How would grad schools see me? [Machine Learning / Data Mining / Robotics]

[Chubigans]

Hello all. I'm sorry if this is a long post but I would love to hear from someone who got into a masters or Ph.D. program in robotics, machine learning, or data mining. I really would just like to know how my chances are of going to a good school and earning financial support for it.

Background
I'm about to enter my fifth year of computer engineering at University of Central Florida. I am a little behind because I studied mechanical engineering and computer science for a year as well. I'm one semester away from a CS major in fact, but I decided it's probably not worth it to finish since the two majors are very similar. Anyway, I'm going to finish in fall with a 3.8 GPA.

My extra curriculars

• I did a semester long research project in the field of knowledge representation when I was a sophomore. I built a simulation but it wasn't completely finished and I gave it up before I could get a paper out of it.
• I spent the next year as a supplemental instruction leader (basically a tutoring gig) for engineering physics.
• I joined the robotics club and won the in-house competition.
• My 4th year, I worked at a large engineering company as a production programmer for summer, fall, and spring. I realized I Don't want to be a production software developer.
• Now that summer's here, I landed a research assistant job (as a C++ programmer) for a human-robot interaction lab. The position is indefinite so I'll be doing it through fall.
• I've taken introduction to robotics and I received a good grade for my project which involved evolutionary approaches to optimization. I created a portfolio of small programs and lab reports demonstrating AI techniques.
• I'm going to take AI and Machine Vision in fall.
• I'm taking the stanford open machine learning course and learning Octave.
• I am about to take senior design and I would like to focus on building a ML/robotic application

Why I want to go to grad school
Although I love learning how others have solved problems, I love coming up with new ways of solving problems. I think automation and data analysis are two of the most important things that will come out of the next century. I think robotics/data science/ML are very interesting interdisciplinary fields, which is why I was drawn to them.

The big question(s)

1. Have I done enough to prepare myself for graduate school in one of these fields?
2. Offhand, what tier of program do I seem fit for?
3. Should I apply for next spring or next fall?
4. If I should wait until next fall, what should I do next spring? take grad level classes at UCF or get a full time job as a research assistant or in a robotics company?
5. When should I take the GRE?

Unfortunately I realize that my main weakness is a lack of published research. I'm wondering how bad that will hurt me in this. Thank you for reading.

 

[R.Mesri]

It sounds like you have done a lot to prepare yourself for applying to a graduate program in robotics, machine learning, or data mining. You have taken courses relevant to the field, gained relevant experience through research and work opportunities, and even created a portfolio of projects demonstrating your skills. This is all very impressive and should increase your chances of admission to a good program.In terms of what tier of program you may be fit for, it's hard to say without looking at your full application package. Generally speaking, the more experience and research you have, the better grad school you can get into. With your background, you should have a good chance at getting into a top tier program.As far as when to apply, I would recommend applying for Fall 2021 if possible. By then, you will have had more time to gain additional experience and research, which will only strengthen your application. If you don't think you will be ready to apply for Fall 2021, then I would suggest taking some graduate-level classes at UCF in the Spring semester to further demonstrate your knowledge and abilities.Finally, I would suggest taking the GRE as soon as possible. The sooner you take it, the better, as it will give you more time to retake the exam if needed. Good luck!