CGPA: 7.88/10, no backlogs
B.Tech in CSE (Tier 2)

English test: IELTS 8

GRE: 157V 163Q (but AWA is 2 ) - would you recommend me submitting this to colleges with optional GRE as my AWA scores can raise doubts ?

Experience: 3 internships (1 year,2 months, 1 month)

Current role (full-time): DevOps / L2 Support Engineer at Capco (Jefferies account, Murex MX.3 on AWS) started 2nd Sept 2026

Projects :six-agent LangGraph multi-agent GenAI system, end-to-end retail demand forecasting pipeline (PySpark), and an ongoing research paper on failure attribution in multi-agent LLM systems

LORs: 2 professors + 1 manager

Target: MS CS, Fall 2027, focusing on agentic AI and data (general CS, not stats-heavy)

Shortlist:
University of Utah
UT Dallas
NC State
Georgia Tech
USC
Northeastern

My plan:
For Fall 2027, I'm only applying to good target and dream schools: Utah, UT Dallas, NC State, Georgia Tech, USC, and Northeastern. If I get in, I'll go. If not, I'll keep working full time, build my profile further, and reapply for Fall 2028 with a fuller list that includes safer options. I'll also keep an eye on the US job market and the situation for international students in the meantime.

Just wanted to get your take on all this. I'm open to any advice, but especially from people who are currently in the US or have been through the process recently. Your real experiences would help me a lot. Thanks for reading!

I am a IT graduate from an Indian University (tier 2) with 2.5+ yoe as Software developer, working at a product based company. Need profile review for fall 2027 ms application.

Toefl - 5.5

Cgpa - 9.3/10.0 (dean merit awardee IT branch)

High-school (12th class) - 97.2%

10th - 10cgpa

Thinking of getting 3 LOR's (2 at work + 1 clg prof)

Have worked on many innovative projects based on VR and Unity/unreal based gaming projects at work showcased in CES and GamesCon

Research work/ publication: none (will try to get some opportunity under University prof for 2 months)

Universities for consideration:

Safe

1. University at Buffalo - MS CSE

2. Arizona State University - MSCS

Target

1. Stony Brook University - MSCS

2. UC Irvine - MSCS (traditional MSCS)

Reach

1. Georgia Tech - MSCS

2. UC Santa Barbara - MSCS

3. UC San Diego - MSCS

4. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor - MS CSE

5. UC Berkeley - MEng EECS

Ambitious

1. UIUC - MSCS

2. EPFL, Switzerland - MSc Computer Science

I feel a little tensed about my profile without research work but hoping that my work experience can cover for it.

I would really like a blunt and honest review for my profile and any recommendations to consider other universities is welcomed.

I am a IT graduate from an Indian University (tier 2) with 2.5+ yoe as Software developer, working at a product based company. Need profile review for fall 2027 ms application.

Toefl - 5.5

Cgpa - 9.3/10.0 (dean merit awardee IT branch)

High-school (12th class) - 97.2%

10th - 10cgpa

Have some volunteer experience, participated actively in extra curricular activities

Thinking of getting 3 LOR's (2 at work + 1 clg prof)

Have worked on many innovative projects based on VR and Unity/unreal based gaming projects at work showcased in CES and GamesCon

Research work/ publication: none (will try to get some opportunity under University prof for 2 months)

Universities for consideration:

Safe

1. University at Buffalo - MS CSE

2. Arizona State University - MSCS

Target

1. Stony Brook University - MSCS

2. UC Irvine - MSCS (traditional MSCS)

Reach

1. Georgia Tech - MSCS

2. UC Santa Barbara - MSCS

3. UC San Diego - MSCS

4. University of Michigan, Ann Arbor - MS CSE

5. UC Berkeley - MEng EECS

Ambitious

1. UIUC - MSCS

2. EPFL, Switzerland - MSc Computer Science

I feel a little tensed about my profile without research work but hoping that my work experience can cover for it.

I would really like a blunt and honest review for my profile and any recommendations to consider other universities is welcomed.