Undergrad here. It would be great if you could elaborate on this as I am having a growing interest in this field. What's the best way to approach it from a comp sci perspective? Who do I talk to in the department to get my feet wet? Where are the internships and such? Where do I start? I'm really eager to know.
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- Thread starter Dr. Feel Good
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Undergrad here. It would be great if you could elaborate on this as I am having a growing interest in this field. What's the best way to approach it from a comp sci perspective? Who do I talk to in the department to get my feet wet? Where are the internships and such? Where do I start? I'm really eager to know.
Both initially. I love philosophy and initially wanted to be a prof. That's a job. But, once I got a glimpse of academic philosophy in practice, my interest in the job waned. I still read philosophy on the side.
Bay Maximus
Banned
I would just try not to burn bridges with anyone and keep connections strong. A good network is powerful and really a large part of the value of an MBA. As for gunning, don't monopolize recruiter's time when they come to present, don't talk down about your classmates even if they are your competition with a company, just real common sense stuff.
Yeah, Public Health seems like a safer bet unless I get into a grade A graduate program for IR.
RumblingRosco
Member
Ah, I see. I'm glad you were able to get some personal satisfaction out of it at least - I hear too many horror stories of people getting social science graduate degrees, not finding a job, and then hating the entire field they studied as a result.
Anyway, I passed my preliminary exam today. I've been in my PhD program since August 2011 but spent that first semester as a rotation student. Joined my lab officially on January 1st 2012, piddled with a few small projects, but started what has now become my dissertation research around October 2012. So, I've had about 2.5 years of research on this area and my preliminary exam went very well thankfully. I know it varies by program, but for us, a prelim exam entails a written proposal (usually 10-20 pages single-spaced) and an oral presentation in front of 4-5 departmental professors; you basically share what research you've conducted so far and then propose how you'll tie it all together between now and your dissertation defense. I felt like my exam went amazingly well - not only did I pass, but my advisor told me afterwards that it was overwhelmingly unanimous... none of the committee members had any disagreements or concerns. Lots of suggestions and good, thought-provoking conversations, but nothing that would be considered a negative opinion towards my proposal.
So, time to wrap this shit up. Most likely graduation date (based on my estimates and those of my advisor) is May 2016. I can live with that!
It may be a wee bit late on the bandwagon TBH.
Career people react to trends insanely fast these days.
Nappuccino
Member
Looks like I'll be doing a PhD program in Creative Writing.
. . . this seems like a dumb idea, but oh well.
. . . this seems like a dumb idea, but oh well.
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
Yes. I met with their Admissions Manager who told me they want a better Quant score on the GMAT or a promotion.
entremet
Member
why get more debt? do you want to teach?
the payoff seems less than professional school or business school.
Nappuccino
Member
Yeah, I want to teach. Thankfully they pay me for the program (making a whole 17,000 spending cash a year!).
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
The problem is I have thirty days and I last took the exam back in September of last year. Even then I crammed, took a course, and still couldn't perform at the level I needed. Took the test twice, got a 610 both times. I know people will say well if you really cared you would do it again, but I got burned out by the test. I dropped $500 on two tests, $1300 on a prep course, $200 on prep books, $400 on the applications to both schools, I'm just over dropping more money into this thing. To me I feel like I have a solid enough background in other areas that prove I have quant skills. Plus I have type 1 diabetes and I can't even take my blood sugar monitor or juice box into the test facility unless I want to be classified as as special classification which is red flagged on my test and falls in the same category as mentally handicapped. The GMAT is such bullshit.
ThLunarian
Member
29 days until I walk across the stage with my Master of Accountancy degree.
It can't come soon enough. I'm starting to hate my classes
It can't come soon enough. I'm starting to hate my classes
entremet
Member
Not bad. Thought your were going into debt for it.
I miss university life honestly. Even though I was poor. I loved the slow pace of it all.
Nappuccino
Member
Many English programs are like this. You teach two classes and take two classes a semester.
Amory
Member
Sitting in my night IT class with 34/64 credits of my MBA done after this semester, and I'm tired, gaf. For the most part I've really enjoyed the program so far, but the constant group projects are really starting to wear on me. Every single class has a massive group project. I'm doing a part-time program so that I can keep my full time job during the day, which makes it almost impossible to find a time to meet outside of class that works for everyone. Graduation day feels like it's never gonna get here.
Group projects are the worst thing ever.
/bitching
Group projects are the worst thing ever.
/bitching
I do not face this problem and am not privy to any special knowledge, but I do know that English is the language of business. Wherever you are, being able to conduct business in English is a treasured skill.
You should look into what companies have recruited from the school and what program they took from, the English or the Chinese one, and for what roles. Additionally, you should ask to talk to some students of both programs so you can hear what they have to say. Ask them how their interviews for post-MBA jobs have gone, who is recruiting them, and how successful they have been. I would gamble the English-speakers are doing far better and ending up better compensated, but you should still confirm.
Congrats on the scholarship!
irfaanator
Banned
anybody run into the issue of their funding running out during their PhD? If so were you able to obtain outside funding easily?
RumblingRosco
Member
I haven't personally had this issue, but in the cases I've heard of this happening in my department, students seemed to just have to pay their own way and wrap up ASAP. Or, their advisor had to find new funding for them. I think it's overly optimistic to say that obtaining outside funding is easy. At the very least, if you're looking for a fellowship to cover you, the due dates for them are usually at least 3-6 months (or more) before the funding will begin. So, if you know your funding is running out in 12 months, now is the time to start looking for fellowship opportunities.
Stumpokapow
listen to the mad man
By funding running out, what do you mean? No opportunity for TAships/RA work / lecturing if you're ABD? Or are you in a lab type situation where the funding basically is project-level and the project ended or got pulled and there are no in-department opportunities for funding at all?
irfaanator
Banned
my advisor's funding has run out, and Im not sure of the lecturing/TA policy at the school, but the last time I checked I couldnt apply for it since they prioritize students that graduated from the school. I still get paid from another source, but obviously its less and doesnt cover tuition. Im planning on looking at the NSF/NIH graduate fellowship grants, but wondering about other avenues as well
RumblingRosco
Member
You don't sound 100% certain of this. I'd really suggest you look into this more thoroughly. Even if they prioritize students that graduate from the school (I assume you mean they earned their undergrad degree from the school?) you should still apply if you ask me, who knows, you may get a TA spot. Also, ask your advisor if he/she has any suggestions.
Can you TA outside of your department? Look into the NSF/NIH/USDA/whatever grants soon - a lot of them have deadlines in the fall, so you'll want to get started writing sooner rather than later.
irfaanator
Banned
correct, they prioritized ppl who got there undergrad degree from there. I'll talk to my advisor about that and see what he has to say.
AstroNut325
Member
I'll be applying for an MBA soon. Preparing for the GMAT right now. My test date is at the end of the month.
Any advice or tips for the GMAT?
I'm going to apply to Cal State LA, Fullerton, and North ridge
Any advice or tips for the GMAT?
I'm going to apply to Cal State LA, Fullerton, and North ridge
At least at my school, the chair of your PI's department has to sign something saying they'll support you if your PI's money runs out
RumblingRosco
Member
That's pretty legit. I've never heard of that before.
Yeah its not bad, one of my friends is a first year just going into a lab with shaky funding, so that backup could be really important, keeps professors taking graduate students even when funding is tight
Yay this thread is back. Quick update:
- CFA level 3 this Saturday, I'm not feeling great about it but we'll see.
- wrapped up 1st year of MBA back in mid-May, but to be honest I've been on autopilot for a while now when it comes to proper class.
-I'm heading up Stern's private equity conference next year. That should be a nice challenge for next year.
- After class ended, I went to the Cayman Islands for a bit. B-school life can be pretty sweet. Seven Mile Beach definitely was the best place I've ever studied for the CFA. Got a tan while learning about tax avoidance and estate planning in the Caymans, I think there is a certain humor in that.
I start the ibanking internship on Monday. I doubt I'll have any time to be on GAF then so see you all in September (probably after coming back from sailing around the Mediterranean).
- CFA level 3 this Saturday, I'm not feeling great about it but we'll see.
- wrapped up 1st year of MBA back in mid-May, but to be honest I've been on autopilot for a while now when it comes to proper class.
-I'm heading up Stern's private equity conference next year. That should be a nice challenge for next year.
- After class ended, I went to the Cayman Islands for a bit. B-school life can be pretty sweet. Seven Mile Beach definitely was the best place I've ever studied for the CFA. Got a tan while learning about tax avoidance and estate planning in the Caymans, I think there is a certain humor in that.
I start the ibanking internship on Monday. I doubt I'll have any time to be on GAF then so see you all in September (probably after coming back from sailing around the Mediterranean).
irfaanator
Banned
well I emailed the dept about the TA thing, expecting a response tmw, but it's probably a bit late on that side of things
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
Is there a reason you're going with these schools outside of costs? LA area has a tremendous amount of better schools that would open better opportunities for you. They are more competitive but the reward is much higher.
UCLA and USC are both highly regarded. And UC Irvine isn't too bad either. Even Loyala Marymount and Pepperdine would be a better option in my opinion.
The best way to approach it from a CS perspective is to understand data architecture and modeling, and relational databases, why things are the way they have been.
Big Data goes against many of the established practices to gain processing speed and improve performance. But to understand that, you have to understand older and existing models first.
You talk to the Business Intelligence developers/lecturers and learn about the tools datasets they use.
Internships: SAS/Teradata/Qlickview/Tableau/Greenplum
AstroNut325
Member
Don't worry about it. You need like a 550 to get into those schools, lol. If you're not completely retarded you don't need to do anything. I'd recommend just looking at an old test to understand the layout, but that's about it.
When I called CSUF the admission counselor laughed at me and told me I was guaranteed admission with my GMAT, despite my horrendous GPA
WHOA. Ok. I must not be that smart then. Going through some of Kaplan book I'm getting quite a few wrong answers in the verbal section. Doing pretty decent on the math stuff though.
I'm not confident I can get into the more competitive schools. I'm not confident I will get a great score on the GMAT (650+). I have a lot of management work history but I don't think I can compete with at the top tier level. At least not yet. My buddy just got accepted into the UCLA Executive MBA program. He keeps telling me to apply too. Not sure.
Costs are a big part of it too. I don't want to go into massive debt.
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
I got into USC with a 610. Wait listed at UCLA. The costs are intimidating but MBA tends to be more about a name brand as opposed to the education. IMO those small school don't offer the same opportunities.
shadowsdarknes
Member
I feel ya. I'm actually taking a course online and we have to do group projects, too. So we don't even have the luxury of personal face to face interaction.
Our group projects involve creating power points and editing video webcam footage of us speaking and narrating our power point presentations. Fuck this.
Dr. Feel Good
Banned
3.5 undergrad from Iowa State University in Finance. White. 4 years of operational finance in manufacturing and now entertainment/technology.
ThLunarian
Member
I have an office visit interview at a Big 4 public accounting firm next week! Wish me luck!
I bought the official guide book and used the official practice test software. My advice based on a month for prep:
Do a bunch of test problems to get a sense of where you stand and a feel for all of the problem types.
Read through the math fundamentals section of the official guide book (or similar) to brush up on any topics that you might have forgotten and/or fill in gaps that you've missed in your education.
Continue to do practice problems, specifically in the problem types that you are weak in (the official software is great for this). Always go through your wrong answers to make sure you would be able to get similar problems correct going forward.
Practice the essay at some some point and get used to outlining topics.
About 2 weeks before your test date, do a full practice test under exact test conditions (again, the software is great for this). This will give you a rough idea of what score you are going to get on the actual test.
By this time you should have a very good idea of what problem types you need to work on. Continue with practice problem based review.
If you feel like it, do another practice test about three days before the test. This will almost certainly represent what your final score will be, or close to it. I did my first practice test 3 days before I took the GMAT for the first time and the practice score and actual score were identical (
680
Spend the couple of days leading up to the test mentally relaxing and preparing for the actual day of the test. Figure out directions, parking, what snacks you are going to bring, etc. Studying will not help you at this point, but surprises on the day of the test could definitely hurt you.
Good luck.
Are there any gaffers who have become a Physician Assistant? I'm debating about breaking into that field when I complete my service in the Peace Corps, which my job involves community health (specifically HIV/AIDS), and after my pre-reqs.
I originally thought about public health (masters) or nursing (bachelor) but after some research it looks like I'll get more bang out of my buck by becoming a PA. I got my bachelors in Criminology and realized later I did not want to pursue that line of work. Can anyone advise me about how to best prepare to apply for a PA school and what the situation is like once in it?
My current plan is to take my GRE late next year, complete my PC service in 2017 (netting me 4000 clinical hours), complete my pre-reqs 2017/2018 while (hopefully) working a health related job, then apply for PA school. Any criticisms or suggestions regarding that plan/timeline? Thanks y'all for any answers!
I originally thought about public health (masters) or nursing (bachelor) but after some research it looks like I'll get more bang out of my buck by becoming a PA. I got my bachelors in Criminology and realized later I did not want to pursue that line of work. Can anyone advise me about how to best prepare to apply for a PA school and what the situation is like once in it?
My current plan is to take my GRE late next year, complete my PC service in 2017 (netting me 4000 clinical hours), complete my pre-reqs 2017/2018 while (hopefully) working a health related job, then apply for PA school. Any criticisms or suggestions regarding that plan/timeline? Thanks y'all for any answers!
Dedication Through Light
Member
At mine the department ends up making people teach classes, one person in the lab also got some money from the graduate school itself since they had extra money around for such a situation but it only did a semester. Ive had a fellowship for two years but then had to teach for three years and probably this upcoming year, at least ill finish hopefully may 2016. Time to postdoc search (immunology or biology).
Sorry to ask but, what does PE stands for?
Professional Engineering certification.
I am certified by the state of Texas, New Mexico and Colorado to practice as a licensed engineer. I can legally stamp prints with my seal and call myself an engineer (in some states, even with a bachelor's degree in engineering, you cannot legally call yourself an engineer). I had to pass two extremely hard exams and still have to take training throughout the year in order to keep my PE.
I'm an expert
Formerly worldrevolution. The only reason I am nice to anyone else is to avoid being banned.
anyone here looking to obtain a Masters or PhD in the biomedical sciences? I am running a research program trying to understanding how alterations in muscle energy metabolism contribute to type 2 diabetes in obese individuals. I am also running a separate program trying to understanding why children born to obese mothers are more likely to become obese as children compared to children born to lean mothers. All of my research is carried out in either animal models or in vitro cellular models. I'm at the University of Alberta and have guaranteed funding to support a student for 2 years, which should be more than enough time to successfully obtain external salary support beyond those 2 years, so if anyone in this thread is interested in pursuing their masters/PhD please send me a PM!
NotTheGuyYouKill
Member
Seems like I'll be missing some E3 conferences on Monday cause... I actually got an interview. Color me shocked, I thought I blew the GMAT.
Now I'm a bit nervous.
Now I'm a bit nervous.
Do you have an internship opportunity open for an MHA/MPH student?
NotTheGuyYouKill
Member
Okay okay okay...
Well, I got a call back about the MBA program I applied for and interviewed for last week. They liked me. They were okay with my experience, they liked me in the interview, my GPA just barely made it.
But they want me to retake the GMAT. I scored just below the requirements, and cause my GPA was lower, they can't overlook it.
:/
So I need to retake the GMAT in the first week of August and score a 550... which should be easy, I just really suck at taking this stupid test.
But I got a shot. I need to ensure I pass this one :/
Well, I got a call back about the MBA program I applied for and interviewed for last week. They liked me. They were okay with my experience, they liked me in the interview, my GPA just barely made it.
But they want me to retake the GMAT. I scored just below the requirements, and cause my GPA was lower, they can't overlook it.
:/
So I need to retake the GMAT in the first week of August and score a 550... which should be easy, I just really suck at taking this stupid test.
But I got a shot. I need to ensure I pass this one :/
terrisus
Member
Well...
Don't do that this time >.>
Seriously - request a temp ban from GAF for a bit if you need to.
NotTheGuyYouKill
Member
I love you, Teri.
I've got five weeks. Time to break out the GMAT texts and practice exams again. Man, I'm lucky they're giving me a second shot. I feel like I'm just... by the skin of my teeth, you know? But I really, really want this. Hell of a wake up call.
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