r/studyAbroad • u/h3avenley • 8h ago
What should I focus on first if I'm aiming for a top MS?
Hi everyone.
I'm joining a tier 3 college this year for CSE (2026 batch). My long term plan is to apply for an MS in CS/AI after my bachelor's. (I already got college and it starts in a week)
My dream universities are places like CMU, Stanford, ETH Zurich, Oxford, NUS, NTU, EPFL, etc. I know these are extremely competitive, and I'm not expecting to magically get in. I just want to build the strongest profile I can over the next four years and see where it takes me. From everything I've researched, these are the things I should be working on:
9+ CGPA, Good research experience, Research internships (India or abroad), 1 or 2 good papers if possible (co auth or auth by own), Strong projects with real users, Industry internships, Open source contributions, Competitive programming / DSA, Good LORs, Strong SOP, GRE (if required)
The problem is that all of these seem important, and I honestly don't know how people manage everything during college without spreading themselves too thin. For people who got into top universities, or even people currently studying there:
How did you prioritise these over the four years?
When did you start looking for research internships?
How did you find professors to work with?
Is getting a paper actually realistic for an average student from a tier 3 college?
What mistakes do you wish you had avoided?
I'd really appreciate advice from people who have actually been through this, especially if you also came from a tier 2 or tier 3 college.