2017 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[book2readme]

1 hour ago, Nick1452 said:

Anyone hear from Mt Sinai, they told us they wanted to send out today but nothing so far? 

 

 

Ugh, not yet. When did you interview?

[Bubbles_L]

On 1/30/2017 at 12:06 PM, KR Marksmen said:

First Interview this weekend at WashU. Any tips or advice you guys have learned from the interview season?

I think the most important thing is to be prepared for your own research experience. So far, I think most faculty will not ask much about the details, but be prepared! I asked about the program, their opportunities, asked about potential areas I want to learn about but haven't got experience thus far... It is really like you are also interview them when they are interviewing you... That was a skype interview, I think onsite interview would make interaction more possible, and that's the good thing.

BTW, when are you interviewing WUSTL exactly? I will also have my onsite interview(first onsite!) at WashU. Very looking forward to it.

[KR Marksmen]

On 1/30/2017 at 10:01 PM, Bubbles_L said:

I think the most important thing is to be prepared for your own research experience. So far, I think most faculty will not ask much about the details, but be prepared! I asked about the program, their opportunities, asked about potential areas I want to learn about but haven't got experience thus far... It is really like you are also interview them when they are interviewing you... That was a skype interview, I think onsite interview would make interaction more possible, and that's the good thing.

BTW, when are you interviewing WUSTL exactly? I will also have my onsite interview(first onsite!) at WashU. Very looking forward to it.

Thanks! This weekend! Good luck on your interviews.

[juhuatai]

6 hours ago, seventwo said:

accepted to Chicago! now I can relax, good luck to everyone else!

wait how? the first interview weekend is 2/9?

edit: didn't see cancer bio my apologies

Edited January 31, 2017 by juhuatai

[HerrDoktor]

Hey all, very late to the show here but I just wanted to add my stats should future applicants search for information about the programs I've interviewed with/been accepted at

Undergrad Institution: Ivy
Major(s): Microbiology
Minor(s): -
GPA in Major: ~3.9
Overall GPA: ~3.9
Position in Class: Close to top - Dean's List every semester
Type of Student: Domestic

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 170
V: 164
W: 6.0
B: -

Research Experience: 

• Three years of research in a plant pathology lab, including one summer as an REU student; one manuscript in progress, will probably have enough data for a first author by the end of undergrad
• One summer as a DAAD-RISE intern in an applied molecular biology lab

To be honest I didn't consider my research experience to be terribly strong (especially relative to a lot of other applicants I've met) so I'm a little surprised at how well things have been going

Awards/Honors/Recognition: Dean's List (multiple semesters), Pädadgogischer Austauschdienst Study Trip Prize

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

• Extremely involved in a national STEM competition for middle and high school students as a tournament organizer
• Involved in other science education/outreach efforts on campus
• General microbiology lab TA
• Started an undergraduate microbiology organization

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: I think I hit everything?

Special Bonus Points: Got a recommendation letter from a PI who is quite well-known in environmental microbiology

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

Applying to Where:
Results are up to date as of 1.31.17

• UC Berkeley PMB (accepted)
• University of Georgia Microbiology (accepted)
• Stanford Earth System Science (interview, going in a few weeks)
• USC Marine Environmental Biology (interview, going in a few weeks)
• UW-Madison MDTP (interview, going in a few weeks)
• MIT Microbiology (interview, turned down their offer)
• Michigan State Microbiology and Molecular Genetics (never heard back - might have forgotten to send in official transcripts)

Edited January 31, 2017 by HerrDoktor
awkward sentence structure

[HerrDoktor]

On 1/28/2017 at 4:10 PM, Cryptochrometime said:

Has anyone heard back from UCBERKELEY PMB since their interview weekend?

@Cryptochrometime I heard back earlier today - wishing you the best!

[CRYTIME]

I was wondering when is it ok to email the Program Director asking if the acceptances have been sent out? Thanks guys!

[Nnnm]

13 hours ago, seventwo said:

accepted to Chicago! now I can relax, good luck to everyone else!

Which program?? 

[alpraz]

Has anybody heard from the University of Colorado-Denver Anschutz Immunology program? 

[sivis]

On 1/13/2017 at 6:43 AM, IndianGirl said:

How did the interview go? Did you get the final decision email yet?

Whoops sorry, been out of the country and trying to not think too much about results haha. My interview isn't until this Friday so I'm not expecting a decision for another few weeks at least. 

[alpraz]

9 hours ago, Cryptochrometime said:

I was wondering when is it ok to email the Program Director asking if the acceptances have been sent out? Thanks guys!

Wondering this as well!

[virionoftomorrow]

12 hours ago, HerrDoktor said:

Applying to Where:
Results are up to date as of 1.31.17

• University of Georgia Microbiology (accepted)

UGA Micro hasn't even had their recruitment weekend yet, when/how did you hear you were accepted?

[DGD4L]

Just got accepted to Loyola Chicago IPBS at the medical school! First acceptance and it's a good one.

[HerrDoktor]

1 hour ago, virionoftomorrow said:

UGA Micro hasn't even had their recruitment weekend yet, when/how did you hear you were accepted?

I received an acceptance letter in the mail from the Graduate School at UGA about a week or so ago.

[cosiva]

Just got into Univ of Michigan PIBS - CMB!

[meioticmadness]

Northwestern IBiS acceptance!

[gojira1990]

Hey guys! Anyone who got interviewed at Mount Sinai for their Biomed grad program hear anything back? I am anxiously waiting!

 

 

[fitzgradschool]

On 1/30/2017 at 3:34 PM, nile red said:

Hey is anybody interviewing at Emory this weekend?

I'm interviewing for Emory BCDB on the 2/23-2/25... don't know if its the same interview group

[loveandcookies]

I'm waiting on post-interview notification from NYU Sackler. Someone already got an acceptance!

[biotechie]

19 hours ago, Cryptochrometime said:

I was wondering when is it ok to email the Program Director asking if the acceptances have been sent out? Thanks guys!

You should avoid doing this post-interview unless it has been a very long time, but you SHOULD send thank you notes to the people and students that you talked to, maybe asking questions about the program, too. This shows interest without sounding desperate, and helps them remember you. 

You also have to remember that sometimes it takes the admissions committees 2-3 weeks to get together to meet after interviews. Even if the committee meets, some schools wait until after ALL interviews are complete to do acceptances/ waitlist/ reject. They also are only allowed to have so many acceptance offers out at a time, so they may wait to let higher ranked students know they're on the wait list if there's a chance they can offer them acceptance instead of wait list.

If you interviewed near mid-January, and you don't hear anything by the end of February, it might be worth checking with the admissions coordinator on the status of your application. I wouldn't bother the director unless you can't get through to the coordinator. Most schools know when the committee will be meeting to discuss applications and what the timeline is for notification. It is okay to ask about this at your interview so you don't have to stress yourself out waiting for news; we had students asking at ours.

[virionoftomorrow]

9 hours ago, HerrDoktor said:

I received an acceptance letter in the mail from the Graduate School at UGA about a week or so ago.

Ha, so did I apparently, I just haven't checked my mail in awhile. I wonder why they invite you to the recruitment through email and tell you that you've been accepted in a letter completely separately. Confusing. I guess I'll see you this weekend!

[book2readme]

14 hours ago, gojira1990 said:

Hey guys! Anyone who got interviewed at Mount Sinai for their Biomed grad program hear anything back? I am anxiously waiting!

So far, no one has. We are all waiting, haha

 

 

[Pepperoni]

2 interviews down, 1 to go, no word from any of the schools otherwise except a reject from NW

 

[CRYTIME]

How would you approach a rejection from a school you interviewed at? Should I email them and ask if they have any paticular reasons or improvements?

[Janiejoneswoah]

36 minutes ago, Cryptochrometime said:

How would you approach a rejection from a school you interviewed at? Should I email them and ask if they have any paticular reasons or improvements?

That's what I tried. They basically just said it was a super competitive year, don't be too hard on yourself etc... Even if you don't get any useful information, it doesn't hurt and you never know what you'll find out. It really sucks to get rejected at this stage without knowing why, especially with everybody saying acceptance rates are 60-90%, so I totally sympathize with you.