[Theoretical Physics in Chicago]

Hey! I'm not a Physics PhD student, but I know loads of them at University of Chicago! One of my closest friends is a theoretical physicist here and loves it. 

1) The great thing about programs like this is you typically don't pick a research group (aka an advisor to work with) until later in your career when you complete your coursework. This means you have 1-2.5 years to take classes, go to talks, email / meet with faculty etc to find a subject and advisor that feels like a good fit for you! The UChicago website is definitely confusing, but everything is cross-listed basically (i.e. lets say you like one of the faculty in the biophysics or astrophysics department, if you apply to just plain physics it is highly likely you could work with any of those faculty if you'd like to). From what I hear, there arent *that* many theoretical faculty at UChicago (there are more experimentalists), but I could be totally wrong about that. 

2) I don't think its necessarily that bad to only apply to schools in a geographical limit, especially if Chicago is the limit. There are SO many universities in chicago that may fit your needs. If you were limiting yourself to an area with only 2 schools, I'd be concerned, but I think that there are many options in Chicago. It is better for you to be happy in graduate school, and if that means you'd like to be close to family, then do that! 

Feel free to reach out! I can connect you with current students in theoretical and/or experimental physics here at UChicago! 

[2020 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 8/26/2019 at 10:18 PM, Throwawaydnf99 said:

Any recs on neuro/pharmacology/behavioral programs that dont require GRE?

University of Chicago Neurosciences (and all Biology programs) don't require GRE! 

[2020 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 9/26/2019 at 10:19 AM, Colourum said:

Undergrad Institution: International 
Major(s): Biotechnology 
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 9.07/10
Overall GPA: 8.98/10 
Type of Student: International, (Asian), female 

GRE Scores (revised):
Q: 160
V: 156
W: 4

TOEFL Total:  about to get a score,  I will update when I do 

Research Experience: I've done an intensive project in my final year of undergrad with wet lab and in silico components (got the highest grade possible along with just one other group for the project). First internship at a tissue engineering research company and one internship at one of the best biological research institutes in my country (focus on mass spectrometry). I will be getting a publication soon for the research done in my final year. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: one poster presentation at an international conference 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Volunteer teacher since high-school, I  have taught kids English and science in various grades. (I was part of organizing teams for events all throughout my four years of college, if that counts)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Math grades haven't been good, but there's a clear improvement in my major's subjects. I have taken a job that has nothing to do with biology after I graduated in May, 2019 (monetary  reasons), and I will be applying for 2020 fall. 

Applying to Where:
Program - PhD Programs 

Research interest - Molecular Biology (some are cell and mol bio programs)

1. San Diego State University

2. Purdue 

3. UT Austin

4. UT San Antonio

5. UChicago

6. University of Illinois at UC 

7. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

Maybe to University of california santa barbara or irvine 

 

 

I was wondering if I have a good chance of getting in and if so, if the universities I have chosen are okay. It's a variety of ambitious and moderate ones. Will this year, in which i have taken a break from biology matter a lot? I will be doing various online certifications now related to my course to make sure to not get out of touch with it. Any other inputs would also be welcome. 

Thanks in advance!

 

Hey! I'm a current PhD student at UChicago in the Molecular Biology cluster and I think you have a good chance of getting admitted. While things are a bit different for international students vs domestic students, you have strong test scores and strong research experience. I know lots of people in the program who took a break from research / biology in between, so that shouldn't be that big of an issue. 

Depending on your interests, I'd be happy to connect you with faculty that you may be interested in working with, or students in their labs, to get more info and see if UChicago is a good fit

Feel free to reach out (DM) with any other questions! 

[Diversity, Inclusion, Equity, and Justice in Academia]

Hey gradcafe! We're the Graduate Recruitment Initiative Team (GRIT) at the University of Chicago. We're a team of graduate students committed to the recruitment and retention of students from marginalized backgrounds to graduate programs in the Biological Sciences Division, Physical Sciences Division, and School of Molecular Engineering at the University of Chicago.

For students from marginalized backgrounds, the road to grad school can be confusing, downright scary, and may seem impossible. The lack of diversity in STEM is a huge problem, generating unsupportive and sometimes hostile work environments for students of color, LGBTQ+ students, students with disabilities, and female-identifying students. GRIT aims to help fix the "leaky pipeline" in graduate school recruitment by actively recruiting minority students to graduate school, connecting prospective students with faculty members of interest, and fostering personal connections with prospective students to ensure they find the best graduate program for their interests. In addition we aim to bridge gaps in marginalized student retention by providing programming that aims to provide supportive environments, community building, and increase access to mentors and role models (such as seminar series featuring LGBTQ+ scientists, womxn's networking and mentorship events, and community-focused events).

So... why are we here? We want to reach out to the prospective graduate student community and offer our support! We're here to talk diversity and inclusion, talk about struggles we have faced, talk about the graduate school experience, talk about applications: ranging from "am I a competitive applicant" to how to talk about non-scientific strengths (i.e. you balanced 3 jobs in undergrad and don't have a high GPA because of it) and even what graduate and non-graduate programs to consider, to talk about our successes in recruiting, STEM identity and more! We're happy to answer questions related to applications, graduate student communities, diversity statements, read applications, provide feedback and more! (and of course, if you're interested in a PhD program at UChicago, that's even better!) 

We are here to help other students have a better experience, both in the application process and after they get in. Reach out and let us know what we can do.

 

[Biomedical Sciences with Computational Biology phd programs]

23 hours ago, Gopher29 said:

What would the prerequisites be for the computational track in genetics (esp for someone coming from a biology undergraduate)? E.g. a full series of calc1 - calc3, linear algebra, intro to programming, etc. thanks!

Hi! I think that we are pretty flexible about incoming prerequisites (all though all of the courses you listed would be good courses to take - especially statistics and programming courses). I know there is a required statistics course in the first year that requires linear algebra, but other than that I am not entirely sure that there are specific prerequisites. This link will give you more specific details about the computational track: https://ggsb.uchicago.edu/page/ggsb-computational-track-coursework.

I honestly wouldn't worry too much about fulfilling requirements before getting to grad school. When I applied one of my interviewer stressed the fact that I should have already taken statistics courses before coming to graduate school, but it didn't matter at all in the long run. I'd say take the courses that you think will prepare you best for the research you are the most interested in - anything you're missing you can take once you get into grad school. Hope that helps! 

[Transfer my application to another department]

I'm not at all familiar with Sociology, but in many Biology departments they will do this because 1) the programs are typically very interdisciplinary and 2) people often might "fit" better in a different department. As a personal example - I applied and got into a Human Genetics program, but switched to a broader Genetics and Genomics program halfway through my first year since it was a better fit for my research interests. The programs themselves (in my experience) are often so similar that applicants may not realize a different program is a better fit for them.

I'd say it definitely couldn't hurt to have your application shared with other programs - even if you'd prefer to get a degree in Sociology. Having more faculty look at your app is never a bad thing! 

[How To Judge a PhD Program as *Actually* Open To Diverse Applicants]

Hi! Are you interested in UChicago at all? I'm a current grad student at UChicago and I'm involved in a program called GRIT (more info in signature), which was created specifically to help recruit students from URM backgrounds. We do have support for undocumented students as well. I'd love to chat more and put you in contact with some current students who may have had similar experiences to yours. 

To answer your question, I'd agree with previous posts and say that chatting with current students / searching for diversity-focused groups on program websites is a good start. Many programs are also dropping the GRE, which is a good sign that they are interested in removing barriers for URM students and students from other marginalized groups to apply to Phd programs in an equitable way.  

[2019 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 11/1/2018 at 12:20 PM, curious_who said:

Undergrad Institution: Small liberal arts college
Major(s): Biology
Minor(s): Physics
GPA in Major: 3.85
Overall GPA: 3.84
Position in Class: Magna cum laude

Type of Student: International student

GRE Scores (revised/old version): 
Q:153
V: 157
W:3.5



Research Experience:

• 3 summers research experiences a
• 2 years of post bac research experience
• 1 publication from a summer research experience 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

• 2nd rank - Poster presentation at state level
• A couple other awards for academic achievement 

 

Applying to Where: Biomedical sciences

 

Rockerfeller

uc san diego-

Northwestern university

scripps research institute

mayo clinic

Mt Sinai -

yeshiva universtiy einstein

sloan memorial place

Boston

UT southwestern dallas

University of Virginia

Vanderbilt University UC chicago

 

I know my GRE is not good. this is the second time taking it and I only improved 4 points. Do you think I have a chance in any of these schools or am I reaching too far? Thank you.

Hi there! UChicago does not require the GRE, so that shouldn't be a problem there! I definitely think you have a chance at these programs. Do you know which program within Biomedical Sciences you are interested in? 

[2019 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 8/31/2018 at 12:00 PM, rorykinss said:

Undergrad Institution: International school.
Major(s): Biotechnology
Minor(s): N/A
GPA in Major: N/A 
Overall GPA: 86% 
Position in Class: 3rd of my class

Graduate Institution: Top 10 public US university
Major(s):  M.Sc. Animal Science (Doing mostly genetics & computational biology work) (Will finish In spring 2019)
GPA in Major: 
Overall GPA: 3.9 
Position in Class: I am not sure, but I am at the top surely. 
Type of Student: International female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 158
V: 162
W: don’t remember.

TOEFL
Total: 117

 

Research Experience: 
-1 year of research in cell models for in vitro fertilization for bachelor’s thesis
-Internship in viral vaccine production company producing and developing vaccines.
-1 year of working in a goverment food microbiology lab 
-5 months of research in stem cell transcriptomics at the bioinformatics lab of a recognized institute
-2 years of research in transcriptomics/epigenomics using computational biology for master’s thesis
-1 publication as 2nd author, 2 publications under review as 2nd author, 2 submitted publications (one as middle author and one as 1st author).

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Within your school or outside?)
-Received department scholarship
-Was invited to speak at huge international conference

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)
-Undergrad TA for biochemistry lab
-TA for a programming course
-Reviewer for journal of undergraduate research for my school

Applying to Where:

I’m not sure of my chances  at any of these places or how competitive I might be for a PhD program, if any of you could indicate me that would be great!
If you all have any other suggestions of some places to apply that would be great as well.

University of Chicago- Genetics, Genomics and Systems Biology
Boston University - Bioinformatics
Tri-Institutional - Computational Biology and Medicine
CMU-Pitt - Computational Biology
Columbia - Systems Biology
Cornell - Genetics, Genomics and development
Sanger Institute 4-year PhD program
EMBL-EBI PhD program

Hi there! I'm a 3rd year PhD student in UChicago's Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology program. Your research experience looks great and I think you would certainly be a competitive candidate. In particular, UChicago has a big focus on transcriptomics, with labs that are completely computational, completely molecular, and everywhere in between. Especially since you already have computational experience with your masters, I think you'd be a good fit. I'd be happy to chat with you more about the program and answer any questions you may have! 

[2019 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 10/4/2018 at 6:32 PM, EnchantedR said:

I finished my undergrad within three years (two years for my major courses) in an international institute and then spent two years doing research in MIT. Last year I applied for some chemistry programs and got admission from UCLA but I rejected because I decided to do biomedicine research. Tho I major in chemistry, my research experience is all related to chemical biology or biomedicine. I wonder if I should apply for BBS programs in med school or Biology in Art and Science, or interdisciplinary programs related to chemistry and biology? And I'm interested in immunotherapy, but immunology programs can be super competitive and might not be my best shot, should I apply for them?

And I do care about the locations: I prefer big cities and east coast or anyplace have great academic environment.

 

Undergrad Institution: a not very well-known international institute
Major(s): chemistry (only took biochemistry course which is related to biology)
Minor(s): /
GPA in Major: 3.5
Overall GPA: 3.3
Position in Class: top 20% (I was in a weird class lol, 20% students from the college were selected into the class)
Type of Student: international female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 153 (61%)
V: 170 (99%)
W: 3 (18%)
B: /


TOEFL Total: 101 (S 23), 102 (S 20) (which one should I use?)

Research Experience: 

1. Two years in my undergrad institute, leader of a project (funded by state) and independent researcher. Organic synthesis and DNA damage and repair within in vitro nucleosome. My PI is not famous but he knows me well and would strongly recommend me. Co-first author of one in-preparation publication.

2. One year in MIT chemistry. Specific drug delivery to cancer cells. My PI is young but already gain reputation in chemical biology field. He knows me well and would recommend me. And I'm having an independent project which my PI has introduced to many of his collaborators. (idk how to stress this in my SOP?) It's about cancer immunotherapy. Hopefully one 2nd author publication in a good magazine can be submitted. Another 2rd author in preparation. 

3. One year in MIT biology. My research is about AD modeling using iPSC. My PI is best-known in cell biology and molecular biology field. And his recommendation can be very helpful.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: some scholarships within undergrad institute

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Famous recommendation and connections. And I've met some PIs, tho they couldn't promise me to get into any programs.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

Harvard BBS

MIT Biology

Stanford Biosciences

Tri-institutes Chemical Biology

Yale BBS

NYU

Sloan-Kettering

Columbia  Chemical biology or med school?

JHU CB

Weil Cornell Umbrella

Upenn medical CAMB

Sinai

Duke? Scripps? UWash-seattle? UT Southwestern? UCSF chemical biology (how's the program btw?)? Uchicago med? Northwestern med?

 

 

Hey there! UChicago has a Biophysics program that might give you the chemistry / biology crossover you're looking for. In the Biophysics department you have to have a PI in the Physical Sciences (includes all Chemistry) and one in the Biological Sciences. We also have a Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB) program housed within the Molecular Biosciences that might be a good fit for you. The people I know in BMB range from being in true biochemistry labs to more chemistry-focused labs with medical leanings. 

 

[2019 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 10/29/2018 at 12:17 AM, bio applicant said:

Hey, guys! Looking for some help here. I'm taking my GRE soon, but majority of the programs that I apply don't really require them and I know I have to score really high (like 165~167ish at least) to be avg~above avg for my list of schools so I'm not sure how to go on with this. Maybe I won't submit to schools that don't require them if I get below 167ish for each section.... I'm shotgunning top schools and that's why I'm applying a lot. Do I have a chance?

 

 

Undergrad Institution: one of the top public universities for bio (UC)
Major(s): Biology/psychology double major
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.62
Overall GPA: 3.69
Position in Class: (No numbers needed, but are you top? near top? average? struggling?) ~top 10%
Type of Student: (Domestic/International, male/female, minority?) - international, Asian male

GRE Scores (revised/old version): I'm taking one very soon

Research Experience: (At your school or elsewhere? What field? How much time? Any publications (Mth author out of N?) or conference talks etc...)

I did 1.5 yrs of research at my undergrad institution (back then was small, now big), 2 years at HYPSM as a lab tech at a very well known lab in the field

1 mid author paper submit soon before I apply, 1 international conference (poster), two regional conference (poster), several undergrad conferences. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Within your school or outside?)

Cum laude

Summer Research Scholarship at my school

Provost honors

One school academic scholarship

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)

TAed for several lower div and upper div bio classes

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

1 rec from my PI (very well known), 1 rec from physician I worked with, 1 rec from one of the prof from my undergrad. Letters are all solid.

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Applying to Where:

Harvard	Division of Medical Sciences/biological and biomedical sciences	Human biology and disease mechanism/molecular neuroscience/Stem cell and regenerative biology
MIT	Department of biology	Molecular Medicine and Human Diseases
Yale	Biological and Biomedical Sciences	Neuroscience
Stanford	Biosciences	Neuroscience
Caltech	Division of Biology and Biological Engineering	Molecular medicine
University of Chicago	Biological Sciences Division	Biomedical sciences
Cornell	Weili Cornell Medicine Graduate School of Medical Sciences	Neuroscience
Columbia	Biological Sciences	Molecular Biology, Cellular Biology, and Molecular Genetics
Northwestern	NUIN
Duke	Neurobiology
Johns Hopkins	School of Medicine	Neuroscience
UPenn	Biomedical graduate studies	Neuroscience
NYU	Sackler Institute of Graduate Biomedical Sciences	Neuroscience and Physiology
USC	Neuroscience
UC Berkeley	Neuroscience
UCSF	Biomedical sciences
UCLA	Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program (NSIDP)	Neuroscience
UCSD	Biomedical Sciences	Neurobiology of Disease
UCI	Biological Sciences	Interdepartmental neuroscience
UMichigan	Biomedical Sciences	Neuroscience

Hi there! Regarding the GRE, at least for UChicago you can't be penalized for not submitting it, so if you feel like it'll help your app, go for it, if not, then dont! Just curious, which programs within UChicago Biomedical Sciences Division are you considering? (We also have a Neuroscience department that might interest you) 

Personally, I think you are applying to way too many schools. I personally don't think its worth it to apply to this many, but others may disagree. Even if you got interviews at all of them, I dont think there are enough weekends between December and March for you to attend all the interviews!! I'd suggest only applying to schools that 1) have at least 3 PI's you would consider working for, 2) are located in an area you are interested in, and 3) have the type of coursework you are looking for  and or specific expertise in your subject area. 

For me, that meant applying to 9 schools (some of which didn't fulfill criteria 1) that were all in mid-large cities, and had specialized programs in genetics. 

Hope that helps! 

[2019 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results]

On 10/29/2018 at 4:34 PM, palyndrone said:

I'm applying for PhDs in microbiology/MCDB from my final year of undergrad at a non-US school and I'm a little worried about not stacking up as a domestic applicant, especially since my experience isn't primarily in micro! Could use some advice about my viability for my program choices. My area of interest is microbial genetics and diversity, and microbe-host interactions.

Undergrad Institution: respectable mid tier UK university
Major: Biology
Over-all GPA: First-class marks, foreign credit GPA conversion of 3.83 
Position in class: not calculated
Type of student: domestic, white, (transgender) male

GRE Scores: (new) 163 V / 155 Q / 4.0 A

Research Experience:

• Currently on a full year undergrad research project/dissertation in epigenetics (key gene methylation in mouse neural tissue in response to developmental folate depletion)
• Spent 6 months working as a volunteer on an independently funded project in plant-pollinator interactions and melissopalynology. Will be co-author on publication when finished, but no date for that yet because data collection ran longer than planned, so moot point. Am getting a LOR from the project lead.

Other:

• Intern at an aquarium doing environment maintenance, animal care, and public outreach in conservation
• Undergrad biology program student representative

 

Applying to:

 

university of florida	Microbiology
university of chicago	Microbiology
	Evolutionary Biology
university of washington	Microbiology
university of pittsburgh	Molecular/Cellular/Developmental Biology
michigan state university	BioMolecular Science
ohio state university	Microbiology
university of oregon	Biology (Institutes of: Molecular Biology; Ecology and Evolution)
university of wisconsin	Microbiology

 

 

Hi there! University of Chicago graduate student here! I'd be happy to help with any questions about UChicago that you have. I'm a member of the Graduate Recruitment Initiative Team, a group of grad students who are committed to the recruitment and retention of marginalized students to UChicago (check out signature for more info). 

From your stats I think you look like a competitive applicant. I'd say your experience being more genetics-based is perfect for UChicago. I'm a little biased as a geneticist myself (haha) but I know the majority of the programs here are super interdisciplinary and I know at least in my program I wasn't penalized for not having taken many programming or computer science classes (my research project is about 40% computational and I had no experience with that coming into graduate school).  

[Biomedical Sciences with Computational Biology phd programs]

UChicago has lots of options like this! Most of the people I know in the Molecular Biosciences programs (particularly the Human Genetics and Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology programs) have projects that are wet and dry (some purely computational as well!) I think this is also true for the Biomedical Cluster. 

In the genetics programs in particular there are 'empirical' and 'computational' tracks that tailor the coursework for your specific interests - be that molecular biology or computational/biostats. But I also know a few students in Microbiology who work in mainly computational labs. 

(as an extra aside: my current project is about 60% wet lab and 40% dry lab and I came into the program with absolutely 0 computational experience except for one programming class I took my senior year) 

Feel free to reach out to us for more info / help with this! We (GRIT) are happy to help!

[Sending GRE scores when not required]

Hi there, 

At UChicago we just dropped the GRE requirement in the Biological Sciences Division. You can't be hurt by not submitting your GRE, but of course if you did well and want to submit it, you are more than welcome to. A big part of the work we do (GRIT) is to make sure that application processes are equitable for URM students and students from other marginalized groups - and dropping the GRE requirement was a big part of that! We (students) will be making sure admissions committees are held accountable to this fact and not using the lack of a GRE submission as any sort of detriment towards that applicant. The GRE should not (and at UChicago Biological Sciences Division cannot) be used as a 'cutoff' for applications since it disadvantages certain groups (URMs, socioeconomic minorities etc) more so than others. 

Hope that helps! 
Also, if you're considering applying to UChicago, feel free to send us a message or check out our page - we'd be happy to talk more about all this. 

 

(P.S. I'm a current Biology student at UChicago (in Genetics, Genomics, and Systems Biology program) and got very similar scores to yours) 

[GRIT: Tackling Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education]

23 hours ago, Moods said:

Hi there! Thanks for offering to help!

I have a question about writing a diversity statement that some of the programs ask for, mainly focusing on how the applicant will contribute to diversity on campus. For example, here is one from Northwestern: 

"The Graduate School at Northwestern University considers having a diverse student population a key element to the educational experience of its graduate students. Diversity presents itself in many different forms such as: socioeconomic status, race or ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, nationality or place of origin, disability, unique work or life experience, etc. We invite you to use this space to tell us how you may contribute to the diversification of The Graduate School, your program and Northwestern University."

I am a female, Hispanic, pansexual in engineering, which I would say is a rare thing. However, I don't really know how to go about describing how I will contribute to the diversity. Do you all have any tips?

Thanks in advance!

(Also, I hope it's okay that I am not applying to the University of Chicago. Sorry about that, folks! I am so grateful for your help, though!)

 

Hi Moods!

I'd say that you can describe how you will contribute to diversity however you'd like! If you have a specific experience about how your various identities have intersected with STEM that might be good to share. For an example, if I was to write a diversity statement I might talk about some of the things I have overcome related to my identity in STEM (maybe an experience with a faculty member, or a learning experience for someone outside of my identity), or about some of the work I had done in undergrad on increasing diversity. I've had some powerful experiences with outreach and mentorship (young girls realizing they too are / can be scientists) etc. Sometimes its hard to figure out how exactly you "contribute", but I'd say that you contribute to diversity just by being yourself! Simply by existing as a Hispanic pansexual scientist you are paving the way for others who might have similar identities to succeed. Emphasizing your identity is key - your presence and love for science is a huge step for representation in science, and if you wanted to discuss any possible ideas you would have to create space / events for members of your identity group that would also be a good addition. 

I can't speak to anything specific about engineering, since I don't think we have an engineering department here, but I hope this helps frame your thoughts. 

Best of luck!!

the UCGRIT team

[GRIT: Tackling Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education]

 

Hi gradcafe! We're the Graduate Recruitment Initiative Team (GRIT) at the University of Chicago. We're a team of graduate students committed to the recruitment and retention of students from marginalized backgrounds to graduate programs in the Biological and Physical Sciences at the University of Chicago.

For students from marginalized backgrounds, the road to grad school can be confusing, downright scary, and may seem impossible. The lack of diversity in STEM is a huge problem, generating unsupportive and sometimes hostile work environments for students of color, LGBTQ+ students, students with disabilities, and female-identifying students. GRIT aims to help fix the "leaky pipeline" in graduate school recruitment by actively recruiting minority students to graduate school, connecting prospective students with faculty members of interest, and fostering personal connections with prospective students to ensure they find the best graduate program for their interests. In addition we aim to bridge gaps in marginalized student retention by providing programming that aims to provide supportive environments, community building, and increase access to mentors and role models (such as seminar series featuring LGBTQ+ scientists, womxn's networking and mentorship events, and community-focused events).

So... why are we here? We want to reach out to the prospective graduate student community and offer our support! We're here to talk diversity and inclusion, talk about struggles we have faced, talk about the graduate school experience, talk about applications: ranging from "am I a competitive applicant" to how to talk about non-scientific strengths (i.e. you balanced 3 jobs in undergrad and don't have a high GPA because of it) and even what graduate and non-graduate programs to consider, to talk about our successes in recruiting, STEM identity etc.

We are here to help other students have a better experience, both in the application process and after they get in. Reach out and let us know what we can do.