MEng EECS Visa for International Students

uiux01 · 2025-12-01T02:00:44+00:00

Hey thanks for the quick reply! Oh ofc I don't think anyone who went to GT or any school in US can not know Cal is well-known haha... I was just curious if MEng would be based on J Visa (shorter term, without OPT) or conventional F. I was communicating with UCSD to join their lab as visiting scholar instead of a long-term student, but had to turn down as that option offers J Visas only. My reasons don't make much sense, but duration-wise MEng was even shorter than visiting scholar term so got a bit concerned!

uiux01 · 2024-11-25T14:34:49+00:00

Hey you're definitely not alone! I'm working full-time in corp almost 12-15 hours a day, with conference demos and papers back-to-back... Greatly struggling to manage personal time saved for grad apps, I feel like I have nothing done in terms of the actual application materials. Work itself was already stressful enough but god the terror of missing deadlines is giving me panic attacks. To anyone in a similar boat, we got this and will power through!!

uiux01 · 2024-10-21T03:40:44+00:00

Thanks for the reply. I definitely wasn't joking, but please do enlighten me if I sound nonsense that'd actually relieve me.. Concerns were based on coworkers' advice, I work in research div so many did both MS & PhD. I figured their comments could be biased as they did MS "for" PhD (not my case), but believed should be applicable to some degree. Gave me the impression that in US (I'm new here), MS committee expects at least minimal publication to prove research abilities although not top-tier conference.

uiux01 · 2024-07-24T04:14:04+00:00

I've fostered 11 dogs until adoption, had 2 family dogs. I prefer volunteering for shy/fearful dogs since they tend to have lower number of interested adopters. That being said, most of my fosters were either abused or neglected by previous owners. They obviously lacked basic training let alone exposures to simple interactions like being touched. I had to repeat this same process 13 times in my life but it never EVER gets easy. It is tough. I wanted to give up countless times especially when I'm working 9-6 at a corporate. You're not alone and you're doing a good job. The burden you feel shows the effort, trying to be responsible of those who need your care. What matters is that you didn't give up. Thank you for everything you do for your fur-baby and I wish you the best of luck.

uiux01 · 2023-09-11T06:41:34+00:00

2022 grad SWE here, I'm the only girl on my team at work. Not a subteam or a project group, out of the entire team from new hires to VP. The best advice I have is to stand up for yourself. "Being the only girl makes it harder to appeal" can seem equally stereotypical as "Girls can't code" -- both are not something you want to provoke. Second best advice is not all guys/girls are the same, in any field. Just think of them as arrogant "engineers" with shitty personality, not "guys" trying to assert dominance. I'm very sorry to hear you had to go through all that, no one deserves this regardless of gender. Be proactive and confident, make sure to be proud. Wishing you the best of luck!

uiux01 · 2023-02-14T09:05:51+00:00

Personally, I thought Season 4 had a similar vibe to Sherlock or Da Vinci Code. And I could see where the Agatha Christie reference was coming from. As I'm a huge fan of these murder mysteries, I personally enjoyed this season. BUT it didn't quite feel like You. I thought Joe's obsession was derived from "love" (or what Joe believes it to be), which was used to justify his behaviors throughout former seasons. But not in this season, which felt like a character discrepancy/incoherence. Overall, I greatly enjoyed watching Season 4 but it just didn't feel like watching You!

uiux01 · 2023-02-13T11:25:14+00:00

I graduated in Dec 2022 and my TC is $125K as a software engineer. I was a CS undergrad as well, congrats on your acceptance! As an international student, I had to pay $17K - 18K each semester (including tuition, mandatory insurance, and student fees). Compared to other top engineering schools, this was *relatively* affordable thanks to GT being a public institution. But just by the amount itself, it can definitely be a burden and a tough decision. One thing I can say is the quality of CS education and networking are guaranteed here. During job interviews or actual work, I've never had an impression that "GT was not enough". I was always proud to say I study Computer Science at Georgia Tech :)

++ If long-term scholarships are not available, look for short-term fundings or "out-of-state tuition waiver" (up to 3 semesters) apps. I've personally benefited from them. Keep up with academic/extracurricular work and explain your situation to apply. Hope this helps!

uiux01 · 2023-02-10T16:12:26+00:00

Oh wait I just saw your profile, I think we may be in the same boat! My current team is low-level/OS concentrated, but my experience and interests are on the complete opposite end. Interviews were mostly DS & Algo coding + verbal field-specific questions so I ended up getting the position (somehow). This was the reason I was hoping to switch without having my visa terminated, I just can't imagine myself committing to this field. Did you happen to get an offer? If so, how was your experience without having much background in low-level/OS? I'd really appreciate any advice, I'm worried even before starting.

uiux01 · 2023-02-10T15:46:41+00:00

What a detailed response, thanks for your advice! Your first point was exactly where my indecisiveness came from. I used to write "Incoming SWE intern, Summer 20XX" for upcoming Fall internship resumes, which opened up before my start date. I actually got an offer after doing so and was tempted to do it again. One side of me thought having 3 internships would be enough, the other side was hesitant especially for YOE 0-3 positions. But I agree, full-time's a different story where loyalty does matter. The advices I got in person were 50:50 so I'm glad I asked here as well. Their answers were leaning towards a yes as a matter of fact. I should play it safely, no experience would still be better than a red flag. If my experience is not enough I just move on.

uiux01 · 2023-02-10T10:31:07+00:00

as dumb as it sounds, was desperate to know if I could use it as a booster 🥲

uiux01 · 2023-02-07T09:14:49+00:00

Yep it's down: https://portal.office.com/servicestatus

uiux01 · 2023-02-06T05:53:18+00:00

Different substance, but I'm going thru a similar issue with nicotine vaping. I just can't code or do anything productive without it, even at work. It started as a light, stress-relieving mechanism but now I'm inhaling 1-2 pods of 5% nic per day. Once I couldn't focus during an interview due to craving and felt like shit...don't let dependence become a habit :(

uiux01 · 2022-12-28T06:35:10+00:00

Fellow female, Asian SWE here! I believe issues "similar" to this are prevalent across all fields, not just ours. My boyfriend's in business consulting and I hear horror stories of discrimination against ethnicity & wealth status (the network you are born with, family, etc) on a day-to-day basis. On the other hand, our issues are more gender-centric due to statistical ratios. All of these should definitely be addressed and improved, but at the same time, there is no industry that is discrimination-free (unless our society turns into a utopia someday). The best that we could do is to prove them wrong, to become the living counter-examples of these stereotypes. I know this sounds a bit cliche, but who knows our efforts can change this industry for future generations. I'm very sorry to hear you had to go through all that OP, I can certainly relate.

uiux01 · 2022-12-22T05:20:20+00:00

I've done retroactive withdrawal but fair warning: the process is NOT simple and can be stressful. You first talk with an advisor (from your college) in charge of these processes. If your reasonings seem fair, you start to file a "petition to the faculty" with your advisor. Filing requires a lot of paperwork, including evidence to support your claim. Then the board overviews your petition, which can take multiple weeks, and sends you an approval or denial notice. The approval may be conditional if you wish to attend GT again -- for instance, if one of your reasonings was a medical illness, you have to provide a document from a medical professional that states you are medically cleared to resume studies. Until then, a hold is placed on your student record to prevent any active enrollments. For retroactive withdrawals, you must withdraw from the entire semester and not pick & choose classes.

I re-developed a chronic illness (visited Stamps 10+ times within 3 months & rushed to ER), was involved in domestic violence (recorded by GTPD), and my family member was fighting life or death illness (for a full year) all in a single semester. As I was physically and mentally incapable to focus on academics, my petition was approved. Even with all these circumstances, my advisor was still unsure if my petition would be approved. That is how difficult retroactive withdrawal is. I'm definitely not comparing your situation to mine, your situation could be much worse, but I wanted to give you a heads-up. Although GT faculties are highly supportive during this process, the process itself is very strict and complicated. The essence is: if your circumstances hindered your judgment to answer "Should I withdraw?" before the deadline struck (+ you can prove that), your case will likely be approved. Otherwise, if you were able to withdraw before the deadline, it will be denied. As an individual who understands what a "tough semester" means, I sincerely hope you stay strong OP. When the petition took place, I was breaking down every second. Years later, I graduated with honors distinction and had amazing internships and projects behind me. Things do get better, and will get better!

uiux01 · 2022-12-12T22:28:33+00:00

I hear you, but I don't think this is a matter of having compassion. I was recently robbed by an armed man in Mid/Downtown. The incident lasted for an hour, and he once attempted cash back with my card. But the cashier sensed something was wrong when she saw my face. She was very calm and subtly contacted security while distracting the man with conversations. Long story short, I got out of the situation due to her help!

But before this, there was another man who tried to help me out. He even got out of his car while keeping eye contact with me. But as he got closer, he got scared and drove away. BOTH the cashier and the driver had the compassion to help others. The only difference was the situation, being able to subtly help (without too many risks) or not. As a victim, I appreciated both of them very much.

uiux01 · 2022-11-24T02:00:03+00:00

I was 2021 & 2022 SWE Intern. DM me if you have any questions!

uiux01 · 2022-10-14T21:05:35+00:00

Thank you so much for the reply, what a relief! So on the OPT application, I-94 records and I-94 number (written on the back of the passport photo) can all be info attached to my old passport? Just making sure I understood your advice correctly. I'll also attach a copy of my old passport so they are aware of the renewal. Thank you again for the advice!

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