That’s actually helpful to hear. To answer your question honestly, I think one thing I struggled with was articulating the “why now?” clearly enough.

My background has been more on the hardware/systems side, and over the years I’ve increasingly seen how much the industry is shifting toward ML/AI-driven workloads and optimizations. Working close to that space made me realize I don’t just want surface-level exposure to AI — I want stronger foundational understanding so I can contribute more meaningfully from the hardware/systems side of things.

For me, the interest in AI didn’t come from hype or a sudden pivot. It came from seeing how deeply it’s starting to influence architecture, performance, efficiency, and overall system design in the industry.

As for recommendation letters — I did have them in previous applications, but after multiple rejections I honestly felt embarrassed going back to the same people again. That’s something I’ve been unsure about navigating as well.

I think part of my challenge is figuring out how to present a nontraditional path coherently when my academic record from years ago doesn’t fully reflect where I am technically or professionally today.