Ask questions about the PhD application process!

[blc073]

7 minutes ago, Janiejoneswoah said:

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?

I would stick with one area. When describing your research, look for a common theme, then propose professors of interest in that area. In my SOP, I described projects all relating to cellular metabolism and cancer, then I said that I wanted to study autophagy in graduate school. When I listed faculty of interest, I chose three PIs who study autophagy to some extent. I think this is a good idea whether it's completely true or not. I was lucky and ended up rotating with one of the PIs I listed studying autophagy. 

[Neuro15]

15 minutes ago, blc073 said:

I would stick with one area. When describing your research, look for a common theme, then propose professors of interest in that area. In my SOP, I described projects all relating to cellular metabolism and cancer, then I said that I wanted to study autophagy in graduate school. When I listed faculty of interest, I chose three PIs who study autophagy to some extent. I think this is a good idea whether it's completely true or not. I was lucky and ended up rotating with one of the PIs I listed studying autophagy. 

On a related note, how in detail does one have to go when discussing PIs of interest? I structured my SOP in a way that leads up to a particular branch of neuroscience, and then I list profs in that area at the school. I really don't go into detail on each prof though, I pretty much just list them and then go on to say why the school would be a good fit. 

[blc073]

3 minutes ago, Neuro15 said:

On a related note, how in detail does one have to go when discussing PIs of interest? I structured my SOP in a way that leads up to a particular branch of neuroscience, and then I list profs in that area at the school. I really don't go into detail on each prof though, I pretty much just list them and then go on to say why the school would be a good fit. 

I briefly mentioned what they study as a way to connect it to my interests. I said something like, "From professor X, who studies selective autophagy in yeast, to professor Y, who studies autophagy in cancer, there a many faculty with whom I could work." 

[Neuro15]

5 minutes ago, blc073 said:

I briefly mentioned what they study as a way to connect it to my interests. I said something like, "From professor X, who studies selective autophagy in yeast, to professor Y, who studies autophagy in cancer, there a many faculty with whom I could work." 

Gotcha, yeah that's a good idea. Thanks man 

[PRR]

For the helpful graduate students that hang around this thread, would any of you guys be willing to look over my SOP draft before I show it to my PI and other professors?

A lot of schools are asking for a Personal Statement + a Research statement, and some ask for just one big SOP. What I wrote is basically aone big SOP, which I'm going to split into personal and research statement/ re-edit and cut down words to fit the limit of school that ask for one SOP.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!If you are willing to, please let me know and I'll PM you it!

[Bioenchilada]

8 hours ago, Diapers said:

For the helpful graduate students that hang around this thread, would any of you guys be willing to look over my SOP draft before I show it to my PI and other professors?

A lot of schools are asking for a Personal Statement + a Research statement, and some ask for just one big SOP. What I wrote is basically aone big SOP, which I'm going to split into personal and research statement/ re-edit and cut down words to fit the limit of school that ask for one SOP.

Any feedback would be greatly appreciated!If you are willing to, please let me know and I'll PM you it!

I can take a look at it

[VoidInColor]

Just a quick question. For applications that ask for resume, and don't mention a CV, I should submit a resume despite a cv being far more descriptive, right? Or do they really not care that much?

[Edotdl]

1 hour ago, VoidInColor said:

Just a quick question. For applications that ask for resume, and don't mention a CV, I should submit a resume despite a cv being far more descriptive, right? Or do they really not care that much?

I think I submitted a CV for all my schools, I don't see why they'd care much.

[VoidInColor]

Ok, thanks. Everyone here is so helpful   I also had a question about my planned structure for my SOP. The way it's looking now, it's going to be the thing I like and how I got interested-> why this program is a great place to study the thing->what I've done (research etc.) to be qualified to study the thing. Most of the prompts for the schools I'm applying to say something along the lines of "Describe your motivations and qualifications for attending graduate school." I've seen some conflicting advice about whether a story in the introduction is a good idea or if you should just get straight to the point. The thing is, I'm interested in parasitology and every time I mention that to a professor or adviser, the first question they ask is how I got interested in the field, which requires a brief story about 9th grade biology. Then they get surprised I've suck with it for 7+ years. So it seems like it might actually be a useful contribution to an SOP, since professors all seem to want to hear it. Am I going down the wrong path here? 

[myhairtiebroke]

I took one course at the NIH while I was there as a postbac. I plan on entering it into my applications, along with the unofficial transcript. However, it was only one course so my GPA is "0." This won't reflect negatively, right? I feel like admissions committees will understand the situation when they see the transcript (I got an A), and that I was only enrolled for 3 months. However, I'm worried because I've heard programs may automatically reject applications below a certain GPA or GRE threshold, so my application may not even be looked at. Is there any truth to that?

 

Edited November 22, 2016 by myhairtiebroke

[Edotdl]

2 hours ago, myhairtiebroke said:

I took one course at the NIH while I was there as a postbac. I plan on entering it into my applications, along with the unofficial transcript. However, it was only one course so my GPA is "0." This won't reflect negatively, right? I feel like admissions committees will understand the situation when they see the transcript (I got an A), and that I was only enrolled for 3 months. However, I'm worried because I've heard programs may automatically reject applications below a certain GPA or GRE threshold, so my application may not even be looked at. Is there any truth to that?

 

I'm not sure why one course means a GPA of 0. If you are entering the GPA yourself I would just put a 4.0 (or whatever an A is on the grading scale". 

[LoveMysterious]

On 9/15/2016 at 5:40 PM, biotechie said:

I did NOT contact PIs before I was admitted, but I made some areas I was interested in clear. Most schools also ask you to mention some PIs you'd be interested in, and they often try and see if they're available to interview with if you are awarded an interview spot. This can lead to rotations later on if you go to that school. So study up on PIs! Your study should include searching for them on NIH to see if they're well funded and looking at their PubMed publications (not on school websites because those rarely update)

I know others do contact PIs and have had positive results, but often PIs are so busy they won't spend much time on students not yet enrolled or interviewing.

I would not say they don't care for personal narratives. I think they don't want to hear sob stories or listen to poor excuses for previous failure, which this is not. One important part of your application and ultimately YOU as a scientist is going to be what makes you tick, and they need to see that. You should absolutely discuss it. Feel free to PM me if you want to discuss further.

Hi @biotechie! Thank's for the response. I've got a solid draft of my SOP done and I think I've got a good strategy to acknowledge this. Would you mind if I PMed you? 

[myhairtiebroke]

3 hours ago, Edotdl said:

I'm not sure why one course means a GPA of 0. If you are entering the GPA yourself I would just put a 4.0 (or whatever an A is on the grading scale". 

It's a 4.0 scale. I don't know why it's 0 either, but 0 is what's listed on my transcript.

[biotechie]

On November 22, 2016 at 6:55 PM, LoveMysterious said:

Hi @biotechie! Thank's for the response. I've got a solid draft of my SOP done and I think I've got a good strategy to acknowledge this. Would you mind if I PMed you? 

Sure, no problem. Sorry for the delayed response; the lab prep to be gone for Thanksgiving was insane!

[Neuro15]

Hey everyone, perhaps a slightly neurotic question here: For NYU, they have an optional personal history component in their app that states:

" The purpose of this optional essay is to get to know you as an individual and as a potential graduate student, and to understand how your background will add to the diversity of our school. Please describe how your personal background has motivated you to pursue a graduate degree. You may discuss educational, familial, cultural, socioeconomic, or personal experiences or challenges; gender identity; community services, outreach services, first-generation college status or other matters relevant to your decision to pursue graduate education."

Why I want to pursue grad school in an intellectual sense is addressed in my SOP. I could address other reasons in a PS but I don't know if they'd be particularly noteworthy or strong reasons haha. So, question is: is the PS truly "Optional"? Or would I be shooting myself in the foot by not doing it?

[Edotdl]

57 minutes ago, Neuro15 said:

Hey everyone, perhaps a slightly neurotic question here: For NYU, they have an optional personal history component in their app that states:

" The purpose of this optional essay is to get to know you as an individual and as a potential graduate student, and to understand how your background will add to the diversity of our school. Please describe how your personal background has motivated you to pursue a graduate degree. You may discuss educational, familial, cultural, socioeconomic, or personal experiences or challenges; gender identity; community services, outreach services, first-generation college status or other matters relevant to your decision to pursue graduate education."

Why I want to pursue grad school in an intellectual sense is addressed in my SOP. I could address other reasons in a PS but I don't know if they'd be particularly noteworthy or strong reasons haha. So, question is: is the PS truly "Optional"? Or would I be shooting myself in the foot by not doing it?

IIRC my Berkeley app had something similar. From what I've heard, they're generally used to see if you qualify for funding from additional sources (eg. diversity initiatives). If you don't have a lot to write, just write something short. The SOP will address why you want to pursue grad school from an academic POV, while the PS allows you to add a more personal perspective (eg. expanding on personal anecdotes).

[LoveMysterious]

3 minutes ago, Edotdl said:

IIRC my Berkeley app had something similar. From what I've heard, they're generally used to see if you qualify for funding from additional sources (eg. diversity initiatives). If you don't have a lot to write, just write something short. The SOP will address why you want to pursue grad school from an academic POV, while the PS allows you to add a more personal perspective (eg. expanding on personal anecdotes).

I had diversity statements in two of my applications (NYU and Northwestern DGP). I would definitely do them. This is your time to address your personal narrative and tell the adcom what makes you unique as an individual. Other people will be writing potentially powerful narratives and I think you're at a disadvantage if you don't write one. Even if it matters only a tiny bit, it could make a different in terms of making your application memorable and compelling. 

[VoidInColor]

I'm not sure if this is where I should ask, but I'll give it a shot anyway. Does anyone have advice on how to accept an interview offer? Writing professional emails has to be one of the most stressful things in my life.

[Edotdl]

6 minutes ago, VoidInColor said:

I'm not sure if this is where I should ask, but I'll give it a shot anyway. Does anyone have advice on how to accept an interview offer? Writing professional emails has to be one of the most stressful things in my life.

I kept mine fairly brief, something along the lines of "I would be delighted to visit XXX". Don't overthink it, there's no need to stress. Just be polite and let them know you're excited to visit.

[VirologyPhDinTraining]

4 hours ago, VoidInColor said:

I'm not sure if this is where I should ask, but I'll give it a shot anyway. Does anyone have advice on how to accept an interview offer? Writing professional emails has to be one of the most stressful things in my life.

All but one of the programs I interviewed at sent out forms you fill out, which makes it a lot easier.

[aquamarine]

random, but are you expected to buy gifts for your recommenders? I planned on writing a thank you card but I wasn't sure if gifts of some sort were customary.

[SysEvo]

12 minutes ago, britt2017 said:

random, but are you expected to buy gifts for your recommenders? I planned on writing a thank you card but I wasn't sure if gifts of some sort were customary.

I'm quite close with my recommenders so last time I sent them gift as a way to say goodbye. I'll definitely send my current mentor a Christmas gift, and maybe buy the other two beers next year when I'm leaving.

[aquamarine]

8 minutes ago, SysEvo said:

I'm quite close with my recommenders so last time I sent them gift as a way to say goodbye. I'll definitely send my current mentor a Christmas gift, and maybe buy the other two beers next year when I'm leaving.

What did you get them last time?

[SysEvo]

1 minute ago, britt2017 said:

What did you get them last time?

I applied two years ago. 

[Neuro15]

26 minutes ago, britt2017 said:

random, but are you expected to buy gifts for your recommenders? I planned on writing a thank you card but I wasn't sure if gifts of some sort were customary.

 

You certainly don't have to but it's a nice gesture. I'm close with all of mine so I'm going to get them something once I find out where I will be going. Two of my recommenders like reminders of where their mentees end up so I'm most likely getting them a mug/thermos with the school's emblem and a gift card to a local coffee place.

This also depends on who your recommender is. For some people, a nice card with a thoughtful message of thanks and gratitude would be plenty.