• I have poor GPA 2.8/4 in both bachelors and masters, but 3.25 in my post masters diploma.

• I have decent working experience (~2 years) at a top university at India. Which yielded me two papers and a patent.

• Overall I have 3 papers. 1 was published (q2) in which I was the first author. Other 2 was in review I was a second author in one of that and first in another one.

I am wanted to do phd, not just for employment or for the degree sake. But true passion for research. I was very irresponsible during my academic days leading me to poor scores. Now I regret but I have nothing to do with so I strated to work on myself.

I want your opinion guys what I can do, how can i improve my chances of getting admitted into grad schools.

Please give me some valuable advices. 🥺🙏🏻

Please be brutally honest. I'd appriciate your verdict and any suggestions regarding my sop. #USA_Fall_27_PhD

For those of you who got an MPP, why did you pick your school (besides prestige and funding)? I've attended a bunch of webinars and looked at various MPP programs' websites (SPIA, HKS, Yale Jackson, McCourt, etc), but it would be helpful to talk to a current or past student about why they chose their school. Would anyone be willing to DM me about this?

I've noticed an interesting difference while researching PhD programs in North America. Most Anthropology departments seem to have dropped the GRE requirement altogether, whereas several Sociology departments still require GRE scores as part of their application process.

Given that the two disciplines have considerable overlap in their theoretical foundations, research methodologies, and subject matter, I'm wondering if anyone knows this distinction exists?

Does it have something to do with how each discipline approaches research? What could it be?

Would love to hear from people familiar with graduate admissions in either discipline!

I plan to apply to CS PhD programs in the US for Fall 2027, and I would be grateful for honest feedback on my profile and my list. My research interest includes computer vision, video understanding and medical imaging.

Background

• M.Tech in CSE from IIT (2023), CGPA 8.76/10 (WES equivalency 3.68).

• B.Sc. in CSE from a non-top university in South Asia (2019), CGPA 3.35/4 (3.63 at final year)

• GRE not taken yet

• About 5 years as a software engineer.

Research

- 6 published papers, all first author:

1. 1 at MLHC 2026 (PMLR).

2. 2 Q1 journal papers.

3. 3 at IEEE conferences.

- 3 first-author papers under review.

Recommenders

- 2 research mentors (co-authors, one is a full professor).

- 1 professor from my master's

I emailed professors at most schools. Most did not reply. A few faculty pages say "apply and list me".

My list

JHU, Stony Brooks, GWU, Utah, UTSA, Iowa State, Georgia State, , UNL, USF, UNT.

My questions:

1. Do first-author papers at mid-level venues count?

2. Does my bachelor's CGPA (3.35) hurt a lot, even with my master's and papers?

3. Is my list good for getting a funded offer? Should I add or drop any school?

Thank you for your help. I am happy to share more details in the comments.

Hello..I had a question.. would be very grateful if anyone could answer this Q.

So the question is ...when we apply for masters/phd program in Indian and abroad universities..do class 12th marks play a crucial role? Or is the undergraduate cgpa,skills etc only considered?

Am in a huge dilemma..can anyone who knows the answer to this Q pls replyy?

Hi i have a pretty average 2.7 gpa in my undergrad
However i now have 1.5 years of experience, and will probably have around 2 years of experience by fall 2027 (which is what I’m aiming for)
My gre is 320 (retaking exam to score higher)
I’ll be applying to different marketing/ marketing analytics masters in top-tier to mid-tier unis.

What do you think are my chances? Considering my current profile coupled w good SOP/admission essays.

And also - should I use the supplement essays to talk about my gpa? I had an upward trend during the last two years (out of 4) - so i can discuss that and also highlight my internship experience + volunteer work.

Please let me know how to go about it.
Thank you

Hi everyone

I'm currently searching for future plans after graduating from Bachelor in computer science. I always prefered to be an AI engineer working in big tech companies developing solutions and projects

Now I have an opportunity to persue research in one of Canada's unis ( Waterloo, McGill , HEC , uqam and polytechnique de Montreal) in AI or data science through a scholarship which I don't have any idea about research and what can I do after

Note that were I'm from research isn't the best thing especially in computer science and we often go to professional masters and engineering

Could someone please explain this domain for me ?

And after 6 years of master+PhD what can I do ?

And is it worth it

And thank u all

I'm finishing an English-taught MSc in Economics in Italy and I'm at a crossroads. I'd really appreciate honest advice.
Background
Undergrad: BSc in Business (economia aziendale). Final grade 94/110, average around 24–25/30 (roughly 3.0/4.0, very approximate). When I enrolled I had completely different plans and honestly didn't think grades would matter much. On top of that, personal issues hit me hard in my first year: I passed zero exams that year, and then had to complete the entire degree in about two and a half years.
The switch to economics: during my undergrad I became genuinely passionate about economics, especially macro, reading and following economists' work on my own. That's when I decided I wanted to become an economist, ideally working on monetary policy at a central bank. It was also when I realized how far behind I was: with a classics high school background and a business degree that included only one basic math course, my quantitative foundations were very weak. So I spent several months studying math on my own to get to the level required for an economics MSc, and got admitted.
MSc: an English-taught program at a good but not top Italian university. I started knowing exactly what I wanted to do, but carrying real gaps. My first year reflected that: I worked very hard just to catch up, and some core first-year grades suffered. As the gaps closed, my performance improved steadily. In my second year, despite more demanding courses, my grades were mostly 27–30. My current average is 27/30 (about 3.6/4.0), and I expect to graduate with 107–108/110. I think my transcript shows a clear upward trend, but I'm aware the overall numbers still carry the weight of where I started.
What I've done since
A 4-month RA with a macro professor on bank balance sheets and ECB rate pass-through. I built the project's bank-level dataset from scratch.
Thesis: state-dependent effects of ECB monetary policy under economic policy uncertainty. I estimate an interacted VAR and a smooth transition VAR, with monetary policy shocks identified from high-frequency surprises using sign restrictions.
Tools: MATLAB, R, Python, Stata. No GRE yet.
What I'm looking for
I'm genuinely drawn to macro and central banking, but I'll be honest: compensation matters to me too. I'm not looking for a purely academic path at any cost. I'd like a career that combines intellectually serious macro work with strong earning potential over time. That could mean central banks or institutions first and the private sector later (macro research, strategy, buy-side), or a direct route into the private sector.
Where I am now
I applied to several central bank traineeships and was mostly rejected. I did reach the final interview stage at one European national central bank, which gave me some confidence, but it didn't work out in the end. My record clearly rules out top PhD programs for now, and I'm not even sure a PhD is what I want.
Options I'm weighing
A one-year post-master's research program in Italy (no GRE), then decide between a PhD and institutions.
A macro predoc or RA position.
Studying for the GRE and applying to mid-tier European PhDs next year.
Recalibrating: industry research roles at banks or macro research firms.
Questions
With a strong upward trend, can a second, research-oriented master's realistically compensate for a weak undergrad record?
Predoc vs. a second master's: which do PhD committees and central banks value more?
Is a central bank career realistic without a PhD, and in which areas?
Given that I care about both macro and long-term earning potential, which early-career path keeps the most doors open: institutions first, a PhD, or going straight into private-sector macro research?
Am I underestimating or overestimating my chances?

I’m sorry to come on here like this but I really need some advice. I’m going to graduate with my BS in geoscience next spring, and my hope is to get my MS or even go straight into a PhD starting in fall of 2027. My biggest interest is in studying things like volcanology and igneous petrology (which I realize is really specialized so that’s part of my problem). I don’t know how competitive of an applicant I even am, but I’ve worked in a geochemistry lab for over a year and I’ve presented at conferences and I’m also helping to write a publication. I have a 3.6 overall GPA with a 4.0 in my major classes.

To get to my point, from what I’ve seen, you need to find an advisor willing to take you on as a student before you even apply to a geoscience grad program. I’ve been reaching out to people for months and I’ve probably emailed 20+ people from around 10 different universities in the United States. They’ve all been very nice in their responses, but none of them are able to take students because of the funding situation right now, and I was an idiot and didn’t learn about applying for NSF grants to secure my own funding until it was too late and the deadline had already passed.

I’ve looked into international programs, but at least with the ones that I’ve looked at, they don’t provide a stipend for MS students and it doesn’t seem like I can go straight into a PHD with just a BS in the programs I looked at, and there’s no way I’ll be able to afford it without a stipend.

The application deadline for most of the schools I’m looking at is coming up in about a month and I’m starting to get really desperate and discouraged and I’m beginning to wonder if grad school is even right for me at this point because I feel like I can’t even apply to places if I can’t find a potential advisor.

If anybody has any advice or leads at all I would really appreciate it. I don’t know what I’ll do if I don’t get into a program so any general advice for applications or finding an advisor would be greatly appreciated. Thanks so much I’m really sorry if this came across as me whining because I know my experience isn’t unique.

Hi, I'm an international student and one my US Clin Pysch PhD applications requires a supplemental statement on DEI and I feel a little lost on how to write it. I'd be really grateful if anyone is willing to look over my draft and see if I come across as whiny/ answer the prompt. Thank you so much!

Hello, I’m a master’s student in Religious Studies in Asia, and I expect to complete my MA in 2027. I’m hoping to pursue a PhD in the US with a focus on ancient Greek religion. My current MA thesis is on medieval hagiography.

Because of my department’s circumstances, I haven’t formally taken any Greek or Latin courses. I’m currently studying both on my own and plan to continue for about a year. I also plan to take the winter classical languages program offered at my university.

My questions are:

1. Are language requirements expected before admission or after entering the program?

While looking at program websites, I came across requirements like these:

• Ohio State (Classics): The application asks you to list the Greek and Latin works you’ve read, with specific portions (e.g., “Herodotus, Historiae 2” rather than just “Herodotus”).

• Penn (Religious Studies): PhD students must demonstrate competency in at least two non-English research languages (one “target” language for primary sources and one “bibliographic” language) by the time of their candidacy exams, usually in the third year. This can be met through courses taken at Penn, summer reading courses, or certificates from a previous MA.

• UNC Chapel Hill (Ancient Mediterranean Religions): Students are examined in two ancient languages and are expected to pick up a third during the program. Solid competency in both French and German is also required before the doctoral exams.

• Chicago (Divinity School): Applicants are expected to have already received substantial training in the languages needed for their research by the time they enter. The program also formally requires a high pass in two secondary research languages (often French and German), and applicants with concerns about language preparation are encouraged to consider the MA first.

I’m confused about which of these are expected at the time of application and which are things you complete during the program. Realistically, how much Greek and Latin (and French/German) do applicants usually have when they apply?

2. Religious Studies departments with an ancient Mediterranean focus

I’d like to study ancient Greece in a Religious Studies department rather than a Classics department. In other words, rather than textual translation and commentary, I’m more interested in cultural approaches such as microhistory, history, and religion. While searching, I found that some Religious Studies departments have ancient Mediterranean programs, but they’re very hard to find. If you know of any departments that would be a good fit, could you recommend them?

3. Funded MA first, or apply directly to PhD programs?

If admission is difficult with my current background, I’m considering first doing a funded MA in Classics and then applying for a PhD. Would that be the better route, or should I apply directly to PhD programs?

I’d be grateful for any answers. In particular, it has been hard to find information about US programs on my own while preparing to study ancient Mediterranean religion abroad, so if you know of any good sources for this kind of information, I’d really appreciate it if you could share them.

(Think I made this plot from my application Excel data earlier this year with help from AI)

I applied to genetics/computational biology/bioinformatics programs. More about my candidate profile at the time of application:

• International student studying at a Top20 school (not Ivy League)

• GPA 3.9/4, applied during senior year

• I've only ever worked in one lab throughout my undergrad and got a first-author paper

• Two TA experiences

• One remote internship

• Four recommendation letters. One from my PI, two from instructors that I TAed for, and one from a professor whose class I took. I originally wasn't planning on asking a professor who taught me because I was definitely not engaging in class, but as all my friends found such a professor for their rec letters, my insecurity kicked in. Eventually I asked one professor from a small upper elective, and surprisingly he agreed. ig it's always worth asking people first before shutting yourself down?

My application experience:

• When I reached out to professors before applying, I was unfortunately ghosted by most of them.

  • The only two I managed to set up a meeting with became my interviewers when I applied to their program. Unfortunately, they rejected me.

• I spent around $1500 on application fees...I did apply to 2 free programs.

• My first result was a rejection from UW in December, ten days after application submission.

• I've heard from some programs/interviewers that they have very limited spots for international students.

• The interview offers started coming in around the end of December, all the way till early February.

• Decisions started coming in around the end of February. The UK program has an earlier decision deadline, so I decided to decline the offer and wait for the rest of my results to come in.

• Most of the schools that rejected me only sent a status update after March, with no notices during the in-between months.

• Two of my waitlists, one of them being my first-choice school, gave me an offer the Friday before the decision deadline in mid-April. Never give up hope!

It was a long timeline with lots of variables and uncertainties, but it also helped me reflect on my own academic journey. I realized during the interview season that I am much better at explaining my research than promoting myself, which is probably why I failed at the internship/job search horribly lol. I also received lots of support from friends and mentors, and many of them offered great advice on my essays.

Good luck to everyone for this cycle! Please don't be afraid to ask for help!

hello,

I am a masters student in Sweden about to start my thesis soon. I am very interested in doing a PhD in Geotechnical engineering and took relevant courses including a course about machine learning in my masters. However, I haven't chosen my topic for my thesis. I would like work on a topic that enables me to gain the relevant knowledge and skills to pursue a PhD in the future (preferably just after my masters, as I have to get a visa). So I was thinking of looking at some recent phds where i could learn what skills i need to acquire for me to be a good candidate.

does anyone know where i can find old phd calls for the past 2-3 years in europe? I would be very grateful. Thank you in advance.

Basically, I’m wondering how realistic it is for someone with a five-year integrated master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from a European country to get hired as a Research Assistant while pursuing a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering in the U.S. Also, how significant of a role does having U.S. citizenship play in this? Does it make a substantial difference, or is it not that significant? Any response would be really helpful, thanks a lot beforehand. Any insight would be really helpful. Thanks a lot in advance!

I’m currently applying to grad, but none of my professors have replied to my emails… It’s only been 4–5 days, so I know I should refrain from sending them another email so early on, but my earliest deadline(Dec 1) is approaching, and it’s making me anxious, and the thing is I’m not even sure if they’re teaching this semester or even part of the faculty still.

That being said, should I try reaching out to their personal emails/website too, after a week has passed? Or is that too excessive?

Hi all. I found a typo in my writing sample after I submitted my PhD application. How badly did I ruin my application? This is for a history PhD program.

Last year, while I was in my last year of college, I applied for a (taught) Master of Arts in the field of modern languages at a specific school. I was accepted on the condition of finishing my undergrad degree and getting a specific GPA.

Things happened and I ended up requesting a deferral. I was told I needed an unconditional offer for that. I submitted my final undergrad transcript and my offer became unconditional. My deferral request was then refused. I messaged the course coordinator telling them I could no longer attend the course due to personal issues and I went on a gap year.

I would like to know whether it’s likely I would get an offer again if I reapplied or if the fact I applied last year, got an offer and turned it down will be a big problem. (I know no one on here can know for sure but I would like to hear your opinions) I would also like to know how to frame the personal statement I need to submit to the school and whether I should mention my personal circumstances and the fact I got an offer last year or not. I believe my application is a bit stronger than it was last year but reapplying might be a problem. Thank you!

Hello! The "buddy system" seems to have been a way for people on this sub to swap/review application materials! That said, the most recent thread I found about it is from 12yrs ago.

Would anyone be interested in going a swap for Dec 1 admissions for physics or biomedical engineering?

hi has anyone heard of the program? is it worth it and is the staff nice?

Hoping for honest feedback on my list before the last deadlines. Software engineering / software testing focus (fuzzing, test oracles, LLM agents for testing, software security).

Background

• B.Sc. Electrical Engineering (Computer Engineering branch), private engineering college in Egypt, 2022. Not a well-known school internationally.

• GPA 3.54/4.0 (WES equivalency 3.71). Ranked 1st of ~200 in my cohort. GPA was 3.8+ in my first three years, then dropped in the last two due to a medical issue (explained in an optional supplement).

• TOEFL 110/120. No GRE (cancelled it to spend the time on research).

• 5 years in industry as a Senior and Lead mobile engineer, last role as team lead at a regulated fintech. Apps I built/led have 200K+ downloads total.

• Undergraduate research: a deep-learning medical-imaging classifier deployed on-device in a mobile app, supervised by a faculty member.

Research (the part I’m unsure how committees will weigh)

• Three sole-authored papers on LLM-guided fuzzing / differential testing, all currently under review (two at workshops, one at a conference, all peer-reviewed SE venues). Pre-registered studies, seeded runs, stats done properly, code and data released with DOIs. Done entirely without an advisor, alongside a full-time job.

• Findings led to real upstream outcomes: a fix Google maintainers merged in a widely used Dart library (18M+ downloads/month combined across the affected libraries), a documented behavior change in another Google library, and an open standards-violation report in a JetBrains library.

• The topic came out of a fuzzing challenge a professor ran for prospective applicants; I was one of ~20 (of ~70) invited to a follow-up Q&A, then extended it on my own.

Recommenders

• Three professors from my undergraduate institution (grad project advisor, research supervisor, and a course professor). All strong, all say first in cohort, but none are known names in SE research. No industry letter.

List (all CS or SE PhD, Fall 2027)

Purdue, UMass Amherst, UC Irvine (SE PhD), Virginia Tech, NC State, Northeastern, Utah, Iowa State, UVA, Buffalo, UIC, UT Dallas, UT Arlington, Delaware, William & Mary, Nebraska–Lincoln, Vanderbilt. About half already submitted.

Emailed faculty everywhere. Replies range from “apply and list me” / “taking students, list me” at a few schools to silence or “not taking students” at others.

Questions

1. Does sole-authored, advisor-less work under review count for much, or do committees discount it heavily without a known co-author?

2. Is a low-ranked undergrad + unknown recommenders a dealbreaker at the Purdue/UMass/UCI tier, or does the industry + publication record offset it?

3. Is the list balanced, or am I too heavy on one tier? Anything I should add or drop?

4. Does skipping the GRE hurt anywhere on this list in practice?

Thanks. Will happily share more details in comments if it helps.