busterbluth

I agree that taking a bio course or two would be helpful to demonstrate your commitment. If you can find a research position that would dramatically improve your chances, in my opinion. Since you have a background in web development and engineering I think you could easily find a lab that would have a project where you could work on data analysis or database development, but it would likely be unpaid. I would email around, profs are often excited about engineers who want to do this type of work for them. If it goes well you could even get a letter. I think your background in EE is great and they definitely do look for people with your background, but usually you would need some kind of demonstration of research interest in biology as well. I applied to UC Davis for computer science and UCSC for bioinformatics. I think they're both decently competitive, so if you have your heart set on going next year I would probably apply to a broader range of schools. Not that you wouldn't be a good candidate, depending on your statement, rec letters, etc, but it's always really hard to judge how the process is going to go until you try. Keep in mind that there is a fair deal of randomness to it as well. For rec letters, if you had any professors/classes that you really liked you may be able to get better letters than you think. I would email your old professors and remind them of your performance in the class and send them an updated CV, hopefully they will agree to write one (they usually do). Having a publication is really great as well, they will look for that. If you live anywhere near the bay area, it might be worth talking to some graduate students at Davis or Santa Cruz in labs you are interested in working in. You may learn more inside stuff about the programs this way and possibly also get a chance to meet some profs if you drop by the lab. I think if they know you before the application process and you're on their minds it increases your chances of getting in.

The University of Chicago has one, but I can't say I would recommend it at all. Northwestern University also has one (it's called "information systems" or something like that), although it has a significant business element. I'm sure there are many others around the country, but I don't know them off the top of my head. Personally, I would think long and hard before attending a professional program. I was in a professional program, and although I was fortunate enough to fall into something that I like doing now, I can't say that I feel I learned very much in the program. I don't think these programs easily justify their own crippling expense. With that said, the degree may open up certain opportunities. Just make sure your friend does detailed research on programs and doesn't just go by the name of the school or other such vague criteria.

I don't think it will matter if she takes the credits post graduation. Your friend should be aware that not all CS master's programs are created equal. Some are "professional programs" that require little previous experience and focus on applied things like databases, networks, nuts & bolts programming, etc. Others are more akin to the coursework that a first year PhD student would do. There is certainly some overlap in the two types of programs, but generally professional programs will be less rigorous and will require fewer prerequisites to be admitted. If your friend is more interested in IT work, database development for companies, writing web interfaces, or generally that sort of thing, a professional program would probably be OK. If your friend is more interested in research, nuts and bolts software engineering, or eventually getting a PhD, I would definitely recommend doing a more rigorous MS.

Hi, I'd like to second everything that MrOptimistic said. I currently work in computational biology as a programmer. Like InquilineKea, my background is originally in physics. I am applying to bioinformatics/ comp. bio programs in this admissions cycle. First of all, don't be too concerned about not having a perfect GPA. Grad admissions is not like med school where GPA and test scores are everything. Rec letters and a strong personal statement will be extremely important too. As far as acceptance rates go, one thing to keep in mind is that rates are very different for international students and domestic students. Some schools might accept half their domestic applicants and only one international and wind up having a final rate of 15%. So, if you're international you need to be extra competitive. If you're domestic, it's much easier. WIth that said, you will be much more competitive if you get some research experience in the field you're interested in pursuing in graduate school. Admissions committees love seeing that you've taken lot's of math courses and bio courses, especially if you've done well, but they would love it even more if one of your rec letters can highlight your potential in bioinformatics specifically. It's fairly unlikely that professors in bioinformatics will have heard of your letter writers if they are coming from astro, and those professional connections and reputations mean a lot for admissions. If you get some experience in bioinformatics you will be able to write a more focused personal statement and tailor your applications better to the research specialties of the schools you are most interested in. I took some time off from school before applying to get this experience, and personally I think it was a very good decision. I think you could still be competitive without this experience, but it's hard to say without knowing more about your potential letter writers and specific research experience, etc. In addition to the schools previously mentioned (all of which are good places to study) you might consider: UCSC bioinformatics (through biomolecular engineering) Stanford biomedical informatics Berkeley bioengineering (many good computational biologists here) UCLA bioinformatics U Washington genome sciences Yale bioinformatics & computational biology Good luck to you and anyone considering this field!

I agree with LJK, there is no need to be anything more than polite and inquisitive about their program. Ultimately, this is a business transaction, and there is no need to accept the terms of a business transaction on the spot.

I would say that this is much more than a typical "Thanks for your interest, best of luck in your application" type of response. Exactly what it means for your admission status depends on how this department does admissions, how senior this professor is in the department and possibly also the amount of research money the prof has. I have a couple friends in biology PhD programs who have gotten email responses like this, and in each case they have at least gotten interviews with those programs (although with EE you probably wouldn't have interviews, correct?) If it were me responding to this email, I would keep my response brief. The last thing this prof wants to do is to spend half his/her afternoon responding to 100 questions, especially if they didn't invite you to ask any. Instead, I would reiterate your interest in his/her work, confirm your interest in speaking more in the future, and let her/him know that you have submitted your application. If you have read or are reading any of this prof's papers, you might work that into your response if it wasn't in your initial email. In my opinion, the more specific you can be without writing a 1000 word response, the better.