Admission to Grad school for MS Computer Science

[sunny4194]

Hi,

I just appeared for my gre exam and scored 1310 (q-760 v-550). I have completed my B.E in Computer Science and Engg and have scored a cgpa of 7.36. I was planning to pursue my Masters in Computer Science. I would appreciate it if you would clarify the following doubts which I have.

1) I have been placed in Tata Consultancy Services as a software engg trainee, the bond for which is 2 yrs. In case I take up the job and put my plans for M.S on hold fr the next 2yrs, would it help me secure admission in a better university with the work experience that i gain ? And will my gre score still be considered by the universities at that point of time ?

2) Is my gre score good enough or should I retake the test ?

3) Could you list some of the good universities where i stand a chance of getting admitted without work experience.

Regards..

Sunny

[newms]

Hi Sunny,

To answer your questions:

1) GRE scores are usually valid for 5 years. As to how much you will gain from the work experience depends on what program you want to pursue. If you want to pursue a research based program that leads to a PhD, then the work experience might not value much unless you actually do some research as part of your job. If you want a terminal Master's for an industry job, then your work experience may be of some help (depending on if it's in the field you want to study and what exactly you do)

2) The verbal score isn't so important for CS applicants, so your verbal score should be ok. Your quantitative score of 760 isn't bad, but consider that many CS applicants will have a higher quantitative score than 760. Again though, it will depend on which program you pursue - GRE scores aren't that important for research based programs. In short, if you have the funds to sit the test again and believe you can get a higher score, there may be some limited value in doing so, but if not, your scores should be ok.

3) The choice of what universities to apply to really should be made by looking at the CS programs and seeing which ones are strong in the area that you are interested in. You should also consider how strong an applicant you would be, and use how strong your application would be to determine a range of schools that would be at your 'level'. You could apply to a couple 'dream' schools that you really want to get into, and also a couple that you think you definitely should be able to get into. Ultimately though, it really depends on which schools are good fits for what you want to do. There is a list of CS grad schools and their 'ranking' (for whatever its worth) at this link: You can look through the schools to see which ones match what you want to do.

[sunny4194]

To begin with, I would like to thank you for replying. Would you be aware of any link where I can get an idea as to what the average gre scores - for MS in computer science program - are in different universities ? Would appreciate your help.

Regards

Sunny

[newms]

To begin with, I would like to thank you for replying. Would you be aware of any link where I can get an idea as to what the average gre scores - for MS in computer science program - are in different universities ? Would appreciate your help.

Regards

Sunny

I don't know of any place that lists that information. What may be useful for you is an 'admissions estimator' from UTEP. It's a rough estimate and you shouldn't take it too seriously, but it will give you a list of schools that your GRE scores fit what they say they accept. It is here: http://www.cs.utep.edu/admissions/

[sunny4194]

I don't know of any place that lists that information. What may be useful for you is an 'admissions estimator' from UTEP. It's a rough estimate and you shouldn't take it too seriously, but it will give you a list of schools that your GRE scores fit what they say they accept. It is here: http://www.cs.utep.edu/admissions/

Dear double shot.

You've been of great help. Thanx again.

Regards

Sunny