bsharpe269

I think it would make more sense to contact them if you do get an interview, not before. If you don't end up getting an interview then you will have wasted both your time. I found that I could easily figure out who I would want to interview with by reading current publications and looking at their we pages anyway.

What is the goal in emailing? Do you have a serious concern or question? If you email because you want it to increase your chances then I do think it will hurt your chances. They will see your motives. If you have a true question or concern then I don't see a problem with asking.

Im sorry! What was your undergrad major? Do you have a strong math background?

I actually think that someone at a large state school would have a lot more research opportunities than someone at a small school like Brandeis University. I don't think you need to justify anything... I would just write an honest statement about why you are interested in the REU. Write about why are you interested in the specific research that the REU would offer. I wouldn't put down your school in the statement or say that you cant do the research you want there. I would just focus on why the REU is a great fit for you.

Have you visited already? It is hard (or impossible) to give advice like this really without knowing more info. You need to consider questions like: Do both schools focus on your intended subfield? How many people are there who you would want to work with at each school? How well known are the people? Have their previous students gone onto jobs like what you want to do? How do the environments of each program compare to what you hope for? Are the stipends comparable? I recommend listing out the answers to these questions as a starting place.

I would focus on whatever is more relevant to your future research goals. If both are, then maybe give a very short summary of each and explain how they come to together to define your future goals.

I haven't been to an interview yet (my first is this weekend) so my response may be horrible. I considered this too but I feel that it would make the interviews less authentic and take away from the mutual conversation aspect.

My interests are a bit different than math bio but I think I fit this close enough to comment. I am applying to mostly biophysics programs, a couple computational bio, and one Applied Math and Stat program. My interests are in biophysical modeling and computational protein folding and dynamics which doesn't neatly fit into any specific field. All of the programs I am applying to have strong research in this area, regardless of the name of the degree. I have an undergrad degree in math and MS in bioinformatics. My undergrad research was in biomath so I am familiar with the area. What are you research interests?

8/10 of the programs I applied to do interviews before admitting people. This seems highly field dependent! I applied to biophysics/computational bio but people applying to related fields like chem or physics don't seem to do interviews. Interview via email just means they were emailed a request to go to an interview weekend (or possibly skype interview if international). In my field, programs fly you out to visit the school and have you meet with faculty members before admitting you. It is in part to screen out the students who aren't what they seem on paper or get drunk and hook up with random people. It also serves the purpose of "wine and dining" students so that they are more likely to accept the school's admission offer.

How are you guys addressing graduate coordinators in emails? With professors, I always go with either Dear Dr. X or Hi Dr. X, depending on what seems appropriate for the conversation. Even if they sign emails with their first name, I still stick with using Dr. X until I am told in person to switch. It is more difficult with coordinators though since I want to be polite but Miss or Mr never sounds quite right. I have been going with Dear FirstName LastName or Hi FirstName LastName and then if they sign the next email with first name, I switch over to using that. Is that similar to what you guys are doing?

The above post lays out good options. I am also really sorry that you are dealing with this. It is completely inappropriate for a professor to have this sort of relationship with a student. You are not to blame and the decisions you made were no different than what most young women would make. Thats exactly why there are university regulations on the professor's end on this sort of thing. Anyway do not let one asshole ruin your dream. Instead of thinking about giving up, you need to lay out a plan. The first question that needs to answered is whether you think you can use his recommendation. Do you think he will write a fair letter that keeps your professional and personal lives separate? Are you guys getting along well enough that you can discuss this with him and get an honest answer? If the answer is no then you can still pursue your dream, you just need to come up with a new plan. If you already have 2 strong letters then I think having a 3rd neutral letter might be fine. I am sure you can find one. Can you think or of anyone who can write "she did well in my class" sort of letter? With a stellar application package otherwise, I don't think this will keep you out of good schools. If you don't have anyone who can do this or think you need someone more in the field or whatever then there are lots of ways to get this even though you have graduated. For example, go to a nearby conference in your field and try to make connections. Take an evening or summer class at a local college. Try to connect with professors at a local school without taking a class even. I think that most local professors would be completely open to you asking for a meeting and telling them that you are interested in pursuing a PhD and asking about volunteer/internship opportunities in the area to beef up your resume. I hope you realize that you have TONS of options at this point. You seem (rightfully) upset by what happened. I think it is time for you to shift from that mindset to forming a plan on what steps you can take to achieve your goal.

For those of you who have been to an interview already, can you give any info on the "optional" drink hours at night. I have interview next weekend and there is the option to go to a bar with current students and applicants on Friday night. I am not super antisocial but I am a bit shy so I don't have a huge desire to go out drinking after a long day of interviews. I will probably be trying to sneak in some of my own research if time allows anyway since I will be missing work all day Friday as is. Anyway, I am not opposed to grabbing a beer if others recommend it. Did you learn a lot about the program/environment that you didn't from the dinners you went to already? Any advice on this? Also, any info on whether you were able to get any of your own work done during interview weekends or if you were completely busy every minute? Thanks!

I have an interview at UNC and my status still just says submitted. I submitted around 9pm on the due date and it didn't show as complete until a few days after too. I received an invite on 12/16 so i definitely don't think they are going in order of submission. It looks like some people received invitations in the past week or two so I think they are probably still going out. It is probably worth calling or emailing to ask.

You could include a dissertation idea but phrase it more like "One idea that I have developed is XXX (Write a paragraph about a potential idea). Though I have developed project ideas, my interests are not limited to this specific topic." I do something like this in my SOPs where I outline a potential project idea that I could enjoy working on. I think this shows that I can come up with good ideas and also gives the committee an idea of the sort of projects that I would like to work on. I include a couple lines though explaining that this is just one of many projects that I would be interested in pursuing.

My undergrad grades aren't great due to ADHD that I wasn't treating at the time. By not great I even mean that I have a couple Ds in important classes.I didn't mention this at all in my SOP. My MS GPA is a 4.0 and the rest of my application is great. I am getting interviews at strong programs in my field. I barely fit all of my research experience and comments on the faculty's work in the 2 pages I wanted to limit my SOP to. I would not have wasted space to point put bad aspects of my application again. Pointing out a C is just going to take away SOP space that could be used to show your knowledge of your field and is going to remind the committee of a negative part of you application.

I found typos in mine too and still got interviews. Everyone is going to have a typo or two.

For some perspective, I only had around a 3.3 uGPA and then a 4.0 MS GPA. I do have good GRE scores. I have tons of research and great LORs from that and have invited to interview at multiple top 20 schools in my field and even a top 10 school. From my experience, some schools seem completely uninterested in my app and at others that value research strongly, I seem to be one of the school's top choice candidates. I am realizing that the research vs GPA issue seems to be dependent on that specific school in question. Your GPA is great though so I wouldn't worry either way.

Stanford biosciences (biophysics) don't go out until next week apparently so I definitely wouldn't assume all bioscience invites are out.

This is great advice! I'd go with that. I would say that you know shes busy and you have two great options and ask which is better for her with her busy schedule.

Interview to Rice! That is one of absolute top choices! The research there is absolutely an amazingly perfect fit for me.

The worst is when I actually do get an interview and I excitedly call them and they respond with "Of course you got an interview there. We knew you would." Yesterday I got an interview to Johns Hopkins! Johns Hopkins!?!? That was one of my long shots. They have a top 10 biophysics program! Anyway, I want people to jump up and down with me and be as excited as I am but they don't seem excited at all because they were already expecting it.

Thanks! Jan 29-31. Will you be there?

Thanks for the info! Yeah I've noticed that... Both programs fit my interests equally well. Do you know if either offers an alternative date if needed?

Johns Hopkins - Program in Molecular Biophysics Interview!

If you already have plane tickets and committed to those schools then I do not think it is in any way appropriate to cancel. I would talk to UCSF and see if they will let you come visit/interview at an alternative time. If they are very interested in your application then I think they will agree to this.