Preparing for CS Grad Studies

[queller]

What are you doing to prepare for graduate studies in CS?

…. well besides the application process

I'm planning on applying in the Fall 2012 cycle, and after years in corporate refreshing my memory on api's related to my research interests (OpenCV, OpenGL), as well as relearning Matlab. What are you doing or have done? Or if your already in grad school what do you wish you would have done?

Also are there some field specific things that it would be good for people to refresh their memory on before stepping foot on campus? I just figured that while everyone is so focused on the application process that once that is over the important thing is to be prepared for that first day. As when it comes down to it the application process is really a job interview of sorts where it is expected one will be ready to start producing on day one.

[newms]

Refreshing your technical skills is good, and it's always a plus to be able to put on your resume that you're good at Matlab, but I think it's more important to have a solid knowledge of the current research taking place in your field or sub-field. So if you already have a good idea of what you want to do, I would suggest reading recent papers in that area, so you know what the cutting edge is when you start.