chemblah

Good point, thank you... I am just getting anxious and this site doesn't seem to help that anxiety lol

Do you think MIT is done with interviews/acceptances? I was accepted to the REU there last summer (turned it down to do research in Italy), not that I thought I was a shoe in, but it seems weird that I haven't heard anything from them.

Yale, MIT, Princeton, Caltech, Harvard, Stanford, UW-Madison, and UNC Chapel Hill are all top programs too, just saying lol

That's weird. I feel like we have similar qualifications... I'm surprised you haven't heard from UW Madison or UNC Chapel Hill at least. Our areas of research interests are very different though. Your application is definitely competitive so I think you have an excellent chance. Although grad school admissions can be strange. My older brother also applied to PhD programs in chem a few years ago. He got into Madison, but not UIUC. Meanwhile his close friend got into UIUC but not Madison... so it's always hard to predict! Best of luck though!!

Welp, at the age of sixteen I became blind in my left eye due to seven failed reconstructive surgeries because of an ocular muscle defect I was born with. I didn't think learning to drive while adjusting to monocular vision was the best idea, you know with new lack of depth perception and reduced peripheral vision. Don't be so quick to judge.

Actually I am from the Midwest... been living in MN for 8 years now! Based on what I've read about the UC area it's not too bad without a car as long as you live close to campus especially with the bus system there. But it feels in the middle of nowhere compared to other schools I applied (Austin and Seattle for example!) What do you mean by harder? I have a friend who is in his 2nd year there for computational chem and he said the classes aren't bad and when I talked with the professor she confirmed that they're basically a requirement you have to get through, but they are low priority. Research is what matters! Plus no cumulative exams!

I'm in materials/inorganic, but I agree they are are doing a ton of cool stuff in my field too. I can't drive either... hoping to get my license before graduation! But even then I wouldn't bring a car. But all UIUC students get a free bus pass for all of the UC area, and I think I've heard that the bus system is pretty good. But you should definitely ask grad students about that when you visit! Which reminds me, what kind of questions should we ask profs and grad students on visits?

Hi Everyone, right now I'm strongly considering UIUC. I'll ask the same questions as on the other program specific threads: Is anyone planning on visiting? What do you see as pros and cons of the program? For me, I've great experiences with the profs there so far. One I had been emailing before I applied and he is very nice and quick to reply. Another professor offered to set up a phone call with me and I was able to talk to her for a good 45 mins about the program. The one downside for me is location. It seems to be in the middle of nowhere.

Congrats! Thanks for the info, I'm already visiting a school on the other weekend

you see people who work 18 hours days in every field.

I applied to inorganic materials so if we weren't even interviewed, then should we assume we're out for the count.....

Also does anyone know if Caltech has sent out their acceptances? I called and all I got was, "Well they have until April to decide." I am trying to make flight arrangements for ACS (I have to book by Jan 27th) and I am departing on March 21. Since Caltech's visit weekend goes until the morning of 21st it would make a lot more sense to fly out of CA than MSP.... I've lost all hope at this point

Not sure, if your app was in a few weeks ahead you might be okay. I submitted mine on Thanksgiving, but my last LOR wasn't submitted until Dec 7th. For some reason my CV didn't get attached so the admin emailed me to attach it on Dec 11. I heard back Dec 16th but I was in contact with a POI before submitting it so I think that might have helped. Best of Luck!!

When I spoke with Prof. Catherine Jones Murphy, this is what she told me... It's a large program. Their visit weekends are divided by subfield.

Why was this downvoted? O.o

Not sure about Washington or Cal, but I dont think UIUC isn't done. Based on what some other's have posted, UIUC is admitting in order apps were submitted and a couple hundred people submitted on the deadline. I talked to a prof there and she said they usually get 600 apps and admit about 200 of those. So I think you still have time.

My brother got some B's and a C his senior year (His GPA drop from a 3.85 junior year to 3.5 or something by graduation) but it wasn't a problem. This might be program or school dependent though

I'll be at UT for the feb 27 weekend and I'm still deciding if I will go to the UNC visit weekend. Feel free to say hello if you see me at a visit! Good luck with UIUC and Madison, both are top programs. I think you have a really good chance at both, looks like you will have a lot to choose from already though!

I'm feeling the same way. I discovered this website after submitting most of my applications... seeing all the posts on here makes me wish I applied to more reach schools (Stanford, Berkeley, Yale, Harvard, etc..), my only two are MIT and Caltech. But it definitely feels good getting acceptances! I think if I applied to all reach schools that would not be the case right now... But the schools you've been accepted to are nothing to sneeze at either! Especially UT, UNC, A&M etc, all Top 20 or Top 10 among certain subfields

I did an REU at UW Madison and I am from MN, so I can confirm the winters suck. However, the summers are absolutely gorgeous. The student center on Lake Mendota is the best and there is always great live music there. They also have a lot of fun outdoor clubs including a sailing club. Also the city is super bike friendly and there are 3 lakes within biking distance of the campus. As far as the campus, yes it is huge, but when you are in one department it doesn't feel too big. The city of Madison isn't actually too big, but there are always lots of cool things going on. The Farmer's Market is AMAZING and the largest in the country too. I was in a fairly big group for my REU and I honestly didn't like how big it was either. My prof was more hands off style approach and some people prefer that. However, I shared an office space with a smaller group and the professor wasn't tenured yet so he was more involved with everyone's projects and was in the office almost daily. He was super nice, it actually took me a few weeks to realize he was the PI and not a post doc, whoops.

Damn, congrats! Did you have a phone interview beforehand (Meanwhile I've been checking my phone and e mail constantly...)

I also applied to the materials program. Usually if a school is good in i-chem they are also in materials since the disciplines are closely related. I also applied to UT and UNC for materials as well. I think UT and UIUC are my top as well.

UIUC is ranked between #3-6 among US schools depending on where you look, so yeah it's pretty high up there! Congrats on your admits!!