Profile Evaluation for PhD CS for 2011

**applyphd** · 08-10-2010, 06:16 AM

Hi,
I want to apply to CS PhD for 2011, in computer vision/multimedia area.

I really hope that you could recommend some universities that I may have a chance.

B.S. in computer Science + M.E. in computer Science in a top5 university in China
1) GPA of undergraduate (3.92/4.00)
2) GPA of graduate (90.5/100)
3) GRE general : 1320 (V+Q)+ 3.0 (AW

)
4) TOEFL iBT 99(total)

A total of 11 papers published in related international conference and journal, including 1 ACM Multimedia (first author), 1 Computer Graphics Forum (Eurographics journal, second author), 1 ACM Multimedia Workshop (first author), 2 Computer graphics international, and some others. Some publications are graphics related, because I was in a graphics lab, does that matter? I am preparing a paper for PAMI, should I mention this in my CV?

I also has research experience in Microsoft Research, and first place in provincial calculus competition. I may not have good reference letters, even though I tried to

.

I really need an proper evaluation to help my application, and thanks for any response!

**applyphd** · 08-12-2010, 03:33 AM

Could anyone give me some suggestions? Thanks!

**w_guy** · 08-12-2010, 10:16 PM

apply to the top 20 CS universities. you have good chances because of your publications.

**applyphd** · 08-13-2010, 02:07 PM

Thanks for your response, but my publication is not that good I think, and my TOEFL and GRE is not high either... That is I am worried

**CalmLogic** · 08-13-2010, 05:08 PM

Your combined GRE score (1320) is definitely good enough to prevent you from being filtered out. (If you scored less than 770 on the quant, I think Berkeley is a potential exception since they seem to expect at least a 770 on the quant.) Certainly, other factors like publications are more important, which is why Purdue, MIT, etc. don't even require GRE scores. And regarding the TOEFL, as long as you meet the minimum TOEFL scores for the departments you are applying to, you will be fine. (I don't remember what these TOEFL minimums typically are.)

However, I can understand your concerns about your AW score, and it's importance seems to vary widely from not important to as important as the verbal GRE. Personally, I think the AW grading is very subjective since the graders are just comparing what you have written to what they have been trained to grade, hence the importance of using test prep books to understand what the graders are looking for. (When I took the GRE, I didn't study for the AW since the place I wanted to go to didn't even ask for the AW, and my math score was my primary concern as a native speaker.)

What was your verbal score on the GRE?

I am preparing a paper for PAMI, should I mention this in my CV?

Yes, I would mention it.

Some publications are graphics related, because I was in a graphics lab, does that matter?

Any publications related to computer science or math will certainly help.

**applyphd** · 08-13-2010, 06:02 PM

My verbal is 520, Quant is 800. Thanks for such detailed explanation on AW.

**CalmLogic** · 08-13-2010, 10:07 PM

A related discussion this month in the economics forum is about a 3.0 AW score. The discussion concluded with the poster deciding to retake the GRE even though he got a 800 quant and a 600+ on the verbal:

http://www.urch.com/forums/phd-econo...ost808022.html

However, what's interesting is that when he retook the GRE, his AW score stayed the same.

Anyway, since you have a long record of publications, I think you have less to be concerned about than that guy. Assuming you don't retake the GRE since you are busy working on yet another publication, you obviously want to be sure that your SOP is highly polished and that you provide easy access to your publications, such as mentioning your website that has PDFs of your publications. And a tip from that discussion is to have one of your recommenders mention your writing ability.

And, as w_guy says, apply to as many top 20 places as you can.

**applyphd** · 08-14-2010, 01:22 AM

Thanks. Yes, I am busy preparing projects and paper, and I should prepare the SOP with my best effort. I hope to apply to a research oriented program and can work with a good advisor. I think a good advisor is much more important a good school for a phd student. I will try my best this time, and I am really appreciated if you could give me further advice on this.

**Luma** · 08-15-2010, 03:21 AM

Just avoid those schools that clearly states an AWA cut off, I recall UMCP and Yale.

**applyphd** · 08-24-2010, 01:22 AM

Thanks for all your valuable advices! I realize that my shortcoming is lack of top papers and a relatively low GRE AW and TOEFL score. In this case, I should try my best contacting potential professors. In which way can I attract professors' attention after I sending them my CV? Thanks!