Atmosphere Ocean Science

[mike_ens]

Hi,

I decided to start this thread, since I haven't seen much dedicated to this interdisciplinary programs, for people like me applying to PhD's this year, and to comment, advice, share profiles... I guess I'll start by writing about me.

I have an undergraduate degree in physical Oceanography from Mexico, a small school but the program in Oceanography is well known. I won a Fulbright scholarship to study a MS program in the US in applied mathematics, and thus I'm in my second year in the masters in applied mathematics in a top school (program was ranked #1 in the country last year) here in the US, currently doing a project about climate dynamics (ocean-air interaction) that possible could be published and now I'm looking forward for PhD applications, well not exactly, application process sucks and I am not too excited about it, but what has to be done has to be done.

Here are the schools to which I am considering in applying to:

NYU . - Center of Atmosphere Ocean Science (within Math department, i.e. Courant Institute).

UCSD .- Scripps Institute of Oceanography

UW - School of Oceanography

Miami University - Rosenstiel School of Marine Science

I've been thinking about WHOI (Woods Hole/MIT joint program), but not sure. They're are the only ones not waiving the toefl, which is annoying (i got 99 two years ago in the CBT)...

I have already contacted profesors from this institutions which whom I could worked with. Positive responses...

I am considering taking the GRE math, though not looking forward too, but its a requirement in NYU's program. Other than that, I feel good about my profile, but not too confident since I still don't have any publication, yet... I think I can get two good LOR from my current school, one well known professor in ocean, and a math prof known at least in NYU. From my country I could get really good ones as well, but maybe only one from a known person in the US. In this I am not sure what to do, to get really good LOR's from professors that know me really well but are not know in the US, or get from prof's that don't know me as well as the mexican ones, but better known.

Decent GPA's

Several awards while undergrad

Graduated with honors.

What do you think my chances are?

Hope more people post comment in this threat, so that any doubts could be addressed, as well as any recommendation.

Sorry for any misspelling!

Cheers and good luck to all!

[UnlikelyGrad]

OK, I may not be a lot of help since I'm just now starting to apply my research to oceanography (of the chemical variety). But my advisor has done a fair bit of oceanography in the past, and in fact was a post doc at WHOI a looooong time ago.

First of all, don't be too sure that people won't know your profs from Mexico. Oceanography is not a huge field; most people doing chemical oceanography tend to know each other, and the same may be true for physical oceanography. My advisor is quite familiar with researchers in Australia as well as various parts of Europe, for example. I would recommend that you get your LoRs from people who you have done research with at all possible--which may require going back to your undergrad institution for at least one of the letters.

I think you stand a pretty good chance, but do recommend that you consider adding a couple of "lesser" schools to the mix. Wish I could recommend actual schools, but I don't know the first thing about physical oceanography.

I *DO* know that having either Scripps or WHOI on your CV would be a major coup. My understanding is that the UW program is pretty darn good (esp. with the collaboration with NOAA), but it just doesn't have the "name brand appeal" of the other 2. I would give WHOI a shot if I were you, even with the added hassle.

[InquilineKea]

Anyone else applying this year?

Edited January 2, 2012 by InquilineKea