2015 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[acetylcholine]

Well, this is delightful.  I have been told in no uncertain terms by parents who don't actually understand the scientific grad school process too well that if I don't get in this time and don't manage to have either an acceptance or a job offer in hand by May, I will be homeless.

 

Time to go scrape the bottom of the grad school barrel and add on two more schools.

Edited August 9, 2014 by acetylcholine

[ERR_Alpha]

Well, this is delightful. I have been told in no uncertain terms by parents who don't actually understand the scientific grad school process too well that if I don't get in this time and don't manage to have either an acceptance or a job offer in hand by May, I will be homeless.

Time to go scrape the bottom of the grad school barrel and add on two more schools.

Sending good vibes your way! You can do it!

[Vene]

Well, this is delightful.  I have been told in no uncertain terms by parents who don't actually understand the scientific grad school process too well that if I don't get in this time and don't manage to have either an acceptance or a job offer in hand by May, I will be homeless.

 

Time to go scrape the bottom of the grad school barrel and add on two more schools.

Ugh, that is so not the way to motivate people.

[somanyphage]

Well, this is delightful.  I have been told in no uncertain terms by parents who don't actually understand the scientific grad school process too well that if I don't get in this time and don't manage to have either an acceptance or a job offer in hand by May, I will be homeless.

 

Time to go scrape the bottom of the grad school barrel and add on two more schools.

Sending optimistic thoughts your way acetylcholine <3 the scientific grad school process is, in no other words to describe it - miserable. just stay hopeful and spread your options out - look into schools you havent even considered before. your parents may not understand what you are dealing with right now, but all of us do and that is why we are all here for you!

[shadowclaw]

Undergrad Institution: Small private college that nobody knows about (undergrad)

State university, somewhat well-known (masters)

Major(s): Environmental Biology (undergrad)

Biology (masters)

Minor(s): Chemisty and mathematics (undergrad)

GPA in Major: 3.9ish (undergrad)

3.72 (masters)

Overall GPA: from the undergrad institution I graduated from, a 3.59. Overall between all the schools I attended, around a 2.65 (undergrad)

3.72 (masters)

Position in Class: For major courses only, within the biology department, I was probably # 1, and definitely at the top for my specific major. Taking into account my overall coursework, I was still close to the top in my department and still first for my major. (undergrad)

At the top (masters)

Type of Student: Domestic female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 155 (64%)
V: 160 (84%)

W: 4.0 (73%)
B: Didn't take it

Research Experience: Completed a senior research project and a research project for a class (undergrad)

Completed a research project for a class and I am also in the process of working on my masters thesis (masters)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Won the department's research award for my senior project and won an award for it at our school's research day, also received the outstanding graduate award for my major. Graduated cum laude. (undergrad)

Won an award for a research poster at a conference (masters)

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Worked on a project for the PA Fish Commission and tutored (undergrad)

Starting work as a graduate assistant this fall (masters)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Might have some publications by the time my applications go in, but maybe not

Special Bonus Points: I'm a girl, but I don't think that really helps

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I screwed around as an undergrad for a while (and got some cruddy grades in the process) and flip flopped between schools and majors before settling into Environmental Biology where I was very successful. This is my biggest hindrance when applying, as it results in an overall undergrad GPA of around 2.65. However, the final 3 years of school (when I switched to biology) were stellar... got almost all A's (and nothing less than a B+) and no semester GPA less than 3.75.

Applying to Where:
 

This is a very tentative list. I won't likely add new schools, but I might trim the list.

 

North Carolina State University - EEB or Wildlife Biology
Clemson University - Wildlife & Fisheries Biology
University of Maine - Wildlife Ecology
University of Massachusetts - Wildlife, Fish, & Conservation
Oregon State University - Wildlife Science
Washington State University - Environmental & Natural Resource Sciences
Virginia Tech - Fish and Wildlife Conservation
Penn State University - Ecology
Ohio State University - EEOB
University of California, Davis - Ecology
Auburn University - Biological Sciences
Utah State University - Wildlife Biology
Tulane University - EEB

[shadowclaw]

Also, I forgot to mention that I'm looking for a PhD program where I can pursue ornithology or bird-plant interactions. I'm very interested in invasive plants as well as birds, and my current masters thesis concerns the impacts of an invasive plant on bird communities. The schools on my list are pretty much the only ones I found with appropriate POIs, but if anyone can recommend a potenetial school not on my list, that would be great.

 

I am also interested in anyone's thoughts on approaching the admissions process. As a few others in the thread have also posted, my early undergrad grades suck. I had some great semesters that were 3.5, 4.0, etc., followed by real bombs that are too embarassing to type. There are also a few full withdrawals in there, too. This actually went on for 7 years before I got my act together, but once I did, my grades were phenomenal. My grades have been great in my masters program, too. Someone mentioned that mentioning mental illness to an admissions committee is a bad idea, but truth be told, most of my lousy grades came from issues with social anxiety. If you were to look at my transcripts, you can see when I was containing my anxiety and when I wasn't. I didn't have lukewarm semesters where I had a few good classes and a few bad classes. They were either all great or all bombs. When I applied to grad school 2 years ago, all of the PhD programs rejected me without so much as an interview (pretty sure most of them cut me from the application pool in the beginning), but all of the masters programs accepted me without interviewing me at all. I think I only briefly mentioned my bad grades in my SOP, and said something along the lines of "I realize some of my academic record is terrible, but it's clear that I am now on a different and successful path." Not sure if I should use the same approach, or elaborate this time.

[alanfv91]

Also, I forgot to mention that I'm looking for a PhD program where I can pursue ornithology or bird-plant interactions. I'm very interested in invasive plants as well as birds, and my current masters thesis concerns the impacts of an invasive plant on bird communities. The schools on my list are pretty much the only ones I found with appropriate POIs, but if anyone can recommend a potenetial school not on my list, that would be great.

 

I am also interested in anyone's thoughts on approaching the admissions process. As a few others in the thread have also posted, my early undergrad grades suck. I had some great semesters that were 3.5, 4.0, etc., followed by real bombs that are too embarassing to type. There are also a few full withdrawals in there, too. This actually went on for 7 years before I got my act together, but once I did, my grades were phenomenal. My grades have been great in my masters program, too. Someone mentioned that mentioning mental illness to an admissions committee is a bad idea, but truth be told, most of my lousy grades came from issues with social anxiety. If you were to look at my transcripts, you can see when I was containing my anxiety and when I wasn't. I didn't have lukewarm semesters where I had a few good classes and a few bad classes. They were either all great or all bombs. When I applied to grad school 2 years ago, all of the PhD programs rejected me without so much as an interview (pretty sure most of them cut me from the application pool in the beginning), but all of the masters programs accepted me without interviewing me at all. I think I only briefly mentioned my bad grades in my SOP, and said something along the lines of "I realize some of my academic record is terrible, but it's clear that I am now on a different and successful path." Not sure if I should use the same approach, or elaborate this time.

 

I think you may want to briefly explain what was going on during those times when you bombed your classes.  I think it's best to just touch the surface on what you were going through at the time, but not go too in depth with the explanation.  That may help the committees understand what was going on and that you weren't just being lazy or apathetic about your undergrad courses.  I'm sure they'll see that with your masters coursework you have gotten yourself back on your feet and are ready for a PhD program.  Hopefully you'll get a good number of interviews from your list of schools you are applying to, and good luck!

[Chimeric Phoenix]

I think you may want to briefly explain what was going on during those times when you bombed your classes.  I think it's best to just touch the surface on what you were going through at the time, but not go too in depth with the explanation.  That may help the committees understand what was going on and that you weren't just being lazy or apathetic about your undergrad courses.  I'm sure they'll see that with your masters coursework you have gotten yourself back on your feet and are ready for a PhD program.  Hopefully you'll get a good number of interviews from your list of schools you are applying to, and good luck!

 

I honestly don't think that your undergrad grades are going to hinder your application much at all. If you finished your UG with good GPA and then continued that trend in grad school, that should show them that you can complete graduate level work for your PhD. Touch on it very lightly, but I don't think you need to dwell on it.

 

That's a ton of schools on your list, you could probably stand to remove a few. Make sure that your list includes multiple faculty that you would want to work with. Sometimes they won't have room in their lab, and sometimes they're not even faculty anymore!

[bsharpe269]

Also, I forgot to mention that I'm looking for a PhD program where I can pursue ornithology or bird-plant interactions. I'm very interested in invasive plants as well as birds, and my current masters thesis concerns the impacts of an invasive plant on bird communities. The schools on my list are pretty much the only ones I found with appropriate POIs, but if anyone can recommend a potenetial school not on my list, that would be great.

 

I am also interested in anyone's thoughts on approaching the admissions process. As a few others in the thread have also posted, my early undergrad grades suck. I had some great semesters that were 3.5, 4.0, etc., followed by real bombs that are too embarassing to type. There are also a few full withdrawals in there, too. This actually went on for 7 years before I got my act together, but once I did, my grades were phenomenal. My grades have been great in my masters program, too. Someone mentioned that mentioning mental illness to an admissions committee is a bad idea, but truth be told, most of my lousy grades came from issues with social anxiety. If you were to look at my transcripts, you can see when I was containing my anxiety and when I wasn't. I didn't have lukewarm semesters where I had a few good classes and a few bad classes. They were either all great or all bombs. When I applied to grad school 2 years ago, all of the PhD programs rejected me without so much as an interview (pretty sure most of them cut me from the application pool in the beginning), but all of the masters programs accepted me without interviewing me at all. I think I only briefly mentioned my bad grades in my SOP, and said something along the lines of "I realize some of my academic record is terrible, but it's clear that I am now on a different and successful path." Not sure if I should use the same approach, or elaborate this time.

 

Yeah I think that you will be absolutely fine with GPA. I don't think the low grades will hold you back since you have proven that you can handle the courses. I would even say that you could add a few higher ranked schools to your list if there are any that overlap with your interets. I would definitely trim others if you do that since your list is pretty long. Also, I know nothing of your subfield so it may be that those are the top ranked ones for your interest... I have no idea really.

[shadowclaw]

Thanks for the advice! I'm still contemplating different ways I can weave in a short explanation into my SOP, but I imagine I'll figure it out in the coming months.

I do realize that my school list is long (and would set me back a pretty penny if I applied to them all). I more or less found as many programs with ornithologists in the department, then looked more closely at the exact research interests of the faculty and trimmed out schools that didn't really fit with my desired focus. The end result is the 13 schools you see here. Some schools do have multiple faculty that I'm interested in, while others only have one. I assume that some of the schools will be dropped when I receive one of the "I'm sorry, but I'm not accepting any students this year" or "I'd love to take you on, but I have no money" emails. Pretty much all of the ecology programs I've looked at require a faculty member to agree to take you into their lab in order to be accepted, so if I can't find anyone accepting students at a school, it's out.

Also, I honestly don't know how any of these programs rank, except for Penn State. The ranking wasn't something I was considering when looking for a program, just something that would be a good fit.

I definitely feel better about the GPA now, but I still wonder if it will have an impact when looking for a POI. When I applied last time, I had traded emails with several people, and everything seemed great at first. They were interested in my undergrad research, they asked for my CV and discussed different aspects of it with me... and then I had a few requests for transcripts. Everyone who asked for them didn't reply when I sent them and ignored any further emails from me. So I still worry a bit about that. I feel like they kind of just removed me from their unofficial pool of applicants that were emailing them and didn't even bother looking at things like my SOP and LORs when I formerly applied.

But perhaps you're right! My excellent grades in my grad courses and the fact that I'm working on a thesis might just make up for it.

[visiblethinking]

Hi everyone! It's super strange to actually be posting in this thread and not just lurking in it like I have in previous years!

 

Undergrad Institution: Top 10 Research Institution
Major(s): Biology (concentration in Genomics)
Minor(s): Philosophy
GPA in Major: Approximately 3.8
Overall GPA: 3.91
Position in Class: Top 5-10%
Type of Student: Domestic, Female 

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 162 (84%)
V: 166 (96%)
W: 5.0 (93%)

Research Experience:

• 3 years in a yeast epigenetics lab at school (including 3 independent study semesters and a few volunteer semesters)
• 1 summer research experience at Memorial Sloan-Kettering in a homologous recombination lab

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:

• Phi Beta Kappa
• Award for Academic Excellence in the Biomedicine Program in my study abroad program
• Chosen as a 1 of 4 Shaps Scholars in Sloan-Kettering's SURP program
• Multiple semesters on the Dean's List 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

• Spent one summer shadowing a genetic counselor at the University of Miami 

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

• One of my recommenders is extremely influential in the BRCA2/homologous recombination community 

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

• Received a certificate in Genome Science & Policy from my school 

Applying to Where:

Definitely:
Gerstner Sloan-Kettering--Biomedical Sciences program

UC San Francisco--Biomedical Science program

UW Seattle--MCB or Genome Sciences or Molecular Medicine & Mechanisms of Disease program (I'm having a hard time deciding between the 3!)
Stanford--Genetics
 

Maybe:

Harvard--Integrated Life Sciences program

UPenn--CAMB program

 

***My research interests lie mainly in translational science. More specifically, I have interests in cancer genetics/biology, genomics, human genetics, epigenetics, and molecular biology.

Edited August 17, 2014 by paige04

[Dedi]

 

 

***My research interests lie mainly in translational science. More specifically, I have interests in cancer genetics/biology, genomics, human genetics, epigenetics, and molecular biology.

 

Oh cool, another epigenetics person!

 

I have a bit of a dilemma going on. I really want to get into U of T Psych, and the POI that I volunteered for this summer (U of T professor) is willing to look over my application materials and write me a strong letter of rec. However, the program requires two letters, and I already have two strong letters in place. What should I do? Should I send in three strong letters, or exclude someone? Would having a letter from the POI strengthen my application or would it not be advisable?

[Vene]

The end result is the 13 schools you see here. Some schools do have multiple faculty that I'm interested in, while others only have one. I assume that some of the schools will be dropped when I receive one of the "I'm sorry, but I'm not accepting any students this year" or "I'd love to take you on, but I have no money" emails. Pretty much all of the ecology programs I've looked at require a faculty member to agree to take you into their lab in order to be accepted, so if I can't find anyone accepting students at a school, it's out.

I'd be very, very hesitant to pursue a program where only one member of the faculty matches your interests. Even if you get everything set up you may find out that you two don't mesh well when working and then you're kind of stuck in that lab. Also check out if any of the programs of interest do rotations, it can give you more opportunities to find the ideal lab instead of walking in on day one and spending the next 5 or so years working under an advisor you barely met.

[Dedi]

I'd be very, very hesitant to pursue a program where only one member of the faculty matches your interests. Even if you get everything set up you may find out that you two don't mesh well when working and then you're kind of stuck in that lab. Also check out if any of the programs of interest do rotations, it can give you more opportunities to find the ideal lab instead of walking in on day one and spending the next 5 or so years working under an advisor you barely met.

 

I agree (though I don't practice what I preach, shh). If you do have a choice (I don't, really; people that match my interests are scattered), pick the schools that have multiple faculty that match your interests or that do rotations.

[Vene]

I agree (though I don't practice what I preach, shh). If you do have a choice (I don't, really; people that match my interests are scattered), pick the schools that have multiple faculty that match your interests or that do rotations.

But haven't you actually worked with your potential PI at U of T already? You've effectively already done a rotation with him.

 

Oh, and I see no good reason not to have him write a letter for you. If the program is accepting of 3 letters and you know the other 2 are strong may as well send it in. I don't think I'd say no to having a member of the faculty at the school you're interested in writing you a letter.

Edited August 17, 2014 by Vene

[Dedi]

But haven't you actually worked with your potential PI at U of T already? You've effectively already done a rotation with him.

 

Oh, and I see no good reason not to have him write a letter for you. If the program is accepting of 3 letters and you know the other 2 are strong may as well send it in. I don't think I'd say no to having a member of the faculty at the school you're interested in writing you a letter.

Yeah, that is true. I'm also applying to other schools that have only one professor that match my research interests. It's not ideal because things change over the course of a year.

 

I'm asking the department if they will accept three letters. In the FAQ, they say two letters are required (which says basically nothing about sending in more than two). The psych administration is kind of difficult to deal with when I have questions. The biology department is much more responsive.

[biotechie]

There will be many who disagree with me, on this, but I would just like to throw this out there for those of you in biomedical sciences: Don't get too hung up on a specific idea or type of project. It is great to have interests in epigenetics, but don't let that define your absolute final choices for labs and programs. Your PI and work environment are going to be the most important things. I'm not saying you shouldn't go for what you're interests are, but give yourself some wiggle room! Make sure you select programs which have several labs you're interested in. If you have rotations, you'll be able to select labs after talking to the PIs (usually), and then can test out 3, maybe even 4 labs. Your choice might surprise you.

 

For example, my interests at application were cancer, autoimmune disorders, and transcriptional regulation, particularly epigenetics, stemming from nearly 6 years of research experience in two fields. I joined a lab which is metabolism-based and I will dabble in some epigenetic mechanisms on the side (as well as some cancer stuff). I selected the lab for the novel project, but mostly because the PI is an incredible mentor, works well with students, and has promised that a priority for me will be grant writing. When I go to postdoc, I'll still have the opportunity to join cancer and epigenetics-related groups based on my PhD project, particularly those that also link to development and metabolism. However, I'll also be able to go a completely different direction if I so choose. Your post-doc is going to determine where you end up if you're planning to stay in academia.

 

As long as you set yourself up with a skill set that will send you to the right places for post-doc, you may very well end up back in the exact field you wanted to start in, but with a broader knowledge base. This can make for better grant writing and larger networking.

[Dedi]

There will be many who disagree with me, on this, but I would just like to throw this out there for those of you in biomedical sciences: Don't get too hung up on a specific idea or type of project. It is great to have interests in epigenetics, but don't let that define your absolute final choices for labs and programs. Your PI and work environment are going to be the most important things. I'm not saying you shouldn't go for what you're interests are, but give yourself some wiggle room! Make sure you select programs which have several labs you're interested in. If you have rotations, you'll be able to select labs after talking to the PIs (usually), and then can test out 3, maybe even 4 labs. Your choice might surprise you.

 

For example, my interests at application were cancer, autoimmune disorders, and transcriptional regulation, particularly epigenetics, stemming from nearly 6 years of research experience in two fields. I joined a lab which is metabolism-based and I will dabble in some epigenetic mechanisms on the side (as well as some cancer stuff). I selected the lab for the novel project, but mostly because the PI is an incredible mentor, works well with students, and has promised that a priority for me will be grant writing. When I go to postdoc, I'll still have the opportunity to join cancer and epigenetics-related groups based on my PhD project, particularly those that also link to development and metabolism. However, I'll also be able to go a completely different direction if I so choose. Your post-doc is going to determine where you end up if you're planning to stay in academia.

 

As long as you set yourself up with a skill set that will send you to the right places for post-doc, you may very well end up back in the exact field you wanted to start in, but with a broader knowledge base. This can make for better grant writing and larger networking.

 

Thanks for the advice! The POI and I seem to work really well together, and it is the main reason why he is my top choice. By the way, my main interest is applied animal behavior, which has more of a prominence in European countries than North America. So, basically, it's even harder to find POIs in that end.

I'm thinking of going into the basic sciences (just knowing for the sake of knowing) then slowly transition to applied work. I'll learn a lot of things that won't be related to what I want to do as a career (particularly the molecular component). However, I think it is still useful to learn these things because it expands my knowledge and if my interests change, I'm not restricted by a certain technique.

Epigenetics was never something I considered until about a year and a half ago (even though I was interested in the concept). My top choice POI has changed since about 2-3 years ago, but for a good reason! I don't think I would have been happy in that particular lab; our interactions felt rigid.

[visiblethinking]

I'm not sure if anyone can speak to this but I just graduated in May and am in the midst of a gap year consisting mostly of travel; I'm spacing the travel around application season (i.e. now) and interview season and obviously I've already made my choice to postpone graduate school for a year in this way but I'm wondering if any of you know of someone who made a similar decision and, if so, how the graduate schools they applied to treated their situation. 

 

Clearly my hope is that they will be understanding and not just ask me why I didn't spend my gap year in a lab haha (which to me doesn't sound like a gap year at all). 

 

Thanks in advance!

Edited August 18, 2014 by paige04

[Crucial BBQ]

I'm not sure if anyone can speak to this but I just graduated in May and am in the midst of a gap year consisting mostly of travel; I'm spacing the travel around application season (i.e. now) and interview season and obviously I've already made my choice to postpone graduate school for a year in this way but I'm wondering if any of you know of someone who made a similar decision and, if so, how the graduate schools they applied to treated their situation. 

 

Clearly my hope is that they will be understanding and not just ask me why I didn't spend my gap year in a lab haha (which to me doesn't sound like a gap year at all). 

 

Thanks in advance!

Plenty of people decide well into adulthood to change careers or just take a new path, often times including graduate school. I don't think that taking a gap year will matter much.  

[Dedi]

GRE DONE.

 

Undergrad Institution: Liberal Arts University that isn't very well known nationally.
Major(s): Psychology
Minor(s): Biology
GPA in Major: Not sure, we usually don't have that calculated.
Overall GPA: 3.51
Position in Class: I got inducted into Psi Chi last semester so at least top 35%
Type of Student: Female US citizen applying to mostly Canadian schools

GRE Scores (revised/old version): (Taking in August)
Q: 161 (80th percentile)
V: 156 (71st percentile)
W: Will receive soon.
B: Not taking.


Research Experience: Oh, boy. This one is always tricky because the university doesn't have "labs" that I can join.

I did an independent biology research project that lasted about 7 months. Preparing a manuscript (1st author out of three). Did two conference talks on this project (single author; one was a regional conference and the other was a university-wise conference)

Was an undergraduate research assistant for a probability learning project, but we only got preliminary results. We're going to hopefully present a poster at a state-wide conference (2nd author out of four).

Presenting a poster at a Canadian national conference on a research course project (single author). I plan to continue the project this fall and hopefully will get a manuscript in next spring (I'm thinking 1st author out of two).

I am a research volunteer/intern at University of Toronto for the summer. We'll see about manuscripts.

There are a few research opportunities for me this fall (behavioral ecology project, research seminar for psychology students)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Tri-Beta member, Psi Chi member, Dean's list, received a Tri-Beta research grant based on my proposal for my independent biology project

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Biology lab assistant at my university

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I can't think of anything else...

Special Bonus Points: The PI that I'm volunteering for this summer is my POI for my top choice school.

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: I had a poor first year due to adjustment problems. However, my grades shot up in second year and third year.

Applying to Where:

See signature--I imagine that it is subject to change.

[Vene]

Plenty of people decide well into adulthood to change careers or just take a new path, often times including graduate school. I don't think that taking a gap year will matter much.  

We have someone in our cohort who spent a year making pizza before doing graduate school.

[shadowclaw]

So as I've been sending e-mails to POIs and reviewing their research interests more closely, I've narrowed my application list:

 

Clemson University - Wildlife & Fisheries

University of Massachusetts - Wildlife, Fish, & Conservation

Oregon State University - Wildlife Science

Penn State University - Ecology

Utah State University - Wildlife Biology

Tulane University - Ecology & Evolutionary Biology

University of Washington - Environmental & Forest Science

 

I'm still on the lookout for other potential programs. I added U of Washington after exploring more of their programs (I initially just looked at programs within the biology department), and it is also unique on the list, as it's the only school that doesn't require support from a POI for admission.

 

I also got an encouraging but somewhat dismal e-mail from a POI at Utah State this morning. She wrote that she would give me a nomination for admission and would like to work with me (the encouraging part), but she lacks her own funding for a PhD student (the dismal part). She then went on to write that the department does have fellowships, but that she doesn't think I'm quite competitive enough for them (another dismal part). She did suggest retaking the GREs to get all of my scores above 70%... my math score is the only one below, which really aggravated me, because I am a math person (heck, I even minored in math as an undergrad) and I shouldn't have scored that low. I do know that the problem was I ate a lousy breakfast, started feeling cruddy halfway through the exam, and I had 3 math sections (one was the experimental one), so by the time I got to the final math section, I was completely worn out. I'm now contemplating retaking it to make all of my applications more competitive, but that gives me very little time to prepare if I want my scores sent in time.

 

She also mentioned that a publication from my thesis would help me, but that's a little beyond my control at this point. I do anticipate getting two papers out of my thesis, but I won't have them ready for submission until sometime in the spring semester. I also have my two papers I'm putting together now, which could possibly be in press by the time applications are due... well, they actually have rolling admissions, but fellowships have a due date. Anyway, I'm not sure If they'd have the same impact as a publication from my thesis, since she specifically mentioned my thesis.

[chibimolinero]

Ho boy. I plan on emailing potential PIs this week.

 

Undergrad Institution: Very large state school; Known for medical research
Major(s): Biomedical Engineering
Minor(s): Potentially Neuroscience?
GPA in Major: 3.93
Overall GPA: 3.97
Position in Class: At least in the top 1/5th of my BME class
Type of Student: Domestic female

GRE Scores (revised):
Q: 169 (97%)
V: 165 (95%)
W: 5.5 (98%)
B: N/A

Research Experience:

-Summer research at my school; analysis of miRNA expression in prostate cancer patients; got a poster out of it (presented twice, both just at different symposiums within my school); will hopefully have a paper under review by the time apps go in (co-first/second author)

 

-(technically ~1-1.5 years) Volunteer in an injury biomechanics research lab within my school; helped instrument cadavers for impact testing, cleaned tools, prepared instruments, etc.

 

-(ongoing) 5 months of volunteering in a motor neuron disease lab at my school; work with mouse models, PCR, cryostat sectioning, etc.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Merit-based scholarships?

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Anatomy TA and (one-time) calculus tutor

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: ?

Special Bonus Points: I'm a lady. Does that help at all?

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Various campus involvement: leadership roles in students organizations (BMES and AEMB, the BME honorary)

Applying to Where:

All programs will be Neuroscience PhD programs. Interests include adult neurogenesis, stem cells, Alzheimer's/Parkinson's, depression, and anxiety

 

Current list (in order of interest, probably needs to be cut down):

 

Harvard University

Columbia University

University of Washington

UC San Francisco

Stanford University

University of Wisconsin

UC Irvine

Northwestern University

Rockefeller University

Johns Hopkins University

Wake Forest University

University of Rochester

 

 

My big question is: Do I have too many top tier schools? I'm incredibly nervous about applying to too many "reach" schools and getting in to none...

 

[Chimeric Phoenix]

Ho boy. I plan on emailing potential PIs this week.

 

Undergrad Institution: Very large state school; Known for medical research

Major(s): Biomedical Engineering

Minor(s): Potentially Neuroscience?

GPA in Major: 3.93

Overall GPA: 3.97

Position in Class: At least in the top 1/5th of my BME class

Type of Student: Domestic female

GRE Scores (revised):

Q: 169 (97%)

V: 165 (95%)

W: 5.5 (98%)

B: N/A

Research Experience:

-Summer research at my school; analysis of miRNA expression in prostate cancer patients; got a poster out of it (presented twice, both just at different symposiums within my school); will hopefully have a paper under review by the time apps go in (co-first/second author)

 

-(technically ~1-1.5 years) Volunteer in an injury biomechanics research lab within my school; helped instrument cadavers for impact testing, cleaned tools, prepared instruments, etc.

 

-(ongoing) 5 months of volunteering in a motor neuron disease lab at my school; work with mouse models, PCR, cryostat sectioning, etc.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Merit-based scholarships?

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Anatomy TA and (one-time) calculus tutor

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: ?

Special Bonus Points: I'm a lady. Does that help at all?

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Various campus involvement: leadership roles in students organizations (BMES and AEMB, the BME honorary)

Applying to Where:

All programs will be Neuroscience PhD programs. Interests include adult neurogenesis, stem cells, Alzheimer's/Parkinson's, depression, and anxiety

 

Current list (in order of interest, probably needs to be cut down):

 

Harvard University

Columbia University

University of Washington

UC San Francisco

Stanford University

University of Wisconsin

UC Irvine

Northwestern University

Rockefeller University

Johns Hopkins University

Wake Forest University

University of Rochester

 

 

My big question is: Do I have too many top tier schools? I'm incredibly nervous about applying to too many "reach" schools and getting in to none...

 

If you look back at the 2014 version of this thread you'll see that other academic all-stars applied to similar schools. Assuming your LOR and SOP are good, you'll probably end up with a decent number of schools to choose from.

 

There always seems to be a couple people who end up getting shut out despite having ridiculous stats, and there's no real way of knowing why but I'd make sure you have 1-2 safety schools depending on how far from the top your "safe" schools are.