freckledgenes

I feel like we’re kindred spirits! I’ll be 32 when I apply the first time, with an equally abysmal undergrad GPA. Since it’ll be almost 11 years old at that point and because I got a masters degree with a 4.0, I’m hoping it won’t be too detrimental. Good luck with the GREs again!

Hi guys! First time posting here! I'm excited to be able to have this forum as a way to bounce ideas/questions off of others and hopefully give/receive good feedback during the application process!
A bit about me: I've been working as a Molecular Technologist for the past 5 years after receiving my MS in Molecular Pathology in 2013. I decided to switch careers but still wanted to stay in the genetics area. I have shadowed some local genetic counselors, and am now starting to study for the GRE (it wasn't required for my grad school program). I'm a bit nervous because I haven't taken a math class since my senior year of high school :/ I have also started volunteering for the local chapter of National Alliance on Mental Illness. 
I'm hoping to get more volunteer hours and hopefully shadow some more genetic counselors, but unfortunately, the city I live in is about an hour away from everything, so we will see how this goes! 
Good luck to all of us! 

Hi all!
I've been lurking around here for last year, knowing that I was planning to apply this year. I applied once when I first graduated from college, but was nowhere near a qualified applicant at the time. So this will be my second time applying. I'm an older applicant (late 20s) and know that my real downside to my application will be my bad GPA from undergrad (like 2.6 I think...it pains me to say it. I really screwed up as an 18-22 year old!). However, I've spent the last few years retaking some courses and taking new courses, and doing well in them. I also have background as a sexual assault crisis counselor and mental health case manager, and now I work as a research coordinator with a GC/PhD doing work on pharmacogenomics and return of results. Our second paper on PGx was just published yesterday, so that's exciting! I plan on retaking the GRE soon (first time scores were 164 V, 157 Q, 4.5 Writing but my scores expired!) and hopefully arranging further shadowing (have shadowed only prenatal GCs in the past). 
So glad this thread has started! I can't wait to watch all of our journeys unfold.

sunT - You are correct. The lack of independence of candidates does increase your chances (e.g. if the same 100 candidates interviewed at 5 schools, each of which only accepted 20 students a year, they would all get in somewhere.  So your chance for acceptance would be 100%, not what you would get with my formula (1 - .805 = 67%).  So my formula should be considered a lower bound.
Anyway, daughter mortified that I'm posting on this board, so I will retreat to the sidelines...

Just applied to 4 genetic counseling assistant jobs! Most of the jobs only require a bachelors degree but I could really use the clinical, medical office setting experience so I hope they don't dismiss my application for being overqualified. So fingers crossed! All positions would require a pretty big move but I think the experience would help next year with applications..

At the same time, if you were from the midwest and travelled all the way to the west coast for an interview wouldn't it show that their offer meant a lot? I think the fact that we take time off work/school and spend money to go to these interviews already shows that they mean a lot! If I'm not at least 80% interested, I know I won't take off time and spend money to go. 

I definitely second the recommendation of The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee. I also recommend Alex: The Life of a Child by Frank Deford-it's quite old now, but it is the story that initially ignited my passion for learning about and treating those with genetic disorders. Also, my GC PI boss recommended I read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. I just finished it, and it was very good, especially if you have an interest in ethics around genetics, research, and minority communities.

I think Baylor will have what it needs to be a successful program. There are TONS of genetic counselors in Houston alone (I think I heard 80+ as a number once?), and the students at UThealth already do their lab rotation through Baylor so it seems like they have a pretty solid foundation. My PI is a big fan of Baylor and the research they do down there so I've only heard positive things about it.

Guys I finally got my Oklahoma Skype interview confirmed. My very first interview offer! Thank you to all who hoped I would get it! Finally some good news! ???

Far from the Tree by Andrew Solomon is pretty dense but good and you can pick and choose chapters without losing information (he was also one of the keynote speaker at the NSGC conference in 2014).

Genome Magazine is a free subscription! It's a great read. 

If you are interested in non-fiction, there is a lot of good short/online reading in the Journal of Genetic Counseling, Genetics in Medicine, and Genome Magazine. You might need an institutional subscription. They're great for getting a better idea of where the field is going. I find it gives you something to talk/think about, even if you don't know what specialty you're interested in. 

I definitely second the recommendation of The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee. I also recommend Alex: The Life of a Child by Frank Deford-it's quite old now, but it is the story that initially ignited my passion for learning about and treating those with genetic disorders. Also, my GC PI boss recommended I read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. I just finished it, and it was very good, especially if you have an interest in ethics around genetics, research, and minority communities.

I definitely second the recommendation of The Gene by Siddhartha Mukherjee. I also recommend Alex: The Life of a Child by Frank Deford-it's quite old now, but it is the story that initially ignited my passion for learning about and treating those with genetic disorders. Also, my GC PI boss recommended I read The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. I just finished it, and it was very good, especially if you have an interest in ethics around genetics, research, and minority communities.

I've been thinking about this a lot today. Not only are flights on a week or two's notice a fortune, at least from the airport I fly from, (except Cincinnati--thank you frontier airlines). But also, anyone else who works full time--are you a little worried? I have appointments all day every day--and I'm required to let people schedule a month out. Right now I'm booked solid through most of February. I have vacation time, but using it is another story.
 

Most relatable feeling.  I like seeing all of your mini heart attacks and fainting spells on here. It cheers me up! lol
Nothing from UMichigan yet on the results page or from me. But I'm secretly thankful. Finally worked out all of my transcript mishaps with Michigan yesterday. Though, I am sure by all the mistakes I made with transcripts, the gods were trying to tell me that it isn't in the cards. Haven't seen Florida on the results page either. 
 
So schools really give interview notifications one week to 10 days before the interview? How on earth are people supposed to be expected to afford last minute flights like that? 

this one is a bit funny, i think 
 
University Of Toronto Occupational And Environmental Health, PhD (F17) Rejected via E-mail on 1 Mar 2017  A 1 Mar 2017 report spam Half because I like the program, half because I'm trying to get out of the burning bus that is America. Send help (or Justin Trudeau)!

I’m comforted knowing I’m not the only one. Best of luck to us!

I'm applying with a less than ideal undergrad GPA, but I've had a lot of cool experiences since graduating and some post-bacc grad level work that I'm hoping will help with that!!

So I actually almost applied to Emory and ran into this same issue. They do have different requirements for their letters, don't they? I scheduled a time to speak with the program director and kinda gave her an elevator pitch of the things I have been involved in. From our quick conversation she was able to identify someone else that would be a suitable reference and was going to make a note in my file. I didn't end up applying there for other reasons, but don't let that requirement deter you if you are really interested! Most schools would be willing to work with you on that sort of thing. Who wants to be a cookie cutter applicant, anyway?? good luck! 

Hey guys,
I’m a second time applicant this cycle. Last clue I had one interview which was pretty good considering my low under Graduate GPA (2.86 due to personal hardships). I did contact programs I applied to for application feedback for this cycle and applied  as much of it as I could to help me be a better applicant this time. I am nervous that I might not hear back from many programs this cycle because I haven’t accomplished as much as I had originally hoped I’d be able to. A year goes by really quick.  This year I’ve applied to 10 programs so I hope I hear back from a few.
Undergraduate GPA- 2.86
Genomic advocacy Graduate certificate GPA - 3.85 so far (I’m doing 3 classes in the spring)
Old GRE scores: 157/154/4.0 (V/Q/AW)
New scores: 162/166/4.5
Old volunteer experience: volunteered with a free clinic for people who have no insurance (for 5+ years). 
New Volunteering experiences: I started volunteering with a sexual assault crisis line in august. I also am a volunteer Sunday school teacher. I was a camp counselor this summer and have been more active in the networking aspect of the clinic I was volunteering with last year. 
 
Anyone else applying with a lower than ideal GPA?

Sooo I just got a call from OSU!! I was so happy when I saw a call coming from Ohio lol. Let me know if any of you are also going down there for an interview, and maybe we can PM about it. I'm still in a state of shock! 

Happy Dec 15 to those applying to programs with due dates today! 5 apps down for me, still a good handful to go. My bank account is starting to feel it -- thank goodness for extra hours at work! And shout out to those of you who had all your applications submitted like, last month lol. I salute you! I'll just keep telling myself that the later I wait to submit my applications, the less time I will have to stress until I hear back from the schools haha. Good luck everyone, and here's to staying motivated and sane!

The bios are definitely daunting, but at the same time some of them I feel like I've done just as many if not more of the same things they have so I'm really crossing my fingers for this year. I also keep self-doubting that I've picked the right schools to apply to and enough of them.. This weekend I decided to apply to two more because I'm so anxious about trying to increase my odds of getting interviews 

Does anyone else read accepted student bios and feel really unaccomplished? I was just reading the bios for Northwestern students and this one student had even competed in the olympics. Like at that point I just wanted to give up loll