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virology_2018

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  • Application Season
    2018 Fall

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  1. Hey your application profile looks great! I'd recommend also looking at UCSF. I think you'd be a competitive applicant there and they have a lot of great immunology and microbiome research. Susan Lynch in particular is doing some really cool microbiome stuff. Plus SF has a wonderful temperate climate!
  2. Thanks microbenerd2018! I think you're right that it's important to think about life outside the lab when I'm making a decision Thanks StemCellFan! This is some helpful advice! I think yeah the community is such a big draw at Harvard, but I am a little nervous about mentorship there for some reason. Despite the many times I've heard not to pick a school for one professor, I'm still inclined to go to Sinai to work with the one professor who I mentioned above. He's doing really cool research, has a great recent track record of mentoring students, and is young and at the beginning of a successful trajectory. Do you think it would be a mistake to let this draw me to Sinai? Also I see that you're going to attend Madison, congratulations!! I did my undergrad there and am teching there right now; its such a great place and I hope you love it!
  3. Hi all, I'm really stuck between Harvard and Mount Sinai and desperate for help deciding. Both schools are strong in virology, the field I'm going into. Research: Both Sinai and Harvard are top places to go for virology. Sinai is a closer fit for what I’m currently interested in (RNA viruses), which Harvard has less of. However Harvard has a broader range of virology research and I’m wondering if that might be better. Faculty Choices: There’s is a professor I reallyyy want to work with at Sinai, whom I’ve already contacted and has confirmed he is taking students and would love to have me in his lab. Beyond this professor there are at least 3 others I would be interested in working with and who seem like they would be good mentors. I didn’t click with any particular professor at Harvard, but there are at least 10 who I would be interested in, if not more. These professors have a broader range of interests and I would probably be exposed to a variety of subfields in virology during my rotations. NIH funding: Harvard ranks first in NIH funding for microbiology departments, but has fewer individual faculty who rank near the top for NIH money. Sinai ranks fourth for NIH microbiology funding, and they have a much smaller microbiology department which is entirely virology focused. Several faculty rank extremely high in NIH funding. Program Structure: Harvard has relatively strict structure, but the core courses are virology focused, which I would actually like. Sinai has few required courses and a much more open structure. The administration at Harvard seems fairly disorganized compared to other grad programs. Neither school has required TAing, but both have the option to. Community: Harvard absolutely takes the cake in this category. I really clicked with the other students and recruits, and the community is super tight-knit, supportive, and fun. I would be really sad not to go to school with this crew. I’m sure Sinai has a good sense of community as well, I just didn’t click as much with other recruits and didn’t interact as much with grad students because of the interview structure. Location/ Housing: I really like New York and could see myself living there. While the upside is that housing is super affordable because it’s subsidized at Sinai, the downside is that means living in an apartment-style dorm for 5-6 years. I’ve spent less time in Boston/Cambridge than New York, but it seems like a really cool city. Another thing I like about Harvard is that whereas Sinai is a graduate/ medical institution only, at Harvard I would still be able to interact with/ be exposed to all kinds of academia. Prestige: Does this matter? Harvard has the fancy name-brand, but Sinai is also really well-regarded in the field of virology. VERY STUCK PLZ HELP
  4. I didn't receive any other emails, but I did receive a package in the mail with a schedule, print out of the invitation to interview email, and a bunch of booklets describing the graduate program and research at Rockefeller.
  5. I had this same feeling right before my first interview last week. I was so overwhelmed with anxiety that I couldn't eat the day of and was so worried I wouldn't be able to convey my research to my interviewers. That being said, as soon as I actually began speaking with professors, my nerves went away and everything went really well. You probably know your research even better than you think you do; as soon as you find yourself needing to describe things in person I'm sure you will do fine. The hardest part is being confident-- just know that if you are interviewing somewhere its for a reason and you deserve to be there! If you wrote a good SoP, I'm sure you are a great researcher and you will interview very well. BiomedicalPHD's advice is a great way to prepare. Also make sure you eat before your interviews, you'll feel much better than if you don't.
  6. I got an interview invite from BU PiBS on Monday. I think the admissions committee was overwhelmed with the amount of applications this year and is sending things out slow, on a rolling basis
  7. If you google "NIH grad school interview preparation", there is a presentation from the NIH OITE that is meant to help you prepare for interviews. It seems pretty helpful, I'd check it out!
  8. This is maybe a little silly, but now that I'm getting interview invites, I'm worried that even if I interview I won't actually get accepted to any schools... Does anyone have a sense of post-interview acceptance rates? I know it varies from school to school, but in general how competitive is it to get an acceptance after interviewing somewhere?
  9. Does anyone know the status of Rockefeller and University of Maryland BISI invites?
  10. I also received a UCSF BMS interview offer this Friday, no idea if they're done sending invites out though!
  11. Hi everyone I've since taken the GRE and tweaked my list of schools; would love more feedback from anyone if possible. GRE Scores (revised/old version) Q: 161 (78th percentile) V: 170 (99th percentile) W: 5 (93rd percentile) School List: Harvard -DMS Virology UCSF -BMS Rockefeller Mount Sinai U Penn -CAMB Northwestern -DGP University of Washington (MCB and Microbiology) University of Maryland Boston University Emory University of Chicago
  12. Looks like you into some very good programs, so that is reassuring
  13. I am currently a research technician in a virology lab and looking to apply to grad schools for virology (this is usually within a cell/molecular bio or microbio program.) Would love to hear if my list of schools are good choices for virology research/ how strong of an applicant I would be! Undergrad Institution: Big Ten, top research university, strong microbio reputation Major(s): Biology, French Minor(s): Global Cultures GPA in Major: not sure… I had great grades in biology electives but struggled with organic chemistry Overall GPA: 3.73 Position in Class: Top 20% Type of Student: Female domestic GRE Scores (revised/old version): taking later this month Q: V: W: B: Research Experience: 1.5 years genetics research characterizing a drosophila gene family (well known PI, see below). Worked part-time during the school year and full time during the summer. Two poster presentations at my university. There was talk of working on a manuscript but since I (as well as my mentor) left the lab not much has materialized. 1.5 years (by time of app) virology research ( well known PI in virology field). One semester part time, 1 year full time. Two poster presentations; one for the university and one for the private research institute at which we are based. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Graduated with Distinction (top 20% of class) Dean's list 3/7 semesters Germaine Mercier scholarship (not relevant, it's from the French department) Member of the American Society for Virology (attended ASV'17 but didn't present) Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: graduated a semester work full time on research Special Bonus Points: One of my recommenders is extremely well known in his field (evolution/ genetics) and to the greater science community My current PI is well known/regarded in the virology field Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Worried about two things, if anyone has input: I took a semester off of research between labs to study abroad (for my French major) I got C's in both semester of organic chemistry ( I plan to address in personal statement) Applying to Where: I have 13 schools on the list right now and would like to narrow down to maximum 10. I tried to have a range of schools in terms of prestige. Harvard -DMS Virology Yale -BBS UCSF -BMS Rockefeller Mount Sinai U Penn -CAMB Northwestern -DGP University of Washington University of Michigan University of Maryland Boston University Albert Einstein College of Medicine Oregon Health and Science University
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