Athens to Cal tech or MIT

[radioactive8]

HI
My name is Anthony, I am 18 years old and i live in Greece . I just got accepted at the physics department of the University of Athens as a undergraduate . From my little age i always wanted to explore Nature and learn its rules so i know i have made the right decision . However i would also liked to be an engineer . So here is my question : Having a degree of the university of Athens Having a good mark round about 8/10 and being one of the best of my class, will i be able to also take a degree in engineering at a good foreign University Like Cal tech or MIT and also study quantum physics for my masters and my doctor's degree ?

i think The university of Chicago is a great choice considering the fact that Tevatron is near by .
For the record i am also a professional basketball player so doesn't it help me ?

Thanks
Anthony

 

[Jufro]

I am unfamiliar with overseas institutions. So I am not the best to reply, but since you have posted I figure you deserve an answer.

I would suggest talking to some form of an academic counselor in your current school. See if they have ever dealt with this sort of thing. I would also suggest to reach out to any school you are thinking about applying to. The admissions department will be glad to answer questions that you may have.

Also, for schools like MIT and CalTech, their expectations are sought of known. You can see material they have online and see if you have the required knowledge to compete with other applicants.

Best of luck.

 

[Aero_UoP]

Hi Anthony.

First of all, congratulations for making it into the University of Athens.
You need to concentrate on your studies there for the time being and ask here any questions you might have or for suggestions about which textbooks to choose.

You should visit CalTech's (or whichever university's) website and see the entry requirements that each university sets. If you want to move there, you need to have a good undergraduate degree but apart from this I think they ask for GRE test and some other stuff that I don't know about because I wasn't really interested since I couldn't afford them. Moreover, you should take a look at their tuition fees AND accommodation costs as it is quite probable that they're out of reach for most of us in Greece... UNLESS you have REALLY good grades and you manage to take a scholarship. Generally, bear in mind that there are scholarships available provided that your grades are high.

Tevatron is not the only particle accelerator in the world. There's the CERN here in Europe so you don't have to move to another continent for that.

Having a BSc in Physics you'll be able to study for an engineering degree in MSc level I suppose, but that depends on the entry requirements of the university to which you want to go. Now, if you want to combine engineering and quantum physics... I'm not the suitable person to guide you but I do know of the application of quantum physics on computer engineering... but I don't know what else to tell you.

Anyway, feel free to ask whatever you want.

Good luck with your studies and keep in touch.

 

[radioactive8]

Hi. I thank both of you for you replies . I know about Cern but you see except of been remembered as one of the best scientist my second dream is to be remembered as a top basketball player as i love both physics and basketball the same way .that is Why i prefer Chicago so in one hand ill be close buy to second largest accelerator in the world but in the other hand i ll have my chance in NCAA and than in the NBA walking the path that Jeremy Lin draw .( from Harvard to NBA) .
Although i have read plenty of books on quantum mechanics , general physics , math and other sciences as they weir more general-public books i haven't reached the level i would like , but i hope in the next 4 years i will .

 

[Aero_UoP]

It's good that you're ambitious. Stay that way and try to make your dream come true! ;)
I wish you luck and success!
As for the books, you'll have plenty of time to study them while you're at university so you'll definitely reach the level you desire!

 

[jtbell]

Why i prefer Chicago so in one hand ill be close buy to second largest accelerator in the world but in the other hand i ll have my chance in NCAA and than in the NBA walking the path that Jeremy Lin draw .( from Harvard to NBA) .

If you're seriously interested in a basketball career, then U of Chicago is not for you. Chicago competes in NCAA Division III, the "lowest" of the three divisions, whereas e.g. Harvard is in Division I. Only Division I schools participate in the "March Madness" championships that you probably know about. (Divisions II and III each have separate championships.)

 

[Mépris]

This has been covered extensively in the past here. Search. And use Google to search as well.

I think there were some other Greeks here too a while back.

Good luck. And don't set your sights on just a select few schools. While financial aid and scholarships are available at the very top schools - for the most part - I think you have some more options as an athlete. I learned this when looking at the Wikipedia pages of some German football teams. There were *English* players who went to the US for college, and I am willing to bet that this was on an athletic scholarship.

I don't know much else on the subject. I would suggest contacting the US embassy and asking for help there. They will know more on the athlete recruitment side of things. You will probably have to apply as a transfer student.

 

[ZapperZ]

HI
My name is Anthony, I am 18 years old and i live in Greece . I just got accepted at the physics department of the University of Athens as a undergraduate . From my little age i always wanted to explore Nature and learn its rules so i know i have made the right decision . However i would also liked to be an engineer . So here is my question : Having a degree of the university of Athens Having a good mark round about 8/10 and being one of the best of my class, will i be able to also take a degree in engineering at a good foreign University Like Cal tech or MIT and also study quantum physics for my masters and my doctor's degree ?

i think The university of Chicago is a great choice considering the fact that Tevatron is near by .
For the record i am also a professional basketball player so doesn't it help me ?

Thanks
Anthony

1. The Tevatron is no longer around. It has been decommissioned (i.e. no longer operational).

2. You should also consider other less popular schools. Everyone and their grandmother want to get into those schools. Your chances of getting in isn't just based on your academic standing. You are competing with other strong candidates from all over the world. These schools can pick and choose the best amongst the best.

3. I can't see how being a basketball player can help you here. I have never heard of a graduate student on a basketball scholarship, and much less, a physics graduate student doing that. The demand of a physics graduate is too demanding (try passing your qualifier while spending the needed time for the basketball team!).

4. You should concentrate on doing well with your undergraduate degree first. It isn't a given that you'll be near the top of your class by the time you complete your degree.

Zz.

 

[Vanadium 50]

If you are already a professional basketball player, you will not be able to compete in the NCAA.

 

[radioactive8]

If you are already a professional basketball player, you will not be able to compete in the NCAA.

What do you mean a professional basketball player ? I mean that i am paid to play in a team but i haven't signed a contract and i am not at high league of Greece . i am in the 5th.
THanks

 

[radioactive8]

1. The Tevatron is no longer around. It has been decommissioned (i.e. no longer operational).

2. You should also consider other less popular schools. Everyone and their grandmother want to get into those schools. Your chances of getting in isn't just based on your academic standing. You are competing with other strong candidates from all over the world. These schools can pick and choose the best amongst the best.

3. I can't see how being a basketball player can help you here. I have never heard of a graduate student on a basketball scholarship, and much less, a physics graduate student doing that. The demand of a physics graduate is too demanding (try passing your qualifier while spending the needed time for the basketball team!).

4. You should concentrate on doing well with your undergraduate degree first. It isn't a given that you'll be near the top of your class by the time you complete your degree.

Zz.

HI and thanks . Look I don't want to give up in any of my dreams . I wrote the best mark in class while not missing even one game or practice at the team . Because whenever i didn't have practice i was studying .. Unlike my classmates that were good students but they spent the free time relaxing . I was accepted at the University of Athens as the 21th student so 20 students from all over Greece wrote better than me in the final exams . But i'll give it my best so i can finish first at my class ...

 

[ZapperZ]

What do you mean a professional basketball player ? I mean that i am paid to play in a team but i haven't signed a contract and i am not at high league of Greece . i am in the 5th.
THanks

When you've already been paid, then by the collegiate rules here in the US, you are a professional basketball player, and you are not allowed to play and represent any school here. So your ability to play basketball is no longer of any significance in your acceptance.

No matter how brilliant you are, doing graduate work in physics AND participating in collegiate level sports here in the US is extremely rare. I certainly have not hear of one. So you are faced with lack of precedent in what you think you want or can do. What if you are in the middle of an experiment, and suddenly, your team has to compete somewhere? These two areas do not try to match or synch their schedule!

You still have a lot to learn about physics education at this level.

Zz.

 

[Vanadium 50]

For the record i am also a professional basketball player

What do you mean a professional basketball player ?

As Zz says, once you have accepted money, you can no longer play in the NCAA.

 

[StatGuy2000]

When you've already been paid, then by the collegiate rules here in the US, you are a professional basketball player, and you are not allowed to play and represent any school here. So your ability to play basketball is no longer of any significance in your acceptance.

No matter how brilliant you are, doing graduate work in physics AND participating in collegiate level sports here in the US is extremely rare. I certainly have not hear of one. So you are faced with lack of precedent in what you think you want or can do. What if you are in the middle of an experiment, and suddenly, your team has to compete somewhere? These two areas do not try to match or synch their schedule!

You still have a lot to learn about physics education at this level.

Zz.

While the situation isn't completely analogous, there is the case of Harald Bohr (brother of physicist Niels Bohr), who finished his graduate degree in mathematics while also participating in the Danish soccer (that's football to those outside of North America) team in the Olympics. So graduate education and athletics are not mutually exclusive.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_Bohr

 

[radioactive8]

While the situation isn't completely analogous, there is the case of Harald Bohr (brother of physicist Niels Bohr), who finished his graduate degree in mathematics while also participating in the Danish soccer (that's football to those outside of North America) team in the Olympics. So graduate education and athletics are not mutually exclusive.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harald_Bohr

When you've already been paid, then by the collegiate rules here in the US, you are a professional basketball player, and you are not allowed to play and represent any school here. So your ability to play basketball is no longer of any significance in your acceptance.

No matter how brilliant you are, doing graduate work in physics AND participating in collegiate level sports here in the US is extremely rare. I certainly have not hear of one. So you are faced with lack of precedent in what you think you want or can do. What if you are in the middle of an experiment, and suddenly, your team has to compete somewhere? These two areas do not try to match or synch their schedule!

You still have a lot to learn about physics education at this level.

Zz.

I believe is someone wants as much as he wants to breath he can have it or have them ... both

 

[ZapperZ]

I believe is someone wants as much as he wants to breath he can have it or have them ... both

Be as it may, no matter how much you want it, you can't be in two places at one time. Graduate work in physics is a full-time, demanding process. You mentioned a possible interest in high energy physics. Most grad students doing experimental work in this field often have to travel to do their work, and go on shift. Think you can skip that just so you can bounce a few balls?

Look, you asked for advice. You got it. It is up to you to accept it or not.

Zz.

 

[radioactive8]

yes but you forget one think. The internet . Using that it is possible to be at 2 places at one time ^ ^ like a particle ;P

 

[ZapperZ]

yes but you forget one think. The internet . Using that it is possible to be at 2 places at one time ^ ^ like a particle ;P

Good luck into thinking that you can do a physical work in two separate places at one time.

You have so much to learn. I think I've said everything I want to. I'll let life do the rest of the surprises for you from now on.

Zz.