Gap Year or 1 Year Master's?

[bachikarn]

I did not decide I wanted to do a PhD in engineering right away from undergrad. I had originally planned on getting a job first, and then get a PhD down the road. I changed my mind, but the due dates to PhD programs had already passed. Although, I did apply to get a Master's at my undergrad school as a back up.

So my question is, what would look better - a gap year where I do volunteer research or doing a Master's for year while researching? The main drawback about a Master's is that I do not have funding. Also, I feel I might have to retake a lot of the classes anyway if I go to a different PhD program.

I was also wondering if a gap year looked bad at all if the time was spent doing research or other academic pursuits.

Thanks for the help!

[liszt85]

I'd go for the gap year focusing solely on research and would work hard and try to publish a few papers by the end of the year. It would go a long way in securing a PhD admission for you.

[TulipOHare]

I was also wondering if a gap year looked bad at all if the time was spent doing research or other academic pursuits.

Never! It will make you stand out as an applicant. Go for the gap year.

[fuzzylogician]

Never! It will make you stand out as an applicant. Go for the gap year.

Thirded. Use the gap year to make yourself a more appealing applicant--by doing research, publishing, building relationships with profs that will guarantee you stellar recs, retaking tests, or whatever else will make your application stronger. Present the experience you gained from this year in a favorable light in your SOP. If you do that, there's no reason why your year off should look bad to anyone.

[Stories]

Thirded. Use the gap year to make yourself a more appealing applicant--by doing research, publishing, building relationships with profs that will guarantee you stellar recs, retaking tests, or whatever else will make your application stronger. Present the experience you gained from this year in a favorable light in your SOP. If you do that, there's no reason why your year off should look bad to anyone.

Better yet, do the research as a research assistant and get the master's

[fuzzylogician]

Better yet, do the research as a research assistant and get the master's

Even better: do all of that and use your superpowers to save the world in your spare time 8).

[ponja]

I'm in the same predicament. I have a year now before I reapply for Masters/PhDs nad am wondering what I am gonna do.

I'd love to get a research assistantship but really don't see how that's possible in Sweden without a prior PhD. So what I am gonna do is over the summer do a research internship for 2 months which could hopefully lay some foundation for later being published. Then I am gonna go to the local university for advanced math and engineering courses.

I do not see how one could do research independently without the support of a professor. Is this actually possible? If not how do people utilize their gap years to get published without doing research internships?

[GradHooting]

I figured necroposting > making a new topic about the same thing.

I'm facing the prospect of a third gap year. The first one was a shock of the job market, trying to land something, combined with preparing GRE scores (nailed those!) and enrolling in a local univ and taking classes. Second gap year consisted of getting an internship in the industry, getting a job tutoring at the university, and getting involved in a research program at the university. The third gap year is going to be a wild card, if I don't get in anywhere again. I've been pushed into the physics Ph.D. program here, merely as a formality (it's unfunded), in order to open up more opportunities in the research and teaching world. It's unrelated to my field, however, but, aerospace is hard to come by as a specific program in the university here. I'm studying something out of field.

Will THREE gap years look really bad? I'm still taking classes (maintaining a 4.0 here with purely math, physics, and engineering grad and upper level classes), taking univ. jobs, finding more jobs (internships) in the aerospace industry, and doing research towards making publications.

Edited February 18, 2012 by GradHooting

[bythesea]

I figured necroposting > making a new topic about the same thing.

ha, ha, "necroposting", thanks for that one, GradHooting