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Tubulin

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Everything posted by Tubulin

  1. Both Master's programs. School A: $18k for two years. Full tuition remission. More established program. Advisor is a good combination of hands on/hands off. Has made it clear that she sends students to conferences and such. New lab with spankin' new equipment. Well funded. Problem? The school is in a VERY rural location. Like, the woods. I'm coming from Chicago and am terrified of being away from civilization for so long (even two years). I also didn't seem to mesh very well with the students there (though that could be in part due to the overwhelming majority of prospective and current students being in ecology whereas I'm in microbiology... and we're very different sorts of people.) School B: I haven't received word on my funding status. But the PI is very well funded and mentioned that he would only have me TA if I really really wanted to TA (else wise I would RA). I got along really well with the people there (faculty and potential students alike). I really like the location and weather. Problem? Funding, obv. The current GA rate is 10k/9 months. 10K! It's possible my PI would supplement my stipend... but I'm not sure if he'd be willing to throw down an extra 8-10k for me. AND it's only partial tuition remission... meaning I would pay $60/credit hour out of pocket. Also... the PI here is kind of a big deal. He's super busy and has a 'large' lab (2 post-docs, 2 PhD students, 1 lab manager, and >6 undergrads)... so most of my advising would come from the other people in the lab. In terms of developing into a good scientist... I get the feeling that school A would be a better choice for me. It's a more developed program, the advisor seems to be a good advising mix, new equipment, willing to fund trips to conferences, etc. But... when I visited school A, I had a weird feeling. I didn't really get along with the students there (nothing hostile, just didn't mesh well) and I'm worried that I won't make friends when I get there. (Again, this is probably because there weren't very many available microbiology students to meet.) And it's so RURAL! Am I doing this the wrong way? Thoughts?
  2. I know there's tons of posts out there like this... so please bear with me. I'm a master's applicant, and last week I sent an inquiry email to the grad coordinator asking when interview/admissions decisions would be sent out. (apparently they haven't had interviews yet >.<) She said that the committee hasn't said anything to her and to email the chair of the committee if I was interested. Should I do it? This seems scarier than just asking the head secretary or something like that... since the chair is the chair! And also since I'm interested in rotating with that particular PI. Applications were due 01/15. There's no timeline of the admissions process online. I'm going crazy.
  3. Applied to 3 schools. Interviewed at 2. I'm waitlisted at one of those 2 and suspect I'm waitlisted at the other one as well. Haven't heard back from 1 at all (even though I know they do interviews... but apparently they're still reviewing apps? and I have no idea when interview invites will be sent. rawr. I just want a little security!)
  4. Thanks everyone for their points of view. I should probably just chill out for a bit and realize that I'm still lucky to have been waitlisted (and flown down to visit expense-free). After all, the only thing that PI had to go on was what was on paper, and this says nothing about who I am as a scientist (or person, for that matter). And it must have been awkward for her to interact with me while engaging with the already admitted student. :-)
  5. Thanks everyone for their input! I guess I just don't like the thought that if I worked with this particular PI, I would know I was only her back-up (out of 3 slots). Bah.
  6. I went to a recruitment weekend at a school for my master's in microbiology this past weekend. I'm applying specifically to a lab, and have been in light contact with my potential mentor. I was super excited about her work and meeting with her. It turns out there were two other people at the recruitment weekend who were also applying to her lab, one of them being my roommate (who I happened to get along really well with). Once I stepped into my potential advisor's lab, she right away told me that she had already accepted 3 new students into her lab (2 of them being the students I had met during the visit) and that I'm on the waitlist for the next spot, and there's a good chance I'd get in since not everyone will accept. While I understand that those students must have been better qualified than I am (or better fitted), I couldn't help feeling a bit disappointed. Anyway, the thing that made it even more weird was that the PI told the other two girls that they had already been accepted... and even told one student that she had waitlisted me. This made me VERY uncomfortable. These people are my future colleagues. I'm really uncomfortable with the thought of joining the lab and having another student know the only reason I'm there is because a better qualified student rejected the offer. This situation made my weekend visit pretty sucky since the PI wasn't showing much interest in me and was talking to the other students about funding, potential projects, TAships in front of me and I kind of just felt super awkward hanging around. Bah. On the one hand, it's clear from the little amount I talked to her that she wants to help develop her students into strong scientists. On the other hand, I kinda hate her now. Haha. (But seriously, I'm not even sure if our personalities are compatible since I was feeling negative during the visit and we didn't speak much). Is this 'okay' or am I overreacting? I know there's no real advice anyone can give me, but I kinda just wanted to vent and see if anything similar has happened to anyone else.
  7. I just called the micro department at Miami University at Ohio and asked when they usually send out interview invites... and the receptionist said in early MARCH. Wahhhht? Isn't that.... super super late? I wonder if she misheard me and thought I said admission invites. Anyone know of other schools with such a late late late interview date? Sheesh.
  8. Thanks everyone for their thoughts! I was really tempted to look for jobs in Chicago since I'm kinda missing the socializing aspect... but you're all right. The pain of finding a job, securing affordable housing that's close to public transit (along with a 6 month or month to month lease) is just way too much effort when there's the possibility of leaving for grad school. I think I'm just freaking out about NOT getting accepted anywhere (a familiar feeling, I'm sure). And VBD, thanks so much for those kind words! I definitely needed that.
  9. Hey all. Before I get on to my question, I just want to put out a disclaimer that I'm kinda freaking out and being overall very negative. I have applied to three master's programs in microbiology, all with a due date January 15, so I know it's going to be a while until I hear anything back. I currently live at home with no job after just graduating in December, and it sucks. My mom is pretty cool and understanding, but the feeling of being a "bum", lacking financial independence, and having NO IDEA about my future is driving me crazy, and I'm falling into a depression. (I'm aware applying to 3 programs is very low, but I wanted to make sure the schools I applied to were places I really wanted to go to instead of safety schools.) So it looks like I have two options: 1. Suck it up. Continue living at home rent free. Get a job in retail (there are very few lab or biotech jobs in the area). Work until I hear about acceptances/rejections. I'm afraid if I do this and don't get into any schools, I will have kind of wasted my time (besides saving money) as I would want to get a job in my field eventually to further prepare me for grad school next app season. 2. Look for jobs in my field in Chicago, where I went to college (I'm about an hour and a half away on the interstate at home). I wouldn't have a car, so I would have to take public transport (not a big deal, since we have a great system here... it's just cold). I would have to pay rent/utilities/train fare/food and find a cheap apartment with a roommate. A bachelor's in biology won't get very well paying jobs (~$15/hr), but I could maybe get a job as a tech and would be able to live cheaply and maybe even save a bit. I'd also be closer to a couple friends. What what you do?
  10. Hi all. I've done a forum search already on my question, and I'm still a bit confused on the research process. I'm applying to Master's programs in Microbiology and have already submitted one application (out of four) and have spoken to two potential advisors. I have research experience through an REU this past summer where my advisor had a project he wanted implemented. He basically wanted me to follow the methods previously published by one of his past students, so I had no part in coming up with the question or plan of attack. The most "sciencey" thing I did (besides doing the grunt lab work) was if a particular procedure failed I would make note of it in my lab notebook and search for any modifications to the protocol that may work better. And even then, I consulted with my advisor on what to do and he had the final say of how I would proceed. My past advisor had a master's student that seemed to rely on our advisor for direction only a bit less than I did. For some odd reason... up until a few days ago, I somehow missed the part about grad school where I would do a lit review, find "gaps" in the current research and come up with a question of my own (along with experiments that would answer that question). I guess I figured it would be more like my summer experience where my advisor would give me a project and I would work on it (albeit more independently than I did as an undergrad) by performing the experiments, research different protocols, and so on.... at least for a Master's. Out of the two potential advisors I spoke to, one had a project in mind that I was excited to work on, but the other seemed more intense in that he expected me to have a much more narrow focus than I currently do. I knew from the beginning that a PhD is more intense, where you come up with original work, but I always thought the master's was more of a stepping stone into research as a PhD (i.e. you work on a project that your advisor wants you to and get exposed to the field through this work). Can anyone tell me which idea is more correct? I'm starting to doubt if I'm ready for a master's program now. I want to learn to think and be a scientist, but honestly, I don't think I have enough learning and experience to successfully identify a meaningful question in the field and create a project out of it. Any advice? Should I wait? Should I get a job as a tech and when I'm more comfortable ask for more independence? Or am I just experiencing what every new/potential grad student feels? I'd appreciate any insight... especially from those in the life sciences. :-) EDIT: Also, I may be confusing "project" with "thesis" at some point. There's a few projects to a thesis? Or one project can mean one thesis? Ugh... I swear I've done my own research on the subject!
  11. I also agree your opening remarks can be easily left out. "With my reporting experiences in Germany working on the English section of Company A, in the United States covering international news, and in Belgium broadcasting on the Euro Crisis, it occurred to me that as much as we consider the world today a global village, international news will continue to occupy only a small segment of the daily news consumption for most readers." This is a little long and a bit confusing... I suggest breaking it up into two sentences and/or rewording it a bit. "Ruminating on these questions has led" "For each of my shifts" You don't need a comma here. "I regarded the experiment as a miniature marketplace of ideas." What exactly is the experiment here? Newsy News? It's a bit confusing... you could say "I regarded this program" instead. "A life-changing experience during my last year in college" They don't need to know exactly what semester, so try and cut down on unnecessary information. "As much as people refer to it as a sinking ship, I still have faith in print journalism" This sounds very negative... instead could you say something like "During this position I found that in many ways print stories allow more in-depth investigation and analysis than other forms of media" "I still have a long way to go before I become a qualified multimedia producer and designer." Take this out. It's negative, and they don't need to hear it. Maybe you could reword this to say how you're looking forward to training to become a more qualified producer and designer through the master's program? "the boring section of the news for many" Also take this out. "The five-year program at University X " Name the university here. ", such as java scripts," Take this out, unnecessary "which I discovered during my final year at college" Overall: I thought your flow was fine. Good luck!
  12. Hi! I'm applying directly to a professor's lab and we've already talked a bit over the phone to discuss potential projects. In my SOP should I refer to those projects we've discussed over the phone (I'm interested in working on them)? Also, would it be weird to say... Dr. X does work on blah blah blah as in "Published Paper"? I'm trying to show that I've done my own research in the professor and to try give a short intro into why I want to work with them... and their "Published Paper" was part of a project I would have been interested in working on. Thanks!
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