Mikey1994

I am a 2nd year graduate student in a masters biology program. My field of research is cardiovascular disease. Specifically, I research the genetic expression and protein secretion profiles of unique adipose tissue depots in patients with coronary artery disease. I do not have any publications at this point in my career. Although, I have been fortunate enough to obtain ~$13,000 in competitive grant funding and fellowships. I am currently working on a mini-review and hope for my thesis research to be published, once completed. Due to a setback in my research, I will be staying in this program for 1 additional year; graduate May 2020. I have already completed all of the required coursework for the degree, just need to finish the thesis research. Although, due to the requirements for some of the grants that I have I must maintain full-time graduate status (9 units). This semester I have enrolled in 2 MBA courses (economics and operations management). I figured because I know nothing about business, and am in a STEM field, these courses would be interesting and prove worthwhile...I am loving it! I am able to use my analytical skills in a whole new way. This has put me in an interesting position between going for the PhD or the MBA. I am seriously considering applying to the MBA program at my university, fall 2019 start, as I am interested in research funding and development. It is a 2 year program. I recently turned 25, I would finish with both masters programs by age 27. If I go for the PhD it would be in biomedical sciences, or something closely related. Preferably studying coronary artery disease and working with humans as the model organism. I am seeking advice. I know 27 is not THAT old and I can definitely still continue on and complete a PhD. I would like to work more so in a management or consultant role rather than as an active scientist.

I am a first graduate student in a MS Biology program. Currently, I have a 4.0 gGPA and have received a handful of small grants/fellowships. No pubs as of yet. I intend to apply to PhD programs in biomedical sciences this upcoming fall. My uGPA was a 2.6. I took one gap year between completing undergrad and matriculating into the masters program that I am currently at. During that time I worked as a lab manager for a small liberal arts institution. Although I have made a complete 180 and have created this upward trend, is it enough to overcome the mistakes I made in my past? I am a CA resident and would like to stay in CA for my doctoral studies but all of the UCs have a uGPA 3.0 cut off and only in rare circumstances do they allow students in with a sub-3.0. I am unsure of what institutions outside of CA look for when it comes to admissions. I understand that most take a holistic approach and other than my uGPA I would like to think that I am a well-rounded motivated individual. But with a 2.6 uGPA, I do not know if who I am today will be enough to speak for my past. Any suggestions, advice?

I am taking the GRE Biology Subject exam this April. The test covers literally every topic of biology. How have some of you prepared for the exam? My best guess was to begin going through my General Biology textbook and supplementing some of the topics with material from Khan Academy's AP Biology. The questions from the practice text seem mostly superficial (a handful are in-depth) but the range of questions is immense. So I figured that doing what I have stated above was a good idea at getting in a sufficient amount of material in a reasonable amount of time. What are your thoughts?

I think for the programs that you are interested in your GPA may be a little low. If you want to get your PhD from a top-tier program I would suggest to do a masters first.

Hello Everyone! This is my first post on GradCafe. Still not totally familiar with the platform but it seems very resourceful. I am currently working on a MS in Biology at a state school in CA. My thesis is focused on coronary artery disease. I intend to advance to the PhD level upon completion of my program. Not entirely certain what areas as of yet. I am leaning towards biomedical sciences or cell biology programs. I would like advice from those that have made the transition from the masters world to the PhD world. I suppose any person from any discipline can weigh in on this question. Do top-tier programs tend to not select students that already have a grad degree? Is it possible to finish sooner? Was there a significant lifestyle change? Anything else that you would like to add would be greatly appreciated!