NSG-mdx

I read your previous post about quitting PhD from graduate school because of funding shortage. It seemed that you plan to continue your PhD again.

Graduate school is mainly for research and hence your main consideration should be research fit. You can first figure out your research interest or potential research interest. Then go to each graduate school's faculty list to pick up professors of interest. Finally e-mail each faculty to check out 1. Whether they are planning to recruit new graduate student? 2. What is their current research projects? Sometimes faculty's lab website is out-of-date. Then, you can make a list to figure out which graduate school has most professor of interest and are willing to recruit new student. If necessary, you can fly to that graduate school to meet your potential mentor.

Doing PhD study in a PhD oriented lab is better because you have more time to interact with your mentor. Mentorship is very important for PhD study.

I am also placed on a wait list but the admission chair told me that I would know the final decision during mid-March. Therefore, I think most students that are placed on a wait list would be notified during mid- or late-March. Life is tough but life is real. We cannot force others but we can force ourselves to be strong and competitive.

For some schools, international students are accepted by direct admission which means one professor will support you starting from year 1 and you can only work in that lab (US students can be supported by NIH training grant during year 1 so that they can do several rotations). Therefore, you should contact her to make sure whether the admission will be a direct admission (she will support you since year 1 and you can only work in her lab) or general admission (free to choose other labs). Do not hesitate or feel shy to ask her questions. Sometimes clarifying everything is better than conjecture.

That's a really good suggestion! I think I will also do this.

I think doing a fully funded master is also great. Because you can use this two-year master period to strengthen your research skill and prepare the PhD application. It does not necessary for you to do the PhD research in the same school. I believe after two years' research, you will definetely go to a better PhD program.

Choosing a right sized pond is more important than the reputation of the school.

During my interview, I met a professor whose research field does not match my research interest but it still ended up with a nice conversation. He started his topic on continental drift and asked me what ocean will shrink and what ocean will expand. Then he told me several phenomenons in his research and asked me to establish hypothesis based on the discovery. This is the most interactive interview I have ever had.

Accepted by UT Southwestern. They made decision really fast. I attended the interview last Friday and received the offer on Monday.

Did you attend the interview in Driskill program? I scheduled an interview in Northwestern University IBiS program on Feb. 2nd. However, my flight to Chicago was canceled (this is a really long story, my first flight was canceled on Saturday and I rescheduled a second flight but it was canceled on Sunday morning. Luckily I was able to catch a third flight but this one circled above the Chicago area for about half an hour but finally returned to Minneapolis because of low visibility and heavy snow). Fortunately, the program director helped me reschedule the interview and I will attend the second one on Feb 23rd. Best wishes to all interviewees who made their trips to Midwestern area. Stay warm!

Someone may dislike the following suggestions I offered but I still want to speak them out. Based on your low undergrad GPA, it is also difficult to find a master program. Your path to graduate school and your future career is just like constructing a skyscraper, which requires really solid foundation to support it and this foundation is mainly based on your undergraduate study, research, standard test, recommendation etc. However, your low GPA really makes this foundation shakable and will always have negative impact on your application no matter what program you want to apply. If you really want to go to graduate school and this is your real dream, then you must fight for it. I would suggest you take a second undergraduate degree from a new college and start everything from fresh. Someone may think it is time-consuming and unrealistic but this the only way to completely strengthen your foundation. During my interview, I even met a gentleman who was 40+ years old. If going to graduate school is your real dream, then age should not become a potential obstacle on your path to your dream.

I just finished an interview and the admission committee member said they would only offer a few slots for international students because of limited funding. Although I am an International student and I know sometimes it is more difficult for international student to receive an offer, I never complained about it. We cannot change our ethnicity but at least we can try to become the best of ourselves. If you make every endeavour to become outstanding, admission committee will definitely find your distinct characters. Therefore, just to be confident and show the best of yourself!

I did my undergraduate in a big state research university and participated one REU in my university. I remembered three students were from ivy league and they still got the offer. Therefore, I don't think doing undergraduate in Brandeis will have any negative impact on your application. For your statement of purpose, you can introduce your previous research background and elaborate why this summer research program fits your research interest. You can also indicate this program may also have great impact on your future career.

Do not spend to much time in considering whether or not to write a thank you letter. If you want to, just write it. I think during the interview, several other things are more important than dress code, thank you letter etc. The frist one is to be able to explain your research clearly and logically in a short period of time and remember the big picture instead of small details. The second one is to know your interviewer by reading his or her recent publications. The third one is to be confident and interact with your interviewer by asking some academic questions.