zinde

I can't say enough about the benefits of taking some time off between undergrad and grad school.
 
First and foremost, I think it put me in a better mental place for the grad school application process - I applied to some fellowships right out of my undergrad, but my applications were weak not just because I lacked the experience I have now, but because I've since gained a lot of clarity about my strengths, weaknesses, and goals.
 
It's also just a lot of fun! You can pick a project you find interesting and work on it for a couple years in an environment that is (relative to grad school, at least) pretty low-stress. You'll probably meet some really interesting and fun people. Maybe it's in a city you've never spent much time in, but want to explore. Maybe you'll even have some time to explore your interests outside science.
 
Not all of these reasons, strictly speaking, relate to strengthening your application. But for me, they made the experience well worth a short two-year delay in starting grad programs.

You win.  Thread closed.

I got pulled off a waitlist! I got the email about 20 minutes ago that I have been accepted by Einstein!

research at a different place. You need at least 2 letters from professors you worked with to be competitive. Chances are you will not get a paper from the summer. Of course you can work with your PI the whole year next year and get something out of it.

As if I care what you think I got into harvard, yale, stanford .etc. so save it.

Sometimes new information comes up after your application is submitted that makes one school less or more appealing. It is also rare that you will be *equally* excited about attending the 5 schools you applied to: I applied to all the places that I thought *could* work out if I attended them, but when it came to the decisions I knew that some schools would work out better than others (because of funding, location, PI, etc).
 
On the opposite side of that coin - there were schools I wasn't initially excited that about when I submitted my application...but after visiting my opinion changed for the better. So applying to a variety of schools is something I would always recommend.

So far, I've contacted 3 schools and all of them responded in kind. Only one asked where I had decided to go instead. They said they liked to know for their own records.
 
It's natural to apply to some "safety" schools as well as some "reach" schools. If you get in to the reaches, the safeties become expendable. It's not that I would never go to those schools and never wanted to in the first place. It's just, I wouldn't go to them over some others.

To those still waiting to hear from schools, I mean no disrespect or insensitivity toward you with the following:

So, there are some schools that I have been accepted to that I can say with certainty I will not be attending. There's no need to keep them in my pocket. Others might be on a wait list or awaiting acceptance, etc. I'd like to let those schools know as soon as I comfortably can.

So what do we say? There's the obvious, "thank you. I love your school. I hate having to decline. It's not you - it's me" jargon. But even though I know I won't be attending their school, I'm not sure exactly which ones I will be. What should we say with regard to that information? Do we give them reasons? Do they care?

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

I am serious. And don't call me Shirley.

jerk. lol
 

It's not even April yet. Stop thinking it was an April Fools prank to put up the maintenance in March. : P

lol this bitch

Hahah come on all. This is gradcafe for crying out loud. People should be able to bitch/moan/complain/whine as they please. 

UCSF BMS! I'm so excited. ^^

Also something I'm trying to decide. I have a number of summer experiences in the Longwood area, and none at MIT, but HMS just gave me a really poor impression when I visited. I really liked the community at MIT, the first year program, and the academic feeling of the campus. BBS is nice in that there are many more lab choices, but Longwood just felt too hospital oriented for me. For me, it felt like MIT really got their PIs involved in trying to recruit, while at Harvard I met with many PIs that not only did I not request, but that were completely unrelated to my research interests. It just felt like Harvard didn't even feel like it needed to try.
 
I talked to a BBS faculty member about it and her response was that the size of BBS makes it a problem when it comes to recruiting. That might be true, but overall, it was worrisome to see and I got the impression that MIT was way more interested in cultivating their graduate students.

Actually, it depends on the tax agreements between the USA and your country. Some international students pay US taxes for stipends or fellowships while others don't. You can either read up on the IRS.gov web site or ask the international student office at the university.

I've always struggled with this question because it seems like a "turtles all the way down" thing. Why a certain PI - well, I like your research. Why do you like their research - well, because I like microbiology and evolution. Why are you intrigued by microbiology and evolution - etc, etc. At what point are you allowed do throw up your hands and say, "I just am!"?

My SO sent this to me, reminded me of you all haha.

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bGH2d1jBJu8

I can't say enough about the benefits of taking some time off between undergrad and grad school.
 
First and foremost, I think it put me in a better mental place for the grad school application process - I applied to some fellowships right out of my undergrad, but my applications were weak not just because I lacked the experience I have now, but because I've since gained a lot of clarity about my strengths, weaknesses, and goals.
 
It's also just a lot of fun! You can pick a project you find interesting and work on it for a couple years in an environment that is (relative to grad school, at least) pretty low-stress. You'll probably meet some really interesting and fun people. Maybe it's in a city you've never spent much time in, but want to explore. Maybe you'll even have some time to explore your interests outside science.
 
Not all of these reasons, strictly speaking, relate to strengthening your application. But for me, they made the experience well worth a short two-year delay in starting grad programs.

I can't say enough about the benefits of taking some time off between undergrad and grad school.
 
First and foremost, I think it put me in a better mental place for the grad school application process - I applied to some fellowships right out of my undergrad, but my applications were weak not just because I lacked the experience I have now, but because I've since gained a lot of clarity about my strengths, weaknesses, and goals.
 
It's also just a lot of fun! You can pick a project you find interesting and work on it for a couple years in an environment that is (relative to grad school, at least) pretty low-stress. You'll probably meet some really interesting and fun people. Maybe it's in a city you've never spent much time in, but want to explore. Maybe you'll even have some time to explore your interests outside science.
 
Not all of these reasons, strictly speaking, relate to strengthening your application. But for me, they made the experience well worth a short two-year delay in starting grad programs.

I can't say enough about the benefits of taking some time off between undergrad and grad school.
 
First and foremost, I think it put me in a better mental place for the grad school application process - I applied to some fellowships right out of my undergrad, but my applications were weak not just because I lacked the experience I have now, but because I've since gained a lot of clarity about my strengths, weaknesses, and goals.
 
It's also just a lot of fun! You can pick a project you find interesting and work on it for a couple years in an environment that is (relative to grad school, at least) pretty low-stress. You'll probably meet some really interesting and fun people. Maybe it's in a city you've never spent much time in, but want to explore. Maybe you'll even have some time to explore your interests outside science.
 
Not all of these reasons, strictly speaking, relate to strengthening your application. But for me, they made the experience well worth a short two-year delay in starting grad programs.

I can't say enough about the benefits of taking some time off between undergrad and grad school.
 
First and foremost, I think it put me in a better mental place for the grad school application process - I applied to some fellowships right out of my undergrad, but my applications were weak not just because I lacked the experience I have now, but because I've since gained a lot of clarity about my strengths, weaknesses, and goals.
 
It's also just a lot of fun! You can pick a project you find interesting and work on it for a couple years in an environment that is (relative to grad school, at least) pretty low-stress. You'll probably meet some really interesting and fun people. Maybe it's in a city you've never spent much time in, but want to explore. Maybe you'll even have some time to explore your interests outside science.
 
Not all of these reasons, strictly speaking, relate to strengthening your application. But for me, they made the experience well worth a short two-year delay in starting grad programs.

I took 2 years off to work as a tech before applying to grad school this year, and am really happy with that decision! I think that they are a great way to gain experience, explore research in a different enivornment/context than undergrad research, and develop skills in science writing. As far as strengthening your application, you would have the opportunity to get a strong LOR from your postbac experience, assuming that it's a good experience for you.
 
I'm not sure whether it can "make up" for a mediocre GPA, but I don't think it could hurt your chances at all! Plus you'll gain lots of research experience and be better prepared to jump into grad school 
 
The only cons I can think of are that you'll be older when you graduate your PhD program and it might be a slight adjustment to have to take classes again.

A thank you email will not help your application in the slightest but it is the polite thing to do.

Agree with this - I've sent thank yous to each PI, even the ones I didn't really click with during interviews. Doesn't really take that much effort (unless you go for the handwritten note - seems extreme, but I know some people who have) and it can't hurt. I've certainly gleaned various things from the replies (about the program, my chances, or even just the PI him/herself) and it's not a bad habit to get into.