diamedic17

Hey, I applied to the BMMB program and interviewed. My only issue with PSU is that my wife is a nurse practitioner and would have a hard time finding a job. Would anyone be able to give me some information on the job outlook for a nurse practitioner in State College and the surrounding areas?

Well, I'm originally (I've only lived in SC for 5 years) from Wilkes-Barre, PA which is about 2 hours north of Philly but I've never been to Long Island before and while I lived 2 hours away I haven't been to Philly all that much. I would be interested in just about anything to be honest after graduation however my ultimate goal is a research position within the gov't at either USAMRIID, NIH, or CDC. Thanks again for all of the help!! Where are you attending now if you don't mind me asking?

I don't think you understand how much that helped me!! Thank you so much!!

Philadelphia vs Long Island...where would you choose and why (Based on area alone, forget the schools that are there for a moment) Note: I am married with a baby daughter and two dogs (wife is a Nurse Practitioner and I would be doing Bio PhD program)

Tell me about yourself Why do you want to come to XXX? Just about everyone will ask you these questions.

Interview invite to Stony Brook Microbiology...Just had my interview with Drexel and I absolutely loved it, they said they won't be meeting to make admissions decisions for at least another week but I kind of feel like I'm cheating on Drexel haha I know that I might not get into Drexel or that I might love Stony Brook as much as or more than I love Drexel. I gotta say though that this problem is a lot easier to deal with than not hearing about my application statuses.

No, when I interviewed at PSU, it was basically a conversation between you and the interviewer. They talked about their research and you talk about yours, some other minor chit chat. They might have some questions like why do you want to come here or why grad school but it's really not bad and very laid back. Nothing to be nervous about. I have my Drexel interview on Thursday but since I went up there in August and met with a few people and had a sort of quasi interview I'm not terribly nervous. It's just official this time. Remember they wouldn't be paying for you to come there if they weren't interested. Just don't walk in like you are indifferent and arrogant and you should be fine. And of course don't get drunk!!

Hi, I was wondering if anyone here can give me a bit of advice. I submitted a paper to The Journal of Antibiotics on November 21. They told me the review would be done by December 25. I am still waiting to hear something from them and they have not answered any of my 3 emails asking the status. Does anyone have any advice? I'm about to submit it to another journal but I don't want to cause any issues. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. I've never submitted a paper before so I don't know if this is the norm or not. Thanks, Brian

I need to hear something soon, I'm going nuts...I have an interview with Drexel on January 17th but that's all I've heard so far. Has anyone here heard from Penn CAMB, or Einstein since the schools have reopened? I know a few geniuses heard before the break but I'm wondering if anyone else has heard?

Lol...I never really hated Alabama, they were my opponent in the first national championship game in 25 years tho so of course I didn't like them for a while...they deserved that win though, they played like an NFL team and ND played like a high school team...oh well...good luck with your apps as well!!

I'd be shitfaced hahaha

@bamafan...congrats on ur victory last night...i'm a die hard irish fan (tattoo and all) and i'm pretty down in the dumps today...hopefully some emails start coming in and cheer me up!!

I just want to hear from somebody. Even a rejection would be welcomed right now haha.

Anyone get any invites, rejections, or any type of correspondence today??

Hi guys!! I'm in the middle of my application/interview stage for grad school as I'm sure you can remember is terribly stressful but I have a question regarding the stipends. I spoke with a professor on an admissions committee at a school I was considering applying to and he stated that sometimes they will offer a "sign on" bonus to get students to commit early. Is this common practice? Did you have this happen to you? The basic story is that when they send admission acceptance letters with the stipend package and any additional fellowships they are offering they will also add a "sign on" bonus of between 5,000-10,000 dollars. If you accept within 2 weeks you get the full amount and then the bonus sort of drops off at increments until it goes to zero around the April 15 deadline. Thanks and Merry Christmas!!

@ion_exchanger....thanks so much for your thoughts...it makes me feel much better that i might actually get an interview at Penn (which is my top choice besides NIH)...while you say I might be a good fit for NIH i'm still not gonna hold my breath for them because it is EXTREMELY competitive and even though I think i'd excel there I know there are a lot of other people that would excel there too that have better stats than me. plus no classes are required with that program because they assume you have enough background from prior schooling which leads me to believe that they want more people with masters degrees than bachelor's. regardless i'm going to be ecstatic if i get into any of the programs because they all seem great. Penn State was actually on the very bottom of my list before I interviewed there and they impressed me very much. I will say that it will be a very difficult decision no matter what!! Thanks again and Merry Christmas!!

Gotcha!! I applied to the biochem at PSU and Microbiology at both Cornell and Drexel...Good luck!!!

@Shadow Claw Where at PSU, Drexel, and Cornell did you apply? We have very similar stats and applied to the same schools!!

Undergrad Institution: Coastal Carolina University (Marine Science Reputation) Major(s): Interdisciplinary (Cell Bio/Organic Chem) Minor(s): N/A GPA in Major: 3.88 Overall GPA: 3.77 Position in Class: Magna cum Laude (not sure of position) Type of Student: Domestic Male GRE Scores (revised/old version): Q: 162/770 (87%) V: 155/530 (69%) W: 4.5 (72%) B: N/A Research Experience: 2 years with a single/first author publication submitted Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's List 4/5 semesters, President's list 1/5 semesters, Magna cum Laude Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Chemistry Tutor Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Golden Key Honor Society Special Bonus Points: none that I know of Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Applying to Where: Drexel University-Microbiology/Immunology-Malaria, Influenza Penn State-Biochemistry, Microbiology, Molecular Biology-+ssRNA viruses, novel antibiotic development Penn-CAMB (MVP)-Ebola, Influenza Cornell-Infectious Disease-Virology Cornell-Microbiology-Virology Einstein-Biomedical Graduate Studies-Biodefense NIH OxCam-Biodefense What are my chances?? Already been rejected at Cornell (ID), interviewed at PSU and invited to interview at Drexel. Still waiting to hear from Penn, Cornell (Micro), Einstein, and NIH

So I was wondering if anyone had any insight. I applied to 6 programs: UPenn--CAMB (MVP) Cornell--Infectious Disease/Immunology Drexel--Microbiology/Immunology Einstein--Biomedical Graduate Studies Penn State--BMMB (Biochemistry, Microbiology, Molecular Biology) NIH OxCam I've been rejected from Cornell so I am going to assume UPenn and NIH will reject me as well (however I have not heard anything official yet). I have already interviewed at PSU and I will be interviewing in January for Drexel. I have not heard from Einstein yet. First, with 2 years research experience and a first author paper submitted, 162Q, 155V, 4.5 AW, and 3.77 GPA in Cell Bio/Organic Chem...Do I have a shot at Einstein? I can't find any statistics online as to who they take. Second, assuming I get an interview to Einstein and all 3 schools that I will have interviewed at accept me...what program would you take and why? (If Einstein is your choice please give a 2nd choice as well in case I don't get the Einstein interview) Note: I want to work in biodefense with the CDC or USAMRIID in the long run. Third, Penn State said at the interview that they sometimes offer "signing bonuses" in order to bring recruits in early. Do most universities do that or is this something that only PSU does? All that said, if the NIH or Penn contact me for an interview, they will be my top choice beyond a shadow of a doubt unless they don't impress me at the interview but I assume that they would. Any advice would be GREATLY appreciated!!