Gina

It varies depending on the faculty. Some of them just talk about their research the whole time and in that case the conversation is really easy, and you can just ask questions here and there and make comments on what you think. Some of them will ask you scientific questions. I for example was asked what I thought about some microarray results by one of the faculty. I do hear that some professors just ask more questions and make the interview more difficult. As with anything, it depends on who you're meeting with. Chances are that most of your individual faculty meetings will go just fine though, and they all have a say on your acceptance so it's not something to agonize over. As for acceptance rates, they do make it sound like most people who interview get accepted and I think this is true. Just be polite and curious about people's work and I'm sure you'll do fine.

Hey all. I was a BMS applicant last year, currently attending MSU (though I just switched into the Plant Bio program from the BMS Genetics program). They told me casual clothes was fine, but I would encourage you to wear NICE casual clothes. For me, that was khaki pants, a decent shirt, and a semi-casual blazer. I wore boots because there was a snowstorm. They won't judge you on that. You really shouldn't wear anything like dirty sneakers to any interview no matter what they tell you the dress code is... dress to impress! But do be comfortable. I interviewed during one of the plant science fellowship weekends, so I did not do a BMS presentation. You can ask me anything else you are wondering about though. Good luck!

Good luck with the job applications. I was in a secondary education biology program during college, and ended up dropping the teaching component and just finishing with a plain biology degree when I figured out that I am not very good at teaching high school kids and creating lesson plans. I was doing my teaching component at an inner city school and I just don't have what it takes to get those kids motivated and working. So, I decided to try research! My MS degree was therefore very helpful for getting me extra experience and landing me a decent job... and I am now starting my PhD in the fall. Yes, the MS is a cash cow in many cases, but in some cases they are partially or fully funded, and it is a necessary stepping stone when you have almost no research experience as I did during my undergrad due to switching around my major/career choices. I also was able to teach an undergrad laboratory course during my MS, too, which was really fun, rewarding, and gave me extra money. It was also WAY easier than teaching high school students. Truly. No one appreciates elementary and high school teachers enough for what they do. It is a very challenging career, for those of us that take our careers seriously and want to do the best for people around us. Just try to think of a general research focus for your MS as you apply so that you can write a good statement of purpose.

I don't think it's weird at all. I would just write your questions on paper though. If you are looking at your phone they might think you're texting or something... even though you're obviously not. I don't think it's bad to look prepared!

If you have any research posters I would print those out (in a small version of course) and bring them with you. Profs like that I brought mine, and it gave them something to look at which makes explaining your past work much easier.

If you're ready I'd just go straight into a PhD. Like aryelh I had to do a master's to get more research experience. Otherwise, if you're applying to schools in the US, you really don't need a master's degree.

I wouldn't worry yet, I also interviewed on the 7th-8th and haven't heard back officially, but I've had a lot of email exchanges with several people there and the outcome looks favorable. They just told me "now is the slow part," which I'm not sure what that means, but I think they need to look at their last few interview weekends and decide who gets what fellowship and award and etc.

I was rejected post interview at ASU, I think because I wasn't a good fit for the program. I went in thinking that it was rotation based, but they highly discourage rotations and one professor said I actually can't rotate at all and a lab has to admit me. Funding there is not very stable either and I expressed some concerns about this. Apparently it's not uncommon to have students going with no salary or health insurance in the summer if they can't TA. I work a full time job now so I would have a hard time bringing my quality of life down to the point of having no health insurance for months at a time. So yep, I definitely can see how people get rejected post interview! You can come across as being surprised and unfocused about aspects of the program, like me, and that comes across badly in a program where they expect you to have chosen a particular topic of interest that's very narrow. Or, maybe I said I enjoyed Michigan State too much!

Nice! Wish that would happen to me.

I fully expect a rejection too. Didn't check my mail yesterday but it's probably in there. Oh well.

HA! Congrats mysinia! Anyone heard from ASU MCB? I'm losing hope.

They told me the first weekend is full and they are still looking through apps for the second weekend of interviews... I'm expecting to be rejected at this point. Ha ha.

Awesome!! Congratulations!

I am making a conscious effort to avoid booze.... a little bit of booze renders me incapable of processing my thoughts and what's being said to me!

Happy Thursday! Hopefully the admissions committees will be feeling good and send some invites out...

I'll try not to be bombed during interview! I've thrown up in front of my PI... I don't think I can be much more embarrassed. Though he said it was okay and that he's done the same thing while he was on faculty at NC State.

Yeah, I got the same line and it made me feel personally deflated, heh. It sounds like congress and the president trying to pass legislation.

I'd be SO dead right now if I were playing this game... I have no tolerance whatsoever! I try to avoid drinking when I can for that reason... ha ha.

They'll regret not interviewing us!

ME TOO! I also applied to genome sciences. sad face.

Me too! But for Genetics and Genomics... Changes the game, since I was most excited for WashU out of my list. I might have to consider reapplying depending on how things go for the other applications.

Anyone heard back from these programs? Still have gotten zero news... ASU Cell and Molecular Bio UWashington Genome Sciences WashU Molecular Genetics and Genomics UCSD Biology Stanford Genetics

Yeah, I'm also worried.. especially checking the results pages where I see people have gotten interviews to the programs I applied to already. I have one interview invite to Michigan State, but haven't heard back from the rest... good luck!

I was a pretty lackluster student as an undergrad, but I've been working hard to fix that! Also, wish my GRE writing didn't stink. But I am really bad at writing quickly, so I'm not surprised if I had a lot of typos... hopefully they don't care about this score too much. Undergrad Institution: Small liberal arts; well respected in the region, but not well known nationally Major(s): Biology Minor(s): NA GPA in Major: 3.5 Overall GPA: 3.7 Position in Class: Above average GRE Scores (revised): Q: 156 V: 163 W: 3.5 B: NA Research Experience: Small independent class projects as an undergrad (basically none). Did my master's thesis in a plant evolutionary genomics lab, and have been a tech since then for 1.5 years. Expecting about 3 papers out of this. Presented a poster at an international conference. Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's list and merit scholarship while I was in college, research grant awarded for my master's thesis. Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Lab tech Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Meh? Special Bonus Points: Nothing extreme, but I came from a low-income school and got through a fair amount of bullying and sexual harassment growing up, and have struggled with anxiety and depression. This motivated me to become a peer educator while I was in college working for Counseling and Psychological Services. Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: One of my recommendation letters is really glowing (it was shown to me). Others, I'm sure are also very good. Applying to Where: Michigan State University - Genetics Arizona State University - MCB Washington University in St. Louis - Genetics and Genomics University of Washington - Genomic Sciences UCSD - Biology Stanford - Genetics I feel like I'm shooting a bit high with my test scores / lack of publications, but I'm hoping the type of lab experiences I've had as a technician will help.

I submitted three of my applications: Michigan State, Arizona State, and University of Washington. Interested in genetics/genomics... my written stats aren't so great (no publications yet), but I've had some well-desired experience, I guess, in next-gen sequencing, and good LORs from two PIs and a postdoc. I should have one or two publications by the time I would be starting in 2013. I plan to apply for a DOE fellowship.