synapticcat
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Posts posted by synapticcat
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9 hours ago, SLEEEEEEEEP said:
Quick opinion question! It's been tough, but I've narrowed it down to Michigan and UPenn (both for neuroscience). They each have their pros and cons that I'm still sorting through, but I was wondering what you guys think about the 'prestige' of the programs. At this level, does the Ivy League 'name' carry significantly more weight than the public midwestern school (even though UM's neuro program is exceptional)? Pretending that the faculty, students, funding, culture, etc was all exactly even, how much does the name of the school actually matter, and if it does, how different are these two?
I think honestly that both are awesome schools. At this level, I'm pretty sure that you can't go wrong. However based on your other comment about Yale, I'd suggest that if you didn't enjoy the location/environment/faculty as much, it's probably not worth attending if you preferred UPenn and UM. The best place you can be for your PhD is where you'll have the best mentor support, lab environment, and support from other students in your cohort. Feel better, work better, and all that jazz.
What area of neuro are you interested in? I'm very tempted to tell you to come join me at Michigan
- if you have any questions about the midwest/metro Detroit/or the university I'm happy to help! I promise to be as free of bias as possible, since growing up in the area and knowing a lot of current Michigan students I have gotten a LOT of input on my decision, haha.
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7 hours ago, virology_2018 said:
Hi all, I'm really stuck between Harvard and Mount Sinai and desperate for help deciding. Both schools are strong in virology, the field I'm going into.
Research: Both Sinai and Harvard are top places to go for virology. Sinai is a closer fit for what I’m currently interested in (RNA viruses), which Harvard has less of. However Harvard has a broader range of virology research and I’m wondering if that might be better.
Faculty Choices: There’s is a professor I reallyyy want to work with at Sinai, whom I’ve already contacted and has confirmed he is taking students and would love to have me in his lab. Beyond this professor there are at least 3 others I would be interested in working with and who seem like they would be good mentors. I didn’t click with any particular professor at Harvard, but there are at least 10 who I would be interested in, if not more. These professors have a broader range of interests and I would probably be exposed to a variety of subfields in virology during my rotations.
NIH funding: Harvard ranks first in NIH funding for microbiology departments, but has fewer individual faculty who rank near the top for NIH money. Sinai ranks fourth for NIH microbiology funding, and they have a much smaller microbiology department which is entirely virology focused. Several faculty rank extremely high in NIH funding.
Program Structure: Harvard has relatively strict structure, but the core courses are virology focused, which I would actually like. Sinai has few required courses and a much more open structure. The administration at Harvard seems fairly disorganized compared to other grad programs. Neither school has required TAing, but both have the option to.
Community: Harvard absolutely takes the cake in this category. I really clicked with the other students and recruits, and the community is super tight-knit, supportive, and fun. I would be really sad not to go to school with this crew. I’m sure Sinai has a good sense of community as well, I just didn’t click as much with other recruits and didn’t interact as much with grad students because of the interview structure.
Location/ Housing: I really like New York and could see myself living there. While the upside is that housing is super affordable because it’s subsidized at Sinai, the downside is that means living in an apartment-style dorm for 5-6 years. I’ve spent less time in Boston/Cambridge than New York, but it seems like a really cool city. Another thing I like about Harvard is that whereas Sinai is a graduate/ medical institution only, at Harvard I would still be able to interact with/ be exposed to all kinds of academia.
Prestige: Does this matter? Harvard has the fancy name-brand, but Sinai is also really well-regarded in the field of virology.
VERY STUCK PLZ HELP
Hey there! Congrats on having these awesome choices! I'm not anything close to being a virologist, but I do religiously listen to the The Week in Virology podcast and have developed quite an appreciation for viruses from listening while pipetting my own samples
This seems like an incredibly tough decision, but I would say when you get to this level, prestige is going to matter much less - your pick should be (at least, this is how I made my decision) where you think you can do your best work, surrounded by the most supportive mentor, lab mates, living environment, and cohort group. I would also say to not worry too much about NYC vs. Boston - both are very cool places to live! I genuinely think there's something for everyone in both of these places.
I want to bring something up that I think is important to consider, especially since wanting to work with that PI at Sinai makes this choice even more difficult I'd imagine. Do you feel that you could be just as happy in another lab at Sinai? A PI can have a good mentoring track record but not be the right mentor for you, in the end. I also think that there's something to be said for being able to explore your research interests a bit and see if you like another area of Virology even more - perhaps Harvard could be better for that if there are more faculty you're interested in? I say this as someone who has their own specific pet interest and fully intend to continue on in this area in grad school. I ended up choosing between a school with less overall prestige, but some of the best research in an area I'm really interested in (prion disease), vs a slightly more prestigious program with faculty working in less specific areas of neurodegeneration, but with whom I really clicked with. For me, I wasn't 100% set on studying prions, and felt that I would be just as happy working in lab focused on other neurodegenerative diseases, as long as I had a mentor who fit my needs/work style. This is one of the things that really pulled me to Michigan.
Finally, I want to ask about community - is there any way for you to get to know the social scene among cohorts at Sinai a bit more? Is there a student host or someone you met while there who you could contact? I know I was able to reach out after receiving my offers and ask my student host a bit more about student life on campus and more specific things I was curious about. If this is a possibility for you I would definitely reach out and see if you can get a little bit more info to help base your decision on.
Congrats again! At the end of the day, it sounds like you have strong reasons to attend both schools, and I'm sure you'll be happy wherever you pick! I'm sure we'd all love to know what your decision is (when you make it)
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Well, I, for one, totally think you should come to UM PIBS so we can be classmates. Also because you can tell people where you live by using your hand as a map, since you'll be living in The Mitten! Put those points in your pro-con list
As far as reputation goes, they're all fantastic schools, you really can't go wrong. I was rejected from Northwestern DGP and UW Neuro, but Michigan was at the top of my list anyways so I'm pretty content with how that shook out. I also echo the other commenter's position that it looks better to not stick around at your undergrad institution for grad school. However, if you have strong reasons for sticking in the Seattle area, that's also an important consideration.
If you were at the PIBS interview weekend, you probably saw their post-PhD job placement stats at Saturday breakfast, and personally, I was really impressed with them. My current PI is a UM PIBS alum and he's going off to a TT position in the fall, and he only graduated in 2013. Obviously n=1, but he speaks very highly of UM's job network and felt supported there as a student. I also think, though, that you won't have significantly more issues with job placement at one of these schools compared to the others, as they're all high-caliber institutions. I don't know about UW or Northwestern, but UM seems to have more students placed into academia post-grad, but a healthy % also go into industry. I imagine UW might have connections in the PNW biotech industry, however, and from my understanding, Seattle is a pretty big biotech hub - so there's that to consider.
As far as breadth goes, I also think you're likely to have plenty of faculty options at any of these schools. UM PIBS has over 500 faculty, and it seems like a LOT are currently looking for students. I imagine, however, that Northwestern and UW have comparable faculty lists. In terms of student community, that's something you'll have to evaluate for yourself I'd imagine. I loved UM's neuro department because the students and faculty were very close knit and friendly - it felt like a slightly bigger neuroscience community than the one I have here at my undergrad, and I really liked that. Is there a student host you interacted with on your interview weekends who you could reach out to and discuss some of your questions/concerns with? I communicated with several current students at the two programs I chose between, and it was really helpful in my decision-making process.
I think something that hasn't been discussed yet is location - where do you see yourself spending the next ~5-6 years? Downtown Chicago is going to be a very different living environment than suburban metro-Detroit. Ann Arbor is a large college town, sure, but it's very much a college town, and not a sprawling city. I'm a born & raised Michigander who's moving back to the state for grad school, currently living in Ohio. Personally, I didn't really want to live in a big city, and I really enjoy the size and feel of Ann Arbor. However, it is bitterly cold here some parts of the year, and you should take things like this into account when deciding if you could be happy living in either of these places. If you have any more specific questions about southeastern Michigan/Ann Arbor/metro Detroit, feel free to PM me - I grew up in the area and know a lot of students currently at UM, including 2 PIBS students.
Whew, that ended up being long. Definitely not trying to push UM, it just happens to be the school I have the most info on! I would say that you should think on where you think you'll be happiest - Chicago, Ann Arbor, and Seattle are very different cities, and you're going to be spending the next 5+ years at this program. I'm a firm believer that the more balanced, happy, and supported you feel in your program and by your mentor/lab mates/colleagues, the better work you'll produce, and the more productive your grad school career will be. Congrats on having these awesome options to choose from! Feel free to reach out if you'd like to chat about UM, living in the midwest, or anything else I could help with
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On 3/7/2018 at 2:24 PM, Budeer said:
Thanks for the reply! I did ask my current mentor and some other professors at my school about UTSW, all they said was it's a great school and well recognized in the biomedical field. They didn't say anything about "Tier" etc. I also looked at the career outcomes of students and communicated with UTSW associate director, it seems like it's fairly common for students there to find post-doc positions in schools like Harvard, Stanford etc., same case applies for those who found jobs in the industry. So it seems name recognition is not a problem. However, just out of pure curiosity, I'd like to know what people think of "tiers". If someone can give me a more specific answer or give some examples of "tier 1" "tier 2" schools, I would really appreciate it. I'm curious where UTSW or Northwestern (the only other school I got into) stand among other schools. I understand it varies from major to major, program to program, I'm just looking for a general impression. My apologies for asking so many questions.
One thing I'd say is that honestly, I think that once you get to this caliber of institution, it all comes down to location/lifestyle fit, research fit, and ultimately, what you do in the lab once you get there (i.e. finding the right mentor who will help you succeed, being in a research environment conductive to your work style, etc). I think others have echoed this sentiment above.
In terms of "tiers" strictly, I would agree with others who said that the absolute "top tier" would be more of the MIT/Stanford/Harvard/JHU followed really closely by Cornell/Duke/WUSTL/Columbia, but that both UTSW and Northwestern are solidly at the caliber of Wisconsin/Michigan/UW Seattle/Vanderbilt/etc. Of course this will vary based on your interests. But in terms of making a choice, I would go where you feel you (a) have the best opportunities for you research, and (b) where you think you'll be the happiest. I know that personally, my decision came down to the school I could see myself finding the right mentor and research environment for myself, and that lifestyle factors played a big role (as they should!). You really can't go wrong with either, they're both fantastic schools. But I'm a firm believer that the better supported you feel by your mentor and friends in your cohort, the better work you'll do, and the happier you'll be.
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5 hours ago, not_really_cool said:
Today I accepted an offer of admission from the University of Michigan. I'm so relieved to have the application/interview process behind me and excited to start in the fall.
My final statuses:
- NCSU Bioinformatics - accepted
- U of Kentucky IBS - accepted
- U of Michigan PIBS - accepted (matriculating)
- Duke CBB - rejected
- Stanford BI - rejected
- UNC BSB - rejected
- UW Seattle Genome Sciences - rejected
- WashU CSB - rejected
- Harvard BIG - still haven't heard, but almost definitely rejected
I aimed high, but I don't regret applying to all those schools I was rejected from. """You miss 100% of the shots you don't take" - Wayne Gretzky" - Michael Scott." - not_really_cool
hey, congratulations! see you in the fall
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24 minutes ago, Jerry_Neuro said:
Ooh, just stumbled upon this Neuro thread. Incredibly ecstatic to say that I was accepted into the Northwestern and Baylor College of Medicine Neuroscience PhD programs on Wednesday! Looking forward to meeting anyone who will be at UMichigan's Neuroscience interview weekend 3/8~3/11
Wooo! Good luck on your interview! I had a kick ass time interviewing at Michigan and their Neuroscience department is really great and close knit. If you have any logistical questions about UM/neuro/ I'm happy to answer!! I'm from the area originally and know the school fairly well, just went out-of-state for undergrad.
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On 2/21/2018 at 7:14 AM, Dark Chocolate Mocha said:
It seems someone got admitted to the Neuroscience and Cognitive Science (NACS) program at Maryland. I posted a message on the Results section, asking them about their subfield, and if and when they had had an interview. I don't know whether they will see the message, though. So I wanted to repeat it here.
Also, if there is anyone else who applied to this program (regardless of whether you got a rejection or acceptance), could you please DM me? It's February 21, I still got nothing. No acceptance whatsoever, but curiously enough, no rejection either. It's confusing. I would really appreciate some feedback from a fellow applicant about how the process worked for them.
Cheers,
DCM
hey! this is kind of a late response, but I do know that a friend of mine was admitted to NACS yesterday. I believe she was contacted by them fairly early in December (around the 10th? it was before I received any interview invites, my earliest was the 12th) by a faculty member who was interested in her application, inviting her to interview.
I don't know much about the program, but her interests are more on the computational/network side of cogsci, if that helps.
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Hi everyone! I officially committed to my top-choice program yesterday. However, now I have to turn down the other offers I have.
Can I just go in to the app portal and decline the offer, or should I send an email? Is it rude to decline without notifying the admissions committee or something? Help lol.
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Hi everyone!
Wondering if anyone else is attending the University of Michigan in the fall. I'll be starting a PhD in Neuroscience through the Program in Biomedical Sciences (PIBS). Would love to hear from anyone else who will be moving to Ann Arbor!
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Officially committed to the University of Michigan PIBS for Neuroscience!!! This is my dream program and I'm beyond excited to attend. Good luck to everyone else in the decision making process! It's so awesome to see people committing to so many amazing places already
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10 hours ago, StemCellFan said:
Congratulations!! I visited the campus once a while back and it's beautiful! I hear good things about their Bio program too.
On that note, I sent the response back today and I've committed to University of Wisconsin! I also received an email from the graduate school asking for my official transcripts and that an "official offer" cannot be made until they see these. Is there anything I should worry about? Do some applicants get rejections from the graduate school although the program emailed them an acceptance letter? I haven't notified the other programs of my decision yet. I graduated undergrad years ago if it helps.
Congratulations!!!! UW is a great school! As per your question, I'm pretty sure this is just standard procedure, especially if they only requested an unofficial transcript for your application. You should be able to just contact your undergrad and get an official transcript sent their way? I would maybe call the grad school and ask, but I don't think it's any reason to worry. They likely just need the official transcript for confirmation and records. I know a few of my acceptance emails mentioned that my acceptance is contingent on me graduating this spring and sending an official transcript to the graduate school.
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2 hours ago, Brad Gamble said:
Has anyone recently heard from Rochester, Emory, UNC Chapel Hill, Boston University, or Albert Einstein college of medicine?
None of them sent invites for interview or sent rejections to me. Rochester said they were going to send the second batch, but that was almost a month ago.
Received a rejection email from UNC on Jan 30th. Not sure about the others. I've met a couple people on the interview trail who were interviewing at Emory, though. Good luck!!!
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24 minutes ago, ChallengerSwimmer23 said:
Officially committed to University of Notre Dame Biology Ph.D. Program this fall! Looking forward to opening a new chapter in my life! Good luck everyone on your interviews around the country! Go Irish!
Congratulations!!!! Notre Dame is a fantastic school. Welcome to the midwest!!!
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33 minutes ago, neuro1 said:
Thanks! so I've heard back from the ones I got invites for early dec and early jan - and haven't heard back from the remaining about invites (got a few rejection emails w/o interview). But for like the ones that seem to have entered a black hole, is it kosher to call the admissions office to ask the status of your app?
I feel like I need closure but am I just being stupid?! haha
I know how you feel! I never heard back from UC-Denver....haha. I know the interviews have already happened/are happening because I met others on the interview trail who were going there, but am kinda miffed I was never officially rejected.
I'm not sure about calling, but I know others have emailed inquiring about their status. They usually end up receiving an "all interview invites have gone out" or "program expects to extend all interview offers by X date" kinda response, so at least you know for sure. So..I would recommend trying that, maybe? However, I haven't called or emailed about my app status anywhere so maybe someone else has better advice!
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3 minutes ago, neuro1 said:
sorry, meant for Emory!
Oh, whoops! My bad. Hope you get an interview!
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2 hours ago, neuro1 said:
are all invites sent out?
Yes - unfortunately both interview weekends have already passed for PIBS
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24 minutes ago, Neurobio2018 said:
Just got my acceptance to Tufts! Will most likely be attending
Congratulations!!!
- jmillar and Neurobio2018
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6 hours ago, StemCellFan said:
Cincinnati MDB acceptance! I guess the committee met on Friday after interviews were over and made their decisions pretty quickly. It looks like my season is wrapped up
Congratulations!!!! Looks like you have a lot of awesome choices. Go celebrate!!!
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3 minutes ago, th3redrabbit said:
Typically, I address them the same way they signed the email. If they always put "Dr." or just their initials, I will keep up with the formality. (I'm not sure about whether just initials is the least formal, but it seems confusing to me.)
Okay, that's what I was thinking about doing, too. Thanks!
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Slightly off topic, but I had a quick question.
After receiving an offer at one school, I got a nice email from a faculty member I interviewed with congratulating me on my acceptance and asking if I had any questions/saying that he hopes I give their school serious consideration, etc. If a faculty member signs their email with their first name, should I address them as such in the response? I always feel weird calling PIs by their first name in communications unless I know them personally.
If it matters, I am going to be accepting an offer at this school, but am still waiting for the official offer of admittance to go through on my online portal so I can accept, and am talking things over with my family and current PI so that everyone's on board with my decision.
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Accepted to my top choice and I'm pretty sure I'm going, but worried about turning down an offer at a school I used to work at where I know a lot of the faculty/adcoms and my PI there was one of my letter writers
Is anyone else thinking about accepting an offer early? I know we have until April 15th but my cycle is complete (besides not hearing from UC-Denver but..whatever). I figure the earlier I accept the more time I have to plan and look for housing/etc.
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Okay, so it's not official quite yet, but that's only because I just received my offer of admission this past week and the graduate school hasn't yet processed my admittance so I can't go online and officially "accept" their offer.
But I am 99.999% sure that as soon as it is humanly possible to do so in the online portal, I will be accepting an offer at the University of Michigan to pursue a PhD in Neuroscience through their Program in Biomedical Sciences (PIBS).
I'm still shocked I was accepted as this was my dream program and I completely fell in love during my interview weekend. Every faculty member and student I interacted with was passionate about their work, the school, and seemed genuinely happy to be there. Really clicked with several of my interviewers who have similar research interests and am hoping for the chance to rotate with some of them over the next year. As a native Michigander who moved out of state for undergrad, I'm also really looking forward to moving back knowing I will have family and friends only a short drive away.
I'm so incredibly excited! Cheers to all of us making this important decision and ending up at awesome institutions in the near future
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For the first one, I was in the middle of the produce section comparing broccoli crowns....excitedly answered, then excitedly called my mom and dad, all while still in the store. For the second one, I was in the middle of the first meeting of my senior capstone seminar. Saw the area code and ran out to answer the phone, then hurried back and had to pretend nothing exciting had happened! What makes it worse is that a grad student from school #1 that I met over interview weekend is guest lecturing in my course and was there when I was accepted to school #2.
2018 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results
in Biology
Posted
Congratulations! I know at least one current grad student at Cinci from my undergrad department and she's very happy there
. Wishing you an awesome time!