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Is NCSU within my reach ? And other "safety schools"

Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2014 5:54 am
by instrument.santosh
hey guys

Re: Is NCSU within my reach ? And other "safety schools"

Posted: Mon Aug 04, 2014 1:52 pm
by Catria
The only ones I know that actually offer a funded masters are Waterloo and Toronto. Unless Zurich is a place with a funded masters... everyone else is direct-PhD.

Stony Brook is harder to get into than NCSU, but, if you wish to continue in general relativity I would advise you to apply to LSU. You may also wish to go to lower-ranked privates; to this end, though, you might want to look for what you want in a physics PhD. After all, out-of-staters cost more to the school at these places than in-staters.

Re: Is NCSU within my reach ? And other "safety schools"

Posted: Tue Aug 05, 2014 1:39 pm
by bfollinprm
As Catria mentions, Toronto and Stony Brook are probably harder to get into than NCSU/SCSU.

Re: Is NCSU within my reach ? And other "safety schools"

Posted: Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:14 pm
by Catria
Again, what places can realistically be put on a list depend on what research you want to do.

NCSU is heavy on condensed matter, biophysics and nuclear physics, astro to a lesser extent; if any of these three things contain what you want, then OK, you can put NCSU on your list. But you have to see how you'd fit in a department and, within it, faculty; professors usually want you to have at least an idea of what you'd do for 2-3 years (Toronto, Waterloo; no direct PhD for you at these two schools with a 7.2) or 4-6 years (NCSU et al) although NCSU has an out that is contingent to passing the quals.

If, for instance, biophysics or condensed matter was your thing, you may put uOttawa (in Toronto's stead) or Georgetown; however, if space science is your thing, you may put Dartmouth. It may seem paradoxical to you but it really isn't since Georgetown and Dartmouth are, at best, low-mid tier schools in physics.