Expert: Daniel Mazur - 4/19/2010

Question
Hi Daniel,

I gave the IIT's entrance examination this year again, which was my second attempt at it, about which i've already told you in previous correspondences.

The result is not officially out yet, but since it is an objective type examination marks can be evaluated right after the examination. I have certainly performed much better than the last year but not exceptionally well. So my chances of making it in are kind of bleak, though I still might, as my marks are just on the border line.

But anyway, there are 2 more institutes apart from IIT that are offering the integrated physics M.S. one of them being BITS - Pilani (www.bits-pilani.ac.in) and the other being Indian Institutes of Scientific Education and Research (IISER - http://iisertvm.ac.in/). I might make it in one of these, but I'm not certain about that.
It would be great if you could look up the website of IISER and give me some idea about the credibility of this institute abroad.

Also, there's a chance that i may not get into either of these 3 institutes and will then be left with the only option of pursuing an engineering degree. I cannot pursue a physics course in the delhi university or others due to some technical reasons created because of my dropping out this year from regular academics.

I have already bought around 30 books on various disciplines of physics and mathematics, covering almost all of undergraduate physics and maths. They are all internationally accepted popular texts used in various universities abroad and here in india.

Now suppose i end up in some engineering course, how do i prepare all of undergrad. physics and preferably math also alongside my engineering studies too??? Am I in a big doo doo, if i get stuck in engineering??? Or is it still possible to catchup and apply for masters courses abroad after my bachelors in engineering.
How do I go about preparing for the GRE??? What does it take to get into top schools like MIT, ivy league, caltech...etc....????

I know it isn't a simple procedure, but i have no clarity as to what is that one needs to do in order to get into these univ.s and what is it that they are looking for???

Thanks,
Shikhin

Answer
Hi,

getting to a Big Name university in the USA at a graduate level means you need to have exceptionally good grades as an undergrad and be exceptional at your GRE. Usually the departments evaluate not just the average mark from your undergrad years, but also how well the list of your taken courses matches the list of the prerequisites for that particular grad program. So, when in engineering, you should take additional courses (and excell in them) in physics and maths to improve the future list's impression. Alone the fact that you have an engineering degree is not detrimental to physics career, nor to an ambition to get to a Big Name university.

What may be a problem is the test performance. If you don't excell at the undergraduate level (the test results you describe are not too promising), you would need to work insanely hard. Number nor quality of books does not do the job, you need to master the books at the problem-solving level. Interest, passion, insight into physics are great things, but it won't matter, if you cannot sell it in test-solving. Preparation to GRE is like any test - you get some sample tests, you do them, evalute, how you'd done, identify ways for improvement of the strategy or the solving preformance (speed, flawlessness).

Applications procedures for universities are similar, but vary in detail and the details vary in time. Therefore, there is no other way for you but dilligently contact the institutions and cask about conditions, paperwork needed and deadlines. Nobody can do this for you - except maybe some people may offer this as a paid service.

I wish you all good luck.

Cheers,
Daniel