Ask questions about the PhD application process!

[biochemgirl67]

On 10/21/2016 at 3:56 PM, Born-to-pipette said:

Perf so pretty much getting an interview at a larger institution is a good indication of admission status, as long as one doesn't screw it up haha 

You're trying to generalize too much... just do your best on your interviews and you'll be fine.  Trying to plan with percentage points will drive you insane my friend.

[Born-to-pipette]

1 hour ago, biochemgirl67 said:

You're trying to generalize too much... just do your best on your interviews and you'll be fine.  Trying to plan with percentage points will drive you insane my friend.

Very true. Something I've learned in this process hahaha. At this point, I'm just working on my essays and hoping for the best ?

[biochemgirl67]

5 hours ago, Born-to-pipette said:

Very true. Something I've learned in this process hahaha. At this point, I'm just working on my essays and hoping for the best ?

That's all you can do.  Chillax and try not to drive yourself insane.

You have 5-6 years ahead of you with which to drive yourself crazy.  Just bank on the fact that you is SMART, you is KIND, and you is IMPORTANT.  It'll come through in your interviews.  That goes for everybody on here!

[Born-to-pipette]

8 hours ago, biochemgirl67 said:

That's all you can do.  Chillax and try not to drive yourself insane.

You have 5-6 years ahead of you with which to drive yourself crazy.  Just bank on the fact that you is SMART, you is KIND, and you is IMPORTANT.  It'll come through in your interviews.  That goes for everybody on here!

^ snaps 

y'all are wonderful voices of reason!  

[LoveMysterious]

On 9/19/2016 at 11:49 AM, biochemgirl67 said:

I'm waiting for my FBS to thaw so I thought I'd chime in.

I love LOVE Vanderbilt.  The research here is so interesting to me and the faculty here have amazing connections to all the other top institutions.  Everything is disease-focused, either from a basic science standpoint or closer to translational research, all of which was something that I did not have in my undergrad.  I could go on for forever about how amazing I think Vanderbilt and it's medical center and the IGP program are, but I really want to focus on the other part of your question.

I feel like it's not the city that makes the research different, it's the institution.  For instance, when I spent the summer at Harvard, I was dumbstruck with the quality of research ideas that flowed through that place.  It was vibrant, it was bustling, and all the researchers had this underlying sense of urgency to investigate and it truly was an intellectual powerhouse.  However, I had some experiences personally that showed the flip side to that (which is not to say that these experiences are pervasive at all at that institution, just an anecdote) which saw my PI and the others he "collaborated" with as fierce competitors.  The labs weren't tense, but relations among faculty in that particular division were.  I knew that I wanted that vibrant research atmosphere more than anything, which wasn't present at my undergrad.  My undergrad mentor was letting her lab die off, which was an issue and contributed to me feeling less than excited about research in basic science-only institutions.  However, Princeton is a good example of an institution that does basic science solely but really is a leader.  I wanted disease focus, so I stayed away from institutions like my undergrad.

Research here has been much faster pace, a much steeper learning curve, and more interesting than my undergrad projects.  The PIs are motivated, enthusiastic, and well-connected.  All in all, the institution is what has made the difference in the research environment, not the city.

That being said, I LOVE NASHVILLE.  It's so funky downtown (not the tourist part but all the other parts) and there are so many concerts.  I'm really into theater and alternative music (great combo, I know) and there has been a huge Shakespeare festival going on and there's always alt rock bands coming in.  And there's some really awesome hiking, cliff diving, canoeing, and camping sites within a 20 minute drive of the campus.  But then again, remember, I'm not a city girl.  I like to have it accessible but I grew up in the Midwest with a literal cornfield in my backyard, so I like space to breathe.

And the weather's bomb here, which can't be said for the Northeast. *Shots fired*  (I'm kidding.  Sort of... in New England they get an INSANE amount of snow at once... when we lived in the Boston area it could be 1-2 feet at once, at least 2x a month November - March/April.)

@biochemgirl67, would you mind if I PMed you with a couple of questions about Vanderbilt IGP's application? I am planning to apply  . 

[biochemgirl67]

14 hours ago, LoveMysterious said:

@biochemgirl67, would you mind if I PMed you with a couple of questions about Vanderbilt IGP's application? I am planning to apply  . 

Sure!  That'd be totally fine.

[Butterfly_effect]

If anyone is interested in neuroscience or programs at Harvard, I'd be happy to talk. PM me. 

[Neuro15]

Got a question for y'all about my PS/SoP. Many programs ask that you demonstrate "why neuroscience?" as your intended program choice. Well, I didn't really even think of neuroscience until the Spring of my senior year (2015) when I took physiology and learned about the Retina. Since then (so currently a year and a half) I've been a tech full-time in a retinal neuroscience lab which has only reassured myself that neuroscience (especially sensory neuro) is what I want to do. I'm a bit worried that adcoms will think I'm not committed enough to neuro because 1.) I didn't take any neuro-related courses in undergrad, and 2.) I didn't do neuro-related research until my tech job (I did cancer bio research in undergrad). Any thoughts on how to phrase this in my SoP to allay any adcom concerns? Thanks!

[Bioenchilada]

45 minutes ago, Neuro15 said:

Got a question for y'all about my PS/SoP. Many programs ask that you demonstrate "why neuroscience?" as your intended program choice. Well, I didn't really even think of neuroscience until the Spring of my senior year (2015) when I took physiology and learned about the Retina. Since then (so currently a year and a half) I've been a tech full-time in a retinal neuroscience lab which has only reassured myself that neuroscience (especially sensory neuro) is what I want to do. I'm a bit worried that adcoms will think I'm not committed enough to neuro because 1.) I didn't take any neuro-related courses in undergrad, and 2.) I didn't do neuro-related research until my tech job (I did cancer bio research in undergrad). Any thoughts on how to phrase this in my SoP to allay any adcom concerns? Thanks!

You don't need experiece in the field you're going into to be a strong candidate for a specific program. Just make sure to state how each experience made you grow scientifically and how your exposure to neuro then led you to apply your skills to a neuro setting. 

[biochemgirl67]

1 hour ago, Neuro15 said:

Got a question for y'all about my PS/SoP. Many programs ask that you demonstrate "why neuroscience?" as your intended program choice. Well, I didn't really even think of neuroscience until the Spring of my senior year (2015) when I took physiology and learned about the Retina. Since then (so currently a year and a half) I've been a tech full-time in a retinal neuroscience lab which has only reassured myself that neuroscience (especially sensory neuro) is what I want to do. I'm a bit worried that adcoms will think I'm not committed enough to neuro because 1.) I didn't take any neuro-related courses in undergrad, and 2.) I didn't do neuro-related research until my tech job (I did cancer bio research in undergrad). Any thoughts on how to phrase this in my SoP to allay any adcom concerns? Thanks!

Also, you could apply to some interdisciplinary/umbrella programs that have a neuro track.  But otherwise, you'll be totally fine because a year and a half of experience is great!

[Neuro15]

21 minutes ago, biochemgirl67 said:

Also, you could apply to some interdisciplinary/umbrella programs that have a neuro track.  But otherwise, you'll be totally fine because a year and a half of experience is great!

 

1 hour ago, Bioenchilada said:

You don't need experiece in the field you're going into to be a strong candidate for a specific program. Just make sure to state how each experience made you grow scientifically and how your exposure to neuro then led you to apply your skills to a neuro setting. 

 

Perfect, thanks a lot you two!

[pitchfork]

Hey all, I have another question. For the schools that requires a research statement in addition to the personal statement, would you still talk about your growth as a scientist from each research experience? Or do you stick strictly to the science you've done and save all the rest for the personal statement. Thanks!

[Bioenchilada]

12 minutes ago, pitchfork said:

Hey all, I have another question. For the schools that requires a research statement in addition to the personal statement, would you still talk about your growth as a scientist from each research experience? Or do you stick strictly to the science you've done and save all the rest for the personal statement. Thanks!

The latter. 

[blc073]

16 hours ago, Bioenchilada said:

The latter. 

Agreed. 

I would even argue that a research statement should be about a single experience, unless noted otherwise. When you apply to jobs or other research positions, you will be asked for a research statement in which you describe your best experience and how you would continue it (if you are applying for jobs, it will be your current research, but for this it can be your best experience). This is a beautiful opportunity to show them that you have the brains to be a scientist. Describe how you got into the project, what the project is, what the goals were, what you did specifically, any conceptual contributions, how you handled failure, results, and future directions. 

In the personal statement, you can add all the personal BS people like to talk about, but you can also discuss briefly other research experiences. 

 

[Bioenchilada]

9 minutes ago, blc073 said:

Agreed. 

I would even argue that a research statement should be about a single experience, unless noted otherwise. When you apply to jobs or other research positions, you will be asked for a research statement in which you describe your best experience and how you would continue it (if you are applying for jobs, it will be your current research, but for this it can be your best experience). This is a beautiful opportunity to show them that you have the brains to be a scientist. Describe how you got into the project, what the project is, what the goals were, what you did specifically, any conceptual contributions, how you handled failure, results, and future directions. 

In the personal statement, you can add all the personal BS people like to talk about, but you can also discuss briefly other research experiences. 

 

While that might work, I believe this person might be talking about Penn's research statement, which tells you to describe your research preparation. If you had multiple experiences, I think it's best to discuss all of them since you have more than enough space to be slightly more descriptive in each than in the SOP. 

[blc073]

4 minutes ago, Bioenchilada said:

While that might work, I believe this person might be talking about Penn's research statement, which tells you to describe your research preparation. If you had multiple experiences, I think it's best to discuss all of them since you have more than enough space to be slightly more descriptive in each than in the SOP. 

If it asks about research preparation, I still think describing one experience in incredible detail is better than describing several. One amazing experience is better than three good experiences. 

 

[Bioenchilada]

3 minutes ago, blc073 said:

If it asks about research preparation, I still think describing one experience in incredible detail is better than describing several. One amazing experience is better than three good experiences. 

 

Yeah, but it's a research statement, not a proposal. Even professors can give a 10 minute talk about their research when they can spend hours doing so. The ability to concisely depict your research in an eloquent manner and know it's broader impacts is one that every graduate student should have. Besides, I don't think there's any benefit into getting too technical in a research statement. 

PS. The document tells you to describe all research experiences. 

[blc073]

1 minute ago, Bioenchilada said:

Yeah, but it's a research statement, not a proposal. Even professors can give a 10 minute talk about their research when they can spend hours doing so. The ability to concisely depict your research in an eloquent manner and know it's broader impacts is one that every graduate student should have. Besides, I don't think there's any benefit into getting too technical in a research statement. 

PS. The document tells you to describe all research experiences. 

If it tells you to describe all of your research, then obviously do that. However, I still believe the majority of the essay should focus on a single experience. 

[pitchfork]

Thank you both so much! 4 of the places that I'm applying to actually require research statements. Some of them asks specifically for "experiences" in their prompt and others places such as Penn, like Bioenchilada said, give me the option of describing multiple experiences. I think I'll expand what I have on my most recent experience and make sure to really get that across, since it's also the most relevant and the one where I played the biggest role. 

For places that ask for an SOP, how detailed did you guys get with your research? I've heard some people saying that with an SOP you want the research section of the essay to show personal growth as a scientist rather than an actual description of your research work. What do you guys think?

[Bioenchilada]

1 hour ago, pitchfork said:

Thank you both so much! 4 of the places that I'm applying to actually require research statements. Some of them asks specifically for "experiences" in their prompt and others places such as Penn, like Bioenchilada said, give me the option of describing multiple experiences. I think I'll expand what I have on my most recent experience and make sure to really get that across, since it's also the most relevant and the one where I played the biggest role. 

For places that ask for an SOP, how detailed did you guys get with your research? I've heard some people saying that with an SOP you want the research section of the essay to show personal growth as a scientist rather than an actual description of your research work. What do you guys think?

For your SOP you should focus on big picture stuff. Give enough detail about your experience just so the adcom knows that you know what you're talking about, but also make sure that you talk about how your experience helped you grow. Focusing on the technical stuff alone is bad, and beating around the bush with your personal experiences about the research is also bad. It's all about a balance.  

 

PS. I think you have more than enough space to focus on your most relevant one, but stil describe your other experiences. In my experience, not many adcoms read your CV, so this is the place to tell them you did something more than your main project. 

Edited November 17, 2016 by Bioenchilada

[pitchfork]

51 minutes ago, Bioenchilada said:

For your SOP you should focus on big picture stuff. Give enough detail about your experience just so the adcom knows that you know what you're talking about, but also make sure that you talk about how your experience helped you grow. Focusing on the technical stuff alone is bad, and beating around the bush with your personal experiences about the research is also bad. It's all about a balance.  

 

PS. I think you have more than enough space to focus on your most relevant one, but stil describe your other experiences. In my experience, not many adcoms read your CV, so this is the place to tell them you did something more than your main project. 

Great! Just want to make sure I was doing what I was supposed to do before I wrap up. Thank you for your suggestions!

[CoffeeFueledAnxiety]

Hi everyone, my question is a bit more technical. Since some programs put 500 words limit yet still ask for all research experience, I am struggling to fit everything into the limit and have receives some suggestions to use bullet points to at least remove some transitional and filler words smoothly. Is it okay to use bullet points to mention my research experiences with one or two sentences explanation for each? 

Thanks!

[Bioenchilada]

9 minutes ago, IndoGenic said:

Hi everyone, my question is a bit more technical. Since some programs put 500 words limit yet still ask for all research experience, I am struggling to fit everything into the limit and have receives some suggestions to use bullet points to at least remove some transitional and filler words smoothly. Is it okay to use bullet points to mention my research experiences with one or two sentences explanation for each? 

Thanks!

Not really. Using bullet points is not an acceptable format for writing an essay. Look for a way to make your explanations more concise. 

[CoffeeFueledAnxiety]

1 minute ago, Bioenchilada said:

Not really. Using bullet points is not an acceptable format for writing an essay. Look for a way to make your explanations more concise. 

Okay, that's what I suspected, too.. Thanks! 

[Janiejoneswoah]

When discussing research interests/professors that you'd like to work with, do you think it's better to stick to roughly one specialization (eg addiction, brain injury) and talk about ~3 professors in that area, or to talk about a variety of interests mentioning professors in different fields? I'm torn - on the one hand, I actually DO have broad interests, but on the other, staying specific to one topic allows you to more credibly cater an SOP to a school (i.e. a school with a ton of addiction research gets a paragraph talking about why addiction research is fun). Thoughts?