MaudDib

What are you studying, NoMoreOrgo, if you don't mind me asking? I'm at Purdue, and we have a little regional inorganic conference with ND and IU, and there are some good inorganic people at ND -- Seth Brown, especially. But I guess if you're applying to CU-Boulder then maybe you're studying P Chem ... ? Anyway, if you're inorganic or catalysis, I would apply to Notre Dame. But that's just me.

I know that my school (Purdue) does not require the GRE, and it seems like they don't really care about it. Lots of people come here specifically because the department lacks a GRE requirement.

I'm just a first-year, and there are definitely more experienced people here, but here are my impressions: I really liked McQuarrie's physical chemistry book. The math review chapters are great, especially for a math dummy like me. Plus, it's really well written, and it's actually readable. I didn't like Laidler and Meiser. It seemed like they deliberately wrote it to be boring and difficult to understand. I haven't ever used or read Atkins, but I have heard that it's huge. I used both Wade and Bruice sophomore organic texts during undergrad, and I still own both of them. I *definitely* prefer Wade over Bruice. IIRC, Bruice is somewhat more comprehensive, although I can't remember specifically what wasn't present in Wade. I haven't found a Biochem book that I didn't like. Voet & Voet is especially good. Haven't used Lehninger. I liked the Atkins inorganic book, but my friends and labmates generally did not. Atkins is kind of lacking in its coverage of group theory. The Huheey book is better in that area. My labmates really like the Meissler book, but I've never read it. If I was re-buying everything, I'd get: McQuarrie for physical chemistry; Voet & Voet for biochem; Wade for organic; and Atkins for inorganic.

I think it's nice. It's a beautiful place in the summer. As far as "activities," I think there's a movie theater. There's just not much to say about West Lafayette, honestly. It's a small town.

I know someone with a bachelor's in psychology and a minor in biochemistry who is almost finished with a biochemistry PhD.

I applied in the last cycle. During my visit, I met with a well-known professor whose research I was familiar with, and I really "connected" with him. I accepted the offer at his school so that I could work for him. He contacted me in July to let me know that he was leaving for another institution. I would avoid basing your decision entirely on a single potential advisor.

Wow. Are you sure that you want to be a scientist? The advice in the OP looks solid, though. I probably need to check my own cockiness. I'm sure I'll get knocked down a peg once I get into class on Monday.

At all three of the schools I was admitted to, I received acceptance emails directly from newly-hired assistant professors who were trying to recruit graduate students. I wonder if these assistant professors have more of a voice in the admissions process, since they have a greater need for grad student researchers. I didn't get into any of the schools where I "targeted" my application to more established researchers with larger groups. This didn't fit my expectations. If you had asked me a few months ago, I would have guessed that schools would try to admit students in such a way that the research interests of the admitted student body are proportional to the available funding ... which would probably favor the larger groups. If I were going to do it over again, I might contact some of those new assistant professors in advance, and then shape my application to their research interests. I hope that doesn't sound too subversive

I'm sorry, I didn't mean to come off as derisive towards grad students. After all, I'm probably going to be one in a few months ACS employment statistics aren't reliable because they only include ACS members. If you can't find a job, or you can only find a job that pays as much as a BS chemist would get, are you really going to keep paying that membership fee? I was hoping to hear from some people who have already finished, and who have (or haven't) found jobs.

Hey, GradCafe people. I just finished the application process, and I've been accepted into some (I think) pretty good schools. Applying to grad school wasn't an impulsive or path-of-least-resistance thing for me. I've been planning to go to graduate school for years. In fact, I began my undergraduate career planning to do well enough in class, and get enough research experience, so that I could have a shot at being accepted to Purdue for graduate school. And ... I was! So, I feel pretty good about that. My reasons for going to grad school are pretty standard, I think: I really like research. I like learning and discovering new things, and I think I've found an area of chemistry that's especially interesting. I don't mind being in school at all. Also, I'd like to be able to get a good job when I graduate. However, I'm going through some last-minute waffling, largely thanks to my family. Several people in my extended family seem pretty upset about the prospect of me going to graduate school. They say things like "You're going to make yourself unemployable," and point out, every time I talk to them, that I would make more money if I went to e.g. med school or pharmacy school. I feel like I should be able to brush off these kind of objections, except that .... I'm not sure that they're wrong. Derek Lowe blogs every other week about the overproduction of chemistry and medicinal chemistry PhDs, and other communities (r/chemistry) seem to harbor similar sentiment. On top of that, it seems that there are basically no reliable employment statistics for doctoral-level chemists, once you throw out the ACS surveys because of their obvious sampling bias. And I don't have anyone who I can ask about the job market, and expect to get a believable answer. The only people I know IRL who I could ask -- professors and current grad students -- aren't exactly the most unbiased crowd, either. Grad students will obviously tell me that I should go, because they need to validate their own decision (see also: the pervasive hatred of pre-med undergrads). Professors will tell me to go because 1) They need grad students to work in their labs, and 2) Grad school seemed to work out really well for them! I'm really not in this for the money. If I was, I wouldn't even be looking at grad programs -- I'd be looking at law schools. However, I would like to eventually be able to do normal adult things, like buy a car and a house. Am I going to be overqualified for everything, and relegated to a box under a bridge, if I go get a chemistry PhD from Purdue? I'd be really interested in hearing from people who have navigated the chemistry PhD job market.

Sweet! Congratulations.

Is anyone else still waiting to hear back from UNC? I'm starting to wonder if my application got lost or something. There's still no decision listed online, and this page suggests that decisions should have been made in February.

I definitely feel you. I guess it's better than being rejected, though. I was really hoping to go to Austin, but it's getting pretty late in the game now ...

I'm really hoping that no news is good news for UNC applicants today. *fingers crossed*

So, I'm considering Purdue for chemistry graduate school. I'm curious about the weather. I'll be coming from a southern state. Has anyone from the warmer parts of the country, like the south or southeast, maybe Oklahoma, Arkansas, Texas, etc., moved to West Lafayette? What do you think of the weather? Also: How "walkable" is the area around campus? Is it conceivable that I could live somewhere near campus and be able to walk to the grocery store, bank, etc. ?