Page 1 of 2

2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Nov 13, 2022 3:15 pm
by alexgoestoschool
This is the most useful resource PhysicsGRE has to offer. If you have used this information in the past or are currently using it to help decide upon schools, I highly suggest you help out and post your own profile once you have applied to schools. Future members of this forum will find it very useful! Don't be shy!

Copy and paste the template below in your reply to keep the formatting.

Note from moderator: Profile threads are best when they only have profiles. Please avoid making other posts on this thread. If you wish to discuss profiles, it is helpful to have a separate "profile discussion thread", as was done in some past years. Thanks.

______________________________________________
Undergrad Institution: (School or type of school, such as big state, lib arts, ivy, technical, foreign (what country?)... Overall Reputation in Physics?)
Major(s):
Minor(s):
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA:
Length of Degree: (Are you graduating after 3, 4, or 5 years?)
Position in Class: (No numbers needed, but are you top? near top? average? struggling?)
Type of Student: (Domestic/International, male/female, minority?)

GRE Scores: If you have them


TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: )


Research Experience: (At your school or elsewhere? What field? How much time? Any publications (Mth author out of N?) or conference talks etc...)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Within your school or outside?)

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

School - Department - Research Interest Feb. 28: (WILL ATTEND for Ph.D. Accepted via website/email + $Xk Fellowship + $XXk/X month TA)
School - Department - Research Interest (Feb. 14: ACCEPTED for Ph.D via website/email + $Xk Fellowship + $XXk/X month TA)
School - Department - Research Interest (Feb. 23: Rejected via website/email)

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Nov 13, 2022 11:04 pm
by Nightzeit
Wow, I was just about to make this thread! Thanks

Undergrad Institution: US state school, very small physics program
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): Mathematics
GPA in Major: 3.68
Overall GPA: 3.78
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: not officially stated but definitely near top
Type of Student: domestic white female, disabled, first-generation

Grad Institution: decent reputation US non-ivy school
Degree: M.S.
Major: physics
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 3.61 (so far)
Length of Degree: 2 years
Position in Class: not sure

GRE Scores: didn't take them


TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: ) N/A


Research Experience: Some little independent math research projects in undergrad, a short research project in quantum fluctuations

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Sigma Pi Sigma member, some scholarships

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: not really

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: trying to show I'm very creative and somewhat driven in my application using things I've done

Special Bonus Points: female, disabled, fee-waiver qualifier, first-gen. took a class at an ivy league, have attended one of the schools, some of these I applied to before

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

(theoretical physical cosmology for all)

Princeton - Cosmology & Gravity Theory - (Feb. 17: REJECTED via email to check portal)
Cornell - Astrophysics, General Relativity and Cosmology - (Feb. 13: REJECTED via email)
MIT - Astrophysics Theory OR Quantum Gravity and Field Theory - (Feb. 14: REJECTED via email)
Carnegie Mellon - Theoretical Physics OR Astrophysics and Cosmology - (Apr. 6: REJECTED via email to check portal) Rumor is they have an unofficial waitlist to get onto the official waitlist at CMU and that's what I was on.
NYU - Center for Cosmology and Particle Physics - (Mar. 16: REJECTED via email to check portal)
University at Buffalo - High Energy Physics and Cosmology - (May 8: REJECTED via email to check portal) made it to an unofficial waitlist
Penn State - Gravitational Physics and Cosmology - (Mar. 23: REJECTED via email)
Tufts - Cosmology and Relativity - (Feb. 24: REJECTED via email to check portal)
Brandeis - Quantum and Gravitational Theory - (Apr. 4: REJECTED via email to check portal)

See ya next year for Round 3!


Admission Statistics for 2023:
Cornell has "over 600 applications" to their physics department this cycle. Their website indicates around or almost 600 is average.
MIT 2021: "over 1500 applicants, fewer than 50 seats"
MIT 2023: "over 1700 applicant, around 40 seats"
It's only gotten worse.
The slight majority of Tufts current MS students were rejected to PhD.
Penn State had over 500 applications.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Tue Nov 29, 2022 11:44 pm
by ninjaripper12
Undergrad Institution: US state school, very small physics program
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): Mathematics
GPA in Major: 3.3
Overall GPA: 3.35
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: not officially stated
Type of Student: domestic white male


GRE Scores: didn't take them


TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: ) N/A


Research Experience: 2 summer research projects each at a different national lab

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: N/A

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Physics lab TA, physics tutor within university physics department, Treasurer of SPS for 2 years

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 1 Directed Study in Particle Physics, 2 Independent Studies in QFT

Special Bonus Points: Fee-waiver qualifier

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:
All for High Energy Experiment

Stanford - Rejected via Email 2/3
UC Berkeley - Rejected via Email 2/23
Brown - Rejected via Email 2/13
Accepted for Masters program via Email 3/24
Harvard - Rejected via Email 2/24
Yale - Rejected via Email 2/14
CU Boulder - Rejected via Email 2/28
UC Santa Cruz - Rejected via Email 4/3
University of Washington - Rejected via Email 4/4
UC Santa Barbara - Rejected via Email 3/28
UC Davis - Waitlisted via Email 4/19 - Rejected via Email 4/29
William and Mary - Waitlisted via Email 3/16 - Rejected via Email 4/21
Boston University - Rejected via Email 3/28
University of Oregon - Waitlisted via Email 3/21 - Rejected via Email 4/17
Tufts University - Rejected via Email 2/24

Update 3/12: Looks like I may have to accept the masters program. Still waiting on remaining app and waitlists.
Update 4/25: Accepted Brown masters.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Dec 07, 2022 7:08 pm
by revelent
Undergrad Institution: Top US Public School, great physics/astronomy reputation
Major(s): Astrophysics
GPA in Major: 3.905
Overall GPA: 3.897
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: N/A, but probably near top based on grades in major classes
Type of Student: domestic white male

GRE Scores: Nope


Research Experience: I've been doing astronomy research at my school directly under a recent physics Nobel laureate since the summer of 2020. I mainly use python and do data analysis, simulations, and develop code for the data pipeline. Not published yet, but will get my name on a paper or two at during 2023 due to significant contributions. Since graduating this past June, I have been working full-time in the group.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: a bunch of dean's honors lists, graduated cum laude

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I have held an administrative/leadership role at a summer camp for 1 summer and worked there for 4 years, I have tutored elementary school math for 4 years, and I held a board position on a club sports team for 1 year

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: probably not

Special Bonus Points: One of my letters is coming from my research advisor, who is a Nobel laureate. He has a very good opinion of me and has helped me out a lot, so I expect a VERY strong letter from him. Last year, he told me he was very proud of the letter he wrote. He also has connections with the graduate director at GSU, and with professors at ASU and UCSD. Another letter is from my other research advisor in the group, she knows me very well and will write a great letter, but is not well known. Last letter is from a professor I had twice for major classes in which I got the top grade in both. He knows me very well, and he happens to be in my research group but I don't work with him very much.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I was suspended for 1 quarter during my junior year due to academic misconduct. I collaborated on one question on a final. My research advisors are fully aware of the situation and are writing in their letters to show I have good character and did more work during my suspension.


This is my second time applying (you can see my last profile here: viewtopic.php?f=3&t=181959#p256702). Last year, I think a big part of my rejections was probably my suspension, and I also think I shot too high. However, my profile has improved in some (hopefully) significant ways now:

1. Two of my letters last year were probably not very good. This time, I believe all three will be strong.
2. I think my statement of purpose is much better this year, I put more time into researching what is best to put into it.
3. After my suspension, I got a 4.0 my entire senior year with about half of them being A+.
4. I am currently doing full-time research, which hopefully shows that I am ready for graduate school and committed.

If I don't get in anywhere this time, I'm not doing this a third time.


Applying to Where:
All for astronomy Ph.D.s and exoplanets related work. (order is just the application due date).

Colorado Boulder - Rejected Via Email 2/7
UC San Diego - Rejected Via Email 2/8
U Arizona - Rejected Via Email 2/17
Harvard - Rejected Via Email 2/6
Cornell - Rejected Via Email 3/1
U Washington - Rejected Via Email 2/2
Yale - Rejected Via Email 2/15
U Michigan - Rejected Via Email 3/8
U Wisconsin - Interview Invitation 1/5 - Accepted Via Email 1/23 + 25.6k / 9 months TA - WILL ATTEND!!!
U Maryland - Rejected Via Email 2/3
Johns Hopkins - Rejected Via Email 3/7
U Hawaii - Rejected Via Postal Mail 1/30 (arrived 2/5)
Northwestern - Rejected after requesting application status by email 3/27
Arizona State
Georgia State - Interview Invitation 2/18, turned down

Update 1/5: Woo! First interview ever!

Update 1/23: Got into a school after 2 years!

Update 2/5: Never been rejected by snail mail before lol

Update 3/1: Looks like I'm gonna go to Wisconsin, I think I wouldn't take any of the remaining schools over them.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Dec 08, 2022 11:42 am
by blackhole343
:D

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Dec 11, 2022 3:04 pm
by adeavilacadena
Undergrad Institution: US State school, also getting my master's here
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in undergrad: 3.28 (oops)
GPA in grad Major: 3.4
Overall GPA: 3.7
Length of Degree: 4 + 2 years of masters
Position in Class: No idea honestly
Type of Student: Domestic Hispanic Male
GRE Scores: No lol


TOEFL: N/A


Research Experience: 4 years of research in total, 2 years in my undergrad, 2 ish years in my graduate degree

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's List, Research Fellowship all in Undergrad

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for undergrad lab courses, TA for physics class, Research Position

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Solidworks, C/C++, took 3 classes in comp sci, LabVIEW, Mathematica

Special Bonus Points: Grad Courses

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: 2 publications on the way!

Applying to Where:

New Mexico State University, Los Cruces - Physics - Condensed Matter and Optics (safe)Rejected via portal, email notified Super late
University of Nevada, Las Vegas - Physics - Atomic, Molecular, Optical Physics (AMO) (safe) Interview offered through email 02/08 Rejected via email through professor 04/11
University of California, Riverside - Physics - AMO (safe) Interview with Professor in EE deparment 04/11Rejected via portal 04/26
University of California, Santa Barbara - Physics - AMO (maybe) Rejected via portal, email notified 03/28
University of California, Los Angeles - Physics - AMO (hard) Rejected via portal, email notified 03/23
University of California, San Diego - Physics - Plasma Physics, might consider AMO tho (hard) Rejected via portal, email notified 03/16
University of California, Irvine - Physics - Plasma Physics, Condensed Matter Rejected via portal, email notified 04/15
University of Southern California - Physics - AMO, Condensed Matter, Quantum Sciences (hard)Rejected via portal, email notified

I applied super late to some because I only applied for 4, I was being really ambitious. It was only until I talked to some ppl which opened my eyes a little. My faculty advisor told me to go to UCR. I would like to stay in California as much as possible but that might not be possible. We'll see how it goes

03/23 Update: Might apply next cycle, my GPA wasn't so high this turn around so I am hoping when I graduate, it will be a lil higher. Still have to wait on some schools
04/11 Update: Prob the next round are rejections, I wouldn't surprised. I hope I can get into UCR but transfer my application to EE PhD. Still waiting on a bit for schools, this might be the last week for notices. Best of luck to you all.
01/12/24: Trying again for next year!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2022 5:52 pm
by mcentag
Undergrad Institution: big state engineering school, decent physics rep
Major(s): physics, electrical engineering
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.89
Overall GPA: 3.94
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: ?
Type of Student: dwm

GRE Scores: lol

TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: )

Research Experience:
1.5 years hep-th/hep-ph, part-time. 1 paper (1st author, under review at time of application), 1 talk.
1 summer, hep-ex, full-time. 1 talk.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
physics department "outstanding undergraduate" award
international competition award (identifying)

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
electrical engineering internship (sucked)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points:
connections at Duke
1 grad class
3 research-related LoRs, one from a professor well-known currently in hep-ex

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
i did not contact any profs

Applying to Where:

Boston University - hep-th - waitlisted 3/20
Duke - hep-ex - accepted 1/20 + $38.6k TA
Harvard - hep-th/ph - rejected 2/24
MIT - hep-th/ph - rejected 2/14
Stanford - hep-ex/th - accepted 2/03 + $?? TA/RA
Stony Brook - hep-ph/th - accepted 2/28 + $27k/9mo TA
UChicago - hep-th - rejected 1/27
UC Berkeley - hep-ph/th - rejected 2/23
UC Santa Barbara - hep-th/ex - rejected 3/28
Princeton - ECE, interest in quantum hardware - (Interview 1/02) - waitlisted 2/15

all of these are reaches, guys do not apply to schools like this with no safety unless you have a good backup plan

2/03 - maybe it's too early to post thoughts about grad school admissions, but future applicants are reading these posts every day. plus @eggsandwich noted that people in real life find this forum discouraging, which I definitely agree with.
1) Quality research > pubs. Don't get me wrong, publishing is a big achievement and something worthwhile to work towards as an undergrad. And there are probably professors who strongly favor applicants who have published. But the point of doing research in undergrad is getting good at research. Someone last year said you need to publish to get into top schools, under review is useless, etc. It's wrong lol. It's more important that you can explain what you did in an essay or interview and what skills you gained.
2) Breadth is good! This is particularly true for experiment - physicists are looking for engineers and vice versa. I suspect my EE double major was a big factor getting me into Stanford and an interview with Princeton despite having no experience in QI/QC. And I know of people getting into Princeton, etc. not spending more than 3 months in a single lab but trying a lot of different ones. So try to build skills in lots of different areas, and double majoring gives you an advantage for a lot of labs. (unless your heart's set on hep-th - sadly there are so few available spots that you're probably better off focusing strongly on it)

3/28 - Heard that UCSB did not admit theory applicants this year because of funding issues and strikes, and that this might be the case next year too.

5/04 - Stanford underestimated their yield this year and there are about 20% more incoming physics grad students than they expected, admissions might be tighter next year.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Dec 14, 2022 6:39 pm
by fizzy
Undergrad Institution: VERY small public liberal arts college (top 5 public colleges though)
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major: School doesn't use grades ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Overall GPA: Had a 4.0 for my AA before transferring to an institution that refuses to play by the rules
Length of Degree: 6 years (went part-time at first)
Position in Class: I'm 1 out of 2 physics students graduating this year...
Type of Student: Domestic, female, non-traditional

GRE Scores: Did not take. Probably should have, since I don't have a GPA and this will probably hurt me.

TOEFL: N/A

Research Experience:
1.5 years of nanomaterials research (experimental/data analysis) at my home institution resulting in two 2nd author publications. 1 year of solar physics research (data analysis of observations and MHD simulations, Python heavy) working remotely with a professor from an R1 university for my honors thesis.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
Leadership scholarship from current institution. Honors society, Dean's list, President's list, and Math Dept award from community college where I received my AA. Academic honor student at my first CC.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
Tutored physics, math, and chemistry for 3 years. TA'd 4 physics classes. Co-instructed an intro optics class. Founding president of Astronomy Club at current institution. Member of a non-profit for astronomy outreach.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
Other than what's listed above, I have nearly a decade of professional experience (full-time from before starting school and my first 3 years in college, plus part-time work throughout college). Not sure how admissions committees feel about this though.

Special Bonus Points:
Current research advisor is from my top choice institution. I'm confident that all 3 of my LoRs will be strong. Is non-traditional female a bonus point? (Side note: one of my recommenders told me to include my 205lb back squat PR in my personal statement... I did not include this but did mention olympic lifting as good mental prep for the strains of a PhD.)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
I failed two classes in CC way back in 2013 when I stopped attending. I re-took them 5 years later and received A's in both. I didn't bother to explain this in my statements, because I didn't want to waste valuable real estate explaining that I was young and stupid and made bad choices a decade ago. I think the work I've done since then is explanation enough, but you never know who might be a stickler about such things.

Applying to Where:
(Listed in order of application due date)

CU Boulder - Astrophysical & Planetary Sciences - Solar Physics (WILL ATTEND! Feb. 14 ACCEPTED for PhD via email to check portal + $26K for 9 months TA/RA + $17K possible summer research + $2K graduate fellowship)
USC - Physics & Astronomy - Solar Physics (Mar. 9 REJECTED via generic rejection email)
Rice - Physics & Astronomy - Solar Physics (Jan. 23 ACCEPTED for PhD via email to check website + $36K/year stipend)
UT Austin - Astronomy - Stellar Astrophysics (Feb. 13 REJECTED via email to check portal)
UC Irvine - Physics & Astronomy - Plasma Physics/MHD (Mar. 8 REJECTED via email to check portal)
U of Florida - Astronomy - Stellar Astrophysics (Feb. 10 ACCEPTED for PhD via unofficial email from POI. Awaiting financial offer.)
Caltech - Astronomy - Stellar Astrophysics (Feb. 10 REJECTED via generic rejection email)
UC Santa Cruz - Astronomy & Astrophysics - Solar Physics/MHD

Update 3/10: Well, I've decided to go to Boulder and I couldn't be happier! I'm really not surprised by all the rejections, since I was looking to do really specific work in solar (which doesn't seem like the most popular topic in astro these days). I'm just very grateful to have the opportunity to attend the program I'm most excited about. Good luck to everyone out there!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2022 8:46 am
by Aadi1517
Undergrad Institution: (No.1 ranked University in Country) Overall Reputation in Physics? Top Ranked
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): HEP
GPA in Major: 3.77
Overall GPA: 3.63
Length of Degree: 2 year MS Physics with GPA of 3.8 and 4 Year BS Physics with GPA 3.63
Position in Class: (Topper in both BS and MS)
Type of Student: Asian
GRE Scores: 316 GRE general (not submitting)
GRE physics score of 800 (most probably not submitting it)


TOEFL: (R: 26 , L: 22 , S: 23, W:27 )


Research Experience: 1 year of research work with a thesis in HEP. No publication. Some presentations in international conferences
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Vice Chancellor's Medal

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 1 Year TA ship in Grad school

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Not much

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Applying in Particle/Astroparticle physics

Applying to Where:

University of Alabama:
University of Pittsburgh:
University of Alberta:
Ohio State University:
Virginia Tech University:
Rice University:
University of Delaware:

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2022 11:22 am
by Mohammadahmadi72
Undergrad Institution: Top Iranian school - Low international reputation
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major: N/A
Overall GPA: 2.74
Length of Degree: 6 years
Position in Class: Probably one of the worsts
Type of Student: International white male


Grad Institution: Top Iranian school - Low international reputation
Major(s): Gravitation and Astrophysics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major: N/A
Overall GPA: 3.5
Length of Degree: 3.5 years
Position in Class: near top
Type of Student: International white male


GRE General: 321 (Q:169 , V:152 , AWA:2.5)


IELTS: 7.0 (R:8 , L:7 , S:6.5 , W:6)


Research Experience: N/A

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: N/A

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: N/A

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: N/A

Special Bonus Points: Strong thesis and one strong recommendation

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Founder of an online market (not related to physics)


Applying to Where (All to physics departments, theoretical cosmology):

Harvard University -- Rejected 2/25
University of Wisconsin-Madison -- Rejected 1/30
University of Florida -- Rejected 4/24
Johns Hopkins University -- Rejected 3/7
New York University -- Rejected 3/16
Western University -- Rejected 5/01
Kansas State University -- Waitlisted 2/8 -- Rejected 04/12
Tufts University -- Rejected 2/25
Southern Methodist University -- they didn't announce me about decision until 06/21. I take it as rejection.
University of Oklahoma -- Rejected 5/16
Case Western Reserve University -- Rejected 2/25
Arizona State University -- they didn't announce me about decision until 06/21. I take it as rejection.
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill -- Rejected 4/10
McMaster University -- Rejected 3/31

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2022 11:40 am
by GordonCole
Undergrad Institution: State Uni
Major(s): Physics, Math, Music (double major, dual degree)
Minor(s): -graduation with Honors
GPA in Major: 4.0
Overall GPA: 4.0
Length of Degree: 4 years, ~245 units
Position in Class: top?
Type of Student: domestic white female

GRE: Spared myself

Research Experience:
4 years biophsycis
7+ presentations
3 publications (2nd author)
5 summers of research. One supported by NIH and NSF
Math research as well

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
Goldwater Scholar, numerous others

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
Reseacher in Biophysics lab,
TA for Math course
TA Physics lab

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
Numerous music awards and performances
Contacted profs and grad students at every school and had great response rate. Visited numerous schools in person.

Letters:
Should be very strong.

Applying to Where: All HEP theory and experiment (in no particular order)
Standford: Rejected 2/3
CalTech Interview 1/13 Rejected 2/14
UC Santa Barbara: Rejected 3/28
UCLA: Accepted 2/3 Declined offer 3/26
UC Santa Cruz: Accepted 2/9 Full funding without TAship
UC Berkeley Rejected 2/24
University of Washington Accepted 2/1
MIT Rejected 2/14
Princeton Rejected 2/17
Cornell Accepted via email 2/15 Declined offer 3/26
Harvard Interview 1/30 Accepted 2/15 Accepted Offer! Will Attend!!!!!!!
Yale Waitlisted 2/14
UC Boulder Accepted via email 1/30:))))) Declined offer 3/26

Good luck to all

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sat Dec 17, 2022 2:02 am
by entropYi
Undergrad Institution: Canadian University, decent reputation (famous for battery research)
Major(s): Physics and Mathematics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.97/4.0 or 4.2/4.3
Overall GPA: 4.2/4.3
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: top (2nd)
Type of Student: International trans female (Asian)

GRE Scores: Did not prepare and got like 312. I'm not gonna report it

TOEFL: N/A

Research Experience: 1 Summer in computational condensed matter. 1 semester in astrophysics. 1 summer in cosmology theory. Senior thesis on cosmology theory.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Many school prizes like Highest grade award, top female students, summer research awards etc, Dean's list every semester.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for first year, Physics and math tutor (Very involved, I got 15 students)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Not much

Special Bonus Points: I got summer research opportunity at the best theoretical institution in Canada. Trans female might help?

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Presented my research on few conferences. And I'm a mature student (gapped 6 years between high school and college)

Applying to Where: All astro, prefer theory.
Donation:
PSI - Theoretical physics Mar 3: Rejected via email.
Princeton Feb 7: Rejected via email.
Caltech Feb 10: Rejected via email.
Harvard Feb 6: Rejected via email.
MIT Feb 14: Rejected via email.
Cornell Mar 1: Rejected via email.
Stanford Feb 3: Rejected via email.
UCBerkeley Feb 16: Rejected via email.
UCSB Rejected via email.

Reach:
U of Michigan Mar 8: Rejected via email.
U Chicago Feb 8: Rejected via email.
John Hopkins Mar 7: Rejected via email.
U Penn Feb 3: Interview Rejected via email.
UIUC Mar 2: Rejected via email.

Safe
USC - Dec 22: Interview , Jan 24: interview Feb 7: Waitlisted Rejected via email.
Boston University Feb 23: Rejected via email.
Duke Mar 1: Waitlisted April 20, ACCEPTED via email + $38.6k TA Will Attend!!
NYU Mar 16: Rejected via email.

Good luck everyone! We got this !
Feb 13. All the rejection letters are literally damage my mental health. I don't even think I can get into any schools. Feel regretted did not apply more safe schools. Anyway, trying to be positive.
FEB 15: I don't think I can get into any schools. I probably gonna take a gap year and rethink options.
Mar 1: Some hope but not too much. Hope I can get in, very likely have to wait until middle April.
Apr 20: What a Journey !!! 1/18. This application season is been unreasonably competitive. Especially for cosmology. Glad I have a place to go!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2022 12:31 pm
by burntclaw
Undergrad Institution: small t20 liberal arts college in US
Major(s): physics/math
GPA in Major: 4
Overall GPA: 4
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: dunno
Type of Student: domestic asian female

GRE Scores: PGRE 880 78%

Research Experience: 2 years at home institution with senior thesis, 2 REUs. did conference presentations/posters for all projects. all research is in computational quantum systems. no pubs

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: random departmental and college awards

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
- a toooon (too much) of tutoring+TAing (physics/math).
- i helped edit my prof's textbook and created some websites for it. super fun project!
- outreach activities and side CS projects

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: i once crashed my prof's computer with my c++ program while we were on a zoom call

Special Bonus Points: i am nearly done with the cs major but the college doesn't allow triple majoring

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: contacted PIs at all of these schools and only applied if they were taking students.

indicated interest in computational quantum many-body systems.
connections at: UMD, OSU, penn state, UCI

Caltech (applied physics) computational physics- Interview (invited 1/24, scheduled for 2/2) Accepted 2/10 via email, 45k per year
UMD (physics) JQI - Accepted 1/27 via email, RAship $38k minimum per year
UIUC (physics) CMT - Accepted 3/1 via email, $25,124 for the first 11 months with physics excellence fellowship
PSU (physics) CMT - Rejected 3/23 via email :P :P :P :idea: :idea: :evil: :evil:
UCI (physics) CMT - Accepted 4/13 via email
OSU (physics) CMT - Accepted 1/24 on portal, official letter sent 1/26, financial offer sent 2/3 TAship min $28368 per year with 85% health insurance covered. Notified of dean's fellowship
Columbia (physics) CMT+materials - Rejected 3/15 via portal
Harvard (applied physics) materials - Rejected 2/16 via portal
BU (physics) computational physics - Accepted 2/9 via email, $38,253/year dean's fellowship first year
UMich (physics) CMT/materials - Rejected 2/9 via email

applied bc fee waiver, not that great of a research fit tbh
Yale (applied physics) CMT -Interview (invited 1/30, scheduled for 1/30) informal acceptance during interview. Accepted 2/13 via portal, $40,530 annual stipend with Yale health access+$3,500 fellowship 3 years+$2,000 research reward+$1,000 relocation
UCSB (physics) complex systems - Rejected 3/38 via portal

Fellowships
DOE Computational Sciences Fellowship – Rejected 4/3 via email

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Dec 18, 2022 4:03 pm
by takosannyaki
Undergrad Institution: liberal arts with no reputation in physics
Major(s): Physics, Math
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 4
Overall GPA: 4
Length of Degree:4.5 years (took a semester off during the covid year)
Position in Class: No idea
Type of Student: International female

GRE Scores: P 890 (79 %)

TOEFL: waived


Research Experience:
- ~2 years of Experimental AMO research at my school (4 semesters + 1 summer in my senior year) 1 published paper.
- 1 summer of REU in Experimental AMO research.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Within your school or outside?)
None
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)
Tutored intro E&M for 3 years
TAed a few classes

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
I developed a JavaScript-based web application for a textbook one of my professors wrote.

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)
My mentor knows a prof at UChicago.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where: all for exp. AMO
Super Reach:
CU Boulder Physics - accepted 1/25 WILL ATTEND
MIT Physics - Interview (notified on 1/11, interviewed on 1/14) accepted 2/14
Harvard Physics - Interview (notified on 1/22, interviewed on 1/23 low-key bombed the interview) rejected on 24th(at least I got fee waiver so not a donation :p)
UMD Physics - accepted with a RA offer 2/10
UChicago Physics - accepted 1/27

Reach:
UW-Madison Physics - accepted 1/29
Arizona Optical Science- accepted 2/14
UW Physics - rejected 4/4 :roll: :roll:

Match ?:
Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology (OIST) - Interview (notified on 12/15 withdrew my application before interviews)

Edit 1:
First acceptance and it's from one of my top choices :D I am thrilled!! (1/25)

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2022 4:29 am
by DarylRyan
Undergrad Institution: Foreign (Malaysia) probably unheard of but top university in Malaysia
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): -
GPA in Major: 3.9
Overall GPA: 3.9
Length of Degree: 3.5 years
Position in Class: Probably near the top or top
Type of Student: International Asian Male

GRE Scores: -

IELTS: 8 (R:8, L:9, S:7, W:7)

Research Experience:

The following research projects were at my school under the same supervisor:
- 1 major research experience (6 months) in machine learning and quantum computing which resulted in a first author publication. Presented the results of the paper at my country's inaugural physics undergraduate research conference and won awards for the best theoretical project and best presenter for the theoretical project category
- 1 other research project about Rydberg atoms (6 months)
- Final year project was an extension of the work of in my first author paper

International experience:
- 1 short remote international research experience (2 months) under REYES at ODU about inverse Compton sources

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked as a data scientist intern for 3 months.

(Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: One of my recommenders knows the professor I want to work with at MIT. I also emailed the professor asking if he was taking students, and he said yes and encouraged me to apply to MIT.

(Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

MIT - Physics - Machine learning, quantum computing

I wanted to apply to other schools but I ended up only applying to MIT. If I don't get in, I have plans on what I want to do for the following year before I apply next year again to more schools that fit my research interests (machine learning applied to physics and quantum computing).

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2022 5:14 am
by Siddharth Jain
Undergrad Institution: IIT Kanpur (MSc) and BHU (BSc)
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 8.5
Overall GPA:8.5
Length of Degree: 3+2
Position in Class: near top
Type of Student: international asian

GRE Scores: not taken any

TOEFL: 111 R 30 L 30 S 27 W 24


Research Experience: 6 months in non-equilibrium stat mech., one first author paper submitted from it.
One reading project in CMT for 4 months, one summer internship in HEP

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Few certificates from topping physics/maths competitions at national level. One excellence award for CGPA from the department.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: got very poor grades in a couple of courses in Masters

Applying to Where: Applying mainly in CMP theory and Non-equilibrium. stat mech.

UMass Amherst:
Penn State: Rejected
CU Boulder: Rejected
Notre Dame: Rejected

Pittsburg: 14/2 : Full acceptance
UT Knoxville: Interview (10/2)
FSU: 30/1 , Acceptance with $25,587 annual stipend
CUNY: Interview on 14/2
VT: Rejected

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Dec 22, 2022 12:34 am
by cosmologyftw
Graduate Institution: Well known astrophysics program (US)
Major(s): PhD Astrophysics
Overall GPA: 3.8 (but I have only taken a couple courses)
* Looking to transfer after beginning this program in August

Undergrad Institution: T50 US Institution, R1
Major(s): BS Physics
Overall GPA: 3.4
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: Probably average
Type of Student: Domestic female

GRE Scores: NA

Research Experience:
- 3 months of astronomy research
- 12 months of undergraduate thesis research, cosmology instrumentation (won 2 awards - 1 regional and 1 national - for presentations on this work)
- 3 months of graduate research as a RA, cosmology instrumentation
- 1 upcoming Nth author publication in relation to a large well known collaboration- will notify programs when it gets officially submitted if I have not heard back at that point

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 2 Merit scholarships, 2 APS presentation awards, 1 departmental award

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Undergrad lab tech, Physics Student Representative, Undergraduate Research Mentor, Graduate Research Mentor, Society of Women Engineers Outreach

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Applied to NASA fellowship - will hear back in early April, but it would fund me fully for 4 years

Special Bonus Points:

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Looking to transfer PhD programs for various reasons, was admitted to 4/12 programs last year. Transferring PhDs is not really a normal thing and can be a big disadvantage at some program, so I am not sure how I will fair this year. I am only transferring because several of my mentors have advised me to due to an highly usual situation with my current institution.

Applying to Where (by Deadlines - all Cosmology Instrumentation):

CU Boulder - Astrophysics and Planetary Sciences - Accepted and Invited to open house (2/14) - 25k/9mo TA/RA + possible 16k Summer RA + one-time 2k fellowship
Cornell - Physics - Accepted and Invited to open house (2/15) - 6 yrs of funding (~35.5k/9mo + 10.5k/summer)
UMN Twin Cities - Physics - Interview (12/21), 2nd Interview (1/11), Accepted and Invited to open house (2/9) - 30k TA 1 year + TA/RA after
CWRU - Physics - Interview (1/18), Accepted and Invited to open house (2/4), roughly 28k/yr
UIUC - Physics - Accepted and Invited to open house (2/22) - 25k/yr, 5 years of funding

Fellowships:
NSTGRO - pending, expecting to hear in early April

*Generally, I have been told by faculty that transferring can really hurt your profile and that you should never plan on transferring going in. A few programs I looked at specifically said they do not consider PhD transfer students or only consider them in rare cases (ex. Cornell).

Update (2/14): I am absolutely shocked I got into Boulder - it was a very last minute application since I decided to apply there 1 week before the deadline. With a low undergrad GPA and very few graduate level courses, I guess my unique research field and experiences must haves stood out - I think the department is a great fit for my work.

Update (2/22): And I am done for a 2nd year! My main take aways from doing this twice is that the quality of your statement of purpose/personal statement and letters of recommendation matter A LOT. On paper I should not have gotten accepted any most of these programs, but a very strong statement of purpose probably put me over the line despite a low undergraduate GPA and no GRE/pGRE scores. I improved my SOP significantly from last year and was much more specific in my goals and had cleaner/clearer writing. I would definitely recommend getting your writing read over by a friend who is an English/humanities major or your school's writing center - especially if you struggle with writing or are not a native English speaker.

Also, having a very strong research fit and reaching out to professors ahead of time (even in October/November) can make a difference. I know for at least one of these programs, a professor I met with on Zoom before the application process was able to advocate for my application throughout the departmental review stage. Making sure that the faculty you see online that you want to work with are looking for students and are continuing research in the same field can really help make a quality list and get good results.

This website can be stress inducing and extremely discouraging. This forum would make it seem like most applicants have 3.9+ GPAs and publications. However, that is a small part of the PhD admissions process (nothing can overcome bad research fit) and having great "soft skills" can show up in your application through the SOP, LORs, interviews, or meeting with faculty ahead of time. Best of luck to everyone still awaiting results and to future applicants!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2022 10:10 am
by abstractnonsense
Undergrad Institution: Top 10 in physics
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.98
Overall GPA: 3.91
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: No clue how to gauge this accurately
Type of Student: Domestic asian male

Grad Institution: Same institution as undergrad, simultaneous masters program
Degree: M.S.
Major: Computer Science
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 3.93
Length of Degree: +0 years on top of the undergrad degree, graduating with both in 4 years
Position in Class: No idea

GRE Scores:
TOEFL:

Research Experience:
  • 1 summer + 1 semester computational astrophysical gravitational wave research. 1 paper (1st author), 1 conference poster (1st author).
  • 2 years of theory/simulations for a well-known astronomy collaboration. 5 papers (1 1st author, 1 2nd author, 3 Nth author collaboration).
  • TA for graduate-level CS course, some final projects were published. 1 conference paper (Nth/supervising author).
  • 2 summers + 1 year of numerical fluid dynamics research. 1 paper (1st author in prep), 2 conference talks (1 1st author, 1 Nth author).
  • 1 semester computational high-energy theory. Nothing came out of this.
  • 1 summer of research from high school, computational materials. 1 paper (3rd author).

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 2 summer research fellowships from my school, award for TAing.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 3x TA (intro-level physics; graduate-level CS; undergrad-level CS + statistics)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: 3 graduate courses in physics (stat mech, GR, QFT 1), 5 graduate courses in CS (mostly in high performance/scientific computing and machine learning).

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

Berkeley Astronomy - Interview Request 1/30 - Accepted 2/15, funding details TBD
Caltech Astronomy - Interview Request 1/15 - Rejected 2/10
MIT Physics - Rejected 2/14
Princeton Astrophysics - Interview Request 1/8 - Accepted 2/7, $42k/10 mo stipend + $8.4k summer supplement
UChicago Astrophyiscs - Rejected 2/8
UT Austin Physics - Accepted 1/30, $32k/12 mo stipend

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2022 12:38 am
by xanman69
Undergrad Institution: top 50 US private university, good physics reputation
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): Math
GPA in Major: 3.59
Overall GPA: 3.55
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: probably a little above average?
Type of Student: Domestic white/asian male

GRE Scores: did bad so didn't submit anywhere

TOEFL: N/A

Research Experience:
8 months at CERN (6 unpaid part-time, 2 paid full-time) for CMS collaboration, generally detector hardware stuff in lab. Tasked with a small independent study which I presented to 4 different CMS groups and poster session at home institution, no papers.
2 semesters paid part-time at home institution doing similar hardware stuff for CMS. Presentations cancelled bc covid

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 3x research funding award, deans list all but one semester

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: First year mechanics TA for one semester

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I created a cosmic muon setup that was used in an advanced laboratory course for students to use for a semester
hired by professor for a summer to organize his lab and continue hardware stuff

Special Bonus Points: Rec letter from former CMS spokesperson

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
Didn't contact any profs

Applying to Where:
All CMS-affiliated schools (except UW). HEP-ex for all

Reaches:
University of Washington - 2/7: Accepted for Ph.D via email + 23k/9 months TA + 5k first year bonus
UCSB - 3/28: Rejected via email

Match-ish:
Rochester - 2/10: waitlisted via email/portal
CMU - 1/20: Accepted for Ph.D via email/portal + 32k/12 months TA/RA
Rutgers - 3/2: Accepted for Ph.D via email/portal + 30k/10 months TA/RA (~40k now after strikes) WILL ATTEND!
Minnesota - 2/09: Accepted for Ph.D via email + 30k/12 months months TA/RA
Notre Dame - 3/04: Rejected via email
Texas A&M - 2/24: Accepted for Ph.D via email/portal + 22k/9 months TA

Safety:
Tennessee - 2/3: Interview 2/15: Accepted for Ph.D via email/portal + 24k/12 months TA/RA
Florida State - 4/10: Rejected via email

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Dec 28, 2022 10:41 am
by tolboi123
Undergrad Institution: Foreign(Switzerland), Top 10 in the World
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): -
GPA in Major: 3.78/4.0 or 3.9/4.3 (5.4/6.0)
Master GPA: 4.0 (5.7/6.0)
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: Top 10% (estimation)
Type of Student: International European Asian

GRE Scores: -

TOEFL: (R:30, L: 30, S:30, W: 27)

Research Experience:

The following research projects were at my school under the same supervisor:
- 1 major research experience (8 months) in black holes and hep-th, resulted in 1st author pub, many conference invites
- 1 Bachelor Thesis AMO and CME (3rd author pub)


Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked 3 years as TA in theory and quantum physics and CA

(Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Three Famous Recommenders from super specialised class, Took 10 grad classes in grad math and physics

(Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

MIT - Physics - Hep-Th, Cosmology, CMT [waitlisted 2/14]
Princeton, CMT-Gravity Theory
Stanford- Hep-TH, CMT, Cosmology Rejected 2/3
Berkeley- CMT, HEP-TH, QIT
UC SB: Hep-TH, CMT
Caltech- CMT, QIT, Hep Th

(only top institutions otherwise will stay in Europe)

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 02, 2023 9:41 am
by huansouza
Undergrad Institution: Brazillian university, not known
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.8
Overall GPA: 3.8
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: First in the class
Type of Student: International latin male

Master Institution: Brazillian university, not known
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 4.0
Overall GPA: 4.0
Length of Degree: 2 years
Position in Class: First in the class
Type of Student: International latin male

GRE Scores: Not taken


TOEFL: (R: 29, L: 28, S: 26, W: 24)


Research Experience: Three years of undergraduate research program in hep-th (one 1st author paper at PRD and one last author paper at PRD). Two years working on quantum gravity for my master (two papers published at PRD as last author, one at PRD as first author and one under peer-review at Classical and Quantum Gravity as first author). Currently working on condensed matter physics, specifically on fractons (hopefully will lead to a published paper in 2023).

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
1- Awarded prize for being the first in the class;
2- Undergraduate research project fellowship;
3- Master fellowship.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked as TA two times during undergrad.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Some grad classes in quantum field theory, condensed matter and computational physics. One of my recommenders know a professor in one of the universities that I applied.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where (Condensed matter theory):

- MIT Feb. 14: REJECTED via email;
- Princeton (hep-th) Feb. 17: REJECTED via email to check portal;
- Colorado Boulder;
- U of Minnesota - Twin Cities Feb. 10: ACCEPTED for Ph.D. via email + 30.2k/y TA
- Boston University Feb. 16: ACCEPTED for Ph.D. via informal email from a professor. Feb. 17: Formal email + 38.2k/y TA.

Update (02/10): Very excited with this first answer. I saw yesterday some acceptances and thought that I would be rejected. Now I can finally have some sleep :D .

(02/17): Boston was one of my top options! Quite happy with this answer. If I don't get into Princeton, I'll probably go to BU.

(02/21): Most likely I'll go to Boston, I am just talking to some POI's to inquire if they will take students. I am quite excited with this opportunity!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Tue Jan 03, 2023 1:28 am
by Supergummybears
Undergrad Institution: A school somewhere within the top 50 USnews ranking for physics
Major(s): Physics
GPA in Major: 3.6
Overall GPA: 3.5
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: my school doesn't report this
Type of Student: domestic white female, disabled

GRE Scores: N/A

TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: ) N/A

Research Experience:
6 months in biophysics lab doing basic sample prep as well as neural network coding
9 months in experimental AMO lab doing basic sample prep as well as setting up an empty optics table with the equipment for spectroscopy
REU doing experimental AMO
No publications, 1 presentation at the conclusion of the REU

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: None that I can think of

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: part-time physics tutor for several years, accumulated over 2000 hours of tutoring on various platforms

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: programmed a physics sim app

Special Bonus Points: female, fee-waiver qualifier, I've received an A in a graduate course on the experimental realizations of quantum computing

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Lower GPA is explained in SOP with tough family situation during my undergraduate

Applying to Where:
Experimental Condensed Matter or AMO for all
University of Wisconsin, Madison - rejected Jan. 29
University of Minnesota, Twin Cities - Accepted Feb. 9
Boston College - accepted Jan. 24
University of Maryland, Baltimore County - Accepted Feb. 12
University of Pittsburgh - Accepted Feb. 14
CUNY - Accepted Feb. 22
Tulane - Accepted Mar. 2
University of Oregon - Mar. 9
University of Denver - Mar. 9

Final thoughts:
I'm obviously happy about my admissions results. I feel similarly good about all the schools I got into so I think it will be a tough choice. Minnesota is the highest-ranked one but probs the lowest in research interest for me personally, and CUNY is just in a crazy crazy expensive area so idk about that lol. Right now I'm thinking either Boston, UMBC, or Oregon perhaps. I'll send some declines later next week after I have time to think about it

Good luck to everyone. I hope this information helps people in the future.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Jan 05, 2023 10:00 pm
by PhysRiches
Undergrad Institution: Small State School ~ 12k students. Not great reputation of previous students.
Major(s): Physics, Mathematics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.85
Overall GPA: 3.80
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: N/A
Type of Student: Domestic White Male (DWM)

Master's Institution: Same as above
Major(s): Physics, Mathematics (technically two separate MS programs)
GPA in Major: 4.0
Overall GPA: 4.0
Length of Degree: 4 years
GRE Scores: N/A


TOEFL: N/A


Research Experience:
1. 3.5 years at home institution in CME. 1st Author publication in Senior year Undergraduate. Honors Thesis.
2. Summer REU in CME. nth author publication.
3. 1 year at home institution. Nuc-th. 2nd author pre-print in publication process. publication in works
total - 4.5 years of research. 2 (almost 3) publications with one currently being worked on

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
1. Graduate Assistant Teaching award
2. Undergraduate Grant Competition winner from home university
3. Undergraduate Student and Researcher awards from department
4. Graduated Magna Cum laude with highest honors

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)
1. Undergrad. Teaching Assistant for three semesters ( Quantum Mechanics, Physics 1, Calc. 2)
2. Graduate Teaching Assistant
3. SPS officer ( included in some applications - I don't think this means much)
4. Helped with community speech teams

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
1. Worked as Sports official. Officiated a state champ. game ( probably good to demonstrate leadership and extra work on the side)

Special Bonus Points:
1. 2 Strong Recommendations from research advisors
2. Multiple recommenders to show teaching ability, drive, and effort

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
summer school for nuclear physics

Applying to Where:
All with High Energy/ Nuclear Theory as primary interest

Reach:

Duke
University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
University of Southern California (USC)
University of Arizona
Michigan State U. ( MSU )
University of Washington
University of Florida
University of Indiana Bloomington

Match/Safety ( not sure how to differentiate given reputation of university):

University of Connecticut
University of Iowa
North Carolina State U. ( NCSU) Accepted Jan 18
George Washington University (GW)
SUNY at Buffalo
Syracuse
University of Oregon
Southern Methodist University
Arizona State University

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Fri Jan 06, 2023 2:45 pm
by alexgoestoschool
Undergrad Institution: No name - tiny liberal arts school
Major(s): Physics (b.s.) Math (b.a.)
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.7
Overall GPA: 3.79
Length of Degree: 4.5 years total after transferring and taking a year off in between
Position in Class:
Type of Student: Domestic white woman

GRE Scores:


TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: ) n/a


Research Experience:
One summer REU - exp amo
ongoing theory amo research
presented at 3 national conferences - with outside funding for 2 of them
3 school symposiums
2 small talks


Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Within your school or outside?)
Math department scholarship
institutional Talent scholarship


Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)
SPS board for 3 years, current president. I've started new initiatives that I'm proud of as president
TA'ed for a semester
physics department head tutor
peer mentor

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:


Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)
Good rec letters from the REU, my department head/research advisor, and sps faculty/Ta teacher

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

U Del - Quantum Science and Engineering Admitted 2/13 - 31,500 yearly stipend for TA
UT Austin - Physics - exp amo Admitted 1/30 - 32k/12 month stipend, guaranteed funding for 5 years -- accepted :)
UMD - Physics - exp amo/qis rejected boo
UVA - Physics - exp amo - Admitted 2/15 - 32k/ 12 month
UC Boulder - Physics - exp amo rejected! Ouchy!
Yale - Physics - exp amo - rejected 2/14
MIT - Physics - exp amo/cm rejected 2/14
V Tech - Physics - exp cm rejected in like may lol


Feeling pretty nervous and second-guessing my list. I'm afraid of not getting in anywhere and I know that grad school is what I want to do. I feel like I've done a lot, done all I can, but I'm afraid my applications weren't organized enough. Second guessing my CV organization and SOP's. But, as the kids say, it is what it is
edit 1: So relieved and happy that my first decision was an acceptance to UT Austin. I think I could be really happy in Austin :)
edit 2: what a rollercoaster. I literally dropped out of college halfway through a semester, eventually came back, and am now on my way to a phd!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Jan 11, 2023 12:30 pm
by Runaway_Fancy
Undergrad Institution: University of Macau, public, weak physics background
Major(s): Applied Physics
Minor(s): NA
GPA in Major: NA
Overall GPA: 3.45
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: Near top
Type of Student: International, male, heterosexual

GRE Scores: NA (Both General and physics)

TOEFL: (NA)

IELTS: (L:7, R:8, W:6, S:6)


Research Experience: 5 experience, 1 in quantum algorithm (1 pub first author, Arxiv, submitted to Quantum Sci. Tech.), 3 in coherence control (exp and their, 1 pub 3rd author submitted), 1 summer research.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 3 scholarships, Dean lists, several physics, quantum computing competition honours

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Director of Local Physical Society, Course Director, Monitor of the Department of Physics, etc.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: NA

Special Bonus Points: NA

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Asian

Applying to Where:

School - Department - Research Interest

MIT - PhD Physics - AMO/QI/QC (Rejection via email, 2/14)
UC Berkeley - PhD Physics - AMO (Rejection via email to check portal, 2/24)
UMD - PhD Physics - JQI (Rejection via email)
CU Boulder - PhD Physics - AMO (Rejection via email to check portal, 3/1)
UIUC - PhD Physics - QI/QC (Rejection via email, 3/2)
UChicago - PhD Physics - AMO/QI/QC (Rejection directly form portal, 1/28)
UW-Madison - PhD Physics - AMO/QI/QC (Rejection via email, 1/30)
Yale - PhD Applied Physics - QI/QC (Rejection via email to check portal, 2/14)
Cornell - PhD Applied Physics - AMO/QI/QC (Rejection via email, 3/15)
UCSB - PhD Physics - AMO (Rejection via email)
UCLA - PhD Physics - AMO/QI/QC (Rejection via email to check portal, 3/23)
Rochester - PhD Physics - AMO/QI/QC (Admitted, $30k 12-month per year, 2/7)
UMichigan - PhD Physics - AMO (Rejection via email, 2/10)
UT Austin - PhD Physics - CME (Rejection via email)
Duke - PhD Physics - QI/QC (Rejection via email to check portal, 2/25)
UWaterloo - PhD Physics - QI/QC (Waitlist, also for the MSc)
Brown - PhD Physics - CME (Rejection via email to check portal, 3/23)
HKUST - PhD Physics - AMO (Admitted, summer camp, 210k HKD per year, Aug. 2022)

I declined my offer of the HKUST and will accept the Rochester. Thank you guys and wish you a good luck!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2023 3:03 pm
by vltbuncw22
Undergrad Institution: Big Public University, Good Physics Reputation
Major(s): Astrophysics
Minor(s):N/A
GPA in Major: 3.89
Overall GPA: 3.694
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: Not sure?
Type of Student: International female

GRE Scores: 331/4 for general

TOEFL: N/A

Research Experience:
  • 1 Summer REU at home institute in collaboration with other institutes' professor
  • 2 years of undergraduate experience in theoretical physics, 1st author publication, 2-4 conference talks (can't remember)
  • 2 years of master experience in exoplanet, no pub, 1 talk

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
  • Dean's list, highest departmental honor, college honors
  • grad excellence reward, two other grad reward
Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
2 years of TA in physics/astronomy

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
active in outreach/mentoring
cold email at least two professors from all institutes that I am applying to; got informal interviews for some.

Special Bonus Points:
grad class GPA 4/4, not sure if helps;
two recommendations from research faculties, one from a professor which I've TAed.
have a paper collaboration with a faculty at CMU before

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
I have a conflict with my primary supervisor in my master's degree, which lead to her not giving a rec letter and no pub...
Not sure if this will significantly affect my application

Applying to Where:

all high energy/exoplanets, in order of due date.

CU Boulder - PhD Astrophysics Rejected (2/14 via portal)
UToronto - PhD Astrophysics - Rejected (2/9 via portal)
UNC - PhD Astrophysics
UBC - PhD Astrophysics
Cornell - PhD Astrophysics
UChicago - PhD Astrophysics - Rejected (2/8 via portal)
CMU - PhD Physics - Waitlisted (2/8 via email)
JHU - PhD Astrophysics
Rice - PhD Astrophysics
Boston U - PhD Astrophysics
Northwestern - PhD Astrophysics
Columbia - PhD Astrophysics
UIUC - PhD Astrophysics
UvA - PhD Astrophysics

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Fri Jan 13, 2023 3:36 am
by detectiveconan
Undergrad
Institution: Tier 2 Institute in India
Major(s): Mechanical Engg
Minor(s): Manufacturing and Design
GPA in Major: 8.65
Overall GPA: 8.65
Length of Degree: 4 yrs
Position in Class: Top 10 in class

Master's
Institution: Best in Japan, Top 10 in Physics
Major(s): Physics
GPA in Major: 3.75
Overall GPA: ~3.6
Length of Degree: 2 yr
Position in Class: NA
Comments: Tons of extra grad-level Phys/Astro/CS courses

Type of Student: International / Asian / Male

Scores
GRE Scores: NA
TOEFL: 106 (R: 30, L: 25, S: 23, W: 28)

Research Experience
  • 1 ApJ paper in Solar Phys, 2 posters and 1 ppt on the topic (all 1st author)
  • 1 Research Note in Astro theory (1st author)
  • 1 collaboration paper on open source Astro software (Nth author), work done directly with a MIT scientist
  • 2 posters on Master's research so far on using ML for GW (1st author)
  • ~1.5yr research work at MIT in X-Ray Astro, not published yet, supervisor is one of the recommenders
  • 6 months paid Solar Phys ML research at Top institution in India, not published
Awards/Honors/Recognitions
  • MEXT Scholarship
  • Google Summer of Code
  • National level Phys Summer Program in undergrad (twice)
  • some others
Others
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Project Associate at top institute in India after undergrad for 6 months

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Not really

Special Bonus Points
1 pretty strong reco from my research supervisor at MIT. 2 other recos from current Master's supervisors, atleast 1 of these is strong and the other is from the institute Director.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter
  • Contacted Profs and students at all the institutes. All the student replies were very helpful and encouraging.
  • MIT prof I want to work with knows both the MIT researchers I have worked with previously, said he will be taking students this year and encouraged me to apply.
  • CalTech prof said not sure she will take new students. One of my current Master's supervisor knows anther CalTech prof I mentioned in the SOP.
  • No reply from any of Cambridge profs.
  • Applied to MIT 2 yrs back in a diff research group and was not selected. This time my profile is highly improved.
Applying to Where
Only applied to top schools. Will continue in Japan if not accepted.

1) MIT - PhD Physics - GW Astrophysics at Kavli [Rejection 02/14]
--> maybe a bit of a reach but expect to be accepted, let's see, would love Boston, good match with my profile
2) CalTech - PhD Physics - GW Astrophysics [Rejection 02/14]
--> maybe a reach, won't like California much, match with my profile
3) CambridgeU - PhD DAMTP - GW and Relativity group
--> don't really wanna go there, kinda a reach anyway, not a good profile match, but no fees, so applied

Thoughts
02/05 : No calls for interviews this season :(
02/14 : Blatant rejection on the Valentine's, lol, and not even an interview

Final comments : I think there is very little difference (if any) between my profile and of those selected. I'nt applicants are hard up imo, very few seats and too many applications. So, they expect the very best. I could have completed the prev research works and published papers. And maybe the LORs could have been more personals, dunno. They could have atleast called for an interview. Anyway, shall continue in Japan, perhaps apply for PostDoc in 2-3 years.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2023 11:27 am
by bimpy
Undergrad Institution: US, avg. state school
Major(s): Physics, Math
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.85 (Physics), 3.91 (Math)
Overall GPA: 3.71
Length of Degree: 4.5
Position in Class: Near top (not really sure)
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Scores: 810 Physics (66 percentile), 830 Math (81 percentile)

Research Experience: Spent about a year working on a theoretical physics project, which became my thesis. Not published, although future work may be done this Spring. Topic involved lots of differential geometry.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 2 Honor societies, 1 math department award

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA'd for 3.5 years, tutored for both math and physics department in beginner/intermediate courses. Spent 2.5 years managing data for a solar physics project.

Special Bonus Points: My biggest bonus points would probably lie in my mathematical tilt. I have done almost perfectly in my Math degree except for 2 classes (B+,B-). I am trying to get into more theoretical physics, so this disposition is probably expected.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where: for physics unless specified

Harvard -
MIT - Rejection (2/14)
Caltech - Rejection (2/14)
Stanford - Rejection (2/3)
UT Austin - Rejection (4/14)
UCSB - Rejection (3/28)
UCSC - Rejection (4/3)
Georgia Tech (Math) - Rejection (3/29)
Stony Brook - Rejected for PhD but offered MA spot (3/6)
Brandeis - Rejection (4/3)
Virginia Tech - Accepted (2/15)

The following are for MSc. degrees, not PhDs!

Univ. Glasgow (Applied Math, TMP) - Accepted for Applied Math (1/25)
Univ. Edinburgh (MP) - Accepted (2/10)
Oxford (TMP) -
Univ. Bonn (Math) - Accepted (1/30)
Univ. Hamburg (MP) - Accepted (2/15) Will Attend!
Univ. Berlin (Math, Physics) - Accepted for Physics (2/23)
LMU (TMP) - Rejection (7/12)

Note: At the moment of writing this, I do not have all my results, but I think the takeaway is fairly clear: even if you are a solid applicant, you should expect a lot of rejections from good US schools. If you have the money for it, abroad programs seemed a lot easier to get in, plus personally I find their curriculum way more interesting than the US schools (from a theory standpoint). That being said, it's hard to compare acceptances and rejections to MSc. vs PhD programs abroad and domestically. Good luck to all future applicants, I hope you find this info helpful.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 16, 2023 3:17 pm
by sussybaka
______________________________________________
Undergrad Institution: US private liberal arts college, not known for physics
Major(s):Physics
Minor(s): Astronomy and Math
GPA in Major: 3.55
Overall GPA: 3.34
Length of Degree: 4 year
Position in Class: prob top 25%
Type of Student: International Male

Grad Institution: US state university, best known for gravitational wave research
Major(s):Physics
Overall GPA: 3.87
Length of Degree: 2 year
Position in Class: prob top 10%

GRE Scores: NA

TOEFL: NA

Research Experience:
1. Ongoing research on the dirac equation in curved spacetime leading to traversable wormholes. No publications, but planning to once we are done.
2. Computational astrophysics undergad research for about 6 months. Presentation and code solution.
3. Theoretical statistics research on mathematical finance (don't ask how I ended up here). Poster and presentation

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Got a few awards and fellowships for doing research

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Teaching Associate at grad institution (aka teaching labs), SI Leader at grad institution, Lab tech assistant, tutor

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: NA

Special Bonus Points: Two of my recommenders are well known for their fields; one of them was a student of kip thorne. But thats about it i think

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: NA

Applying to Where: (particle physics)

USC -
University of Iowa -
University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) - Accepted Feb 9 + $22,500 9 months TA
Purdue University-
Washington University in St. Louis (WUSTL)-
University of Washington (UW) -
Iowa State -
University of Nebraska Lincoln (UNL) -
Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) -
SUNY Albany -
Northern Illinois University (NIU) -

I have been through the application process before right after my undergrad, but had to take a fat L because of my research experience (lackof), probably non-stellar recommendations, and bad SOP writing skills. Working outside of school is extremely competitive bc of the citizenship status, and getting good quality research experience on campus was hard. At the same time, I also applied to theoretical string theory/quantum gravity groups only. But 2 years later with my masters, I think my overall profile, choice of schools and programs are better. We will see how it goes lol

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Tue Jan 17, 2023 6:24 pm
by eblake
Undergrad Institution: US private STEM college
Major(s):Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.8
Overall GPA: 3.8
Length of Degree: 4 year
Type of Student: Domestic Female

GRE Scores: NA

Research Experience:
1. Ongoing research on magnetic thin films with applications in data storage in collaboration with UCSD and Los Alamos respectively since 2020
2. Publication accepted for publication on magnetic Fe (II) complexes 2022
3. Poster presentation (lead author) at 2022 conference

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Lab tech assistant, tutor, grader for 4 semesters total

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: NA

Special Bonus Points: Two of my recommenders are well established in condensed matter Physics; one of them was a student of Nai Ong. My primary recommendation is very strong.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: NA

Applying to Where: (condensed matter)

UCSD- accepted Feb. 3
Cornell- accepted Feb. 21
Carnegie Mellon- accepted Jan. 20
MIT- rejected Feb. 14
Princeton- rejected Feb. 17 interview Jan. 17
Stanford- accepted Feb. 3
UCB- rejected Feb. 23
UCI- accepted Feb. 2
UCLA- accepted Feb. 3
UCSB- accepted Feb. 15
Yale- rejected Feb. 14
CalTech- rejected Feb. 14
U of Washington- rejected April 9

U of Illinois- accepted Jan. 4

Hopefully this goes well!

Update: Now I just have to decide... bye for now!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2023 5:34 am
by Aadi1517
Aadi1517 wrote:
Thu Dec 15, 2022 8:46 am
Undergrad Institution: (No.1 ranked University in Country) Overall Reputation in Physics? Top Ranked
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): HEP
GPA in Major: 3.77
Overall GPA: 3.63
Length of Degree: 2 year MS Physics with GPA of 3.8 and 4 Year BS Physics with GPA 3.63
Position in Class: (Topper in both BS and MS)
Type of Student: Asian
GRE Scores: 316 GRE general (not submitting)
GRE physics score of 800 (most probably not submitting it)


TOEFL: (R: 26 , L: 22 , S: 23, W:27 )


Research Experience: 1 year of research work with a thesis in HEP. No publication. Some presentations in international conferences
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Vice Chancellor's Medal

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 1 Year TA ship in Grad school

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Not much

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Applying in Particle/Astroparticle physics

Applying to Where:

University of Alabama: Rejected on 17th of January, Generic Blunt Rejection.
University of Pittsburgh:
University of Alberta:
Ohio State University:
Virginia Tech University:
Rice University:
University of Delaware:

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2023 9:16 am
by Ahmed0168
Undergrad Institution: An Asian University (Not well-known)
Major(s):Physics
Minor(s): x
GPA in Major: 3.62
Overall GPA: 3.37
Length of Degree: 4 year
Position in Class: top 10%
Type of Student: International Male

Grad Institution: Same undergrad institute
Major(s):Physics
Overall GPA: 3.64
Length of Degree: 1 year
Position in Class: top 2%

GRE Scores: NA

TOEFL: Total- 92, R-22, L-22, S-22, W-26

Research Experience: 3 years running
1. Experimental heavy ion interaction (nuclear physics) research in my master's thesis and collaborated with HIMAC, WERC, and University of Fukui, Japan. 1 conference paper and 1 poster presentation from this thesis work.
2. Simulation based nuclear physics work.
3. Simulation based another research work.
4. Collaborative research work of experimental heavy-ion physics with University of Fukui, Japan. (Currently Running)

Publication: 1 journal paper published, 2 poster presentation, 1 international conference paper, two journal papers are currently under review.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
1. National Fellowship for graduate research work.
2. Academic Scholarship in both B.Sc. and M.S. for top students.
3. Best Poster presentation award in my science faculty.
4. Attained first prize for presenting my thesis work in an international conference.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
1. Teaching assistant during my master's. (1 Year)
2. Research assistant in my department working with my advisor in his current projects. (1 Year+)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Academic mentor of our national physics olympiad. Outlined lessons and assignments, graded papers and exams.

Special Bonus Points: I have pretty good programming skills, such as good at Python and working on some simulation programs.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: My entire research experience with the collaboration of University of Fukui. So, I have good communication and leadership skills working with international students. My primary advisor and Japanese professor gave me strong recommendation letter.

Research Interest: Experimental nuclear and particle physics

Applying to Where:

1. University of Massachusetts, Amherst- Rejected
2. University of Rochester- Waitlisted 2/10 Rejected
3. University of California, Riverside-
4. University of Tennessee, Knoxville- Interview 3/10 Accepted 3/15 + TA with summer funding ($24,500)
5. University of Illinois, Chicago-
6. Syracuse University- Rejected
7. Colorado State University- Rejected
8. Kansas State University- Waitlisted 2/8 Rejected
9. University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa- Interview 2/3 Accepted 2/8 + TA with summer funding ($26,760) + pending potential fellowship
10. Texas Tech University- Rejected
11. New Mexico State University-

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Jan 18, 2023 10:03 pm
by mssg123
Undergrad Institution: transferred from a US public school to another
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 3.90
Length of Degree: 4.5
Position in Class: N/A
Type of Student: international Asian male

GRE Scores: N/A


TOEFL: N/A


Research Experience: 2 year research on soft matter at my 2nd home institution + 1 summer research on soft matter at another school, no pub

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: dean's list

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: N/A

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points:

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Were:

Super Reach:
MIT - rejected on 2/14 (expected)
UChicago - rejected on 1/27
UCSB - rejected on 3/28
JHU - accepted on 2/10 (no interview, really shocked)

Reach:
UCSD - rejected on 3/17
Northwestern - rejected on 3/9
Brown - rejected on 3/2

Match-ish:
UMN - rejected on 2/13
UC Merced - accepted on 2/14
Brandeis - withdraw
Georgetown - withdraw
Kent State - withdraw

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Jan 19, 2023 12:02 pm
by erto
Undergrad Institution: Not well known
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major:3.66
Overall GPA:3.66
Length of Degree: 3.5
Position in Class: Top

MSc. Institution: Not well known
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major:3.94
Overall GPA:3.94
Length of Degree: 2.5
Position in Class: Top


Type of Student: International White Male

GRE Scores: PGRE 920, GRE General:163


TOEFL: (R:22 , L:24 , S:21 , W:20 )


Research Experience: hep-th in home institution for several years. 1 published paper

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's list

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
TA since April 2022
Research Assistant(Granted by Turkey Science Research Institution) in the period September-April

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Nope


Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Changed department after 1.5 year?

Applying to Where: All hep-th/hep-ph:

Brown University- Rejected 13/02
University of Minnesota Twin Cities- Rejected 13/02
SUNY, Stony Brook University- Rejected 06/03
University of Chicago- Rejected 27/01
University of California Davis
Boston University- Rejected 13/03
University of California Los Angeles
Princeton University- Rejected 17/02
Max Planck Institute for Physics(IMPRS)- Rejected 18/02
SISSA

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sat Jan 21, 2023 9:27 am
by CosmicSans
Undergrad Institution: Asian University, top 3 in home country
Major(s):Physics
Minor(s): x
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 3.97/4.30
Length of Degree: 4 year
Position in Class: top 10%
Type of Student: International Male

GRE Scores: 159/170/4.0, 990 (97%) PGRE

TOEFL: Total- 115, R-30, L-29, S-28, W-28

Research Experience: one semester on LHC (wrote my bachelor thesis), another on Particle simulation.
Currently working on another non-accelerator experiment after graduating BS.

Publication: 2 conference presentations, one domestic (in-person) and one international (virtual)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: National Scholarship during Undergrad covering enrollment fee

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: few internships, not particularly important and only mentioned as one-liners in CV

Research Interest: Experimental particle physics

Applying to Where:

Columbia University - Interview noticed 2/16, done 2/17, Accepted 2/23 + $46K
Stony Brook University - Master's offer instead 3/7
University of Maryland - Accepted 1/31 + $38K for first two years
University of Oxford - Interview noticed 1/17, done 1/30, Rejected 3/15
University of Tokyo - Accepted 1/13
Yale University - Rejected 2/14

Kinda bombed my interview for Oxford, was expecting typicall interview questions like "Why did you apply to our school?", "What are your goals?", etc. + Entry level questions on physics (Was the case for Columbia and Tokyo).
Was mostly asked basic level questions on LHCb (group I applied for) instead. Question themselves were not that hard, but was unprepared and couldn't answer most of them on the first try, needed some hints or corrections.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Jan 22, 2023 5:02 am
by Noah
Undergrad Institution: Asian university, decent physics reputation
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in undergrad: 3.87

Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: top 25%
Type of Student: international male
GRE Scores: no GRE


TOEFL: 101, S21


Research Experience: several months studying in a HEP group, several months working on a Gamma-ray Burst observation and analysis program, summer research in CMT, no pub(Emm... I really took a while to determine my interest...)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 5 scholarships

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: N/A

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: N/A

Special Bonus Points: N/A

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: summer school at the best university in my country; strong (?maybe? I am not very sure) recommendations
Applying to Where:

(All CMT)
Berkeley
UChicago - rejected Jan 27
UIUC
JHU
UCSB
UCSD
Maryland
Penn State
CU Boulder - accepted Jan 30
UT Austin
Rutgers - accepted Feb 9
Stony Brook
UMinnesota - rejected Feb 13
UFlorida- interview Jan 29 - accepted Feb 7
Florida State-interview Jan 24 - accepted Jan 30
UTennessee - interview Feb 2 - accepted Feb 9
Louisiana State - withdrawn
British Columbia(MSc) - rejected Feb 16
UToronto(MSc)
McGill(MSc)

I realize this list some kind of unreasonable and risky for my background, and I start regretting now...

update Feb 22:
It seems it is unlikely to receive more offers in the future, but my list works anyway as I do have got into some schools. One of my recommender (who is my research advisor) gave me some advice before applying, and I followed his advice but with more schools on my list just to make it safer. So consult your recommenders first and follow their advice, then you don't need to be too worried. All the best to everybody who sees this post.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 23, 2023 11:20 pm
by klay_thompson_2023
Undergrad Institution: Big Public School, Top physics school
Major(s): Physics, CS, Applied Math
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.99
Overall GPA: 3.99
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: idk bro
Type of Student: domestic Indian male


Research Experience: 1 year of ML/computation astrophysics (co-author on Astrophysical Journal Publication), 3 CMT projects (one co-first-author posted to arXiv, one first author publication pending, one project is my honors thesis project), two random computational physics projects in HS that led to an informal paper and a poster presentation

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Hertz Fellowship Finalist, APS March Meeting 2022, 2023 (3 total talks in general category), a poster presentation, Department stipend, USAMO/USACO Plat in High School

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Reader for a CS class and some miscellaneous outreach stuff

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I've taken 8 grad courses and did well in all of them (I also audited another with my research advisor and he talked about that in my rec). I also did a couple of PDRPs and attached my presentations/final papers from those. I also did some ML/RL-related work in my early undergrad that led to informal write-ups.

Special Bonus Points: 3 rly strong recs - one from a really well-known CMT prof who was my advisor, one from another CMT prof who was my advisor, one from a well-known CMT prof who I took 2 graduate level courses with. I sent some additional technical writings I did for classes/research as well.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

(CMT everywhere)

Harvard [Interview 1/24] [Accepted 2/16]
Princeton [Interview 1/17] [Accepted 2/14]
MIT [Interview 1/18] [Accepted 2/14]
Caltech [Accepted 2/3]
Stanford [Rejected 2/3]
Berkeley [Accepted 2/17]
UChicago [Accepted 1/27]
UIUC
Oxford
UCSB
Cornell [Accepted 2/15]

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Tue Jan 24, 2023 12:27 pm
by iamnameers
Undergrad Institution: Most famous Indian institute for engineering. But not well-known for physics research.
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): Mathematics
GPA in Major: 9.1x/10
Overall GPA: 9.1x/10
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: 8 or 9/50
Type of Student: International India male

GRE Scores: General= 321/340 (only submitted to 2/22 universities where it was mandatory)

TOEFL: 106 (R: 26, L: 29, S: 25, W: 26)

Research Experience: 1-semester research experience in QFT in curved spacetime and black hole thermodynamics. 1 summer research experience in dark energy and dark matter cosmology. 1-semester research experience in the AdS/CFT correspondence.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Mitacs Globalink Research Internship Award (fully funded summer internship in Canada)

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Was a TA for a maths course. Was involved in public outreach via our Astro club.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: No

Special Bonus Points: Took many grad-level courses. 3 QFT courses. 1 RQM (relativistic quantum mechanics) course. 1 GR course. 1 group theory course.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: No

Applying to Where: All for physics departments and all for hep-th. More specifically, I applied for quantum gravity or string theory, holography (AdS/CFT correspondence), quantum information applications to quantum gravity, conformal field theory, and cosmology. Applied to 20 US Ph.D. and 2 Canada MSc programs.

Princeton - 17th Feb Rejected
Stanford - 3rd Feb Rejected
MIT - 14th Feb Rejected
Harvard - 24th Feb Rejected
UC Berkeley - 23rd Feb Rejected
Caltech - 14th Feb Rejected
Cornell - 21st Feb Rejected
UC Santa Barbara - 15th Feb Rejected
Illinois Urbana-Champaign - 8th Mar Rejected
UTexas Austin - 17th Feb Rejected
Perimeter (MSc) - 3rd Mar Rejected
UBC (MSc) - 16th Feb Rejected
UCLA - 22nd Mar Rejected
UC Davis - 12th April Rejected
UMich - 9th Feb Rejected
UPenn - 28th Mar Rejected
UChicago - 27th Jan Rejected
Rutgers - 23rd Feb Rejected
Stonybrook - 6th Mar Rejected (but accepted to masters degree without any financial aid)
Wisconsin–Madison - 29th Jan Rejected
Brown - 22nd Mar Rejected
OSU - 8th May Rejected

Updates:
9th Feb: It is not going well for me. 😢.
14th Feb: 😢
8th Mar: I think the remaining will also reject soon.

Edit in 2024

After the above disaster results, I applied to the below universities:
Brandeis - 14 Mar Accepted (not funded 1 year masters)
Weizmann - 30 Apr Accepted (funded 2 masters)
KU Leuven - 21 Jun Accepted (not funded 2 year masters)
ICTP Postgraduate Diploma Programme - May 16 Rejected

I was not interested in going to Stonybrook or KU Leuven Masters. After going back and forth between Brandeis vs. Weizmann, I chose Brandeis even though Weizmann is funded for complicated reasons.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Jan 25, 2023 6:07 am
by welcome_green
Undergrad Institution: Foreign; University has okay-ish physics rep / Master's from top national physics institution
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.76
Overall GPA: 3.76
Length of Degree: 4 + 1 year Master's
Position in Class: Near top - My university does not provide percentile
Type of Student: The standard student (male, white)

GRE Scores: Didn't take GRE since it was not required


TOEFL: (R: 29 , L: 29 , S: 30, W: 29) - Total: 117


Research Experience:
- 1.5 years Astro HEP (1 First author Pub in major journal + Conference talk)
- 4 months AMOP (Undergraduate Research program)
- 1 month Summer Research (1 Single authored article + poster presentation)
- 1 year HEP-T (Master's thesis)
- 1 month worked as a research mentor
- A few smaller independent research projects "for fun"

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
- Most competetive national scholarship
- Scholarship due to academic excellence
- Prize for excellent performance
- Prize for best performance in English

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
Several TA jobs, worked as a research mentor, member of student council, former member of particle physics committee at my university, outreach activities at high schools, etc

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
- 3 strong research letters, 5 letters in total
- Currently writing a book on Quantum Field Theory as the leading author

Special Bonus Points:
A few advanced grad classes with 4.0

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

Reach:
Chicago - Rejected 1/27/23
Yale - Accepted for Ph.D. via email to check website 2/14 + $40.5k
Duke - Accepted for Ph.D. Accepted via email to check website 1/24 + $36.8k TA
Brown - Rejected for Ph.D. via email 3/2/23 Accepted for Master's 03/24/23
Imperial College - Interview request on 2/2/23 for 2/7/23 - Accepted via email 3/6/23 | Very bad funding, what a joke^^
Max-Planck Institute (IMPRS) - Accepted via Email 1/30 + 23k TA | 3 Interviews: 15. Dec 22; 9 Jan. 23; 13. Jan 23
Columbia - Rejected 3/15/23
Cornell - Rejected via email 2/21
Berkeley - Rejected 2/23
Cambridge - Accepted for Ph.D. Accepted via email | 3 Interviews in first week of January 23 | Funding secured: 17.5 k
Oxford - Accepted for Ph.D. Accepted via email 3/14/23 - Interview request on 2/9/23 for 2/15/23 | Still waiting for funding!

Target(-ish):
UCLA - Rejected 03/22/23
UCSB - Rejected 3/28/23
Edinburgh - Rejected via email 2/9/23

Safety(?):
Durham University - Interview request on 2/13/22 for 2/22/23 I rejected the interview request due to offers of my first prio.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Wed Jan 25, 2023 3:31 pm
by Skylark2332
______________________________________________
Undergrad Institution: Indian Premier Research Institute, recently turned into university, not sure about reputation
Major(s):Physics
Overall GPA:9.0/10(9.2 for the last one year)
Length of Degree:5 Years
Position in Class: not sure
Type of Student: International Female

GRE Scores: Did not take GRE


TOEFL: 113(R:29 , L: 30, S: 29, W: 25)


Research Experience: One year ongoing Master's thesis in Hep-th; one first author pre-print at the time of applications; 5 months ongoing project with a professor in another country; no publication in this project yet.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Within your school or outside?)

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer, etc...)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Upward trend in gpa; I've taken courses on ML, GR and Cosmo, QFT-1 and 2, Nuclear and Particle Physics ( highest grade in all); Strong Rec Letter from my Master's Thesis Advisor.


Applying to Where:
(sorted by deadlines)
USA:
1) University of Southern California(cosmo-th and data)-Interview 1/24-Rejected upon enquiry
2) SUNY, Stony Brook(cosmo-th and data)-07/03-Rejected via unoffical email :(
3) University of Minnesota(cosmo-th and data)-Accepted-2/10-30k TA for first two years-Offer Declined
5) Cornell University(cosmo-th and data)-Rejected 23/02
6) Rice University(cosmo-th and data)-Rejected 04/04
7) NYU(hep-th and cosmo-th)-Rejected 17/03
8.) Northwestern University(AMO experiment)(-Unofficial Interview with POI 15/02--18/02-Accepted 36k/year Fellowship-Offer Accepted
9) Louisiana State University(GW)
10) University of Pittsburgh(cosmo-th and data)-Rejected 20/03
11) University of Connecticut(Astro)
12) Dartmouth College(cosmo-th and data)

Europe:
1)Edinburgh(cosmo)-Rejected:10/02
2)AEI(GW)-Shortlisted
3)Charles University-Interview:09/02-Invited for second interview-withdrawn

-> Couldn't process the acceptance from UMN!! My first acceptance was magical. I thought it wouldn't happen for me.I'm so happy! Finally, I have decided to attend Northwestern. Best of luck to everyone for their future!!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2023 1:54 am
by Divc09
Undergrad Institution: T20 liberal arts, small but pretty good Physics program
Major(s): Physics, Chemistry
Minor(s): Undeclared Applied Math because my college doesn't allow a minor with two majors
GPA in Major: 3.82 (Phys - Messed up two core courses badly due to attendance, As or A+s otherwise), 3.68 (Chem)
Overall GPA: 3.75
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: Probably pretty close to top
Type of Student: International Male

GRE Scores: Nope

TOEFL: (R: , L: , S: , W: ) - Nope

Research Experience: 2 pubs (first author, third author), 7 conference talks (both oral and poster), research experience in college for 3 years (both Phys and Chem) and at a national lab.
Research mostly related to materials, electronics, microscopy, etc.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's distinction and a few honor societies but no real awards :/

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Tutored every semester since freshman year for Phys, chem, and math courses. President of SPS Club

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Can't think of any

Special Bonus Points: One of my recommenders has connections at UCs, but not sure what that recommendation was like.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Didn't contact any professors

Applying to Where:
(Experimental Condensed Matter/Materials everywhere)
University of California, Berkeley - Physics Rejected 2/23
University of California, Santa Barbara - Materials
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign - Materials Science and Engineering - Accepted 1/25 + $32k RA
Cornell University - Applied Physics
University of Colorado, Boulder - Materials Science and Engineering - Rejected via generic email 1/26
Northwestern University - Applied Physics
University of Michigan Ann Arbor - Materials Science and Engineering
Rice University - Applied Physics - Accepted 1/26 + $36K
Duke University - Physics
University of California, Irvine - CHAMP - Physics (very specific PHD but appeals to all of my interests :))
University of Rochester - Physics - Accepted 2/6 + $31K
UMass Amherst - Physics
Case Western University - Physics - Accepted 2/7 $30k + $12.5k (Fellowship)

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Thu Jan 26, 2023 2:16 am
by AstroGW
Undergrad Institution: Known institute for Engineering in India, not so much for physics
Major(s): Physics and Computer Science
Overall GPA: 8.75/10
Length of Degree: 5 years
Position in Class: Not given, but close to the top
Type of Student: International male

GRE Scores: PGRE 890 (79 percentile), meh

TOEFL: 111

Research Experience: one summer at an internationally known national lab for GW physics and one summer at a top Australian institute. Ongoing year-long master's thesis in the USA at a known university in LIGO. Done several research projects at my home institute and one poster presentation at an international conference for compact objects. One small 2-page paper published (first author).


Awards/Honors/Recognitions: National scholarship to pay a part of my undergrad tuition.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: N/A

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Current member of the LIGO collaboration, dunno if that helps much.

Special Bonus Points: Strong recommendation from my master's thesis advisor, who's well-known in the LSC.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where: All places focusing on GW physics and data analysis.

UChicago - Astronomy Rejected on 2/8
Penn State - Physics
Northwestern - Astronomy
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee - Physics
MIT - Physics Rejected on 2/15
Yale - Astronomy (Cosmo) Rejected on 2/14
UIUC - Physics
RIT - Astrophysical Sciences and Technology
UMass Dartmouth - EAS
URhode Island (URI) - Physics
UT Austin - Physics

Europe:
AEI
MPIfR (radio astronomy): Interview 1/19 Rejected on 2/8

Not sure if my profile is good enough to get into any of these places (lack of publications). My PGRE score isn't great either because ETS rescheduled it to an inconvenient date.

Update 02/15: Not looking great, but all rejections until now have been from places I was very sure I'd get rejected (Because of the reputation of these schools and not-so-good research fit with most of them). I have hopes from Penn State, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, UMassD, UT Austin, and RIT (where I'm doing my master's thesis). But that's about it

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2023 1:57 pm
by eirisle
Undergrad Institution: Irish University
Major: Theoretical Physics
GPA in Major: 1st Class Honours (university classifies this as between 3.7-4.0 GPA)
Length of Degree: 4 years
Position in Class: No idea
Type of Student: International Male

Grad Institution: German University
Major: Theoretical and Mathematical Physics
GPA in Major: Unsure how to even calculate this as half of my grade is thesis. Probably 2.0/4.0 where 1.0 is the best.
Length of Degree: 2 years
Position in Class: No idea

GRE Scores: Did not take (no centre to take them in Germany!)

TOEFL: N/A as am native speaker

Research Experience:
1.) Spent one summer at bachelor institute doing math research resulting in one poster presentation.
2.) Spent one summer doing topological data analysis of fluid dynamics at a large national laboratory in USA resulting in a talk at an APS meeting which my supervisor gave.
3.) Spent another summer in well known UK condensed matter theory group on electronic structure calculations in superconducting materials, resulting in one talk.
4.) Wrote honors bachelor thesis on Integrability and Algebraic Bethe Ansatz which I gave one talk about.
5.) Spent 1 year writing master thesis on Quantum Simulation using AMO systems which will result in first author publication. Two poster presentations and one talk given at German conferences. Will give talk + poster at APS March Meeting which I mentioned.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Scholarships to conduct summer research projects. General prizes for good grades in Bachelors.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Teaching Assistant for 2.5 years during my MSc for Math Methods, Thermodynamics, Optics & Electrodynamics - 12 hours/wk. Help Design, Supervise and Grade end-of-semester exam.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I attended 2 summer math schools during my bachelors and 2 workshops (virtually) during MSc.

Special Bonus Points: Compared to US counterparts I have taken many graduate level courses. 1 LOR from MSc supervisor which I think is quite positive, he is known in his specific field. 1 LOR from supervisor from superconductivity project. 1 LOR from professor I have taught for 3 classes.

Applying to Where: Mainly applying for the intersection of atomic,molecular and optical theory (AMO) / many-body theory. My main interest is quantum simulation of many-body physics using trapped atoms and molecules. Listed generally in order of preference.

University of Colorado Boulder - AMO/many-body theory - Accepted (1/26) + $34-39K TA/RA + $3K fellowship
Harvard - AMO/many-body theory - Rejected (2/25)
Caltech - AMO/many-body theory Rejected (2/14)
University of Maryland - AMOT/many-body Rejected (4/14)
Rice - AMOT/many-body theory Rejected (4/3)
Cornell - AMOT/many-body theory Rejected (2/13)
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) - many-body theory Rejected (3/8) ACCEPTED 3/28 25K/11 months - incorrectly sent rejection three weeks earlier :shock:
Princeton - many-body/stat. phys. theory Rejected (2/17)
U Chicago - Quantum Information Theory - Rejected (2/28)
Yale - Quantum Information Theory Rejected (2/14)

Cannot describe how elated I felt reading that acceptance from Boulder. It was my top choice and the group I want to join is going to offer me a position. :D

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2023 4:49 pm
by madeamistake
Undergrad Institution: Big State School, decent rep in Physics
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major:3.68
Overall GPA: 3.64
Length of Degree: 4
Position in Class: above average
Type of Student: domestic white male

Research Experience: 3 years of research at school in superconductors and accelerators. 3 Nth author pubs, 1 first author presentation


Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I've taken a number of graduate courses and done really well. 2 really good letters, one decent

Applying to Where:

Arizona - HEPex
Colorado Boulder - HEPex
Colorado State - HEPex - Accepted 2/10 via offer letter in email, $19980/9 months stipend
UIUC - HEPex
Florida - HEPex
Duke - HEPex
Maryland - HEPex
Michigan State - Accelerators Accepted 1/27 via offer letter in email, 31k yearly stipend
Northwestern - HEPex
Chicago - HEPex Rejected 1/27 via email to check portal
Tennessee - HEPex Interview Request 2/17 via email
Washington - HEPex

Notes:
The first one being an acceptance had lifted so much weight off my shoulders. MSU was the best fit by far, it was near exactly what I wanted, and between conversations with faculty and grad students in my lab who work closely with them, they wanted students for the program

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2023 9:31 pm
by Diner_world
[deleted]

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2023 4:43 pm
by magnons
Undergrad Institution: Big state school, good physics reputation
Major: Physics
Overall GPA: 3.98/4.00
Length of Degree: 4 year degree, graduating in 3
Position in Class: Near top
Type of Student: DWM

GRE Scores: Did not report

Research Experience: A year of AMO theory and CMT at my institution

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Presidential scholarship from my institution, dean's list, SPS

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: TA for analytical mechanics and introductory lab. I also run a private tutoring business

Special Bonus Points: Took a course in Lie algebras for independent study, grad course in solid state physics

Applying to Where:
All applications are for CMT, unless stated otherwise. This list is in no particular order.

01) UIUC - Physics - Rejected 03/02 via email
02) UCSB - Physics - Rejected 03/28 via email to check portal
03) Stony Brook - Physics - Rejected for PhD with MA Offer 03/06
04) U Buffalo - Physics - Accepted 01/23 via email to check portal + 23.0k TA
05) U Albany - Physics (HEP) - Application refunded 04/18
06) Harvard - Physics - Rejected 02/24 via email to check portal
07) Princeton - Physics - Rejected 02/17 via email to check portal
08) U Florida - Physics - Accepted 01/31 via email + 26.0k TA - Will Attend!
09) MIT - Physics - Rejected 02/14 via email
10) U Rochester - Physics - Waitlisted 02/10 - Rejected 04/11 via email to check portal
11) U Arizona - Physics - Accepted 02/03 via email + 21,750 TA
12) Yale - Physics - Rejected 02/14 via random portal check
13) U Delaware - Physics - Accepted 03/02 via email + 30,250 TA
14) Binghamton - Physics - Accepted 02/02 via email to check portal + 23.0k TA + 1.0k research award

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 30, 2023 2:20 am
by readytogethurt
Undergrad Institution: UK Rusell Group, good reputation in physics but not Oxbridge/ICL
Major(s): Physics
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major: 2:1 (circa 68% with somewhat of a downward trend)
Length of Degree: 3 years UK BSc
Position in Class: Probably around top 25-40% :|
Type of Student: International, male, hispanic/latino

GRE Scores: N/A


TOEFL: N/A


Research Experience: BSc project in HEP-th (Ryu–Takayanagi conjecture, 1 semester), summer doing computational neuroscience in Spain, no publications. Self taught topology.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Nopenopenope

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked at the ferry port for a summer, 3D graphics software engineer after graduating last summer

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
Uhhh. Very into financial activism (currently impacting legislation in the US and EU).

Special Bonus Points:
Strong (or very strong) letter from bsc project supervisor, most likely strong letter from second letter writer but unlikely to add much extra information, no idea about the letter from the comp neuro PI. Took GR in third year, graduate level QM as a summer pass/fail class, another grad level QM as a semester class in which I had a bad mark (I was more worried about not dying).

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
HS graduation project was a field simulator and 3d render engine, ran an online study group during the pandemic, know a few languages. Background of low socioeconomic status and migration. Was physically ill for most of my last year of undergrad. For the statements of purpose I'm trying to show grit and academic maturity and cover everything that could cross adcom minds.

Last year applied to Cambridge (immediate rejection, my application was shitty because the website didn't make the funding deadline clear), Oxford (rejected mid march), ICL (rejected late april although realistically had no funding for London), University of British Columbia (rejected late march). Some of those were rather late, which is bad because it gives me hope. Two of my letter writers must have revised their letters significantly by now.

Applying to Where:

Quantum gravity / hep-th for all !! :? :oops: :roll:
mathematical physics for toronto (was told only a handful of intl students are admitted)

MSc only

BCGS (Germany) - Physics - Was not shortlisted for the stipend 27 Feb 2023
University of British Columbia - Physics - Rejected via email 17 Feb 2023
University of McGill - Physics
University of Toronto - Mathematics Rejected via portal 27 March 2023
University of Waterloo - Applied Mathematics Rejected via email 21 March 2023
Perimeter Institute - PSI - Rejected 03 March 2023
University of Western Ontario - Rejected upon informal application
DAAD scholarship (Germany)

If these don't work out I'll probably be forced to work for another year... If I get lucky with money I would do the msc in Germany. I'm 100% relying on the letters of reference and the statements of purpose.

Updates:
17 Feb
UBC was pretty much my top choice and most expensive app, what a bummer... I want my money back..
I applied informally to a professor at Western Ontario, was told positive things about my application, but that my marks are low, they would rise questions from the department, and they couldn't risk it. Was also told that due to recent changes in the funding model in Ontario taking an international masters student costs almost as much as a post doc...
03 Mar
From Perimeter: "We thoroughly reviewed and considered your application. In the end, we are unable to offer you one of the positions in the program. Due to the volume of applications received, we are not able to respond to requests for feedback on individual applications. " Something I've noticed is that in previous years they took many people who already had a masters from Europe. Which is, imho, kind of a waste.
From BCGS: "As an EU student, you are eligible to attend .. in our regular MSc program" without stipend.
I've seen some people here saying they encourage to apply and not compare yourself to others. For a change, I disagree with those who try to encourage people who are struggling (in any way) through this process. I'm saying this from my experience, but also from a purely rational POV. I discourage from applying, especially if you feel you've been disadvantaged by things out of your control. I think there is no amount of insightful essay writing or recommendation letters that will save you if you don't look great on paper, for the more competitive areas. Save yourself a lot of time and money, go touch grass and have some happiness, you deserve it. If you're as stupidly stubborn as I am, you will eventually come back.

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 30, 2023 5:24 am
by alanbepis
Undergrad Institution: Mexican University
Major(s): Applied Physics
Overall GPA: 3.78/4
Length of Degree: 4.5 yrs
Position in Class: don't know, top 10% maybe
Type of Student: International

GRE Scores: 160 V, 159 Q


TOEFL: R: 28 , L: 28 , S: 23 , W: 24. T: 103


Research Experience:

- 3 research summers studying HEP and QM at multiple mexican institutions. No publications but conferences and posters

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:

- Important Dept. of State of US Scholarship and some local scholarships

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

- Staff member of some CERN activities


Special Bonus Points:

- Four strong LoRs

- Diverse background/First gen student


Applying to Where: (applied physics/physics PhD in AMO, QM, or HEP)

Iowa State University - Mar 10 Rejected via website
Texas A&M University
University of Minnesota - Feb 13 Rejected via website
University of Illinois Urbana Champaign - [Mar 2 Rejected via (the most generic) email
UW Madison
Rice - Applied Physics - Jan 25 Accepted via website, $2.9k/month + no TA/RA required
Northwestern University - Mar 9 Rejected via email
Stony Brook University - Mar 6 Rejected informally by the Program coordinator
Notre Dame - Mar 31 Rejected via ultra generic email

Jan 30: I can't believe I got accepted at Rice! Probably will accept their offer!!!
Mar 2: Rejections coming!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 30, 2023 8:37 am
by master2alejo
Undergrad Institution: well known University for Physics in Colombia
Major(s): Physics
Overall GPA: 4.2/5.0
Length of Degree: 5 years
Position in Class: N/A
Type of Student: Domestic student

Grad Institution: well know University for Physics in Taiwan
Major(s): Physics
Overall GPA: 3.5/4.0
Length of Degree: 2 years
Position in Class: N/A
Type of Student: International student

GRE Scores: No need it


TOEFL: (R: 22 , L: 23 , S: 23 , W: 22 )


Research Experience: 4 years in different topics
1. Condensed matter physics Topological Insulators (Bachelor)
2. Experimental Nuclear Physics (Industry)
3. Particle physics - Neutrino Physics (Master degree)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
1) Scholarship Undergraduate thesis
2) Honorable mention Undergraduate thesis
3) International Scholarship Master degree
4)Fellowships spring school Mathematical Physics in Chile
5) Fellowships winter school Collider Physics in Japan

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
1) Teaching Assistant undergraduate physics lab (6 months)
2) Working in the health sector in the areas or nuclear medicine and radiology (1 year)
3) Teaching assistant for graduate courses of Electrodynamics and Elementary Particle Physics (1 year)
4) Research assistant working in master project (2 years)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
I got some fee waivers from schools, I have experience in theory as well as in experimental physics. I worked in the industry sector before started my master, I award an international scholarship for my master, I have been in several international conferences, I did a project with collaborators in the USA and I also have one publication so far.

Applying to Where: (Experimental Particle Physics)

MIT - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (CMS)
Princeton - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (CMS)
Cornell - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (CMS)
KIT - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (Germany)-Accepted for PhD via email 12/01 (CMS)
UCSD - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics Interview (28/07/2022) (CMS)
UCSB - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (CMS)
U.Michigan - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (ATLAS)
U.Washignton - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics Interview (13/12/2022) (ATLAS)
Rochester - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (LHC)
Stony Brook- PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (LHC)
U.Colorado Boulder - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (CMS/TK2 or DUNE)
The University of Alabama - PhD Physics - Experimental Particle Physics (CMS)

I am happy to got into KIT, probably I will attend it. Good luck everyone here!

Re: 2023 Applicant Profile and Admission Results

Posted: Mon Jan 30, 2023 1:38 pm
by afk229
Undergrad Institution: Large Public State School
Major(s): Physics/Math Double Major
Minor(s): None
GPA in Major: 3.5
Overall GPA: 3.7
Length of Degree: 5 Years (Took an extra year to not be as stressed out during senior year. Would not recommend unless you like a lot of debt)
Position in Class: No real class ranking, graduated cum laude
Type of Student: White domestic male, applying to graduate school after a few years teaching physics (graduated in 2018)

GRE Scores: My GRE scores expired so I just applied to places that didn't require them


Research Experience: Astrophysics research for 3 years including an REU at my home institution (which probably doesn't weigh nearly as much as other REUs), worked with two professors in this time but spent the vast majority of this time on one big project which has as of yet not resulted in a publication. I also had several poster presentations during undergrad and gave several conference talks, mostly at semi-local physics/astronomy conferences (South Carolina and Southeast)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Standard Dean's list, a research grant, award for doing well in my junior/senior math major classes

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

In undergrad: SPS officer (VP and Treasurer), Astronomy Club officer (President/Founder), Astronomy Lab TA, Observatory Educator
Post graduation: HS physics teacher, physics/math tutor

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I have been trying to work the angle that having slightly more life experience and a significant amount of more teaching experience will be helpful to the department and indicative of me being less likely to quit when the going gets hard, I suppose we will see how that works out.

Special Bonus Points: None that come to mind, a couple of the institutions were places my recommenders went or worked at, so that could do something, but I honestly doubt that this will be the case. I am also applying to my undergraduate institution so that will probably affect me quite a bit at that school in particular.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I have put on my applications that I have been self-studying more advanced topics in physics/math in my free time and hoping that gives me a leg up on some applicants.

Applying to Where: Mainly looking for places that are relatively nearby (aside from one school I have had a previous connection in), I am not terribly interested in chasing a prestigious institution for the sake of name recognition but rather looking for places that I think I can do good research in.

Duke - Physics- Astrophysics (Observational/Theoretical), Cosmology Theory, Mathematical Physics [/color] [Rejected 02/25]
UNC - Physics - Astrophysics (Observational/Theoretical), Condensed Matter Theory, Particle Physics Theory
Clemson - Physics - Astrophysics (Observational/Theoretical/Computational), Atmospheric Physics Theory, Condensed Matter Theory [Invited for interview weekend 1/27, Interviewed 2/9-2/12] [Accepted 3/1 WILL ATTEND, $24.5k for TA. Possibility of fellowship but I did not get one] (Will Attend)
Case Western Reserve University - Physics - Astrophysics(Observational/Theoretical), Condensed Matter Theory [waitlisted unofficially 2/13] [Rejected 3/1]
Virginia Tech - Physics - Astrophysics (Observational/Theoretical), Condensed Matter Theory, Biomaterial Theory, Quantum Information, String Theory [/color] [Rejected 3/3]
NC State - Physics - Astrophysics(Observational/Theoretical/Computational), Computational Biophysics [Accepted 3/27, ~20k stipend with additional support over summer making it ~$27k] (Will not attend)
University of South Carolina - Physics - Astrophysics(Observational), Particle Physics Theory, Nuclear Physics Theory [Interview invitation 2/8, Interview 2/15][Rejected unofficially 2/19, not nearly my first choice in terms of research and what they were offering financially was almost criminally low (less than $20k stipend in a city where that is for sure close to if not below the poverty line), but it still hurts since I haven't gotten any acceptances yet]

Update: I could not be more excited to have gotten into these programs. This was my third attempt after a unilateral rejection the last two tries (which included both of the schools that I have now gotten into) so it is incredible for me to have gotten in. I was ready to just give up on this and that would have probably messed me up long term. For any who have not gotten into a program, just keep in mind that it isn't too late for you, you should keep trying but be sure to learn from the mistakes that caused you not to get in. Look for faculty who do research that you would fit in well with and make yourself seem as confident as you can possibly be in your application materials, even if you're not at all confident. Also try to do something at all related in the mean time and keep up your studies while in between schools. It's really tough if you don't get in and I've been there plenty of times, but if you stay tenacious and if you can really convey that this is what you want to do and that you'll keep trying until it happens (and that you will be highly motivated once you get in) you can and will succeed at least in some capacity. A lot of people still won't look twice at your application but you only need one win at the end of the day.