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Surprised to see the results released so early! VG/VG, G/G, E/VG Not Recommended Very disappointing, more so the reviewers lack of feedback than the result itself. Every reviewer gave single sentence feedback. Congratulations to all who received it!

In a poor attempt to introduce levity, would anyone want to take bets whether it will be Tuesday 28th (an early record) or Friday the 31st?

Easily, and in fact I had until I showed my PI lol! Apparently "showing data > saying data". That's fine for a twelve page proposal but this two page proposal is a different beast.. As it looks now the proposal is a tight squeeze, but it fits. Overall I tend to agree with both you and sqxz, it's not worth the risk! I'll keep it Times size 10 font.

I'm writing my proposal and having some trouble with space. I'm a second year graduate student and want to include important data, both to support my proposal and show the reviewers I'm productive. I have two figures, two and three panels of data each. The data itself takes up a small area but annotating it with text is taking up a lot of space. Can anyone confirm that the font size must be 10 for text in the figure? Also must it be Times New Roman? Usually Arial or Myriad is much better for figure text.

Final Status - Not Recommended F/G E/E G/E A bit disappointing, but I'm very pleased with the feedback I received. I will be trying again this year! Great job to all those who received the award. It is an outstanding achievement considering the quality of the applicant pool!

Is anyone else not reading their statement and proposal after submitting? I'm terrified I will find mistakes or find a phrase that could have been better said. It's very out of character for me to care.. but I suppose funding is on the line. Maybe I'll stumble across it after a few drinks

I had the same feelings when I was applying. My advice, ignore them and focus on presenting what you've done in the best light possible. When I applied to graduate schools in the Fall of 2014 I had a total of seven months of research experience. Look at my signature to see the response to my application. Don't be discouraged, you can do it!

Life Sciences applicant spending the day making last minute revisions checking in.

Just wondering what the hourly break down of your week is like? For me, weekly: ~30 hours in lab (rotations), ~3 hours in class, ~6 hours reading + problem sets, ~3 hours seminars, ~5 hours in workshops/MOOC. ~10 hours reading research oriented material, writing for NSF GRFP, and organizing work. That's ~57 hours over 6 days, which is about 9.5 hour days. Seems right. These hours are spread Monday-Saturday. I'm usually starting around 8:30am and finishing around 5pm. Putting in about 2 hours of reading in the evenings. Personally I'm really happy with my program. None of this exam nonsense! I can focus in learning the idiosyncrasies of the lab and research directions. I'm interested in hearing your schedules. Please share

I want to drop in and wish the best of luck to those applying this season. It can be a stressful, exciting, rewarding - transforming experience. Interviews are a blast and before you know it you will be in graduate school If anyone has questions feel free to message me. I'm rooting for you!

You're not alone! I'm about half way through both personal statement and research proposal drafts. They are shaping up nicely but still need much work (and revisions!) Does anyone have any statistics they would like to share regarding success rate in the various fields?

A rough timeline: finishing my B.S. in May, vacationing in Norway/Sweden, continuing research in molecular light signaling, moving into a new apartment in a new city, attending a plant biology symposium, getting a head start for NSF GRFP, binge reading about two dozen books, learning basic programming and statistics, spending time with family and friends, and relaxing!

I recommend applying to both and forming your opinion during the interviews. I interviewed at UMass Med and was really impressed with the program, facilities, and the breadth of research - a spectrum of basic, translational, and clinical that was being conducted. This and the professors I interviewed were congenial and excited about the prospect of an incoming class of graduate students.

Keep it "professionally excited". Thank them for bearing good news and tell them you are excited to receive the offer. It is a great moment after all!

I have a question to those who already know which school they are attending. Did you officially accept the acceptance before you were done interviewing with all your programs?

I had a total of 8 months of research experience when I sent in my application and have been accepted to my top choice school. It sounds like you have doubts on the eligibility and strength of your applicant profile.If you're truly interested in conducting independent research, go straight for the PhD.

I have two more, one of the programs being back at UW Madison. You're having a heck of an application season. Have you made travel arrangements for all your remaining interviews? Thanks! Yes the UW system (a dozen schools!) is indeed facing proposed budget cuts in the next two years. I've been trying to inform myself, reading and asking questions. Madison receives funding almost exclusively from the federal government, perhaps research will go unabated? If I accept I will receive a two year NIH training grant, whew. But I can't help think cutting money will bruise the entire system. Everyone will feel the ache. I really need to learn more and how it could affect me as a graduate student, the next half decade of my life.

Just received an offer from UW-Madison, my top pick!! The application game is over, now the fun begins Best wishes to everyone, I'm rooting for you!

These are great ideas, I'm asking these at my remaining interviews!

No travel plans yet for one, the other just booked my flight last Friday. I do feel kind of bad because the coordinator has been so nice and working hard to accommodate me. But consider there is another person out there who would attend the interview weekend in my place? Canceling now would give the program time to let another attend the weekend.

I have an upwards of seven interviews and am finishing my senior year. I'm feeling the heat missing so much class, lab, and work. I am considering dropping two interviews that are lowest on my interest list. Out of my top three choices, I have had an interview which I'm sure I will be receiving a notice of admittance within the week and two more interview weekends within the month. I can almost say for certain I would attend one of these schools over the other two that I would be canceling. But who can say for certain until one actually visits and interviews? Of course I would be very polite and give full disclosure to the programs I'd be canceling the interview with. Anyway just looking for advice from PhD students who have gone through this process. Thanks,

This depends on the field, school, department and size, strength of the programs.. but generally I would say 30-70% are admitted. For example, a large umbrella program I recently interviewed told us that they invited a total of 110 interviewers (over two different weekends), they would offer acceptances to 75, and they expected 30-35 to matriculate (accept the offer and attend the program). That's roughly a 70% acceptance rate! Hope that helps

Hi compbio, I have an interview with Dartmouth MCB in a couple weeks. I'm not sure what to expect, but I know I'm excited to meet the faculty. There's some exciting things going on there I may see both of you soon! Best wishes

I had my first interview last weekend. It was a blast! My advice is smile, be engaged, ask questions and have fun! Just don't be that stuffy person with the suit on

Take an updated transcript when you go to your interview weekend. Beyond that I wouldn't worry unless you're directly asked by admissions.