My Chances of getting into MIT/Stanford?? (sorry for the duplicate)

Graduate School
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<p>I'll be applying to these schools this coming winter for M.S. with the intention of completing PHD and it's been my dream of getting in. I will be done with undergraduate next spring (total of 3 years)</p>

<p>School: Georgia Tech
Major: Mechanical engineering and minor in computer science</p>

<p>GPA 3.90 (most of my curriculum over now) Major GPA also 3.90</p>

<p>By the time applications come:
-2 semesters (and counting) in one lab (on design and modeling)
-2 semesters in another (on fuzzy systems and control, a bit of mathematical modeling)
-1 semester (2 years ago) in another (on material science..hated it lol)
...all labs in georgia tech, under the guidance of a professor</p>

<p>LOR's :
1)Professor of the first lab (Associate prof graduated from CMU) I will be applying to CMU because I want to focus on an area that requires the integration of cs and ME
2) Professor of the second lab (Prof graduated from Berkeley)
3) Professor who taught me fluids..We got to know each other in a more personal level (Prof graduated from Stanford)</p>

<p>The first two were also professors of one of my classes, so they will touch on both aspects</p>

<p>Awards: Presidential Undergrad research award (nothing big, just a stipend for my research, but an award nonetheless)</p>

<p>Pubs and Presentations: Again nothing big, I presented my work to couple of labs in tech. Nothing at a conference or anything. Planning to present during an event in spring but this will be after the application so... (this isn't that big too, its just an undergrad symposium at Georgia tech)
Seeing if I can publish a paper by this winter or at least making a thesis..but unlikely</p>

<p>GRE: haven't taken a real one yet...I took a trial one before I started studying I got 400/700 (V/Q)...
Let's say I get 550/800 (V/Q)</p>

<p>Other: Tutor for core classes and ME classes for 3 years, vice president of ASME chapter in Tech, program coordinator of a club called Student movement (service), Freshman Seminar Class team leader</p>

<p>Calculus 3 TA.</p>

<p>Your input on my chances of getting into my top choices would be great. I really need it. My worry is that only through LOR's will my research skills be shown, no pubs or cool presentations in a conference. Second is my GRE...I hope 550 for verbal is enough. And another thing, I finished undergrad in 3 yrs..at first I was thinking that this might play to my advantage because it shows my academic strength but I realized I could have strengthened my application even more..Is my research profile strong enough?</p>

<p>I want to specialize in the area of of computer aided design or modeling and simulation of control system or computational mechanics (bascially the use of computer science, modelling, computational simulation on mechanical systems). Please let me know if I have a high, or a 50-50(cuz other applicants are about the same) or a low chance of getting into these two school. If low, please let me know where my application may be weak. I haven't started my SOP because I've been trying to zone into my area of interest. I hope it turns out well. Please mention if there are other factors that may affect my admission, like spots in the labs that I choose to work in.</p>

<p>Thanks in advance!</p>

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<p>you will get in at least stanford</p>

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<p>you’ll get into stanford, but don’t expect any funding for the masters</p>

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<p>Can any of you explain why you guys are so sure about him/her getting into Stanford?</p>

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<p>for what you want to do, MIT/Stanford, may not be the best schools. DS, CMU '06, ME & HCI, similar gpa, LOR, goals, did not get into these schools. Cast a wider net and look for a particular advisor.</p>

<p>Did you enjoy and have fun in your 3 years at GT? or did you only studied?</p>

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<p>I reckon you have an alright shot as long as you get decent LoRs as this is probably the most important part of PhD application.</p>

<p>@LongPrime
For what it’s worth, I think GT has a reputation on being harsh with grades, so probably a 3.9 GPA from GT carries a bit more ‘oomph’ to the admission committee.</p>

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<p>pocket, i got in with worse credentials</p>

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<p>From what I keep hearing, Stanford has fairly low admission standards for their programs, but their Quals weeds out the lower 60% of the class, making their Masters a cash cow for the rest of their program.</p>

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<p>thecardinal, you meant you got in to the Stanford’s PhD program with worse credentials?</p>

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<p>I didn’t see the part where he ASSUMED his GRE Q is 800 that might have a slight impact on his chance. take it first and see what you get</p>

<p>GT is a well respected engineering school - he got a 3.9 there that already put him at a really good spot. i think GPA is a bigger factor than the GRE so even IF his GRE Q/V is around average he still stands a pretty good chance. (but come on if you can get a 3.9 at GT how are you not getting a 800 on the GRE Q?) he got some research experiences which is a plus and the rec looks okay at least, depending how well they know him. that’s why I think he get a fairly good chance of getting in the master (not phd tho), especially if he can write a decent SOP showing his passion. (but like the cardinal said, don’t expect funding for masters)</p>

<p>getting in is one thing, doing phd there is another thing. when it comes to phd level it’s more about fit, so that’s why ppl explore during their master for the possibility of doing phd</p>

<p>btw while Stanford occasionally take in some ‘average’ students, i do not think that Stanford has low admission standards. Almost everyone here at Stanford are pretty dang smart. They don’t only take in 4.0 students. In fact, i wonder how many of them are actually 4.0. Let’s face it, if you have a 4.0 and you are not getting into any top school you want, then something is really wrong with the way you present yourself (LOR’s from prof and SOP BY yourself)</p>

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<p>thanks for your input guys…</p>

<p>but i have two pressing questions</p>

<p>One…in the application, if I mention that I want to pursue my masters with the intention of completing my PHD, will that lower my chances? I heard that will help me but I became doubtful when you guys are like ‘getting into PHD is much tougher…a different story…’
Isn’t it common and easy for ppl who have completed their masters to stick with their advisers and complete their PHD? How much of a difference is this to directly applying for PHD?</p>

<p>Second…when you guys so ‘don’t expect fuding’ do you guys mean like not even getting an RA? Are you guys saying that solely because I am only good enough to get in but not for a RA? Then, maybe I could fund myself with a TA job?
Thanks again</p>

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<p>^ you’re certainly not going to fund 60k/year with a TA job. you might be able to scratch the surface at least…</p>

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<p>"^ you’re certainly not going to fund 60k/year with a TA job. you might be able to scratch the surface at least… "</p>

<p>assistantships typically come with a significant reduction in tuition/fees. For example, when I was a TA I paid $625 in tuition per semester compared to the sticker price of $11-12k.</p>

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<p>I think you can get in Stanford as well. MIT will depend on your LOR.</p>

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<p>Can someone tell me why what kind of funding is being discussed here? Fellowships? Or just getting an assistantship?..I thought almost everybody who gets admitted gets a RA position. Forget getting a TA, i really want to do research so I want to get an RA. So…I’m not good enough to get an RA position in the likes of Stanford/MIT ??</p>

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<p>Generally, you will be offered funding if you are accepted into a PhD program. Sometimes a fellowship is offered for the first year, followed by a RA/TA combination. Some teaching/grading commitments may be required and hence the TA. Depending on the funding situation, departments or professors may shift students’ funding from RA to TA or vice versa.</p>

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<p>fellowship is really sacred. as far as i observed, TA is only offered to current phd students. (there are a lot more grad students here in stanford than undergrad students) while some master students who got in with the intention of doing phd, they get to do some RA. but still that’s very rare. you really have to fight for funding here. the fact is here at stanford they want you to pay for Masters. that’s my 2cents because i am only a masters student and haven’t even done any TA/RA.</p>

<p>you should try emailing the profs that you are interested in working with and see what they say</p>

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<p>I ended up getting 450/800 in my first GRE(V/Q)
Mixed feelings of course. I understand math is probably the most important part. But obviously disappointed about verbal. In my practice tests for verbal, I once got over 700, quite a few times scraped 600 and a very few times got less than 500. Sux the test day had to be my worst performance in verbal. Based on my profile I posted in the starting of this thread, you think these GRE scores is going to hurt me??</p>

<p>450 verbal is around average. I hope I won’t get rejected from MIT/Stanford/Berkeley/Caltech just because of this. Based on what replies I get I may have to take it again but that’s gonna suck because I have to wait till December when my semester final exams come around. </p>

<p>Also, about funding, I have heard couple of guys who got into stanford but didn’t get funding. MIT, however, claims that 99% of their accepted students get funding. So in MIT, it doesn’t seem to be two different things. In that way, Stanford is harder to get in than MIT?</p>

<p>Also, someone mentioned contacting professors, you think it is a good idea to contact professors before your application to let them know about your interest and inquire about upcoming spots?</p>

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<p>GRE is generally worthless but 50th percentile verbal does raise questions, especially considering so many international students take it. It’s not bad enough to get you rejected, but <500V lowers chances somewhat even for engineering PhD admissions. After all, you have to publish. Verbal involves dumb luck because obscure words are tested, but if you’re an American student good enough for MIT/Stanford/Berkeley, >500V should be trivial since you should be able to ace the reading comprehension portions, do well in the fill in the blanks, and get at least some of the antonyms/word relations. Berkeley EECS, for example, has 595V average with a 40% international body. Good SoP can overcome it, though.</p>

<p>Most schools will fund PhD-track students, but not terminal MS students. MIT does not consider anyone terminal MS (except for its own undergrads doing MEng). Since everyone is expected to go on to the PhD stage, everyone gets funded. Stanford is a special case, where weeding is done after admissions. Almost none of its terminal MS students are funded, but they’re allowed to take the PhD qualifying exam. Some of its better PhD-track students are funded (through SGF or departmental fellowships or possibly RAs, if any professor already knows them), but not all. Stanford knows some of them won’t make it and prefers not to invest in them that early. After passing quals, though, RAs are not too hard to find. This is all for their EE program, the only one I’m familiar with, but it should not be too different in other engineering departments.</p>

<p>Contacting professors depends on the school, particularly how famous they are and whether they do admission by committee or through individual professors/research groups. For MIT/Stanford/Berkeley, don’t. They receive so many emails that you’re just noise to them. You’ll be ignored or receive a meaningless “thank you for your interest” reply. Contact AFTER getting admission.</p>

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<p>GShine_1989 I am an international student, who did my undergrad in Georgia Tech…but ya even for me dats a low score…but they may be easier on me…and my toefl is pretty good…you think this might be overcome by a good essay score??</p>

<p>Stanford only allows students to apply for MS before PHD…so to show that you do want to do PHD, you have to take the quals once u get in?? So, the only thing I can do is mention that I aim to get PHD in my SOP??</p>

<p>thanks</p>