Most likely not getting accepted anywhere...what's next?

[krd_BME]

Hey all! I am pretty sure that I will not be receiving acceptances. I know that it is my fault for only applying to a few schools, but hey I am broke(apps are expensive) and had an incredibly busy semester so applying to 10 schools was impossible. I was applying for Biomedical Engineering PhD programs. 

I had overly optimistic PI's and recommenders who believed I would get in to at least one of the 5 schools I applied to, but alas, nothing. Realistically, I did not plan well or apply to any safety schools, so I fully take responsibility for my rejections. Looking back at last semester I should have added at least 3 more schools to my list but it is too late now, so please in comments,  refrain from saying things along the line's of  " you only applied to top schools, of course you would get rejected" etc...I have already figured that much out LOL. 

No official rejections at these schools but UPenn and Tufts have already had their interviews, BU has sent some acceptances and rejections out, and I interviewed at Mayo Clinic but they have already sent out acceptances, so I am patiently awaiting a different type of email. The other school I applied to was a flat out rejection, but it was for a masters abroad with a scholarship so I had planned on that being a rejection. 

Overall I am not upset, just not sure what the next best steps are. Getting industry jobs in BME is not always the easiest, and what types of jobs should I be looking for. I fear that the farther away from undergrad I go, the farther away my recommenders are. I want to put myself in a situation where I will be a competitive candidate next year and will still be able to have strong recommendations after my gap year.

 

Thanks and good luck to everyone else waiting for responses. 

Edited March 2, 2018 by krd_BME

[pinoysoc]

9 minutes ago, krd_BME said:

Hey all! I am pretty sure that I will not be receiving acceptances. I know that it is my fault for only applying to a few schools, but hey I am broke(apps are expensive) and had an incredibly busy semester so applying to 10 schools was impossible. I was applying for Biomedical Engineering PhD programs. 

I had overly optimistic PI's and recommenders who believed I would get in to at least one of the 5 schools I applied to, but alas, nothing. Realistically, I did not plan well or apply to any safety schools, so I fully take responsibility for my rejections. Looking back at last semester I should have added at least 3 more schools to my list but it is too late now, so please in comments,  refrain from saying things along the line's of  " you only applied to top schools, of course you would get rejected" etc...I have already figured that much out LOL. 

No official rejections at these schools but UPenn and Tufts have already had their interviews, BU has sent some acceptances and rejections out, and I interviewed at Mayo Clinic but they have already sent out acceptances, so I am patiently awaiting a different type of email. The other school I applied to was a flat out rejection, but it was for a masters abroad with a scholarship so I had planned on that being a rejection. 

Overall I am not upset, just not sure what the next best steps are. Getting industry jobs in BME is not always the easiest, and what types of jobs should I be looking for. I fear that the farther away from undergrad I go, the farther away my recommenders are. I want to put myself in a situation where I will be a competitive candidate next year and will still be able to have strong recommendations after my gap year.

 

Thanks and good luck to everyone else waiting for responses. 

Hey! Just wanted to offer some Grad Cafe advice.

I totally get you feeling the fear of being "away" from recommendation providers. I suggest that you keep in contact with them to maintain a relationship with them. Have you thought of finding a job that's related to BME? What I found (that worked for me) is to only take on jobs that will add to your experience and won't detract you from your end goal of going back to school. Of course, when I did this, I had the luxury of living with my family until I got into grad school. You could also do it step by step. What I mean is, why don't you apply to master's programs first to get more experience and get used to the academic life for the Fall of 2019? Of course, you have to find a program that's funded at the master's level...because THEY DO EXIST! You just need to the leg work. 

Hope this helps!

[krd_BME]

1 hour ago, JSTOBIAS said:

Hey! Just wanted to offer some Grad Cafe advice.

I totally get you feeling the fear of being "away" from recommendation providers. I suggest that you keep in contact with them to maintain a relationship with them. Have you thought of finding a job that's related to BME? What I found (that worked for me) is to only take on jobs that will add to your experience and won't detract you from your end goal of going back to school. Of course, when I did this, I had the luxury of living with my family until I got into grad school. You could also do it step by step. What I mean is, why don't you apply to master's programs first to get more experience and get used to the academic life for the Fall of 2019? Of course, you have to find a program that's funded at the master's level...because THEY DO EXIST! You just need to the leg work. 

Hope this helps!

Thank you, I honestly did not even think about the masters route. Even if I decide to apply to masters next year, I am still in the boat of "what is next?" in terms of a job for the year. A BME job that gives me relevant research experience is very hard to obtain. Understanding if it will help me or hinder me is the challenge, should it only be a research position? I will be applying all over the country in hopes of getting something, I have mainly been looking for r&d or tech positions.  Masters is a good idea too, and from the looks of it I have some time to think about it! Thank you for the advice. 

[pinoysoc]

1 hour ago, krd_BME said:

Thank you, I honestly did not even think about the masters route. Even if I decide to apply to masters next year, I am still in the boat of "what is next?" in terms of a job for the year. A BME job that gives me relevant research experience is very hard to obtain. Understanding if it will help me or hinder me is the challenge, should it only be a research position? I will be applying all over the country in hopes of getting something, I have mainly been looking for r&d or tech positions.  Masters is a good idea too, and from the looks of it I have some time to think about it! Thank you for the advice. 

I don't think it should only be a research position. Look for practical experience as well. Having that experience in research is good since a lot of programs at the master's & doctoral level generates new information through research. 

You don't have to find a job in the BME field, per se, but find something close or relevant that you can use your undergraduate education in. In the process, you might be able to find a focus that will help you in your future applications. 

Does that make any sense?

[bmeupscotty]

Besides industry jobs, you can also look for Research Assistant positions at labs that fit your interests at universities or hospitals (many hospitals are associated with med schools and have professors doing research, plus a lot of BME programs collaborate closely with med schools). This is what I've been doing for the last year and a half before I applied to grad school.  Many places will be glad to have someone with the technical experience being BME gives you. For example, I work in an imaging research lab and I've gotten great use out of my coding skills and understanding of image/signal processing. My position also gave me more connections, including two of my recommenders who are professors that I work with closely, and helped me gain a better idea of what I wanted to study in grad school. Overall, I think it made me a more competitive applicant.

[bmeupscotty]

Also see this post re: safety schools

On 1/5/2018 at 9:05 AM, kangaroomr said:

I don't believe in safety schools. That assumes I HAVE to go to grad school. I don't. I'm here for particular reasons and to do particular research at programs with particular resources. I honestly could go look for a job in industry and make way more money. If anything you might consider NEU a safety school since they're a relatively new program and don't think it's ranked that highly.

For the record, this person was rejected from everywhere they applied last year and was responding to someone who told them they'd be rejected everywhere again. They've gotten at least one acceptance and an additional interview this year.

There's not anything wrong with applying to fewer programs if you're sure those are the ones with research and professors and resources that you want to work with. On the other hand, don't restrict yourself to only "top" schools if there are others that are doing what you want to do, as those might actually be better for the subfield you're interested in or just be a better fit for you.

[kangaroomr]

1 hour ago, bmeupscotty said:

Also see this post re: safety schools

For the record, this person was rejected from everywhere they applied last year and was responding to someone who told them they'd be rejected everywhere again. They've gotten at least one acceptance and an additional interview this year.

There's not anything wrong with applying to fewer programs if you're sure those are the ones with research and professors and resources that you want to work with. On the other hand, don't restrict yourself to only "top" schools if there are others that are doing what you want to do, as those might actually be better for the subfield you're interested in or just be a better fit for you.

Oh hey that's me. Like you, I basically put together too few applications. It was also done last minute when I first applied because I was going back and forth on whether I wanted to pursue a PhD due to all the negative aspects of academia. Ultimately I decided the opportunities a PhD can provide is what I wanted.

To add to that, one of my mentors made a point that even if you're qualified, part of graduate admissions is random. Your essay might have been worded in a way that irked someone on the admissions committee. There might be 20 other people who applied the same year you did and had waay more research experience/paper authorships than you did. Who knows.

Research experience counts more because at the end of the day that's what a PhD is about. It's about doing research and the PhD is the pathway to get there. Think of it as a means to an end. There is more to life than school and many other life/career trajectories you can't possibly predict. That's my philosophy at least. If you get a research  job and get into the nitty gritty of it you may realize you don't want to do that for the rest of your life...or you might realize you really want to. Then you can apply again the next year!

Edited March 3, 2018 by kangaroomr