2019 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[StemCellFan]

On 2/3/2019 at 6:26 PM, MLC2019 said:

Is it customary that you send thank-you emails to all of your interviewers? Or just those whose work you were particularly interested in, etc.?

I sent thank you emails to the administrator, director, and faculty I interviewed with at my top choice program.  I wanted the director to know that this was the program I really wanted to go to, and he said during the interview weekend to let him know if this was your top choice (which I also included in my thank you email).

I did get into all the places I interviewed at, so I think it's a nice gesture but I wouldn't say it's necessary.

[MLC2019]

Has anyone heard back from Tetrad post-interview?

[SoCalNoob]

On 2/3/2019 at 6:26 PM, MLC2019 said:

Is it customary that you send thank-you emails to all of your interviewers? Or just those whose work you were particularly interested in, etc.?

I think it's a good idea, especially if you mention something you spoke about during your interview. It helps them remember you better, and who knows, someone may give you insight on how the interview went. I emailed all the professors I interviewed with and 3/4 wrote back with positive things to say, so it doesn't hurt. Plus it's just courteous 

[Yirannnn]

Well, sent email last week to UAB and got replied that they are still reviewing and tried to send out decisions by the end of this week.

And got rejection last night!

And last day I lost my wallet since I am not feeling well in the long- time waiting recently

I feel like the "decisions" they mean are all rejection.

Correct?

[MLC2019]

Has anyone heard back from Tetrad post-interview?

[Mighty-chondrias]

Has anyone received their final decision from Weill Cornell (BCMB and/or PBSB program)? 

[alltheclusters]

1 hour ago, Maria F said:

Has anyone received their final decision from Weill Cornell (BCMB and/or PBSB program)? 

I heard from PBSB last Thursday (the email came at midnight, oddly enough). If you haven't heard from them at all, I think Matt Cipriano did say you should email their office and they'll let you know?

[Mahsaa]

Has anyone heard back from UC Riverside GGB program?

[luckyrusty]

16 hours ago, MLC2019 said:

Has anyone heard back from Tetrad post-interview?

I just received an email this morning with an acceptance letter attached in it for Tetrad.

[MLC2019]

1 hour ago, luckyrusty said:

I just received an email this morning with an acceptance letter attached in it for Tetrad.

Same here! Congratulations! I was worried because I was told we'd hear back Tuesday afternoon.

[Manilo]

19 hours ago, Maria F said:

Has anyone received their final decision from Weill Cornell (BCMB and/or PBSB program)? 

Today. Got rejected on the BCMB program.

[failing_upward]

I'm positive I was rejected all around this year. I put in 4 applications. Vanderbilt, UC-Denver, WashU, and Baylor. I was outright rejected by WashU, and Baylor sent me from Micro(1st choice) to Developmental. Email to UC-Denver was replied to with "yes we sent out our invites, but you're pretty awesome so welcome to the hold list!" Email to Vandy was just responded to with we're still reviewing applications. That was a couple weeks ago. I've given up hope.

I graduate in May, and now I'm assessing how to be more badass next year. Hoping my honors thesis project goes awesome so I can maybe present a poster at some national events (SACNAS or ASM, etc) and I'll be doing a verbal presentation of the project at least twice guaranteed. I've already apllied for a PREP program and am looking into jobs as well. My GPA is 3.5 and I think that's the one that I graduate with, so that is set. I did mediocre on the GRE, so I am retaking that. I'm also rewriting all my essays/statements/papers with more "pop," and I'm definitely apllying to way more schools. I'm also thinking about also taking a couple of the subject based GRE or the MCAT to make up for the ok GPA. I don't know what else to do... Any suggestions? 

[DevoLevo]

On 2/8/2019 at 10:36 AM, failing_upward said:

I'm positive I was rejected all around this year. I put in 4 applications. Vanderbilt, UC-Denver, WashU, and Baylor. I was outright rejected by WashU, and Baylor sent me from Micro(1st choice) to Developmental. Email to UC-Denver was replied to with "yes we sent out our invites, but you're pretty awesome so welcome to the hold list!" Email to Vandy was just responded to with we're still reviewing applications. That was a couple weeks ago. I've given up hope.

I graduate in May, and now I'm assessing how to be more badass next year. Hoping my honors thesis project goes awesome so I can maybe present a poster at some national events (SACNAS or ASM, etc) and I'll be doing a verbal presentation of the project at least twice guaranteed. I've already apllied for a PREP program and am looking into jobs as well. My GPA is 3.5 and I think that's the one that I graduate with, so that is set. I did mediocre on the GRE, so I am retaking that. I'm also rewriting all my essays/statements/papers with more "pop," and I'm definitely apllying to way more schools. I'm also thinking about also taking a couple of the subject based GRE or the MCAT to make up for the ok GPA. I don't know what else to do... Any suggestions? 

A 3.5 GPA is perfectly fine to get you interviews at good schools (thats what I came out of undergrad with). In the next year or two before you are re-applying, I would focus on getting good research experience that fits with your long-term goals (and making sure your PI will be a solid letter of rec to add to your next apps) and refining your personal statements. Honestly so many schools are doing away with GRE requirements altogether that taking subject GREs or MCATs seems like unnecessary overkill. The conference attendance sounds like a great idea.

[Imalthica]

Hey, if anyone gets accepted to Tulane EEB for a PhD, but doesn't want the spot, please let them know! I was waitlisted, but it's my first choice!

Also, does anyone know when UT Austin EEB is going to say anything? It's been dark for a while now...

[LizardLove]

UT Austin EEB did interviews at the end of last week.  I have a friend who attended.

[Imalthica]

2 hours ago, LizardLove said:

UT Austin EEB did interviews at the end of last week.  I have a friend who attended.

Ah, I see. Well, I guess I'll see then. Not super hopeful for that one anymore anyway, since the POI was kinda dismissive when we skyped, despite our aligning interests. Thanks!

[lanaabear]

Just got an acceptance email from Emory IMP program! Congrats to anyone else who interviewed w/ IMP/with another Emory GDBBS program and received an acceptance!

[k1239]

Did any international applicants get acceptance letters from UMass Med Worcester? 

[lamivudine]

2 hours ago, k1239 said:

Did any international applicants get acceptance letters from UMass Med Worcester? 

I'm a Canadian student, and I was accepted about three weeks ago after attending their interview weekend Jan 8-10, but I think it might depend whether you were interviewed in person or over skype? The Director of Admissions told us they'll send out acceptances anytime from late January to April during the weekend.

[Hamsterball]

Has anyone heard back from Harvard BPH program after the interview? I’m anxiously waiting for their calls. Honestly don’t think I will make it but I would love to know if they have already sent out offers.  

[StemCellFan]

On 2/8/2019 at 10:36 AM, failing_upward said:

I'm positive I was rejected all around this year. I put in 4 applications. Vanderbilt, UC-Denver, Wash U-STL, and Baylor. I was outright rejected by Wash U, and Baylor sent me from Micro(1st choice) to Developmental. Email to UC-Denver was replied to with "yes we sent out our invites, but you're pretty awesome so welcome to the hold list!" Email to Vandy was just responded to with we're still reviewing applications. That was a couple weeks ago. I've given up hope.

I graduate in May, and now I'm assessing how to be more badass next year. Hoping my honors thesis project goes awesome so I can maybe present a poster at some national events (SACNAS or ASM, etc) and I'll be doing a verbal presentation of the project at least twice guaranteed. I've already apllied for a PREP program and am looking into jobs as well. My GPA is 3.5 and I think that's the one that I graduate with, so that is set. I did mediocre on the GRE, so I am retaking that. I'm also rewriting all my essays/statements/papers with more "pop," and I'm definitely apllying to way more schools. I'm also thinking about also taking a couple of the subject based GRE or the MCAT to make up for the ok GPA. I don't know what else to do... Any suggestions? 

I would not focus on the GPA or the GRE (your GPA is perfectly fine here).  I doubt either of those two factors affecting your outcome this cycle.  I would focus on getting more research experience, getting more or better letters of recommendation, and revising your personal or research statements.  Unless you are interested in a niche area of research or have financial constraints, I would apply to more programs next cycle or widen your net (though the range of choices you have seems ok here).

Edited February 11, 2019 by StemCellFan

[Hamsterball]

On 2/8/2019 at 8:36 AM, failing_upward said:

I'm positive I was rejected all around this year. I put in 4 applications. Vanderbilt, UC-Denver, Wash U-STL, and Baylor. I was outright rejected by Wash U, and Baylor sent me from Micro(1st choice) to Developmental. Email to UC-Denver was replied to with "yes we sent out our invites, but you're pretty awesome so welcome to the hold list!" Email to Vandy was just responded to with we're still reviewing applications. That was a couple weeks ago. I've given up hope.

I graduate in May, and now I'm assessing how to be more badass next year. Hoping my honors thesis project goes awesome so I can maybe present a poster at some national events (SACNAS or ASM, etc) and I'll be doing a verbal presentation of the project at least twice guaranteed. I've already apllied for a PREP program and am looking into jobs as well. My GPA is 3.5 and I think that's the one that I graduate with, so that is set. I did mediocre on the GRE, so I am retaking that. I'm also rewriting all my essays/statements/papers with more "pop," and I'm definitely apllying to way more schools. I'm also thinking about also taking a couple of the subject based GRE or the MCAT to make up for the ok GPA. I don't know what else to do... Any suggestions? 

I agree with the several posts above. And definitely widen your choices. This year, I have applied to 11 programs and got interviews from 5. Surprisingly, I did not get interviews from my back up choices! So it’s really important to apply to different schools as we don’t know exactly how does the selection process go. I would also recommend you to apply for more umbrella programs instead of a specific track since umbrella programs tend to interview and accept more people. Most programs allow you to transfer from track to track.

Revise and ask a lot of people to revise your statement of purpose. I edited mine for at least 20 times before I felt like it’s a good one. 

As for LORs, are they strong letters? If not, that’s one thing you may want to focus on improving too. Most admission committees care about LORs the most. It makes sense because professors would rather trust and rely on things written by other professors. For me, I was in a relatively big lab and didn’t really get to talk to my PI that often. So when I had to present on lab meetings, I treated those like a thesis defense because I knew my PI’s impression was going to rely heavily on my presentation peformance. 

Edited February 11, 2019 by Hamsterball

[daauni]

On 2/8/2019 at 9:36 AM, failing_upward said:

I'm positive I was rejected all around this year. I put in 4 applications. Vanderbilt, UC-Denver, Wash U-STL, and Baylor. I was outright rejected by Wash U, and Baylor sent me from Micro(1st choice) to Developmental. Email to UC-Denver was replied to with "yes we sent out our invites, but you're pretty awesome so welcome to the hold list!" Email to Vandy was just responded to with we're still reviewing applications. That was a couple weeks ago. I've given up hope.

I graduate in May, and now I'm assessing how to be more badass next year. Hoping my honors thesis project goes awesome so I can maybe present a poster at some national events (SACNAS or ASM, etc) and I'll be doing a verbal presentation of the project at least twice guaranteed. I've already apllied for a PREP program and am looking into jobs as well. My GPA is 3.5 and I think that's the one that I graduate with, so that is set. I did mediocre on the GRE, so I am retaking that. I'm also rewriting all my essays/statements/papers with more "pop," and I'm definitely apllying to way more schools. I'm also thinking about also taking a couple of the subject based GRE or the MCAT to make up for the ok GPA. I don't know what else to do... Any suggestions? 

So I applied to 7 schools last year (1 interview) and was rejected by all of them. After an extra year in research, I retook the GRE, rewrote my statement, and switched up some of my LORs. This year, I applied to more schools and have 7 interviews. Things are looking much better.

As others have mentioned, I wouldn't waste your time or money on taking the GRE again. My scores didn't drastically improve and are pretty average, and over half of my schools I applied to this year didn't even need it.

I don't know if a PREP program is the best option. Unless you feel you need to improve your undergraduate record in biology/biomedical sciences, I would just apply for lab positions, preferably in academia (quicker in publishing than industry). I think your best option is to stay at your current lab or look at other labs in your university, leaving other institutions or industry as a last resort. Just work your ass off for 6 months and by the app deadlines next fall you could have at least one manuscript in the works if you're in the right lab. One manuscript, even if it's still in writing, can be HUGE for your apps.

Lastly, I agree with @Hamsterball about applying to umbrella programs; they are less competitive and good for people that are unsure about what specialization to go into. If you do have an idea about a track in an umbrella program, mention it in your statement and it shows initiative and focus.

[bioking122]

Anyone have any info on post-interview acceptance rates for Yale BBS tracks? I've heard anything from 40-80% lol

[MA737373]

Hi, I'm pretty sure they're mostly all rejections at this point buuuutttttt anyone not hear from Brown bbs, Brandeis MCB, or Dartmouth PEMM yet?

I got interviews at Case Western, CU Denver, University of Rochester, and UAB Birm. Accepted just to Case so far!

Let me know if anyone is in the same boat I'm not hopeful but I need closure ughhh