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CallieTrichid

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Everything posted by CallieTrichid

  1. For some back story: I've always been really interested in medical anthropology. As an undergraduate, my specialty was on primatology. I got accepted to a graduate program for primatology and museum studies this year, but I'm not sure I'm going to take it (personal reasons). However, it is my dream to study zoonotic diseases and epidemics and the patterns in which diseaes in animals jump over and infect humans. So, instead of sticking with the primate side, I'm thinking of retooling and doing epidemiology or behavioral sciences where I might be able to get a job in public health. I've done some looking into the life style, and I always really enjoyed the research part of primatology. I've never taken a chemistry class in my life and I have yet to take an official statistics class. I'm not very talented in math, so I'm thinking of leaning more towards the behavioral sciences side of public health. I'm also thinking about trying to do a statistics course either this summer or upcoming fall. My GRE scores were low, but I had a 630 verbal (91%), 500 quant (27%), and 5.0 analytical (84%). I'm probably going to retake it again, and do what I can to boost my quant score. My undergrad GPA was a 3.1, but I had some circumstances behind two semesters of shit grades. Almost all of my semesters in college were above a 3.1 otherwise. While I've got really good research experience for primates (including a stint in a neuropsych lab and working for a wildlife health center--which I don't think will help me out that much, but figure it's worth mentioning just in case), I'm not sure how to go about getting valuable experience in this field with where I'm currently located. And because I am paying off student loan bills, it's not like I can jump around anywhere I want easily. So, I'm going to see if I can get a volunteer position at Planned Parenthood (I also really enjoy women's health issues) or maybe at a local hospital. Would either of these be helpful? Admittedly, this is in the nascent stage of planning, but I'd just like to know what are things that make for a strong candidate for public health graduate programs? Also, what is a way I can build my resume to be more attractive to these programs when my credentials are best suited for primatology--or is this something I can work to my favor? Edit: I figured I should add this for what it's worth: I've taken a few relevant-ish to public health courses (Medical Anthropology, Diseases in Wildlife, Cultural Health of Africa, Principles of Biological Anthropology, Intro to Environmental Health) and did pretty well in them, so it's not like this is coming out of left field entirely.
  2. I'll be moving down; looking for roommate(s) currently too. But I'm not even going to bother looking until May. All the apartments right now are for April/May/June and I want to work right up until school starts.
  3. I will be--Anthropology and Museum Studies!
  4. Just got accepted to UW-Milwaukee and planning on going this fall. Any tips for good apartments? And what's a typical range for apartments near UWM? I'm looking at Craigslist and I'm hoping to stay between $300-500, but maybe that's a little too hopeful.
  5. I'm not going to UW for grad school, but that's where I did my undergrad. The bus system is very reliable and a great way to get around. There's really no need for a car in Madison--it's a bigger pain than it's worth. My significant other paid $110 a month for parking at our apartment to have his car around, especially when you get a free bus pass; it was pointless. Bikes are also another great way to get around too. There's a few crazy folk that bike in the winter, but it is one of the most bike-friendly towns in the country too.
  6. Thanks! What do you think of it so far? And the anthropology department? I plan on coming down for a visit sometime in the near future, but I'd love to hear thoughts on it.
  7. I got accepted to NIU! I noticed one other person did too--if the other person is considering going and reading this, we should talk. It's my second choice out of the two right now, but still!
  8. Just finished my application to NIU today and hoping to hear back soon. I only applied to terminal Master's programs, but I'm really, really hoping I can get into one of them! I want to be able to get back into the swing of things and study my primates again!
  9. I finished my application for NIU (the last out of the two I'm applying to) today. It's certainly not as cut-throat as some of the other programs most people are applying to, but I really, really want to get in. I have no desire to repeat this all again next year. ):
  10. Yeah, but you'd be surprised at how well the undergraduates in those classes can keep up and exceed what your expectations are. I was an undergrad in classes like this and we frequently outdid the Master's/Ph.D. students when it came to some elements of the class. Plus, it gives a few more unique perspectives too when it comes to the material. And it's not always the case that a crosslisted undergrad course will always have you writing more papers; everyone may be required to have the same amount, but the expectations may be higher for grad students.
  11. I know of someone in UW-Madison's anthropology department that had a 2.9 CGPA (but rocking GRE scores in like the 96th percentile for both sections) and got accepted. So long as you explain the situation in your SoP, I think you've potentially got a decent shot if the admission standards are similar. http://www.mcw.edu/microbiology/graduateProgramAdmissions.htm The Medical College of Wisconsin has a Molecular Genetics graduate program that might be of interest to you. Otherwise, I know UW-Madison has a really, really strong Genetics department. Don't worry about the schools you've got a shot at so much as "Is this person doing something that I would really want to be working on a few years out from now?" Go look up articles by people whose work you find interesting and start contacting them to see if they'll be taking students. It's more important to have a good advisor and work on something YOU want as opposed to just going where you think you can get in.
  12. I used "[x] Graduate Program Inquiry" and just got my first response back. Don't stress out too much over this, it's a small detail--what you write in your letter matters much more.
  13. Unfortunately, right now, I'm strapped for cash so doing a course right now in addition to applying to grad programs isn't really an option. :\ But if I get rejected, I'll probably wind-up doing that.
  14. I just used "[school] [program] Inquiry." Perhaps not the best. Unrelated to that but I suppose a follow-up to all of this: What do you do when it's been a few weeks and no one has responded to your e-mails? I realize professors are busy people, but when do you re-contact them? If so, what exactly do you write? Out of the 4 people I've attempted contact with so far, I've gotten nothing and it's been almost two weeks. Time to give up hope? :\ Or am I just being impatient?
  15. UT-SA is definitely one of the programs I'm looking into. I checked out George Mason, but there isn't too much there that interests me. But thanks for the help!
  16. Just as an FYI: if you're planning on applying this year and you want your GRE scores out *before* November, you'll have needed to taken the GRE before August, so depending on certain schools you're looking at (more specifically, deadlines), if you plan on retaking it, the sooner the better. They're a little backed up because of the revised GRE, but after November, things should be fine. I'm in kind of a similar boat with grades and GRE score (though, I've been told it matters more on what certain scores you've gotten: a higher verbal for Anthropology is prized more highly than quant). It won't hurt to go back and get some classes and I'd definitely talk to the professor of those courses to see if you can get into a field school program or maybe assist on a research project. Another good idea is to maybe volunteer at your local hospital, that way you have some sort of medical-field experience too.
  17. I'm currently attempting to start writing a few of my statement of purposes--if anything, just for a rough draft or two to get something out and ready for the real thing and do it in advance so I can provide it to my letter of recommendation writers. I had two bad semesters my duration of my undergraduate career; my second semester sophomore year, I transferred in from a private college (which was way smaller)--I'm not so worried about this because while it was a 2.4 GPA (yikes!), it was, again, the semester I transferred in and it was my sophomore year which they don't seem to really look at. However, I'm more concerned about my first semester senior year. While I was doing fieldwork in Costa Rica the summer previous to the semester starting, my cousin was hit by a drunk driver and I flew back home (I don't have siblings, so he's about as close as it gets for me). I had to quit my research job at school and I wasn't even sure if I'd be back for that semester (other medical issues kept popping up for him), but things panned out and I was able to. Unfortunately, I was going home quite often and that had a poor effect on my grades. I wound-up getting three B's and two C's, one of which was in my major and really brought it down. The next semester, he got better and I didn't have to worry as much, and consequently, I did a lot better. I'm hoping that shows that while I did struggle, things got resolved and I was able to pick myself up and carry on. Without the first semester senior year, my CGPA would be at a 3.37 rather than a 3.1, and my major GPA would be about the same as well. Is this something I should include in my SoP? Or is it better left out? I understand that if I were to include it, I'll have to be careful about how to word it, but if anyone else has been in a similar situation, I'd be curious to hear your thoughts on what to do about it.
  18. The best way to do this is to find professors whose interests match yours. If you can establish a good rapport, then you can get someone who might be willing to vouch for you come other times. Are there certain people doing certain things you're interested in? Does your advisor have any suggestions? That said: I'd get cozy with your school's library (specifically, Google Scholar, etc.) and start looking up articles that pique your interest. From there, explore what schools they're at, what the schools are like, etc.
  19. I've been doing some research on this, and I found a really good response to this for people who are struggling writing these kinds of e-mails. http://ask.metafilter.com/72856/How-to-make-the-best-impression-on-graduate-advisors-in-earth-sciences https://pixie658.wordpress.com/2010/02/15/contacting-potential-advisors/ If anyone finds other good advice/examples, feel free to post them--I know I'd love to see them.
  20. I've heard a few things: that it's better to have a conversation with them THEN approach about openings for next year--or conversely, that it's totally OK to do, but you also have to show interest by asking a few things about research, etc. Also giving transcript is a no-no, but I've also heard it's totally OK? I've heard a lot of conflicting things about the etiquette of approaching a POI and a lot of it tends to conflict.
  21. This is my first time applying to graduate schools and I want to make sure I'm doing it as right as possible to avoid any awkwardness or anything that might ruin my chances of admission. I'm going to be on a research assistant-ship for three months and getting back shortly after applications open. Being that this is all new to me, can anyone recommend what a good timeline is to approach a potential person of interest? Is it better to do it super early, or later on? I'm planning on going into a field where a lot of people do their field work in the summer so my POIs may not see it until later and maybe disregard it. Aside from when to contact a POI, does anyone have any good examples of how to approach a POI? I've been reading materials from all my POIs to make sure that they'd be a good fit, but I've seen a lot of conflicting information on how to approach POIs and I want to know what's worked the best so far by a few people. Thank you!
  22. Thank you both for the advice! Unfortunately, I don't think the timing is right for me to re-take the GRE this year (the ETS is delayed this year with the revised GRE, I guess, and you'd need to take it in August to have it sent out on time?)--especially given the fact that I've never taken a Pre-Calc/Calculus course, a month is too short for me to get that material. But I'll just have to see what's offered should I get accepted, if it's that bad, I guess I'll just take another year off.
  23. Admittedly, I didn't do as well as I'd hoped when I graduated undergrad. Though I graduated with a 3.1 GPA, I had two bad semesters. One of which was transferring into the university I graduated from (1st semester sophomore year) and the other was first semester senior year when I was dealing with a family emergency. My other semesters (junior year-senior year) were a 3.2, 4.0 (summer--only two classes), 3.6, 3.25, and 3.19. I recently took the GRE and got a 1130--630 verbal and 500 quant (Ouch! I'm not very talented at math, though, so this surprised me). Haven't gotten my analytical scores back yet. I'm not looking to go into an Ivy League program or even a Ph.D.--I just want to get into a Master's program for primatology-related things for right now. This is where I feel like my quantitative score is going to bite me in the behind. However, if it helps--I have two previous research-related experiences (one captive and the other field work), and have another planned in a few months. I'll have a LoR from one of the experts in the field too, along with two other good ones. Eventually, I'd like to go on and get my Ph.D. at somewhere like UTSA, UIUC, or Stony Brook, but I know that I'm putting the carriage ahead of the horse and way too ambitious with my scores. So, for now, I figure I'll just focus on getting a Master's and cross that bridge when I get to it. I've never had a class on Pre-Calc/Calculus, so I plan on auditing some courses if I can on the subjects just so I have a background when taking the revised GRE for a Ph.D. program. I'm looking at Central Washington (M.S. in Primate Behavior--plenty of Anthropology professors though), San Diego State (one of the professors there is doing EXACTLY what I want to do), Cal State Fullerton (two primatology folk in their Anthro department), and Iowa State (close to home, and a professor doing some cool stuff). I think I've got a decent shot at Central Washington and SDSU, but I'm not sure about the rest. I've also given consideration to Hunter College or U of Iowa (though, I don't think I have a good shot of getting in there). I'd also like to consider SUNY-Buffalo, but they accept a minimum GPA of 3.0 and GRE of 1100, so I think my chances are pretty bad. So, out of curiosity--what say people? Also, some other questions I have-- Are there any other places you guys might know of that have a primatology-person on staff and offer a Master's program? I'd like to see what options are available, but I'm not coming up with too much. Do you guys know of any good websites with sample SoPs? I wrote one last year when I applied to law school (it was a decision I regret and made out of stupid anxiety), but I'd like to see some that are based more for graduate school than law school. And, how does one go about approaching a PoI? Is it better to start a conversation and then lead into it? Or is it better to e-mail information (CV, transcript) and talk about self, ask a few questions, etc.? Thank you so much!
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