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Fallen

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Everything posted by Fallen

  1. Thanks for the clarification. I wanted to record the types of things both of you said I should record.
  2. That makes sense - thank you for the response.
  3. To piggyback - it is okay to write down notes while people answer these questions? I just figure that the interview day(s) will be somewhat intense and I may have trouble keeping track of who said what when it comes down to making a decision.
  4. I received an invite to interview day for the Dep. of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto. I had a few questions: 1) The email invite said that my application was reviewed positively by the admission committee and that I will be having "informal" interviews with investigators that are recruiting for the fall term - is this to say that my acceptance to the department is more or less decided, assuming I can find 3 supervisors (department does rotations) 2) What sort of questions should I be asking investigators during interviews? There are a few that I've thought of, but I was hoping for some advice in that department 2b) Is it weird if I write down the answer to the questions I ask and other information I receive throughout the day? It is an 8-10 hour day (and I may be asked to return the next day) and I'd like to keep all important information organized. 3) I also get a chance to meet current students - is there anything in particular that I should be asking them? Thanks!
  5. Hi, I am completing some applications for computational biology programs. After I submitted an application last week, I was offered a project in a major teaching hospital. I will begin the project in the next few weeks. The remainder of my applications will be submitted before I actually begin the project. Should I include it on my cv/personal statement or leave it out? It is a fairly important project, and directly relevant to my research interests. Thanks!
  6. Hi I submitted a letter of intent last week and only just realized that I forgot to close the letter (didn't say something like "sincerly, my_name"). How big of a mistake is this? The rest of my application is very strong, but I'm worried this is enough to basically disqualify me. Thanks!
  7. Well, I got a position with a professor doing some structural biology (involved with bacteriophages). The prof was very enthusastic about having me in his lab, and I should be continuing on in the summer and the fall. I think 3 semesters of experience will help my application a lot, and will give me a better idea of what I want to do. Thanks for the advice!
  8. I'm in Canada, so I don't think I can do the NIH program. I am strongly considering applying to Canadian Masters programs and then going from there. My concern is still the same - will my lack of research experience significantly shorten my odds? A few graduate advisors at the programs I am interested in have said that I should be okay because my grades are significant and I am enthusiastic, but it will depend on identifying a supervisor willing to take a chance on me.
  9. No, I am interested in research, but it is difficult to intimate it professors because they are used to people who have no interest in research applying to these positions. I'm hoping to get 4 months in a lab this summer and then hopefully continue in the lab throughout next school year. I should be able to get this done since I have a prior undergraduate degree in Statistics, but as I've said, my concern is if I cannot get any experience at all.
  10. Hey thanks for the responses. I have emailed the neuro labs, but they are very hesitant to take on non-psychology students because most of the biomedical science/biochem students at my school who try to find volunteer positions in labs are premeds and they don;t really like people who aren't interested in research. I have 1 professor willing to take me on if i win a competitive award. He said he may take me on in another paid position if I cannot get the award. I want to email professors at other schools that have summer research programs that are available to all undergrads, but I don't want to be in a position where I have agreed to do research with two professors at the same time. I'd like to hedge my bets so that i can make sure I have a position, but I think its a little unbecoming to tell a professor i will work with them, and then I end up working in another lab.
  11. Hey, I'm wondering if its possible to get into a top-tier program without significant research experience. My undergraduate institute doesn't have a lot of research opportunities, and the ones that we do have are in subject areas that I am not interested in (neuroscience, psychology). I am interested in biochemistry, particularly in biochemical markers for disease/genetics. My GPA is a 4.0 (I have 1 more year remaining). I am trying to get research experience, but in the case that I cannot get significant research experience before applying, should I bother applying to top-tier programs?
  12. Fallen

    ABMG Fellowships

    Yeah I've been told that the positions are competitive, but I should be attending a top program in Canada. I will be applying to U of Toronto Molecular Genetics and U of T Lab Med. + Pathology, both programs seem to be very prestigious. Hopefully that helps out. I'm sure I'll get a postdoc position, I just don;t know what the employment opportunities are after finishing the post doc
  13. Does anyone know how competitive these post-doc positions are? There are a number accross the country, and from what I understand, they are a great option for those who have focused their research on molecular genetics. I have had a hard time getting in contact with any PhD Geneticists (or MD Geneticsts, for that matter). http://www.abmg.org/
  14. What I meant to say is, there is no possible way to get an A- at my school for a particular class. An A is 8.0 per credit and an A+ is 9.0. I dont even get the percentages for my classes returned to me. The only way for me to know if I got a low A, or a high A is to request my finale exam grade and calculate my grade.
  15. I saw a grade conversion on a Texas University webpage that gave me that score, but the webpage lists 8.0 as an A-. My school doesn't have an A-. I think I'm going to contact some schools that I'm interested in directly and see what they say. Thank you!
  16. Hello, I'm a canadian student applying to PhD programs in Biochemistry next year, and I was wondering how American schools converted grades. My GPA on a 9.0 scale is 8.4. My grades range from A to A+ (major and cumulative). The only grade conversion I found online was the American Medical School Conversion Chart (which would convert my grades to a 4.0 overall). Also, I will have two undergraduate degrees when I apply, the relevant one is the one with the 8.4/4.0 GPA, the other one, I completed a year a go is in a different subject area (mathematics) and the GPA is much lower, 2.5 overall. Am I correct in assuming only the relevant degree will be considered? Cheers
  17. After some thought, I figured I'd ask again, but hopefully, I'm being more realistic. Other than the Canadian schools, I have noted a few lower ranked schools in the US that I can apply to. I'll add that my final GPA will probably be under 3.0, but I have 3-4 semesters remaining, and my grades are rising. I should be able to pull of 3.5 gpa the next 3 semesters (I know some of you will lol at that, but I've gotten what I have now by never studying, and rarely paying attention in class. When I do study/show up, I do well). Schools: Emory University in Atlanta- Applied Math University of Rochester- Math University of California- Santa Cruz- Applied Math University of Miami-Math George Mason University- Math University of FLorida- Math All of those schools are ranked lower than 60 except UofFlorida (59). I'm only asking again because, after doing some research into the Actuarial field, jobs are incredibly difficult to get in Canada with a shite GPA. Cheers
  18. My friends are advising me to try to get into law school, but I feel that has less chance of happening than getting into a tier 3 stats program.
  19. My primary goal is job security/comfortable compensation. I have something outside of school/work that I am passionate about, and so long as my job doesn't keep me from that, it's not the biggest deal what I do. Of course, I would like to do something I truly enjoy, but it's impossible to know what that is until I actually do it. Thanks for the response, good chap.
  20. I'm pretty confident I can get -some- job in Finance. I have a fair few friends that have ranking positions at investment firms etc. I'm not so much concerned with purely having a job. I've set myself up well from a financial stand point by investing well. I even own property (not fully paid off). I was just figuring that, going to grad school will give me more chance if finding something I enjoy. In hindsight, that was poorly reasoned. I'll say that I enjoy math more that statistics, but don't particularly care for math. I absolutely hate statistics. Thanks for the advice. I've got a lot of work to do, and also a lot of thinking. I am competent in R and Java programming. I can write pseudo code for a lot of things, I simply don't know syntax. There was a time when I considered majoring in Computer Science. Second edit: I am working on my skills with Mathematica/Matlab this summer (If I don't get into 2 classes I'd like to take). The thing with programming is, I enjoy doing it/learning about it, but not in an academic setting. Edit: I'm not sure if something like this helps. In any case, I am a BJJ instructor and competitor. I spend quite a bit of time doing that as well. I suppose it makes me look like more than just a student, but given my low grades, I doubt it's of any merit.
  21. I don't really have any programming skills beyond the minimum required. I've gotten B+'s A-'s in math courses, just not very many. I've still got 2 years (4 semesters) and a couple of summers to offset my crappy GPA. I was looking at schools based on a recommendation above. Would I be better off considering schools ranked below 50? Also, my only reason for considering grad school, and I know it is a crap reason, is because job prospects for someone with a BSc in Stats are a tad poor. Other than actuarial work (and that is seemingly difficult to get an entry level job in), I don't see anything else concrete. I'll be even more honest. I don't even like math/stats. I find it to be absolutely dreadful, but considering I can't really transfer into anything worth a salt, it's irrelevant. I should invest time into researching job opportunities for someone with my education. I wasn't planning on giving up. I was having a bad day in general, and reading the responses had me a little depressed. I plan on graduating in two years. I only have 8.5 credits left to do, and I should be taking 1-2 courses again through the two summers. How much of the admission to UofT is based on upper year courses? I've done much better in my 300/400 courses than the 100/200 level courses.
  22. That certainly makes my chances in the future seem more bleak. Bit depressing. Makes me wonder why I'm doing this degree, as I certainly can't get a job without at least a Masters. sigh
  23. Thanks for the response. I emailed the admissions office for the Math department at UofT. They said they really only look at the last 10 math courses I take (10 300/400 level courses). They also said I can explain my poor performance in earlier years if I'd like.
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