by Guest » Fri Apr 09, 2010 4:04 pm
Take the NSF regardless. You are going to want to have options, and most PIs would be happy to fund you for your remaining years after putting in 2+ in their lab on the NSF's dime. I'm not sure how many years you asked for SMART for, but I can guarantee it wont be a 3-4 yr service committment if you're just starting (They'll pay for a maximum of 5, but i you asked for 3 and takes you 5 your service requirement will be 7). It inevitably takes longer than you think to make a novel contribution in your field, especially when you're taking time away from your research to do the internships. For your first few years, the summers are the only time your really have available to do research. I don't know a single person in my school who has taken less than 5, and these are smart motivated people with all kinds of feathers in their hat NSF, Hertz, NDSEG, SMART you name it. And if you already have a masters, it really doesn't matter, it will still take you just as long. Also, the thing to keep in mind with SMART is that there is more at play than just how qualified you are. If you read the program justification in the DOD budget one of the few metrics they give for success is the number of students that are participating in the program. Between tuition and your stipend over your graduate career, you'll cost the program roughly 400K. At the end of the day, the decision makers care that they have added x number of qualified engineers to there workforce, even if it means passing up a few extremely bright candidates, that simply cost too much. Long story short, if you dont get the SMART don't be dissappointed, take the NSF and run.
Take the NSF regardless. You are going to want to have options, and most PIs would be happy to fund you for your remaining years after putting in 2+ in their lab on the NSF's dime. I'm not sure how many years you asked for SMART for, but I can guarantee it wont be a 3-4 yr service committment if you're just starting (They'll pay for a maximum of 5, but i you asked for 3 and takes you 5 your service requirement will be 7). It inevitably takes longer than you think to make a novel contribution in your field, especially when you're taking time away from your research to do the internships. For your first few years, the summers are the only time your really have available to do research. I don't know a single person in my school who has taken less than 5, and these are smart motivated people with all kinds of feathers in their hat NSF, Hertz, NDSEG, SMART you name it. And if you already have a masters, it really doesn't matter, it will still take you just as long. Also, the thing to keep in mind with SMART is that there is more at play than just how qualified you are. If you read the program justification in the DOD budget one of the few metrics they give for success is the number of students that are participating in the program. Between tuition and your stipend over your graduate career, you'll cost the program roughly 400K. At the end of the day, the decision makers care that they have added x number of qualified engineers to there workforce, even if it means passing up a few extremely bright candidates, that simply cost too much. Long story short, if you dont get the SMART don't be dissappointed, take the NSF and run.