beanfootage

I've been out of school for a couple of years since undergrad. Best decision I ever made. If this doesn't work out, taking some time off is not a bad choice. I'm much more directed now, and aware of what I want to do, and more importantly, what I don't want to do. I've spoken with several other people who've done the same, and they tend to feel similarly. Don't go somewhere you won't be happy just to go. Trying again next year, or in two years, may well turn out for the best. Good luck.

Ah, alright. Thanks. I've started a thread there as well, but I'm still curious as to how the people specifically from CS are doing, and what programs (other than CS) they might be focussing on, so I guess I'll keep an eye on both threads.

I'm wondering how people who've applied to any of these kinds of programs (for PhD) have been faring. I have been admitted to Duke (and Duke CS PhD, for what it matters), just visited UIUC this past weekend, and am visiting BU in two weeks. There aren't more than a handful of programs out there as far as I know, anyway, so I'm sure I'll run into some of you. Just curious.

Hey all. There has been a pretty sizable quantity of blood, sweat, and tears funnelled through this forum, with the primary focus being applications for the upcoming fall. We've seen a lot of the labors, and I'd personally like to hear of some of the fruits. If this isn't the correct forum, please point me to the right place. I'm interested particularly in the folks in this forum, so usnews.com's forums, for instance, aren't gonna cut it. So, how's it been coming along? What has everyone applied for, and with what kind of success? I'll start, I suppose. I applied mostly to bioinformatics PhD programs, have been admitted to Duke (and Duke CS PhD, for what it matters), just visited UIUC this past weekend, and am visiting BU in two weeks. Anyone else want to share?

AlbaLed, I think you've confirmed again that standardized tests are crap. Hehe. They're just a hoop to jump through, as far as I'm concerned. I can tell you right now that my personal statement / statement of purpose tells a heck of a lot more about me as a person and a student than this test ever will, even if I were to have gotten a 990. Concentrate on the parts of the applications still under your control, and I bet you'll be fine. Also, I agree that dropping 5 questions with no notification is alarming, and whether it's fair or not is debatable at best, but there's nothing we can do now. Control what you can control, and hope for the best. btw, my omission number was correct, at 3.

AlbaLed, those questions were likely never intended for the final score, anyway. While I'm disturbed that it wasn't mentioned beforehand (anywhere that I read, anyway), ETS has had a habit of testing new questions out on actual test takers. For instance, in the general test it is possible to take entire _sections_ that don't actually count, but you don't know which is which. It's really the only way real unbiased data can be gathered, and the false section is determined beforehand. The presence of the 5 dummy questions certainly affects the test in the sense that you're spending time on questions that don't count, but so is everyone else. As long as the playing field is even, and the test is standardized, that's all that matters. The issue here is that these are not possible right answers that were viciously stolen. They were in all likelihood determined in advance, so you can't really speculate on "what if they actually counted?" It was never an option. Regarding the losing of 1/4th of a point for an incorrect answer, that seems to make sense to me. It makes random guessing statistically immaterial. It doesn't help or hurt. For example, say you guess on 5 questions without eliminating any choices. So, you've got a 20% chance of getting each one right. So, you get one right and four wrong. You get +1 point for the right answer, and -1/4 point for each wrong, or (1 + (4 * -1/4)) = 0. Seems right to me.

Um, if everyone gets 5 more questions right, while your score would rise, the percentile would remain the same. Keep in mind that percentile refers to the percentage of people taking the test on the same date as you who you did better than. If I got a formula score of 3 better than you, and you add 5 to both, guess what? I _still_ got 3 better than you. So, maybe it'd help some bruised egos in relation to score, but not percentile. And, since this test is used to place you in the field of current applicants, percentile is clearly what really matters.

My score showed up in the mail today, confirming the same percentile I got on the phone. 820, 84th percentile. Raw score of 47. Too bad I guessed wrong 15 times... hehe. Formula score of 43.

Well, this proves my point regarding the useless nature of standardized tests. Judging from your activity and comments on these forums, you're clearly an astute and talented student, more than capable of excelling in graduate school. Don't overreact. Control what you can, and knock 'em dead with the rest of the application. The subjective parts like your personal statement speak volumes. Make it count. Good luck.

I got an 820, 84th percentile... Sigh. Was hoping for better, but I suppose the good news as that this score may not help me, but it certainly won't be the determining factor if I'm denied admission somewhere. Keep in mind that standardized tests are being looked at with more and more suspicion by admission committees, who are well aware that a student can't be well defined by something as painfully objective as how many bubbles they filled in fully and correctly on a particular saturday morning in some environment as stressful and artificial as that of the test locale. As (possible) evidence, note that MIT EECS doesn't even use the GRE, general or subject! So, don't be too upset if your scores aren't what you'd hoped. Write a solid personal statement, contact prospective professors, read journals, and make yourself out to be the ambitious and talented student they're looking for! ...just don't beat me out of a spot. :D

You can use your SSN to get it, too, without the registration number.

Godel, I strongly suspect you and I had either the same form of the test or very similar forms, as this is exactly the problem I had with it. There were disproportionately many big O questions, networking questions (even down to the hardware level!), and graph theory questions. Therefore the practice test was a piece of junk as far as an indication of test difficulty to me. I didn't even have any networking hardware courses in my major, heh. Anyway, I'm not sure if it was a difficult test or if I was concentrating too much on other areas of theory, but I feel like, despite these topics being mentioned in the 'Content of the Computer Science Test' outline, that was a pretty dirty trick. Perhaps I'll feel differently in a month if it turns out I consistently guessed right! Here's hoping!

Remember not to power cycle during that firmware upgrade. It could be disastrous.

Keep in mind that each test has a different scale, skewed to reflect its difficulty. If it was a truly difficult test, the percentages in that post are likely pretty far off. So, here's hoping that your test was really hard! Also, mine too! heh

Wood, I'm sure you did well. If the scoring is anything like the scoring of the practice test, you could still very likely have scored in the 90+ percentile range. Nothing to do now but kick back, continue your grad school apps, and que sera sera. That said, I had a pretty bad experience as well. My test was significantly harder than the practice test, and I guessed on way too many. I was generally able to cut it down to 2 or 3 choices, so stats are on my side, but this isn't the time where being unsure makes you feel a whole lot better. Anyway, hope everything turned out well for the rest of you, and thanks again for keeping this board active! I wish I'd found it sooner to be a more regular contributor.

I can now answer my own question. Keep in mind that there are many different forms of the test, and different difficulties associated with each, but as far as the test I just got done taking, it was MUCH harder than the practice test. Of course, your mileage may vary. Regardless, here's hoping for the best for all, and I'll be knocking back some beers for you shortly!

Yeah, that's the plan. The question is mostly a moot point, really, as even if it _it_ more difficult, the scoring range is adjusted accordingly. Anyway, just curious, I guess.

...back when they had the analytical section instead of this writing, I took the GRE general test. Ok, it was in the fall of 2001, but it seems a long time ago now! Anyway, I got 720 V, 790 Q, 790 A, for what it matters. I was wondering if they upped the difficulty of the V or Q since then, as I have a couple friends who have to take it now, and think I know all the answers. I don't! But maybe you do!

For all you grizzled veteran CS GRE takers out there, or those who can answer this by proxy even, is the practice exam about the difficulty level of the actual exam? The main reason I ask is that I could have sworn I ran across a post indicating otherwise a while back. That is, that the real exam was much harder. Since I'm taking it on Saturday (at MIT, to add to the pressure!) I'm hoping it's accurate!