_kb

I got my MIT accpetance email this morning from POIs! Official email to come soon, best of luck to the other applicants! 

I got my MIT accpetance email this morning from POIs! Official email to come soon, best of luck to the other applicants! 

I got my MIT accpetance email this morning from POIs! Official email to come soon, best of luck to the other applicants! 

seems like MIT bcs decisions are made. Expect phone calls from POIs. Official email not out yet. 

Just accepted my offer from UCSD Biomedical Sciences, I’m so excited!!!
Also PSA: if you get in to UCSD be sure to ask your department to nominate you for the SHORE program, which allows you to live on campus for your entire PhD (normally just a 2-year limit).

I think most schools offer this, but word it differently. Berkeley says "This offer includes full guaranteed support for the entire duration of the program for all students in good academic standing" which im assuming means the same thing? Good question- definitely something I'd ask for clarification about from your other offers.

Just got a call with an offer for the Brown Neuroscience PhD! With my gpa from undergrad being 3.27 (3.07 in major), i really wasn't too hopeful for this round of applications- But I'm ecstatic! 

Hi! So I only have two interviews (Berkeley and MIT) and I was pleasantly surprised by how awesome my Berkeley visit was and how much information they gave us about student life, housing, overall program atmosphere which was super helpful! I got accepted so I'm pretty excited and it makes me less nervous for my MIT interview coming up. I think the actual visit put my preferences into perspective and gave me a lot of information I didn't think to ask about so now I know what I'm looking for going into MIT! 

Hi! So I only have two interviews (Berkeley and MIT) and I was pleasantly surprised by how awesome my Berkeley visit was and how much information they gave us about student life, housing, overall program atmosphere which was super helpful! I got accepted so I'm pretty excited and it makes me less nervous for my MIT interview coming up. I think the actual visit put my preferences into perspective and gave me a lot of information I didn't think to ask about so now I know what I'm looking for going into MIT! 

When I was looking for a technician job I used university websites and because I needed a job quick, I emailed the PIs directly with my CV explaining why I was interested to work in their labs and I ended up finding a good position within weeks. It's definitely hard to find positions but not impossible you just have to put yourself out there! 

When I was looking for a technician job I used university websites and because I needed a job quick, I emailed the PIs directly with my CV explaining why I was interested to work in their labs and I ended up finding a good position within weeks. It's definitely hard to find positions but not impossible you just have to put yourself out there! 

Yeah sex is cool but have you applied to a ton of grad programs, waited months, got a bunch of rejections and then got accepted at your #1 school with a stipend bonus?

When I was looking for a technician job I used university websites and because I needed a job quick, I emailed the PIs directly with my CV explaining why I was interested to work in their labs and I ended up finding a good position within weeks. It's definitely hard to find positions but not impossible you just have to put yourself out there! 

When I was looking for a technician job I used university websites and because I needed a job quick, I emailed the PIs directly with my CV explaining why I was interested to work in their labs and I ended up finding a good position within weeks. It's definitely hard to find positions but not impossible you just have to put yourself out there! 

Feeeel that! I work here currently and apparently the head of their pharmacy program or something left the position right before interview season so I heard that the coordinator for GPN has to also plan their recruitment as well which is probably why it's taking so long 

along what @_kb said, there have been things outside of BU GPN administration's control this year. I'm hesitant to go into any more detail. 
IMO they should send out invites this week, so the Feb 24-26 interviews would be fine. Otherwise (if they send them next week for whatever reason), it would be a little tight, but not out of the question. 

It definitely is not the case for all institutions! It depends on your programs of interest but I had an entirely different interview experience at both of my interviews (one ivy league-waiting on response, another one-got accepted). Professors at both programs were friendly and passionate about their research and wanted to see if you were the same. Of course the general questions, "Why Neuroscience, why graduate school, why now?" all came up in conversation but it came off as a more casual probing because they didn't want you to be nervous. You still needed to give good answers, though. Make sure you channel your nerves into excitement for your research. Have a clear direction of what you want to study and where you want to be. You are not expected to know everything about your field, and be honest but inquisitive when you don't. My personal tip that I think got me my acceptance: read a paper of the professor's in advance and prepare very thoughtful questions that show you can think about the scientific process, see the bigger picture of research, while simultaneously allowing them to talk about themselves. You'll ask other questions as the natural conversation flows along, but have some prepared, with a pen and paper, for each interviewer. Avoid empty silence at all costs. They want someone that they can see themselves interacting with for ~5-6 years. Both interviews I ended up over-preparing, but that's not a bad thing.

I've interviewed so far at Penn, UCSF, and UNC. They've all been very casual and relaxed. Mostly they just asked me about my research experience and what I want to study in grad school, maybe another random question like why I applied to that school or where else I've applied, and then they'd spend the rest of the time telling me about their research and answering my questions.

When I interviewed 2 weeks ago it was with 4 professors at 30 minutes each and definitely on the relaxed side. It wasn’t very intense, they just want to see that you know what you’ve done and what you want to make sure you will be a good fit. The interview I will be attending this week is 8, 7 with faculty and 1 with a graduate student. So I guess they are all variable, and the specific experience definitely depends on the person you interview with, but they seem more like a conversation than like a job interview or such. The average seems to be around 5 faculty from what I have seen and heard.

You'll do great  You seem like a person who is well-prepared and you're interviewing at some good schools --- you're there for a reason! 

Waiting out for BU is killing me slowly
 

For the interview day (whichever is the main day that you'll be meeting with professors), I would say most people wear blazers - but there are definitely some people who also just stick with sweaters or blouses so if they specifically say casual, I would think you'd be totally fine skipping the blazer. On the other hand, you can always take the blazer off if you feel overdressed.

Ahahahah I'm accepted by Harvard PiN :)))))) So happy

Just heard from the Oxford Wellcome Trust 4-year Programme today! I'm interviewing on Jan. 31. It'll be a 10-minute presentation about my research, followed by 20 minutes of discussion with a panel of faculty. They will reimburse me up to £500 in travel expenses to and from the UK.
Aaaaahhh, I'm so excited!!! This is my dream program!

Harvard, MIT and Stanford are up there for sure but UCSD, UCSF, and  Johns Hopkins are very competitive as well (among MANY others I'm sure). I've asked a few of my mentors the ranks of schools but ended up just googling it. Here's an example but each website uses different criteria so it mostly based on what your interests are/fit and future goals... I wouldn't avoid applying to top schools because they are competitive, but apply to schools that actually align with your interests and experience and you'd be surprised. For example, my GPA isnt competitive but I received interviews from two top schools (although I got rejected everywhere else lol) but still! you never know! Hope that was helpful  
https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/neuroscience-behavior