BlueNahlchee

Your undergrad academic record looks great - certainly doesn't look like anything to be concerned about. 3.66/4.00 overall is a pretty good GPA, and even better, you have demonstrated that you have improved your academic performance every semester. Many programs often require overall undergrad GPA to be 3.0/4.0 or above, and often, they require overall GPA of last two years (or four semesters) of your undergraduate career to be at least 3.0 as well, so yes, often they do weigh latter two years more. Once again, I think your GPAs are great throughout your undergrad and your MA so I wouldn't worry about it. Nicely done!

I understand that and am happy for those people but your original post was patronizing. Let's just support the needs of each individual, whether they feel like they need to prepare for their courses or take time off. Neither is a "waste of itme."

I totally disagree that travelling is a waste of the summer! If you have the time and money, do it! It's going to be very difficult to find that chunk of time during your PhD, you've likely worked your butt off to get into programs, and travelling is a wonderful way to grow and mature as a person. Sure, prep too if ya want, can't you do both?  Globally calling it a waste seems a bit closed-minded?

literally everyone and their mother asked about my GPA lol i just owned up to it and told them that i made mistakes and that i had no real excuse for the low grades. its better to own up to it and then give them evidence that there is an upward trajectory in your grades than to outright lie because they can smell lies a mile away. give them evidence that you've changed and improved. the important thing isn't to dwell on the mistakes you made and trying to reason through them, the important thing is everything after that and everything that you are now. 
also during my Hopkins PhD interview, they didn't really inquire about my undergrad GPA when I had a graduate GPA in their department. every department looks for certain credentials and will focus on some more than others (some may like more critical thinking skills, others may prefer raw GPA girth, others may prefer knowledge of the synthesis of data, etc) 

TL;DR: do not give up hope if you have seemingly impossible odds like I did with an undergrad GPA of a 2.8, it may take some time, but you'll make it if you stick to it (details how are below)
 
My history in super brief parts: biochemistry major at a decent (science-focused) state school with a 2.8 cumulative GPA, straight C's in all maths and physics classes (withdrew once from calc 2, got C second time), even lower science GPA, roughly 55th percentile GRE scores (81st in essay part) after taking them twice, >1 year of undergrad research (no poster/publications), a bunch of related temporary internships, and a summer lab TA position. Defeated by all my senior year rejections, I networked for a job and got a lab tech position in a relevant field. 
Then I worked for a year after college. No publications, still. Got my first PhD interview at Lehigh (second time I applied) and I completely bomb it (literally didn't talk about my research once) and they told me not to apply again, and that moment was when I really considered hanging my hat and resigning to a life of subservient lab rat roles for the rest of my life. Then out of desperation I applied to a couple reasonable masters programs and one reach school (masters at Hopkins). Letter of rec writers were my lab tech supervisor, undergrad PI, and senior seminar course professor that knew my analytical/critical thinking skills well. Spurred by the (above) existential fear, I sought out to maximize my odds as much as I could by whatever legal means necessary. That meant going to the department at Hopkins and pitching my story and "voluntarily interviewing myself" to show them that I'm worth their time. And to this day I felt like that pitch was what got me into this program with such abysmally low credentials. [Insert here: long excerpt about attending childhood dream school and being in disbelief for two whole years]
I busted my ass and got a 3.45 masters GPA, and by the time I was applying for PhD programs during my masters, I was already incorporated in a lab doing research for a couple months and my PI had me set up for a middle author paper (my first paper) before my PhD applications were sent. Applied to a couple state schools (two acceptance out of like 5), one ivy league (rejected), two Hopkins programs. Everyone in my department at Hopkins knew I was BEYOND determined to get into the PhD program, even with seemingly impossible odds. I networked within my department like my life depended on it (it felt like it did). Then I got that hallowed interview invitation from Hopkins. So of course I took advantage of all my colleagues and got interview help and tips from them. Interview went fine and I got to pitch my research stuff properly in a relatively laid-back environment (I was interviewing with people who I see every day). Then a week or two later, I get an email from the chair of my department asking to see me in-person to share good news, so of course the most logical thing I did was panic and jump to the irrational conclusion that he was gonna serve me my second rejection letter in-person, but of course he just wanted to tell me that I was accepted into the Hopkins biochemistry PhD program. If I could've signed the papers immediately then and there, I would have. 
 
Non-academic/work details that may have factored into my crazy acceptance: club sports team captain for 2+ years in undergrad, director of graduate consulting club for a few months, masters student representative (which may have been crucial because I got to attend all the faculty meetings and they got to know me as a person), and captain of club sports team in grad school. I grew from an entitled underperforming undergrad from a regular state school to a determined and confident go-getter (after my failed Lehigh interview), and I won't lie, a confident, determined, and outgoing personality will only get you good points in any graduate-level interview. One of the Hopkins faculty that I interviewed even remarked that he wished more interviewees were as cognizant as I was about communicating properly and professionally in an interview setting. This is largely out of most applicants' control but: the application year can be a huge factor that determines whether a program lets in as few as 2 or as many as 9 incoming PhD students. 
 
I think my success is just a culmination of various parts that seem inconsequential on their own, but together can actually make a difference. If your undergrad GPA is too late to be saved (like mine was), then you have to compensate by bolstering every other aspect of your application, which in my case, can sometimes also include your personality/the way you carry yourself. Maybe that means spending extra money and time doing a masters, maybe that means stepping outside your comfort zone and polishing your communication skills, whatever it is, it will require time and dedication but if you want it badly enough, you will find a way. 
My path is not for everyone, and your mileage will vary, but I just wanted to share my story with everyone in the hopes that those who are on the brink of losing hope will find the fire in themselves to find a way to make their goals happen. 

The short answer is that you never stop looking at the literature until the project is done. Even as I was sending in my final edits in response to the referee report last week, I was still searching the literature for articles relevant to my work. Maybe I won't find anything relevant to add to my article, but I must stay up to date on the literature (so I keep reading even if the project is done because it will help for the next one!)
But, if you are asking a more specific question, like "How much preparation do I need before I start grad school" then that's just up to you. You shouldn't need to do anything until you begin this fall, but if it makes you feel better to read, then do so  One tricky thing is that unless you are continuing something you already have experience in, you might not know the seminal works that your advisor could suggest, so I'd start by asking them! It's okay to email your advisor over the summer and ask if there are any suggested summer reading. 

Update: I'm at a 2 now. I received my acceptance email from RIT on the 13th so yay! RIT doesn't follow the April 15th rule so I have until May 1st to put in my deposit. The little anxiety I have left is finding an apartment, maybe last minute applying for an assistantship, etc.

Lol I still haven't heard official decisions from two schools I applied to, but I too am assuming rejections from them at this stage now that it is April 18th. 

ECU Biology!

Stanford Genetics!
Anyone else going to Stanford?

I interviewed for Emory's BCDB and two of my friends are joining the molecular biology and genetics programs. I was really impressed with the quality of education and research opportunities that students at Emory had access to - I'm really happy for you! Best of luck in the fall!!

Hey all!
I really wanted to start an acceptance thread for a while, but I waited!  Hopefully, it's around a good time right now to start one.  I wanted to ask all of you macro/micro biologists on this site about what programs you'll be attending starting this fall.
Starting with me:  I'm attending USC's MBBO program~!  I'm going to be a Marine Biologist.  Where are you all attending and what program?  Or what two schools are you deciding between?

Congratulations to all of you! I've been lurking in the forum during the application season but I have now confirmed my first choice and I'll be attending the Developmental Biology program at Cincinnati Children's Hospital! I'm excited and nervous at the same time! 

ECU Biology!

Well this thread is quite intimidating. So many Ivy level schools. I'll be heading to Baylor in the fall. Good Luck to everyone!

I agree with @rising_star and also want to point out that any student is free to quit their program at any time, even before starting it.
So, you should not "fake-commit" to any school at any time. However, today, on April 15, you only have one offer and nothing is certain about the other two. There is nothing wrong with committing to this school today because you don't actually have any other offers. It would be wrong to take this offer with the intention of taking another offer that you already have. But at this point, you don't have any other firm plans so you can accept this current offer in good faith.
Then, if something better comes along later on, then there is also nothing wrong* with backing out of your offer and taking something different. (Nothing ethically wrong, but you'll have to be prepared that the people at this school will be unhappy that you quit their program and if you want to apply to PhD programs there, it might make it harder for you).
That said, the better approach would have been to ask for an extension and go with the above plan if they say no. But it's April 15 today, so it is probably too late to ask for an extension (you could try emailing right now though).

Hey, I think it is pretty normal to feel like you left something better behind when you choose from a bunch of good options.  I know every time I get close to choosing a school, I start to feel like I'm not valuing my other options enough.  At least you made a decision!  I'm still pulling my hair out over here.  Anyway, Yale is obviously a fantastic institution.  In the end, it seems you had no bad options, and once you get to Yale you'll just have to put your best foot forward to make the experience as great as it can be!  Good luck! 

Fellowships will take into consideration your undergrad GPA. You don't want to make it seem like you stopped caring at some point, since it will be pretty obvious if your GPA doesn't match up with other semesters'. Of course, this can change if all the courses you are taking are extremely difficult lol
For me, I wanted to graduate with one of the highest distinctions to make my family proud, so that kept me motivated. 

Assuming that you are new to the US (i.e. an international student) and with no connections in the US, the best way is:
- Open a bank account ASAP
- Get a social security number if you qualify for one (it will be an employment-only SSN, not for credit, but having one will make other things easier)
- Sign a lease in your name if possible
- Open billing accounts in your name whenever possible, e.g. phone, utilities, Internet etc.
All of these things will build up a credit history. I was able to get a credit card from my bank within 3 months of opening my bank account. The limit initially was low but then it increased. When you get this card, pay off the bills on time every time. I think it was a credit card for students specifically from Citi bank but unfortunately, Citi doesn't do student banking any more.
Another way to know when you are going to be able to get approved for a card is when you start getting mailed advertisements to your address with invitations to apply for their cards. Most of these offers are terrible and have very bad terms. Don't apply for one of those! But it might mean that a credit card through your bank might accept you.

@shadowclaw Ah well I hope it gets better between you too! My vent is that I'm still waiting on major grades in one of my classes. I know grades shouldn't matter but since I'm in a terminal masters, they do matter. I've submitted that work 4 weeks agooooooo. Also I'm super happy that my first ever project/research has been accepted to a conference!!!!!!!!! Now I'm scrambling to get the ball rolling on this, since theres so much paperwork. Also I'm a little annoyed because I almost messed myself up. My project needs a facualty member to supervise me but I didn't know that. So I had to be sheepish and ask one of my professors out of the blue. At least I caught it and my IRB request wasn't turned down

Shocked I received my formal acceptance email a few hours after the surprise phone interview. I was sure I had bombed and was no longer under consideration. 

Got accepted into UCR earlier this week! Still waiting on Arizona State and UCLA before I make a final decision.
And congrats to everyone who's been accepted so far!

Well, I will say that after applying to many PhD programs for 2017 admission, nothing has been more frustrating than transcript requests. The MOST frustrating part about transcripts is that there are still a ton of graduate programs that require us to request official transcripts to be mailed from their respective institutions after we submit our application (to be fully considered for review by the admissions committee, even if we have not received any unofficial admission offers), and often, these institutions will only accept hard copies via snail mail! Even when many universities are offering electronic official secured PDF options! Seriously, this is 2017...
Some institutions I request transcripts to be requested from have both first-class mail & overnight delivery options (though the second options always costs like crazy, but I always choose the second option if it's available, since the registrar office takes their sweet time to delay the delivery if a first-class option is requested), and some only offer their infamously sluggish first-class mail option. I find that first-class mail transcripts from their respective institutions sometimes take up to TWO weeks (or even longer) to get delivered, even though I requested them WELL IN ADVANCE! Some of these institutions' registrar office take FOREVER to process the transcript order and won't officially mail it until 2-3 days (or even longer) after initial request... simply ridiculous. Another frustrating part about these is that the admissions office of the graduate programs I applied to will email me (or nag me, if you can call it that, haha) to remind me that they still have not received the transcripts. I mean, what else am I supposed to do? I've done all I can by requesting transcripts to be mailed well in advance (as well as triple-checking that the recipient addresses are entered correctly). Sometimes I even had to order more copies because they were just taking so long to get delivered. And sometimes they were just plain lost in the mail! 
Does anyone else here found transcript requests to be the most frustrating part about graduate applications? Or does anyone have any transcript horror/annoyance stories to share? I'm relieved that more and more schools are only requesting official hard-copy transcripts (or ePDF) after an applicant is admitted, which makes this whole process SO MUCH EASIER. However, a large number of schools (including some I applied to) still require official HARD COPY transcripts mailed by snail mail to be fully reviewed by the admissions committee (even if you have not received an unofficial admissions offer), which I find it ludicrous, seeing that this is 2017 (and ePDF transcripts save so many trees). I will say that if it wasn't for all these transcript requests, I would definitely have saved a substantial amount of my savings that went to graduate applications... 

Just got admitted to my top choice!!!

Congrats!!!