Selecting UG college for Graduate Study

[VNSBKS]

Hello all,

I am going to start BS Chemical Engineering from this fall. I got admission to UT Austin. My interest are in semiconductor, process engineering and nano technology research. (I am strong in physics, chemistry and math but hate biology).  Is UT Austin good in these research areas?

Also, hypothetically, if I do research in every summer, publish one or two papers and maintain above 3.80 GPA, how would be my chances of getting into the top four: MIT, Caltech, Stanford and UC Berkeley for a PhD?

I understand it is too early to say, as things can change in four years and there are many variables that come into play. However, my core question is how do the big four rate graduate applicants from UT Austin Chem Eng.

 

Thanks a lot in advance.. 

[JPeterman]

I don't think I've ever seen someone looking so far ahead!  Impressive!  Are you in high school now?

 

UT Austin could absolutely get you into the "top four" you mentioned.  They are a very highly respected research university (I did my undergrad there in civil engineering) and I'm not entirely sure what the difference in quality would be between UT and the schools you aspire to attend.  I know a number of people who did well in the program and did good research, and with the combination of a strong application, they were able to get into any school they wanted to, including the ones you mention.

 

As someone who's just been visiting graduate schools, I might suggest you not to place so much weight in the rankings as well.  You have a lot of time to figure out where you want to go, but in general I've found that my personal preferences and which professors are actually doing what I want to do far outweighed a few differences in rankings.  There's going to be a difference between a Top 20 program and a Top 10 program, and a difference between a Top 50 program and a Top 20 program, but it's not as much as you might think.  When you're applying to grad schools, you'll end up realizing that what you really want is a ranking of "programs in semiconductor/nanotech research with advisors who are well suited to what I want to do."  There is no ranking for that, except your own.

 

If you're just getting started though, I'd keep an open mind about your career plans.  I'd go to UT, and while there I'd speak with an advisor, to see if it might be better for you to switch to Electrical Engineering, or see just how close you can get to a dual degree (you cannot double major in two engineering majors, it isn't allowed, but with flexible advising and plenty of electives, you could get a lot of both of them in.)  Also, just keep an open mind in general!  I know a lot of people who started out in engineering and then found out they'd rather be doing something else (sometimes just a different engineering), or people who took one class in the specialty they thought they loved, and ended up finding it horribly boring.

 

Good luck, and I hope this helps!

Edited April 29, 2013 by JPeterman