Admission to PhD after getting an MS

[jd1828]

I recently accepted an offer for a MS in chemistry and I am starting to consider my options for after I finish my degree. Ive been told by faculty that with an MS I can pretty much expect to be accepted to almost any PhD program. Is this true or are they just telling me what I want to hear?

[errjun]

Most of the MS programs I looked at (biomed engineering) have a review during your 2nd year. If you are still in the program by that point, youre doing well enough, so theyll usually admit you to the PhD program.

As far as outside your MS school, thatll probably be harder becuase you have to apply again, but you should have great Letters of rec by that point...

[khushi.ban]

Just knowing that you know what graduate school is really like, and the fact that you have proven research experience higher than the little projects undergrads do (I'm assuming here that you have a MS with thesis), you are a very attractive candidate for a PhD program. The size of the graduating class from any PhD is so much smaller than the matriculating class because most undergrads don't really know much about the graduate student life. They often get bored, or depressed or just impatient with all the hard work for such little pay. So yeah, since you know what grad school is like and are willing to go through it again shows that you must really like doing research and are not likely to drop out midway. I'm in the same position as you are, and I've talked to a few of my profs. They told me that I have a good chance of getting into any program in the country. And it will help you even more if you can take the Subject GRE and get anything above a 50th percentile. I think your chances are quite good.

And since you have done research, you should have some idea of what you want to do in terms of research for your PhD. So read professors' research papers and email them about it. Ask to meet them if the school isn't too far away. Then if they do invite you, definitely go visit. It will help your case a lot if you can make a good impression (i.e. know what you are talking about, are able to fluently discuss your research, your career aims etc.)

[luvalicious]

Having a Masters - or otherwise doing graduate-level coursework and performing well - will probably make you a stronger candidate, but it won't guarantee you a spot, anywhere. I am certain that my MA coursework got me into all the places I applied, but I was one of the few MA students who applied to PhD-granting programs this year and and was accepted.

[khushi.ban]

Having a Masters - or otherwise doing graduate-level coursework and performing well - will probably make you a stronger candidate, but it won't guarantee you a spot, anywhere. I am certain that my MA coursework got me into all the places I applied, but I was one of the few MA students who applied to PhD-granting programs this year and and was accepted.

That depends on what field you have your MA in. In the sciences, and especially in the biological sciences, or in Chemistry or even in Physics, a prior graduate degree means that you have proven skills in the lab. That's very important because a lot of 4.0 GPA kids come into the field of the research and are somehow just not good at conducting experiments. So any field where significant lab work is part of the PhD research, prior successful lab experience at the grad school level is a huge plus.