Vene

I don't think either option is good. The debt for the masters is huge and will be a great burden and the PhD is unlikely to lead to a tenure track job.

Okay, first off, my advice is coming from somebody who does not want to go into academia after graduating, so keep that in mind. The lower ranking than Maryland may be of some concern, actually. Academia is pretty damn competitive and every thing you can do to get noticed helps. But, since you say you're looking at working at a state university or community college I suspect a PhD from Syracuse would work for such (especially community colleges in the Northeast). I don't know how much the state of the city matters. It's not really important for job hunting as the odds of you working in the same place where you did your PhD are low. Professors without tenure are a definite risk. The upshot can be that they're highly motivated to publish, which is good for you. The downshot, is that in addition to potentially leaving before you're finished, is that they're still trying to network so haven't built up a long list of contacts. A tenured professor at Syracuse probably knows many researchers at other universities and can leverage that network to help you when you graduate. I think large versus small department is a personal preference sort of thing. Not sure if there's really a meanongful career advantage or disadvantage to either. Ultimately, I think what you need to do is ask yourself where you will thrive. Do you see yourself getting better support at Syracuse or Maryland? Since you mention teaching in your opening post, I have to ask if you've looked at what opportunities you'll have at either university to obtain teaching skills? Since it's unlikely you'll work for a big research university that will be an important skillset.

Because they never know how many of those they give offers to will choose to attend. I would guess that it's probable that they've extended enough to be sure they'll get the number of grad students they want. But, there's always the chance that one year they'll be short and then pick from the waitlist.

That's 10 years old, which may explain some of the numbers. Oh, and fyi, this is normal; "McNatt brings in US$1,791 a month and says one-third of that used to go on rent before he found more people to share housing costs with." Spending a third of your income on housing is typical, even outside od grad school, not something to be used as evidence of hardship. It's when you're spending half your pay on rent that you have a problem. That said, grad school is definitely a (hopefully short term) pay cut compared to finding a job. Ideally, the education should have some value though. Oh, and I do think that you absolutely need to take your stipend into account when deciding. When I first made my list of schools any program that said funding is competitive got crossed off immediately. Grad school is hard enough without adding unnecessary financial difficulties.

Biotech in general is a huge industry in Boston. I believe it's also pretty good in NYC. I think Atlanta is okay, if for no other reason than the CDC being there. Ann Arbor is a pretty small place, and the major cities in Michigan aren't doing that well. Seattle's probably no better than any other major city. There's definitely some biotech there, but I think it's more of an IT/engineering city. All this said, just because you get your masters in one place doesn't mean you have to or even should stay there.

Some numbers would be nice, actually. Not that great could be a 3.1 or a 2.1. If you're above a 3.0, experience is probably enough. If you're below 3.0, you need a higher GPA and either post-bac courses or a MS would be best.

I'd expect that it's saying you're responsible for that much because it includes FICA. I doubt that a fellowship requires FICA be paid on it, so that should reduce your tax burden a fair bit. If it were for a job, that would be a believable tax rate to me.

We have TAs and GTAs (as well as research assistants, but I'm focusing on the teaching side). TAs can be undergrad students and a GTAs are graduate students. You could be looking at something along those lines, but I could also see GA encompassing both TAs as well as RAs. It's really going to depend upon the university.

I think I'd rather just do it completely fresh rather than have to report the previous low Q and V score. But, at least in my field, AW doesn't count for, well, anything so it wouldn't bother me if it dropped a little bit (say to a 4.5).

When you get a rejection letter. It's likely that if it gets to April and you've heard nothing you'll be rejected. But, some programs will send out last minute acceptances based on how many people accepted their offer. As a lot of people will take until late-March to April to decide where to go, that means the graduate program won't know either. You could call to inquire about your application's status. Some will tell you there that you have no realistic chance or if you're still a possibility. You don't really have much to lose at this point by asking. If you haven't gotten an acceptance yet, you should be making some plans for what to do instead. Instead may well include looking for ways to draft a stronger application for next season or to reevaluate your selection of programs.

I want to believe that will be the final decision for everybody. So, that's when people will be taken off of a waitlist, official or unofficial, but they've already extended a round of acceptances. Again, that's what I want to believe, not necessarily what they're doing.

In some ways, I feel like the smart move is to wait until after the visit. But, on the other hand, I can't say I'd follow such advice and would be very likely to just commit so everything can be made official. I think that the longer I'd sit and wait the more likely it is for doubt to creep into the back of my mind when I already know where I'd want to go. It is so easy to overthink decisions like this.

I agree with this. Graduate school is a big commitment and you really don't want to work for a jerk. Your advisor will shape your entire career, it's not a decision to make lightly. When applying, it's really easy to get into the attitude that you will take anything that comes your way, but you really have to be willing to say no to a bad choice. I've been there, not with grad school, but with work. I took a job offer for a company that gave me a ridiculous work schedule (I was doing quality assurance and worked on first, second, or third shift depending on the day of the week). I was desperate for a job so I took it without hesitation. This really was a bad idea, the money just wasn't worth it. I lasted about half a year before the stress of the job forced me to quit. It also did same damage to my body (I got regular shoulder pains as a result of that job and it's still not what it used to be). I know this isn't an academic example, but I don't care as the principle is the same. If you want to succeed in graduate school that requires mutual respect. A professor getting pissy over a title like that does not impress me and is something I view as a major warning sign.

I very much agree with this. Personally, I can't work for people who insist on being called Dr.

Based on ranking alone, this is Berkeley: #4 in biology, #5 in biochemistry/biophysics, #1 ecology/evolution, #3 genetics, #3 microbiology, #1 molecular biology. I don't think there will be a different in searching for a tenure track position with a PhD from UC-Berkeley compared to Harvard. Go to where you think you can do the best work.

Well, money isn't everything, but it's always nice to have more of it. When you have several great admits I think it works as well as anything else for making a decision. Keeps you out of debt, at least.

For my program we did a dinner for the recruits where all current grad students and faculty were invited. I was there and tried to be honest about the program and my experience so far. I do admit to not bringing up the negative unless asked directly. But, I did answer questions about the work load and hours I was working. I also answered questions about my impression of the city and my thoughts on living here. The dinner also had an open bar, so naturally I had a few drinks. I kind of think this is to the advantage of the recruits. The current grad students will happily drink as we're already in and aren't really trying to impress anybody. This also means that we're going to be a bit more forthcoming on information. So, responses from grad students will vary based on venue (I would be far more reserved in an email than a phone conversation than in person with a drink) as well as based on the questions you ask.

Last year me and my wife moved about 1300 miles. As I already had my BA prior to applying I was already working and used the money we saved to rent a U-haul truck. We sold the one car and towed the other behind the truck and drove. From what I recall, it ended up costing us a couple grand for travel expenses, not including the deposit for the apartment and rent. Unfortunately, I don't believe we can deduct moving expenses when it's for education, but if it was a job they could be deducted from taxes.

My pre-grad school research was in chemical formulation. Now I'm doing work on protein function. The important thing is to have research experience and an idea of what you want to do next, not that your experience is a perfect match.

I would honestly be surprised if there was a significant difference in outcomes between the universities. There may be real differences in the outcome of the graduates of specific labs, but that's going to depend on research interest.

All of them are good, don't worry about reputation. Worry about the culture of the programs, the match to your research interests, and the stipend adjusted for cost of living.

I grew up in the Midwest and am now in the Northeast (lived in both Michigan and Minnesota). The region can be a bit hit or miss at times. There are places that I think are fantastic and places that I have no desire to ever live in (the decline in American manufacturing hit some cities and states worse than others). So, your experience will really depend on exactly where you're heading.

Follow your instincts. If WashU feels right, go there. You want to be sure that you'll be able to perform at your best while in graduate school. Plus, quality of life matters.

In defense of this, as I am the one who said it, I feel that classes are the absolute least productive use of time during a PhD (at least in my field). I learn so much more about my discipline by actually spending time in the lab or reading the published literature as opposed to listening to a professor go over a survey of the material. If nothing else, I think it's telling that in a degree that is expected to take 5-6 years, only 2 of them are focused on coursework. Clearly, it's not the courses which make the PhD so rigorous.

What do you think will hurt you worse; going to a school other than your dream and breaking up or going to your dream school and wondering what could have been? Personally, unless your boyfriend is "the one" I'd say go with your schooling. Don't get me wrong, my SO's input was a huge part of why I am where I am now. However, I married her prior to attending grad school. Do you have a tested relationship that will stand the stresses of graduate school and time?