PS option, and it seems as though there are people waiting to hear back everywhere I look, so I hope that means they're not done yet haha. One of my recommenders is from the department, but I'm a little scared to ask him what's going on... Anyway, best of luck! Hopefully the few of us waiting on them will get good news this week.

Awesome, thanks for the info! Good luck!

[Aerinite]

Undergrad Institution: big public state school, pretty good for major
Major(s): Earth Science
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.9
Overall GPA: 3.9
Position in Class: Probably top
Type of Student: Domestic

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 168
V: 160
W: 5

Research Experience: 

- 2.5 years research in atmospheric chemistry

- honors thesis in atmospheric chemistry

- No Publications

Special Bonus Points: Positive responses from reaching out to POIs by email. Current PI is pretty well-known in the field.

Applying to Where:

- Caltech: Environmental Science and Engineering (ESE)

- Davis: Atmospheric Science Accepted 1/25

- CU Boulder: Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

- UCLA: Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences

[help_needed]

@Aerinite I heard from davis last week too! Maybe Ill see you at the visit weekend

[rockwizard]

I'm beginning to get a little discouraged. Are GPA and GRE scores really more important than actual experience and research? Ugh.

[help_needed]

@rockwizard Obviously you should take whatever I say with a grain of salt, but i wouldn't worry. You have really good research experience and its still January. I think if its march then we can start to feel discouraged. 

 

[brightorangesocks]

Undergrad Institution: RPI - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Major(s): Electrical Engineering
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major: Not calculated
Overall GPA: 3.08
Position in Class: Probably middle third
Type of Student: Domestic

GRE Scores:
Q:166, V:165, W:4.5

Research Experience: No Publications, one conference presentation in my current field.  Some research work as an intern but on large capacitors, so also unrelated (but really cool!!).

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Girl Scout Gold Award, Tuition grant in undergrad

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 5 years professional experience at a test and measurement company, CoCoRHaS observer, some FIRST Robotics volunteering

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Private Pilot license, Scrum (type of project management) certification, LabVIEW developer certification

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Decent programming background, prototyping skills, some teaching experience (from industry, not academia), solid work experience, just not in the field I'm applying for.  My research interests line up really well with a few Rutgers professors so I'm hopeful that will be a good fit.  

Applying to Where:

Rutgers - PhD Atmospheric Science (unofficial acceptance from PI last week, funding TBD.  visit scheduled for March)

University of Wisconsin - Madison - MS Atmospheric Science

UMass Lowell - MS Environmental Studies, Atmospheric Science Option 


The long story short is I've been out of school for a few years and want to make a career change.  I've had the opportunity to get some good work experience under my belt and am highly self motivated, so I'm thinking I bring some good non-academic experience to the table.  I'm super excited to go back to school as an adult and I'm thrilled to get to study the atmosphere and climate.
 

Anyone else planning to go to Rutgers?

[Pangolin]

On 1/28/2019 at 5:53 PM, kronotsky said:

Thanks! I'm feeling pretty positive; I also get to do the majority of my UW interviews after this, which is a huge relief! Have you heard back from Michigan/elsewhere yet?

Heard back from University of Michigan just earlier today! Was invited to a visit weekend in mid-March, which I’m stoked about.

[Camillalxy]

Undergrad Institution: Georgia Institute of Technology
Major(s): Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
Minor(s): German
GPA in Major: 4.0
Overall GPA: 3.82 (3.79 when applied to programs with earlier ddls)
Position in Class: N/A
Type of Student: International female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 168
V: 162
W: 4.5

Research Experience: No publications

-1 semester of research in geomorphology lab 

-1 year of research in biogeochemical modelling (poster presentation in GT Spring Symposium & senior thesis)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

-PURA research award

-GaTech chapter of SGE initiating member

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

-1 year of TA

-Exec member of an outdoor recreation&environmental services club on campus

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Research Option (a designation showing you've gone deep in research)

Special Bonus Points: Contacted POI in each program I applied to and had informal interviews with more than half of them.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Graduating in three years?

Applying to Where:

Georgia Tech - EAS - ACCEPTED

University of Chicago - Geophysical Sciences - ACCEPTED 

Stanford University - Geological Sciences

MIT - EAPS

CalTech - Geobiology

UC Berkeley - EPS

Cornell University - EAS

University of Michigan - EES

Quote me if you've heard anything back from the last six programs ?

Edited January 31, 2019 by Camillalxy

[magnetite]

Ah, so you're the Georgia Tech acceptance, @Camillalxy. Congrats!

I applied there, too. Do you know if they've sent out all of their initial acceptances?

[Camillalxy]

28 minutes ago, magnetite said:

Ah, so you're the Georgia Tech acceptance, @Camillalxy. Congrats!

I applied there, too. Do you know if they've sent out all of their initial acceptances?

Thanks @magnetite!! I got the email to check status on Monday and was invited to visit Feb.28 - Mar.3 so I'd say there're definitely more acceptances to make before that. I don't know about initial acceptances tho, but I wish you best of luck!

[OcelotTracks]

On 1/19/2019 at 7:51 AM, help_needed said:

@OcelotTracks UBC sounds awesome! I really loved vancouver when i visited, I also looked into Oregon State, I think Washington state also has a pretty good program for some things related to earth science (mostly atmospheric stuff). Good luck! I'm sure you'll get into a ton of places

I'm at Washington State right now and would not go here for my masters. Also, I have no idea about atmo (it's in the environmental science side) but the geochemistry and volcanology program is amazing. Department politics really don't make me want to stay here.

[magnetite]

Just saw that a Lehigh acceptance went out two days ago. Whoever posted that, would you mind PMing me the name of your POI please?

Edited February 1, 2019 by magnetite

[rockwizard]

Yeah if anyone has heard from/hears from Harvard, CU Boulder, or U of Arizona please PM me the details! I'd love to hear about if you had to go through an interview, etc. and what the name of POI is. 

[jimmay]

On 2/1/2019 at 3:40 PM, rockwizard said:

Yeah if anyone has heard from/hears from Harvard, CU Boulder, or U of Arizona please PM me the details! I'd love to hear about if you had to go through an interview, etc. and what the name of POI is. 

Harvard accepts should come soon ish: they usually sit around 1 Feb, and visit days this year are 7-8 March. Who's your poi?

[jimmay]

On 1/27/2019 at 11:27 PM, 5beats3summers said:

Undergrad Institution: NC State 

Major(s): Undergrad - Meteorology

Minor(s): Nope

GPA in Major: 3.38 

Overall GPA: 3.10

Position in Class: N/A

Type of Student: Traditional White Male

GRE Scores:

Q: 162 V: 162 W: 4.0

Research Experience:

NSF REU at Bermuda Institute of Ocean Sciences researching stable water isotopes

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:

Pretty bland in this department

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

Student Volunteer at American Meteorological Society

Two internships and 9 month stint in broadcast meteorology

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: N/A

Special Bonus Points: LoR should be pretty robust, experience as a live TV weatherman is a unique.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: No

Applying to Where:

M.S. At Penn State, SUNY Stony Brook, SUNY Albany, UNC Charlotte 

For grad student standards I consider myself somewhat mediocre; proud of the GRE and cultivating great relationships with some professors, but wish GPA and extra honors and awards was a little more solid. Also would of liked to eke out a poster presentation from REU, but timing didn't work out

I'm also really hoping that schools don't view my quick departure from broadcast meteorology as a negative; touched on it in my statement of purpose some. 

 

Yeezus here should get accepted for user name alone 

[jimmay]

Undergrad Institution: SLAC
Major(s): geo
GPA in Major: 3.0x (3.14 cumulative)

Type of Student: dwm

GRE Scores: 161/162/4.5 (Q/V/W)

Research Experience: masters, current PhD student applying to transfer

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: one award, one GSA grant, 2 scholarships

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 7x TA over 3 degree programs, 1 y industry after ug

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: paper soon to be submitted, 11 conference abstracts, some workshops, outreach and service professionally and in dept

Applying to Where:
MIT/WHOI, Brown, Cornell, ASU, UCSD, UCSB, Stanford, UBC, Auckland

 

[rockwizard]

16 hours ago, jimmay said:

Harvard accepts should come soon ish: they usually sit around 1 Feb, and visit days this year are 7-8 March. Who's your poi?

Roger Fu. Although I stated I'd be happy to work with Jeremy Bloxham as well since he does similar work. 

[Unconsolidated_Regolith]

Hey y’all I hope everyone’s application season is going smoothly, and we all haven’t torn too much of our hair out.  I’m applying to a bunch of schools because last year I only applied to 3 and was totally shut down. I’m exclusively applying to MS degrees at the below listed schools, and I’m applying to a mix of programs from fluvial and tectonic geomorphology to agricultural and contaminant hydrology.

If you’ve applied to any of the same programs as me, don’t hesitate to reach out.  I’m very interested in hearing the experiences of others, and If I find out that a professor has already accepted somebody else, it will frankly give me one less thing to worry about.

Undergrad Institution: SLAC
Major(s): Geology & Environmental Studies
Minor(s): None
GPA in Major: 3.32
Overall GPA: 3.34

Position in Class: Non ranking school
Type of Student: Domestic White Male 1^st Gen

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 155 (58%)
V: 166 (97%)
W: 4.0 (59%)

Research Experience: 

1 semester independent study

1 semester working with professor abroad that lead to a published journal article (no authorship for me L)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

Margret A Cargill Environmental Studies Distinguished Scholars award

Cyril Harvey Field Camp Award

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

5 semesters of undergrad TA in geology dept.

2 years employment in Environmental Regulation (Natural Resource Specialist)

2 years employment in Environmental Consulting (Environmental Scientist I)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 

Special Bonus Points: My letters came from professors that I knew very well. I had TA’d for 2 of them and conducted research under 1.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter

Applying to Where:

I’m applying to advisors who specialize in Tectonic Geomorph and Contaminant Hydrology

 

UNC Charlotte: Accepted

NC State: Hydrology

East Carolina University: Hydrology of Agricultural Systems Secured an Advisor awaiting acceptance letter

Utah State University (Watershed Sciences): Post Wildfire Landscapes

Utah State University (Geology): Tectonic Geomorph

University of Idaho: Contaminant Hydrology

Central Washington: Fluvial Geomorph

Lehigh: Tectonic Geomorph

Shippensburg University: Environmental Hydro Accepted

West Virginia University: Contaminant transport 

University of Illinois UC (Physical Geography): Fluvial Geomorph

@5beats3summers @magnetite 

[airwiz]

@Aerinite Have you heard back from Caltech? I'm dying and it's been radio silence for me

[goosejuice]

Undergrad Institution: One of the UC's
Major(s): Earth and Planetary Science (focused on latter)
GPA: 3.73 at graduation (mostly major/important classes); transferred from junior college with separate GPA
Awards/recognition: among top of major class, cum laude in university, multiple dean's lists, undergrad research award/scholarship
Type of Student: Domestic

GRE Scores:
Q:156
V:153
W:4.0

Research/Experience: 

- Currently working at well-known research contractor for NASA; working on paper now

- Undergrad senior thesis + poster presentation at AGU and two university symposiums

- Summer internship at NASA + poster at two internal symposiums

- Worked in lab for 8 months as a lab/research assistant

Publications:

Two aforementioned posters, one abstract. Working on a paper now, but it was not part of my application at time of submission.

Applying to Where:

Dartmouth

UT Austin

Brown

Tulane

Columbia

Northern Arizona

NC State

-----------------------

Most of my program choices are focused on planetary surface processes, geomorphology, and remote sensing. My research/work experience since graduation is all over the place in terms of subject matter, but I've got a lot of universally-applicable knowledge and experience to show for it. I have no reason to not be confident in my letters of recommendation. GRE scores are definitely my weak point; they're just average enough to not bother retaking it. With that being said, this is my second grad school application cycle...

Any other planetary science/geology peeps?

Edited February 5, 2019 by goosejuice

[magnetite]

I was invited to Lehigh's graduate symposium earlier today, @Unconsolidated_Regolith. It's February 21st and 22nd. The invitation says I'm on the shortlist. There was an outright acceptance posted about a week ago, so it's possible not all emails have gone out. 

[Unconsolidated_Regolith]

16 hours ago, magnetite said:

I was invited to Lehigh's graduate symposium earlier today, @Unconsolidated_Regolith. It's February 21st and 22nd. The invitation says I'm on the shortlist. There was an outright acceptance posted about a week ago, so it's possible not all emails have gone out. 

Good work @magnetite !!! I appreciate the update.  As far as I know the department has 4 TA's and 4 Fellowships this year. Are you applying M.S. or PhD?

[jimmay]

17 hours ago, goosejuice said:

Undergrad Institution: One of the UC's
Major(s): Earth and Planetary Science (focused on latter)
GPA: 3.73 at graduation (mostly major/important classes); transferred from junior college with separate GPA
Awards/recognition: among top of major class, cum laude in university, multiple dean's lists, undergrad research award/scholarship
Type of Student: Domestic

GRE Scores:
Q:156
V:153
W:4.0

Research/Experience: 

- Currently working at well-known research contractor for NASA; working on paper now

- Undergrad senior thesis + poster presentation at AGU and two university symposiums

- Summer internship at NASA + poster at two internal symposiums

- Worked in lab for 8 months as a lab/research assistant

Publications:

Two aforementioned posters, one abstract. Working on a paper now, but it was not part of my application at time of submission.

Applying to Where:

Dartmouth

UT Austin

Brown

Tulane

Columbia

Northern Arizona

NC State

-----------------------

Most of my program choices are focused on planetary surface processes, geomorphology, and remote sensing. My research/work experience since graduation is all over the place in terms of subject matter, but I've got a lot of universally-applicable knowledge and experience to show for it. I have no reason to not be confident in my letters of recommendation. GRE scores are definitely my weak point; they're just average enough to not bother retaking it. With that being said, this is my second grad school application cycle...

Any other planetary science/geology peeps?

Going for MS or PhD? Because at least when I applied to NAU I think it was masters only, but u could've been wrong/maybe it was for different departments