Q
Posted: Sun May 28, 2017 2:23 pm
Q
(This resource is NOT affiliated with gre.org or ets.org)
https://physicsgre.com/
You should definitely, in your SoP, let the school know that to study physics you were forced to drop out, earn money, and re-enroll as a self-funded student, because that shows huge dedication to the field (that's the main point of an SoP). How deep into the rest you get is up to you--the above is the main point, and I wouldn't detract from it too much. Consider your goal--you aren't trying to evoke sympathy, but present yourself as someone who is highly motivated to study physics.1. Should I write all this in my sop or should I completely avoid it?
No. The only thing this does is make you older than the average student, and age discrimination is illegal in the US. These gaps happened before your bachelor's degree in Physics, so they are not relevant.2. Will all these lost years and gaps in education affect my admissions?
I think the oldest in my cohort was 55. It shouldn't matter (see above), though I imagine some backwards professors will rant about how research is a young man's game (ironic, since they're self-important old men). Hopefully these people are silenced in the committee.3. I am 32 years old and hence I wanna know if my age affects my admissions.
Should be fine. Will it guarantee admissions to MIT and the like? No, but nothing short of a first author paper on a major discovery will. Admissions is a bit arbitrary--there are many more qualified applicants to stop schools than slots. You'll definitely get in somewhere, for sure, and the differences between schools 1-10 and 20 - 50 (as long as you pick the schools well) aren't worth fussing over.4. I'll be giving my general Gre and physics Gre in a few months and i know that roughly I'll score 320/340 and 900/990 will that be enough?
It's good that they're writing your recommendations (that's required), but I wouldn't overestimate how much they'll help you. International applicants struggle here, because even the top professors at Indian universities aren't really known in the US. I'm sure that will change as the funding and salary gap lowers, but right now that's the case. It's fine though; really, these recommendations can sometimes be thought of as an alumni recommendation--if your professors went to grad school in the US, they can say they know what it takes, and know you have it.5. The professors who are willing to write my recommendations and pretty well known in the Indian community. One of my profs had worked with Richard Feynman when he was doing his post doc. So his recommendation will help me.
6. Is there anything else that iam missing or something that I should work on to make sure that my admits go smooth.