mellowcello

Hi, Can somebody please tell me the length of the SOP for Suny Buffalo (phd biomedical sciences) is it 1000 words or 1500 words? I need to send my application asap. Thanks & Cheers.

I feel like my sop is an example of what not to write in an sop.

Thank you so much for being honest. Didn't mind the frankness one bit. I'll start all over. Yeah after reading it again, it sounds a little pompous! I need to make so many changes. I'm so bummed right now.

Good Luck! I'm exhausted too!

Hi I would like ya'll to be brutally honest. I need to send in my applications by the end of this week. I wrote my first draft 8 hours ago! and here it is. Would love an honest feedback, I'm close to tears and my brother volunteered to read it but I'm so scared to send him this draft cuz he's super intelligent (CMU) and I ain't that much :'( Remember I was half asleep while typing the later half. Cheers. xx My motivation for a Career in Biomedical Sciences Steven-Johnson syndrome (SJS) is a disorder that occurs in people who are induced with a variety of therapeutic sulfa drugs and their bodily organs and functions shut down because their immune system is not capable of fighting it. My father was diagnosed with it and miraculously survived the disease. But the process was slow and arduous. From then on I decided to immerse myself in something that I could have a proper hold off i.e. science and my lifestyle. I got myself enrolled at the Biology and chemistry program at (XXX) University for my undergrad and was fascinated learning about the millions of biological organisms and their systems, while having a morbid taste of dissecting frogs and lizards and learning about the different eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms. During my time at the Biological department I got a better understanding of the physiological relationship of how cells interact and how this experimental approach can be applied in studying the various physiological systems of the human body and their homeostasis. This helped to form the basis for my future master course. I enrolled in the molecular courses taught by Ms.(XXX) She opened the door to experimental science that took me in so many different directions. Rather than memorizing my course work I started to analyze each and every problem. The course pushed me to determine which experimental approaches would be most viable for a certain hypothesis. My tutor and mentor Ms.(XXX) suggested that I take the advanced Analytical chemistry courses encouraging me that it will help me further my career. Truth be told I immensely enjoyed the stimulating experiments of electrochemistry, chromatography and learning about the Molecular structure and interactions of Biomolecules. I’m forever grateful to her. After completing and getting all my credits I realized that while I was thoroughly focused on getting my degree, I had forgotten the outside world so I decided to live a little and went to Bangkok to visit my sister and soaked myself in the beautiful culture while taking in all the sights and smells. It was truly a wonderful experience; almost equivalent to a gap year. I came back and was ready for another spectrum of Science. I joined the Science Club and participated in a (XXX) Sponsored National Seminar about Nanomaterials where a classmate and I worked on the relations between nanostructures and properties of natural nanomaterials. We worked on an experiment that gave an indirect evidence of the presence of particles that are too small to be seen even with the help of an optical microscope by using gelatin and milk and then recording how the laser beam behaved as it penetrated each sample. I then went on to participate in the Intercollegiate Science Festival under the banner “(XXX) ” where I had to prepare a genomic DNA from Bacteria using Phase Lock Gel. There were so many experiments in molecular biology that I wanted to work on but my university did not have the necessary equipment that was needed thus I fell back on immersing myself in the scientific literature instead in order to see and read exciting avenues of research. After the completion of my degree I decided to broaden my horizons and went on to take up a job in an Internet firm where I managed and supervised Internet based networking issues soon I was promoted to training new entrants with the firms software. During this time I felt that I have dipped my finger in a lot of baskets and decided to get a Masters Degree. (this last sentence sound silly! I know( Coming to England was one of the best experiences of my life. After enrolling myself at the University of(XXX) , and after attending a number of classes I wanted to solely centre my learning on Immunology and molecular Biology. My first elective was about Research methods in Biomedical Sciences where we had lively group discussions and learning about cutting edge technology and sharpening our laboratory skills like PCR, ELISA etc. I then went on to give a seminar in the various Research methods available Biomedical Science. I was then chosen to be the post graduate representative amongst so many brilliant students. I was extremely overjoyed. One day while sitting in the dorm room my friend from (XXX) started telling me about how her aunt had been diagnosed with HIV and asked me if science would ever find a cure for this disease. It would be remiss of me if I had not told her about the Berlin Patient. Until then I wasn’t remotely interested in learning more about AIDS but curiosity getting the better off me I started researching articles about Timothy Brown a.k.a the Berlin Patient. When I’m morbidly curious about something however small I have a proclivity to find out just about everything even the most minuscule details . Aside from my regular curriculum, I decided to slowly follow up on everything about AIDS even though I wasn’t able to do the required laboratory work. AIDS deeply fascinated me and I had a deep hunger to know more. I was given a set of diseases to work on like SLE, Huntingdon’s disease etc. but I decided to direct my work on Acute Myeloid Leukemia and its allogenic bone transplants as Timothy Brown was also diagnosed with it. Further on since the (XXX) Centre for (XXX) Research was wholly focused on Heat shock proteins and its therapeutic agents, I decided to work on Tumor cells as we were not given clearance for blood samples of an AIDS patient. My thesis was on the Use of chemotherapeutic drugs in treating tumors. I worked under the constant supervision of Dr. (XXX) who had previously worked on the treatment of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). After getting my Master degree,I then went on to get a teaching position in a school and taught Biology and Chemistry and seeing how eager the students were about learning fueled in me a desire to go back to school and be in the same position. I want to earn a PhD in Biomedical Sciences as it will surely help me develop my skills and ultimately my main goal is to obtain a position as Professor. I am interested in Molecular Oncology and Tumor Immunology as well as deepening my understanding on molecular biology in general. I find that the interdisciplinary umbrella program is the best way to start a PhD as it helps me dab my fingers in different (pies?!) departments and thus getting a taste of everything and satiating my palate. I’m excited to learn about different project by different students. I am also greatly interested in studying the fundamental molecular and cellular processes of the development of different tissues subjected to different changes. Upon completion I would like to obtain a Post doctoral fellowship and then become a professor of sorts and teach other students just like me. _____________________________________________ This is my first draft and I got 2 more days to submit! help me pleaseee. Brutal comments are accepted, BTW I do not have any research experience except in academia. Cheers. xx