Dedi

I can look it over. What is your program (I don't know what LLM means)?

Stylewriter is nice tool for improving academic writing. Unfortunately, it costs money to use it (there is a free trial, however). I know there is a some free sites that will also do the same thing. I cannot remember the names, though. My advisor recommended it to me.

There are minor grammatical errors but that can be cleared if you take it to a writing center or at least your advisor/supervisor. The overall content is good and it is conveyed in a precise and simple way (for some reason, a lot of people want to impress the adcom with a lot of flowery language. Unless one is a English major, it looks really out of place and feels awkward). I tend to be a little harsh about being precise, but this is good. I don't see anything that doesn't need to be there. The goal is for every word/sentence/paragraph to have a meaningful place in papers (not just SOPs, but manuscripts as well). Fix the grammatical errors, and I think you're good. Of course, get multiple opinions before you send it in. There's always something to fix.

Your ideas are quite interesting. Network analysis is a pretty hot topic right now so I hope you can find a niche within all those researchers. Have you read Connected? That book may be of interest to you, especially the economy and politics chapters (as you mentioned the stock market and elections).

That is a very good point, actually. Because of this project, my advisor and I have established a nice collaborative relationship. Because these results will not be publishable in a journal, he's going to give me a really positive LOR in return. I dedicated myself towards the project and took a leadership role. I probably do have more to say about this project than the other one, come to think of it...

For the former project, with the exception of a few blind sessions with someone else, I did pretty much everything. I worked on it for a semester so far, but I plan to continue this project on my own free time this fall. I learned about single-case designs, which will be useful in future work outside of graduate school. I also learned about manuscript writing (since our course paper was in manuscript form) and how to be concise in my papers. For the latter project, I worked on it for 1.5 semesters. Though I was working with other people on this project, I made a significant contribution and got highly involved. I learned a lot about research design (the muddled results came from a flawed research design). I also learned how to be flexible. Both (which involved rats) are very different from the first independent project (which involved zebrafish). All have a purpose, though--the independent project involved my future research interests while the rat projects allowed me to work with the species I want to utilize for my research in grad school. Both projects were supervised by my advisor and I am asking him for a letter of recommendation. Since they both resulted in a poster, yes, they are on my CV as well. The hard thing about my situation is that my research experience is very fragmented because our university doesn't have research labs that we can apply to and work in for years (at least in biology and psychology anyways--chemistry may be different). I take whatever experience I can get, even if it's a research course or volunteer work. Last semester, I was working on 4 different projects. So it's hard to say in years how much research experience I have.

Okay, so my SOP is supposed to be no longer than a page for one of the programs I am applying to. The thing is, I have done quite a few research projects and simply cannot discuss all of them, plus my current research interests. I'd rather not cut out anything from my current research interests (I feel it's important) so I need to select only a couple projects to reflect on. I am definitely discussing my first independent research project, but the second one I am unsure of. Which would look more favorable: A research course project with distinctive results (that can be publishable with more subjects) but a simple research design (done by me); or An outside project with muddled results, but a more complex design (done by my advisor, though) I'm leaning towards the former, but I guess I wanted confirmation from others. Also, as a side note, I'm willing to trade SOP drafts. Keep in mind that some stuff I mention in the SOP are still in progress, i.e., my research abroad experience.

That makes me feel a lot better, actually. I've been developing a collaborative relationship with a POI for about...6 months now? I don't endorse most things I do, but I think contacting POIs early was probably one of my better decisions.

I am also an undergrad with some pretty solid footing on research. I also have specific research interests (it's to the point where I can barely find any POIs that are able to take me in--behavioral epigenetics is still a new field). I also have my foot in the door by research volunteering for my only POI (so far). At this point, I can't imagine being anywhere else so I might apply to the two departments that the POI is appointed in (Biology and psychology--I have background in both, so it's not like it is out of place to apply to either) and hope that one of the departments will take me in.

I agree with Cookie--my SOP has more narrowly defined research interests than this Research Statement. I'm not sure if you've even taken the time to research what you specifically want to do. Keep in mind that you aren't bound to a project before grad school even starts. Many students change their interests during grad school, I've heard. The point is that you want to start finding a niche in the lab and in grad school. What can you discover that no one else has looked into yet?

I'm not sure. I contacted POIs already and have a good idea of who I want to work with. It might save application fees/time if you contact potential PIs to see if they will take in grad students next fall

Thanks, Secret_Ninja and LKS. I'm going for the Canada research STEM award, so I'm certain that I will be relatively safe there. My eligibility for the STEM award is a but muddled right now because of my background in psychology and biology. I'm going for neuroscience, but my top choice school doesn't have a neuro degree--just a program that compliments the main degree. So I'm not sure if I would be eligible apply for the psychology degree with the Neuro program and consider it STEM? So much to think about..

I am a visiting researcher at U of T, so I might have a different perspective than people who have taken classes there. So far, I am loving it here. The people are very nice and the PI/POI is very receptive to my ideas. Keep in mind that I'm at the Scarborough campus, which is much smaller than the other campuses in Toronto. However, I've heard that U of T in general is pretty good in terms of research quality. Do your research interests fit with a faculty member/several faculty members? If they have a page with their grad students, it might be worth e-mailing a few of them directly to get their opinion. I don't think it matters a whole lot where you get your PhD from, but what you made of your years there. At least that's the vibe I get. I might be wrong for sociology (I'm in the psych/bio department).

I have been contacting professors for about half a year now, so don't mind me, being the odd one out (: I'm glad I started contacting early, though. I was able to establish a positive connection with the POI and was given a great opportunity. My research interests are extremely specific (epigenetic mechanisms in caged stereotypies) so there weren't a lot of professors to contact after screening the website for potential fit. Of course, I'm sure I haven't found all of them... I've had the most success with Canadian schools, for some reason, in terms of getting a reply.

I'm a psych/bio/neuro combo due to how the neuroscience program is set up at the university I am applying to. Basically, the Neuroscience program is an add-on to the main program. Since my POI has appointments in biology and psychology, I am applying to both. Basically, I've done most of my research on schools that fit my research interests, e-mailed the professors, and am finding that most are not accepting new students for 2015 or, in one case, cannot fund me. I feel like I'm putting all my eggs in one basket, but I'm trying my best to ensure that I get into the only school that I apply for. I am actually in Toronto and just started researching for one of the POI's grad students. Despite everything that has happened (lost my purse on the bus on my way to U of T) I am pretty happy with my decision to apply here. I plan to take the GRE either here later in the summer or back in the States in early fall. It really depends if public transportation will suffice to get me there in Toronto. I have a draft of my SOP for both programs, updated my CV recently..I guess there isn't much else I can do right now.

Wrong place to put this, but I'll look at it. Feel free to PM me.

I'm not planning on going to the Ukraine, but I have a random question: Are Americans even allowed to go to the Ukraine at the moment? I only get bits and pieces of international affairs and I don't really trust news sources to give me the objective facts.

My POI started signing his e-mails with his first name (or initials), so I was unsure of what to call him. Sometimes it's best to ask, "What do undergraduate students call you?" Turns out my POI generally preferred undergrads to call him Dr. ________. I think he signed the e-mails with his first name out of habit (and it's shorter). If you're addressing a professor for the first time, you generally want to use Dr. How to address a professor can sometimes be tricky. At my university, students call the biology professors by their first name. I don't know why, and no other department does that.

If you're willing to pay 2-3 dollars per e-mail (more if you have to send it via mail)... I personally think it's expensive--I wouldn't pay more than a postage stamp and an envelope to send out LORs. I'd just compile a list of schools you want to apply to and give them to your writers so you only have to "bother" them once.

Alright, thank you!

When calculating major GPA, do you count just the classes that in the department (e.g. Psych major counting for Psych classes) or do I have to factor in supportive classes that were required for the major as well (e.g., chemistry)? My school doesn't calculate major GPA for me, and i may have to do that for applications...

I assume that you can do the former. However, I haven't gotten study permit for Canada, so I really have no clue.

Another animal behavior enthusiast? Woo (: I believe NSF covers tuition and gives a stipend. I don't believe that it pays for the research, but I don't honestly know. Students can apply their senior year of college, 1st year of grad school and 2nd year of grad school (I think). I'm not planning to apply for NSF because I'm applying to Canadian grad schools, but that's what I know.