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Just don't stress about it, and don't compartmentalize your knowledge.
You are there to think, not to remember formulae!
- 1st year, 1998, ISL, 1st pass
I am convinced that the number one factor in Quals is your ability to
respond and communicate coherently when you are under pressure. Even the
Professor's that asked questions I knew almost nothing about gave me
reasonable scores (4's), presumably because I was able to reason and
communicate how I was thinking.
- 2nd year, 1998, CSL, 1st pass
My best advice to students is, just try your best during the exam no
matter what the question. If a prof is being evasive, call him on it!
Try to get across what you know even if it doesn't correspond exactly to
the question.
- 1st year, 1998, ISL, 1st pass
Confidence!
- 1st year, 1998, ISL, 1st pass
Just keep relaxed during the exam, and run the study group steadily.
- 1st year, 1998, ISL, 1st pass
I've talk with a lot of prospective students about quals and I've given them the following advice:
+Obtain and practice with previous quals questions which are easily obtained from older grad students.
+During your first quarter, take a couple of the courses which are known to be good quals prep classes, i.e. 216, 261, 282, etc.
+During the actual exam, be calm. If you screw up one question,
don't let that distract you from all subsequent questions. One score
of 1 or 2 will not prevent you from passing!
- 4th year, 1995, 1996, ICL, 2nd pass
I realized that as much as possible, studying from a text book that I had
used during my undergrad made it much easier. THat way it was more like
revision and less like cramming new material in a short time. The class
notes of Stanford Classes were very important also.
- 5+ year, 1994, CSL, 1st pass
Being relaxed and confident helps.
- 4th year, 1995, ISL, 1st pass
Passing the quals is quite dependent on luck too. The profs u get.
the state of your mind on that day, missing the most silly
questions and banging your head after coming out of the profs room.
Sorry for the grammar...
- 1st year, 1998, ICL, 1st pass
stay calm and be confident!
- 4th year, 1994, 1995, other, 2nd pass
If one is going to take it in ISL you really only need three classes to do well and a lot of common sense (ee261,ee278,ee103) For Electronic Devices you only need (ee216) So for incoming students who want to get a third or fourth area with out too much extra work take one of those classes....
Engineering Physics is a really hard area to take it in if you don't have
a lot of breath and a strong understanding of solid state physics or
optics. it is pretty much a free for all so the best way to take that
subject is to look at the prof not the area title.
- 2nd year, 1998, SSPL, 1st pass
More important than anything else is probably the psychological aspect
- 1st year, 1998, ISL, 1st pass
Concentrate on HOW you answer more than WHAT you know.
If you express the necessary fundamentals and use good engineering reasoning, you should do fine.
- 5+ year, 1994, STAR, 1st pass
It is very important to be confident about what you know. It is also
important to be able to catch your own mistakes and explain your thought
processes in making and correcting them.
- 2nd year, 1998, STAR, 1st pass
I am convinced that the number one factor in Quals is your ability to respond and communicate coherently when you are under pressure. Even the Professor's that asked questions I knew almost nothing about gave me reasonable scores (4's), presumably because I was able to reason and communicate how I was thinking.
- 2nd year, 1998, CSL, 1st pass
Ability to communicate, show confidence and think on your feet to respond
to hints provided are especially important for the quals.
- 1s year, 1998, STAR, 1st pass
1. A minimum of three months of preparation is needed.
2. Proper composition of the study group is important.
3. It helps to study on your own and then test out the knowledge
in the study group.
4. The months of December/January are a critical period.
- 4th year, 1997, SSPL, 1st pass
I found spending time in my undergrad physics and EM books was very good
preparation since most of the questions tested basic understanding. Very
few of my questions needed graduate level coursework
- 5+ year, 1994, other, 1st pass
My experience suggests that you don't want to get too specific in
preparation. This is not a standard exam where you are being tested on
material that has been fed to you during the quarter. Be strong in the
theory behind the specifics and be prepared to derive what you need from
that - even if it's only a partial derivation. Go for partial credit!!!
Most everyone gets slammed by at least one prof. If you can get some
credit for at least appearing intelligent and interested that's worth a
lot. Finally, don't get flustered. If you don't know something - say so
and get on with it.
- 3rd year, 1996, STAR, 1st pass
Don't take it too seriously. It is a warped
concept.
- 1st year, 1998, other, 1st pass
Widrow repeats the *same* questions year after year, so it is imperative for anyone who gets him to study his old questions, else they will lose to those who *have* studied his previous questions.
- 2nd year, 1997, ISL, 1st pass
The only comparison I can draw to the 2 and 1/2 years I spent on the quals would be having gone to war.
- 4th year, 1997, SSPL, 2nd pass
For God's sake, don't overkill yourself over Quals !! Prepare reasonably with an emphasis on intuition and principles and practice old questions as well. Choose professors not just blindly on the basis of their area, but on whether YOU could cope with their particular demands or not. Most important: STAY CALM (it can be a great advantage, after all it's not the end of the world) and built on your own knowledge and intuition, rather than letting a study group do all the work for you.
- 3rd year, 1996, ICL, 1st pass
I'd like to emphasize the use of Qual Questions from previous years for every professor you feel is very likely to get as our examiner. try to review answer most of the probems in a very short time. and if you can't get the answer or you don;t undesrtand it ask someone, preferrably the procfessor who made the answer.
- 2nd year, 1998, ISL, 1st pass
You should know one area inside and out. You should know the jargon of another. The last two don't matter as much since you can't predict who you'll get.
- 1st year, 1998, SSPL, 1st pass
Certainly you should take these classes to learn the material. But as I wrote above, you should also use these classes as a way to get to know the professors, and in particular to get to know what topics interest those professors the most. This is an important thing to do when trying to determine what kinds of questions to expect during quals.
- 4th year, 1996, ICL, 1st pass
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