Dicer87

I wish I had found this topic earlier. I wrote a post a few days back detailing some of my past and experiences during my first year in another topic (pasted below). Didn't know it at the time, but I am definitely feeling impostor syndrome at points.

I haven't posted much since starting my Ph.D. program this past fall, but I just wanted some advice on my current life path. I started out as a bioengineering major (high-ranked institution) but like oh so many other students, did not do so well in coursework (as is reflected by my shamefully low GPA haha). I then decided to work as a research associate in a biochemistry/biophysical lab on a small molecule screen before doing my master's in BME at a fairly low-ranked school. However, my master's thesis advisor suggested that I round out my education by possibly doing my Ph.D. in a different field, but can still be applicable to BME in the future. He was of the opinion that current BME curricula are not focused enough for either grad school or industry. So I applied and got accepted at a decently ranked institution for chemistry. Classes during the first semester were not that difficult, and I managed to do well in all of them in the end (despite being more biochem heavy than actual chemistry). I rotated in a few labs before joining a peptide chemistry lab. I found the research utterly fascinating but started to become a bit intimidated since it's been years since I actually took any significant chemistry (i.e. ochem, gen chem, etc.), which was nearly 7-8 years ago during my freshman/soph years (although my biochem is sufficient). My current advisor did warn me that his lab did have a significant amount of synthetic chemistry and that I would need to catch up in this area before really getting going on my primary research project. I guess some of my biggest concerns include my being intimidated by some of the other students who are purely "synthetic" chemists, my advisor feeling the need to give me such a warning, and just a personally induced anxiety that I don't really belong here. I fully do intend and am catching up in gen/ochem as quickly as possible but just cannot shake this feeling of dread and impending doom. Like I said, the research is absolutely awesome and can definitely relate to work I've done as a BME major, which makes sense from an interdisciplinary viewpoint. 1. Another thing I should mention is that I have never taken physical or inorganic chemistry. So should I read up/study on that even though my current lab does not heavily focus on them at all? 2. Anyone have any advice at all for me about this path? Anyone else gone through something similar and willing to impart some knowledge? 3. Assurances never hurt either haha P.S. I should note that despite his warning, my PI did accept me without any reservations or conditions in the end.

Do you mean I should get a second master's degree in BME from CCNY? I actually have heard some good things about the school, but it feels silly to pursue two degrees in the exact same field. I suppose that I would also treat this program differently and try to take as many additional undergrad courses as well (not to boost my undergrad gpa but to prove I am not an idiot and my original undergrad record was just me being young/stupid). The tuition at CCNY is so much lower than NYU or Columbia that I feel I can take advantage of it a bit more. I am currently debating whether to apply for another MS in BME or an MEng in ChemE (apparently they don't offer MS at CCNY). Poly's BME program isn't very good imo, but I don't think I regret the time I spent there (especially since I got to do some interesting research at the dental school). So I guess part of me isn't really viewing getting another MS in BME would be that weird (especially if I can retake some undergrad courses). But of course, I imagine it would be quite weird to get two MS degrees in the exact same field. Perhaps I can start the MS program and just take a bunch of classes, ace them, apply for PhD again in the next cycle, and just go if I get accepted? Thoughts?

Lol...anyone in the same boat as me and not receive any interviews thus far?

I'm not sure yet. I guess I can't really make a decision until at least the end of February. I'll either find a job as a research technician or find some way to stay with current PI for Ph.D.

Haha I wish I was in a position to be able to answer your question. What are your stats btw? I am assuming you got a Columbia interview and want to know what kind of stats they are looking for.

I saw one interview invite for Harvard posted in the results section. Penn has been sending out invites sporadically for the past week or so.

Well it looks like Columbia is a little early this year. Couple of interview invites posted in the results section. Anyone know if they send out invites in waves?

So someone posted that he/she was accepted to the BME PhD program at Columbia. Did I miss something or did Columbia send out interview invites already?

Haha well my stats are decent I suppose but some things you should take with a grain of salt. Pending publications will always be seen as less effective than actual published ones (since they can and are constantly rejected). Plus, as mentioned previously, master's GPAs are often heavily inflated and the reputation of the school does also matter for the "higher ranked" programs. I'm pretty sure my LORs are pretty good...I've been told by PIs during interviews that 3 of them are excellent....and I've read the one written by my current PI. I suppose it is possible for my SOP to be holding me back...but I don't know...I think the SOP usually helps you more than hurting you as long as you don't screw up completely. I had two friends at Berkeley (who are now in PhD programs at Stanford and MIT) that submitted SOPs with the wrong school name for at least half of their intended applications (and still got in haha). I never really expected to hear anything from MIT or UCSD (people can dream though, right?). I merely posted just in case. But I'm not expecting much love from CA schools at this point either with their abysmal funding situation and all. Fellow Cal Bear huh? Berk engineering is like a black hole for good grades.

Post-bacc programs/classes would certainly be a viable option. I suppose if I get an RA position under a reasonable PI...I can take a few classes part-time on top of working. I'm pretty sure you can still take post-bacc classes even if I have completed my master's program...it's merely the exorbitant costs of them that will hold me back. When I talked about RA positions, I of course meant to include MSK and Weill-Cornell. Both institutions hire a lot of RAs with a lot of prominent faculty. They aren't as "engineering" as I'd like them to be, so I would have to be a bit more selective with prospective PIs. As for a second master's program, I would only pursue one in a completely different one from BME (since I have already completed one) such as in MSE. I have 3 CCNY BME undergrads working in my lab atm and have a little bit of the inside scope on some of the professors there. The PIs with research interests that coincide with mine are either too new or not taking any students this upcoming year. Just to clarify, I applied to 20+ programs my first time around...but I was clearly not a strong of an applicant as I am now (with no master's, 1 pub, and only 3 LORs). Prior to applying this cycle, I reached out to a few POIs and managed to secure a few unofficial meetings before the app deadlines. From what they have told me, my undergrad GPA is indeed detrimental but not unbeatable. It may just require a few more attempts than I may have thought. All I know is...even if I'm not admitted this time around, it will only motivate me more. I'm pretty confident my app will be even stronger in a year.

I am limited in the amount of funds I can devote to apps at the moment. I also would prefer to pursue methods that will allow me to apply to the caliber of schools I am currently aiming for. I applied to 20+ schools the first time around. I realized at the end of it all that I would not have been completely happy going to a significant portion of the schools I applied to due to a variety of factors. Hence, why I limited the number of schools to 9 this time around. I expect if I apply for a 3rd time...this number would be even smaller.

Hello all, As the interview invites for the various schools are being sent out, I cannot help but plan for the worst in case I do not receive any offers again during this cycle. This is my second time applying for Ph.D. programs in BME. Since I will have already completed my master's degree, I am wondering what course I should take for the year until I can reapply. I figure my choices range from going for a 2nd master's in a different yet related field (e.g. MSE), work as a technician under a PI who could sponsor me possibly in the future, or search for a job in industry. I have also had a few friends recommend that I contact specific admissions departments and request an offer upon the basis that I will not receive a stipend for living expenses but include tuition remission (while living off of loans) for the first two years. One person in my lab received an offer just like that (although it was viewed with disdain by my current PI). An industry position is my least desirable option despite the higher pay since I currently reside in NYC and may require significant relocation or commute times (e.g. to NJ, Long Island, etc.). I fear a 2nd master's degree won't help my application significantly unless I am admitted to a top tier program, which may be more difficult since I am not originally from that field. I have similar fears about a technician position, but I figure it's my most viable option...especially in an academic-rich city like NYC. I am currently 0/2 (MIT, UCSD) with probable rejections from UCI, BU, and UPenn (since interview invites have already started). I do understand these are sent out in waves, but I submitted my apps quite early on. Thus, any school that would want me should have invited me among the first wave. With my low undergraduate GPA, I guess I am either going in the "reject" pile by default or as a "maybe" candidate depending on availability. I know lots of people regret their antics in undergrad...but man oh man I wish I had. I hate being punished so much for it and being the primary obstacle in holding me back. I had hoped my experience, publications, and rec letters would have been enough to compensate...but it is rather tough these days. What do you guys think? Is there another option I am not thinking of? Of course, it is still the beginning of February, so there is still plenty of hope. I just like to plan for the worst. My stats are listed below for further clarification: Undergraduate: Bioengineering (2.99 GPA at UCB) Masters: Biomedical Engineering (3.82 GPA at NYU-Poly) Applying to Ph.D. programs in BME with a Biomaterials/Tissue Engineering/Drug Delivery focus Applying to: Columbia, MIT, NYU GSAS, UCSD, UCI, UCLA, USC, Tufts, BU Acceptances: Rejections: UCSD, MIT GRE: 800/166Q (94%), 640/162V (89%), 4.5AW (73%) Research: 6 years of research experience 2 years in a microfluidics lab (2nd author on JACS) 2 years in a developmental bio lab (2nd author on Cell paper) 2 years in clinical/materials testing lab for master's thesis at NYUCOD (6 pending pubs; two 1st author) Publications: 9 total, 6 pending (two 1st author) 5 strong LORs: all from previous principal investigators, my graduate BME program head, and an undergrad lecturer I do apologize for displaying the info from my signature twice.

Just got the rejection letter from MIT...at least I got to briefly entertain the idea of going there haha. 0/2 so far out of 9 schools total. Next few weeks are going to be intense...

Just received the rejection letter from MIT....wasn't too surprising considering invites had been trickling out over the past few weeks. I'm hoping that the rejections are sent out on a rolling basis and not the case where the worst rejections were sent out first haha. Haven't heard back from any other schools so far.