commodork
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Posts posted by commodork
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1 minute ago, Humulus_lupulus said:
Great job to everyone who got it! I got some excellent feedback and if it were not for a slightly vague methods section in my proposal, I think I might have had a fighting chance. One reviewer commented that my research area isn't innovative enough (food safety modeling). If we had all the answers in that area, there would be no foodborne illness in the world!
Live and learn, I suppose. I am just glad to have done this and to have some positive feedback on my work--it's a nice ego boost! If anyone is resubmitting again and wants to have a look at my application materials, I am happy to send them to you along with my feedback sheet. I applied as a second year grad student this year, so I'm out of the race. Rejected proposals can be more helpful than accepted ones at times.
Would really appreciate that! Would be helpful to look at a proposal with actual feedback (imnotbitterreallyiswear).
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Man, no luck. VG/VG VG/VG VG/VG. I feel like I got kinda screwed on reviewers. All 3 only gave 1-2 sentences of feedback on each category, and so vague that I wonder if they even read the whole thing.
Here's my verbatim feedback from Reviewer 3 (it's always #3) in its entirely, for example:
Intellectual Merit: VG "Adequate academic preparation. Very good work/ research experience"
Broader Impacts: VG "Image processing can only go so far in helping tumor detection"
Summary: "Mr. Commodork is qualified, but not in the first tier of candidates"
What am I supposed to make of that??? Last year, I got very in depth paragraphs and comments on specific activities. I thought I made my personal way stronger, but I'm not sure now. Did my reviewers just get lazy and burnt out, or was my app that much more forgettable this time around? My CV got way stronger between cycles, so I'm kind of at a loss.
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1 minute ago, Neist said:
I really want to try to their nitro oatmeal stout if I can find some. Oatmeal beer has grown on me last year or so. I love this stuff.
http://tallgrassbeer.com/vanilla-bean-buffalo-sweat/?age-verified=8df86bca67
It's AMAZING. I tried that one too. It's very very worth tracking down. I'm a sucker for anything oatmeal or nitro, though, so it pushed all my buttons.
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1 minute ago, Neist said:
Coop F5. Founder's, eh? That stuff is generally pretty expensive, isn't it?
It is sort of, but I figured I might as well splurge given the occasion. I'll have to try the Coop, that sounds right up my alley.
I actually visited the Founder's brewery a few weeks ago and tried their Kentucky Breakfast Stout, which was actually trancendental. It's super hard to track down, but I really recommend it.
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RE: the subject of therapy beer. I settled on Founder's Centennial IPA, and I have no regrets. What'd everyone else settle on?
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1 minute ago, Pink Fuzzy Bunny said:
Also, today I bought a giant Easter bunny on clearance at the store for me to hug when I don't get the GRFP...
feel like you should have gotten a pink one
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3 minutes ago, mobilehobo said:
Yes, this is exactly the advice I received in my GRFP class. Grad school is a challenge where you will face failure now and then. If you can show you've done this and overcame your hurdles, you are demonstrating your ability to be successful later as well.
Good luck! Rooting for you!
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1 minute ago, mobilehobo said:
Yes, this is exactly the advice I received in my GRFP class. Grad school is a challenge where you will face failure now and then. If you can show you've done this and overcame your hurdles, you are demonstrating your ability to be successful later as well.
Fantastic. You're probably in a much better position this year since you took that angle and addressed it head on.
Lord knows there are no shortage of hurdles.
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9 minutes ago, paleoatmo said:
Last year when I applied, a reviewer wrote that my undergraduate GPA was not competitive enough (I had a 3.3) among the other applicants. I felt really bummed out because there is nothing I can change about my undergrad GPA. I did have REU experience + undergrad experience with a publication too, but I guess my C's in physics were noticeable.
That sucks a lot, I'm sorry. Here's some advice that you won't need because you're going to get it this year and won't be re-applying: address your GPA directly and spin it into a positive. NSF loves a "triumphed over adversity." Talk about why that C happened and how you came back from it. Most people take physics early on, so chances are your academics improved to wind up with a 3.3. If you can wrap it into a compelling narrative of how you succeeded because of your drive to go to grad school and do research, it'll not only not hurt you, but it will help you stand out. Of course you might've already done this and plus you don't need my advice cuz you've totally got this, but just a good general thing for anyone in our situation to keep in mind. You don't necessarily need to run from a GPA that was a bit bumpy at first.
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22 minutes ago, mobilehobo said:
I just don't know how to keep my mind off of it until I finally know for sure. I'm a first year PhD not in a top graduate program. I went to a local public university and my undergrad GPA was low (3.4), but I was working full time to support my family. I have tons of REU research experience, but no publications to show for it. My application was read by anyone I could get to look at it and it seems to be the best I could have put out. My proposal was realistic and supported by preliminary data, but I could have communicated the applications better. It will probably come down to my letters of rec, but I have no idea what they say.
I think I need to find someone to hold my hand when that email goes out!
GPA matters way way less than you'd think, especially if you have solid research experience (which it sounds like you do). I applied as an undergrad last year with a GPA that wasn't much higher (~3.5) and got HM, so it's not like they have hard cutoffs or anything like that. If they can point to your research experience and say "yeah. his/her grades could have been better, but look at all this cool stuff they were doing" then it certainly won't break you.
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Just now, FaultyPowers said:
For what it's worth on the "Received" vs. "Reviewed" status change, I shopped it around the Anthropology forum and so far I've had one response, from a previous winner, who said that his/her status did NOT change before their award was announced.
I was thinking about it and it seems like maybe not changing could be a good sign, since the bottom tier of applications don't get a third reviewer and so would be done sooner?
Realistically, I'm sure it either doesn't mean anything or was just a reddit troll, but I'm just telling myself these things to make it to 6AM at this point.
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2 minutes ago, Neist said:
This is a good suggestion, and it helps that a lot of IPAs are fairly high point beers, too.
Personally, I've been obsessed with Fat Head's Head Hunter IPA lately, if you're looking for a great IPA with a highish ABV.
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1 hour ago, iChris93 said:
I wonder how many people applied from my undergraduate institution. I do not know anyone else in EE applying for a PhD program, at least no one in my senior design course is. Maybe that will help my chances.
I don't know about you, but a couple stouts can put me out like a light. That's my plan (but I doubt it'll work).
EDIT: woops, quoted wrong comment here. Meant to respond to @Humulus_lupulus above me.
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1 minute ago, sierra918 said:
Since we haven't seen the a scheduled maintenance notice yet, I'm guessing it will be Friday. That's only 6 days ?
Are you headed to Vanderbilt? I did my undergrad there. It's amazing and you will love it.
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38 minutes ago, t_ruth said:
Re: the benefits of the fellowship:
I can tell you as a PI it makes a difference to me in funding my students. If I have a student who wins the GRFP I can use my grad assistantship on another student.
Also, re: the prestige. Aside from the CV boost, I've been told by a few Program Officers that NSF looks favorably on GRFP recipients who apply for future NSF grants. They like to see that their investment in fellowship winners pays off and are willing to continue to support them (you list the GRFP like other prior NSF funding on grant applications).
Thanks for your perspective! I had no idea there were faculty members on this site as well, neat. I have a few questions, if you don't mind me taking the chance to pick your brain.
How much impact, if any, does receipt of NSF-GRFP/other prestigious fellowships affect faculty hires, in your experience? I saw something a while back that said GRFP recipients were way more likely to land TT positions (though that's probably more correlation than causation). Any application advice?
Thank you!
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17 minutes ago, pasteltomato said:
Do you think it will be Tuesday 3/29 or Friday 4/1 that we find out?
Using the Results page (here on gc), the past announcement dates seem to alternate in pairs of years -- but I don't have enough info to really conclude that a pattern exists.
- 2015: Tuesday, 31 March
- 2014: Tuesday, 1 April
- 2013: Friday, 29 March
- 2012: Friday, 30 March
- 2011: Tuesday, 5 April
- 2010: Tuesday, 6 April
- 2009: Friday, 10 April
I wasn't able to find information about announcements in 2008 or earlier.
If we assume that a pattern does exist, it would make sense for Friday 4/1 to be the day. However, if this pattern does exist, there has got to be a reason that it exists -- it seems unlikely that NSF would create a pattern for no reason. What are these people planning around that may affect the Tuesday vs Friday decision? Who organizes the announcement?
If we assume that submission deadlines are not arbitrary (ie, deadlines are selected so that adequate time could be given to review), it would make more sense for Tuesday 3/29 to be the announcement date. The deadlines for submission this year were earlier than any of the other years I surveyed (2009-2015) by ~1-3 weeks.
Man! I have missed sharing in the obsessiveness that comes with this site
. I haven't been on much since starting school last August.
You forgot to take into account that it's a leap year, so we should get it a day earlier than that
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Here's hoping NSF pulls a Beyoncé and sends out emails with zero warning at midnight tonight. I can't take it much longer.
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1 hour ago, jer said:
Someone on a reddit thread mentioned their application status on Fastlane was changed to reviewed. I didn't realize the status changes, as mine is still "received." Has anyone else's status changed?
Heh, was that the thread titled "Does anybody else just remember the NSF GRFP exists in the middle of the day out of nowhere and feel like they're suddenly on fire"?
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First year grad students - any chance the change in NSF GRFP eligibility might work out in our favor next year? Since there will be a smaller pool of students applying (fewer first years)? Probably just wishful thinking, because I'm pretty sure I've heard that they evaluate applicants only within the same year group.
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Well, partially to be able to start on my thesis research sooner. Also, I like the security and certainty that comes with having an advisor that really wants you from the beginning. But it may be good for me since I'm so indecisive. Idk.
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Hi all. Pursuing a BME Ph.D. somewhere within the realm of medical imaging or image analysis and currently wracked with indecision.
WashU (https://bme.wustl.edu/graduate/phd/Pages/default.aspx)
Pros:
- Highest ranked of the three
- Great med school
- Strong affiliated imaging faculty
- Generous Stipend
Cons:
- Rotations (I'd really rather not do them)
- No strong connections with professors so far
- Farthest from home
Case Western (https://engineering.case.edu/ebme/)
Pros:
- Offer from established professor doing some amazing work in image analysis
- Great medical school access
- Research in field that I already have some experience in
Cons:
- Busier PI
- Cleveland
- Seems like an intense lab atmosphere (which has its pros and cons)
Carnegie Mellon (https://www.cmu.edu/bme/Academics/Graduate Programs/phd_program.html)
Pros:
- New professor doing work in optics - more facetime and guidance
- Very strong engineering school
- Ability to carve my own path
- PI is very well connected despite being new
Cons:
- Lowest ranked BME program
- Potential risks of new professor
- Probably limits opportunities in academia
Very indecisive about all of this. It's tough making a decision without being positive what I 100% want to do or whether I'd prefer to be on the computation or hardware side of things.
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To those of you who spend a majority of your Ph.D. in front of a computer, how do you like it? Does it get monotonous? Do you still feel like you're able to bring creativity to your work and innovate? I'm particularly interested in hearing from anyone who might have experience in more experimental research and made a switch towards primarily programming. Do you miss having "hands-on" research experience?
I'm currently debating such a switch, and it's tough to decide without any insight into what the day-to-day is like.
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What're everyone's thoughts on new faculty? I know the standard "avoid at all costs" cliche, but was wondering if anyone had any experience or could offer some deeper insight. Right now I've pretty much narrowed things down to a brand new faculty member or a much more seasoned PI that I would probably see much less of, and I'm feeling pretty lost at the moment.
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Is honorable mention CV worthy?
I'll probably put it on mine, especially since I still have 2 more application rounds left.
NSF GRFP 2016-2017
in The Bank
Posted · Edited by commodork
Anyone know if we have any recourse at all in the event of one reviewer who was clearly... off?
I got E/E E/E VG/F, with some serious BS feedback, including a "The applicant has no academic publications (I do, under review at the time) at her (I am a man) graduate institution yet." The reviewer also said I have little STEM/minority outreach, yet Reviewer 2 said "The candidate has been extensively involved in STEM outreach activates as both an UG and GR student. His commitment to STEM education is evident by his development of educational content for outreach activities, as well as an undergraduate mentor and a TA." and cited "consistent involvement/leadership with respect to STEM outreach."
I'm under no pretenses that they'll just snap their fingers and give me an award, but anything that might affect position in the HM pile might be worthwhile for the low chance of late awards. Hell, it would be nice even just to get some sort of acknowledgment for peace of mind. It's a really crappy feeling knowing it came down to dumb luck with a bad reviewer.
EDIT: And congrats to all the winners - such an honor and you guys and girls all deserve it.