<p>Schools: Make sure that you know what you want to study SPECIFICALLY before applying to any school - there are few things that the 3 named schools all do, and asking to enter to study area X does not help if the school does not offer area X, and the BEST places for area X may not be in those schools. You may find that in your area of interest other schools carry more weight.</p>
<p>Class Rank: For the schools listed, all but the barest handful of those admitted are in the top 5% or better. This is not a distinction.</p>
<p>GPA: Figure it out. Nearly all US schools (including those 3) do a GPA conversion, so figure out how to convert yours to a 4.0 scale and see how competitive you are.</p>
<p>High School: Unless it was a college-level publication, nothing you did before college matters in grad apps.</p>
<p>Masters: MIT offers masters only to (1) failed PhD candidates and (2) MIT undergrads. I believe Berk is the same. Stanford offers masters, and it is less competitive than PhD admissions. Regardless, funding for masters programs is almost non-existent. PhD students contribute through teaching and research, the reason they are paid, but as a rule masters students consume more than they contribute. If you want the Stanford masters, get some big big loans.</p>
<p>Thrill: I would keep this to yourself, and would limit yourself to getting admitted. DON’T GO TO GRAD SCHOOL FOR THE THRILL!!! It’s like getting shot just so you can show off the scar - really really not worth it. You’ve got to love research in your field to succeed,
and if you do not seem to love it they will not admit you - they know what it takes.</p>
<p>Time off: Don’t worry about taking a few years break. Grad programs assume that you will have forgotten some stuff, and that due to differences in undergrad programs you may have never learned some stuff at all. The only real risk is losing those academic habits.</p>
<p>Research: 50-80% of PhD grads in the sciences and engineering go to do research in industry. Less freedom, better cash. PhD’s at my company come in around $100k and up right off the bat.</p>
<p>Good Luck.</p>