Etern

I think I would put it under service.

That seems on the lower end of the scale for stipends. Like others have said, it will depend on your accommodation. My stipend is 22,000 pound here in cambridge, I was offered the same in oxford, and I feel it is just enough to live comfortably. You can probably still make some extra money tutoring.

You can contact the Oxbridge Biotech Roundtable, they are a student-led company specialising in biotech consulting. Here is their website: oxbridgebiotech.com All the best.

I guess I was a nerd, however not in the sense of trying to get the best grades possible. I was consistently doing well in class but not one of the best. I was always bored in class and therefore wasn't interested in the material. When I went home, I would play 4 or 5 hours of videogames every day... I did however exhibit certain nerdy behaviour traits: I was a member of the chess club: I would spend every lunchtime in the library playing chess. I was the school champion. I also participated in national chess competitions. I also enjoyed learning all kinds of stuff that was university level material, particularly in biology, physics, and philosophy. I created my on curriculum with books I ordered from amazon and material I found online. I now have a couple of folders full of stuff that I learned outside of class. I also read a lot of literary books with a desire to further my knowledge. I designed many boardgames which I playtested with my friends. One of these is a RPG with a rulebook of 80000words. I basically wrote a short PhD thesis in high school, haha. I did the IB, but then again, everybody in my school did so that is nothing special. EDIT: I forgot that I did 7 subjects instead of the usual 6, but there were a few others who did the same... I also did a couple of internships, but I did these for money and not to further my employability. I also did some tutoring in my last year of high school because my teacher asked me. That's it.

I am going to pursue a PhD at Cambridge starting this October. I will be at Christ's College My PhD is based at the Sanger Institute and the PhD is funded by the Wellcome Trust. I will be studying parasite genomics Anybody else attending Cambridge?

Hey everybody, I am currently looking at securing a summer placement position this summer before starting grad school. I have identified a summer program I wish to apply for, however they only open the application portal in April. I wanted to fund this summer program with a travel grant from a different organization. Thing is, the deadline for the travel grant application is in March. Therefore, I would have to apply for the grant before I am even sure about whether I get a spot at the summer program. Any advice on what I should do? Thank you.

Going to attend Cambridge University starting October. I'll be pursuing a 4-year PhD at the Sanger Institute

I was driving to Oxford for some interviews when I noticed that I had three missed calls from an unknown number. I knew that the DGS of the Sanger Institute would call accepted applicants, so I was really excited thinking that it might have been him trying to call me. I immediately phoned all the people whose numbers show up as 'unknown' when they call me to make sure it wasn't any of them. It wasn't! Anyway, when I arrived at Oxford, I had no email, so my spirits were down. I went to sleep and I was really nervous for my Oxford interview because it was my second-choice after Sanger, so I didn't sleep well. The morning of my interview, I checked my email and there was the acceptance from Sanger, complete with a sentence stating: 'We tried calling you yesterday but we were unable to get through...'. I was so happy! I was contemplating whether to attend the interview or not. I ended up going to be polite, but I went in completely relaxed and without any expectation of being accepted or not. The interview went terrible, but I did not care. 1 week later I got an acceptance from Oxford, haha. Guess they like terrible interviews! Anyway, ended up rejecting them.

I took a gap year after my master. I was 22 at the time I finished my master. I only got into some pretty unknown PhD programs that did not fit my research, and was rejected everywhere else. I therefore decided to take a gap year in which I worked as a teacher (still doing this now). I applied to a lot of PhD programs because I had a lot of time, and I spent a lot of time upgrading my CV. This year I got into Cambridge, Oxford, and a variety of other very good schools. I will therefore start my PhD this October at my dream program in Cambridge. I am sure that I would have been rejected by all these programs last year, but my gap year made it possible. So, I will be 23 instead of 22 when I start my PhD, big deal! I am going to Cambridge! My opinion is therefore that a gap year is useful if you think it will help your career ambitions in the long run. Especially if you are still young.

I go running and weight lifting. Besides that I love playing videogames, though I don't get much time for that. I also watch a lot of anime and read manga. Sometimes I also watch movies and other series.

^^ I did not. I informed Sanger on Sunday that I would accept their offer. I am guessing that maybe the MGM program somehow found out, so I did not get any email from them today. What about you? Did you get an offer?

So, I made up my mind, I shall attend the Sanger Institute from October onwards :) I just accepted their offer and rejected the others! SO SO SO happy It was my first choice So, in the end my situation was like this: Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD -Interview - Acceptance - 20000£ per year - ATTENDING Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics - Interview- Acceptance- 20000£ per year Oxford- NDM Prize Studentship - Interview- Acceptance- 18000£ per year Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Medicine - Interview - Withdraw Imperial College- Genomic Medicine - Interview - Rejection Harvard- Biostatistics- Withdraw Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics - Withdraw Yale- Biostatistics -Withdraw UC Davis- Entomology- Interview - Withdraw Penn State- Entomology - Acceptance - 26000$ per year + tuition fee waiver Cornell- Genetics, Genomics, and Development - Interview - Withdraw

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, so I will probably choose Sanger. I will think about it for a few more days though. I believe that the short reply date is only for British PhDs, the penn state offer I have is valid until march....

I just had a really intensive week of interviews, I was on the plane four times within the last 6 days... Anyway, it seems like it is all over now. I am starting to get the results from my interviews: Acceptances at the Oxford Genomic Medicine and Sanger PhDs, both my top choices!!! They require me to make up my mind by Monday, so that does not leave much time for decisions.... My situation: Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics - Interview- Acceptance- 20000£ per year Oxford- NDM Prize Studentship - Interview Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD -Interview - Acceptance - 20000£ per year Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Medicine - Interview Imperial College- Genomic Medicine - Interview - Rejection Harvard- Biostatistics Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics Yale- Biostatistics UC Davis- Entomology- Interview Penn State- Entomology - Acceptance - 26000$ per year + tuition fee waiver Cornell- Genetics, Genomics, and Development - Interview Any advice on which offer to accept? Sanger or Oxford? The main difference is that the Sanger one includes three rotations in the first year, while the Oxford one consists of two rotations and statistics courses. Loved the faculty at Sanger though, so I am slightly leaning towards it. Oxford however might provide a better foundation in statistics...

Well, it was a 30minute interview. I was tired that day cause I got up at 5 in the morning to get to the interview in time, so that didn't help. Anyway, the interview started the way I mentioned before and then they asked me if I had identified any other potential research groups I would like to join. I said no because I had only looked at the groups working on malaria. The interviewers seemed very disappointed at my apparent lack of preparation. They then asked me to summarize the scientific paper that I had to read for the interview. At this point I was really nervous and tired, so I was unable to explain the paper in any coherent way. My inability to do so made me even more nervous, creating a vicious circle. In the end it seemed like I didn't understand the paper. We the went on to talk about my research experience which went decently well. They then asked me what I wish to do after I finish my PhD. I told them that I wish to do a post-doc and then apply for a lecturing position. This is where I started to spew stupid stuff again. I was asked what I would need to have to get there and I replied 'publications' . They looked surprised and asked me to explain. I simply said 'if you have enough publications you can get a faculty position anywhere. Of course the quality of the papers matters too'. They then asked how to judge the quality of a paper, to which I replied 'citations'. They then asked to get a good publication and I said 'good research'. They asked how to do good research and I said you need to be in the correct field... We then switched topic.... It is apparent to me now that they wanted me to say that you need to be hardworking and persevere to get a lecturing position.... I was being far too rational and in the end appeared to not really care about the science. It seemed like I looked down on the professors like they are only there because of their publications. I don't know why I spewed all of that stupid stuff... Anyway, at the end they asked if I had any questions, I said no and left. That was it. Done. Secured my rejection.

I think your GRE score is fine, try to focus now on other parts of your application, like your personal statement. My GRE score is similar to yours, V:165, Q:160, W:5.5. I have not been rejected because of it yet. I believe as long as the GRE is decent, then it doesn't really matter that much. I saw people with 170/170/5.0 who got rejected from programs I was asked for an interview, which shows how little the GRE factors in.

Got an email from Imperial yesterday to inform me of my rejection. I went to the interview two weeks ago. They invited 30 of the 100 applicants to attend the interview. They accepted 10 of these 30. I was very nervous during the interview, as the interviewers really psyched me out. I am interested in malaria research and so I wrote my entire personal statement along those lines. However, the first thing they told me at the interview was 'What if I told you that none of the people working on malaria is able to supervise you?'. I was thinking to myself 'WTF, why do you invite me for an interview then...'. Anyway, it all went downhill from there. On the upside, I got an interview invite at UC Davis. My updated situation is therefore at: Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics - Interview Oxford- NDM Prize Studentship - Interview Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD -Interview Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Medicine - Interview Imperial College- Genomic Medicine - Interview - Rejection Harvard- Biostatistics Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics Yale- Biostatistics UC Davis- Entomology- Interview Penn State- Entomology - Acceptance - 26000$ + tuition fee waiver Cornell- Genetics, Genomics, and Development - Interview

Alright, thanks guys for your input! The offer also includes health, dental, and vision insurance. I thought that was rather unimportant because it is free here in the UK, that's why I didn't mention it... It seems like it is a good offer! That's great! On another note, I just received another Interview invite for a program at Oxford. It's really weird because I didn't apply for it... I guess somebody nominated me? I'm excited about it, but I am also scared that they made an error and will retract the interview invite, haha.

Just got an email inviting me for a Skype interview in 2 days time for the genetics, genomics and development PhD at Cornell University! Also got my official acceptance from Penn State, they are offering: 26000$ stipend per year + 2000$ enhancement for first year and also full tuition fee waiver. They will also nominate me for additional fellowships. I am from the UK, so I am not sure whether this is a good offer or not, any input? My situation is therefore at: Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics - Interview Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD -Interview Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Medicine - Interview Imperial College- Genomic Medicine - Interview Harvard- Biostatistics Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics Yale- Biostatistics UC Davis- Entomology Penn State- Entomology - Acceptance - 26000$ + tuition fee waiver Cornell- Genetics, Genomics, and Development - Interview

Here is a small update for my situation (my profile is on page 4 of this thread): Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics - Interview Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD -Interview Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Medicine - Interview Imperial College- Genomic Medicine - Interview Harvard- Biostatistics Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics Yale- Biostatistics UC Davis- Entomology Penn State- Entomology - Acceptance Cornell- Genetics, Genomics, and Development I have already gone to the interview at Imperial, waiting for the results to be released next week. The other interviews are all the week after, so I will be busy then. I was accepted to Penn State without interview which was nice. They will contact me later with details on funding. Has anybody heard from the Harvard public health department at all? Or from UC Davies for entomology? Thanks

Thank you everybody for your comments. My MSc included quite a few math-y subjects. I took: 3- weeks Mathematics for Biology (Basically covers all of 1st year undergrad math without proofs) 3- weeks Statistics (from t-tests over to GLMs and GAMs) 1-week Bayesian Statistics 1-week Maximum Likelihood 2-weeks Mechanistic Modelling and R 1-week Advanced computing for Biology (Parallel programming and shell scripting) 1-week Modelling Complex Communities (Lotka-voltera model and other mathematical models in biology) 1-week Population Genetics (Basically statistics for genetics) 1-week Quantitative Fisheries Management (Modelling population sizes of fish) 1-week Other Topics (Bayesian Networks, Molecular Stochasticity, Wave Spectra in Biology) And yes, as I said in my opening post, I also applied to 7 other programs that are not biostatistics (Entomology, Genetics, etc...)

Hello everybody, was wondering whether you could give me some feedback on my profile. I come from a biological background, but I am applying for biostatistics PhDs now: Undergrad Institution: Top 30 in the UK Major(s): Biology and English Minor(s): GPA in Major: 4.0 Overall GPA: 4.0 Position in Class: 1 Type of Student: International Male Grad Institution: Imperial College London Major(s): Quantitative Biology Minor(s): GPA in Major: 4.0 Overall GPA: 4.0 Position in Class: 1 Grad Institution: King's College London Major(s): English Literature Minor(s): GPA in Major: 3.5 Overall GPA: 3.5 Position in Class: Middle Did both of my masters simultaneously. Wrote my English dissertation on a scientific topic relevant to my biological interests GRE Scores (revised): Q: 160 (78%) V: 165 (95%) W: 5.5 (97%) Research Experience: 3-month internship in a DNA lab 6-month bioinformatics project for my master 3-month research assistant position in bioinformatics 1-first author publication in preparation 2 conference talks Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Won awards for being the top student at undergrad and at graduate institution. Won an award for most diligent first year student Won a business award for an innovative business plan Received travel grant to attend a workshop Received an award for outstanding services to the student union Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Teaching: Tutored throughout my undergrad for 3 years (undergraduate biology and academic english) Worked as a teaching assistant at Imperial for a programming class Currently started working as a high school teacher in biology for the remainder of the year Service: Student representative for Quantitative Biology (1 year) Student representative for Biology (1 year) Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I am fluent in four languages (Luxembourgish, German, French, English) and conversational in Mandarin Chinese Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Member of a couple of biology societies Took a lot of professional development classes Took all biochemistry courses during undergrad in addition to my compulsory courses LOR writers: My personal tutor from undergrad. The course director from my MSc, and my MSc thesis supervisor. Applying to Where: Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Statistics Harvard- Biostatistics Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics Yale- Biostatistics I am mostly worried about the my low Q score in the GRE and the distraction that the English component composes. I am also applying to a couple of other schools which are more biological. Any chance in hell that I will get accepted to any of them?

You might just need to apply for two master programs in two different unis and then do the full workload for both degrees. That's what I did and it worked. Need to make sure though that the classes you pick do not overlap and that the unis are close to each other.

Undergrad Institution: Top 30 in the UK Major(s): Biology and English Minor(s): GPA in Major: 4.0 Overall GPA: 4.0 Position in Class: 1 Type of Student: International Male Grad Institution: Imperial College London Major(s): Quantitative Biology Minor(s): GPA in Major: 4.0 Overall GPA: 4.0 Position in Class: 1 Grad Institution: King's College London Major(s): English Literature Minor(s): GPA in Major: 3.5 Overall GPA: 3.5 Position in Class: Middle Did both of my masters simultaneously. Wrote my English dissertation on a scientific topic relevant to my biological interests GRE Scores (revised): Q: 160 (78%) (ashamed about considering I studied quantitative biology) V: 165 (95%) W: 5.5 (97%) B: not taking it Research Experience: 3-month internship in a DNA lab 6-month bioinformatics project for my master 3-month research assistant position in bioinformatics 1-first author publication in preparation 2 conference talks Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Won awards for being the top student at undergrad and at graduate institution. Won an award for most diligent first year student Won a business award for an innovative business plan Received travel grant to attend a workshop Received an award for outstanding services to the student union Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Teaching: Tutored throughout my undergrad for 3 years (undergraduate biology and academic english) Worked as a teaching assistant at Imperial for a programming class Currently started working as a high school teacher in biology for the remainder of the year Service: Student representative for Quantitative Biology (1 year) Student representative for Biology (1 year) Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I am fluent in four languages (Luxembourgish, German, French, English) and conversational in Mandarin Chinese Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Member of a couple of biology societies Took a lot of professional development classes Took all biochemistry courses during undergrad in addition to my compulsory courses Applying to Where: Oxford- Genomic Medicine and Statistics Oxford- Clinical Medicine Sanger Institute- 4-year PhD Cambridge- Mathematical Genomics and Statistics Harvard- Biostatistics Harvard- Public Health: Genetic Epidemiology and Statistical Genetics Yale- Biostatistics Imperial College- Genomic Medicine Edinburgh- Ecology of disease transmission UC Davis- Entomology Penn State- Entomology Cornell- Genetics, Genomics, and Development Any comments on my application? What are my chances with these programs? I am bit scared because I was rejected by all unis last year, so I applied to a lot more schools this year....