Crucial BBQ

Around these parts it is common for grad students to rent out rooms in owner-occupied homes. There are tons of listings on Craigslist.

Unless things have changed having no credit is worse than having bad credit.

No. And no.

I wouldn't be worried about Duluth. I mean it's not like North Minneapolis.

Considering that people where doing this stuff decades ago on computers with less computing power than a $200 Wal-Mart special, I'd say the MBA is more than capable. A dual-core i5 with Turbo Boost® and 3 mb of L3 cache might not be ideal for Modern Warfare 4 on full settings, but it definitely is not a slouch. C'mon, that's 3 mb of L3 cache...per core! Okay, so it is shared cache...just trying to whip up some excitement. For what it is worth, all models of MBA are faster than the low-end MacBook Pro.

I have been an exclusive Mac and Apple user since 1998 (except for the iPhone...will never own one of those...). I almost got that model of MacBook Pro you are referring to but ended up going with the mid-range MacBook Pro Retina because it was a partial Christmas present and I figured why not. To be frank, between this particular MacBook Pro model and the MacBook Air, I would go with the 13" MBA. You will not miss the optical drive and if you do you can just pick up any cheap 3rd Party USB external opti drive. The MBA will out-perform the low-end MBP any day of the week. And ethernet port?

Well, my only experience so far was sitting in on one of a former GFs grad courses at Johns Hopkins. There were perhaps 200 students in the classroom.

I don't know what is up with Waltham, and it sounds rather bucolic. I would imagine it is similar to Newton, though, which equals $$$$. Keep in mind that the further west you go from Boston the more white trash ghetto it gets....Amherst/Northampden being some exceptions. Porter Square is cool; great area with access to the Red Line. A good number of hipsters, college students, and what not without most of the riffraff found further down (or up?) Mass Ave (closer towards Kendal Square). Despite doing under grand in Boston, I am not too familiar with Davis Square, but the area around Tufts is borderline ritchie-rich college student and ghetto. The border of Somerville and Medford can get hectic and Tufts is on that border. Yes, an August 1st move-in is likely. In fact, a good amount of Boston and Cambridge are going to be moving in and moving out although September 1st is the "big moving day". It is rather insane and I am going to warn you: start looking for a rental now...that's no joke. You will need to secure a place by June at the latest with full deposit or else plan on living out of your car. I would expect to pay around $4000/month total for rent alone. Yes, you can find something cheaper for sure, perhaps as low as $2300/month, but this is Boston/Cambridge. Landlords will jack up the rent if they know you are a college student (and they will) and they will jack it up even higher if they know you are a grad student at Harvard (and they will. Seriously, google it). If you are already content with having roommates, I would strongly suggest looking to move into an already established place. It is an expensive area and I guarantee it will not take you long to find a professional couple, or just friends, who are looking for someone to move in help out with rent. Nice, clean, and comfortable do not equal student housing in Boston/Cambridge. Simply put, expect to pay a premium.

I dunno. You applied to 13 schools and have been rejected by 12 of them. I would contact those schools that declined to extend an offer and figure out where in your application you "went wrong". If the culprit turns out to be a lack of proper courses in preparation for grad school, or, low grades in crucial courses, then yes, taking a few grad courses can be of benefit. One to consider is that I am sure grad schools have figured out the "back door approach" and if I am not mistaken some programs encourage students not to take this route. Also, I am fairly certain you can take a grad-level course at any school; it doesn't have to be at the same school you wish to apply.

What do you mean be "felon re-entry program"? Are you the felon? Or do you want to help felons re-enter society/work? Here are my thoughts: -Having cheap rent by living with a friend, even potentially having free rent is....a potential headache waiting to happen. -Even though it was a long shot and you thought you would not get in you still applied to the Ivy knowing that if you did get in it would place farther away from your BF and that it is located in a town you have no desire to actually live in. But you knew that when you applied...even if the application was just fantasy. -About costs: let's be real here; even if the program at the Ivy is not funded it is still an effin' Ivy and finding should not be that hard to come by. You might have to dig a bit but I bet top dollar that you can have your second year fully covered, perhaps even living expenses. If you start now you might be able to get both years covered. I just don't buy that an Ivy League school has zero funding/merit aid/scholarships/fellowships/ect available for grad students even if the program is typically "not funded". The school/department/program has the money. Trust me. You signature indicates you were accepted into five schools...what are the other two?

Pardon my confusion, but you were able to take higher level math courses without taking the basics first?

Ah... -Never owned a PC. My house has always had an Apple computer since the mid-90s. -With that; I have never owned an iPhone nor do I want to.

-Never went to or participated in Spring Break. -Did not go to prom, or any other high school social function for that matter. -Did not participate in Senior Week for either high school or university. -Never participated in a tail-gate. -Never went to a college sporting event even though every year I meant to. -Never participated in home-coming events in high school and college. -Never seen the movie Avatar and I hope to all that is Holy that it stays this way. -I hoped to never see a Harry Potter movie but I finally caved and saw the last film with the GF at that time. Still never read the books. -Never read 50 Shades of Grey...but I am not saying I am not familiar... -Never did palates. I can think of a bunch more...

oops....meant X-Thor. The "W" key is nowhere near the "X" key

You always formally decline an offer, and the sooner you do it the sooner someone can come off the wait list. Graduate programs, even the "best", have admitted applicants turn down offers. It's par-for-course for the the most part. You do not have to go into detail, just something like "Thank you for the time and effort the admissions committee put into reviewing my application and I appreciate the offer of admission. However, I must regretfully inform you that I am going to decline your offer at this point in time. Thank you, W-Thor". Also, send them a thank you card, too. These are people who will be your peers one day; do the right thing and stick with etiquette.

I began with a mind map. Put the program/school in the center than branched out from there. I covered everything I could think of. When that was done I had something solid to work from to create an outline. From the outline I wrote the paper. Even though I began with a first word to a first paragraph, it wasn't my opining paragraph. I answered the questions asked in the essay prompts, filled in the necessary details, and then wrote the first paragraph last as it was really a summery of what was to come in the rest of the essay that followed. I really didn't use a hook.

Congrats on getting into VIMS That was one of the first programs I looked into, really wanted to apply, but....didn't.

Harvard Extension is not bad. It is one of the seven colleges that comprise Harvard University with the Extension being around since, what, something like 1900? It has some cred in that respect. It also gets cred for requiring students to pass three courses "proving" you got what it takes. It is understandable that a Harvard College student would look down on it, in particular since HES students sometimes claim to be Harvard students, which they are not. I suppose there is a sense of entitlement that comes with being accepted into an Ivy when the competition is so fierce. Another thing to consider is that some courses are online, some are only at the brick-and-morter school, and some may be both(?). In my opinion, for what you want to study, it would make more sense if you actually lived in the Boston/Cambridge area. As for JHU...I know a lot about Baltimore and a little about the school. My ex went there for her Master's, and is really how/why I ended up in Maryland for the most part. She applied for a Ph.D. but was accepted into a Master's program. Her GRE quant score was rather low (and I mean low...not 159 "low"), and when she was interviewed the interviewer kept stressing that her quant score was a real concern (the interview was over the phone...I was in the room with her...). She got in, then barely passed her first stats course, failed the second one, and could not enroll into the third. She ended up having to retake the second and then do the third stat courses online, which she passed both. That is too bad about UPenn. Glad you appreciate my words

One more....I had to look EVMS. So, it's in Norfolk, VA. A very beautiful part of the state but also very very touristy in the summer.

Don't you just need to take three courses on probation, pass each with at least a B, and then your "in"? I used to live in Boston, did undergrad there, too. I know a few people who went to UMass Boston, three for nursing, one for a Ph.D. in botany (might still be there), and one for another biological science. I personally think the school is okay and I even thought about applying there myself, but it is not in the best part of town, is 100% commuter, and it's undergrad reputation is not the greatest. Northeastern is not to shabby of a school, more easily accessible by the T, and in a generally better location. It is near Berkeley College of Music, Fenway Park and all of the Colleges of the Fenway, Harvard Medical School, Wentworth, Mass School of Art and Design (or something like that), and Newbury St. if you like overpriced shopping (even by Boston standards). Rhode Island is a cool state in my opinion, and I really wanted to apply to Brown as well. I ran short of funds and could only apply to a few schools, so I cut them out as the program I was looking at would have been a long shot. I also love Providence. It is fun place, but the COL is rather high. The MBTA (Boston public transportation, aka the T) runs a commuter train line from Boston to Providence. I am not sure when the first train runs, but the last train from Boston gets into Providence at 1 am and the last train leaving Providence to Boston is...at 10:45 pm. It's $10 each way and takes about an hour. Worcester....is kinda white trash ghetto. A friend of mine still goes to WPI and loves it. I don't know much about Worcester State. If you go just be sure to pronounce it something similar to woo-stah. Mass. and Maine are the only two states that celebrate Patriot's Day. I don't recall what day it is, but your school will be closed. It's a state holiday. I don't know much about the other schools, but considering your list and your stats I'd be sure you are going to get into at least one.

Unless one of them is also your advisor or was on the committee that helped admit you....probably not. Would it be possible for you to transfer into a non-research based program at your current school?

About your GREs: no, you do not have to retake them. You can if you want but 160 is competitive enough. About the lack of direct research experience: nope. Research is research for the most part. What grad programs are looking for, in particular Ph.D.s, is that you have enough research experience to know if you like it or not. I mean, look at the Already Accepted sub forum....a heckofalot of students figuring out that they actually hate doing research...after they have already been accepted... About giving up on biophysics and reapplying to a different program: this is really up to you. I would imagine that a background in biophysics would make you a competitive candidate for a cellular biology or molecular biology program, though. It wouldn't hurt to apply to one or two programs. About not being published: no, it does not. I cannot think of any professor/lab/POI who actually expects an undergrad to publish. If it happens, and it does, it is more of an exception than the rule. About the number of schools....not sure....hopefully I applied to enough

I just re-read the OP.....if those experiences do not make you a competitive applicant than I do not see how a higher GPA would. If you do not get accepted anywhere than it might be worth your while to dabble into the HE for a year, then reapply. It won't be cheap, though.

For the record, this is not a bad undergrad experience. Your quant score is competitive, you have almost four years of undergrad research experience, and it sounds like you may have had some great LORs. I know two people who went through a ho-hum BSN program, have decent, but not high, GPAs, decent GRE scores, and a heck of a lot less research experience than you. They both applied to Ph.D. programs in neuroscience and both were accepted (one to BU and one to Duke). It just means they found your GRE scores to be competitive enough for admissions, and probably assume the rest of your application will follow suit considering that some believe GRE scores are indicative of GPA (and others understand that even top students can royally suck at standardized tests). You didn't mess up buddy, in fact by doing close to four years of undergrad research while also working full time you really did things right. Have you heard back from anyone of your programs yet? As for the Extension Program, I am not sure.

Keep in mind that not everyone who applies to graduate school also hangs around gradcafe. In terms of what is actually going on with admissions, I'd take the Results page with a grain of salt.