r/gradadmissions

I am from the United States and I have not enjoyed much luck with PhD admissions. This cycle I'm thinking of applying to top universities in China. I already have a MS degree. I don't speak or understand one syllable or stroke of Mandarin.

Have any other US students started a program in China, and what advice do you have?

I saw on a lot of grad admission's FAQ's that they do consider your undergrad institution somewhat when looking at your application. By undergrad reputation, do they basically only mean the rankings, or is there some general consensus around schools that are more rigorous than others? In terms of weighing your GPA etc.

Hi everyone! I'm currently working towards applying for my Master's, and I am hoping to speak to professors I've had previously, about 3-7 years ago, for letters of recommendation, research and/or work opportunities, etc. I don't expect them to remember me, but I'd like to send some cold emails re-introducing myself, hoping to meet for coffee, take some time to chat, hear about their careers, and develop more interpersonal relationships with people in academia.

For more context, 2 big reasons why I'd like to meet for a chat are 1) I did fairly average in some of the professor’s classes I’m looking to email but I'd still like to get to know them as some of them are widely celebrated in their field, and 2) I'm pretty open to what may come out of any conversation, even if it doesn't end up going anywhere, but ideally any opportunity that could come out of it (mentor/mentee, letter of recommendation, research opportunities, etc.) I'd be very open to.

Would this be something that professors would be open to doing or is this seen more of a time-waster if I don’t specify what I am looking for? Also, what would be the best approach for me to go about sending these opening emails?

Any advice would be truly appreciated :) thanks!

Hi everyone, I'm a rising junior in Physics at an R1 school, and I'm starting to think seriously about grad school, but I can't tell if what I have is actually competitive for top programs or just... okay. I have a 3.935 GPA due to some A-'s in Physics classes and an B+ in Honors Quantum Mechanics I. This B+ has made me super nervous and the next semester I took regular Quantum Mechanics II and I got an A from that. I project if I get a 4.0 for the next 4 semesters I will end undergraduate with a 3.96 GPA.

Research-wise, I've been in two quantum information science labs for about two years, plus some high school + freshman year experience in particle physics lab, but I've mostly been assisting on other people's projects rather than leading my own but hoping that shifts this year. I also applied for the Astronaut and Goldwater scholarships last cycle and didn't get either, which knocked my confidence a bit.

Now going into my third year, I am finishing up a research internship at a quantum computing company and starting to take graduate level physics classes (grad QM, AMO physics, etc). I am also wondering if I should take the Physics GRE.

A few specific things I'm unsure about:

• How much do named scholarships (Astronaut, Goldwater, GRFP) actually matter if you didn't get them?
• Is it worth taking the Physics GRE at this point, or are most programs not weighting it much anymore?
• How much does not having your "own research project" or first/second author publication matter to admissions committees, assuming the work you did in the lab itself is solid?

Hi all! Long time lurker here, I need advice when looking for PhD positions.

I have completed my bachelor's degree (Biomedical field), ranked #3/79, 92.2% GPA, IELTS 8.0 (I'm international), 3 research papers lined up for publication, one of them as a first author, one is a second author with equal contribution to first, and a third paper where I just helped with data analysis and visualization (I also wrote the methodology and results sections).

I genuinely feel lost; I don't know what's the next logical step to go into a PhD program, last round I applied and emailed so many professors worldwide and I got 0 answers (It turns out my university email gets flagged as spam lol)

Some countries require a master's before a PhD, so I'm considering a master's, but ultimately I want to do a PhD so why not go into a PhD rightaway? I really need to know what I have to do, is it contacting professors? Is it applying through scholarships? Is it applying straight to universities and they assign a potential supervisor? Any advice would massively help. Thanks!

Hi everyone,
I am in the process of cold emailing now, and I am worried that attaching files to my emails might lead my emails to professors' junk rather than their inbox
I sent myself an email (similar to the ones I send out), and it went to the junk because of the attached files
should I attach my CV and my portfolio to my email or not?

Hi all. Brief context - I'm applying for grad school in mechanical engineering. I graduated in 2024 from a state school (USA) with a 3.8 GPA in the program's honors college (because I didn't realize it was pointless). I've been working in an irrelevant engineering field since graduating. I worked in research labs for 3.5/4 years during my undergrad and I have one first-author conference paper. Had a pretty sweet senior design project/thesis too. Both my paper and my senior project are relevant to the research I want to pursue. I'm applying to PhDs in the US, master's degrees in Canada and Europe (I'm Canadian), and I'm considering a few PhD programs in the UK. I'd like to stay in academia long-term (or at least have the option to do so), so school prestige is a factor here.

I started with a list of 60+ schools and looked into the research of 100+ professors who had recent publications in my target research area. I've trimmed the list down to 20 schools based on my research fit.

I am STRUGGLING to cut the list any further, but I know I need to so I don't spend a ton of money on applications and to take some stress off of LoR writers. I have a couple of "safety" master's programs on there (with research I don't love but in labs I have a good shot at getting funding for). I have quite a few PIs on there with best-in-the-world labs, but all of their current grad students went to top 20 schools AND have perfect GPAs plus journal publications. A few schools are a perfect research fit, but I think I would hate living in the cities they're located in. Some labs only have 1-2 PhD students, some labs are run by assistant professors, and some schools only have one PI I'd be interested in working with.

Basically just looking for advice. Where should I draw the line of being realistic when applying to "dream" labs? Is it worth it to have some "safety" programs on there? How much does location really matter if I love what I'm doing?

Hi everyone! I’m planning to apply this cycle to Biological Sciences PhD programs, mainly in Immunology, Stem Cell/Hematopoietic Biology, Cancer Biology, and related fields.
I’m particularly interested in hearing from anyone who had a ~3.5 undergraduate GPA (or knows a friend/labmate/colleague with a similar GPA) and received interviews or admission from highly competitive programs like the ones below. I’m also wondering how realistic it would be for me to apply to programs in this range given the rest of my profile.

My background:
Bachelor’s in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology from outside the U.S. — ~3.5 GPA
Research-based Master’s in Biological Sciences (Immunology-focused) from a U.S. university — ~3.7 GPA
Currently doing full-time research at a major U.S. academic/research institution
~2 years of post-Master’s full-time research;
4+ years total research experience
Research mainly in immunology and stem cell/hematopoietic biology
One published first-author paper
Second first-author manuscript in progress
Posters/presentations at scientific meetings
Expecting strong research-focused LORs
Currently in the U.S., but applying as an international applicant

Programs/institutions I have in mind include:
Harvard
Stanford
Yale
Johns Hopkins
Penn
Columbia
Mount Sinai
Duke
Vanderbilt
UCLA
WashU (Washington University in St. Louis)
MD Anderson
St. Jude

I know PhD admissions are holistic and that research fit, SOP, LORs, faculty interests, funding, and many other factors matter.
But specifically regarding the ~3.5 undergraduate GPA, does anyone know someone with a similar GPA who has received interviews or admission from these or similarly competitive programs?

And considering the rest of my research background, would applying to a reasonable number of programs in this range be realistic, or should I mostly be looking at a different range of programs?

I’d especially appreciate perspectives from international applicants, but experiences from U.S. domestic applicants/students would also be really helpful.
Thanks!

Hey people!
I am planning to apply for PhD this year. But one thing that is constantly worrying me is that how will I approach my masters professors. It has been 2 years I have not been in contact with them. I have always been kind of an anxious person who kind of scared to interact a lot with the authority. So I don’t know how to approach them (also for context I am from India and student-teacher relationship here is quite weird like very authoritarian). It would be great to know about your experiences or what should I do?

For a variety of reasons, I have offers from UMich and UW-Madison for a PhD in education. If you were in my position, which school would you move forward with and why? Thanks

Hi everyone,

I’m an international student from India planning to apply for Fall 2027 MS in CS/ML/AI programs in the US.

Profile:

• B.Tech in CSE (Data Science minor) from a tier 2 college
• CGPA: 9.26/10
• 2+ years of full-time experience, currently working at a Microsoft
• No publications due to NDA-bound research work
• Strong LORs from senior researchers/managers
• GRE: Planning to take (aiming for 330+)
• TOEFL: Planning to take

I’m mainly interested in CS/ML/AI programs that have strong industry/recruiting outcomes for ML Engineer, Applied Scientist, SWE/AI, Big Tech, or AI startup roles.

My current shortlist:

CMU
Georgia Tech
UIUC
UW Madison
University of Washington
Columbia
UT Austin
UCSD

Do I have a shot at these colleges with my background?

Thanks!

MSc + 1 Q2 publication — realistic chances for a Canadian PhD?

Hi everyone,
I’m planning to apply for PhD programs in Canada and would really appreciate some honest feedback on my profile.
I have:
An MSc from the University of Alberta
1 publication in a Q2 journal
I’m an equal-contribution author on the paper (not first author)
Research experience in engineering/materials-related fields
My main concern is whether having only one publication will be considered enough to be competitive for a PhD in Canada, especially for programs where research experience and publications are important.
Does anyone with a similar profile have experience applying to Canadian PhD programs? How much do admissions committees typically care about the number/quality of publications versus having an MSc, strong research experience, references, and a good fit with a supervisor?
Would I have a realistic chance at getting accepted, or should I try to build up more publications/research experience before applying?
Any advice or experiences would be really appreciated!

Which otherwise well-regarded universities would you say have a reputation for having masters programs that are mainly intended to attract full freight paying foreign students and may be less rigorous? Im just curious to see which colleges come to mind.

I’m completely new to academic conferences and have just started my PhD, so I’m a little confused about how conference presentations actually work.

When people say they are presenting at a conference, what exactly are they presenting? Is it usually a completed research study, or can it also be a research idea, proposed study, literature review, theoretical framework, or work in progress?

I’m also confused about the difference between an oral conference presentation and a poster. Do both generally present the same kind of research, just in different formats?

My biggest confusion is about PhD students who present at conferences only a few months after starting their PhD. For example, if someone starts their PhD in September and presents at a conference a few months later, what would they realistically have to present by then? It obviously wouldn’t be their entire PhD research, so would they present their research proposal, an initial research question/framework, preliminary work, or something else?

Does this depend entirely on the specific conference and what they accept in their call for papers?

I’d really appreciate hearing from current/former PhD students about what you presented at your first conference, especially if it was early in your PhD.

I'm a Canadian student (BBA background) planning to apply to research/thesis-based Master's programs in Education/Learning Sciences, with the goal of eventually pursuing a PhD.

A few things I'm trying to figure out:

• Is Canada or US school generally seen as a stronger stepping stone into a PhD, especially for someone switching fields into Education/Learning Sciences? Does it matter much where the Master's is from if I eventually want to do a PhD in the US or vice versa?
• From what I've read, Canadian thesis-based Master's programs are more likely to be funded (RA/TA-ships) compared to US programs, where funded terminal Master's are rarer. Is this accurate?
• How do you go about identifying and contacting potential supervisors and making sure their research aligned with your interests before applying?
• Has anyone here switched from a business/BBA-type background into Education/Learning Sciences research? How did you frame that transition in your SOP or make yourself a competitive applicant

Also curious about hoe competitive Canadian programs (e.g., OISE/UofT, UBC, McGill, etc.) are compared to US programs in this space, and whether it's worth applying broadly to both or focusing on one country.

Any advice, personal experiences, or program recommendations are hugely appreciated. Thank you!!!

Hi everyone!
I’m seeking advice from the PhD admissions folks. As an international student, I’m completely overwhelmed with the list of PhD programs, what to apply to, what to skip out on.

My background: I did my BSc in Biomedical sciences from Saudi Arabia (GPA 4.8/5), and a masters in biotechnology from UPenn(GPA 3.8/4).
My strengths: very heavy biomedical background, 6 month research at Penn, 2 years of wet-lab work experience, a few months of biotech VC experience.
My weaknesses: I have not done enough quant and computational work during my undergrad. I only took statistics, pre-calculus, one shitty programming course.

I’m currently teaching myself how to code, and hiw to analyze biological data.

My research of interest lies in protein engineering, immune engineering, immunology.

As i’m looking for PhD programs, obviously there are “dream schools/programs” that I would love to apply to, but then how do I choose “safety” schools?
How do I determine if i’m strong enough for some of these programs for them to be considered safe? Especially when most programs don’t list out any pre reqs or anything like that. Claiming they look at the application holistically.

My programs of interest include:
Biochemistry
Mol cell biolgy
BioE
Biomedical sciences (Immunology).

Note: I do realize that the advisor/PI is much more important than the program/school!!! However there’s no guarantee of being accepted just because of faculty alignment.
I appreciate any advice!
Thanks.

I would appreciate some honest advice from people familiar with Astronomy and Astrophysics PhD admissions.

I am an international applicant from a non physics STEM background with a GPA of about 3.3. I realize this is well below the average GPA often reported for top Astronomy programs. However, I have several years of research experience in a specialized astrophysics area, multiple publications, and a Physics GRE score above the 80th percentile.

Many of the research groups that closely match my interests are at T10 to T20 programs, where the average admitted GPA appears to be much higher.

In your experience, how do admissions committees weigh GPA against research experience, publications, research fit, and evidence of physics preparation? Have you seen applicants with a GPA around 3.3 succeed at highly ranked programs because of a strong research record?

I am genuinely trying to understand how competitive a profile like this would be. Thank you for any insights.

I have been staggering ever since Covid, never got a graduation since I had to leave school early, did well on my own studying for my O levels but flunked My A levels. I decide to take a foundation course to finally apply to a university around the same time my peers had already joined or were about to. I finish my foundation and my single mom can’t afford a university in the UK as she’s lost her job. After a whole 2 - 3 years of working and saving with my mom who’s later found new work with me, I finally decide to apply early in Jan and find a Uni that I resonate with this year, estatic to join a UK university, as my foundation is only recognized there. I get accepted into two (the university of Hull and Bradford being accepted In late May) one of them being my top pick, it also being the cheapest yet quality university. I find ways to try and pay the deposit but it’s too expensive as I’m an international student with a sub par passport. Now for the past few months I’ve been crying, praying and asking around for financial aid yet to no avail. The deadline approaches for the exorbitant deposit to be paid and my mom is unable to as she’s stretched thin with paying bills and the countries constant inflation and even having to take my siblings out of school. The deadline is on the 21st of this month and I’m yet again going to miss out on another year while my friends are now graduating and starting their own work meanwhile I’m stuck at the age of 22 desperate to leave this country and join a university so I can get a good degree and solid job so then I can support my family. But of course can’t do anything else.

As for opportunities and Universities in the country I’m in currently, they’re so much more expensive and these ones I’ve seen are jokes. Paying out of your ass for terrible education.

I have even searched in other countries to apply and move forward with but they require me to apply with something different or take my high school education again which is something I don’t want to do and also can’t do.

I can’t move forward, I’m stuck alone under the roof of my mom and can’t find my way at all. I think I might just give up.

I'm preparing my application for a master's in epidemiology or biostatistics for Fall 2027, and I keep getting stuck on this: how do I frame my research experience in my resume, SOP, and PS? I don't want to oversell myself, but at the same time I don't want potential employers and admissions teams to think I really did nothing just because I didn't present a poster or attend exhibitions.

Some background: I pursued research during my undergrad, but it didn't work out the way I wanted. It was my first research assistant position (NSF-funded), but it was also the same semester I switched from a business major to statistics, which meant I had to finish my degree in 1.5 years. I was on top of my grades when I made the switch and graduated with high honors. I took the risk of juggling coursework and research because I wanted to make the best out of my college experience and I'd regret it if I didn't try. It was a choice between joining the honors college to produce my own undergrad thesis or taking this research position.

I was enthusiastic about the role because it meant I would learn advanced topics earlier but I was given no direction. Luckily, there was a PhD student who helped me break down difficult concepts. I know that being in research means I'm pretty much on my own. However, I received no guidance at all and was given only the topics to study on my own. As an undergrad, I thought that was a little unfair. I did talk to my professor multiple times, but he made it seem like I don't work hard enough, which was very demotivating.

I recently experienced a life-threatening health condition, which made me more confident in choosing this field. Despite having a bad research experience, I see this as a learning curve and I still have passion for statistics and healthcare work/research. I can't seem to see the good side of things because I only got the knowledge but not the trust/connection. I don't think my professor would write me a strong recommendation though because I didn’t meet his expectations :(