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Fundamentals of Applying to Grad SchoolFall 2012

Prof. Krste Asanovic & Prof. Claire TomlinComputer Science & Electrical EngineeringUC Berkeley

with some slides from Profs. Ras Bodik and Joe Hellerstein

Why are we here?

Is grad school for me?

What is grad school like, and who will pay for it?

Applying to grad school, and choosing one.

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Why grad school?

• Surround yourself with smart people• Get paid to have fun solving problems,

hacking• Work on projects too risky for startups• Deepen your understanding of CS other

areas• Change industry and education• Free food

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Bad reasons to go to grad school

• I like collecting degrees (BS, MS, PhD)• My parents told me to• I like taking classes*• I don’t want to work too hard• I can’t find a job• Free food

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Grad school projects: sample from Berkeley• Robots that fold laundry• Flying mechanical insects• Brain interfaces• New programming languages• Machine learning everywhere

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Why grad school?

Fascination with – building what was thought impossible – clarifying what was not understood – teaching or technological leadership

Work on an influential projector even start a new one

Gain qualifications for advanced tech work

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MS or Ph.D.

MS: 1-2 years. Two flavors:

Professional MS (now at Berkeley too, as

1-year MEng, Berkeley also has 5th-year

MS)

“Research” MS (2 years)

PhD: 4-7 years

MS typical along the way

Better if you love it! 7

Is grad school for me?

How do I know if PhD is for me?

Try it. No such thing as dropping out (you

get MS).

It's just like changing jobs and getting a

raise.

Grad students usually funded from a

grant

Tuition + salary of roughly $2100+/month.

More in summer during internship.

Usually some TA-ing part of PhD

requirement

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My history

• Undergrad, Electrical and Information Sciences Tripos, University of Cambridge, England (1987)

• Worked in industrial research lab in England

• PhD in Computer Science from UC Berkeley (1998)

• Assistant and Associate Professor at MIT (1998-2007)

• Joined UC Berkeley as Associate Professor in 2007, Full Professor in 2012

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How I read a grad school application

1. Reference letters from project supervisors– How successful where they at independent

research projects (not just course projects)? Any publications?

2. Statement of purpose– Can the student write? What have they done

before? What do they want to do now? What research excites them?

3. Are there any problems with their scores/grades?

– Low scores in relevant courses? Low GREs? Low overall GPA?

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How to improve your grad application

• Work on independent research project to get glowing letter from faculty research advisor, possibly a publication– should start research very early (> 1.5 years

before applying)– take the relevant upper-level course in 4th

semester– find advisor during the course or right after

• Have faculty member review your statement of purpose

• Do well in courses in your major area

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Where to apply

• Apply lots of places– Randomness in the process– You hope to choose among a few– “Stretch” and “safety”

• Know the top 10 schools in your area– Ask the faculty in your area what are good

schools for the areas you’re interested in, not always the top three (MIT/Stanford/UCB)

– Check out US News (not always accurate or fine-grained enough)

– Check out research websites, but note these are often out of date

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Ph.D. Admits: Stanford vs. UCB vs. MIT

Stanford UCB31

MIT

19 2633

8369

103

04/19/2023

Admissions process is a little random…

Selecting a school

• Go to the Department Visit Day– It will be a few weeks before you need to

decide• Talk to students, professors at Visit Day• Find a match for your interest • Use faculty at UCB as sounding board after

getting decisions and attending visit days• When deciding, listen to your gut

– A few $K of stipend shouldn’t sway your decision

– “Brand name” isn’t a good reason to choose a school

– Potential research advisors much more important

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Have you considered Berkeley?

• Mixed message:– Healthier to go somewhere new– Though ... if you’re the best, this might be the

best place for you...

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Summary

• Don’t wait till grad school to get involved in research!

• Find out if research is for you, and what areas you enjoy.

• Get to know faculty members, who will be more than happy to provide letters and advice for undergrads who do well in their research projects

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