What kind of things would a top CS university look for in a candidate ?

[ahmadka]

Hi guys .. So I'm thinking of going for a Masters in Computer Science from a top US university, but I need advice on the kind of things they'll look for in me ..

 

Like is there is any specific job experience they'll look for, or will they only look for strong academics, etc. ? What about extra curricular activities, and social memberships, etc, and stuff like letter of recommendations ? Which things there have the highest priority in making decisions at their end ?

 

Because sometimes some very brilliant people are NOT selected, and sometimes an average guy gets selected because there's something about him that just sort of worked.

 

I'm just trying to assess how good/bad I am, and how high to aim as far as university targeting goes.

 

 

Edited May 13, 2014 by ahmadka

[ahmadka]

Would love some feedback on this people ..

[victorydance]

I am not in the field of CS, so take it with a grain of salt. 

 

Simple answer: they look for everything.

 

More nuanced answer:

 

-Strong grades and GRE scores are benchmarks. You want to get up to the average levels of the people they admit.

-They don't really give a crap about extracurricular activities. Unless something directly pertains to CS.

-Of course they care about letters of recommendation.

-They want research experience, preferably in an academic environment but not strictly.

-A good SOP and research fit.

[ahmadka]

Are you sure about the extra curricular activities ? Because that's the one thing that really worries me ... I mean I'm not a sporty guy at all, and don't participate much in social events at all (that's just the way I am) ...

 

Academically though I'll try to meet their requirements .. One advantage I have is that I've already done one Masters from a Top 10 US University: Georgia Tech .. Did my Masters in ECE from there about 3-4 years ago ...

 

I'm also a Fulbright Scholar .. That's how I got into Georgia Tech .. Fully paid 5 year PhD program, although I quit after just doing my Masters ..

 

And although I'm currently preparing for the new revised GRE, I scored 780/800 in Maths in the old GRE, which roughly translates to 167 ~ 170 in the new GRE ...

 

So assuming I get a similar GRE score again, and write a great SoP (like the one I wrote which got my selected for Fulbright scholarship), can I possibly get into Berkeley, CMU or maybe even Stanford for CS Masters ?

Edited May 14, 2014 by ahmadka

[victorydance]

Well think about it, you are applying to programs that are concerned with academic research. They don't give a crap whether you played sports or was head of the chess club, it's irrelevant. Now, say you were a head organizer of a hackathon at Georgia Tech, then yes, something like this may be valuable. However, having nothing to show for these types of things will not hurt you, they can only be used to help you. Often times, when people mention these things when applying to research programs, it's because they lack academic or research experience and are trying to show other things to cover it up.

 

You have a lot of things going for you. I am sure your grades are sound considering you were a Fullbright, you have a degree in a related field, good GRE, ect.

 

Do you have research experience? Did you work as an RA? Have you done any projects? This is fairly important of the things you didn't cover. 

 

Hopefully you have good recommendations. And yes, the SOP is very important.

 

That being said, not sure why you are so confused/worried about this process? Applying for CS masters programs isn't going to be much different from when you applied to GT. It's the same kind of thing, hedge what you think you did well during that process and apply it to this cycle. 

 

As far as your chances, no idea. I am of the camp that says "good big or go home." As long as you have a strong application, and seems like you have a lot of tools at your disposal, you should only apply to the best programs. Although in the case of masters degrees, this isn't as much as a issue compared to doctoral programs.

[ahmadka]

Thanks for the encouragement there

 

No actually I didn't need to get RA, because Fulbright completely funds you .. They not only pay your entire tuition fees, but they also give you monthly stipends, and money for things like books, a laptop, and special equipment you need to buy for your work, travel expenses, etc ... So thankfully I didn't really need an RA anyways ..

 

Projects, yeah I can mention a few, although they were mostly semester based projects as I didn't do any research in my Masters .. I can of course mention my undergrad project which was related to Computer Vision ..

 

I guess I've never really thought of myself as being academically brilliant, like many other people are ... My younger sister is very very academically centered (like PhD folks), and is always jealous of me that I got selected by Fulbright .. Secondly, I've always thought of schools such as Stanford, Berkeley, CMU, etc,. as being in a much higher league than Georgia Tech .. So even the thought of applying in such schools seems silly to me, as I think I'll never get in ... I kind of tell myself that people who get into such schools are complete all-rounders, and though I may have had some success academically, I don't have any extra curricular stuff to show .. Hence the purpose of this thread, because I want to somehow convince myself that it's possible even for folks who aren't all-rounders ..

 

By the way, my undergrad degree is in Computer Engineering, with a CGPA of 3.58, and my Georgia Tech Master ECE degree had a CGPA of 3.77 .. And since my graduation from Tech in May 2011, I've been working in the IT industry as a software engineer ..

Edited May 15, 2014 by ahmadka

[victorydance]

It may be true for undergraduate levels, because they get hundreds of 4.0 AP high school kids and something like that may set them apart from the pack. However, for graduate schools, they are looking for the best fit academically and research-wise. In fact, many applicants with relatively average grades and GREs get admitted because of the increased look at research fit and potential.

 

It's unfortunate that you don't have any research experience. It's not about the money (I am actually working as an RA for free right now to bump up my years of research experience), it's just important to show you know what research is about and that you have done some in the past. But you do have work experience, which I imagine is more valuable in a field like CS. 

 

I would like to help more, but I don't know the field well enough. But I will say this (and correct me if I am wrong): CS seems like a field where you can acquire a number of skills independently. If you have skills, like coding, programming, ect., then you need to emphasize this in a productive way in your SOP. Also, you need to emphasize the skills that you have from your ECE/Computer Engineering background that is going to help you in the field of CS. 

[ahmadka]

Yeah I guess I should have probably done some RAship or TAship ... I was young and stupid and didn't really care before

 

Anyways, thanks for your feedback .. Would now love if someone from the CS (or some related field) can also chime in ..

[Kleene]

I do not have the impression that a CS Master in a top school in the US is hard to get in to. For many universities the Master is their cash cow. These are the universities that offer virtually any unsuccessfull PhD applicant admission to the Master. I did not apply to any US Masters for this particular reason. Of course, not all US Masters are like this, at all. But I was set on getting the best education, including stimulating peers. It did not feel I my best option was a cash cow, even apart from the fact there was no way I would pay for that.

 

So apart from that I think you hardly need anything to get in there (a bit exaggerated, some might argue, but reasonable grades and standardized test scores may suffice for cash cows), top grad schools/programs in CS (I am more thinking of PhD now) tend to give much weight to (relevant) research experience. You need tangible results. That may be papers published or GitHub projects you have contributed to, that sort of things. It will always remain a crapshoot for selective programs. I agree with you that sometimes people getting in are not the ones you would have expected to. I have the impression that sometimes 'arrogance' (lacking a better word) is a reason why people do not get in. Especially in CS, where you can work on a lot of projects out side of university, some people have a tendency to think they are someone while they are not. A realistic attitude has more chance of getting you in than such an arrogant air that obviously obfuscates your personal statement.

 

This might give you some more insight: http://jackman.stanford.edu/papers/pa04.pdf

Edited May 17, 2014 by Kleene

[ahmadka]

Hmm, okay. Thing is I've never been interested in research as such. I've never written a paper in my life, and frankly I hated reading them too. I don't mean to offend research based folks - I guess my mind is just more industry oriented. So is there any way to get into universities such as Stanford, UC Berkeley, etc., without having research experience ?

 

I'm sure a lot of people going into such university's Masters programs only aim to do Masters for better prospects in the industry, rather than moving towards academic/research based careers ..

Edited May 18, 2014 by ahmadka

[Kleene]

Hmm, okay. Thing is I've never been interested in research as such. I've never written a paper in my life, and frankly I hated reading them too. I don't mean to offend research based folks - I guess my mind is just more industry oriented. So is there any way to get into universities such as Stanford, UC Berkeley, etc., without having research experience ?

 

I'm sure a lot of people going into such university's Masters programs only aim to do Masters for better prospects in the industry, rather than moving towards academic/research based careers ..

Cash cow Masters should be allright. Also, ome universities offer MEng especially for those who intend to join the industry.

[ahmadka]

Cash cow Masters should be allright. Also, ome universities offer MEng especially for those who intend to join the industry.

 

Can you give some examples for both the categories you've mentioned, just so I know ?

[Kleene]

Can you give some examples for both the categories you've mentioned, just so I know ?

Stanford and Columbia MSc's are cash cows, IMO. Cornell MEng and UIUC MCS are terminal Masters intended for those joining the industry.