Bioenchilada
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Posts posted by Bioenchilada
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On 8/3/2018 at 9:06 PM, Telepathy said:
Hello guys! Could you please give me some advice on my list?
Undergrad Institution: Top University in China
Major(s): Biomedical Engineering
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: ~3.6 (not sure)
Overall GPA: 3.60 (upward trend, last 60 credits: 3.87 using WES calculator)
Position in Class: top 20%Type of Student: International/Asian, Male
GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 157 (76%)
W: 3.0 (18%)
B: To take on Sep.15Going to retake on Aug. 23, hopefully may get my Writing higher
TOEFL Total: 105 (R29 L29 S22 W25) To retake on Sep.8 mainly to improve the speaking part
Research Experience:
- 1 summer research (~3 months) in neurobiology at Harvard Medical School (should get a good LOR)
- 6 months undergraduate research related to neuroscience at my home institute
- 1 year undergrad research in mitochondria in the same lab at home institute
Have 2 review articles (one 3rd/6 author published, one 4th/6 accepted) although the journal is not so good.
If lucky enough, may be on a Science paper (surely not first author lol) prior to application submission.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
- 3 university-level awards
- 2 university-level scholarships
- Biomedical Engineering Capstone Design 3rd prize
Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
- Physics tutor
- Research assistant
Courses:
- Undergrad biology (neurobiology, molecular cell biology, biophysics, etc.), chemistry, psychology
- a LOT of math & physics
Applying to Where: Neuroscience programs, maybe also some cell biology and cancer programs- UCSD
- UCLA
- UPenn
- Columbia
- Duke
- U of Washington
- Weill Cornell
- NYU Sackler
- UChicago
- UMich
- Brown
- UTsouthwestern
I know the competition in neuroscience could be very intense, especially for international students. I just skip the top schools like Harvard. Do you guys think I am still aiming too high? Any advice as to where to apply would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
I think you have a very good profile, but I can’t really comment on how it’ll compare to other competitive international applicants because I’m a domestic student. Although I know it is more difficult to get into some programs if you are not domestic, if you are applying to schools like Penn, UChicago, Cornell, and Columbia, might as well apply to the schools you refer to as “top”. In reality, all of these schools are top schools and getting into Harvard, Stanford, and MIT might be just as difficult as getting into some of the programs you are applying to.
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3 hours ago, cc75 said:
Hi everyone!
I just received an offer from my dream school! I am pretty sure I will attend that school. Right now, I also have many interviews coming up. Since schools have already arranged the flight tickets/hotel, is it too rude at this point to reject their invitations? I am thinking other applicants would love to have this opportunity. Thank you.
I don't think anyone would be offered your interviews if you declined them at this point, especially since they already arranged for your travel and your hotel. If I were you, I would try to attend the interviews still. You never know if you'll like another school more than your dream school
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I don't think MIT's yield is insanely high (i.e 90s) given that people that are accepted in top programs get admitted to quite a few as well. Assuming that the yield is 70% and the incoming class is 50 students, that would still mean that ~70+% of students are admitted if ~100 are interviewed . Also, you have to keep in mind that the strength of the cohort also dictates how many people get in. At some schools that I interviewed at, including Penn, they mentioned that they have the ability to accept all the interviewees, but that it is unlikely that this would be the case.
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3 hours ago, Otinogonnyo said:
Rejection from Yale Immunology!!
So 3 programs gone. Yale Immunology, Harvard BBS, Cornell CMB.
I am wondering whether the others sent their rejection already?
Applied to 9 programs..Now feeling the application season is over!! Probably will be left high and dry. Any ideas how to improve CV for next year?
Thanks
Having a medical a degree and having worked as a post-doc, do you really need a PhD? Not sure how it is for international applicants, but people that already have a medical degree have a harder time getting in because they cannot be placed on pre-doctoral grants, so funding is more complex.
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1 hour ago, JacquelineY said:
A graduate student from the cancer biology program at UChicago told me that this year's interview will be from Feb.22 to Feb.24, with (a planned) admission of 6 students out of 18 invites. I don't know as to when they are going to send out the invites, but I'm pretty sure they haven't started yet. Best of luck to anyone applying to the program and fingers crossed as I'm waiting for the news too!
When I applied to UChicago’s Cancer Biology program, the invites were sent out around Dec. 20th, but these dates are typically not solid.
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2 hours ago, lpl37 said:
Hey all, does anyone know if Penn CAMB is done sending out invites?
As far as I know, CAMB typically sends their invites close together, if not on the same day. However, there seems to be evidence from previous years where people got invited later. This might vary per division though.
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19 minutes ago, TLNCP said:
Do you know what weekend this is?
The first weekend is from Jan18th-20th. We have three weekends.
PS: Just clarifying that I’m not an applicant, I’m a grad student here.
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I don’t think that when you interview has a major impact on your chances, or at least it didn’t really matter at the schools I applied to, nor the one I currently go to lol
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For those applying to UPenn CAMB, the admission committee meets on Friday.
- factanonverba and catsareme
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58 minutes ago, Mohamad said:
Undergrad Institution: (Medical school in Egypt)
Major(s): medicine, biomedical sciences
Minor(s):
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 90.76% converted online --> 4.00
Position in Class: 2nd on class
Type of Student: International maleGRE Scores (revised/old version): Terrible!
Q: 151 (43%)
V: 152 (56%)
W: 3 (18%)
B:TOEFL Total: 101
Research Experience: 2 years research experience in 2 IVF labs and local University. 3 publications, 2 of them in a magazine with impact factor 4.50. A number of oral, poster, case presentations at international conferences in Egypt, Germany and USA.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (1 abstract award. Honored at national and University levels for graduating among top medical students)
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Licensed physician. Assistant lecturer at School of medicine. Embryologist in 2 IVF labs.)
Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: currently finishing my Master's Degree
Special Bonus Points: ( very supportive LOR, good SOP)
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
Applying to Where:
Biological and biomedical sciences - cancer cell biology in the following schools:
Harvard
Stanford
Johns Hopkins
MIT
Pennsylvania
Baylor
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I really need a little help here guys. I do not think I have a chance at top tier schools sense my Gre scores really sucks! Should I add 2 or more lower tier schools? (lacking money actually!)
Also when I converted my GPA into US scale it turned 4.00, is that even possible? It seems very weird, but some schools require this online conversation process.
Help!Why are you only applying to top schools? Could you retake the GRE? Though schools don’t tend to use cutoffs, guidelines have been posted by some top schools that I consider useful. They state that a combined score below a 310 is generally a red flag, and that scores in each section should be above the 50th percentile.
Also, having a medical degree might mean that you might have to pay for your PhD since you cant be funded by training grants.
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7 hours ago, MathiT said:
Hi,
Thanks for your feedback! That's really encouraging. How do you think I should play the lack of LoR from undergrad supervisor? To be fair my experience in her lab was limited - I could downplay or omit it. What do you think?
I was not in great terms with one of my PIs back in undergrad and didn't ask them for a letter. I still wrote about the research that I did in their lab in my SOP. It won't be a thing unless you make it a thing, or unless you worked with them for a very long time and didn't get a letter. Even so, as long as you have great LORs, I doubt the adcom will care.
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53 minutes ago, Bio_123 said:
Hi!
I will graduate this summer and I am nervous, since I am applying for the first time. Could you comment on the possibility of being accepted into the programs I'm interested in? Also I would be grateful if you could recommend other programs. I am interested in Cancer Biology.
Undergrad Institution: One of the top universities in Turkey
Major(s): Molecular Biology and Genetics / Double Major: Chemistry
Minor(s):
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 3.74
Position in Class: one of the top students
Type of Student: International, female
GRE Scores:
Q: 164
V: 153
W: 3
B:
TOEFL Total: 106
Research Experience:
- 2 months research experience at Cambridge University, UK. The project was about cancer stem cells in colorectal cancer. I did protein purification, used chromatography techniques and performed protein interaction assays. Model organism: E.Coli
- 1 year research experience in my home university on protein modifications. I worked with HEK and HeLa cell lines. I did Western Blot, immunoprecipitation, immunofluorescence and some in vitro assays.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
High Honor Student
Erasmus Scholarship
The Scientific and Technological Research Council Scholarship
Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
I will make an oral presentation at the end of the semester to committee made up faculty members about my research project.
Special Bonus Points:
I have graduate level courses on Cancer Biology and pass with the highest grade
I believe I will have strong recommendations. One of my recommender did his PhD at one of the universities that I apply.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:
Applying to Where:
Weill Cornell
The Rockefeller University, Graduate Program in Bioscience
Columbia University, Biological Science
Brown, Molecular Biology,Cell Biology and Biochemistry Program
NYU
Gerstner Sloan Kettering Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences
Your numbers are good and the amount of research experience is okay, though a bit on the lower side for the schools you’re applying to. I don’t think your chances of getting in are particularly low. However, you should be aware that getting in as an international student is more competitive, so domestic applicants are not best suited to gauge your chances.
I feel like a strong SOP that is well tailored to the schools you are applying to and good rec letters will boost your chances
Some questions: Why are you applying to those schools in particular? Do you have at least 5 people you are interested in in each? Who will write you third letter?
For cancer biology, programs affiliated with medical schools might be your best bet.
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I can take a look at your SOP. Though I don’t go to Harvard, I did an internship there and have a few friends that are currently students in their BBS program.
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You don't really want to get into the nitty gritty of your project in your personal statement, especially if you have multiple experiences. What worked for me was just mentioning the techniques/assays that I did in passing rather than going through the specifics of each experiment. I also feel that saying things like "this experience helped me develop my ability to think critically about problems" will be fine if you add a bit more meat to it.
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What would you see yourself doing besides academia? Also, if you acknowledge that you have not experienced enough labs to make a conclusion, do you not wonder if your lack of motivation stems from another source?
I did not found a true lab fit for me until I rotated in the lab that I ended up joining. Most of my research experiences in undergrad were not great, but I knew science is what I wanted to do.
I can guarantee you that the work environment that you are looking for in science exists. Even if it didn’t, you could be and advocate for the change that you want to see.
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On 10/20/2017 at 6:19 PM, JacquelineY said:
=
On 10/20/2017 at 6:19 PM, JacquelineY said:I feel I'm going too high, but on the other hand I find going to places "not as good as my undergrad" (for the sake of argument, no offense intended) a bit hard to swallow, and I'm also extremely picky about locations. Would appreciate any advice. Thank you all in advance!
Undergrad Institution: University of Chicago
Major(s): Biological Sciences
Minor(s): Classical Studies
GPA in Major: 3.75-ish
Overall GPA: 3.79
Position in Class: Average as a freshman, getting better every year (It depends on the class. Maybe above average to close to top?). One poor grade in chem. (I've been told 3.8+ would be top 10% at my school)
Type of Student: International, female
GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 167 (92%)
V: 170 (99%)
W: 5.5 (98%)
B: 900 (98%; Mol&Cell: 96%; Organismal: 98%; E&E: 92%)
Research Experience: Less than two years at my school, cancer biology. One publication in preparation (Nat med), middle author (If the reviewers are quick, could expect to hear back from them right before 12/1). One poster presentation at school symposium.
Awards/Honors/Recognitions: One academic merit award upon matriculation, dean's list every year. Got school grant awards for two summers that I can put on the CV.
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Ongoing research honors project.
Special Bonus Points: 1 LOR from my PI, 3 from professors who have taught me, one of which is a dean here. I wouldn't call any of these LORs "fantastic" though-I just don't know.Contacted one UChicago alumnus professor at top choice school. He seemed to have interest.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Can't think of any for now.
Applying to Where:
HarvardYale
Rockefeller
Weill
Memorial Sloan
Columbia
Icahn
Johns Hopkins
U of Washington
U of Pennsylvania
U of Chicago
Northwestern
I would only ask for three letters total, no need to add a fourth one, it doesn't add anything. Your numbers are great, but your research experience might be lacking--- though getting a publication will definitely help you (not having it won't break your app, so don't worry about that). I understand the argument that you're bringing up about not going to a school worse than your undergrad, but be aware of the potential consequences. As a poster above said, if no single school accepts you, there's plenty of tech positions available at top schools and postbac programs you can apply to.
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14 minutes ago, ptdcg03 said:
Undergrad Institution: One of the top universities in UK (not Oxford and Cambridge though)
Major(s): Molecular Genetics
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: Translated to 4.0/4.0 or 3.7/4.0 depending on the scale
Overall GPA: Same as above
Position in Class: No official figure, but I guess is top 5%?
Type of Student: International, asian, male
GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 170 (97%)
V: 160 (86%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
B: not taking
Research Experience:Second year Jan~Sep: helped with a PhD to study Arabidopsis root using confocol microscopy & my own cloning project to make a fusion protein
Third year summer Jun~Oct: synthetic biology project which I developed myself
But unfortunately I didn't generate enough data for publishing
Awards/Honors/Recognitions:It's a shame that my school doesn't have ANY of these..
1) Class representatives of one course
2) Won a grant to cover round trip from UK to Boston to attend a conference
Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Nothing. Will this affect a lot?
Special Bonus Points: Nothing really special. One referee being a plant biotechnologist whom I worked for around 8 months, another a synthetic biologist whom I worked for around 6 months, and the third one being a department head of stem cell and regenerative medicine, but he only teaches me for 2/3 courses.
Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:I guess one thing that I should point out in the statement would be my third year project is 99% original, i.e. I concenptualised the idea and designed my own experiments?
Applying to Where:
MITUCB
Harvard
Yale
Cornell
Columbia
Princeton
UPenn
Johns Hopkins
Boston
Any advice? Am I aiming too high?
Though your numbers are great, I think that applying to mostly top schools with roughly one year of research experience might be a risk. I would suggest balancing your list out with schools that are not Ivy Leagues— you are applying to all of them but two— or super top schools. Also, is there a specific reason why your list is so top heavy? Applying for the prestige might hurt your app if it’s obvious in your statement of purpose. Meaning, make sure you have a good reason to apply to the schools you are applying to besides name recognition.
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@GreenEyedTrombonist had the right idea. If there is nothing about the school that you care for except the fact that there is NMR research going on, that doesn't present a solid case for an admission offer.
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1 hour ago, samman1994 said:
The structure of most of the programs are relatively the same (the ones for the schools I've looked at). So when he said the structure of the program is really important, I didn't exactly know want he meant by it, like which part of it is important.
I didn't mean length of program or structure soecifically. I meant, what is it about the school that you like?
For example, are there a lot of collaborative opportunities? Does the school have certificate programs that you enjoy? Does it seem like it would be an interdisciplinary environment? Are there outside opportunities at x school that you enjoy? Do you enjoy the coursework that you would be taking or the electives that you could take advantage of? Etc...
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38 minutes ago, samman1994 said:
Sadly, I don't know much about people in industry (which is where I'm trying to go to). I only those in Academia, and they generally actually come from a wide rang. Definitely a lot of ivy league schools (a lot of Harvard, Stanford, Yale), but also UNC, University of Toronto, etc. So really hard to say. And not exactly, I just want to give all the information out there. Personally, I think I don't have a chance at Harvard, so applying would be useless. Add the fact that I'd have to pay extra to send GRE scores, and that nothing really sets it out above the rest (as far as I know), and applying to it just seems financially wasteful (and I'm not in a great place financially).
However, as I just stated, I don't know much about the field, or the application process, that's why I made a post asking for other peoples opinions. They may know more about Harvard acceptance than I do, and more about the industry than I do. So they may say that it's still worth it to spend the extra money and apply, even with my lower application.
From your posts, it seems that you are overlooking a lot of important factors when it comes to graduate school and individual programs. The structure of the program ACTUALLY matters, so i would look into those ASAP. Also, you can't actually be neutral when writing your SOPs. There must be something about the school that you care about that is not simply the fact that there's professors that do the work you want to do. If you say that during the interview, they'll know you don't actually care about the school and you'll likely be rejected. Across all my interviews, the most common question for me was "Why do you want to come here?". It is also worthy to point out that, though it shouldn't be a main factor in your decision making, name brand matters, especially in academia. Top schools tend to not only have more resources, but they also have a wider network of connections that'll most likely help you land a job--- so take that into consideration.
PS: Scripps level of prestige is comparable to Harvard's, and the competition there will also be intense. Thus, if you question your ability to get into Harvard, that applies to Scripps as well.
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35 minutes ago, samman1994 said:
Oh ok. I'll look them up then and see how many professors I should start looking at for each school. Since I'll be explicitly stating some professors in my SOP who's research interest me, I hope they would put them on the committee. Especially since I'm changing majors, I'm not super knowledgeable about all the fields of the major i'm going into, so if they brought people who's research focus was outside of mine, I'd be screwed.
They don't put people on the commitee for certain applicants, that is picked ahead of time. Also, schools will typically send you a form after you get selected for an interview, or you email them, about your picks. Some will tell you to send a list of like 10 people, literally. So, this goes back to not choosing a school where three people are doing the work you want. I made that mistake, and it was very difficult to pick interviewers.
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46 minutes ago, samman1994 said:
I don't exactly know how rotations work. Are they mandatory? How many labs do you have to rotate around? Also, I don't know how the interview process works. Is it based on who is on the grad committee during that time (i.e. it could literally be anyone in the biochem/chem program)?
If a program is rotation-based, they are mandatory. My program has 3 12-week rotations. In terms of interviews, my program had 3 interviewers that you picked ahead of time, don't know if any of them had to be on the adcom. A lot of the time, you don't get who you pick. This is variable per school in terms of number and length.
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3 hours ago, AD said:
The prof from LSU replied and told me to send her my motivation letter, she said she will have a look at it. After that, she has sent me the edited sop. She is all excited for me to apply.
Does that mean she has accepted me to her lab???
Or should i ask her boldly, coz the 100$ form my hard earned money......im confused
As people have stated before, a PI will RARELY commit to taking you to their lab via email as an applicant. She is simply encouraging you to apply, doesn't mean anything else. In fact, there are many examples on previous admission cycles here of people that were told to apply by a PI and ultimately get rejected.
Biomedical Science PhD Applicants (Fall 2021)
in Biology
Posted
Haven’t posted on GradCafe for a little while now, but congrats to everyone about to start their PhD journey! It’s definitely an exciting time, even though it may feel different because of COVID. I’m currently a 5th year PhD CAMB-Cancer Biology student at the University of Pennsylvania, so I’ve been in grad school for a little bit. If you guys have any questions about grad school, funding, grad life (etc..), let me know and I can share some of my old man wisdom^^