Gram Neutral

Thank you. I was hoping someone would reply. Would you tthink getting 162s would make any difference? I honestly don't know if I have enough time to take it. I work full time and take 2 grad classes. Did you end up getting in somewhere? This is my 3rd time applying.

The only thing that sticks out to me is your GRE scores. I feel like they don't mesh with your GPA and your accomplishments, especially your writing and verbal scores. I'm sure overall it won't matter, but I would imagine those scores would be below the average for an institution like Harvard. No actual idea though.

So I've decided what schools I'm applying to. UIC, UIUC, Iowa, Iowa State, Northwestern DGP, Vanderbilt, SLU, and Notre Dame. I'm working full time as a researcher (overall 3 years experience) and I've taken some grad school classes where I have a 4.0. My undergrad GPA was a 3.02, which is my biggest drawback. My gre is V: 160 Q: 158 and W: 4.0. Do you guys think I should retake the gre based on the schools I'm applying to and a quick glance at my profile?

I have applied in the past to some of those programs with a much lower GPA (3.0) but a higher gre score. (160 and 158). I did not get in. There's many factors in an application. If you think your application is strong enough, then don't retake it. However, I would imagine those numbers are below an institution like Duke's average. If I were in my shoes and got those scores, I would retake it. But my profile is different than yours. Also it's Champaign not Champagne. They might reject you just for that ;-) good luck!

Hey is anyone familiar with Northwestern on here? They have their two programs, their umbrella type program on campus and then their program at the hospital in Chicago. What exactly are the differences though other than research topics? Which is competitive or respected? Harder to get into, etc.

In my unprofessional opinion, unless you think you will struggle getting into a PhD program, or aren't sure, there is no point to getting a masters first.

Also, what exactly is considered a good score for the subject test?

I'm considering taking the subject test to make up for a low GPA. Did you guys have to study a lot for it, or just mostly use the knowledge you gained in school? What did you use to study?

I didn't know that about Vanderbilt thank you. I have the money, I work full time now, so I'm not a student. I also am applying to new schools, and so each one will cost me $35 or whatever to send my score to. If I retake it, I get to send it to 6 schools for free(since I'm applying to my old school as well, they send them one). So that's a $175 value right then and there. I'll probably retake it, but if I got get a higher score, it's a waste of money. Q:158 and V:160 isn't terrible though. It's the writing score that kills me.

I mean to ask. Do people think I should retake the GRE, or are my scores satisfactory? I took the exam in 2012.

Undergrad Institution: Big Ten, top public Graduate School: Mid-Tier College Major(s): Molecular and Cellular Biology Minor(s): Political Science GPA in Major: 2.75 (thanks Physics) Overall GPA: 3.05 (3.3 last 60 credits) Grad GPA: 4.0 (only 6 credits, will be 12 by interviews) Position in Class: average Type of Student: Domestic Male GRE Scores (revised/old version): Q: 158 V: 160 W: 4.0 B: (strongly considering retaking) Research Experience: 2 years in undergrad, 3 month internship in HIV research, 9 months working in a diagnostics lab with lots of pathogens, 3 months developing a drug for a pharmaceutical company in an international internship in Germany, and already 1 year working on vaccine research and development with various Tier-1 organisms in a BSL-3 lab. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's List senior year Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Director for a retreat program at school. Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Been working full time for 2 years now with a wide range of experience. Special Bonus Points: Currently in a Master's program, only just enrolled. It made me want to get a PhD program. The only reason I enrolled is because I was forced to declare or else my classes would no longer count. Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Applying to Where: Notre Dame Iowa State University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign MCB Northwestern- Haven't decided University of Chicago- Microbiology Maryland? Georgetown? Kansas? St. Louis University? So this is kind of my last hurrah. I've applied before to graduate school, and I think my low GPA always kept me out of the running. I've taken graduate classes, and am working towards my Master's right now, but I just really want to go into a PhD program. I didn't apply last year, and just focused on my work. I have worked in many different fields, mostly Microbiology, and I have extensive Micro experience. I am hoping that I can raise my GRE scores, since the cost of sending my old ones to new schools would basically equal the cost of taking the exam in the first place, so I might as well. I also hope that my master's classes will show that although I was a bad student my first 2 years, I've turned it around, and that I have perseverance. I'm still looking at schools. I have some highly ranked schools on there, but I would only actually apply to those if I got positive feedback from Professor's who also do work on some of the organisms I am familiar with. Very much open to suggestions. I'm definitely applying to schools a tier or two below most people on here, but that is just how it is with a GPA like mine.

My final question using this thread. I am currently taking non-degree seeking classes at my school, but have been offered full admission. I haven't accepted it yet. I can defer the decision, but I can only take 1 more class before I decide, then the credits no longer will count towards a degree. If I accepted this master's program and then applied to PhD programs, would I be considered a transfer? Is it harder to get in as a transfer?

Not to bump my own post, but I think I'm going to apply this year. My teacher says I have nothing to lose. Does anyone know of some micro style programs or umbrella programs that I could have a chance of getting an interview at?

Thanks for all the insight! Did you work full time during your masters as well? That's what I am doing so I'm already getting a ton of research experience. The big drawback is that the process just takes a long time because I can only take 1-2 classes a semester.

Since I'm trying to expand my horizons here and maybe apply to some other programs, does anyone know of some programs that might be within reach of me? Obviously I would only apply if I felt there was a fit etc, but just to get a general idea. I know i'm not like a tier 1 caliber application.

I liked it. They are in the process of building a brand new research building there. The school is located at Loyola Hospital with the Medical School and not at the Chicago campus, which some people don't know. All the professors I met there were really nice and they actually do some pretty cool infectious research there.

I will most likely be published with my master's thesis just because of how it's set up with my company. Thanks for the advice!

I did contact some of them. The PI I worked for said some people thought I was not very enthusiastic during the interview/passionate but he said he learned through working with me that I am just a quiet person at first, so I know I have to work on that. He wrote me a letter of recommendation and even then, his school didn't accept me. He told me he has no idea what happened,but it seems like someone on the admission team still didn't like me.

Thanks for the replies. This year I was planning on applying to a few different schools. I just didn't want to reach too high with the profile I had. I reached out a month ago to an old contact at one of the schools I applied to and they haven't replied, which is what made me think these old schools would have no interest. The stuff I do now sounds pretty pharmaceutical-like but it's actually more geared towards microbiology, and that's what my master's specialization is for. I'll definitely email some Pis. Thanks for the feedback, I am strongly considering retaking the GRE, just have to weigh my options. In people's opinion, is it worth waiting 2 years to finish my master's? Then I'm already 27 and just starting my PhD. I kind of want to apply this upcoming application period. Also, how do I go about talking about getting rejected twice, etc and reapplying now. Isn't that a red flag to some schools?

Hello everyone, I am a bit impatient here, so this is pretty early, but I'm looking for some feedback. I graduated in 2013 and applied to some PhD programs. I got 2 interviews but got denied at both schools. I spent the following summer working for a professor I interviewed with at one of the schools, and then I worked as a lab tech for the rest of the year. I applied to basically the same programs, and didn't get any interviews. I sat this year out, worked at an amazing internship in Europe working on some pretty cool drug research. Now I am back home and have a job in pharmaceutical research and development. I'm also taking grad classes and enrolled in a master's program an okay school. I'm in my first 2 classes now, and will be in another one in the fall, maybe two. That would be 12 credits of graduate school, and so far it looks like I will have a 4.0 this semester. My undergrad gpa at a top 50 school was 3.1 but 3.4 in my last 2 years, my V was 158 and my Q was 160 with a 4.0 in writing, and I had 2 years of undergrad experience. Now for the questions. Is it even worth applying to the same schools I applied to twice before, or are those pretty much wasted money? Is it beneficial to finish my masters, or does it not really make a difference? Will those 12 graduate courses help a lot? I took the GRE in 2012, should I retake it? My list before was UIC, Iowa, MCW, UIUC, Loyola, Pitt, and Florida last year.

Oh I totally agree. My application from last year is much improved. And ya I knew that, but somehow it didn't really work out for me still.

So at this point I've fully accepted that I didn't get into grad school once again, and that if I hadn't applied last year, I would have gotten in this year. I emailed a school asking if they were still deciding, today, over a month later, they replied saying they were still determining results. I didn't even get an interview. Can't they have the common courtesy just to tell me, or at least not take over a month to reply.

Really starting to get nervous. I doubt Florida and Pitt are still gonna give out interviews so I've ruled them out in my head, although I haven't gotten an official rejection. Same with the other ones. Notre Dame I am holding out hope for a second round of interview invites. With Loyola and MCW I know they are still considering me, but it's really nerve racking. I thought with an extra year of experience I would get more interviews than last year, not less.

This is the time of year I get really nervous. I haven't gotten any interviews yet. I know two of my programs were Jan 1 or 5 and two others were Jan 15, but I've pretty much given up hope on Pitt and Florida.

Okay cool, thanks. I doubt they will be reviewing anything else until after the New Year. Maybe they didn't get as many applications as they wanted since they pushed the deadline back a month.