Biosciences Fall 2010 PhD Program Applicants

[grad101]

Hello everyone!

I took my GREs yesterday-- Here are my stats

GREs: 600V 740Q AW: X (not sure yet).

GPA: 3.5 from state school (top 20 public)

Citizenship: US

I am applying to biomedical sciences programs for fall 2010 to schools below:

UVA

UMD-Baltimore

Johns Hopkins

UT-Southwestern

Mt. Sinai

U Penn

WashU

Northwestern

Michigan

UCSD

Stanford

UCSF

Weill Cornell

I am applying to a long list of top programs -- should I retake my GRE's to improve my scores(I feel like they are not competitive enough), or should I channel my energy towards other parts of my application (SOP, LORs, etc.)

Thanks for your advice!

[Serric]

I wouldn't worry about re-taking your GREs. Looking at the numbers for Duke and UMN, your scores are right in the average range for those matriculated.

For myself:

GPA: 3.3 (cumulative)/3.7 (major)

GRE: 770Q/640V/4 AW

7 months research experience in each of two labs (neurobio lab and genetics lab)

Applying to programs in neuroscience w'/ an emphasis in neural stem cell differentiation/transplantation/gene therapy

Schools:

UC Berkeley

UMN Twin Cities

UMI Ann Arbor PIBS

UWisconsin Madison

University of Rochester

Albert Einstein CoM

SUNY Stony Brook

Columbia University

Duke University

WUSTL

Drexel University

UCincinnati Ohio

UW Seattle

[grad101]

Hey Serric!

Thanks for your first post. I saw that you are also applying to U Mich Ann Arbor PIBS program. I was wondering if you are going to their open house program in october?? I was thinking of going.

[tepidtenacity]

For me:

GPA: 3.6 (cumulative)/3.6 (major) from liberal arts college (tier 2 ivy)

---> double major, double minor, i dunno if that's a good excuse

GRE: 780Q/650V/? AW

3 months research experience in a top 5 lab

senior year research project at a midrange lab

Applying to programs in sysbio/computational bio focusing in protein structure prediction, modeling, or methods for measuring stochasticity.

Schools:

MIT

Harvard

Yale

Princeton

Washington University

some more, still looking

Plan on retaking the GRE, heard higher scores are good for financial aid. Plus thinking it was the same as SAT + no non-science course in 2 years + not studying at all = fail. Should get a higher vocab score the 2nd time around.

Two questions:

1) Do I have a snowball's chance in hell of getting in any of those?

2) Anyone else applying to compbio/sysbio programs going to take the subject GRE? It says optional...

[grad101]

I was thinking of taking subject GRE's but almost all of the programs I am applying says that they don't require it. Good stats tepidtenacity...you should have a chance at those schools.

[Katatonic]

Well, I feel like a horrible applicant after seeing all of your stats, but I'm also applying this year, without a whole lot of hope haha.

Major: Micro/Molecular Biology

GPA: 3.43 (3.6 major)

GRE: 1230 (560-V/670-Q)

Schools: OHSU, University of Washington, University of Oregon, Washington State University.

Experience: 1 year in a biochem lab (non-project, just a job), and a 10 week NIH internship (project-focused, poster presentation, and clinical research shadowing).

Most likely applying to dedicated Neuroscience programs, interested in neural development/plasticity/and neurodegenerative diseases.

[shannonista]

Hello,

Just as an intro to myself (with my stats, haha):

GREs: to be taken in three weeks :cry:

GPA: 3.6 from University of Toronto (I don't know how they would assess this)

Currently finishing up bachelors in Pharmacology, research experience from two labs(one genetics lab and one physiology lab, i've started less than a year ago and these are still ongoing), 4 lab courses

I am applying to biomedical sciences graduate programs for fall 2010 at:

U Penn

Hopkins

Cornell(Weill)

Columbia

NYU

USC

.... are these realistic for me ??? i'm already having nightmares.... and I'm thinking of applying for a couple more... suggestions?

[mydecipheredcode]

friends tell me my chances please

hello friends, I am glad on joining this proactive forum. I am not a native English speaker.

I have completed M.Sc. Biotechnology with a cgpa 4.88/6.0. I wish for a phD in biological science.

My undergraduate (plant biotech) course percentage is 76.

I have a year of research experience and two merit scholarship awards for my academic performance (one in undergrad program and the other in senior secondary school).

My GRE score is 1220 (V-540; Q-680; AW-3.0) ?

My toefl score is 99 (r-28; l-23; s-24 and w-24)

I have also completed a post graduate diploma course in bioinformatics.

My M.Sc. dissertation project was at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT-M).

I have registered for the gre in subject.

I am applying for the fall 2010 intake. I have shortlisted some universities. PLEASE do tell me my chances of doing a PhD in biological science (biochem, molecular cell biology, physiology, dev biology):

1)clemson university

2) syracuse university

3) kansas state university

4) university of maryland - baltimore

5) washington university in st. louis

6) west virginia university

7) tufts university (sackler school of biomed/ college of arts and science)

? brandeis university

9) university of texas health science centre at san antonio.

Please suggest me some other universities that you find to be apt for the above mentioned profile. Thank you in advance.

[nutmeg1284]

GPA: 3.23 cumulative/3.44 Jr/Sr year from a top 25 liberal arts college

GRE: 640 V(91%) 760 Q(86%) 5.0 AW(77%)

GRE Subject: Retaking in Oct

Research: 1yr during undergrad including internship at a well known research hospital

going on 2yrs now post graduation(07) working as a research associate for small biotechs

1 publication, possibly 1 more before apps are submitted

LORs: CSO of my current company, CEO of last company I worked at, professor I worked for as an undergrad

Schools: Harvard, UCSF, UCSD, Cornell Weill, UMass Medical, BU, Dartmouth, Tufts, Duke, WUSTL, maybe more

I know my GPA is on the low side, but I am hoping my research experience, scores, and LORs can offset that fact. The programs I am looking at are either umbrella programs or cancer biology/immunology. My internship was in a cancer lab and the two companies I have worked for since graduation have focused on autoimmune disease, with a lot of assay development work and some downstream target biology. Don't know if it helps or not, but my internship and two companies are affiliated with one of the schools I am applying to. Do I stand a chance at these schools?

[Viva]

Major: Marine and Atmospheric Science (essentially a double major in marine science and biology)

Minor: Chemistry

GPA: 3.96 cumulative / 3.94 major / 3.88 minor

GRE: 1320 (670V ; 650Q ; 5.0 A)

Schools I will be applying to: University of Washington - Seattle; Scripps Institution of Oceanography - UC San Diego; University of Alaska - Fairbanks; Texas A&M University - Galveston

Interests: Polar biology; neuroethology (two very disparate fields but I hope to unite them)

How do my prospects look?

Is anyone applying to or has been accepted by one of these institutions?

Thanks for your help.

[tepidtenacity]

Well, I've talked to a ton of professors trying to get as much out of them as I could about the app process, and I found out that general GREs mean nothing, and are only used as a filter (and apparently the cutoffs aren't too high), so I won't be retaking mine. Most of them also said the writing part didn't matter too much, as long as it wasn't atrociously bad.

nutmeg: You actually seem like a strong candidate to me. The only thing that might hurt you are programs pre-filtering based on GPA, as then they'll never see your research background. What journal did you publish in?

viva: lack of research might hurt you, but you have a mighty strong GPA. Don't really know the field so I don't know how much weight they put on research background.

Anyone know of any good structural bioinformaticists outside of Harvard, Yale, RPI, UCSF, UCSD, WashU, Hopkins, and UMich? Still trying to finalize my list of programs (way late, I know)

[AlexM451]

Hello everyone!

My stats are:

Major: Molecular & Cell Biology

Minor: Chemistry

GPA: 3.96 ("Public Ivy")

GRE: 750V/760Q/5.5AW

Research: 3 years in immunology/cell biology lab, currently drafting a paper (first author)

1 summer internship at Pfizer GRD in a flow cytometry lab, poster presentation.

Awards: Goldwater Scholarship, various grants, dean's list etc...

Applying to immunology/microbiology programs at:

Rockefeller

Columbia

Weill Cornell

Princeton

Harvard

MIT

Anyone know of any particularly good micro/immuno programs (especially focusing on host-pathogen relationship)?

Good luck everyone!

[cclangdell]

I think Q should be slightly higher.

[Serric]

On 9/2/2009 at 9:03 AM, grad101 said:

Hey Serric!

Thanks for your first post. I saw that you are also applying to U Mich Ann Arbor PIBS program. I was wondering if you are going to their open house program in october?? I was thinking of going.

Hey, sorry for the late reply, but I REALLY have to thank you. I read your message about the PIBS open house, found the PIBS PREVIEW weekend, applied...and am now getting a trip to Michigan to go to their PIBS PREVIEW weekend. Thanks again!!!

Also, does anybody know if an invite to a program like that definitely signifies anything beyond 'we want to help you strengthen your application,' considering it's an expenses-paid trip and they arrange meetings with faculty?

On 9/22/2009 at 11:43 AM, nutmeg1284 said:

Schools: Harvard, UCSF, UCSD, Cornell Weill, UMass Medical, BU, Dartmouth, Tufts, Duke, WUSTL maybe more

I know my GPA is on the low side, but I am hoping my research experience, scores, and LORs can offset that fact. The programs I am looking at are either umbrella programs or cancer biology/immunology. My internship was in a cancer lab and the two companies I have worked for since graduation have focused on autoimmune disease, with a lot of assay development work and some downstream target biology. Don't know if it helps or not, but my internship and two companies are affiliated with one of the schools I am applying to. Do I stand a chance at these schools?

Well, you could always e-mail the programs and ask. Research experience (at least from the general trend I've seen on this board and College Confidential) nearly always outweighs GPA; and I'm sure Belowthree would smack you for worry about your GPA

As for standing a chance at these schools, here's the link to Duke's graduate programs admissions stats: http://gradschool.duke.edu/about/stats.php. I'm not sure what program you're applying to, but the Cell/Molecular Biology umbrella program has an average GPA of 3.6. The good news is that Duke also uses a different grading system (on a 4.0 system, a B is a 3.0, a B- a 2.8, and a B+ a 3.4), and your GRE scores are all above the average they list. Plus at least one graduate student I've spoken to from there has said that Duke isn't as "number-happy" as some other schools.

[hamster09]

ok i feel rather embarassed after seeing all of ur stats....

but here is mine =(

Major: Biology at a UC

GRE: 670Q 520V 4AW (ran out of time on quant..fml)

Cum GPA: 3.94

Science GPA: 3.96

Research Experience:

1 year in a telomere lab with a publication at a undergrad journal

Summer Research in cancerbio lab as an Amgen Scholar got co authored 2 abstracts presented at 2 cancer research conference,

1 manuscript to be published in 2010

2 years in a immunology/cell signaling lab. got 2 grants for the project from an honors society and from my univ.

applying to Biomed programs/ pharmacology at:

UNC

yale

columbia

u mass medical

mount sinai

UCSF

NYU

UCI

SUNY Buffalo

Univ. of Rochester or USC.

[arseus]

Hi there,

Major: genetics

International student

Academics

GRE: 790Q, 720V, 5AW

Overall %: 87.5/100 (no gpa system)

Consistently first in class for three semesters. Going to receive 2 gold medals for academic excellence.

Research experience:

1 year, research project measuring fitness costs to acquired antibiotic resistance in bacterial populations.

2 months competitive internship at molecular biology/stem cells lab.

1st prize presenting a poster at an international conference

no publications yet

Princeton Molbio

WUSTL

PennState (genetics)

watson school of biological sciences

UNC chapel Hill (maybe)

you guys think i have a good shot at those schools?