TXTiger2012

I've gotten responses from TAMU and USF, and know that several programs have already hosted or sent out invitations to interview weekends. The only program I haven't heard from is VIMS, but the application was due in mid-January so its still early for them. Where did you apply?

agschmidt has it correct. The relationships of champion/support and apologist/defend are both positive, while iconoclast/criticize is more negative. Best of luck with the new gre!

I for one would really like to know when and how you resolve this, OP! Its an incredibly awkward, uncomfortable, and even unfair (?) situation to be put in. The solution can seem really obvious and straightforward to GC posters, but we aren't having to deal with this firsthand. I completely agree with the other posters about retracting your acceptance of the date/dinner/get-together/whatever and working to find a new advisor and just want to say good luck! Being a grad student is hard enough!

Wow, spew's response is totally unnecessary. I too am 1. a marine biology student and 2. a girl, but how does that disqualify me from speaking about appropriate interview attire for my male colleagues? I'm sure it would be very easy for you to tell that a young woman was inappropriately dressed for a grad school interview if she was wearing, say, a cocktail dress? Or, at the other end of the spectrum, a t-shirt and jeans? Its just as easy for us "girls" to tell that a guy is over- or under-dressed for an occasion. As a previous poster mentioned, how you dress can reflect on your "fit" with the potential program, and if you are too dressy or too casual compared to what was suggested or how other members of your group are dressed, the faculty and staff may make some judgement based on that (fairly or not). I would worry much more about having that kind of condescension come through in an interview than how you are dressed.

I worked with a professor at my university who is a grader for the GRFP and she said that this is pretty much how it works out. She didn't make it sound like it was a formal sorting, but that graders did expect an application with more finesse from a first or second-year graduate student in comparison to a college senior. To who asked about the 1/3, 1/3, 1/3 breakdown, that means that about 1/3 of the awards go to college seniors, 1/3 to first year grads, and 1/3 to second year grads...in other words, the three groups of students eligible to apply for the fellowship

I've been accepted to a summer intern program this year and have been wondering if it would be appropriate for me to blog about my experiences, or if this looks bad to grad schools you apply to. I know, understand, and would definitely follow some basic "rules" out of courtesy: not mentioning the institution (although it may become obvious), full names, or personal info like where I am living etc, or publishing research material that isn't mine to disseminate (dur). Still, I'd like to document what I'm doing each day or week so that my friends and family can see it, and also use it as a more informal exercise in writing about a research project. I do NOT intend to use it to post inflammatory rants when I have a bad day or disagree with a lab employee- even I get that's one of the dumbest things you can do in a public forum with your name permanently attached. But still, even while trying to be as anonymous and courteous as possible, I wasn't sure if that would still appear too "gossipy" or unprofessional to graduate schools that I'll be applying to this fall. Any extra opinions or viewpoints are very welcome!

I definitely always wear jeans and a top that isn't a t-shirt to class and work everyday, but I also feel a little more confident and prepared for the day when I took some time in the morning on my appearance. Besides, when you start enrolling in smaller, upper level classes where you are more likely to be noticed than a 1,000 seat intro biology class, do you really want your professor to remember you as the kid who wore sweatpants all the time when you go asking for a rec? Someone also said to me one time that it was a matter of respect that you look presentable in class since, usually, teachers will be wearing slacks and a button down, or even suits in some instances. There are always the "wacky" ones who wear Hawaiian shirts and socks with their Birkenstocks every day, but you won't look sloppy in jeans and there is a chance you may do yourself a disservice wearing sweatpants, so why risk it?

Thanks for the suggestions everyone! I haven't heard of Academia.edu before, so that was especially helpful. Most of the professors I have a friendly relationship with are older and not too inclined to interact through any of these channels, so up until this point I haven't seen any real benefit. I'll probably set something up on one or both- nothing bad comes up in an internet search of my name, but most of the results I do have come from a local newspaper about HS band accomplishments or a scholarship or two, so I'd just like to have a little more presence "out there" for when graduate applications roll around in the fall.

Wondering what other biology or science students in general thought about the usefulness of having a LinkedIn profile? I don't plan to work outside of universities or research institutions (although things always change!) and none of my professors have one or maintain their very old page, so I wouldn't be making connections beyond college-age friends who are also on there (and that's the point of FB, not LinkedIn haha). Do y'all still find it useful to have a more public resume that will pop up if you get Googled? Or is it more a waste of time?