<p>I'm trying not to be annoying, but I really need some help here, my appologies for for posting on multiple boards.
So...I have an opportunity to go to stanford for summer research in engineering. I was really excited in the beginning, but now I'm seriously considering if I should go.
I won't go into detail but the general situation is, I'm a 2nd year in Canada, I don't get paid by the prof, if I go, I'll probably stay for 4 months, I really like my project but I'm seriously thinking not specialize in that area, so I'm worried about wasting time. and honestly, I think this opporunity is too good to be true, I don't know how it happened, but it somehow did..so now I start thinking...according to the rule of gruaduate school admission, admission w/o financial stripend = polite rejection, I'm thinking if the prof actually meant a polite rejection since I'm not getting paid, but somehow I just didn't get it. and besides I really have no idea if Stanford is good for the particular rresearch area I'll be in, because as much as the real academia community is concerned, prestige in a specfic reserach area doesn't usually associate with good school name.
and also my parents don't want me to go, they think it's too unecessary and cost too much money. I'm trying to apply for scholarships, but my GPA really isn't that impressive, if I don't end up getting anything, then it'll be really really expensive. Also someone used to tell me how sucky the quality of stanford undergrad is because her dad went there. I was also thinking about taking summer courses while I was there working towards my 2nd major in humanities, now I'm just don't sure if it's really a good idea.
On the other hand, I secretly want to go to Stanford just because it's in California, beach, parties, sports, greek life and all that, I just want to check out the social scene. But I'm not sure there'll be any stanford students left on campus during summer.
I talked with some profs and they really think it's a good idea to go, but obviously they probably just don't want to discourage me and try to keep me interested in research. I couldn't really discuss this with my friends because I'm sort of an underdog, no one would expect I could get something like this, so I don't want to be pretentious and tell the whole world. also, in general lots of them aren't that into research so they probably don't know anyways.
In general, I have the typical syntrom of "If I get something, then it must not be good, because I don't deserve anything good. " So, basically I doubt if this whole thing is over-rated because otherwise why would I out of all those people get it? Will this be a good investment for 4months? is it over-rated or is this an opportunity I shouldn't miss even if I end up having to be a lab rat and spend 10k?</p>
<p>1) Cross posting is greatly frowned upon by the CC forum gods.</p>
<p>2) Please take a deep breath and compose your thoughts coherently with proper formatting.</p>
<p>ok, revised version:
I got offered an unpaid summer research position in engineering @stanford. I don't know if I should go:
1) It's expensive if I don't end up getting any scholarship from my own school
2) Stanford might not be that great for this particular area
3) parents aren't supportive. no one is really excited for this except me
4) I'm not sure if this opportunity is overrated given the kind of project I'll be doing for a 2nd year undergrad
5) I'm thinking about NOT specializing in this area at all, so it might be a waste of time to spend a summer on it
6) It's summer, all the stanford students are gone, I might not get the real flavor of the school</p>
<p>7) but It's California, and it's Stanford.</p>
<p>So. Suggestions please</p>
<p>That's a hell of a lot of self doubt. You contradict yourself many times in your statement. I think you should listen to your professors rather than 2nd hand information from a friend's dad. Stanford undergrad enjoys one of the best reputations in the US. Who know what colored his experience that won't apply to you.</p>
<p>I don't know much about engineering, but for grad school these summer research opportunities are good for your CV and possible for your LOR. Especially for someone with a GPA not that good this could override that. I just don't understand why it doesn't have a few thousands for stipend. Perhaps it is because you are non US?</p>
<p>If you like your project, that seems the most important thing. It isn't necessary to know for sure if you will specialize in that area yet, and it certainly won't be a waste if you should choose a different area. </p>
<p>It is your call to make it more expensive by adding classes. But I would write to the professor and clarify about there being a stipend involved or not. You can also say that you are applying for funding for it and ask if he knows of any avenues.</p>
<p>Stanford is a beautiful campus and there are many interesting and beautiful things to see in Northern California. But the beach culture you maybe thinking of is Southern California for the most part. Santa Cruz is nice, though and pretty close.</p>
<p>I guess if it were me, or my daughter, I'd try pretty hard to make this happen.</p>
<p>Okay, deep breaths. This will not walk away from you if you think about this further for a while. Here's my advice and comments, in no particular order. </p>
<ol>
<li><p>Research experience is almost always good, especially in a good program at a well-reputed institution. You really can't go wrong here. As far as whether you will end up "specializing in this area"- it matters zero. Many graduate students did undergrad research that is completely unrelated to their graduate work (but usually staying within a larger field, of course, i.e. engineering, math, science). It is not a waste of time to do some work outside of what you think your specific future field will be. </p></li>
<li><p>The big question I'm seeing is the lack of pay vs. possible gain for your career. You should think about the following things: Are you planning on going to graduate school in engineering? What are your other options for the summer? Research experience is essential for graduate school admissions, and if you have an equal opportunity elsewhere that won't be such a financial strain, consider that. </p></li>
<li><p>Considering your surprise at receiving it, you are really asking a lot from this opportunity. You seem to want to live in California without it being too expensive, get the "real flavor" of Stanford, receive top-notch training (though Stanford is excellent for most engineering disciplines), and be assigned an advanced project above and beyond what your 2nd-year-undergrad status deserves. To me, this sounds like a wonderful opportunity that only came without funding because many professors do not make allocations to pay undergraduates out-of-pocket. </p></li>
</ol>
<p>Very simply: After reading the above, think about why you would be going, and whether those are reasonable motivations. Then consider the cons, and whether those are enough to keep you from going.</p>