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ion_exchanger

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Everything posted by ion_exchanger

  1. @TerpsFan0130 I think you still have a good shot regardless of your GPA. Sure, some programs weed out people using an initial numbers screen, but your GRE scores are strong, and your research experience is also strong. Not every program looks at grades as a measure of what will make a great student. Are you not interested in applying to College Park? IIRC, you will pass their initial numbers screen.
  2. Maybe you can call the program and explain the issue and offer unofficial test scores for application review, while they wait to receive your official scores from ETS?
  3. Depending on the school, they can be somewhat lenient with the time at which LOR writers send in their letters. Sometimes the adcoms will still review an app with 2 of the 3 letters, which is fine if the other 2 letters are strong, because LOR writers can be notoriously slow in sending their letters and the adcoms understand that they may be writing letters for dozens of students. In my experience, the app deadline is hard for the prospective students but incredibly lax for the LOR writers. IF it comes down to the wire, contact the school and explain your situation, because that is out of your hands and they may be understanding.
  4. I don't see why not. Professionals move all the time, and are still used as referees for their students at their previous institutions. They would just note in their letter that they taught you at X university.
  5. IMO I think it's ok. It shows diversity in your profile and you have two other research related references. As long as the letter is favorable, it shouldn't be a dealbreaker. Are you at all interested in doing clinical or translational research? If that's the case, even better. I wouldn't freak out about it, your overall profile won't be severely affected by having one doctor as a reference.
  6. IMO, a strong LOR is a letter from a person who knows you and your research profile closely. A lot of times it is obvious when a professor uses a form letter of recommendation for an applicant, but a strong LOR will detail that you have spent a significant amount of time with the writer, that they are especially impressed with your skills and abilities, and you rank high above the applicants that they have recommended in the past. For science programs, an average acceptable LOR would be from a professor you had that was impressed with your coursework, a strong LOR would be that they were particularly impressed with your critical thinking skills, the way you came to office hours and went above and beyond to master the material. An acceptable LOR from a researcher would say that you are competent in the lab and pick up techniques quickly, a strong LOR will say that you performed above your position, you have the ability to think critically to design and execute your experiments with minimal supervision, that you would make an exception doctoral candidate, and that you excelled in research both independently and as a team player.
  7. When you are working on two 30 page reviews at the same time, all while conducting experiments for a paper deadline -__-.

  8. I feel like that's a weird question, right? Advisors are so busy and always have things on their mind, a lot of information to forget. My advisor has been puzzling and frustrating me lately. I'll come up with ideas for my project and other members of the lab,which is great, right? I'm an involved graduate student. One idea was for an undergrad in the lab to help her project .The undergrad went to the PI and pitched it, to which she said no. One month later, she comes to the undergrad extremely excited about a new idea she had, the same idea that I had pitched a month earlier? Also, she continually encourages me to come up with new ideas, but when I tell them to her she shoots them down so quickly that I wonder why I even bother. The kicker is that she brought me in because I have expertise in a certain technique that she is also working on, and would like my input. When I give her outlines of my experimental plans, she says no, why are you doing it like that? I say that this is how it has worked for me, and reminded her that she encouraged me to design my own protocol based on my successes. I review the literature and show her that other groups have done it the same way, to which she replies, no they didn't. NO, THEY DIDN'T! As if they published papers, in very reputable journals in our field, and they lied about being able to do it? I didn't know how to begin to process or respond to that. I'm trying to remain respectful and not point out the fact that she asked me to do it because everyone else had been unsuccessful, and if it hasn't worked for you, why would I repeat your same failed protocol? It has gotten to the point where she will tell me to do something and if it works, she will praise herself for suggesting it, and if it doesn't work she will question how I failed, when she is the one who designed the experiment. I'm constantly being told to think of ideas, and then once I present one its like she goes out of her way to immediately fight me on them. I can't always be right and she can never be wrong. Am I being too sensitive? Should I suck it up and do what I'm told? Thanks for letting me vent.
  9. Originally came here to say what mathcat said, that studios for some reason feel noisier to me, especially when listening to the refrigerator kick in, or hear the ice maker working. With that said, where I live we don't have many traditional studios where the space is one room and a kitchen and bathroom. Our studios generally look like very small one bedrooms. A studio means a bedroom without a window, so there is a defined space for a bedroom, where usually just a bed and dresser can fit without a window. It has a door or a half wall that separates it from the living/dining room. Its pretty cool actually. I ultimately chose a one bedroom over the traditional studio that I was considering because it feels weird to me to be able to see my front door while i sleep, and I too like the idea of defined rooms. If you go on YouTube though there are tons of videos that show how people smartly transform studios to create designed rooms, so there's an idea. Personally I prefer a shorter commute, and I basically just use my apartment to relax, eat and sleep. In your case I would probably choose the studio. I do live in an area with a less than reliable subway system and threat of snow, so it would be nice not to wonder if I can make it to lab during a big storm.
  10. I agree with Vene. I just finished all of my coursework and am looking forward to never being required to take another course again. If I choose to take a course, different story. When I was an undergrad, quite a few of the biology majors interested in going to pharmacy school said that they wanted to become a pharmacist and then go to law school to practice pharmacy law.
  11. Getting a crash course in "conference politics". Also learning that I can't assume that people will let you know things you need to do :-/

    1. chemblah

      chemblah

      Oh no, What happened?

    2. ion_exchanger

      ion_exchanger

      Just thought that I wouldn't be able to secure travel and lodging, luckily the situation has been resolved, thank goodness!

  12. Note: this is directed at bsharpe269, and anyone else who was wondering, for some reason my quote is not working. The optional drinking hours are just that, optional. They will not hurt your chances if you do not attend. One of my interviews lasted Thursday evening through Sunday morning, and Thursday, Friday, and Saturday night the students offered to take us out to bars and such. I didn't attend any of the outings. I am also shy and reserved, and I don't drink, so I really had no interest in doing that. The students were nice, but there are plenty of opportunities to talk to them and ask questions. My roommate on that interview went to all of the outings, and sometimes came back at one in the morning. I need that time after the interviews and activities to recharge, so I decided to come back to the room, relax, and unwind. I was accepted to that program. Quite a few of the applicants also did not attend the optional outings, and they were ok as well.
  13. The only thing standing in my way of being a PhD candidate is the last portion of my comprehensive exam!

    1. biotechie

      biotechie

      You've got this! It is so much nicer on the other side!

    2. ion_exchanger
  14. Waiting to see if my conference abstract was accepted brought me back to the same anxiety as waiting for grad school interview/acceptances.

    1. biotechie

      biotechie

      I know! I'm going through the same thing waiting on my first paper (in this lab) decision to come back. >.< It never ends. :P

  15. As a person who is a pretty big introvert, it has been surprisingly easy for me to make friends in grad school. My cohort is 5 people, all around the same age, and we are all really different, however we all are pretty comfortable and hung out and talked quite a bit during the first year of school. They also aren't extreme social butterflies however we bonded over all the classes and ridiculousness that was grad school. We studied together since we were all taking the same classes. Also, since a lot of the biomedical programs share the same core classes, you meet people outside of your immediate program, and it's the same way. You meet nice people in your lab, who know nice people in other labs, and it becomes a big meet and greet. I thought that grad school was full of more introverts like myself, but I have come across a lot of really nice extroverts who know how to comfortably pull you out of your shell. Also grad school has a lot of forced social interactions built in, so there really isn't a choice haha.
  16. During recruitment week, the pizza is substituted with sandwiches and chips.
  17. Student presentations have pizza afterwards. Seminars with invited speakers have nothing provided, however you can have lunch at a fancy campus restaurant with the speaker if you sign up. When I worked at NIH, our seminars were in the morning, and some provided bagles with cream cheese or cookies and cakes with coffee. Yum.
  18. I've lived at home, with roommates, and alone while in grad school and I absolutely prefer living alone. I moved about 45 minutes north of home so I didn't really change my circle of friends. Family doesn't understand that your priorities have to change, and you may not be able to hang and be bothered like you used to. I wanted a nice quiet place to come home to after my long and/or stressful days. I had a roommate my first year, a good friend for many years and it did not work out. While the reason we ultimately split as roommates was for money (which is of course another big con to living alone, while it is cheaper than living alone you have to make sure that your roommate can and will pay their share in which case mine didn't) she had a regular 9 to 5 while I had school and odd work hours. She was still in her younger phases, having people over until almost midnight on Sundays when I would have tests on Mondays ,loudly coming and going at all hours of the night on weekends and weekdays, and bringing over her loud friends and boyfriend enjoying loud times and amorous activities. Ah how could I forget seafood nights at 2am Saturday night/Sunday morning, awakened by the potent smell of crabs and melted butter. She was also a bit sloppy, always leaving the kitchen dirty, using the dishes I bought We are no longer friends. My second year I got out of there and I lived alone, and I LOVED it. I didn't have to worry about if my roommate would be able to pay rent after a night of too much drinking or a bad weekend in vegas, I could come home to peace and not a crowd of people in my living room, I could cook and clean as often or as little as I wanted, and no sharing of anything! Grad school in my opinion is too stressful to have to also worry about your stressful home life, so for me living alone was the only solution. Sorry for the TMI, but the freedom to walk around and cook breakfast/lunch/dinner without pants after trying to quit stressing about that test/paper due/results due is priceless. I gladly pay the extra money for that piece of mind. As far as being lonely, I prefer to be alone so it works for me. When I do not, I can always invite over my friends and classmates, and then get them out of there when I'm done, haha. It also helps that my best friend lives in my complex, so you can try to identify if there are complexes where a lot of students live, so it will be easier to make friends.
  19. Thinking about aims for my research proposal. Crazy to throw a crystal structure in there....right???

  20. I just finished my 3rd semester, and my lab few classes and will be performing full time research now and I am extremely excited. My personal program is a bit difficult than the rest of my cohort in that my lab is not on the main campus, but I still have to attend data presentations and seminars as they do, so our experiences are similar. With that said, I am very much looking forward to just going into the lab and being able to work most of the day, without having to constantly plan experiments around coursework, especially since in my program you took two semesters of around 13-15 credits in addition to lab, so there was a serious problem with balancing lab work and research with coursework and studying. I guess I am in the minority where I prefer the freeing feeling of solely research. I am free to plan my week around all of my experiments. It helps that I keep daily, weekly, and monthly goals for myself, since I present in lab meetings once a month. This helps me stay on top of things when my time is free and open. When I am in charge of my own schedule, I find myself working crazy and/or long hours, and I am completely fine with that. Setting my own deadlines as opposed to forced deadlines makes me feel better. As far as hitting a wall or feeling like quitting, it helps me to strictly stay on a schedule for working. I wrote a review for a book this semester while taking my remaining coursework and working on preliminary data for my thesis proposal, and I was EXHAUSTED. My brain was on material overload. I haven't had any feelings of hitting a wall or quitting with this lab, but I did when I was in a nightmare of a rotation while taking the hardest courseload I have ever had and being required to attend seminars and presentations, wondering if putting myself through this stress was worth it. I just had to remember why I applied to grad school in the first place, all the money, time, and worry put into my applications and interviews, and the joy that I felt when I chose my dream program and dream lab. Now that classes are over, I have put myself on a schedule to work 6 days a week, and completely rest for one day, unless I have a major deadline. This gives me the time that I need to recharge and refocus, get my errands run and keep my home in order. This works well for me, and I don't feel so overwhelmed all the time.
  21. 3rd semester, finished with all coursework, two poster abstracts, one book review, and I am exhausted!

  22. I have found that the bed frames being made today are crap. They are charging the same price but using wooden slats instead of coils so it wears faster, is noisy, and can make you feel like your mattress is wearing way faster than it actually is. I splurged on a "good" bed because a good nights sleep is critical. Once I realized that my box spring was failing me, I bought a metal frame from Walmart for under $100. The difference was AMAZING! My mattress felt brand new even though it was older. The metal frame is quiet and still as tall as having a box spring so you can store under the bed. I recommend a metal frame and splurging on a great mattress. Your back will thank you.
  23. Found this thread accidentally randomly pushing buttons on my phone glad I did. Just finished my first year. Passed the comps, chose my dream lab and instead of chilling and gathering preliminary data, I have to focus on moving again, the third time in three years. Why? Because I chose to trust someone that I thought was a friend who cannot be trusted. Have you ever been a student and lived with a non student? The night before my first grad exam, there were people having a great time in the living room until midnight. Grad school is stressful enough without having to worry about someone paying their bills. I cant be put in that position again. Now I'm spending extra money and time to get peace of mind.
  24. My first semester as a freshman in undergrad was abysmal. I received a 2.3 GPA. I touched on it, but didn't dwell on it, in my SOP, citing a period of adjustment and sought the help of tutors, and then when I mastered the subjects I served as a tutor for other struggling students. They seem to like the upward trend.
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