Adenine_Monarch

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European history

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lol. for some reason it amuses me that Stanford is getting so many votes. you would think that one of the top universities in the country would have their act together with everything....!

How does that work exactly? I was told when I called the graduate school that they don't even necessarily do interviews. I still haven't heard from them. Is this their first weekend? Do you know when the others are? I am curious about how the event goes - could you let us know once you come back from it? Thanks.

crap, sorry. sesame street

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hard on

Captain Hook

That was why I wanted to point it out - so that people wouldn't think that all Cali schools were generally informal....

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Well, I just came from the USC PIBBS interview and their culture is definitely business formal. The men were all in suits and the ladies in skirt suits or nice slacks/blouse/jacket or nice dress combos. It was a two day thing and the second day everyone seemed to dress down a little but it was only slight. And of course for hanging with the grad students, it was casual. I'd say just do whatever your program tells you to do, erring on the side of looking nice since you can always dress down from formal if you need to. I think it's better to look serious about it all than not. It is like a job interview, after all. I have been told that UUtah and Stanford are both casual, btw.

spin class (btw, a while back I think I got down voted for posting a phrase that didn't follow the rule but it was because I accidentally posted without refreshing my browser....sorry!)

That's promising news I don't think they'd bother sending you that if it wasn't for a good reason. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. For anyone who might have to do this whole bit again, seriously consider bringing some money with you. Schools/PIs love having someone they don't have to give as much financial support to. Plus it shows that you're committed to your research and mature enough to scope out all your options and be self-supporting. And let's face it - money is almost always a factor wherever you go in life....(this makes me wanna groan but what can you do?).

So....I start my first interview tomorrow and though I am nervous, too, I also feel really excited and hope it will be a good experience. I'm just so happy to see everyone else getting interviews, too, and I wish you all the best in your respective endeavors. I can tell there are some really great, bright people in here and I am glad to share the experience with all of you, albeit digitally and anonymously! Even if things don't work out as we hope, please enjoy as much of the ride as you can It only lasts a little while, then it's gone.

1) Are you the first in your family to pursue graduate education? Are you the first to pursue higher education in general? I have always been a bit confused by this question as well (can someone clear this up for me?). I am the first in my family (meaning nuclear family: me, mom and dad - I have no siblings) to go to college and pursue graduate work. If, however, you mean my ENTIRE extended family, then no. I have an uncle and a cousin (his daughter) that went to college and graduated. However, all of my extended family lives very far from me (or doesn't speak english), and due to my uncle's divorce, I am only just now getting to know my cousin. I think I also have an aunt on my dad's side that went to community college, but that's it. And we don't talk about it. Either way, I never got much from my family in terms of advice and the support of shared experience. I may even be the one and only person that I know of to try for a Ph.D (my uncle was a chemistry major, but I'm not sure how far he went). Both my parents started college but dropped out within weeks to get married. 2) What struggles have you faced as a first-generation applicant? I think I would answer similar here. It's just tough doing it all on your own and having few people to empathize with or talk to about the particulars. My SO has been here for the whole grad school ride, but I don't think even he understands just how stressful it is since he didn't finish community college himself. I get plenty of encouragement and my family/friends are proud of me (which I'm grateful for) but....that doesn't write essays or read papers for me! As an undergrad, my parents were able to give me some money for school and I worked for the rest or earned it with scholarships. Currently, I'm footing the bill all alone. And when you quit your job to pursue grad school....heh. It's not easy! And being older I have a family unit and household to worry about, too. 3) What have you accomplished as a first-generation applicant? Just basically got good grades/test scores and worked hard. I was HS valedictorian, National Merit Commended Scholar (top 2% graduating HS seniors), AP scholar, scholarship winner at my undergrad institution, graduated magna cum laude, I am published in my field....and at 30+ years of age and almost a decade after my undergrad (I spent 8 years in research already), I'm trying for my Ph.D. It's been a tough road making such a huge life change a little later than most people tend to make it. If I am successful, I feel like that will be my biggest personal accomplishment to date. 4) What has helped you reach your educational goals? I guess just mostly being stubborn, competitive and always wanting to learn and do my best and be successful. I have a dogged, disciplined personality in that regard along with a lot of pride. And I honestly just love to learn. Academia (and particularly the biological/biomedical sciences) is just where I feel comfortable and where I feel like I belong. Along the way, I have had my family, friends, teachers and advisors cheering me on and pushing me to greater heights. I also have my PI to thank for telling me I should move on from the lab and maybe go back to school. I remember not being very happy when he mentioned it (since I loved my lab work so much) but I've since learned that it is important to diversify, learn new things, meet new people and just have new experiences in general; otherwise, you don't grow and you get stuck. And, as stated, my SO has done all he can to help me with the process, from scanning my transcripts to helping tutor me for GRE math. Thanks, babe!

rhythm method (i think we've gotten to where we are repeating some words/phrases....)

Station Casinos (for the gamblers out there....)

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Wow, that's totally cool. Now makes me wish I hadn't bothered with the subject test. They're one of the main reasons I decided to take it at the last second. Are there any others that require it? They were the only one I saw.

Not sure of the deal with Stanford. But for anyone that wants to know, I got my email invitation on Friday and also received my snail mail packet today even though it is just the same info that was already attached to my email (this was for immuno). Although I guess some people didn't get an attachment for some reason? I'm surprised the snail mail packet came so quickly. eep! Has anyone else heard back? And btw, is anyone having trouble getting the logistics scheduled with Baylor?

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Yay! There's still hope yet...they seem to really be rolling their invites. Thanks for the info. What interview dates did they offer?

Haha, Stanford is getting a lot of votes, it seems. I definitely hated that you couldn't navigate to whichever page you wanted...seriously? And you needed the mini personal statement AND the blurb about home program....in addition to the typical stuff. Baylor was alright...my only problem was that they were unable to receive one of my LORs for some reason...it had to be emailed in eventually but the girl was friendly and on the ball about it. OHSU was like that, too. The website looks great on the surface, but it's a little hard to navigate. I also couldn't find the application link right away. Re. Scripps, the admin there were totally nice and helpful. One of my docs wasn't showing up for some reason, so I contacted them about it and the lady took care of it right away. I felt that way, too!