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Prospective Graduate Student Chat, Oct 24, 2019
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AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:01
Good day, all. My name is Will Fenton and I'm the Assistant Director of Graduate Admissions at Penn Engineering. I'm here to answer questions you may have about our Graduate Programs, life as a graduate student at Penn and living in Philadelphia.
Where do you live?
United States (33.3% | 9 votes)
 
China (22.2% | 6 votes)
 
India (22.2% | 6 votes)
 
Europe (3.7% | 1 vote)
 
Middle East (0% | 0 votes)
 
Another Region (18.5% | 5 votes)
 
Total Votes: 27
Deepa Korani
10:01
Hi Will,
Bhavye Sharma
10:02
Hello sir
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:02
Hi folks, welcome to the chat! What questions do you have for me today?
Anny
10:02
Hi Will
Zizhou
10:02
Hi Will
Kwangmin Lee
10:02
Hi Will
Guest
10:02
Hi Will! I have a question about Toefl. I am a international applicant, but I earned a master degree from a US institution 8 years ago.
Am I eligible to waive toefl?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:03
Hi Guest, yes, based on what you said, we would waive your TOEFL requirement after we receive and review your application.
Tiancheng
10:02
morning
Wei Tang
10:02
Good Morning sir! I am applying to the graduate program of Materials Science & Engineering, I have ackowlegded applicants who ultimatedly want to finish a PhD should directly apply to the PhD program  instead of  M.S. program, but I want to know will those who failed to be accpeted by the PhD program be considered for the M.S. program?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:04
Hi Wei Tang, we don't automatically review rejected PhD applicants for the MSE program. You would need to specifically request this from the dept after you've received a decision, or apply separately to the MSE program.
cool 2
Sirawich Tippawanich
10:02
Good morning!
Tiancheng
10:03
From my observation, I feel like the CGGT program is a more professional-oriented program rather than a research-oriented one, is that correct?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:05
Tiancheng, that is correct. Nearly all of our MSE programs are more professional-oriented, as you put it. But that's the gist of most master's programs.
Kwangmin Lee
10:03
I have several questions.
At first, when is a due date for submitting recommendation letters? I am not my recommenders will keep time strictly.
Secondly, I want to enter lab prof. Carpick, John L. Bassani, and Pedro Ponte Castañeda. Do you know they have a plan to recruit a PhD students next year?
Thirdly, I have a GPA 3.5/4.0 in undergraduate. Is it unqualified for engineering program in Upenn?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:07
Kwangmin, here you go:
1) The deadline is the same as the application deadline.
2) I am not privy to their plans for next year, but any faculty member that is available on the Advisor Drop down list is usually planning for PhD additions to their lab.
3) We do not have a required GPA, so that is fine.
cool 1
Deepa Korani
10:04
I am currently doing my undergraduate in Chemical Engineering from a US institution  , and was highly interested to apply for the MSE in Data Science. I have taken   few pre-requistes but I want to know  how competitive it is and how can I make myself a strong applicant for MSE in Data Science?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:08
Deepa, the program is extremely competitive - last year approximately 10% of applicants were admitted. You can take a look at the requirements page for more info. Other than that, I can't give you additional information.
cool 2
Claire
10:04
Hi Will, I know this isn’t directly about the application process but I will be in Philly this weekend and was wondering if there were any tour opportunities for prospective PhD students? Do you know of any such opportunities or tours?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:09
Hi Claire, we don't have any general tours available at the moment. You can directly contact the program to see if something can be arranged. What program are you interested in?
Guest
10:04
Hello, Will. My name is Mingqiang Li. I am applying for a Ph.D. program at the University of Pennsylvania. Now I transfer from Doctor’s degree program to Master’s degree program at Peking University. And I will graduate in July, 2020. But my Certificate of Enrollment and Graduate Academic Transcript still shows I am in Doctor’s degree program at Peking University. The school officials said they can only change the information in next semester according to school rules. I want to know whether this information will influence my application for a Ph.D. program at the University of Pennsylvania. I will definitely provide my Master’s degree in July, 2020.
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:10
Guest, I'd recommend that you explain this information in your personal statement, along with why you are making this change and how the program at Penn will be the best decision for you.
Bhavye Sharma
10:04
Sir, I'm currently completing my undergrad and am in my 7th semester and was interested in applying to the CIS Masters program, I have been issued unofficial marksheets for upto 6th semester, will they suffice to start my application process on the online portal?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:11
Bhavye, yes, that should be fine. If you have sheets that list the current courses that you are taking, we encourage you to include those as well.
Semyoung Oh
10:04
Thank you for your comment, Will.
cool 1
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:11
You're welcome, Semyoung
Anny
10:05
I am applying for the 2020 fall MCIT on-campus program. But I am wondering can I apply to the 2020 fall MCIT online program if I am rejected by the on-campus program? Or if I get admitted for the on-campus MCIT, is it possible to switch to the online program before I start the program if some special situations came up?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:11
Anny, yes, you can apply for both programs. However, it is not possible at this time to switch from the online program to the on-campus program, or vice-versa.
Tiancheng
10:07
Sir, I am curious, for the CGGT program, what characteristic does the admission committee prefer its prospective students to have? Substantial research experience or game industry internships?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:13
Tiancheng, potentially game industry internships, but it really depends on what you were doing for the internship vs what you were doing for research. If all you did at the internship was get coffee, and you research AI character design, then the research might be more relevant. Does that make sense?
cool 1
Zizhou
10:07
Hi Will, I'm an international student, and I'm wondering how to transform my GPA, max of which is 4.3, to 4.0? Do I need to transform all my subjects respectively? or simply stay the ratio the same?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:13
Zizhou, you don't have to at this time. You can indicate the GPA on the application, as we allow for you to specify if it is not 4.0.
Ryan M.
10:07
Hi Mr. Fenton, I am applying for the Ph.D. in MEAM but my bachelors degree is in computer engineering. Will this affect my potential admittance to the MEAM program? My mentor also suggested I apply to the ESE program as well. Should I apply only to ESE or can I apply to both programs independently? (I have found professors and research in both departments that I would love to work for)
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:15
Ryan, we only allow for you to apply to one PhD program, so you will need to carefully consider each program. I'd recommend looking further into the research of the faculty that you are interested in. There can also be opportunities for cross lab research, depending on the topic, but it's important to be sure when applying.
cool 1
Wei Tang
10:07
Thank you for your answer, sir! I wonder if it is safe to apply to the M.S. but claim to have an intention of applying for PhD ultimately?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:15
Wei Tang, you can definitely do that.
Akhil
10:07
Hi! I will be applying to the MechE PhD program as an international student from India. I had a question regarding the TOEFL requirement. Although I am an international student, my native language is English. Do I still need to write the test?
AvatarWill Fenton, Asst Dir
10:16
Akhil, unless you are graduating from a school where English is the language of instruction, you are required to submit a valid TOEFL/IELTS score.
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