2014 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[NeuroGirl042]

I just found out that I am the top candidate on the wait list for the Johns Hopkins MMI program! Holy crap! Now comes the hard part - trying to remain patient and to not think too much about the possibility of having to choose between two programs that I really like (I know, I know, first world graduate school problems...). All of you guys that have gotten into multiple great programs: I don't know how you manage to make that decision!

 

I had this MASSIVE excel pro/con sheet going... and then just went with my gut. Hah. Lots of time wasted, but at least I felt productive! 

 

 

edit: Forgot to congratulate you on Johns Hopkins!!! That's awesome!!!

Edited March 13, 2014 by NeuroGirl042

[stizz]

I just found out that I am the top candidate on the wait list for the Johns Hopkins MMI program! Holy crap! Now comes the hard part - trying to remain patient and to not think too much about the possibility of having to choose between two programs that I really like (I know, I know, first world graduate school problems...). All of you guys that have gotten into multiple great programs: I don't know how you manage to make that decision!

Which MMI weekend did you interview? I just got accepted there. I am leaning towards there but still haven't officially made my decisions. I am going to doublecheck my PIs of interest have funding etc. I will let you know if I decide otherwise. Best of luck! Hope you get in!

Edited March 13, 2014 by stizz

[Monochrome Spring]

Acceptance to CU Boulder EBIO!!!!!!!!! SO EXCITED! I love this program!

 

So happy for you!

[Eatin' Biscuits]

Got UNC acceptance first thing this morning! Looks like I'm moving to Chapel Hill! Good luck everyone else waiting for them.

[rexzeppelin]

Got UNC acceptance first thing this morning! Looks like I'm moving to Chapel Hill! Good luck everyone else waiting for them.

proof that there is light at the end of this tunnel, good luck out in the ocean of science

[sqxz]

I'm still waiting on my official acceptance from CMU-Pitt and my official rejection from Johns Hopkins, but, with my rejection from WashU yesterday, I pretty much know what options I'm going to have for grad school.

 

It's funny how things work out. I finalized the list of grad schools to which I was going to apply back in August. Then, in October, I swapped out three programs in a rushed panic after I realized the original programs were focused much more on experimentation (rather than computation and theory) than I originally thought. It just so happens that the three programs I swapped in are the ones that have made me offers.

 

Even though I was rejected after all four of my competitive interviews, I don't feel (too) disappointed. I only feel grateful for having the opportunity to visit a bunch of new schools and cities, and I feel extremely fortunate that I made the decisions I did back in October and that I now have offers from three programs where I can definitely do the research that I want to do in grad school. Now I just have to make the hard decision about which program will be best for me. Hopefully, this will be made easier after visiting UIUC next week and Rutgers the week after that.

 

To those who have received fantastic offers of their own, congratulations! Good luck deciding where you want to go! To those who have not, good luck next year or with whatever path you decide to pursue! With some more hard work and a bit of random luck, I'm sure everything will turn out just fine for all of us.

[toxicgirl]

Got UNC acceptance first thing this morning! Looks like I'm moving to Chapel Hill! Good luck everyone else waiting for them.

Congrats! (Crap, I wonder what that means for me).

[prasadg]

Hello ,

 

Whoever has got admitted to UCSD , Boston university and Georgia Tech phd in Bioinformatics . Please let respective universities know that if you are joining or not.  As others like me are still on wait list.

[lasercats11]

I had this MASSIVE excel pro/con sheet going... and then just went with my gut. Hah. Lots of time wasted, but at least I felt productive! 

 

 

edit: Forgot to congratulate you on Johns Hopkins!!! That's awesome!!!

 

Haha, yeah, I'm at work right now, trying to concentrate, but pros and cons of both schools are just continuously running in the back of my head. And I haven't even got into Hopkins yet!! But on the plus side, if I do hear back, I will probably be able to inform them of a decision shortly after. All of this stressing has got to be good for something.

 

Which MMI weekend did you interview? I just got accepted there. I am leaning towards there but still haven't officially made my decisions. I am going to doublecheck my PIs of interest have funding etc. I will let you know if I decide otherwise. Best of luck! Hope you get in!

 

I was at the March 6-8 weekend (which was nice, since I didn't have to wait very long to hear back from them). Congratulations on your acceptance! Good luck with the decision making - it's definitely a lot to consider when you are looking towards the next five/six years of your life and your future career. As for me, I am going to practice my patience and hope that someone has gotten a better offer.

[MiniMicro]

Got UNC acceptance first thing this morning! Looks like I'm moving to Chapel Hill! Good luck everyone else waiting for them.

Congrats on UNC!!!  I noticed you also got into UVA.  Are you going to turn down UVA then?  I am actually on the top of the waitlist for UVA Micro&Immunology. haha.  I'm anxiously awaiting any news from them!

Edited March 13, 2014 by MiniMicro

[antibody89]

Got accepted into MSU BMS program. I'm so excited!!! 

[kimmibeans]

I think I got into Stony Brook's Molecular Bio and Microbio, maybe? I'm a US Citizen, and said so on my application, but due to a computer glitch I got asked to fill out immigration paper work (I spoke to the program coordinator and apparently this is a common problem, but it is fixed). However, I haven't gotten a letter from them yet. Yay limbo?

Edited March 13, 2014 by kimmibeans

[iheartplants]

Got accepted into MSU BMS program. I'm so excited!!!

I meant "up vote"!! Congrats!

[rexzeppelin]

Finally heard back, Yale rejection today. Disappointing but that was the final unknown in my application process. To those still waiting, I wish you patience, it's almost over.

 

In other news excited to be committing to Penn BMB

 

It does feel strange that I won't be compulsively checking this thread from now on, thanks to everyone for their great advice, commiserations and congratulations

[microarray]

Got accepted into MSU BMS program. I'm so excited!!! 

Woo Congrats!!!!! So excited for you!!

[Taeyers]

well.... the decision for the one program I applied to was supposed to be made yesterday, and I spent all day in a glass case of emotion. My PI (I'm a junior scientist) is on the AdComm, and when I got an email from him last night, I nearly jumped out of my skin before realizing it was totally unrelated. Lo and behold, it turns out they had to postpone until Friday afternoon. I've been told I "unofficially" don't have much to worry about, but I'm just a quivering ball of nerves. They're only taking 3 people!!! They interviewed 8!! Waiting is the worst, and I was promised it would be over yesterday 

 

Can't tell if spending time on this thread is making my wait better or worse, but congrats to everyone who's received some great news this application season! Hopefully the 5 millionth time I check the application site will yield good news for me as well...

[kimmibeans]

 

Can't tell if spending time on this thread is making my wait better or worse, but congrats to everyone who's received some great news this application season! Hopefully the 5 millionth time I check the application site will yield good news for me as well...

I don't know if this is helping me either but it is nice to know there are people going through the same thing. Good luck to you and congrats to everyone who has been accepted!

[dembugsdo]

NYU Sackler acceptance via email! I applied with Microbiology as my primary interest. Really happy - so many labs doing cool stuff, awesome people, and my recruiting visit was veryyy very fun, haha. Sushi and karaoke and beers = hooray!

 

Congratulations to everybody who's gotten acceptances, seriously, it's so wonderful to see people be happy with how things are shaping up after such a stressful application cycle. And people who weren't so successful, please see my previous posts about not losing faith and being persistent (this is my second time applying and I'm shocked by how well things have gone). 

[dembugsdo]

Ah, another point I wanted to bring up, primarily for any future applicants who find themselves mining through this thread in manic attempts to get more information on the application process. Skype interviews: I'd say that you should try to avoid these as much as possible. I had to do Skype interviews for 2 schools and I thought that both went really well. Connected well with PIs, had fun talking about science, and most of them went over the allotted time. But, I've been wait listed at both places where I did them and I'm still in limbo with waiting to see where I end up with those. Maybe I didn't interview as well as I thought, but I still think it's worth noting given that my 3 in-person interviews worked out well. I think that actual visits for recruiting events are very valuable for both parties; you really get to get a feel for the people and the campus, while the admissions committee gets to scope you out more thoroughly than they can accomplish through 2 hours talking with a disembodied head on a computer screen. Just my 2 cents!

[toxicgirl]

Has anyone gotten into Baylor Immunology Graduate Program (Department of Pathology and Immunology) and is still deciding between Baylor and other places? If so, where are you leaning?

[braaaaaiinnns]

Ah, another point I wanted to bring up, primarily for any future applicants who find themselves mining through this thread in manic attempts to get more information on the application process. Skype interviews: I'd say that you should try to avoid these as much as possible. I had to do Skype interviews for 2 schools and I thought that both went really well. Connected well with PIs, had fun talking about science, and most of them went over the allotted time. But, I've been wait listed at both places where I did them and I'm still in limbo with waiting to see where I end up with those. Maybe I didn't interview as well as I thought, but I still think it's worth noting given that my 3 in-person interviews worked out well. I think that actual visits for recruiting events are very valuable for both parties; you really get to get a feel for the people and the campus, while the admissions committee gets to scope you out more thoroughly than they can accomplish through 2 hours talking with a disembodied head on a computer screen. Just my 2 cents!

A little more information might be helpful for future hopefuls. Were you offered an in-person interview that you wanted to reschedule and got a skype interview instead? Or were you only offered a skype interview? Did other students have an option or was everyone given only skype interviews? From what I hear, an indication that they might not be your top choice (like attending another school's interview in lieu of theirs) can be a red flag for them.

[dembugsdo]

A little more information might be helpful for future hopefuls. Were you offered an in-person interview that you wanted to reschedule and got a skype interview instead? Or were you only offered a skype interview? Did other students have an option or was everyone given only skype interviews? From what I hear, an indication that they might not be your top choice (like attending another school's interview in lieu of theirs) can be a red flag for them.

I was out of the country and it wasn't possible to make trips back for interviews, so this was unrelated to scheduling conflicts. I had my Skype interviews on the same day as they did their in-person interviews. So, this wasn't done as a "Oh sorry, I'd rather go to this other place, but can we still video chat really quick?" sort of thing, there just wasn't any alternative since I couldn't travel.

[funkydays]

Can't tell if spending time on this thread is making my wait better or worse, but congrats to everyone who's received some great news this application season! Hopefully the 5 millionth time I check the application site will yield good news for me as well...

 

Yea, I know what you mean.  I feel excited and happy for everyone getting into schools but at the same time it increases my nail biting anxiety since I haven't heard from a few schools.

[njoymusic2]

Ah, another point I wanted to bring up, primarily for any future applicants who find themselves mining through this thread in manic attempts to get more information on the application process. Skype interviews: I'd say that you should try to avoid these as much as possible. I had to do Skype interviews for 2 schools and I thought that both went really well. Connected well with PIs, had fun talking about science, and most of them went over the allotted time. But, I've been wait listed at both places where I did them and I'm still in limbo with waiting to see where I end up with those. Maybe I didn't interview as well as I thought, but I still think it's worth noting given that my 3 in-person interviews worked out well. I think that actual visits for recruiting events are very valuable for both parties; you really get to get a feel for the people and the campus, while the admissions committee gets to scope you out more thoroughly than they can accomplish through 2 hours talking with a disembodied head on a computer screen. Just my 2 cents!

Although I only did in-person interviews I completely agree. There are a lot aspects to the recruitment process in addition to the formal 30-min interviews. It may not count as much but any interactions with the faculty, staff, and students at lunches/dinners and throughout the interview day play a part in making an impression, so folks who interview in-person naturally have this advantage.

[mikasu130]

I've narrowed my choices down to Harvard BBS or MIT biology. I've have great impression of both places; students and faculties are very smart and boston seems to be a fun city. 

Could current interviewees who are also trying to decide between these schools comment on your thought process? It seems that MIT is a smaller program than BBS, so there is more room for community; especially the first year at MIT. BBS seems to be a more flexible program and lots more lab choices. The research is terrific in both places, maybe BBS has an advantage over MIT because of all the hospitals affiliations. I'd like see if others are sharing these impressions and how you decided to go about it.