List Physics Grad School Acceptances
GradSchool Apps
This is a long post of everyone hearing from their Grad School choices (already). Makes me a lil' nervous to read this thread. At this point, I'm waiting for that first letter back... I dont care if it's a rejection letter... I just want to hear something. The waiting is driving me insane!
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I wouldn't fret too much man...the only program I've heard from was a nuclear science and engineering program...if you look at last year's threads, most of those people didn't begin posting their admissions notices until the first week or two of february. Biophysics (and possibly engineering) are a little more on the ball than physics, it appears. Kudos to the physics programs that have already started getting notices out to people...someone must know we're stressing enormously over the suspense! But now is certainly not the time to be making any judgments about your chances...give it a few weeks (as much as it hurts)
Daily schedule:
1) Randomly wake up a half hour before my alarm because I want to see if I got an email from any schools.
2) Sit at my computer and click refresh over and over on gmail, just hoping that google needs a reminder to update my mail.
3) Take a shower while thinking of the chances someone would email me in those 10 minutes.
4) Check the few status pages that post decisions; knowing that if they had I would have first received an email.
5) Go to work knowing that by the time I get home the mail would be delivered.
6) Drive home after work and check mail.
7) Repeat steps 2 and 4.
8 ) Repeat previous step.
9) Repeat previous step.
10) Check one last time after midnight just in cause some schools have their emails set to be sent out the next day.
11) Sleep
1) Randomly wake up a half hour before my alarm because I want to see if I got an email from any schools.
2) Sit at my computer and click refresh over and over on gmail, just hoping that google needs a reminder to update my mail.
3) Take a shower while thinking of the chances someone would email me in those 10 minutes.
4) Check the few status pages that post decisions; knowing that if they had I would have first received an email.
5) Go to work knowing that by the time I get home the mail would be delivered.
6) Drive home after work and check mail.
7) Repeat steps 2 and 4.
8 ) Repeat previous step.
9) Repeat previous step.
10) Check one last time after midnight just in cause some schools have their emails set to be sent out the next day.
11) Sleep
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- Joined: Sat Jan 06, 2007 8:17 am
same here
same here. Graduated this Fall. Nothing lined up right now. So basically infront of the computer al the time
The frustrating part is that my girlfriend has already heard back from a bunch of Chemistry programs! I dunno what takes physics so long - maybe it's a function of less funding ? ?
In case any of you are wondering, I know for a fact (80% fact) that:
1)Columbia had not yet had a meeting with the dean of the graduate school re:funding up until last week (This came via a professor in the department). They usually aim to have ~20 students enroll.
2) Cornell may/will probably send out their first round acceptances through the mail sometime this week (I was told this via the department secretary)
I'm giving the 80% fact warning in case my memory is faulty. In any case, this information really isn't outwardly useful, but it's nice to know that the ball is rolling in some form or another.
In case any of you are wondering, I know for a fact (80% fact) that:
1)Columbia had not yet had a meeting with the dean of the graduate school re:funding up until last week (This came via a professor in the department). They usually aim to have ~20 students enroll.
2) Cornell may/will probably send out their first round acceptances through the mail sometime this week (I was told this via the department secretary)
I'm giving the 80% fact warning in case my memory is faulty. In any case, this information really isn't outwardly useful, but it's nice to know that the ball is rolling in some form or another.
Waiting...
It's natural to feel a little uneasy when the near future is being decided by a committee that you've never met. I have found myself reading these posts to see if anyone has heard from my applied schools. Thankfully, not yet. (-Or its a diss because everyone else here seems to be so brilliant and i'm not in that circle!) I've been entertained by reading the responses to kracker-advocate in the female & physics posts. Funny stuff.
Current List
Acceptances so far:
UMaryland-College Park (astro)
UMass-Amherst (astro)
Penn State (astro)
Rochester (phys&astro)....
Still waiting for others...Anyone else heard from those programs?
UMaryland-College Park (astro)
UMass-Amherst (astro)
Penn State (astro)
Rochester (phys&astro)....
Still waiting for others...Anyone else heard from those programs?
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- Joined: Sat Dec 30, 2006 12:23 am
Congratulations to all who got acceptances! At least you have some place to go even if it may not be the final choice. My only e-mail worry is that e-mails have been bounced if my e-mail space is used up - mail box full. I keep obsessively deleting old e-mails just to make room for all my notifications. But, why are people so obsessed with e-mail when lots of people got phone calls. The obsessors should spend half their time sitting by the phone .
My Stats
School -- Ivy, (Astrophysics major) but I've been out for several years. Strong grades, hopefully good recs, a couple of research projects, lower phys GRE (mid 600).
Also, yes, I am domestic.
Still waiting to hear from a bunch of other schools
Also, yes, I am domestic.
Still waiting to hear from a bunch of other schools
info required
hey has nebody heard from University of Hawaii Astronomy
or for that matter Penn State Astronomy
or for that matter Penn State Astronomy
MIT acceptances
just so everyone knows, MIT's physics department is nearing completion of the first round of acceptances. I heard that they had a meeting today to talk about fellowships, and that 6-8 people in astro were recommended. so good luck to everyone.
hey rjharris, congrats on princeton astro. they were among my top choices for geographical reasons, but if you've heard already i suppose their spots are full. from what i see on their website the class size is less than 5; did they tell you on the phone how many they were recommending for admission, and if they were done making their choices? the professor at caltech astro that contacted me told me they were recommending less than 10, and 6-8 generally accept. did anyone else hear from them? i'm wondering if they generally send out these things on the same day...
oh well, good luck to everyone!
oh well, good luck to everyone!
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- Joined: Sat Nov 04, 2006 7:48 pm
Dan1234,
MIT Nuclear Science and Engineering contacted me via email. I know some schools/departments have a policy against contacting via email or the phone for privacy reasons, and I'm thinking MIT physics might have been one of those departments, but it's possible that they may follow a set of university-wide guidelines, in which case it could be that they will send emails like the NSE department.
rjharris,
great job on princeton astro...i applied to their plasma physics program, which is part of the astrophysical sciences department. I got an email a week and a half ago or so asking my permission for them to forward my application to the plasma physics department (funny, because I was under the impression that plasma physics was a division within the astrophysical sciences department). I was on the campus for a week this summer before I ventured off to MIT...beautiful campus, though a lot of construction/restoration was being done, and the dorm room I stayed in was old and crappy on the inside (though I'm pretty sure it was undergraduate, if not freshman, housing). anyway, congrats again
MIT Nuclear Science and Engineering contacted me via email. I know some schools/departments have a policy against contacting via email or the phone for privacy reasons, and I'm thinking MIT physics might have been one of those departments, but it's possible that they may follow a set of university-wide guidelines, in which case it could be that they will send emails like the NSE department.
rjharris,
great job on princeton astro...i applied to their plasma physics program, which is part of the astrophysical sciences department. I got an email a week and a half ago or so asking my permission for them to forward my application to the plasma physics department (funny, because I was under the impression that plasma physics was a division within the astrophysical sciences department). I was on the campus for a week this summer before I ventured off to MIT...beautiful campus, though a lot of construction/restoration was being done, and the dorm room I stayed in was old and crappy on the inside (though I'm pretty sure it was undergraduate, if not freshman, housing). anyway, congrats again
@slee
he didn't tell me how many they recommended, and i really couldn't think straight due to my excitement at the phone call, so i didn't ask. but from their website, it says that a couple of years ago, out of ~ 70 applicants, 11 were offered admission, and 5-6 accepted, and i have no reason to think those numbers are atypical.
@schmit.paul
thanks. i was also under the impression, though, that their plasma physics dept was under astro. the plasma faculty is even listed on the same page as the astro faculty! bizarre...
he didn't tell me how many they recommended, and i really couldn't think straight due to my excitement at the phone call, so i didn't ask. but from their website, it says that a couple of years ago, out of ~ 70 applicants, 11 were offered admission, and 5-6 accepted, and i have no reason to think those numbers are atypical.
@schmit.paul
thanks. i was also under the impression, though, that their plasma physics dept was under astro. the plasma faculty is even listed on the same page as the astro faculty! bizarre...
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- Joined: Sat Nov 11, 2006 10:26 pm
ditto- im pessimistic about Harvard tho (didnt apply to Stanford....)
Last edited by JackSkellington on Sun Feb 04, 2007 1:23 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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- Joined: Sat Nov 04, 2006 7:48 pm
just admitted to U Chicago astronomy & astrophysics program.
notification by e-mail
here is the updated list of stats + acceptances:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
Bachelor's candidate in both physics and math
4.8/5.0 GPA (undergrad, graduate classes 4.0/5.0) at MIT
Research experience:
1 semester and 1 summer of doing computational astrophysics (binary star evolution).
about 2 years of experimental astro work with data analysis and periodicity detection with data from X-ray observatory / timing satellite.
Publications:
1 ATel (astronomer's telegram) as second author
1 publication hopefully to come out in late Jan.
1 thesis to be completed this semester
GRE:
Physics 990
General 800 Q / 630 V / 5.5 W
Letters : 3 of which two should be very good. These two are from my research advisors. The other one which should be decent to good is from my academic advisor / lab instructor.
Statement of purpose: had several people look over it. at the early stages i had my research advisor (a scientist at MIT who has been on the admissions committee before) look at my SOP and he suggested improvements. after that, I had several others check for style, etc. and I feel it's solid as far as writing goes.
Applying in high-energy astrophysics (either experimental or theory) but have expressed some interest in observational cosmology
Schools / depts.
Harvard Astronomy Waiting
MIT Physics Waiting
Cornell Physics Waiting
Princeton Astrophysical Sciences Accepted
Chicago Astronomy & Astrophysics Accepted
UCSB Physics Accepted
Caltech Physics Waiting
Berkeley Physics Waiting
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i am a little drunk and a lot of ecstatic, so excuse the column alignment problems above and any other typos.
notification by e-mail
here is the updated list of stats + acceptances:
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
Bachelor's candidate in both physics and math
4.8/5.0 GPA (undergrad, graduate classes 4.0/5.0) at MIT
Research experience:
1 semester and 1 summer of doing computational astrophysics (binary star evolution).
about 2 years of experimental astro work with data analysis and periodicity detection with data from X-ray observatory / timing satellite.
Publications:
1 ATel (astronomer's telegram) as second author
1 publication hopefully to come out in late Jan.
1 thesis to be completed this semester
GRE:
Physics 990
General 800 Q / 630 V / 5.5 W
Letters : 3 of which two should be very good. These two are from my research advisors. The other one which should be decent to good is from my academic advisor / lab instructor.
Statement of purpose: had several people look over it. at the early stages i had my research advisor (a scientist at MIT who has been on the admissions committee before) look at my SOP and he suggested improvements. after that, I had several others check for style, etc. and I feel it's solid as far as writing goes.
Applying in high-energy astrophysics (either experimental or theory) but have expressed some interest in observational cosmology
Schools / depts.
Harvard Astronomy Waiting
MIT Physics Waiting
Cornell Physics Waiting
Princeton Astrophysical Sciences Accepted
Chicago Astronomy & Astrophysics Accepted
UCSB Physics Accepted
Caltech Physics Waiting
Berkeley Physics Waiting
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
i am a little drunk and a lot of ecstatic, so excuse the column alignment problems above and any other typos.
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- Joined: Sat Nov 04, 2006 7:48 pm
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- Joined: Sat Dec 30, 2006 12:23 am
time to decide
How long to they give you to decide on an acceptance offer? It's not just 2 weeks is it? I hope they don't require an answer before other offers might come through.
Congratulations rjharris - great job!!!
Congratulations rjharris - great job!!!
i'm pretty sure that the deadline for acceptance for all schools is april 15. none of the e-mails/phone calls / letters i got mentioned a deadline yet, so i don't really know. seems silly to call to notify, not say anything about a deadline, and then 13 days later say, " oh, by the way, make a decision now."
FYI, on the MIT website,
When will I be notified of a final decision?
Decisions are rendered and sent to applicants for September admission via mail anytime between the middle of February and the end of March. For privacy and security reasons, we cannot notify applicants of final decisions via e-mail or telephone.
http://www.thegradcafe.com seems to support this, at least for those who were notified earlier.
-Dan
When will I be notified of a final decision?
Decisions are rendered and sent to applicants for September admission via mail anytime between the middle of February and the end of March. For privacy and security reasons, we cannot notify applicants of final decisions via e-mail or telephone.
http://www.thegradcafe.com seems to support this, at least for those who were notified earlier.
-Dan
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- Joined: Thu Dec 07, 2006 1:39 pm
I am getting a bit nervous
I am a german Physics student applying to MS Physics at the University of Maryland.
I have excellent german grades and good recommendations but nearly no research experience.
ToefliBT 116 (out of 120)
GRE general: 800/570/4.0
GRE subject : only 780
I do have a full scholarship from Fulbright but because of this I was only able to apply to one University through Fulbright.
What do you think of my chances?
Thanks
I have excellent german grades and good recommendations but nearly no research experience.
ToefliBT 116 (out of 120)
GRE general: 800/570/4.0
GRE subject : only 780
I do have a full scholarship from Fulbright but because of this I was only able to apply to one University through Fulbright.
What do you think of my chances?
Thanks
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- Posts: 158
- Joined: Sat Dec 30, 2006 12:23 am
krymelchen: I'm no expert but you sound like you have excellent chances.
You are coming in with your own funding for one thing. EVERYONE respects the German physicists which probably translates to respect for the training you had thus far. If you don't plan to do research and will just take classes, its probably a no brainer - why would they turn you down for that? If you want to do research then there might be an issue of professors wanting to advise on a master's thesis. A professor may choose to only focus on phd students for research. (I think some of the older profs even onlyl take postdocs.) It depends on what UMD does typically for the master's level. But, since they have an MS physics program where most schools don't, then they would likely have a research option that way. It does seem strange that there are lots of bachelor's opportunities for research and phd opportunities, but what about the master's. BUT, if you find that a professor or the prof you wanted won't take in master's student, there are relationships with some excellent labs nearby, NIH, NIST, NASA, so there would likely be research opportunties.
You are coming in with your own funding for one thing. EVERYONE respects the German physicists which probably translates to respect for the training you had thus far. If you don't plan to do research and will just take classes, its probably a no brainer - why would they turn you down for that? If you want to do research then there might be an issue of professors wanting to advise on a master's thesis. A professor may choose to only focus on phd students for research. (I think some of the older profs even onlyl take postdocs.) It depends on what UMD does typically for the master's level. But, since they have an MS physics program where most schools don't, then they would likely have a research option that way. It does seem strange that there are lots of bachelor's opportunities for research and phd opportunities, but what about the master's. BUT, if you find that a professor or the prof you wanted won't take in master's student, there are relationships with some excellent labs nearby, NIH, NIST, NASA, so there would likely be research opportunties.
You can add Boston U to the list of Physics acceptances. I got an email this morning from them. They say there are a lot of people on the waiting list so they would like for me to make a decision with in 3 week... I don't think that is going to happen. Their open house is at the end of march, I am not deciding before that.
I am a newbie here. Let me post my stat. first:
International student
Physics major at the best physics dept in a big city (in Asia)
1 year studying aboard experience at one of the UCs in CA
major gpa at my school = 3.4 / 4.0
major gpa at UCXX = 3.8 /4.0
physics GRE : 980
gen. GRE : v. 360 q. 710 a. 4.0
TOEFL iBT : 94 / 120
Research experiences:
1.5 years in an obs. cosmology group at UC, 1 paper in preparation
1 sem on condensed matter theory
Classes:
GR, cosmology and quantum mechanics and q. optics at grad. level
Other exp.:
as an instructor in astronomy at a astronomy center for public outreach
Letters:
2 from Prof. that I have been working with, 1 from the boss at the astronomy center, 1 from a Prof at UC that I had some As from him
SOP:
emphasis on my passion on astronomy and astrophysics
Schools that have no news yet:
caltech (phy)
berkeley (phy)
ucsd
ucsc (astro)
mit
harvard (astro)
chicago (astro)
penn state (astro)
john hopkins
columbia (astro)
School got rejected:
U of arizona (astro)
I have no offer yet.
I am pretty scared right now. I was qutie naive to apply too many top schools after knowing my score for GRE physics. Perhaps it's impressive for locals, but generally internationals get good grades on GRE subj. Also the funding in public school for internationals is a big concern...I think that is one reason for the rejection of UA.
To sum up, my app. has some strong and weak points:
Strong:
interest in astronomy was developed very early, and I am those who really treat astronomy as my career.
I am those who really go stargazing.
good GRE physics
exp. in astro research (though there is no pub)
Weak:
low GPA at my own school (due to the conservative gradings in my dept, I can't help...that's why I go study aboard to prove that my academic ability is as good as others in US)
low GRE quantitative (I have no idea, I just got no luck)
no publication
Uncertainties:
letters....I really have no idea what my profs would write for me
SOP
International student
Physics major at the best physics dept in a big city (in Asia)
1 year studying aboard experience at one of the UCs in CA
major gpa at my school = 3.4 / 4.0
major gpa at UCXX = 3.8 /4.0
physics GRE : 980
gen. GRE : v. 360 q. 710 a. 4.0
TOEFL iBT : 94 / 120
Research experiences:
1.5 years in an obs. cosmology group at UC, 1 paper in preparation
1 sem on condensed matter theory
Classes:
GR, cosmology and quantum mechanics and q. optics at grad. level
Other exp.:
as an instructor in astronomy at a astronomy center for public outreach
Letters:
2 from Prof. that I have been working with, 1 from the boss at the astronomy center, 1 from a Prof at UC that I had some As from him
SOP:
emphasis on my passion on astronomy and astrophysics
Schools that have no news yet:
caltech (phy)
berkeley (phy)
ucsd
ucsc (astro)
mit
harvard (astro)
chicago (astro)
penn state (astro)
john hopkins
columbia (astro)
School got rejected:
U of arizona (astro)
I have no offer yet.
I am pretty scared right now. I was qutie naive to apply too many top schools after knowing my score for GRE physics. Perhaps it's impressive for locals, but generally internationals get good grades on GRE subj. Also the funding in public school for internationals is a big concern...I think that is one reason for the rejection of UA.
To sum up, my app. has some strong and weak points:
Strong:
interest in astronomy was developed very early, and I am those who really treat astronomy as my career.
I am those who really go stargazing.
good GRE physics
exp. in astro research (though there is no pub)
Weak:
low GPA at my own school (due to the conservative gradings in my dept, I can't help...that's why I go study aboard to prove that my academic ability is as good as others in US)
low GRE quantitative (I have no idea, I just got no luck)
no publication
Uncertainties:
letters....I really have no idea what my profs would write for me
SOP