Tall Chai Latte

What I did last year when I applied (i'm a first-year now), was tying my research skill set I acquired during undergrad research to some of the faculty's research in the program, and explained why i would be a good fit in that respect. You can't possibly read the minds of AddComs, I would say don't worry about it too much. I read somewhere on one of these boards, saying that SOP is supposed to be an image of you in front of the AdComms, so being yourself would suffice. Good luck!

Your consideration doesn't sound unreasonable at all. After all, it's your life and it's up to you to do the best for yourself -- that includes doing something you find rewarding and worthwhile. From what you said, it sounds like pursuing this degree is a total waste of your time. Then I'd say go after what you are passionate about! Good luck

Haha, this is a very interesting thread. My username refers to the drink I always order when I stop by a coffee place, whether it's starbucks, seattle's best coffee, or panera (except you wouldn't say "tall" when you go to places other than starbucks). My avatar has nothing to do with the drink, but Peanuts has been the my favorite since the kindergarden days.

Hello, A newly-baked grad student here. I previously blogged about my experience as a new grad student: My first semester had been rough because I was overloaded with courses (I signed up for 3 major science courses following the advice of my program director; it turned out that I had no idea how much work a grad course is compared to undergrad's), also having hard times with my rotation. I knew that my grades on majority of the exams/assignment in all of my classes came in right on class average, and this had been causing a lot of stress as the perfectionist in me blaming myself for not performing the best I could.... I feel terrible and dejected . It feels like christmas in the air, and I shouldn't let this bog me down... I don't know, are grades very important in grad school? It seems to me I've done everything wrong, grad school isn't just studying studying and studying all day long...

For me, it'd be when decision time came (I applied last year): "So have you decided yet?" "Oh, why don't you like School A? It's such a good school." "This is the best for you because so-and-so reasons" when they clearly have no idea what they are talking about.

Honestly, I feel just like you in my own situation. And I hate to tell people this because I'm afraid they'll think I can't handle grad school.. You are not alone.

Hi overcast, I was in your shoes last application season. My cumulative UGPA was 3.09 at a top-50 public university with probably 3.0 in science/math, on top of that I had 4 years of undergrad research (three solo-projects and various little side projects). But here I am -- first year grad student at a top-20 school. My GRE wasn't even as good as yours... I was very worried about my own chances just like you, and I asked the same question when I was invited to interview: do undergrad grades matter THAT MUCH? From the replies I got, how competitive you are depends on the application pool of that particular year, and also whether your research background matches what the department/program is looking for (I had a mix of molecular biology/structural biology background). If you do get interviews, that means you passed the first filter. Like waddle just mentioned, you might not get awarded fellowships, but getting accepted should be more important. I would encourage you to aim high, because the application process is kinda like a black box -- nobody really knows what exactly AdComms are looking for. Try to make some contacts with prospective PIs of your interest also helps too, sometimes this gives you a leg up. I did apply to Cornell/Sloan-Kittering but I was turned down. Good luck!

If I'm not mistaken, I believe taking the test once a month is actually once every calendar month. Say if you register to take the GRE on the last week of November, you can register for another test when December comes. I have never done it myself, just double check with ETS guidelines.

Glad to hear that I'm not the only one feeling this way! My classes are... so slow...

Are you looking into doing PhD in the United States? In United States, you don't need a MS to do PhD (I think most of the science programs don't, others can correct me). There is not much to it besides submitting your application to the schools.

I would say: make sure that all of your LORs are reliable!!! And identify potential backup references too, it never hurts to have more than three reference writers if once of them fails to send your letter in. Another thing was I should have applied to at least 10 - 12 schools to have a better spectrum of choices, I was stuck with only two choices and it was agonizing to choose!

I have a Timbuk2 bag!

It's nice to see that some of us had positive experiences and results from this tough application season. Congraz! As for me, this season was pretty rough. I applied with an UGPA just barely enough to be considered for admission and an okay GRE score, and I was dreading all the way that I won't be accepted anywhere. Then a surprise came - one LOR did not submit her letter to any of the schools I applied to! I emailed and called, eventually the letter got to my schools one month after the deadlines.... Huge disappointment. I had to ask for an emergency letter from a colleague to patch this up, very thankful indeed. Honestly, I consider myself to be very very lucky to have 2 admits out of 7 schools (5 rejects) to pick from, given this unanticipated LOR situation.

MrOptimistic, you definitely should give it a shot! You won't know until you send out those apps. As for UGPA, if your overall trend is upward, and seems like you have stellar GRE scores and MA work, you can address this in your personal statement/SOP. From my interviews, the PIs I talked to told me that LORs, your personal statement, and having research experiences are important. It's not uncommon to see poor grades in the beginning of college years and improvement later on, and they understand that. You can talk to your LORs and have them back you up in their letters, saying that you are hardworking etc. Although I didn't go through what you went through, but I messed up my first 3 semesters of undergrad (badly adjusted and getting many C's in a roll), so I started out having 2.3 overall. When I was about to graduate, I pulled my GPA up close to 3.0 with an Honors Thesis, and got accepted to a top-20 PhD program in my field (of course, not without my supportive LORs). There is hope.. It may look tough, but don't loose hope! Is there a reason that you are only interested in the very top programs? If your main goal is to do research in your field, and location of the school is not that important for you, I read somewhere on this forum that you can look into schools in the Midwest or South region. There are also good research institutions at these places, and less competitive (my guess is coast regions are considered more habitable to most people..). This way your chance of being admitted to a program would increase. Just my 2 cents based on personal experience from this current application season. Good luck to you and you will be fine!

Yeah... I think a part of me is dying off too... I feel kinda guilty for not being exuberant here.

A very simple one I've been using for a long time is PyMOL. It's also capable of making movies and such, but if you just want to look at protein structures (e.g. open up a pdb file) and stuff like coloring polypeptide chains, this should suffice. It comes in Windows and Mac (called MacPyMOL) versions. I've also used MOLMOL and RasTop but unsure if the later one is still available for download. Hopefully this is what you are looking for..