future.grad.student

I think you've still got a lot of time. We're not even half way through January. You might hear news within the next week or two so don't give up on that yet. But PREP Programs are good. UNC Chapel Hill has a one, Baylor College of Medicine has one too I think. I'm positive there are more out there. That's definitely my backup plan if my interviews don't go well. You get to take graduate level classes and you get a year's worth of experience doing research (or 2). You also get free GRE preparation and a stipend. Prep Program apps seem to be due in February/March so we still have time to fill those out. They'll be much easier to finish too since we've already done out other apps already and I don't think they ask for as much either. I still have to look at the apps though so I can't say for sure. Just speaking from what my friends have told me. But please do check them out just do a quick google for PREP programs

Someone posted in the Biology forum that they had emailed Berkeley and learned that all the invitations have already been sent out for MCB, so I think if we haven't heard from them yet it's possible we've been rejected. But it varies from university to university, so the same can't be said for your other schools. Email the graduate coordinator of your other program so that you can know for sure.

Vanderbilt's Biological Sciences application will be due on January 15, although they began looking at apps since December 15. Rutger's Biomedical Sciences program app is due February 2.

Look on the admissions pages of the schools and departments you have applied to. They should have some more info about the applications process (like whether they interview and even the timeline for interview invites). From what I've seen so far, it seems like chemistry doesn't really do interviews, although they may do visits (after having been accepted). Not sure if its the same for computer science but looking at your school's admissions info pages should give more insight.

I have an invite for MSU and UNC Chapel Hill-- both in January but they have later dates as well. I think they have other interview sessions in February, possible even more.

In reading the posts in the biology forum, there was a student that stated international students usually get called later on in the game. I'm not sure how true that is.

Lmao!! This is perfect!!! I definitely over analyze everything. Including how I should respond. Should I end with "Thanks", "Thanks again", "Happy Holidays" ? It's just so weird sometimes sending emails back and forth. I'm already weird enough.

It's felt real for the past two years maybe. My concern was, would I get accepted? It feels nice to get interview invites, but I won't be totally excited until I get at least one acceptance. For now, I'm a little terrified but I know that one day for sure I'll be a grad student.

I think they are impressive. There's this misconception that scientists don't have to have good writing skills. It's not true. We go to conferences, write grant proposals, teach, etc. I mean it might be expected that an English major writes better than a science major, but having a great TOEFL would be seen as a plus in my opinion. That way, possible POIs won't have to worry about your communication skills, which are incredibly important in science.

You're already on a really good path. But I would say find one lab and do really good research while maintaining a good GPA. The graduate school process is a holistic one so it's always hard to say for sure exactly how important each component of the application is. I can tell you that Cs in freshman year aren't gonna be a big deal if you have improved in sophomore and junior year. They see that as a sign of maturity, so don't even stress it. There is no doubt, however, that having both a really strong GPA and a great lab experience is to your benefit. Don't stretch yourself too thin. Work in one lab to get good experience and work to get good grades. Which lab you want to work in is totally up to you, as I'm sure you'll do great things in either one. If I were in your position I'd be happy to work in a computational lab. Wet-lab techniques can always be learned and read up on (at least that's what I think). It's harder to read papers about computational research and just get it (again that's just me) so working hands on in a lab would so good! I wish I had the chance to work in a comp bio lab as an undergraduate! You'll be just fine, trust me. I do think that good research exerience and good letters of recommendation are incredibly important so you're well on your way to a successful grad school app.

MSU took a day to email after call. Emory emailed the same day (I missed the call). Within a day or two you should hear back hopefully!!

Dartmouth College MCB Program just sent me an interview invite! Excited!!

I got a call a few hours ago and an email for Washington University in St. Louis (Molecular Genetics and Genomics) for an interview at the end of February. I'm so excited. Definitely my top school !!

I'm pretty sure you're fine! I made a similar mistake (but instead of a letter it was an entire word, although it was pretty close lol) and I don't think they've noticed. When they're reading over our statement I doubt they have time to notice little things like that, especially if it's a good statement. Don't worry.

Also, this was in regards to a neuroscience program but I'd imagine that the same would be true for any science field.

I think this is something that varies depending on the school. For one of the schools I'm interested in, their interview acceptance rate for the most recent class seemed to be around 22%. That seems to be on the lower end of things though. From other posts I've seen on here (which I can't seem to find at the moment), there's a pretty large range for acceptance rates..so you probably won't get a consistent number unless you ask someone familiar with your program. Here, I found an older thread about this. Hopefully we can get some more answers though. I'm interested in hearing what others have to say still.