2020 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[TerpsFan0130]

Undergrad Institution: University of Maryland, College Park

Major: Microbiology
Minor: Global Poverty
GPA in Major: 3.0
Overall GPA: 3.11
Type of Student: Male, Minority, 1st generation American, 1st generation to pursue degree beyond Bachelor's

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 158, 67%
V: 158, 80%
W: 5.5, 98%

Research Experience: 

• 3 Month summer internship at Vanderbilt University studying cancer biology, 2 conferences w/ 1st author poster presentations
• 3 Month summer internship at UC Berkeley studying molecular genetics, 2 conferences w/ 1st author oral presentations
• 3 semesters undergraduate research in a bioengineering lab focused on biomedical science, 3 conferences w/ first author poster presentations, 2nd author publication
• 2 years full time post bacc research as a research assistant/lab manager in academia studying immunology. One conference attended w/ 1st author poster, one 2nd author publication, one 3rd author publication, anticipating two 1st author publications and another mid author publication between now and fall 2020. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

• 3 publications (two 2nd author, one 3rd), anticipating 2 more 1st author, and one more mid author pub
• Dean's list 2 semesters
• 4 top presentation awards from research conferences
• small undergraduate scholarships

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

~4 years part time work as a Pharmacy technician

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

- I have A LOT of volunteer experience, I know it is not the most important, but I have 300+ hours of community service focused on improving health disparities. Tried to fit it into my SOP w/ a focus on combating disparities through biomedical research. 

Special Bonus Points: 

• - 3 very strong letters of rec, one from current PI, one from current collaborator, and one from undergraduate mentor
• - 1 strong letter of rec from undergraduate PI

Applying to Where:

ALL PhD PROGRAMS IN BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE FOCUSED ON MICROBIOLOGY/IMMUNOLOGY

• Northwestern -  Feinberg
• NYU -  Sackler
• UPenn
• University of Maryland, Baltimore SOM
• Hopkins
• George Washington
• Emory
• University of Miami
• Baylor College of Medicine
• UC San Diego
• UC Irvine
• UCLA
• USC (California)
• UCSF
• Stanford
• Maybe: University of Pittsburgh

I know I have a low UG GPA, but I'm hoping that my research experience, LORs, and SOP help combat this. In SOP I go into detail focusing on the financial and cultural hardships I faced growing up, and how this affected my undergraduate experience. I applied to a lot of schools which I know are a reach due to my low GPA, but I tried to add some schools that are hopefully attainable. I would love to know what anyone thinks about my chances of being accepted to a PhD program given these credentials. Thanks!

Edited December 3, 2019 by TerpsFan0130

[mitochondria_1]

Undergrad Institution: Small liberal arts school
Major(s): Biology
Minor(s):N/A
GPA in Major: 3.80
Overall GPA: 3.88
Type of Student: Domestic, Afro-Latina

GRE Scores (revised/old version): N/A



TOEFL Total: N/A

Research Experience: 
1 year of undergraduate behavioral research experience (presented my data at 1 small conference)

1 year of undergraduate cancer research experience at Weill Cornell

1 summer research experience at Johns Hopkins (presented my data at 2 national conferences)

1 summer research experience at NYU

1 year of research as an NIH PREP scholar (presented data at 2 national conferences and was awarded as outstanding presentations both times)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Presidential List or Dean's List during my four years in college, graduated with honors in my department, received travel awards to present my findings at national conferences and also to visit graduate schools, submitted grant application (2020 NSF GRFP) - waiting for their decision

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: tutored science and math for a year to undergraduate students

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 

Special Bonus Points: I took 1 graduate course as a PREP scholar and I am taking two more before graduate school 2020 starts. 

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: strong letters of recommendation from my previous and current PI's, involved in many leadership programs, mentor high school and college students interested in science

Applying to Where:

Weill Cornell

Rockefeller

Gerstner 

NYU Sackler

Columbia University

Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Johns Hopkins

Brown University

UChicago

Tufts Sackler

Harvard

Rutgers

UMichigan

UVirginia

UPenn

CUNY

[ion_exchanger]

@TerpsFan0130 I think you still have a good shot regardless of your GPA. Sure, some programs weed out people using an initial numbers screen, but your GRE scores are strong, and your research experience is also strong. Not every program looks at grades as a measure of what will make a great student. Are you not interested in applying to College Park? IIRC, you will pass their initial numbers screen. 

[VirtualCell]

Three days after submitting and I've already checked GradCafe a good bit ?. Oh well, here's my post! 

Undergrad Institution: Northeastern University, Boston, MA
Major(s): Biology (BS) Bioinformatics (MS)
GPA in Major: 4.0
Overall GPA: 3.95 UG / 4.0 G
Type of Student: Domestic, white hispanic male. 

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 169
V: 167
W: 5
B: N/A

Research Experience: Research around Boston over the last 5 years or so. No real papers: I listed an 2nd author on chemxriv, a nth author in peer review, and a first author "in preparation to submit December 2019". 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: A bunch of research stuff from the school, but nothing from the outside. 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I TA a lot and have done some curriculum development. I really like teaching.

Special Bonus Points: One of my letters is from my current PI, who is a decently big deal (chaired professor with H-index 100+). Other 2 letters are from more junior faculty that I've worked with.

Applying to Where:

Harvard BBS (Biological Sciences)

Harvard BIG (Bioinformatics)

Harvard SSQB (Systems Biology)

MIT Biology

MIT CSB (Systems Biology)

MIT Biological Engineering

 

I think I have a decent profile, but obviously shooting for the stars this cycle (so not counting on getting in, but I don't think it's completely hopeless). I'll try to remember to update when the time comes!  

Edited December 4, 2019 by VirtualCell

[Samiraaaaf]

.

Edited December 5, 2019 by Samiraaaaf

[mitochondria_1]

On 12/3/2019 at 3:18 PM, TerpsFan0130 said:

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 158, 67%
V: 158, 80%
W: 5.5, 98%

Research Experience: 

• 3 Month summer internship at Vanderbilt University studying cancer biology, 2 conferences w/ 1st author poster presentations
• 3 Month summer internship at UC Berkeley studying molecular genetics, 2 conferences w/ 1st author oral presentations
• 3 semesters undergraduate research in a bioengineering lab focused on biomedical science, 3 conferences w/ first author poster presentations, 2nd author publication
• 2 years full time post bacc research as a research assistant/lab manager in academia studying immunology. One conference attended w/ 1st author poster, one 2nd author publication, one 3rd author publication, anticipating two 1st author publications and another mid author publication between now and fall 2020. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

• 3 publications (two 2nd author, one 3rd), anticipating 2 more 1st author, and one more mid author pub
• Dean's list 2 semesters
• 4 top presentation awards from research conferences
• small undergraduate scholarships

@TerpsFan0130 GPA is only a portion of what they look at. You have a very strong research experience and all the publications and presentation awards are a plus to your application. I think you have a big chance on getting into grad school.

 

[Samiraaaaf]

Undergrad Institution: University of Guelph, Ontario Canada

Major: Psychology
Minor: Neuroscience
GPA in Major: 3.0 

GPA in Minor: 3.7

Type of Student: Female, 1st gen Canadian, Middle-Eastern/White

GRE Scores: N/A (not submitting/applying to schools that dont require it)

Research Experience: 

• 1 academic year as a full time undergraduate researcher at Rice University in the bioengineering department (working 40+ hours a week)
• 1.5 years as a full time research technician at Rice University in the bioengineering department (working 60+ hours a week)
• 2, 1st author posters - 1 at Rice Smalley Curl Summer Colloquium, and 1 at the Drug Delivery Systems Symposium (hosted by Bob Langer- Really hoping this adds even 1 bonus point to my application)
• 2, 2nd author posters- both at Rice as part of the American Heart Association 
• I have 2 of my own first author projects that are moving quickly towards manuscript writing

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

• Honours degree 
• 1 manuscript in progress- 2nd author, submitting to Nature Medicine

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

Have mentored 4 undergraduate students during my time as an undergrad/research tech, 2 presented posters 

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 

Transitioned from a psych degree into full blown bioengineering research and have been thriving! On the day to day, I perform animal surgeries, do ELISAs, culture cells, make hydrogel capsules, conduct echocardiograms, and use IVIS to image bioluminescent markers in vivo. (hopefully the schools I've applied to notice that I was able to make this transition quite smoothly and am doing pretty well!)
 

Special Bonus Points: 

• - 4 very (I would hope) strong letters of rec, one from current PI, one from current collaborator, one from undergraduate PI, and one from a Post doctoral fellow in the lab

Applying to Where: ( tried to cast a wide net but looking back I wish I had applied to a couple other "backup schools"

- NYU Sackler- Biomedical Science

_ UCSF- Bioscience

- UCSB- Bioscience 

- Berkeley- Neuroscience

- UCLA- Biomedical science (molecular pharmacology)

- Rice University- Bioscience

- Baylor College of Medicine- Biomedical Science

- MD Anderson/UT Health- Biomedical Science

- U Chicago- Biomedical Science

- U Washington - Biology

If anyone has any thoughts on my profile Id really like to hear them! Im very very stressed about my low GPA and also the fact that I'm an international applicant. I thought that maybe research experience would help them look past that, but after reading everyone else's stats, I'm right back to being nervous (seems like everyone has some kind of research background). My first pick is NYU since I'll be close to home but im thinking its not very likely I'll get accepted.  

Any insight would be appreciated! 

Thank you!

 

Edited December 5, 2019 by Samiraaaaf

[Samiraaaaf]

On 12/3/2019 at 2:18 PM, TerpsFan0130 said:

Undergrad Institution: University of Maryland, College Park

Major: Microbiology
Minor: Global Poverty
GPA in Major: 3.0
Overall GPA: 3.11
Type of Student: Male, Minority, 1st generation American, 1st generation to pursue degree beyond Bachelor's

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 158, 67%
V: 158, 80%
W: 5.5, 98%

Research Experience: 

• 3 Month summer internship at Vanderbilt University studying cancer biology, 2 conferences w/ 1st author poster presentations
• 3 Month summer internship at UC Berkeley studying molecular genetics, 2 conferences w/ 1st author oral presentations
• 3 semesters undergraduate research in a bioengineering lab focused on biomedical science, 3 conferences w/ first author poster presentations, 2nd author publication
• 2 years full time post bacc research as a research assistant/lab manager in academia studying immunology. One conference attended w/ 1st author poster, one 2nd author publication, one 3rd author publication, anticipating two 1st author publications and another mid author publication between now and fall 2020. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

• 3 publications (two 2nd author, one 3rd), anticipating 2 more 1st author, and one more mid author pub
• Dean's list 2 semesters
• 4 top presentation awards from research conferences
• small undergraduate scholarships

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

~4 years part time work as a Pharmacy technician

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

- I have A LOT of volunteer experience, I know it is not the most important, but I have 300+ hours of community service focused on improving health disparities. Tried to fit it into my SOP w/ a focus on combating disparities through biomedical research. 

Special Bonus Points: 

• - 3 very strong letters of rec, one from current PI, one from current collaborator, and one from undergraduate mentor
• - 1 strong letter of rec from undergraduate PI

Applying to Where:

ALL PhD PROGRAMS IN BIOMEDICAL SCIENCE FOCUSED ON MICROBIOLOGY/IMMUNOLOGY

• Northwestern -  Feinberg
• NYU -  Sackler
• UPenn
• University of Maryland, Baltimore SOM
• Hopkins
• George Washington
• Emory
• University of Miami
• Baylor College of Medicine
• UC San Diego
• UC Irvine
• UCLA
• USC (California)
• UCSF
• Stanford
• Maybe: University of Pittsburgh

I know I have a low UG GPA, but I'm hoping that my research experience, LORs, and SOP help combat this. In SOP I go into detail focusing on the financial and cultural hardships I faced growing up, and how this affected my undergraduate experience. I applied to a lot of schools which I know are a reach due to my low GPA, but I tried to add some schools that are hopefully attainable. I would love to know what anyone thinks about my chances of being accepted to a PhD program given these credentials. Thanks!

I cannot even imagine a situation where you don't get in. And if you don't, then I have no hope for myself!!

Good luck!!

[mitochondria_1]

7 minutes ago, Samiraaaaf said:

Research Experience: 

• 1 academic year as a full time undergraduate researcher at Rice University in the bioengineering department (working 40+ hours a week)
• 1.5 years as a full time research technician at Rice University in the bioengineering department (working 60+ hours a week)
• 2, 1st author posters - 1 at Rice Smalley Curl Summer Colloquium, and 1 at the Drug Delivery Systems Symposium (hosted by Bob Langer- Really hoping this adds even 1 bonus point to my application)
• 2, 2nd author posters- both at Rice as part of the American Heart Association 
• I have 2 of my own first author projects that are moving quickly towards manuscript writing

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

• Honours degree 
• 1 manuscript in progress- 2nd author, submitting to Nature Medicine

@Samiraaaaf I think you have strong letters of rec that will let them know about your commitment to research. Also, all your research experiences, your work in progress manuscript, your poster presentations, and your commitment to give back to the community by mentoring undergraduate students make you a strong candidate for grad school. GPA is only a portion of the application.

 

 

[yy222]

Undergrad Institution: University of Liverpool, UK
Major(s): Mathematics,Honours degree 
Minor(s): none
GPA in Major: 3.7
Overall GPA: 3.7 (WES)

MS Yeshiva University, Economy

Overall GPA: 3.96

MS Duke University, Biostatistics

Overall GPA: 3.5

Type of Student: international, asian
GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 155
V: 167
W: 3.5
B:


Research Experience: 2.5 years experience, Frist 1 year as TA and RA in Yeshiva University to do research in game theory. Then another 1.5 years in Duke with a Biostatistics faculty, have one paper preprinted (first author) and I think I will get very stong letter from him, also letter come from a famous professor (it should be a stong letter? hope so)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: National Encouragement Award, Academic Achievement Award, Dean List


Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: 1 1st author preprinted, 3 stong referecne letter 

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:  low GPA in Duke

Applying to Where:

University	program
brown university	computational biology
brown university	biostats
NYU	biostats
Dartmouth	Quantitative Biomedical Sciences
university of pittsburgh	Computational Biology
PSU	biostats
Duke	CBB
Mcgill	biostats
university of miami	biostats

 

I do not want to make any back-options as PhD will take 4-5 years. Hence, I just want to go to a program that I am interested in. 

Edited December 5, 2019 by yy222

[Minhao]

Undergrad Institution: top 5 university in China (but it may equals to “an unknown university”for  any committee 

Major: Biological Science 

Overall GPA: 3.72/4.00

Type of Student: International,female

GRE Scores: yeah I know my V and W are really low

Q: 168
V: 152
W: 3.5

TOEFL Total: 104

Research Experience:  in 3 different institutes of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)

1 year (an innovative project)about paleontology 

1 semester project on Arabidopsis thaliana genotype identification and map-based cloning 

More than 1 year in a population genetics lab,now working on my thesis about EBV evolution 

No publication?

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

University third prize scholarship

Special Bonus Points: 

Strong recommendations from 3 PI (2 I’ve worked with,1 academic advisor)(although I heard they don’t even take a look at Chinese recommenders’letters now)

Connection with an assistant professor in UPenn (email & Skype)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Half year exchange in University of Bristol 

Deputy head of university press corps 

Applying to Where:

Stanford biology

Princeton EEB

Rockefeller

UPenn biology

UC Davis Animal Behavior

Vanderbilt

UIUC

UMN twin city EEB

IU Bloomington EEB

UMD College Park EEB

SUNY Stony Brook

——-

Really want to join the AP‘s lab (focus on neuro & evolution)in UPenn,but since the Bio PhD program requires rotation,I don’t think the connection could help much... besides I am sure she has several other applicants in her pool and I am definitely not her top choice : ) 

Edited December 5, 2019 by Minhao

[oceanofowl]

12 hours ago, Minhao said:

Undergrad Institution: top 5 university in China (but it may equals to “an unknown university”for  any committee 

Major: Biological Science 

Overall GPA: 3.72/4.00

Type of Student: International,female

GRE Scores: yeah I know my V and W are really low

Q: 168
V: 152
W: 3.5

TOEFL Total: 104

Research Experience:  in 3 different institutes of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS)

1 year (an innovative project)about paleontology 

1 semester project on Arabidopsis thaliana genotype identification and map-based cloning 

More than 1 year in a population genetics lab,now working on my thesis about EBV evolution 

No publication?

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

University third prize scholarship

Special Bonus Points: 

Strong recommendations from 3 PI (2 I’ve worked with,1 academic advisor)(although I heard they don’t even take a look at Chinese recommenders’letters now)

Connection with an assistant professor in UPenn (email & Skype)

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter:

Half year exchange in University of Bristol 

Deputy head of university press corps 

Applying to Where:

Stanford biology

Princeton EEB

Rockefeller

UPenn biology

UC Davis Animal Behavior

Vanderbilt

UIUC

UMN twin city EEB

IU Bloomington EEB

UMD College Park EEB

SUNY Stony Brook

——-

Really want to join the AP‘s lab (focus on neuro & evolution)in UPenn,but since the Bio PhD program requires rotation,I don’t think the connection could help much... besides I am sure she has several other applicants in her pool and I am definitely not her top choice : ) 

I applied to quite similar programs as your did...I don't think top 5 in China are unknown ... Your research is strong so I guess you are ok.

[reprobio_12]

Just got my first interview invitation today from MSU! Not my top choice but still really relieved to have an interview somewhere. Good luck everyone.

[Genom3]

49 minutes ago, reprobio_12 said:

Just got my first interview invitation today from MSU! Not my top choice but still really relieved to have an interview somewhere. Good luck everyone.

Aaaand it starts !

[Samiraaaaf]

When was their application deadline? Seems super early!

Congrats, and good luck

Edited December 6, 2019 by Samiraaaaf

[Nolftop]

2 hours ago, reprobio_12 said:

Just got my first interview invitation today from MSU! Not my top choice but still really relieved to have an interview somewhere. Good luck everyone.

That's interesting. May you tell something about your GPA and GRE scores, res experience and publications? 

14 minutes ago, Samiraaaaf said:

When was their application deadline? Seems super early!

Congrats, and good luck

As in most schools, it's December 1st. I've seen that many people already got an interview invitation. I don't quite understand the reasons of such quick responses.  What is it? Incredible app? Small pool of applicants? Or AI evaluates our profiles now? 

[historyofsloths]

Sorry, I'm a dumbass and clicked on the wrong subgroup! Carry on!

Edited December 6, 2019 by historyofsloths
I'm a dumbass

[Minhao]

16 hours ago, oceanofowl said:

I applied to quite similar programs as your did...I don't think top 5 in China are unknown ... Your research is strong so I guess you are ok.

wow! ?Thanks and wish us both good luck ? (a short explanation about why I said it's unknown: Chinese Academy of Sciences started to recruit undergraduate students (from Univ of CAS) since 2014, so it's quite new for everyone, and even most Chinese still think they only have graduate students ┑(￣Д ￣)┍)

[DRMF]

4 hours ago, Minhao said:

wow! ?Thanks and wish us both good luck ? (a short explanation about why I said it's unknown: Chinese Academy of Sciences started to recruit undergraduate students (from Univ of CAS) since 2014, so it's quite new for everyone, and even most Chinese still think they only have graduate students ┑(￣Д ￣)┍)

Whoa I for one didn't know CAS has undergrads now.

I was told by my undergrad PI that certain schools/programs (including Stanford? unsure) had outright stopped considering applicants from China coming straight from Chinese universities. Tbh I thought that was just hearsay and I'm sure there're always exceptions, though it may be worthwhile to look at where your upperclassmen got into / which programs list their recent admits as having undergrad degrees from China. (Your exchange experience at Bristol might also take you out of that category.)

Best of luck!

[reprobio_12]

15 hours ago, Samiraaaaf said:

When was their application deadline? Seems super early!

Congrats, and good luck

December 1st, although I applied a few days earlier, Nov. 24 I think.

15 hours ago, Nolftop said:

That's interesting. May you tell something about your GPA and GRE scores, res experience and publications? 

As in most schools, it's December 1st. I've seen that many people already got an interview invitation. I don't quite understand the reasons of such quick responses.  What is it? Incredible app? Small pool of applicants? Or AI evaluates our profiles now? 

GPA 3.68 top 10 liberal arts school

no GRE scores as none of my programs required it

research experience: 2 summer REUs, research intensive study abroad program, currently on my first year as an NIH postbac. 

I've currently got one middle author pub and several presentations at national conferences, I would also guess that the department knows my current PI. 

Good luck to everyone! I'm still waiting on all my other schools and really crossing my fingers on UNC BBSP which is definitely my top pick.

[DRMF]

15 hours ago, Nolftop said:

That's interesting. May you tell something about your GPA and GRE scores, res experience and publications? 

As in most schools, it's December 1st. I've seen that many people already got an interview invitation. I don't quite understand the reasons of such quick responses.  What is it? Incredible app? Small pool of applicants? Or AI evaluates our profiles now? 

Very quick interview invites are usually just because of incredible apps that were turned in a few days early. I know someone in my program who was directly admitted to another (less competitive) school even *before* interviews (she was still invited to interviews, but more of a campus visit and "let me convince you to come here" kind of thing).

Yes most programs are very selective but when they see someone they really like, they are also willing to do a lot to win you over lol.

[oceanofowl]

7 hours ago, Minhao said:

wow! ?Thanks and wish us both good luck ? (a short explanation about why I said it's unknown: Chinese Academy of Sciences started to recruit undergraduate students (from Univ of CAS) since 2014, so it's quite new for everyone, and even most Chinese still think they only have graduate students ┑(￣Д ￣)┍)

That's cool! I think your college is strong in research too so it can be an advantage. And LOR from Chinese professors are not necessarily neglected...I think it's the letters that are written by students themselves are neglected... People in charge of admission can certainly distinguish. 

Edited December 6, 2019 by oceanofowl

[rosebutter]

20 hours ago, reprobio_12 said:

December 1st, although I applied a few days earlier, Nov. 24 I think.

GPA 3.68 top 10 liberal arts school

no GRE scores as none of my programs required it

research experience: 2 summer REUs, research intensive study abroad program, currently on my first year as an NIH postbac. 

I've currently got one middle author pub and several presentations at national conferences, I would also guess that the department knows my current PI. 

Good luck to everyone! I'm still waiting on all my other schools and really crossing my fingers on UNC BBSP which is definitely my top pick.

What program did you apply to at MSU? I applied to Plant Bio and had what I thought was a good chat with a PI via Skype but I haven’t heard anything.

[Katiebird]

I saw some interview emails were sent out for UNC's BBSP this week, can any recipients confirm if they submitted before the priority deadline?

[reprobio_12]

5 hours ago, rosebutter said:

What program did you apply to at MSU? I applied to Plant Bio and had what I thought was a good chat with a PI via Skype but I haven’t heard anything.

I applied to the umbrella BioMolecular program yours may be totally different and on a different timeline. Don't worry I think it's still super early.

 

4 hours ago, Katiebird said:

I saw some interview emails were sent out for UNC's BBSP this week, can any recipients confirm if they submitted before the priority deadline?

I just got a call yesterday afternoon from BBSP inviting me to interview. I applied a few days before the priority deadline and my top program of interest was toxicology.