Chemistry PhD Programs with a High Acceptance Rate for a Person with Around a 3.2 GPA and 3.5 Chemistry GPA with 1 Month Research Experience

[chaospaladin]

What happened to organic chemistry? It seems like you swapped areas of interest, any particular reason?

Organic Chemistry is still an interest for me. It is just that Physical Chemistry is a little bit higher on my list than Organic Chemistry. I vaguely remember me saying this at the first 4 posts or so.

EDIT: Looking back, I originally said I was interested in inorganic chemistry, but then are these two somewhat similar? I know my TA is trying to be a physical chemist but he works for a PI who is an inorganic chemist.

Edited March 1, 2011 by chaospaladin

[Eigen]

Organic Chemistry is still an interest for me. It is just that Physical Chemistry is a little bit higher on my list than Organic Chemistry. I vaguely remember me saying this at the first 4 posts or so.

EDIT: Looking back, I originally said I was interested in inorganic chemistry, but then are these two somewhat similar? I know my TA is trying to be a physical chemist but he works for a PI who is an inorganic chemist.

Every area has overlaps with other areas... But you're either a physical chemist, an inorganic chemist, or an organic chemist, by and large.

I've said this before, and I'll say it again: You really need to decide what you want to do before you apply to graduate school. With a low GPA and very little research experience, your only real hope is convincing someone that you're an excellent fit for their group and that it's what you really want to do.

Flopping back and forth between 3! of the cannonical areas of chemistry will not do that. You should be able to target an exact subarea that interests you before you apply, in your situation, imo.

[chaospaladin]

Every area has overlaps with other areas... But you're either a physical chemist, an inorganic chemist, or an organic chemist, by and large.

I've said this before, and I'll say it again: You really need to decide what you want to do before you apply to graduate school. With a low GPA and very little research experience, your only real hope is convincing someone that you're an excellent fit for their group and that it's what you really want to do.

Flopping back and forth between 3! of the cannonical areas of chemistry will not do that. You should be able to target an exact subarea that interests you before you apply, in your situation, imo.

Regarding convincing the PhD Chemistry Graduate School Admissions Committee of each program I apply to on me being a very excellent fit for a particular Physical Chemistry professor's research group, should I start doing this by emailing Physical Chemistry professors at said universities asking them detailed questions on their research? Some professors are so busy that they don't reply to all of their email messages. Should I give them phone calls instead? Calling a professor to ask them about their research seems awkward though. I'm already starting an email conversation with a professor with 6 messages sent back and forth already so is this considered a good start?

Should I just continue emailing Physical Chemistry professors at different universities and doing the exact same thing with what I'm doing so far?

Thanks.

Also I've been receiving a lot of thumbs down on my posts lately. I'm sorry for spamming, but I just need information.

Thanks.

[UnlikelyGrad]

Regarding convincing the PhD Chemistry Graduate School Admissions Committee of each program I apply to on me being a very excellent fit for a particular Physical Chemistry professor's research group, should I start doing this by emailing Physical Chemistry professors at said universities asking them detailed questions on their research?

No, you should read any recent papers published by your POIs. That will tell you plenty and it will keep you from seeming like a pest.

[Eigen]

No, you should read any recent papers published by your POIs. That will tell you plenty and it will keep you from seeming like a pest.

This.

You should have a good write up on your research experience to date, what it's taught you, and then you need to tailor how it (and the rest of your background) help you to fit into a physical chemistry group. That part of your personal statement will be how they assess fit, not e-mails you send back and forth to the PI.

You'll have want to read all or at least most of the recent papers by any group you're interested in, and understand them well enough to discuss them (if asked), and possibly provide small suggestions for future directions on the work that really interest you.

Also (since this didn't come up last time, when you were interested in Inorganic Chem) how's your math background? I'm assuming it's really strong or you wouldn't be considering a physical PhD.

[chaospaladin]

No, you should read any recent papers published by your POIs. That will tell you plenty and it will keep you from seeming like a pest.

What does POI mean? I know PI means Principal Investigator, but what does POI mean? Is a POI more higher ranked than a PI?

This.

You should have a good write up on your research experience to date, what it's taught you, and then you need to tailor how it (and the rest of your background) help you to fit into a physical chemistry group. That part of your personal statement will be how they assess fit, not e-mails you send back and forth to the PI.

You'll have want to read all or at least most of the recent papers by any group you're interested in, and understand them well enough to discuss them (if asked), and possibly provide small suggestions for future directions on the work that really interest you.

Also (since this didn't come up last time, when you were interested in Inorganic Chem) how's your math background? I'm assuming it's really strong or you wouldn't be considering a physical PhD.

My mathematics background is very good. The only problem is that my physics and computer programming background is horrible (but it can still be improved obviously). I mention physics and computer programming because for the Utah State University PhD Program, they mention that Physical Chemistry PhD students must pass a qualifying exam for physics and computer programming prior to entering the program and I fear that I may fail it if I enter Physical Chemistry at Utah State University.

When I offer the small suggestions for future directions, do I do this in the Statement of Purpose or in the email messages I send them?

Edited March 6, 2011 by chaospaladin

[UnlikelyGrad]

What does POI mean? I know PI means Principal Investigator, but what does POI mean? Is a POI more higher ranked than a PI?

It means "professor of interest."

My mathematics background is very good. The only problem is that my physics and computer programming background is horrible (but it can still be improved obviously). I mention physics and computer programming because for the Utah State University PhD Program, they mention that Physical Chemistry PhD students must pass a qualifying exam for physics and computer programming prior to entering the program and I fear that I may fail it if I enter Physical Chemistry at Utah State University.

Ummm. Your physics background is horrible but you want to go into PChem? That makes no sense.

When I offer the small suggestions for future directions, do I do this in the Statement of Purpose or in the email messages I send them?

SoP is preferable. I think you should use your emails primarily to indicate interest. If your email messages are too long, they won't read them.

[chaospaladin]

Ummm. Your physics background is horrible but you want to go into PChem? That makes no sense.

SoP is preferable. I think you should use your emails primarily to indicate interest. If your email messages are too long, they won't read them.

Well horrible is a relative word. My physics skills isn't as good as my math skills but it was good enough for me to get A's in two of my physics labs and 3 of my lecture classes. I don't remember that much physics though. I'll probably need to review it. Regarding some professors that don't respond to my email messages asking to perform undergraduate research, should I resend the email message but condense it and get straight to the point? Most of the email messages I sent were too long because I included my very specific and detailed research experience. I know you told me to go in person and ask them but most of the time they are not available and they don't post office hours since they aren't teaching this term or next term.

To the professor that you told me a while back to go to office hours a lot and ask for an undergraduate research position next quarter when I have him again for another quarter of Physical Chemistry, I will do that actually.

Also when you applied to PhD Chemistry programs when you were an undergraduate student, did you remember specifically any programs that waived your application fee regardless of income?

Thanks.

[UnlikelyGrad]

Also when you applied to PhD Chemistry programs when you were an undergraduate student, did you remember specifically any programs that waived your application fee regardless of income?

Notre Dame, I think. Don't remember other than that.

[chaospaladin]

Does anyone know of any PhD Chemistry programs that they applied to that didn't have a strict 3.00 GPA cut off? My GPA is over 3.00 hence the title, but I'm looking into applying to a few more of the programs that don't have a strict 3.00 GPA cut off as well as the ones that do have a strict 3.00 GPA cut off. Thanks.

[waddle]

Does anyone know of any PhD Chemistry programs that they applied to that didn't have a strict 3.00 GPA cut off? My GPA is over 3.00 hence the title, but I'm looking into applying to a few more of the programs that don't have a strict 3.00 GPA cut off as well as the ones that do have a strict 3.00 GPA cut off. Thanks.

Hey chaospaladin, I hope I don't come off as a jerk, but for these sorts of things I think it's better if you did most of the legwork yourself. Questions like these are the types you could answer just as effectively on your own--Googling the right keywords works wonders. I'm sure if you spend some more time browsing department websites (my guess is that most people who applied to Ph.D. programs looked at the websites of >50 departments and narrowed down the field to 5-15 programs to which they applied), you'll find your answers pretty quickly.

In answer to your question, I found a few chemistry Ph.D. programs that don't appear to have GPA cutoffs: UC Riverside, UT El Paso, UT Dallas. I'm sure there are a lot more; you just have to look for them. I hope this helps.

waddle

[chaospaladin]

When graduate programs say the look at your GPA (for certain cut offs) in the last two years of undergraduate course work and you apply to the graduate program in your 4th year Fall term, do they look at your:

1. 2nd and 3rd year grades

OR

2. 3rd year grades only

Some schools have deadlines before Fall grades are released, so if I apply in the Fall of my 4th year, then my 4th year grades won't be available.

I know this question is probably school dependent, but I want to ask for a general consensus.

[drumms9980]

When graduate programs say the look at your GPA (for certain cut offs) in the last two years of undergraduate course work and you apply to the graduate program in your 4th year Fall term, do they look at your:

1. 2nd and 3rd year grades

OR

2. 3rd year grades only

Some schools have deadlines before Fall grades are released, so if I apply in the Fall of my 4th year, then my 4th year grades won't be available.

I know this question is probably school dependent, but I want to ask for a general consensus.

Bro, why don't you just go get some research experience, apply widely, then report back with your results.

[chaospaladin]

We'd need more info on your research interests.

After spending a lot of time reading ACS Journals and taking more graduate classes, I think I know what I am truly interested in. I am interested in pursuing in pursuing research in organic chemistry where I will investigate mechanistic aspects to understand how organic reactions work. Can someone help me out on which schools to apply that have research specifically on this? Thanks.

[Eigen]

After spending a lot of time reading ACS Journals and taking more graduate classes, I think I know what I am truly interested in. I am interested in pursuing in pursuing research in organic chemistry where I will investigate mechanistic aspects to understand how organic reactions work. Can someone help me out on which schools to apply that have research specifically on this? Thanks.

If you've been reading journal articles in the area, then you don't need to ask... You already know. Look at the last author on the paper. Look at the school affiliation. Voila! You know what schools to apply to.

[chaospaladin]

I asked Eigen this, but I guess he was too busy to respond to my VM.

When applying to PhD Chemistry programs, is it wise to also contact the PIs of interest beforehand to see if they are looking to take in students for the following season and have funding and space for more students since it is obviously a waste of time to apply to a PhD Chemistry Program where the research groups you are interested in is full? Is it common for people to spend the summer before the application season emailing professors for this type of information?

Thanks.

[Eigen]

Sorry, didn't see your message.

It's not a bad idea, but it's not as necessary as in other fields. Unless someone is really overbooked and/or retiring, they probably won't completely rule out taking on another student... But that's just what I've seen. Funding isn't as much of an issue, as they can just keep you on a TAship for the duration if they don't have funds to put you on an RAship. It's not like some other fields where there's less of a need for TAs- our department has more slots than it can fill, between all the general chemistry and organic chemistry labs.

The rule of thumb I'd recommend is to not apply to a school unless there are at least 3 groups you would be happy working in- that gives you a bit of leeway if one of them ends up filling up early, or you don't get along with the PI, etc.

It's more common, in my experience, for there to be competition between students in a cohort to work for specific faculty. And while most faculty will probably take someone from an incoming class if the interest is there, they might not take multiple students. And they won't be able to tell you if the spot will fill up before you start working for them.