Genetic Counseling Fall 2018 Applicants

[lilmaz]

4 hours ago, lilmaz said:

I know it's SUPER early, but part of my coping process is to focus on the things I can control. Would anyone appreciate me starting a new Genetic Counseling 2019 thread? I feel like as more and more people know about the field and lurk on the thread there might be a lot of future applicants or returning applicants who missed this years application process or didn't get interviews (me lol) that want to talk about next year but don't want to bog down the excitement of all the people getting interviews and worrying about match still. Just an idea, some of us might not be mentally ready to start thinking about next year , but, getting tips now that could help applicants have 12 months of volunteering or counseling experience vs. 8 when  application deadlines come back around could make a difference! So if you'd be interested like this post and I'll make one!

Here is the link for the Fall 2019 thread for anyone who has their sights set on next year already! 

https://forum.thegradcafe.com/topic/101155-genetic-counseling-fall-2019-applicants/

 

[hfj23]

7 minutes ago, Blizzard said:

All of you who are getting lots of interviews, i'm curios--how are you making it work with your life? Any secrets/suggestions for flight searching, or scheduling secrets you've learned? Are you flying in in the morning and out at night, or staying 2 days at these places? What are you telling your bosses when you tell them you basically need a WEEK off? haha I'm nervous to break the news to my boss today, and it must be done...

I have driven/am planning to drive to all interviews so scheduling flights isn't a problem but this is exhausting (not complaining though lol). I am still a student and am lucky enough to work at my university so my supervisors have been totally understanding about grad school interviews. Is there a reason you are taking a whole week off? My interviews are all either monday or friday and i prefer the friday ones because at least i get to rest over the weekend. I had a monday one yesterday that ended in the evening so i'm dying at school today bc i got home late!

[AJM19]

20 minutes ago, TAGC said:

I think working in healthcare can only help strengthen your application.  However, you can try looking for genetics assistant positions to boost your application.  I got a master's degree in bioinformatics and have been working in that field for a bit.

@Lauren423 I agree that trying to find a GC assistant position is a valuable investment. About half of the last group I interviewed with are working GC assistants. As for me, I've been out of undergrad 4 years and have worked (among other things) in a neuroscience wet lab and have now been working at a national disease advocacy non-profit for a year and a half. I also volunteer on an outbound support line through a crisis call center.

[Blizzard]

7 minutes ago, hfj23 said:

I have driven/am planning to drive to all interviews so scheduling flights isn't a problem but this is exhausting (not complaining though lol). I am still a student and am lucky enough to work at my university so my supervisors have been totally understanding about grad school interviews. Is there a reason you are taking a whole week off? My interviews are all either monday or friday and i prefer the friday ones because at least i get to rest over the weekend. I had a monday one yesterday that ended in the evening so i'm dying at school today bc i got home late!

No, I'm saying the combined time for people who get 6 and 8 interviews adds up to about a week (see what I mean?). I also work in academia, but in my job it is NOT encouraged to take time off. I'm an advisor, and and I'm already booked for the next month. I will have to move a bunch of student appointments. It's totally worth it though so I'm doing it!

Edited February 13, 2018 by Blizzard

[Emily_M]

14 minutes ago, lilmaz said:

Yes someone did suggest Crisis Text Line! I hadn't heard of it and have already signed up. Thanks for the tip!!

I’m a crisis counselor for crisis text line and I love it! If you have any questions, feel free to ask?

[hfj23]

@Blizzard ohh ok that makes sense i thought maybe you were scheduling both your interviews for the same week. That sounds tough! I would say go for the friday interviews if you have a choice that way you can take your time getting back (unless you work weekends). Some programs end the day with a dinner that isn't required and you can leave early to catch a flight or get in a little late if they start with breakfast. I'm sure there are other current applicants who work as advisors and might give better advice than me. One of the current students at Wayne state actually used to be my advisor so now i'm wondering how she did it bc she was always booked! 

[PlzAdmitMe]

Hi everyone, longtime lurker and first time poster. Does anyone have any info on when we might hear from CSU? I've given up hope for Sarah Lawrence and BU as I still haven't heard. Bleh.

[KG203040]

13 minutes ago, PlzAdmitMe said:

Hi everyone, longtime lurker and first time poster. Does anyone have any info on when we might hear from CSU? I've given up hope for Sarah Lawrence and BU as I still haven't heard. Bleh.

Hey! I haven't heard anything from CSU but someone on the discord said we should hear at the end of next week!

[PlzAdmitMe]

36 minutes ago, KG203040 said:

Hey! I haven't heard anything from CSU but someone on the discord said we should hear at the end of next week!

Thanks  trying by best to figure out how to navigate the discord. It's tricky!

[AnonymousWalrus]

1 hour ago, Lauren423 said:

For those of you who have taken a year or more off after undergrad before applying or for those of you who are applying for the 2nd time, what did you do during your time off? I am a senior in undergrad and I work part time at a family practice doctors office but I don't know if I should continue this job for all of next year or find a new one. I applied to 5 and have been rejected to 4 so far so I don't know if my current job is helping me at all since none of the schools even gave me an interview. I don't know of any jobs that are similar to GC that only require a bachelors degree.

During my time off, I shadowed a ton and retook genetics since I didn’t get an A the first time (I got an A the second time). I also retook the GREs. I tried applying for a job at my local Planned Parenthood clinic but I didn’t speak Spanish fluently and they wanted someone with that credential. I suggest trying to look at volunteer positions with organizations in your area. What metropolitian city are you closest to? 

[Lauren423]

8 minutes ago, AnonymousWalrus said:

During my time off, I shadowed a ton and retook genetics since I didn’t get an A the first time (I got an A the second time). I also retook the GREs. I tried applying for a job at my local Planned Parenthood clinic but I didn’t speak Spanish fluently and they wanted someone with that credential. I suggest trying to look at volunteer positions with organizations in your area. What metropolitian city are you closest to? 

I live in Boulder so Denver would be the closest. I just applied to a Genetics Assistant job in Lone Tree which is close to where my parents live. Really my 1st big dilemma is do I stay in Boulder (which for those of you who don't know, rent here is insanely expensive) or do I move to Parker back in with my parents (rent free but also will be rough lol). I think I'll do the crisis text line for volunteering as well. I currently volunteer for hospice but I do not like it at all. And I already have an offer to intern for a GC in Parker but its only for 4 hours once a week so getting a job is more important to me. If it were a perfect world, I would move back in with my parents for the year, work at the job I just applied to, intern once a week, and do the crisis text line from home. But I first have to get accepted to that job and hopefully they wouldn't mind me not starting till May. I may also take an online class such as Anatomy because that is one of the suggested classes I haven't taken and could boost my GPA.

[MetalgearPlay5]

Seconding the Crisis Text Line interest. I've been a Crisis Counselor for a year and I absolutely love it. It's not only empowering and it feels good to help others, but it's an awesome resume builder. Definitely not for everyone, though. 

[guidingsunchan]

Just got a rejection email from UT Houston. No school for me this year, womp womp!

[agct664]

3 hours ago, Lauren423 said:

For those of you who have taken a year or more off after undergrad before applying or for those of you who are applying for the 2nd time, what did you do during your time off? I am a senior in undergrad and I work part time at a family practice doctors office but I don't know if I should continue this job for all of next year or find a new one. I applied to 5 and have been rejected to 4 so far so I don't know if my current job is helping me at all since none of the schools even gave me an interview. I don't know of any jobs that are similar to GC that only require a bachelors degree.

this year I've worked as a behavior technician for children on the autism spectrum! It's basically one on one therapy sessions with adorable kids every day. I have four kids that i see regularly and then I can sub in with different kids from time to time. While it is with children, it gives a lot of practice with one on one care and we spend a lot of time interacting with the family as a whole to ensure the best possible treatment for each kid. I know that there is a great need for this work so I'm pretty sure you could find a similar job pretty much anywhere with only a bachelors degree

[KCGC]

3 hours ago, Lauren423 said:

I live in Boulder so Denver would be the closest. I just applied to a Genetics Assistant job in Lone Tree which is close to where my parents live. Really my 1st big dilemma is do I stay in Boulder (which for those of you who don't know, rent here is insanely expensive) or do I move to Parker back in with my parents (rent free but also will be rough lol). I think I'll do the crisis text line for volunteering as well. I currently volunteer for hospice but I do not like it at all. And I already have an offer to intern for a GC in Parker but its only for 4 hours once a week so getting a job is more important to me. If it were a perfect world, I would move back in with my parents for the year, work at the job I just applied to, intern once a week, and do the crisis text line from home. But I first have to get accepted to that job and hopefully they wouldn't mind me not starting till May. I may also take an online class such as Anatomy because that is one of the suggested classes I haven't taken and could boost my GPA.

As someone from Colorado Boulder rent is awful. You could look into moving somwhere else in the state where rent is cheaper and then on top of that you could get a job/volunteer/intern position with a GC I know there are a few in FoCo you could talk to about some kind of position and I’m sure there are some others around the state too. But FoCo would give you more of a college town/younger town feel but less expensive and possibly still have good resume building!

[hopetobeGC]

7 hours ago, Emily_M said:

Hi everyone,  

I just discovered this thread and have found it very informative and reassuring as someone who is also in the middle of the fall 2018 application cycle. So far I have received invitations to interview from UT Houston, UAB, and Indiana. I’m still waiting to hear back from Pitt and USF but my hopes aren’t high as it feels like most programs have already made their decisions. Has anyone else heard from either of them?

Hey Emily! I am also interviewing at UT Houston and UAB. When will you be there? 

[AspiringGC]

Two rejections, one day, get at me! I guess the brightside is that tomorrow is Valentine's Day, which means the day after is 50% off chocolate day....

[Emily_M]

1 hour ago, hopetobeGC said:

Hey Emily! I am also interviewing at UT Houston and UAB. When will you be there? 

I'll be at UAB on 2/22 and UT Houston 3/23. If you're going to the UAB social next Thursday I'll see you there!

[hfj23]

Ended up declining the VCU interview offer even though it was really hard to   It's just too far away and the date they gave me was a thursday, which was difficult bc it would mean missing wednesday and being tired friday. I hope one of you end up getting my spot if you are on a waitlist! 

Edited February 14, 2018 by hfj23

[FutureGC7]

59 minutes ago, hfj23 said:

Ended up declining the VCU interview offer even though it was really hard to   It's just too far away and the date they gave me was a thursday, which was difficult bc it would mean missing wednesday and being tired friday. I hope one of you end up getting my spot if you are on a waitlist! 

I don't know if I m on their waitlist or not. I am hoping to hear though. Did you try asking for a Skype interview before declining the offer ? 

[hfj23]

46 minutes ago, FutureGC7 said:

I don't know if I m on their waitlist or not. I am hoping to hear though. Did you try asking for a Skype interview before declining the offer ? 

No but because i have already received a bunch of interviews closer to home, VCU is not one of my top choices anyways and i know there are others who would rank them high so i want them to get it instead

[Lakers1960]

14 hours ago, Lauren423 said:

I live in Boulder so Denver would be the closest. I just applied to a Genetics Assistant job in Lone Tree which is close to where my parents live. Really my 1st big dilemma is do I stay in Boulder (which for those of you who don't know, rent here is insanely expensive) or do I move to Parker back in with my parents (rent free but also will be rough lol). I think I'll do the crisis text line for volunteering as well. I currently volunteer for hospice but I do not like it at all. And I already have an offer to intern for a GC in Parker but its only for 4 hours once a week so getting a job is more important to me. If it were a perfect world, I would move back in with my parents for the year, work at the job I just applied to, intern once a week, and do the crisis text line from home. But I first have to get accepted to that job and hopefully they wouldn't mind me not starting till May. I may also take an online class such as Anatomy because that is one of the suggested classes I haven't taken and could boost my GPA.

My advice would be to DEFINITELY take the GC intern position if you think you'll be okay living with your parents temporarily (I moved back home for this past year, and I understand how rough it can be). I say this because I was high on a program's waitlist last year and when I asked for feedback the director told me that the ONE thing that would have bumped me up would have been consistent exposure to genetic counseling. I had shadowed in 3 different specialties for multiple appointments and that wasn't enough to get a good grasp of the profession. The programs are getting more and more competitive each cycle so if acceptance is your end goal you need that exposure.

[Blizzard]

"the day after is 50% off chocolate day"

^This is the REAL holiday

Edited February 14, 2018 by Blizzard

[Methylation]

6 hours ago, hfj23 said:

Ended up declining the VCU interview offer even though it was really hard to   It's just too far away and the date they gave me was a thursday, which was difficult bc it would mean missing wednesday and being tired friday. I hope one of you end up getting my spot if you are on a waitlist! 

I got it! Thank you!

[Methylation]

How many interviews are you guys capping yours at?