bsharpe269

Joey, I also agree with others that retaking it would be a good idea. Your current scores arent horrible so if you dont do better and have to submit those then you may be just fine. Since those are both very competitive programs though, retaking could be helpful. I really recommend magoosh and actually, unlike others, I am more worried about the math score than the verbal. Since you are applying to competitive science programs, I would try to get this score above 160. I highly recommend buying magoosh (if you get it on sale then it is only $100). I basically only used it for the bank of practice questions for both verbal and math and brought my scores up from 157V,161Q to 162V,168Q. I hear that Manhattan is good as well but cannot speak about it personally. I think that the money for one of the these programs is worth it since you get tons of practice questions that are formatted just like ETS questions, with the same litlte calculator and everything. Repeating tons of questions was really helpful since a big part of doing well on the test is just knowing what answer the test makers are looking for. Memorizing vocab does also go a long way. I only memorized 250 words but since the same words show up repeatedly on the test, that was enough to cover most of the important vocab.

I agree with everyone about the routine schedule while suggesting break times to talk so that she doesnt feel like you dont want to get to know her at all. Tell her that you are stressed about work piling up and suggest something like doing silence time until lunch and then taking lunch together. Also, feel free to put in head phones! That is really common in our offices. It is a signal that someone wants to get work done and is actually helpful to others around them too since they can tell if they are in the zone with work or just casually working and up for chatting. If she picks up on you putting in headphones as intense work time then it could be a great way to say shutup, let me work without having to say it or be mean. It really isnt passive aggressive in my opinion, it is pretty common shared office behavoir.

Same. I use my iCal for important dates that are far enough out that I might forget like grant deadlines. For exams, hw assignments, meetings, etc I just remember when they are due.

Maelia, I think that you are going about this the right way and if they are having trouble with it then I wouldnt take it personally. Even though they lived their first, you need to feel comfortable in your living evnironment as well. I would not push forward the organization thing since they seem to like how things are currently organized but you do not need permission to clean more. I like Lynx's suggestion of keeping communal items around and using them when needed. For example, if there is a broom in the pantry then you have every right to sweep the kitchen a couple times a week. This is a great system to use in the bathroom too. Keep a toilet brush and some cleaner in there and do a quick cleaning once a week. Since this was just a big issue, it might be worth letting everyone cool off for a month or so before getting into these habits but I think that this would be a great way to keep a clean apartment without it turing into a big deal. Good luck! I have had absolutely horrible living situations in the past... it sounds like you dont have that but just a few things that you guys need to address. I am sure that you will all be able to compromise.

Wow, this is definitely not what I consider a hands off PI! This is really intense. I would be bothered by someone who made me fill out paperwork like this because I would interprit is as him not trusting me to do sufficient amount of work on my own. I guess since he has a lot of grad students, it may be necesary to have a system like this but I dont think I would be able to operate like that.

Retake the test. People get nervous or have bad days all the time. What you experienced is normal. Those scores are below the cutoffs to a lot of programs though so it would be well worth your time to retake.

How was your undergrad GPA? You have good experience which will help. There are subject specific forums at the bottom where you can ask people in your specific field. I would post in their about job prospects of counsling vs social work so people only in those specific fields can probalby help there. I agree that social work opens more doors to fall back on though you do already have an education degree to use as a back up plan and there is always a need for teachers so I don't see you ever being stuck with zero job options. From this perspective, it might be worth it to shoot for your counsling goals. Again, I would ask about this in the forums below for better advice from people in your field. I will say that you shouldn't worry about being judged by anyone, especially your family. Follow your dreams and people who love you will be happy that you are happy. Nursing seems very different from your interests and money does not equal success.

This is a rumor. Schools get scores only, not the essays.

I really hope that Symmetry of Imperfection is joking. We are talking about scientists in training who want to learn as much as they can... not toddlers. I actually think that having a discussion about the corrent method to use, instead of just blindly following more advanced students, is very helpful. The first year might have a different opinion on which they should use and this could spark a discussion on the positives and negatives of each and the first year (or both parties) can learn alot. All people come from different backgrounds so while a senoir student may know more about most areas, there are plenty of areas that first year students know more about due to their individual classwork and research experience. Anyway, my biggest advice is to be friendly and find other students who are doing well in classes to study or review homework answers with. Review the material ahead of when it is discussed in class so that you can ask intelligent questions and answer questions that the professor asks the class. This is a really easy way to impress professors. Also, make a large effort to stay on campus for your 40ish hours a week for the first few semesters instead of just working from home. This will help you get to know professors and students and help make a good impression.

Since a 2.5 is pretty bad, I would retake. If you are really unable to due to time constraints or finances then just send both scores. I recommend retaking over sending both scores though since the test dates were a few years apart. Schools may worry that your score decreased because you havent practiced Engish in a few years or something.

You can bring that stuff to keep in your locker for the break in the middle

I am going to have to disagree with the advice here about not sending the job LOR. I would send 3 letters from academia but I would also include the 4th one. Grad school doesn't want cookie cutter people who all send the exact same letters. Grad school wants people with diverse backgrounds who are dedicated. The letter will show your work ethic and will prove what you are saying in your SOP. I also completely disagree that schools will worry about his preparation due to the 4.0 and working and this is especially true if you so well on the chem GRE. Schools will find this impressive, not judge you for it. I wouldn't dwell on the job thing and lack of research experience for long but I would mention it and you can even show dedication by mentioning that you kept the job for so long because you could study during slow hours or whatever and can reinforce your dedication to chemistry through that even. I would send the 4th letter with out a doubt in your shoes. If you feel really insure about it though then it would be a great question for your PI.

Oh lord, this a really tough decision for me right now and I have no idea what to do and I just read this right in the middle of a rough few days with my fiance. His company is thinking of giving him a huge promotion where we live but our plan is and has been to move for my phd program since before we were engaged, 8 months ago. He doesnt know for sure yet whether the promotion will go through but if it does and he takes it then he has to committ to this area for a few years. I dont want to stay here!!! I grew up here and i want to get out and I cannot live near his very needy, controlling family any longer than possible. Also, my PI and masters department are amazing but my school isnt very prestigous and I need to go somewhere else for my phd. His career means a ton to him to so I could never ask him to give up the big promotion but at the same time, we have strategically chosen the phd programs that I will applying to because they are great for me AND have lots of job opportunities for him so its not like he would be moving somewhere without opportunities. I dont know what to do... apply like normal and just leave if he wont come? He is a really high anxiety person so turning down a promotion before he gets another job lined up would stress him out really bad. Alternatively, I was thinking that he could go ahead and start applying to jobs in some of the cities that have a large concentration of schools that are great for me. That way if he turns down the promotion, he is doing it for another great job and doesnt have uncertainty. Then I would be stuck applying in one city only but it would be a city with multiple schools that I would have applied to anyway. Any thoughts from all of your people above who went through this?

Like juilletmercredi said, in grad school I've even had a professor put material from his own research that was posted as a recommended reading on the exam. He didn't mention it would be on the exam and it wasn't on the sylabus but it's still fair to ask about. He wanted to deeper ate the 'above and Beyond' students from the 'required reading only' students. It is in no way unethical for a professor do that.

I completely recommend taking a year off. It looks like your grades are fine but not as great as they could be. My undergrad grades were similar and working full time for a bit before starting grad school changed my work ethic. I also had the chance to really miss school adn reserach which made me put so much more effort into it once I came back. If you want some time off then take it! Taking time off can do absolutely no harm and it can do a lot of good. If you can find a job related to grad schools goals then it will help your application as well!

A clean slate, perfect undergrad career will probably trump "a mixed bag", especially if you mean an undergrad GPA under 3.0 in that bag. In my experience though, professors have been much more interested in me DUE TO my MS work. This might be bacause I fall into the special skills category that GEOdude mentioed, Im not really sure... i do know that my subfield is pretty specialized and very interdisciplinary, requiring knowedge of physics through quantum and statistical mechanics, chemistry through physical chem, molecular bio and biochem, mathematical modeling, and strong programming. Alot of fields are like this though, requiring a wide spread of knowedge. I think that this is where MS degrees can be really useful. They can give you the chance to fill in gaps in knowedge and to read literature in your subfield. Most MS students are applying for PhD programs having read hundreds of papers in their field. In my experience, people right out of undergrad are strong in 1 or 2 of the areas above only and don't have any knowedge of the literature in the subfield they wish to study. I guess this all comes back to how bad your undergrad really is. If I had a 2.5GPA then I bet that an undergrad with perfect grades might still beat my knowedge of the subfield. I think this also might depend on how specialized your field is. It is pretty common in mine for people to spend a year at least to figure out enough to contribute to the research. Even if a PI could keep a student fresh out of undergrad longer, it would come with the cost of spending a year training that person where someone with their MS might not need much training. Basically, I think it all just depends on how bad your undergrad career was and how much you can offer a lab after the MS to counterbalance it.

I would retake if I were you. Your GPA is on the lower side so good GRE scores could help your application a lot.

It sounds to me like your PI isn't a bad guy but he seems pretty extreme in being distant from students. This isnt necesarily bad and you probably have no idea why he is like this... he may have had a bad expreience with a student in the past that taught him to keep relationships only professional for example. My PI can be a bit cold sometimes, not to the extreme that you discuss, but I recently learned that it is due to a harassment issue that he witnessed as a grad student. You never know why your PI has become so cold to students so I would try to get less frustrated and realize that he may have a reason for being like this. With that being said, it sounds like he isn't what you would like in a PI. You seem to be looking for someone who can fill more of a mentor role in your education which is a very normal desire. I see a few options that you can take from here: 1) You can realize that your PI will probably never have any more intestest in your education and will be there only for research guidance. If you do stay at your school then I think that it is important that you adjust your expectations so that you don't remain upset by his one word answers or lack of concern. This route has the benefit of being the faster track to a PhD. It would be useful both emotionally and professionally to find other professors to go to for mentorship if you go this track though. 2) You can switch PIs but stay at the same school (if that is option to you) 3) You can switch schools completely which will set you back but could result in a better PI relationship. I can't give much guidance aside from writing the options out. You ultimately need to decide whether his distance is something that will continue to upset you or if you can fill the mentorship role by someone else in your department so that you can still have someone to go to for career or other advice. This is something that I would have a hard time with as well and is something that many others on here have probably dealt with to some extend. Good luck!

I am just starting to work on my SOPs now so I can share how mine are differing. At one of the schools that I am applying to, one of the well known professors in my field just published an important, well known paper in a great journal on a really cool topic. This topic is something that I also plan on looking into from a different perspective next semester so I will probably include a paragraph in the paper about his research in this area and the connections to what I am doing. There are other great professors in my subfield there too so I will also talk about their reserach. At another school, a professor is working on something really interesting that I have been following very closely. It has inspired some of my own ideas and I have a really cool project idea that I have been trying to talk my current PI into going with. I would have to complete the project mentioned above to do this though. I am sure that I will mention these ideas and the inspirations from that particular paper in that SOP. I am tailoring my SOPs like that. I am talking about how the professors at those schools are doing interesting things and how my own research connects to that. There will definitely be some cut and paste paragraphs between all of the papers. For example, I will be including a standard paragraph about the model used in my current lab and how I have contributed to it and used it. I will also outline my basic research interests which will be the same across all schools. The difference will be in connecting these interests and my background to the specific professors at those schools though.

Yeah I think that you will be absolutely fine with GPA. I don't think the low grades will hold you back since you have proven that you can handle the courses. I would even say that you could add a few higher ranked schools to your list if there are any that overlap with your interets. I would definitely trim others if you do that since your list is pretty long. Also, I know nothing of your subfield so it may be that those are the top ranked ones for your interest... I have no idea really.

Hmm I had been planning on writing my statements as if I would stay at my current MS university. I will be applying there so I didn't think it would be dishonest and I would be able write much better statements since I am so familiar my current PI's research. I have already come up with a really great spin to connect my volunteer work with my reserach interest. Does this seem dishonest to people? I thought that since I would be appying to this school too that it was fair.

While we are on this subject, does anyone have any way to actually write on the papers instead of having to use Mendeley's post-it feature for notes? I prefer to actually read them in Mendeley since I use it to organize papers that I want to read in the future so i am looking for something that I can use inside of it.

I agree that you should talk to the admin assistant. They usually know a lot about minors, internships, classes, etc.

We can give more advice on whether you should retake or not if you give us your score! In general, science/math fields care more about the quant section and humanities and social science fields care more about verbal. I wouldn't say that schools ignore the less relevent field though. You may be able to get in with a low quant score but applying with an average to high quant score can only help.

I am in a similar situation with a 3.3uGPA and 4.0 MS GPA. I am also worried that my undergrad grades will ruin my chances at many of my top choice schools.