<p>I am an EE undergrad and will be starting my final year at UW(Washington) in a week. I have been thinking about applying to graduate school (MS) but don't want to waste my time studying for/taking the GRE and having to write applications if I really don't have a chance of getting into any. My overall GPA is 3.50 (I bombed my first quarter but have made deans list each quarter ever since) while my major GPA is 3.78. I have no research experience. I will be finishing up a 3 month summer internship in a week. There is one faculty member I could ask for a letter of recommendation and maybe my old physics prof. By the time I apply, I would have enough money saved up to pay for all of grad school ($40k-$50k) with no debt from my undergrad career. Does having money increase your chances of getting in?</p>
<p>I'm not very particular about which grad school I get into but I would at least like to get into a top 50 EE grad program. I would like to get accepted into UW, UCSD, UCSB, UCD, UCI, UCSC or UofArizona.</p>
<p>The main thing I'm worried about is not having any research experience. Should I bother applying? What schools would I have a realistic chance of getting into?</p>
<p>Since you are aiming for MS programs, you do not have to worry about your lack of research experience. IMO, you should have a good shot at any of these schools.</p>
<p>My parents and I have been saving up for a while. I also just sold my car and have made some money through my current internship which I will be finishing up pretty soon. </p>
<p>Are you guys certain that these schools are as easy to get into as you think? One of my classmates had similar stats and was rejected from UofWashington’s grad program…</p>
<p>And all of the people that I know that have gotten accepted to UW have research experience…</p>
<p>I was not an EE major and I cannot say that I know about EE grad programs as much as graduate Math, CS or System Engineering programs BUT I would have a hard time believing that a 3.5 GPA would not get you into those schools.</p>
<p>One more thing…</p>
<p>You can (at some schools, not all) use the Non-Degree/Provisional Admission approach where you do the following:</p>
<p>1) Apply as a non-degree graduate student (easier to be admitted)
2) Take 3 graduate EE courses and ace them
3) Apply for full admission</p>
<p>Why?</p>
<p>If you have aced 9 credits out of a 30-credit MS program, there are not many schools who will turn you down. You have just aced damn-near 1/3 of the MS program.</p>
<p>My friend had similar stats but got denied from UW and UCD…but i know of girl who had a lot of research experience but a lower GPA and got into UW…</p>
<p>UW’s EE website states that their admission rate for grad school is 15%…</p>
<p>And according to US College Rankings, UW’s EE grad program is ranked 17th (which is also tied with UCSD & UCSB)…I would think it would be a little bit more difficult to get into a top 20 program with just a 3.5overall/3.78major gpa w/ no research experience…</p>
<p>the 15% admissions rate is for domestic+international. in reality, international students have an admit rate of ~5% and domestic is closer to ~50%.</p>