volklskier

No problem! I sent in my UVa app in early December (maybe the 5th?) and they actually called me on the 12th for an interview. However, I did my undergrad there and also worked in a lab there for several years, so I kind of doubt that a lot of others would have already heard but I could be wrong. I wouldn't get discouraged or anything. The phone interview/proper interview thing sounds kind of strange... When I got the call, I was just invited and told that I'd get emails with details (just confirmed my weekend for Jan 12-14 earlier this week). I'd say that's out of the ordinary. When did you hear from Pitt? I'm hoping that most of the other programs don't drag it out until late January...

Albert Einstein: Jan 12-13, Jan 26-27 Case Western Reserve University (BSTP): Feb 3-4, Mar 2-3 Columbia (Pathobiology & Molecular Medicine): Feb 3-5 Cornell (Weill): February Dartmouth (PEMM) March 2-3 Emory University (neuro): Feb 9-11 or Feb 23-25 Harvard (BBS): Jan 26-29 and Feb 9-12 Harvard (Neuro): Jan 19-22 MIT (Biology): Feb 11-14, Feb. 25-28, Mar 10-13 Northwestern (Neuro: NUIN): Jan 19-20, Feb 2-3, Feb 23-24 NYU Sackler: Jan 19-20, Jan 26-27 Rockefeller: March 1-2 and 8-9 Sloan Kettering: 1/17-1/19 Scripps Research Institute-CA campus: Feb 24-25, Mar 2-3 Thomas Jefferson (Neuro): Jan 26-27 University of Chicago (BSG): Feb 23-25 UC Berkeley (MCB): Feb 5-7, Feb 26-28 UC Irvine (CMB):Jan 26-28,Feb 2-4 UCLA ACCESS (Molecular and Medical Pharmacology): Dec 22 UCSF BMS: Jan 26-28 OR February 9-11 UMASS Worcester: Feb 2-4 and Feb 16-18 U Maryland - Baltimore - Feb 3 UMich (PIBS): Jan 27-28 (Cancer Bio), Feb 3-4 (General) UNC Chapel Hill (BBSP): Feb 2-4 UPenn (Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics): Jan 19-21, Feb 9-11 UPenn (Neuro): Jan 20, Feb 10 UVa (BIMS): Jan 12-14 or Feb 2-4 UW-Seattle (Biology): Jan 13 or Jan 20 UW-Seattle (MCB): Jan 25-27,Feb 8-10 U Wisconsin - Madison (Biophysics): Mar 1-3 Vanderbilt (IGP): Jan 12-14 Yale (B.B.S.): Feb 2-5

Yeah, I received the same email from them on Tuesday. I emailed MCB to get an idea of the applicant pool (what they were looking for/at) and this was the reply: "Because we received over 470 applications to our Program and are only interviewing 70, the competition was very strong. The Committee did not write comments for the denials made but I can tell you that they were looking for applicants with high GPAs (3.5+), high GRE scores (88th percentile), excellent references regarding research experience in labs at good institutions as well as strong personal statements." Not exactly unexpected but a bit more stringent than I expected. Oh well... Hopefully more good news down the road!