₦airaland Forum

manwonder:
Hello guys,

Happy New Year to you all!

Spoke with a friend yesterday, and she told me she won a scholarship on ScholarX to study for an MBA @ Harvard, and that she will be sitting for her GRE on Sunday. As at the time we were speaking yesterday, she was yet to send her application to Harvard Business School, and she said she was trying to pay her application fee and forward her application ahead of the Nigerian time equivalent of the deadline (the deadline was 12 noon Boston time yesterday).

Please does anyone know about ScholarX and how it works? Can you win a scholarship on the platform to study a course @ a school you're yet to apply to?

I don't know much about ScholarX but I remember there used to be a Sprite or 7up program very similar to what you are describing that was for an MBA in Harvard. I think the pre-qualification criteria had something to do with having a first class first degree and the Harvard admission. Afterwards, they go through a screening and whatever measures put in place before selecting one candidate that ends up getting the full sponsorship.

Since it appears the reverse with ScholarX then she has nothing to worry about seeing that ScholarX may have some pre-agreement with Harvard. After all, how would they guarantee she would get the admission seeing how competitive it is?

towbaynah:
Hello everyone, I need your take on this:

On the GRE, I scored 154 in Verbal, 152 in Quant, and 3.5 in Writing. Scored 100 on the TOEFL iBT. Finished with a 2'2, First degree (Political Science) and a strong 2'1 at Masters level (Political Science). I'm looking to apply for a PhD program in Political science at some not-so-highly-rated U.S schools. What are my chances of being considered for admission?

Like we have all tried to say in the past and even now: the chances of gaining admission is a holistic process and not just zeroed down to certain GRE scores or even a GPA. However, schools have a minimum GPA they work with for both undergraduate and graduate study and I think you can begin from there. Your 2'2 first degree, do you think when converted by WES could lie above 3.0/4.0 or thereabouts? That's one good indicator. Second, your masters' GPA that is strong is also an added advantage. If you have done any internships, publications or viable research experience they contribute more weightage than standardized test scores albeit yours is definitely competitive for most B-tier schools. I think you can guess by now that I am trying to say you are good to go and should have started looking for schools that match your profile.

Schools are realizing that graduate work is beyond having excellent test-taking skills. Some people can ace tests and still not complete graduate work because graduate work can be grueling and in so doing provide less room for people to gratify themselves with good grades. If you feel you are cut-out for this, then your chances are good.

Now please, don't ask people to recommend schools for you without bringing your own findings to the table as that would smack of laziness which is becoming the Nigerian way. With all that has been said here, go and find out schools that in recent trends have accepted profiles such as yours (with the right funding and program) and if your list is too long we can help you prune it.

sirRiddy:
Scholastica16 your response is very insightful.
Emailing grad coordinators would help eliminate schools that you
should not waste time and money on. Of all the four schools I sent my scores
to during my GRE in 2014, I only eventually applied to the one I am attending
now. I was very inexperienced and only got better with time.

I got to know that funding chances are low for one, the other one, ASU, just
chop my application fee (90 dollars) and Utah State said they waive only out of state. So it
is pertinent grad coordinators are contacted way ahead of one's GRE like you suggested

In my research group, my
lab head is very inclusive and gives PhD students a lot of free-hand. We have access
to a lot of info like faculty recruiting, grants situation and even students' admission
package since he is in the adcomms. A Nigerian who is applying to my department
was able to get first-hand info on admission requirements because of this privilege.
She had a subpar GRE score, I talked to the grad coordinator and he rarely revealed
to me the minimum cut off of the GRE. She took the test again and made above the
score and hopefully she will be accepted.Funny enough, the requirement on the website
is 297 while the actual requirement averagely is 310. I asked him why they did that.
He said they do not want to scare away exceptional students who do not have the most glamorous
test scores. According to him, requiremnts are requirements. They can
help identify good potential through the admission process but cannot identify for sure who is going
to complete a PhD. Some gifted students just cannot score highly in the GRE but have
really commendable research acumen and experience.

To add to this, contacting current grad students can be a deal breaker too. You might
be lucky to form a rapport with one who is willing to divulge information about
admissions and funding situation in the department. I was able to know about TOEFL
requirements from an alumnus of the department who was a grad student at that time.
Candidates should try to proactive as this is the least one can do to stay competitive. The
Indians and Chinese are not smiling. Many of them can do everything possible including
cheating just to gain competitive edge.
So applicants should go to LinkedIn and find current students in their prospective programs.
One can type "GTA Chemical Engineering Harvard" if you are applying to the Chemical
Engineering program at Harvard for instance.

You have said it all. Gracias.

aanexplus:
msinus.com... That's the website. Check profile evaluation. The website is for Indians. But u will get better information dere

Right on the money! What was particularly useful is they could tell if a school had sufficient funding and for what programs based on trends so it was useful. Of course, like everything in life, it is imperfect as some of the GRE minimums for some schools were significantly off the mark. Just a few of them though.

vikings809:
Results out:

V- 154
Q-160
AWA- 4.0

Converted CGPA: 3.34/4.0 (OAU)

Target: Funded Physics & Astronomy Msc/Phd in US.

I'd appreciate any form of advice

Congrats.

If you are considering this fall then your major criteria at this point should be applications that are available as per priority deadlines and those that can fund your program.

As a rule of thumb, start by searching for schools that have the program you are looking for and as much as possible look for a hierarchical version of such a list. Next, prune down the list based on Acceptance rates, then "ratings" of the program and lastly the GRE scores (startclass can help but remember to check for graduate school acceptance rates not the undergraduate one). You may decide to be ambitious and select a school whose GRE minimum is just above yours, select 1 that matches yours and 2 just below yours (as safe schools)---> crunchprep has a good list for schools whose GRE range is between 310-315 and 315-320. There is another good website now that feels like minus or msnius or something of the sort *arggggh frustration* can't remember.

Next contact grad coordinators of said schools by checking the websites and portals for it and ask them about deadlines and if they admit international students directly for PhD. They will most definitely (in answering this question) tell you about funding in their school. I have noticed generally that most schools have funding depending on the program and if one is considering a thesis-based masters or a PhD.

Apart from this, most will let you know the minimum GPA they deem as competitive and if they can waive TOEFL and so on. Take note too, that TOEFL plays a huge role in getting TAs hence why people take the capital and labor pains to still write it even after having schooled all their lives in English.

You would see how by just contacting the grad coordinators with these questions will save you the stress of frittering away your now exorbitant application fees. Some responses will let you know you stand no chance (and it is not always a bad thing). University of Florida told me they did not admit international students directly for PhD and did not fund their master's students for example.

PS: since you (like me) did not do this research before your test you are going to have to cough out $27 each time you want to send your scores to your schools. But if you employ the services of BY MAFIT you'd pay N8000 per school instead which is a fair bargain if you ask me.

Holy Moses! That's a lot of writing for a simple question.

Nitta08:
Compliments of the season everyone. Does applying to two departments in one school affect the admission decision of either departments negatively?

It does not. As long as you pay the application fee for both. Admission decisions are made my departments not necessarily the general graduate admissions board. In fact, what the latter do is to see if you meet all the stipulated criteria set by the committee and then they forward the application to the department.

iCool:
Still no word on the result yet??

No word bro. But I am emailing my schools and keeping them informed.

Guitarlife:
Scholar is GRE paper route available in Naija ? Am asking because am thinking the V score might be better with paper route as a result of no typing. Some people like me are not proficient with typing on computers and that might cos some distratctions.

I dont mind waiting a month b4 seeing my result.

Yes it is available but for a limited period over one year when compared to the computer route that could have as many as 90 dates in one calendar year. So if you are considering it you need to check the few available dates quickly and see which works for you. I think they have 3-5 dates in a whole year. I could be wrong. This is a surmisal.

iCool:
A bag will be too much for me to finish na

I am in p/h, slept for a greater part of the day. Too much wahala during this period, the rest was overdue.

TOEFL won't let me be great. I barely sleep when I think of it. And when those ETS B*****ds don't reply emails...wow..it worsens the experience even more. So I envy you.

DAramis:
OK.
Though physical calculator would have been better.
The paper route and the computer route has the same time frame... 4hrs right?

Paper route is 40mins for 2 Q-sections and 35mins for each V-sections. The Q section has 25 questions each as against 20 of the Computer route. Same goes for the V. I don't think there is an experimental section for the paper route but I could be wrong. HappyDay would know better.

Also, Paper route takes about 2 weeks or so for the results to come out. The intervening period between those weeks will be nerve-wracking compared to the Computer route that gives you an instant result. So pick your poison.

DAramis:
Is calculator allowed for the quant section or just pencil and plain paper?

There is an on-screen calculator but it does basic functions so it may even slow you down.

iCool:
Merry Christmas house!

Scholastica16, what's the location for the rice?

LOL. You did not even ask me if I had any money to buy a bag of rice at N18,000. Someone said "why ask a Toad for chair when you see it is already squatting?"

I am in Lagos though. You?

kennynelcon:
Most Good schools don't accept GRE greater than 2 years

Maybe you are referring to TOEFL or the definition of good school is subjective. It also depends on when he wants to use it. I was better of applying for graduate studies right after NYSC perhaps by now I'd have had one more year to complete my PhD. Most importantly, I would have clocked atleast 166+ in my Q at 400L.

Felicitations my people! Compliments of the season.

OMA4U:
Is it advisable to take the GRE exam in 400 level for Engineering?

Is GRE only for PhD, how about masters?

Pls I need Clarification. Thanks

1. In hindsight, the best time for me to have written the GRE was during my 4th year (6 months IT period).

2. GRE is generally for Engineering, Mathematics and Economics disciplines as long as it is for graduate studies which encompasses Masters and PhD.

drhopeful:
Do you realize TOEFL is not designed for native English speakers? And do you also realize that high school leavers also write TOEFL? That it looks simple to you does not mean it will be simple for your nigerian public secondary school leaver who is hoping to gain admission for bachelors in an American Uni. The structure of GRE writing is far superior to that of TOEFL and that is why most of us don't score up to 4.5. Infact, our average score in Nigeria is about 3.2 or so according to ETS website. The Nigerian educational system does not encourage good writing or typing skills and that is why we will always lag behind. Apart from you and a few others on this forum who scored 5 and above, the rest have hovered around 3 - 4.5. I for one cannot type fast and it's a major problem 'cause it's not like I don't know what to write.

I see your point but I was not implying that the writing aspect was simple. Just that the essays that got full marks appeared so. The sentence structures were pretty straight-forward (no variations and some were even choppy).

I do also agree too that since it is being marked subjectively, these type of score variations will be prevalent. In fact, I am leaning towards the idea that the markers become stricter once they realize the educational level of the candidate or if they are from predominantly Anglophone countries.

kinematicguy:
I noticed you mentioned that funding is important. if that is the case, I will advice you to strike out Texas Tech if you are applying for M.S. there. As the school hardly fund incoming M.S. students. But Ph.D. can get funding.

I struck them off a day after I made that post as the grad coordinator finally replied me on said day. I was looking at the school because I saw that most of their Chemical engineering research projects had a lot of funding so I was hoping to benefit from it.

What you said is very correct because the Grad coordinator pretty much reechoed what you said. I believe the message said something about 150 applying for the PhD last time but they took only 15 of them. I just decided against throwing my $100 away. Thanks.

pennstate:
Thank you for writing this. People don't know that admission is politics. Have you ever wonder why Asian Faculty mostly have MS/PHD student also from their regions.

When I started researching schools I realized this fact. I have noticed that the Chinese and Indians are most guilty of this. They are on this help-my-people-mission and it is becoming so ostensible.

In fact, starting from the GRE (where they cheat to get perfect V scores and in some cases perfect TOEFL scores) to the admission and funding process(es) where Indian professors tend to only respond to emails from fellow Indians. It is just a politicized process.

The reviews Nigerians give about them is not even exactly rave. You see people who got near perfect standardized test scores yet they struggle with the school work over there. I think sirRiddy talked about a Chinese guy that has a teaching assistantship yet cannot string together a coherent sentence over there at KSU.

Time2Smile:
The result of the TOEFL I took on 9th of December just came in. I was expecting it to take 13 days so was a bit surprised when I saw the mail. I logged in to my account and pressed view. I was a nervous wreck all the while as I was waiting to for the page to load, not that I needed to be. Here it is: Reading 30, Listening 30, Speaking 24, Writing 27. Total of 111. I am relieved with my score in speaking because some very selective schools request for a minimum of 22 to receive funding through Teaching Assistantship. Now on to the "BABA" called GRE on the 6th.

This is stellar however I am surprised you did not hit 30 in the Writing as well. The sample "5" mark essays I saw were not fantastic tbh. I mean, compared with the GRE "6" mark ones.

Happy for you though. I wish ETS TOEFL would even respond to my queries sef.

jlakesideo:
I want to re-register for the GRE, who can help me pay with GRE voucher at a discount.. A School deadline is February 15., Though

I had 295 on my first attempt (142V 153Q 3.0 AWA) and it was very very poor.. I just wasted my transcript fee, App fee and some other fees to the school. I applied to University of Southern Mississippi and Georgia state university(They are under review/Awaiting decision). But I'm pretty sure that they can't give me admission. I just want to re-write the exam. Pls who can help me at a discounted rate, I won't lie, I have exhausted all my money this year. But I don't want to give up on my dreams..

Thanks

I am giving you the piece of advice I did not take after my first GRE- use this score like that whilst preparing for the retake. In fact, you only need a retake when you are sure that the school and dept in question do not compromise on the limit scores of the GRE.

I have a cousin who asked University of Texas, Austin to completely waive the GRE for him. Guess what? The Professor is considering asking the admission board to do exactly that! This is University of Texas in Austin oh!

Let me tell you his profile:

1. Second class lower Mechanical engineering (Nigeria)
2. MSc UK (no distinction)
3. MSc in (Canada) which ended this year.

Yet someone with this profile asked such a top school to consider his proposition and they are even considering it. Mind-boggling I tell you.

manwonder:
Thanks a lot!

However, I became worried when I noticed they were being evasive while talking to them on the phone on Friday and Saturday. They were using gimmicks like feigning not being able to hear you properly when you're demanding answers to certain questions, and also cutting calls in the middle of conversations; but the moment you say "stop pretending, I know you can hear me, so just give me answers now", they now reply you, saying "no sir, I'm not pretending, network is bad here", and you now begin to wonder how come they were able to hear that part clearly. I experienced that with two of their staff I spoke with.

At a point, I had to threaten to visit their office with Mobile Police officers first thing in the morning on Monday (yesterday)- which I was really willing and ready to do, as I had gotten in touch with some of my friends who are Mopols and a relative who is a military officer at Ikeja Cantonment- when I noticed that the staff that processed my registration was making contradictory comments, and also sounding evasive. She said the issue would be sorted out this week, as her boss would be in town on Monday (yesterday). I then gave her a timeline for resolution, after which I would get them arrested (and I meant it).

Later that day (Saturday), I got a mail from ETS, and to my surprise, the mail indicated that the outstanding balance of $225 had been paid. So this made me feel more uncomfortable about those guys (B.Y. Mafit). Why did the lady say it would be sorted out upon her boss's arrival this week when it could be sorted out the same day?

I narrated this experience to a friend of mine who has done GRE in the past, and he said he hadn't heard about B.Y. Mafit before and couldn't say anything about them, but he advised that I be careful of GRE registration agents, especially the ones that offer discounted fees, as he once heard that some of them make use of fake/ stolen credit cards, which would eventually make ETS cancel test appointments or even withhold test results. That's why I felt I should share my experience here in case there are people who have experienced such and would be able to advise accordingly, so I don't lose out at the end of the day.

Thanks, and I'm expecting more comments, people!

They are legit. Be patient. I used them for my second GRE and I had no qualms about them.

Time2Smile:
Yeah, you can still do something with this score. There are a lot of decent schools that accept 300 and above. Although, seeing that you are going for an MSc., getting funding might be difficult. By the way, was the test much more difficult compared to practice test especially Powerprep?

The test is much more difficult in Q and about the same difficulty level in V (especially if you do well in the first V). This is based on my 2nd experience. Perhaps, selecting "unenrolled college graduate" has a role to play in why that was so. I was hoping to get Ebdib's 168 or Topiipii and Chem Engr01's 167 Q but when I started seeing GRE questions with paragraphs, I started telling God that any score above 156 is not bad

Cephas0009:
Boss, how far with ur applications na... any feedback from school or faculty members yet? The wait no be here oo

Still waiting on the TOEFL to complete it. Some Faculty members replied but not based on working with them or anything. I am just whetting the ground in preparation to chyke them. A few schools want you to submit an application first before contacting faculty members because some of them check your suitability through that, even before opting to interview you.

The wait is crazy I agree.

aanexplus:
Guys score has been reported. I flop sha based on the way I prepared.
My profile
Msc hopeful
Bsc civil engineering
Cgpa:4.58/5
Gre score:306
Can anything good come out of this? Thanks guys for making me go this far. I will surely retake gre but can I still do something from this profile. Thank you

Only consider rewriting if you have time and are sure the improvement is worth it. If you had say Q- 166 V- 140. I would tell you pointedly that a retake will be unnecessary seeing that you are an engineering student whose Q ably represents his stronger skill. Your TOEFL could help augment the weak V score.

That notwithstanding I think you should make do with this score now even if you are considering a retake as your GPA is competitive. I personally am beginning to think the GRE is overrated based on the information I have been reading online. In fact, on Nairaland, someone got admitted into LSU with a 306 (Q- 156 V- 150) whilst someone else with a 332 said he did not experience any benefit. People's experiences differ sha. The synopsis.

OGreene:
Where are those that took GRE today. Report hia
Omo, my scores no gel oooh. E no pass 60 percentile. I am morose
Centre - S and T Reliance, Surulere

LOL. 60th percentile depends on Q or V. So less than it is about Q 154 and V153?

sirRiddy:
I did. To get a TA, TOEFL is compulsory.
100 is a desirable score with a Speaking score of at least 22.

Thanks. Over to you @ETS TOEFL!

sirRiddy:
Yes.

Did you take TOEFL?

sirRiddy:
I think K-State deadline is January 8 for most of their PhD admissions.
But the truth is the earlier, the better. They offer rolling admissions,
first-come-first-serve basis. It is better to be on a GTA in your
first semester so you are not servile to any professor when you first arrive.
For K-State hopefuls, there will be campus carry starting from next Fall, so beware
and prepare your mind for this change.
If you are coming to Manhattan, Kansas this Spring and need a temporary place to stay,
you can send me a pm. Good luck guys.

Thank you alot. You are doing a PhD program yourself if my memory serves me well?

ChemEngr01:
Do not be discouraged at all. Since you're applying for phd, you only have to worry about the final deadline as all admitted PhD students are funded. But still, as sirriddy said, the earlier the better.

Yea that was my motivation- that PhD students are funded.

aanexplus:
Good evening. Success to those writing tomorrow. Please how good are this schools in funding for msc civil engr. I have undergraduate cgpa of 4.58 and I will write gre on Sunday.
U Delaware
U Virginia
U of South Carolina
Illinois Institute of Technology

Thank you

Check their deadlines for priority except you don't mind funding it yourself. They are good schools. All the best.

kunbeeee:
I plan to apply to (MS in ECE)

University of Pittsburgh
Illnois institute of tech
University of Alabama
UT arlington

I am also looking at syracuse, Clemson.

Please can anyone provide info on the oppurtunities for fundig in these schools.

Make sure you are sure IIT will fund you. They were on my list at some point but I had to strike them off. I don't think Private Universities fund anyone but I could be wrong. So that goes for Syracuse and Clemson as well. Of course, this is referring to Masters. I didn't look at them for PhD.

kunbeeee:
I saw the bolded too but then I got confused by another info along the line. I mailed the grad coordinator for the dept this evening..I havent gotten a response.

Ok. Let's hope he says the same thing.

ChemEngr01:
Congrats on your AW score. I also applied for the chemical engineering program at two of the schools on your list, K-state and LSU. Bear in mind that the application deadline for early bird admission to K state is Dec 15.

Thanks and thanks. Hmmm, if that is the case then I may have to strike them off my list as I may not meet the Dec 15th deadline. However, as is my custom, I mailed the Grad coordinator for the department and this is what I got as feedback:

The deadline to apply for the Fall 2017 semester is January 8th, 2017, unfortunately the Spring deadline has already passed. If interested more for the spring semesters the next deadline for that is August 1st, 2017.

Except he was trying to say "priority" in the place of spring as I did not ask him about a spring deadline. In any case, I'd see if I can rush my application this night but the TOEFL may be a significant handicap as it is unreleased at the moment. If they actually meant December 15th, then I'd have to thank you for saving my $85.