ginagirl

I agree with this, but I would assume it would only be appropriate for the department to cover your expenses and not your spouse's.

I guess I'm a little unsure how that might come off, being that graduate school (as I understand it) is largely encouraging independent work. For that reason, I think it would be harmful to say that you would prefer having individualized attention over being encouraged to work independently under general supervision.

I agree that my statement was sort of generic. So, you would like to work with him to develop/strengthen/grow his current lab? And you would be good at that because of your familiarity with him and your previous success working in small groups (another potential way of saying you like individual attention)? I'm just trying to summarize/condense what you're saying. It sounds like there are a couple of points you're trying to touch on simultaneously.

In some ways I think this sense of apathy that can pervade collegiate athletics is someone perpetuated by the athletes themselves. Most people have the idea that a person can only be an athlete or an academic. Positive role models within the team would help them not be ashamed of both athletic and academic success, which I think is the case for some.

No problem. I think firstly you don't want to say "lack of previous students" because I think it has a negative connotation. I assume you already discussed this professor's areas of interests and that you are a good fit in that manner, and now you want to address the "accessibility" aspect. I think you can cover this in one sentence by saying "Dr. ____'s accessibility and passion about his/her field would fill my desire for professional collaboration and growth." Or something to that effect. That lessens the negativity associated with wanting individual attention.

Do you mean you are a hands-on learner (tactile as opposed to visual, etc), or do you mean you would benefit from individualized attention?

I'm curious what you suggest be done about it then? Only let real student-athletes play at the collegiate level? (not attacking you, I find this interesting)

That sounds like a difficult situation. As I see it you have two options. Anyone else feel free to chime in 1. Lie and hope she doesn't find your absences suspicious 2. Be honest, and if she doesn't allow you to go or threatens to fire you, speak with someone higher up If she is concerned about you missing work time, you definitely need to offer working late, coming in on a weekend, etc.

Can you not just be open with your boss about what the visits are for? If you get accepted you will have to tell him/her anyway, and I would say they would prefer more notice rather than less notice. My boss knows I will be leaving in the fall, so I told her and took vacation time.

Is that after I enroll? Isn't the financial aid information already decided at that point? I just worry that it will hurt what loans/grants I am eligible for through FAFSA.

If I am working now but will be enrolling as a full time student- how does this affect the aid I receive from FAFSA? All the tax info I input is my own, and indicates that I am working full time on a decent salary. An income adjustment form was mentioned above but I'm a bit confused when in the process that might take place or what it entails. If someone could explain in more detail that would be great.

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I think that there are a lot of factors to take into consideration, as has sort of been mentioned above. Faculty, program reputation, research, location, funding..it's hard to say what is the best thing to do and I think is different case-by-case.

My problem is I can't NOT check my email. It's my work email so it's always open. It's a serious struggle haha.

Is that condition called Runner's Toe? If so I can relate but gosh darn it I don't go using it as a profile picture

but actually

Just did the same thing with a huge bag of Swedish fish. Time to make a dentist appointment

I understand your concern, but I don't think grad schools don't expect you to have the "publishing thing" down yet. That is a lot of what grad school will be about- learning how to be a better researcher and how to publish good papers. Assuming you no longer have opportunities to write a publishable paper, reading papers from your field is something you can do now to be ready to tackle that kind of work.

I wouldn't say it comes across as arrogant, but I don't think it's a great way of starting your statement, since it is likely that all the other [good] applicants could say the same thing. What makes you different as an applicant? What makes you stand out? What is different that you have to offer them? I would suggest thinking about those things and starting there. Anyone else, feel free to disagree. In general you don't want to give the impression you are choosing a field solely because you are good at it- you also want to demonstrate a passion or at least a strong interest in it. I can't say if that comes across in the rest of your statement, but it's just another thought. **Another thought- there's nothing wrong with keeping that sentence and moving on, and revising, revising, revising. You may write a stronger sentence somewhere else in your statement that you find you can begin with. Don't stress out over the *perfect* first sentence right away, it really is the meat that matters anyway.

Interesting/relevant perspective. I will definitely be doing my research when it comes to decision-making time, and I'm still waiting on a handful of PhD programs so *hopefully* it doesn't come to that. Thanks for the insight.

In general for test prep, I swear by Manhattan GRE. I found it to be a pretty good predictor of my score. Best deal is if you buy one of their strategy guides (http://www.manhattanprep.com/gre/storeitemshow.cfm?ItemID=170), because you also get 6 free full online tests that you can take as many times as you'd like (the 6 tests are the same no matter which guide you pick). I think each guide is like 20 dollars at B&N or you can just buy online. They used to do a free web class called "Mondays with Jen"- They don't seem to be doing that anymore but they're all archived here: http://www.manhattanprep.com/gre/mondays-with-jen.cfm - I attended a bunch and they were so helpful. Some topics are math and some are verbal so you can pick and choose which you want to go thru. And as most GRE prep, they have a free online test you can take whenever. Best of luck!

super helpful, thanks!

I've heard of bioinformatics, but I don't know much about it. My limited understanding is it's life sciences meets computer programming. Dunno what your biology/chemistry background is like but it might be worth looking into! Different programs might have different prereqs