Grad school Definition and 1000 Threads

There's a good deal of interesting grad school info here (though mostly for non-astrophysics, of course), but it seems quite US centered. I'm a few years ahead of graduation now but figure it's best to plan ahead. My interest was piqued since the Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics in...

I'm applying for grad school in the fall and I need some opinions about my chances, where I should good, etc. I am majoring in math, with a minor in physics. I went to a community college then a UC. At my community college, I had a 4.0 major GPA, 3.8 overall GPA. At the UC I'm at now, I have a...

I just looked Physics graduate admission application guidelines on websites of various US and other International universities. There wasn't any mention of Extracurricular activities at all, unlike undergrad applications which use them as a crucial factor for admission decisions. Do they matter...

Hi, I'm wondering whether it's harder to find a job or get accepted to a PhD program after obtaining a MS degree outside of states. Does the employer or adcom treat people who obtained a degree outside of states as an international applicant regardless of citizenship?

I've applied to the best ranked (according to QS) university in my country, the National University of Science and Technology (NUST). Of course the university isn't really all that nice in international standards, but in impoverished third-world standards, its facilities and faculty are pretty...

I really enjoy math and worked hard to get my grades up. I'm a soon to be sophomore right now and I had issues with Calc 1 and got a 2.4 in it. I had a hard time adjusting to college, had to repeat it. Obviously I'm not happy with how I did and am dissapointed in myself. Is Grad School for Math...

After 13 years of on and off schooling, I am (yay!) getting my B.A. in mathematics in... a couple of weeks. As most undergraduates I am intimidated at the prospect of graduate school and the pace of the work. When I talk to grad students I hear how bone-crushingly hard everything is, yadda...

Next Spring I'll be graduating at the University of Arkansas with a Double major in Math(B.S.) and Physics(B.A.). As of right now the plan is to teach high school math and/or physics in Texas. However, that isn't necessarily my ultimate goal. I would like to go to grad school and get at least a...

Hi, I've been accepted to a couple of schools for grad school. One of them being my undergrad institution where I have a great fit with an advisor I've been working with for the past two years. The other is the most prestigious school in my country, with an international reputation and great...

First of all, let me specify that I am not currently in this situation, however my significant other is. He was recently rejected from 13/14 grad schools he applied to and is trying to figure out why. Right out of high school, he went to Purdue for applied physics. He wasn't prepared for...

Hi all, I am an undergrad physics major working in two physics labs and also doing research in math with a professor. I only have two strong recomendations from my two physics lab professors, so for my third recomendation (for physics graduate school) i wanted to ask my math professor, so i...

I'm an undergraduate engineering student starting to think about grad school, but I'm a little bit stuck on something. On the one hand, I have a safe option which I know will be at least good, if not great. I've done a couple summer projects with one research group at my school, and they said...

So I'll be starting a Physics PhD program in the fall, August to be precise. Now I'm the type of person that would go and self-study whatever topic I found interesting (currently working through a reading list in GR, even though it's not a field I'm going into), but I am wondering if there are...

I'm currently a freshman who is double majoring in Math and Mechanical Engineering. I took a class over the summer, and the instructor got me very interested in math again, which is why I added the second major. In high school, I was an average student (As in Bs) and As in Bs in all of my Math...

I'm looking primarily for answers from people who have been on admission committees or have otherwise reviewed applications from undergraduate students. When you look at a student's transcript, is the distribution of his/her grades a factor at all? For example, I performed only around average...

Ok, so I am just finishing my AA as a physics major and on the fence about two different universities to finish my BS. One of them is more well recognized as far as physics goes (University of Florida). However, being a non-traditional student, it would put me a substantial distance away from...

Anyone doing it? This is my first semester as a lab instructor. I do physics lab and astronomy labs. I enjoy it, but it can make me sad sometimes when i see students dozing off or doing poorly in their lab write-ups or quizzes! Kids get really creative in their answers too! Any...

i'm a physics major at a tech school. my cumulative gpa is a 2.78. my physics gpa is somewhere between a 3.6~3.7. mainly the physics classes i didn't do well in were the physics labs 1 & 2, and the classes in general i didn't do well in were my humanities classes. REU's are out of the question...

Do grad school admissions for math typically involve interviews? I can't find this on the official websites, but it seems like some do from a few friends I talked to. If so, what are they like? Does it mainly involve talking about what sort of research you are interested in doing?

I'm in year 3 currently. I'll be applying for grad school in the US in the fall, and based on what I've seen on the internet and heard from others, most applications are due in December, some early January. My school is on a semester system, and our fall term grades aren't made official until...

Hi, I'm a sophomore undergrad and recently I've been wondering how much weight grad schools in the sciences actually put into your "course load." I've read some conflicting views on the internet, books on grad school admissions, and faculty. The websites for some grad/professional schools list...

Hello all, I am about to start my senior year as a physics undergraduate. Besides the fact that I don't know what graduate degree I wish to go for (engineering or physics), I am fearful that I am unprepared for graduate school and wouldn't mind some advice. 1) What are some good ways to go...

Hi everyone, I'm applying to grad school and I find the process extremely stressful. Today I got almost/maybe rejected from my third graduate school and I am completely freaking out. This one was one I was actually pretty hopeful I can get in. I still have four other schools I applied to but if...

I was thinking about going to grad school to study philosophy of physics and math, and logic and paradoxes. I was googling around to try and find a school, Columbia has something like it, If I get a Masters or doctorate in this field, would it be hard to get a teaching position at a...

Ok, so I am in a pickle. I attended a University which will remain anonymous right out of high school. I double majored in Biology and Electrical Engineering and let's just say that I was not prepared to be in college nor should I have been double majoring in anything. I did not take school...

I couldn't find anything in the search to quite fit my situation and you guys seem to know your stuff. Take a crack at this one. I'm a senior in a big commuter state school with an extremely decent, PhD granting math department. Decent, not stellar; the thing is that most of our faculty is...

Hello, I have been studying electromagnetics ever since I can remember. In school we did algebra electromagnetism. In 1st year college we did electromagnetism but with basic calculus. Then electromagnetics with vector calculus which in my opinion was far more involving than the previous 2. I...

This fall I'll receive my B.S. in Physics. I have a 3.46 gpa and have done research at my home university and an REU. I know I am competing with actual Nuclear Engineering majors. How screwed am I and what small universities that have a nuclear engineering program may I have a shot at?

Hi all, I am a newbie in this website. I have found this website a great source of help for me in every possible ways. Currently I am at a crossroad in my career path where I need to make a sound decision in order to move forward. I am a civil engineer in training (EIT) with more than...

So I took quantum I using Griffith's and I only got an A- 3.7 out of 4. Will that look bad on my grad school application considering I'm competing with people who got A in quantum. I plan on getting into a PHD program and getting a Stipend. My overall GPA is like a 3.78.

I can either take junior level E@M and get an A in it hopefully. Or I can place out of the class by self studying. If I do the latter then I'll take a final exam and if I pass the final with a 90+ I get the credit but no grade. What will look better for grad school. If I place out I'll take...

Hi everyone. Just for a bit of background info, I earned my B.S. in Physics in May. I'm applying for grad school (for next year), but I'm kinda stuck on part of the application. It's kind of silly, but I'm a worrier. There's a spot on the application for you to select what degree you are...

Hello, I'm a senior undergraduate physics majors taking a gap year before applying to physics grad school. I wanted to get a pet before continuing off the physics grads school and i was wondering if I realistically have time or money to take care of it. I'm thinking of getting a pet lizard...

Hi, I am a math major in South Korea. Recently, one of my friends came to me with a rumor that age of the applicant is a critical factor in admission to top math grad school like princeton, harvard, etc... What worries me is that due to the country's "mandatory military service law ", I...

Hello everyone, I am currently in my third semester at Rutgers University with a declared major in Physics. I aspire to do post-baccalaureate studies. However, my GPA is just "average." I have read through threads where the OP is in a similar situation to mine, and I have found a lot of...

For example, I want to work on quantum gravity and things like Brane cosmology (but not necessarily string theory). I'm really interested in sinking my teeth into differential geometry, general relativity, the shape of the universe, stuff like that. But if I were to go to a grad school that...

Hello wise physicists, I didn't know who else to ask this question to - so I am posing it to other physics students and people who have been through the program, maybe even with a dilemma similar to mine. I'm new here to the forums. Currently a 4th year Physics major at a top 10 undergrad...

I am a junior physics and cognitive science major with hopes of going into grad school for physics. I have to stay 3-4 extra semesters to finish school- not enough time to do everything. The attached file shows my grades. PHY is physics, CSC is computer science, MAT is math- the rest are not...

Hello, I am applying to graduate schools in physics, applied physics, and engineering. On my resume, I would like to know if people feel I should include summer research (REU,SULI) presentations, and poster sessions I have attended. The most important poster session would be one for the...

Since I am posting this on behalf of a friend (who's in a slight slump and could use some advice), I am probably lacking some information. However, hopefully you guys can get the idea. While my friend did well his first semester at the regional campus at his 50-60 ranked university, his...

So I'm currently an undergrad physics major, and looking to pursue a Ph.D in physics. I was recently talking to one of my friends, who is a grad plasma physics student, about his research. He seems to like physics a lot, but when I talked to him he said his research is boring. I replied with...

When applying to grad programs in the US, is it be a good idea to attach documented proof of having received scholarships/financial awards if they were on both sustained academic performance and need-based grounds? In my country, the grants I got throughout my undergrad are kind of a big deal...

I am currently a senior at a no name liberal arts college studying math and physics. I am unsure about want I want to do in the future, but I am considering engineering for graduate school in the far future. Field yet to be determined. Last year I took an advance physics lab course and...

Before quantum mechanics and relativity were incorporated into the physics curriculum, what did physicists go to grad school for? It seems like classical mechanics, thermodynamics (I believe stat mech was not well developed at the time), and electromagnetism were the only things that were...

I have a GRE score of 6.0 writing, 170 reading, and 168 quantitative, and a 4.0 GPA. I also have 4 semesters of soft matter theory research and 1 summer of particle physics theory research. I'm applying to do theory to many schools, including MIT, SUNY Stony Brook, Stanford, Harvard, UMass...

I had two questions regarding grad school stipends. For starters, about how many hours per week do you have to typically spend working to earn your stipend? Second, I have heard that the amount of grad students receiving stipends is extremely high in most colleges, where actually not getting...

I recently did an internship at my university in which I worked more closely with the engineer in charge of the lab rather than the professor. Would it be okay to ask the engineer in charge to write a letter of recommendation for grad. school since he is more capable of detailing my performance...

Hi guys and gals, first post here, but I've lurked here before but just now registering and posting I'm getting ready to apply for my graduate schools. I'm not sure what exactly I'm seeking, so I want to provide a little background. I've always been a tinkerer, ever since I was young I've...

I was just wondering if this is a common thing that people do. I am a junior in college and I had a software engineering internship and enjoyed it very much and I think it'd a career i'd enjoy. However I've always wanted to get a phd in computer science and do research in computer graphics. At...

Hi there, If any people who have sat on grad school admissions committees are lurking out there, I would love to hear your opinion on this: I'm reapplying to grad school for next fall after I took my Masters and left at another institution. I made a right mess of things there; was going...