eklavya

NCState is making me do this. so, did you end up contacting profs at UW? Or went with others that made you offers? At this point, one school has invited me for interview and am sure others will do the same in the near future (their deadline isn't even close). And I am not sure if I really want to pitch my case and make all the effort. Suggestions?

on retrospect, it might not be a bad idea to check out safety schools. watching dept/univ/town videos might help to develop more respect towards these little guys. who knows, i/we might actually end up in our safetys!

if it offers you some relief, i have PLENTY of C in my transcript, and a couple of these are in my major-required classes (Ochems, non-plant mol bio, etc).

this is something that falls along the line of 'user preference'. that is to say, do whatever you feel like as there certainly is no fixed norm regarding this. i talked to few profs in a couple of schools before applying but didn't make any contact during and after the application process. one of those schools has invited me for interview next month. and am waiting to hear from the rest (their deadline is coming up). so in essence, it is quite important to make the first contact and inform them of your existence but latter encounters might or might not be so important - based on how you look at it.

resume looks solid. gre verbal is quite low for your major, but work experience, papers and cambridge diploma are impressive. no one here can say you WILL get in. you gotta apply to know your chances. but overall, the odds of getting in are quite good. and, didn't you post this yesterday in the forum? i thought some folks from here commented on it.

i guess most people are still away for the holidays spending quality time with their family and old friends... which is nice because it takes your attention away from the excruciating waiting period. others, like me and you, are lingering around and suffering. but this month is it!! even perhaps this week!

most likely they will. worry not, it'll be taken care of. these things happen.

you guy are going crazy. try playing 'a ball in the cup' game for a change.... it is far more obsessive than checking your email/app status

thanks! you are right - the degree of competition can sway things around. in my field, there isn't much competition as applicants narrow down to the most basic aspect of plant science. for example, even genetics, physiology, mol bio, and so on are broad terms. each of these field are finely sub-branched into various capillaries, and by the time people apply, the selection (of the field by the applicant) is so fine-tuned that there isn't much fight among the applicants for the spot. in other majors (and i guess, most of the non-science majors) this is different as there is quite a competition. but again, with your credentials, there isn't much room to worry. good luck! january is here - we shall get the fruits of our labor soon!

tall girl

south star

kidding me? am not in your major, but i can tell you will have no problem whatsoever in getting into any program. i can understand your anxiety/nervousness but chill out. with these credentials, a japanese could kill a godzilla!

I was/am planning to ask this question verbatim. Maybe I'll ask it in passive: 'is this place liked by you'? hehe

Scientists have shown that sleeping in colder rooms can cause nightmares. Maybe something to think about?

south bound

this video EXACTLY portrays my (and all our ?) situation: ETA: just to give you the background: this little dude is waiting for the Wii to come out. and is waiting in front of the store before the store opens... few days before the Wii is released!

these never seem to stop, do they!? i actually FOUND couple of typos, one not-so-cool word in my SoP (of course, after submitting my application). in one SoP, i actually called the dept of agronomy the dept of crop science (copy/pasted the essay written to one school, and overlooked the dept name), and this is giving me nightmares because the typo happened on the essay i wrote to my top pick school. it's not a huge deal because the dept names are used interchangeably. but still, from my perspective, this is an abomination. i'll surely end up in hell (if i don't get into this school)!! no. don't worry. that's what i thought few weeks ago. but got two offers already! so, it's not that bad. and for science people like us, there's even more hope as the applicant crowd gets sparse as the number of people trickles down to specific majors. to the awesome new year, and the awesome news that it will bring!

Well, I have been working in labs for almost 3 years now. Couple of internships at big places, couple of papers out, conference visits, etc are what I have. Your GPA is certainly higher than mine, and that might be very helpful. I've been told a lot of research always looks impressive, and I personally think that the 2 early offers I got were because of my research history. If your LoR writers can write good things about you, and your research potential, I don't think it'll be that bad. Doesn't hurt to give it a try, right?

Are you applying for MS or PhD? Regardless, you shouldn't be looking to apply just for the sake of getting in into a graduate program. At this point in your academic life, you (most probably) should know what programs you are interested and what career paths you want to follow in the future. I say this because your post gives the impression that you are desperate to get into any given program... which isn't the sound motive/decision you should carry with you. That said, talk to your professors about potential career prospects. They can certainly suggest you some great programs to apply to. They might even have connections at several places and this might come very handy later. Another place to look for good programs is journals - if you like papers published by a certain lab/program, apply to those programs. I have applied to few schools based on what type of research they are doing and the caliber of the papers published. You can also search in this site, or other generic sites to get more information about potential schools.

Your GRE scores aren't that bad. I scored 430V, 780Q and 4.5AW and already have two offers. Although I do have impressive research experience and am working on my Masters degree. So the bottom line is, if you have good research and nice LoRs to back you up, GRE is the least of your concern. Most science programs don't care about the GRE, let alone your verbal score.

[quote name=hello! ' timestamp='1293853532' post='173505] I agree with you completely, but I wonder -- what if that student really sucks at writing and the professor essentially rewrites the paper during the revision process?

If they are flying you out and paying for your stay, it means they are seriously interested in you. No school spends money on a talent they do not like. So, consider this as their recruitment weekend, rather than interview weekend. Still, you do want to go prepared, show that you are their golden kid, and return home with confidence. What to expect? 1. Interview with professors (anywhere from 3-6 professors) - be prepared to discuss about your personal and academic history, research interest, and career goals. also ask questions like funding, graduate student placements, etc. 1. Interview/Interaction with current grad students - use this opportunity to ask about professors, funding, the overall friendliness of the department, about living conditions in the town, social life, etc. don't act cocky in front of the grad students because i've heard that they can have a huge role in recommending you to the professors. 3. I don't think you will be interviewed by the adcomms (it doesn't happen in my program). It's quite rare that you will be interviewed by a whole panel of profs. 4. Dinner/Lunch with profs and/or current grad students. - this is an excellent opportunity to shake off the formal attitude, and get to know profs and grad students without pressure. utilize this opportunity to 'measure' your POI and potential cohort. 5. Also expect a tour of the facilities, campus, town. Now to prepare for the recruitment weekend, read papers published by profs whom you'll be interviewing with. You can search this forum and other sites to come up with questions to ask the profs and grad students. Also read about dress etiquette from these sites. Don't panic. This is an excellent opportunity. Congrats on your achievement!

top gear

[quote name=hello! ' timestamp='1293849911' post='173493] (General question) Should a student who did not do the writing, but did all the work, albeit mostly following instructions with little critical thinking, be the first author on the paper?

dude, Feb is too far! i'll probably die if i have to wait that long!