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I'm still waiting on my official acceptance from CMU-Pitt and my official rejection from Johns Hopkins, but, with my rejection from WashU yesterday, I pretty much know what options I'm going to have for grad school.
 
It's funny how things work out. I finalized the list of grad schools to which I was going to apply back in August. Then, in October, I swapped out three programs in a rushed panic after I realized the original programs were focused much more on experimentation (rather than computation and theory) than I originally thought. It just so happens that the three programs I swapped in are the ones that have made me offers.
 
Even though I was rejected after all four of my competitive interviews, I don't feel (too) disappointed. I only feel grateful for having the opportunity to visit a bunch of new schools and cities, and I feel extremely fortunate that I made the decisions I did back in October and that I now have offers from three programs where I can definitely do the research that I want to do in grad school. Now I just have to make the hard decision about which program will be best for me. Hopefully, this will be made easier after visiting UIUC next week and Rutgers the week after that.
 
To those who have received fantastic offers of their own, congratulations! Good luck deciding where you want to go! To those who have not, good luck next year or with whatever path you decide to pursue! With some more hard work and a bit of random luck, I'm sure everything will turn out just fine for all of us.

I'm still waiting on my official acceptance from CMU-Pitt and my official rejection from Johns Hopkins, but, with my rejection from WashU yesterday, I pretty much know what options I'm going to have for grad school.
 
It's funny how things work out. I finalized the list of grad schools to which I was going to apply back in August. Then, in October, I swapped out three programs in a rushed panic after I realized the original programs were focused much more on experimentation (rather than computation and theory) than I originally thought. It just so happens that the three programs I swapped in are the ones that have made me offers.
 
Even though I was rejected after all four of my competitive interviews, I don't feel (too) disappointed. I only feel grateful for having the opportunity to visit a bunch of new schools and cities, and I feel extremely fortunate that I made the decisions I did back in October and that I now have offers from three programs where I can definitely do the research that I want to do in grad school. Now I just have to make the hard decision about which program will be best for me. Hopefully, this will be made easier after visiting UIUC next week and Rutgers the week after that.
 
To those who have received fantastic offers of their own, congratulations! Good luck deciding where you want to go! To those who have not, good luck next year or with whatever path you decide to pursue! With some more hard work and a bit of random luck, I'm sure everything will turn out just fine for all of us.

I'm still waiting on my official acceptance from CMU-Pitt and my official rejection from Johns Hopkins, but, with my rejection from WashU yesterday, I pretty much know what options I'm going to have for grad school.
 
It's funny how things work out. I finalized the list of grad schools to which I was going to apply back in August. Then, in October, I swapped out three programs in a rushed panic after I realized the original programs were focused much more on experimentation (rather than computation and theory) than I originally thought. It just so happens that the three programs I swapped in are the ones that have made me offers.
 
Even though I was rejected after all four of my competitive interviews, I don't feel (too) disappointed. I only feel grateful for having the opportunity to visit a bunch of new schools and cities, and I feel extremely fortunate that I made the decisions I did back in October and that I now have offers from three programs where I can definitely do the research that I want to do in grad school. Now I just have to make the hard decision about which program will be best for me. Hopefully, this will be made easier after visiting UIUC next week and Rutgers the week after that.
 
To those who have received fantastic offers of their own, congratulations! Good luck deciding where you want to go! To those who have not, good luck next year or with whatever path you decide to pursue! With some more hard work and a bit of random luck, I'm sure everything will turn out just fine for all of us.

Not applying at all.

I had this MASSIVE excel pro/con sheet going... and then just went with my gut. Hah. Lots of time wasted, but at least I felt productive! 
 
 
edit: Forgot to congratulate you on Johns Hopkins!!! That's awesome!!!

Finding a new definition of pain and suffering in the belly of the all-powerful sarlacc as you are slowly digested over a thousand years.

I JUST GOT AN INTERVIEW OFFER!  Van Andel just called and invited me to an interview tomorrow!
 
HURRAY!

Just got an acceptance from Princeton QCB by phone. I missed this call (DGS left a voicemail), as well as one yesterday... Why do they always call when I'm in class??? I probably seem super flaky :/ Anyway, hooray! 
 
This marks the official end of my application season -- all of my decisions are in!!! What an enormous relief. No more waiting.
 
I thought I knew where I was going to pick, but then Princeton offered me some kind of special fellowship, and now I'm up in the air again... I'll have to do some serious thinking after they (snail mail!!!) me the details. 

Just so everyone knows, it sucks even more when you follow up with the PI you had the best interview with and they say they had been looking forward to having you rotate in their lab in the fall... I guess it just goes to show that it was competition and not being bad in person that got me rejected. I just hope I don't forever wonder what I could have done differently to give me the edge over someone else who got in. :/ This just sucks so much.

When people talk about programs being long shots, they generally mean that they expect their application will be outshined by the applications of others who they expect will apply to the program. When they talk about safety schools, they generally expect that their application will outshine those of the other applicants. This is a judgement call based on perceived weaknesses and strengths in their own application. It is generally measured by the individual program rankings/reputations and research here on GradCafe into who got in where in past years. The bottom line is that no one is going to be able to tell you whether particular programs are long shots or sure bets for you...this is a subjective judgement call you'll have to make on your own.
 
Having said that, I think you should know that any top 30 program is going to be very competitive. Maybe not as much as the top 5, but still very competitive. For this reason, I think it is wise to apply to more programs rather than few, so long as you can reasonably see yourself attending each program you apply to. Further, if there's only one professor at each school that you really want to work with, it will be even more to your advantage to apply to a large number of programs. You should know that getting into a school is really only half the battle...getting into a lab you want to work in is the other (and, arguably, more important) half. Most professors do not have the funding to take new students every year, and, even if they did, they would be overextending themselves if they took too many students. "Famous" professors will likely have many students who want to work with them, so it will likely be even harder to secure a position for yourself in their labs.
 
Unfortunately, this is not something you can plan for when choosing which programs to apply to. Even at this point in the year, I have been advised that many professors will not know if they will be taking students in the fall. (I haven't yet asked any professors this question myself because I have chosen to wait to do so until after I receive admission decisions. Accordingly, I can't say for sure whether this advice is true or not, but I suspect it is.)
 
So far, I've basically been saying, "more is better," but you should be aware that there are (obviously) downsides to applying to more programs. Besides the time and cost it takes to apply to more programs, you can run into problems when it comes time to interview. There are only so many weeks in the interview season, and if you are offered interviews at too many places, you will likely have to turn some of them down. This would be made easier if you got all your interview invitations on the same day, but you don't...they trickle in over several months. Having to decide which interviews to accept and whether you can buy more time while you wait for other offers to come in can be really stressful. It's a good problem to have, but it is a problem, nonetheless. The other problem with committing to a large number of interviews is that they take a lot of time. Whether you are an undergraduate, Masters student, or employee, accepting many interviews can be hugely disruptive to your normal schedule. This is something you will have to consider when it comes time to interview.
 
So, what is the best number of schools to apply to? This is obviously something you will have to decide for yourself, but I will say that I have been quite pleased with eight. In the eight programs, there is enough variety to accommodate my changing perspective as I go through the application process, and I have not been forced to turn down any interviews due to scheduling conflicts. I will say that it seems quite common to apply to more than ten schools when applying to experimental biology programs. However, some of the more computational professors have been surprised that I applied to so many programs when I only applied to eight. This doesn't really mean anything, but that's been my experience, for what it's worth.
 
Good luck in the next cycle! Hope this has been helpful!

It sucks so bad! Especially when it's your dream school and you foolishly let yourself get your heart set on it when you know the post-interview acceptance rate is only 50%. And then, after you get the decision, you follow up with a PI you had a great conversation with and he says he was looking forward to having you rotate in his lab in the fall. So you know you were this close, but your best just wasn't enough... I'm so grateful that I have other great offers that I can get myself excited about, otherwise I'd be so devastated right now. Life goes on, and I'd like to think it just wasn't meant to be, but, yeah, this is definitely the low point of this whole process. :/

It sucks so bad! Especially when it's your dream school and you foolishly let yourself get your heart set on it when you know the post-interview acceptance rate is only 50%. And then, after you get the decision, you follow up with a PI you had a great conversation with and he says he was looking forward to having you rotate in his lab in the fall. So you know you were this close, but your best just wasn't enough... I'm so grateful that I have other great offers that I can get myself excited about, otherwise I'd be so devastated right now. Life goes on, and I'd like to think it just wasn't meant to be, but, yeah, this is definitely the low point of this whole process. :/

Can I just mention how getting rejected after an interview completely sucks??? Yes, bring me to see how wonderful the program is then tell me I can't have it. Bummin today.

Just so everyone knows, it sucks even more when you follow up with the PI you had the best interview with and they say they had been looking forward to having you rotate in their lab in the fall... I guess it just goes to show that it was competition and not being bad in person that got me rejected. I just hope I don't forever wonder what I could have done differently to give me the edge over someone else who got in. :/ This just sucks so much.

Getting rejected post-interview sucks. I know it's a very competitive process, but I can't help but feel like they're saying, "Yeah, you looked great on paper, but, in person...man, you were not at all what we were looking for! Really dodged a bullet with you!" Also, I'm so mad at myself for getting so excited for a school when I knew only 50% of the people who interview actually get in. I tried so hard not to get my heart set, but I couldn't help myself! That school was perfect in so many ways! But, there's nothing I can do now, so there's no use dwelling on it. Just have to be extra grateful for the offers I do have and have to get myself just as excited about one of those offers!

Agreed! If anything, let the world be rid of the GRE.

I'm too self deprecating not to have LORs backing me up: live on, LOR epidemic!!

I'm expecting to hear back from my 2 outstanding schools this week, and have my final campus visit (not an interview - just visit, so it'll at least be more relaxing) this weekend, so I could potentially know where I'll be next year by this time next week. What a crazy thought!

Michael Caine was in Batman Begins with Christian Bale
Christian Bale was in American Hustle with Robert De Niro
Robert De Niro was in Stardust with Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle Pfeiffer was in Hairspray with John Travolta
John Travolta was in Pulp Fiction with Samuel L Jackson
Samuel L Jackson was in Unthinkable with Carrie-Anne Moss
Carrie-Anne Moss was in The Matrix with Keanu Reeves
 
 
 
Kate Hudson, Laurence Fishburne

I have looked into this. Unfortunately, TA, RA, and GA stipends, scholarships, and fellowships all count as taxable income, which means we have to pay federal and state income taxes. How much this amounts to depends primarily on how much your stipend is and which state you live in. The IRS has an online calculator which can be used to roughly estimate how much federal income tax you can expect to pay <http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/IRS-Withholding-Calculator>. Most states will supply a similar calculator if you do some digging. Alternatively, you can use this tool <http://www.tax-rates.org/income-tax-calculator/embed/?ref=siteembed>, but it is not nearly as accurate as an official state calculator would be.
 
While we are taking classes, it looks like we are exempt from paying FICA taxes, which fund social security and medicare. It appears this exemption goes away once we are engaged in full-time research, though. The FICA tax appears to be a flat tax of 7.65% of total wages earned.
 
If you are paid weekly/biweekly/monthly (i.e., using paychecks), these taxes will be deducted automatically from your salary. Once a year, you have to file a tax return, and you will either have to pay more taxes if enough money was not automatically deducted from your salary throughout the year, or you will receive a refund if too much money was deducted. If you are not paid via paycheck, this process will be slightly different, but it will likely not affect how much you have to pay in taxes.
 
As far as I know, the tax rules are the same for international students, though some of the details might be slightly different.
 
 
 
 

Hooray! My magic 8 ball prediction turned out correct. I did indeed receive an acceptance, with full funding and a stipend, in a location that works great for my wife and me. I now believe magic 8 ball predictions are irrefutably accurate. The results of this study cannot be denied.

Admit it. You've asked a magic 8 ball what your chances are. I have. Please post here what you asked your magic 8 ball and what the response was. When you find out later what happens, post or add the result through an edit so we can study magic 8 ball accuracy.

Here is a link to an online one: http://www.indra.com/cgi-bin/spikes-8-ball

I'll go first.

Q:"Will anyone accept me with full funding?"

A: "Without a doubt."

It's silly, but I actually feel better.

I think it is key to remember that a self-respecting university would probably manage to contain their excitement to max one exclamation mark.

Got into UConn! No word on funding or when I could visit, just an acceptance on the website. I have options! Woo.

It so is! Once you have a face to say no to it becomes so difficult! Plus there are things I like at one more than the other and it sucks to think about closing that door. Gah!