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Whisky-with-a-Y

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  • Location
    New York
  • Application Season
    2014 Fall
  • Program
    Chemistry

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  1. Oops, should have mentioned it was a terminal program. Thanks pluftern
  2. Lastly, they also recieved funding for their 2 years. I believe they all enjoyed the process and got out of a lot of classes come PhD time.
  3. I personally know a few students, US students, who completed a masters degree and went on to do a PhD at high-level, respected schools (top 10). The majority weren't sure they wanted to start a PhD program at the time of undergrad graduation so they completed a masters and found out they did. It was never viewed as a negative and I believe a masters would only be perceived as negative if you were awarded one from a school that does not give them (you did not finish the PhD program). Good luck!
  4. My advice for the Chem GRE: Hmmmmmm. I took the test very early, before my 2nd semester of PChem, any inorganic or instrumental, so I could apply very early to grad school. My results would have been fine if I had stuck to my game plan of only answering questions I knew, but I abandoned that when I sat down (poor choice on my part). The optimal time to take it is as late as possible (october-ish I think), but it will delay your applications a bit if you want to submit your scores. Also, you might have to automatically submit your scores if you take it later, meaning the scores will go directly to the schools and not you first. If I had to take it again I would sign up for the test in the summer of your junior/senior year, that way PChem should be done, which takes up a decent chunk of the test. Most students will not have every class complete that is covered on the test, so strategy is very important. Don't answer a question you don't know as it will count against you. Lastly, don't freak out if you don't do too well or have time to take it. I got in to some great schools without submitting my scores (every school I applied to), and I know a few other students, personally, who got into Ivy's without a Chem GRE. Regular GRE: Take it over the summer or when you don't have much going on. The test is easy to do decent on, tough to do outstanding on. I studied for 2 solid weeks and was happy with my scores. Review some basic algebra, geometry, and really practice verbal. Chem students consider that to be the least important part, but it looks good to do well in that subject. Shoot for at least 70th percentiles in all. Getting Into Research: Eigen summed it up pretty well. Meet up with a few different professors, maybe ones that you really like and have them explain their research to you, they love that stuff. Do a little research on your own and try to get an idea of something that sounds interesting. Don't be afraid to hate what you are doing. If you start in an organic lab and dislike it, get out early. There is no law that states you have to do something you dislike. I spent a year and a half in an inorganic lab before I finally moved on and it was a large waste of time. The schools and professors that do a lot of collaboration are a good start as you can get a taste of a few different areas. In the end, don't think that just because your did 1 thing in undergrad means that you have to continue that in grad school.
  5. I would send an email and ask, it could be any one of those options. Maybe take a look at the results search and see if the school as accepted a lot/sent rejections, /sent anything.
  6. They are the only school I still have yet to hear from. When I finished the preapp I emailed and verified all the material was there, but otherwise I wouldn't have heard anything back. Fortunately I have already made my decision but sucks for anyone who is waiting on them, it seems like they are taking their time.
  7. I would ask whether or not the stipend is taxable. Some schools are able to work around that, while others will say "you are considered for a TA position with a taxable stipend of XX$". The schools I visited with lower stipends had the majority of that stipend as non-taxable, which makes a big difference, while the ones with larger stipends were taxable. At the end of the day, a 1-2 grand a year will not make a very large difference.
  8. I did not apply there and I have never been but I know a few people who have. They all enjoyed their time and really liked the area. They described it as a little city in the middle of know where and this it is similar to any other large college town (assuming that college is not located in some massive, major city). There is the university and everything else that supports it. There are bars, golf, events, just like anywhere else. Also, it is only like a 2 hour drive to Chicago which is a very easy Saturday morning drive. Anyway, I thought I would add that. Good Luck
  9. It can vary greatly depending on advisor. For most a typical day is 8-5, 9-6, like a regular work week, but the time frame is somewhat arbitrary. The time spent in the lab really depends on the work being done. I have peers that spend all day, not 18 hours, but the entirety of the day in the lab. But they are not doing work every minute of it (not even close), they would just rather spend their time at school then at their apartment, which is their choice. It is a question of time management. You do not have to "live" in the lab and I would recommend asking potential advisors on future visits of their work expectations. Obviously the majority of your day will be spent at school, it is a job and should be treated as such. But I personally wouldn't get involved with a group if you were expected to be in the lab ALL the time (12+ a day). A lot of students work on the weekends, for some it is mandatory. Analytical/physical/computational spend a lot of time on the computer (well it really depends on the project), and you are correct that a lot of that can be done at home. I personally will not work for someone who requires 12 hours a day as I have a family and care about spending time with them. You can accomplish a lot of work in a 10 hour day, a lot, you have just to manage your time wisely and work hard when your there. There will be times too where you put in a very long day, maybe 18h as mentioned above, it happens. But be realistic, the idea of doing back-to-back 18h shifts is a little unreasonable (by the time you got home, showered, ate, your looking at 4h sleep and consistently that would have a huge affect on your work). But for some, they might enjoy it. Like I said, this is a very important question to ask future potential advisors (it isn't inappropriate) and also group memebers, but take everything with a grain of salt as they will be trying to get you to go to their school.
  10. Hey, I really wouldn't worry about it just yet. It is around that time where acceptances seem to be going out, but that doesn't mean it will stop today. Keep looking foward to the next few weeks and if it hits mid-February, maybe then start to worry. It is hard to go by the trends you read here, so don't take them to seriously. I don't think you "shot yourself in the foot", although some of those schools are clearly top, top choices. Your backups (or confident, as you called them), are pretty good schools. UNC-Chapell Hill is a really hard school to guage. I have seen them deny outstanding candidates, without any reason. UC San Diego also gets a lot of popularity as its location and it has a pretty good reputation. Same goes with Colorado, so all those schools receive a ton of apps. I think you app kind of stands out as you have training as a chemical engineer. Curious, why didn't you go that route? I see a lot of chem students try and pursue that area, although it is very difficult from the lack of engineering classes and experience in that setting. I have no idea how much GPA actually matters. You will see varying accounts of that on this forum and I think it depends on the rest of the application, I think we can at least make that generalization. Assuming there wasn't a cuttoff and your application reached the review stage, it should be somewhat interesting. However, I am not sure if these schools have cutoffs and it might not have reached that phase. I imagine if the latter was the case you would receive a rejection, which it doesnt look like you have yet, so don't worry. Lastly, if it reaches mid-Feb, send an email out. There is a chance of being wait-listed. Also, schools tend to send out applications in waves. So first they do an early round, which is what we are seeing right now and for the earlier months (can't say that for every school, but a few that I got accepted to told me that. Its why they like you to decline if you have no interest). P.S. For the 20 students on here being accepted to these outstanding schools, there is probably 100 more that are reading these posts and wondering the same thing that you are. Someone posted a bit ago asking for the "normal" students because all we are reading are the top, top acceptances (congrats to everyone who got in, that is an outstanding accomplishement alone), but there a lot of people, a lot who are in the same position.
  11. That is really dependent on your interests. Other than the two you haven't heard from, there isn't a hierarchy between the remaining 4? I wouldn't visit all 6, assuming you get into them all. I wouldn't even visit 4, but that is personal as I don't wish to be out of town that much. Also, I already know that certain professors at certains schools interest me more than others. So I applied to 8, have gotten accepted to 5 and haven't heard from 3. I will probably only visit my top 2-3 choices. The others were fillers and I wanted to make sure I got in some where. Also, by declining early, especially to a school you know you won't go to because you have already gotten into better, allows for other students to be accepted.
  12. I wouldn't write it, especially if it was for a competative position. I had the tendancy, as a young student, to think of everyone I came into contact with in academia as a potential LOR. I would direct him to the professor, assuming he/she did well.
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