Physics GRE Discussion Forums

Hi everyone, I think my applications are coming to an end, and I am trying to make a decision between these schools: Iowa State University, University of Florida, and Georgia Tech. Actually, it is more of a decision between Florida and Georgia Tech since I probably prefer the location and weather of these two schools. However, since I haven't visited these schools yet (which I will do in the upcoming weeks), I will keep all my options open. I really appreciate it if you can give me some information or advice as to which school I should pick. I am not 100% certain, but I am thinking of going into the condensed matter physics experiment. Also, my plan for the future is to obtain an academic job.

Thank you in advance.

Hello. I don't know much about CME research activities at those universities, but I think they are all roughly on par with one another. Will you be visiting Florida the 25th-27th? That's when I plan on visiting. Being from the midwest, I like the prospect of a (much) warmer climate for the next 5-6 years, so at least for me that is a major selling point. One downside to Gainesville though is the lack of an international airport, which Atlanta of course has. Although that may or may not be a big deal depending on where you are from.

I am visiting Florida on March 16 and Georgia on April 4. I live in America, so it's ok for me if the airport is not international.

I'm finishing up my undergrad at georgia at the moment and have taken some grad classes as well as done some research. The campus is nice and has a lot of trees and such which makes you forget you're in the middle of a big city. Also being in Atlanta is a plus (for me at least) since there are a lot of nearby places to go for food, entertainment, etc. The physics building is a bit dated (though there is a fairly new observatory on the roof) but the campus as a whole has plenty state-of-the-art buildings not only in engineering but also for student centers and a top notch gym (you'll see). The weather is usually great, but it does get pretty hot in the summer. The professors I've interacted with have mostly been supportive in classes and research (although I didn't do anything in CM), however CME is a big part of the research at the university and there are some really talented professors doing work there at the time. Here's a down side: as far as grad classes go, they don't offer much past the required courses very often, but that's relative to your interests. A visit there will serve you best and if I'm around you're welcome to come ask me questions.

I am an alumnus at both schools. Life in Gainesville is much different from life in Atlanta. My time at UFL was alright, but the town is small and very centered on the university. Drive ten minutes and you are in a fairly rural area in Archer County. If you like big city life, then GaTech is much better. I say this because I would say that academically they are on par for what you want to do. Also, the school spirit is different between the two. If you are a sportsfan and such, UFL is probably better from that perspective. GT has its traditions, but the student body as a whole isn't as full of school pride in that sense as UFL from my experience. Also, there's more women on UFL's campus . . . So it boils down to what type of town suits you best.

Thank you for your responses. I like trees; so it's good. I come from a very small city, so I think I would prefer a small city like Gainesville. But who knows, I'll have to see after my visit to both schools. I may become addicted to Atlanta. Yeah, Georgia Tech's number of women sucks, although I don't know if it's a good thing or a bad thing for my academics. I guess it won't matter at all for me at this point in life. I did not spend a lot of time going through each professor at Georgia Tech, but so far, I really like the professors at Florida. I'm not too excited about the research at Georgia Tech, but I really like the research at Florida. But then again, I don't know exactly what I like to research, so I'll just wait for the visit to make a decision.

Another graduating Tech UG here (hi Gabe & Luis), thought I'd weigh in as well. I know nothing about UF, but I can tell you that your options for CME here are going to be pretty good, unless for some reason you're completely uninterested in Graphene, which is the common thread between a lot of the CM groups here. A lot of the groups here are also part of MRSEC, which is present throughout the country, so you might have additional opportunities to collaborate/network as a member of one of these labs. There's also an additional fellowship you might be applicable for (http://www.physics.gatech.edu/content/mrsec-fellowships) if you join one.

As far as life in Atlanta goes, it's a very diverse city so you shouldn't have any trouble finding your niche somewhere, so long as you have a car. As far as women goes: no, there aren't as many on campus, but you're right in the middle of a major city, not terribly far from two other major universities with much better ratios (GSU and Emory) and only about 10 miles away from an all-women's college (Agnes Scott). As long as you are capable of meeting people outside the immediate campus, then there are plenty of women around.

tdelaubenfels wrote:Another graduating Tech UG here (hi Gabe & Luis), thought I'd weigh in as well. I know nothing about UF, but I can tell you that your options for CME here are going to be pretty good, unless for some reason you're completely uninterested in Graphene, which is the common thread between a lot of the CM groups here. A lot of the groups here are also part of MRSEC, which is present throughout the country, so you might have additional opportunities to collaborate/network as a member of one of these labs. There's also an additional fellowship you might be applicable for (http://www.physics.gatech.edu/content/mrsec-fellowships) if you join one.

As far as life in Atlanta goes, it's a very diverse city so you shouldn't have any trouble finding your niche somewhere, so long as you have a car. As far as women goes: no, there aren't as many on campus, but you're right in the middle of a major city, not terribly far from two other major universities with much better ratios (GSU and Emory) and only about 10 miles away from an all-women's college (Agnes Scott). As long as you are capable of meeting people outside the immediate campus, then there are plenty of women around.

Thank you for the information. Yes, I did notice that many research projects at Gatech involve the study of Graphene. I don't know much about Graphene at the moment, but I hope to learn more about it later or during my visit. If it excites me, then I may decide to go there. At UF, I think they have the microkelvin lab, which is very cool also. I also like a lot of the research project on magnetic materials at UF. But I'll see. Oh, I have a question. When should I apply for this fellowship? Do I apply right now? And do I just email the professor and say that I'll be attending Gatech (assuming that's the case) and interested in applying for this fellowship? Is that all I have to do? Sorry I never apply for a fellowship before, so I'm a little bit clueless. Thanks.

Hello, I am facing the same decision and just wondered if anyone can add any more info that might help me in my case. I'm interested in CME and was offered admission to both schools.

I'm particularly interested in Soft Condensed Matter and Biophysics, which GT seems to have a little bit of an edge on. However, I am basing this off of just undergrad research and I'm sure I could be interested in a lot of the research that professors at both schools are pursuing. Also I attended UF for undergrad (not in physics) so I'm not sure if it looks bad to stay at the same school for ugrad and grad. However, they both seem to have comparable CME programs basically. I read somewhere that GT is a young and growing faculty base and I'm not sure if UF is the same.

However, UF offered me an additional fellowship, 5k/year for 4 years. Is the decision so close that I should allow this fellowship to sway me in one direction or another? Does anyone know what the living expenses in Atlanta are like?

One final question: I already checked the box "accept offer" on GT's website. I'm not sure how official this is. Would it be extremely poor form or rude or illegal to try to reverse this decision if I did it soon? (Like before March 20th?) My understanding is that it's all pretty much fair game, legally speaking, before April 15th. But I don't want to seriously piss anyone off of course!

Thank you for any help, I am grateful to have a problem like this

There is nothing illegal with reversing your decision, especially if you make it before April 15th.

woodbetweenworlds wrote:There is nothing illegal with reversing your decision, especially if you make it before April 15th.

Better ask for a written release first, even before April 15th...