Questions for ESOP/MSP Scholars

[mike...@gmail.com]

Hey Guys!

Greetings from Austria to all the (prospective) ETH Students and Alumni.

Firstly I don't want to ask about my chances for anything as I really understand that none of you can answer that. I have a few questions regarding the Scholarships anyway though.

My first question is about the interview that is to be conducted for the people on the shortlist. I read that a few people here got the ESOP, so I guess there are some with experience.
What did they ask? How long was the interview? I heard it was a telephone interview, so did you get notice by email or did they just call?
Any further information on that subject would be appreciated too.

My second question would be about the Pre-Proposal. Firstly, did you have to stick with the thesis throughout your studies or did the subject change? Did you get your mentor assigned in the field of your Pre-Proposal or by any other mechanism?
Furthermore, did you contact a professor at ETH beforehand to get ideas about the Proposal, or did you come up with an idea yourself. Also, was the Pre-Proposal realistic in terms of funds and time needed to complete it, especially if it had an experimental part of some sort?

Lastly, how long was your letter of motivation? Did you only use the input field in the online-application or did you write a letter separately?

Thanks for all your answers in advance and kindest regards to you,
Mike

[Sharan Srinivas]

Hello !

The interview is Telephonic. I do not know if its the norm, but i got an email with a proposed date and time and confirmed it along with a phone number. As for the contents of the interview, it changes from person to person. So there is no point in asking about it. But on General  terms i can say that it will not be too technical.

Though you are obliged to submit a pre-proposal you are not bound to stay by it. Im not in a program that requires a mentor, but from whati know, you have the power of choosing your on mentor usually. You can make your pre- proposal have an ultimate long term goal, but it will be advantageous if you can say what you plan to do in general terms, in six months, if thats how long your master thesis time is.

Keep your Letter of Motivation Short ,Sweet and Sharp. One Side of an A4 paper, which would bring it to ~500 words. Thats the Size of the input field in the online application. You have to use that because otherwise your online application will not say its complete, i believe.

Cheers

Sharan

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Sharan  Jagathrakshakan

[mike...@gmail.com]

Hey Sharan!

Thank you very much for your quick reply. I understand you're a computer science major. Since I'm applying for the Physics Master thats a different committee anyway.
I'm still curious though. What kind of questions did they ask? Was it more about your personal history or did they indeed check for general knowledge in your field. And of course how long did it take?

Best regards,
Mike

P.S.: I saw you already have a few publications under your belt. Quite impressive. Did you already have them published when you applied for the scholarship?