What to focus on (MS) to increase my chances at PhD admissions

Graduate School
1

<p>Hi,
A brief background about me:

  • International student (not from China, India, or any other major international pool)
  • Computer Engineering bachelor’s degree from a top 10 U.S. engineering school
  • 3 years of relevant/reputable industry experience
  • Applied to Master’s and got admitted to a top 20 C.S. school (I did not apply for PhD directly due to my lack of research and low undergrad. GPA)</p>

<p>So I’m in. What should I focus on to raise my chances at top EECS PhD programs? Sure everything counts but given my profile what should I focus on? GPA/GRE/Research/LOR? What about average research under tenured prof. vs great research under unknown or assistant professor?</p>

<p>Lastly, when would I ideally apply for PhD? I anticipate finishing the program in a year but feel like applying this Fall would be too early for me to obtain enough research experience and letters of recommendation</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

2

<p>Keep your grad GPA up, do your MS with a thesis, and if you can get some publications it certainly won’t hurt.</p>

3

<p>Are publications usually expected when applying to top PhD programs? What is the most important aspect of research; topic, actual content/results, or adviser?</p>

<p>Thanks again</p>

4

<p>For someone who with a master’s and applying for a PhD, you are expected to have published in a journal or have awarded a patent, or at least are in the process of doing so. Results are the most important, but you’re more likely to get good results if you have a good advisor (not necessarily well-known, but one that you can work with well). Topic isn’t that important; most people change a little between their master’s and PhD research topics.</p>

<p>In short, publications are the most important. Focus on good research results.</p>

5

<p>Ah, thanks for the clarification None.</p>