适当的个人定位对于自己的申请很有帮助。定位恰当，往往能达到事半功倍的作用。经过一番分析，将自己定位成具有什么样专业背景的申请者，以便在申请过程中重点突出哪些方面的素质是很关键的。下面让我们先来大致看看美国大学对申请者有些什么要求：
| Rank | GPA | GRE | TOEFL | |
| Cornell | top 13 EE 9 | Minimum Grade Point Average: 3.5/4.0 or above | 500-Verbal, 750-Quantitative, 750/5.0-Analytica | 105-web based, 250-computer based, 600-paper based |
| University of California-Los Angeles | 2G d;V C a[1]z*C3K25EE rank: 13 | have completed the B.S. degree requirements with at least a 3.0 grade-point average. Students entering the Ph.D. program are expected to have completed the requirements for the master's degree with at least a 3.25 grade-point average. Admission to the UCLA Electrical Engineering Department is quite competitive. Recently admitted applicants have had a mean grade point average of 3.6-4.0. | There is no minimum GRE score for entering students. In recent years, Graduate Record Examination scores on the Verbal, Quantitative, and Analytical sections have averaged 61%, 93%, and 84%, respectively. | A TOEFL score of at least 560 on the paper and pencil test or 220 on the computer based test is the minimum required for applicants to graduate programs at UCLA. |
| Univ of Illinois @ Urbana-Champaign | top 30 EE rank: top 5 | the average GPA of applicants admitted and receiving financial aid was 3.86 (on a scale of 4.0 = A). | Quantitative (89.3%), Analytical (75.8%), and Verbal (74.5%). | must be at least 590. |
| Georgia Institute of Technology | -J!a!I~ X8n`Ybu37 EE rank: 7 | Np v,ck$TzMaster's Program： ` t8_"q%o6QStudents with a Bachelor of Science degree and with a minimum grade point average of 3.25 out of 4.0. Ph.D. Program：Students with bachelor of science or master of science degrees with a minimum grade point average of 3.5 out of 4.0 are eligible to apply for admission. | Verbal: 530 Quantitative: 760 Analytical Writing:4.5if your scoresare very low (ie., below 400V, 700Q, and 3.5AW), your application will be declined. | 213 (computer based) or 550 (paper based). |
| Rutgers State University (New Brunswick, New Jersey) | 60 EE rank:51 | Mater: A bachelor's degree in Electrical and/or Computer Engineering with a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.2 on a 4.0-point scale.bbs. PhD: A master's degree in Electrical and/or Computer Engineering with a minimum GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0-point scale and an undergraduate GPA of 3.2 or better. | Verbal 600, Quantitative 730, Analytical 660. | A minimum score of 250 is expected (paper version 600). |
| Illinois Institute of Technology | 97 EE rank: 77 | IIT requires a bachelor's degree conferred with a minimum undergraduate cumulative GPA of 3.0/4.0 | Quantitative + Verbal：1100 Analytical：3.5 | A minimum score of 550 (paper-based) or 213 (computer-based) or 80 (internet-based) is required. |
大家都知道田忌赛马的故事，田忌以弱胜强的赛马策略同样适用于申请。首先你得客观地分析自己的竟争实力。确定你是一匹上等马、中等马，或者下等马。通常我们可以把美国大学（TOP 100为例）分为几个档次。TOP 30, TOP 30-60,TOP 60-100,根据这几个档次我们又可以将申请人群大致划分为三类：
| GT | GPA | 研究背景 | 学校背景 | |
| 优势 TOP 30 | T：>630, TW>5.0 G：v>600,Q>750,AW>4.5 | GPA >3.5，或者 rank5 ％以内 | 本科生：有论文发表在国家级以上的核心刊物上，参加了国家级的研究项目； 研究生：在国家级以上的刊物发表论文多篇，尤其是国际性的刊物上 | 牛校：例如北大清华，中科大，上海交大，南大，天大，浙大等 |
| 一般 TOP 30-60 | T：600- 630 G：420<V<480,730<Q<800, AW:4.0 - 4.5 | GPA 3.2 - 3.5 或者 rank[5 ％－ 50 ％ ] | 本科生：跟着研究生做过一些小的课题，没有论文发表，但是有毕业论文 研究生：有一两篇一般刊物发表的论文，做过一些项目 | 介于牛校和一般本科院校之间的学校 |
| 劣势 TOP 60-100 | T： 560-600 G：v<420, Q <700, AW:3.5-4.0 | GPA3.0-3.2或者 rank 在 50% 以外 | 本科生：没有任何研究经历或者只有毕业设计和一些实验；研究生：没有论文发表或者发表在国家核心刊物上，所做项目均属小型项目 | 一般本科学校，或地方院校，或者专科学校 |