2018 Applicant Profiles and Admissions Results

[samman1994]

1 hour ago, Bioenchilada said:

They don't put people on the commitee for certain applicants, that is picked ahead of time. Also, schools will typically send you a form after you get selected for an interview, or you email them, about your picks. Some will tell you to send a list of like 10 people, literally. So, this goes back to not choosing a school where three people are doing the work you want. I made that mistake, and it was very difficult to pick interviewers. 

Damn 10 people? I don't think some of the departments (sub-departments) I'm applying to have 10 people. But thanks for letting me know, now I have plenty of time to look them up and prepare. 

[aquamarine]

7 hours ago, samman1994 said:

I don't exactly know how rotations work. Are they mandatory? How many labs do you have to rotate around? Also, I don't know how the interview process works. Is it based on who is on the grad committee during that time (i.e. it could literally be anyone in the biochem/chem program)? 

 

My school requires three; you have the option of a fourth (and even a fifth, but I feel like 5 is bordering ridiculous) if something doesn't work out in the first three. And I can definitely attest to having more than three people you're interested in. My program ended up with a larger class than usual and most of us have a sub-interest in neuropharmacology, so getting everyone situated into a rotation was a challenge. Additionally, some professors have a hard rule that they will only take one rotation student at a time. 

As for interviews, it varies per school. Most seemed to request a list of faculty that you'd be interested in meeting with. However, the list is a guideline and not a rule. I had one interview where I didn't interview with a single person I had asked for (weirdly, that interview weekend was a lot less stressful). Generally, you get your list ahead of your interview so you can prepare, but that isn't always hard and fast either. At one of my interviews, a professor got sick and the people scheduled to meet with him got shuffled around last minute. I wouldn't count on getting a week's preparation; two of my interviews gave us the list the night before. Some programs make sure you interview with at least one admissions committee member. It really depends on the school and you probably won't find out 100% how it works until you get the interview invite. 

 

[mdavis10]

Hello, all! So I am at a loss regarding the feasibility of getting into the schools I've selected. Help me? Just so y'all know, I'm interested in applied/translational molecular research and I don't wish to go into academia or teach after grad school.

Undergrad Institution: Loyola Chicago
Major(s): Molecular Biology
Minor(s): Statistics
GPA in Major: 3.999
Overall GPA:  3.959
Position in Class: unsure
Type of Student: Domestic, female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 162 (82%)
V: 169 (99%)
W: 4.5 (82%)
B: not taking

Research Experience:

- 2 years of undergraduate research in a microbial physiology lab... very little funding and not prestigious at all but my PI thinks highly of me and writes great letters. Spent the second year setting up a new approach to a project my PI had been trying to start for years. No publications here (this PI publishes once every 3 or 4 years). One poster presentation at university undergraduate symposium.

- 10 week summer research at Wake Forest Institute for Regenerative Medicine. 3rd author on a publication (PLOS One) from that. Also presented this research as a poster at the Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society's annual meeting.

- Currently doing 1 year NIH postbac in a cardiovascular lab, but using molecular biology techniques (DNA manipulation and cloning, CRISPR).

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean's list every semester, member of Phi Beta Kappa

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Microbiology tutor for one semester, cell bio tutor one semester

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: Experience with SAS and R statistical coding/analysis, working on learning Python (would call myself proficient at this point)

Special Bonus Points: Just a small town girl, working in a man's world. I'm from New Hampshire, I'm not sure how many of my fellow NH denizens typically apply to these programs but I've been told before that it's stood out as odd and helped draw the eye.

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

99.9% sure that this doesn't matter for graduate program apps (and probably won't go into the app) but I have a bit of a story: nearly failed high school (ended up graduating in like 15th percentile), worked as a nanny in Germany for a year, 1 year of community college, 3 years of 4-year institute undergrad, now in 1 year postbac at NIH.

Applying to Where:

List is not finalized (won't apply to absolutely everything on here) and still on the look-out for recommendations!

University of Wisconsin - Madison -- 1) Cellular and Molecular Biology , 2) Cellular and Molecular Pathology

University of Washington - Seattle -- 1) Molecular Medicine Program , 2) Molecular and Cellular Biology

Baylor College of Medicine -- 1) Translational Biology and Molecular Medicine , 2) Integrative Molecular and Biomedical Sciences

Albert Einstein College of Medicine -- Biomedical Sciences

MIT -- Biological Engineering -- interested in the genetic engineering and the people working on creating a coding language for cells

University of Minnesota -- 1) Molecular, Cellular, and Structural Biology , 2) Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology and Genetics

Columbia Medical Center -- Integrate Umbrella Program (interested in stem cell, genetic engineering research)

Boston University -- Umbrella Program -- interested in their Center for Regenerative Medicine

Mayo Clinic -- Biomedical Sciences -- interested in the virology and gene therapy track, in particular

Thanks!!

[Mfhoque]

 

Hey everyone, 

This is my first time applying to a PhD program, and I am terrified. I attended my undergrad school and I goofed off during my sophomore year, but I picked things  up somewhat after that. I went on to apply and get accepted to the bs/ms program in my school where I achieved a 3.8 masters GPA with a thesis track. I am almost done with my thesis, but am pushing back a defense date until after I get accepted /rejected from schools. My PI is the director of a large program at the institution and is also involved in a partnership with memorial sloan Kettering. I am extremely interested in immunology, mainly the thymus. Further I want to get into either a thymus lab or a immunotherapy lab. Any suggestions are welcomed! 

Undergrad Institution: City college of New York (public university strong STEM program
Major(s): biology
Minor(s): chem
GPA in Major: 3.6
Overall GPA: 3.4
Position in Class: (no clue) 
Type of Student: Domestic

GRE Scores (revised/old version): (from diagnostics) 
Q:158-162
V:160-163
W:
B:


Research Experience: Three years of research in my college in immunology. No papers yet but anticipating sending out 2 by end of the year as middle authors. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: My poster was chosen to be placed in the walkway of my school. My work was presented at an AAI (American association of immunologists) conference as an oral presentation, however I did not give the talk

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Taught undergrad Chem I&II

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Have a 3.8 masters GPA, however I did my masters in the same school as my undergrad through a BS/MS program

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

Applying to Where:

GSK-immunotherapy (dream) 
Columbia
NYU

Rockefeller

Cornell

Not really finalized 

•  

Edited September 17, 2017 by Mfhoque

[aek5]

Hello! I’m unsure of whether I’m reaching too high on my list of immunology programs I’ll be applying too. This list is still tentative and will be chopped down but I put them in order of my level of interest. Also does anyone have any thoughts on going to Britain to earn a PhD. Thanks!  

Undergrad Institution: University of Wisconsin-Madison
Major: Biochemistry
GPA in Major: 3.71
Overall GPA: 3.77
Position in Class: No idea
Type of Student: Domestic white male

GRE Scores:
Q: 167 (92^nd percentile)
V: 163 (93^rd percentile)
W: 5.0 (93^rd percentile)

Research Experience: 

-  2 years at my school in pharmacy lab at school, research related to immunology. No publications but my work was presented in an academic conference by my PI. I have presented my work at a poster presentation at a class undergraduate symposium.

- REU program at University of Minnesota. Research in pharmacology, and will be published as 3^rd author of 6 total for a paper about to be submitted for review. Presented work at undergraduate poster symposium

- Internship at large pharmaceutical company, research was combination of biochemistry and pharmacology.  

- One semester as research assistant for agriculture research in Madison

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Dean’s list two semesters.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Science and mathematics tutor for students in middle school for two semesters. Ran small charitable club for 1.5 years.

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

My LoR’s will come from the PI’s at the first three labs that appear under research experience. I'm also currently researching in my lab about 20 hours weekly due to finishing almost all of my required courses.

Applying to Where: (Immunology Programs)

Cornell (Weill Medicine)

NIH Oxford-Cambridge Scholars Program (2 years at NIH, 2 years at Oxford/Cambridge)

Columbia

Rockefeller

Johns Hopkins

UPenn

NYU

UT-Southwestern Medical Center

University of Minnesota

Britain? --> Cambridge/Oxford/University College London/Imperial London

 

[nalan]

I may be a strange applicant but here I`m. I`m an IMG and MD, and because of that I hardly have the sense of which field fits my interest and which schools are in my range. So I will really appreciate your help. I want PhD because i want to increase my chances of getting an internal medicine/genetics or pathology residency in the future. I also enjoy research so I want to spend some of my career in this field. I have been planning to apply molecular biology thinking it will help pathology residency, but as I said, I`m open to suggestions from experts of these fields. I`m also expecting a baby and don`t want to work for long hours and weekends (will PhD take my life away just like residency?).

 

Undergrad Institution: International Medical Graduate
Major(s): MD
Minor(s): none
GPA in Major: 2.4 (my GPA is low because it doesn`t matter in any type of application in my country, so I didn`t do my best)
Overall GPA: 2.4
Position in Class: Struggling  
Type of Student: International female

GRE Scores (revised/old version): I have not taken yet but my Q will probably be above 140-150, my V is awful. Writing is above average.
Q:
V:
W:
B:


TOEFL Total: probably over 100

Research Experience: 1.5 years research experience at school. 6months of research experience in an American lab (internal medicine).

4publications in peer reviewed journals, 2 first name. But very low IFs.

2 oral presentations in important congresses, 4 oral presentations more in local hospitals. 

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: None

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: I worked for 2.5 years as an MD.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: None

Special Bonus Points: 

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

Applying to Where: I want to be close to NJ NY area since my brother is living there. I also want to get some stipend to make living.

The ones below are for molecular biology, but I may apply to other areas of the same schools if they are not way above my level (( I think they are  ))

Albert Einstein

Carnegie Melon

NYU

SUNY Health Brooklyn

... any suggestions? I need a safe school.

[Bio-warrior]

I'd love to get some input on my choices/chances, as someone who has no publications (do wish I hopped onto research earlier as an underg). My application feels a bit bland in comparison with other profiles I've seen on here. I also noticed that most applicants on here do not apply with industry experience so I've no real reference on how relevant it is. To be specific, my industry experience is analytical/R&D. Maybe someone who entered with similar experience can give a comment on this aspect?

Undergrad Institution: University of California
Major(s): Microbiology
Minor(s):
GPA in Major: 3.57
Overall GPA: 3.43
Position in Class: Slightly above average (3.1)
Type of Student: Domestic male

My freshman year gpa was below average in freshman year, but I raised it afterwards (took some time).
GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 165 (89%)
V: 162 (91%)
W: 5 (93%)
B: N/A

Research Experience: 
1 year undergraduate research assistantship in molecular and cell biology lab characterizing HIV. No conferences/publications

1 year post-graduate industry research position at a biotechnology start-up.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:
Dean's Honor List - 4 quarters
Pertinent Activities or Jobs:
Tutor - Organic Chemistry

MA internship at large public hospital (was a pre-med student)

Volunteered at hospital in high school (same thing)

Dance club - Treasurer
Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: 

I will be frank here and say that I wasn't on the best of terms with my PI, so I did not receive a recommendation from him.

1. Work supervisor from current occupation

2. Professor of Microbiology - Lectured a class and supervised lab class

3. Professor of Immunology - Lectured immunology class

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

Applying to Where:

Mostly micro-/MCB programs at these schools, w/ emphasis on micro-

Vanderbilt

Tufts

WashU

Univ. Alabama - Birmingham

UCB

Emory

Univ. Maryland, Baltimore
 

[OwlTree]

I'm applying to computational neuroscience programs, would love some feedback on my chances. I don't have any direct research experience in the field, (I've been working on some related industry stuff for two years). The research problems I'm interested in aren't the traditional domain of CS programs, so I'm trying to see if it's possible for me to make a move.

Undergrad Institution: Top 5 Computer Science School
Major(s): Computer Science
Overall GPA: 3.41 (Took over 20+ hrs/semester + grad classes)
Position in Class: Tough to know
Type of Student: Domestic Latino Male

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 169
V: 170
W: 5.0

Research Experience: See job experience - nothing directly related to computational neuroscience

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: I was employee of the month for my 100-person division once.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

I've been working as a software engineer at a Silicon Valley startup for the past two years. In that time, I've been promoted twice, (as fast as possible), and was a founding engineer on a team. I work a lot with AI, and our team focuses on an applied psychological research problem (we have relationships with prominent academic psychologists). I want to explore research questions related to the intersection of AI and neuroscience. My rec letters are extremely enthusiastic , 1 from a former manager, 1 from the head of a research division in the company, and 1 from a professor I work with in industry (different field).

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Latino, relatively high-profile work (written about in NYT)

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

I took a grad computational biology class in college and got an A. I guess that means I have a little bit of track record in demonstrating interest on the biology side, which I hear is the limiting factor for computational people getting into the field. I've also read a couple of computational neuroscience textbooks in my free time.

Applying to Where:

Probably applying to:

Stanford

Berkeley

WashU

Caltech

NYU

Columbia

Might apply to:

MIT (? looks like they don't take GRE into account which might sink my chances)

Harvard (?)

UT-Austin (?)

safer schools (?)

[cheMATical]

Undergrad Institution: Top 30, R1 public university
Major(s): Biology
Minor(s): Chemistry
GPA in Major: 3.6
Overall GPA: 3.5
Position in Class:  
Type of Student: Hispanic

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 157 (70th)
V: 159 (83th)
W: 4 (60th)
B: Didn't take

Really can't take this again, cause these scores were like 10 points higher then anything I got on my practice tests XD 

TOEFL Total: (if applicable, otherwise delete this)

Research Experience: 

3 years of research at my home institution in a biomedical sciences lab

1 summer research program at mount sinai

1 summer research fellowship at rockefeller university

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

Goldwater scholars - honorable mention

Departmental scholarship

Stipend money from my two summer internships

 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

University-paid chemistry tutor (2 years)

General Biology I - TA (1 year) 

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

I have LORs from 3 different universities (from my univ., sinai, and rockefeller) 

Special Bonus Points: Minority Status 

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

Applying to Where:

Applying to pharmacology, molecular medicine, or drug therapeutic programs (or whatever umbrella way I can do these)

Mount Sinai

Harvard

Yale

Rockefeller

Michigan State

Duke

Emory 

Mayo Clinic

•  

[hopefulgradstudent999]

On 9/21/2017 at 3:29 PM, cheMATical said:

Undergrad Institution: Top 30, R1 public university
Major(s): Biology
Minor(s): Chemistry
GPA in Major: 3.6
Overall GPA: 3.5
Position in Class:  
Type of Student: Hispanic

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 157 (70th)
V: 159 (83th)
W: 4 (60th)
B: Didn't take

Really can't take this again, cause these scores were like 10 points higher then anything I got on my practice tests XD 

TOEFL Total: (if applicable, otherwise delete this)

Research Experience: 

3 years of research at my home institution in a biomedical sciences lab

1 summer research program at mount sinai

1 summer research fellowship at rockefeller university

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

Goldwater scholars - honorable mention

Departmental scholarship

Stipend money from my two summer internships

 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

University-paid chemistry tutor (2 years)

General Biology I - TA (1 year) 

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

I have LORs from 3 different universities (from my univ., sinai, and rockefeller) 

Special Bonus Points: Minority Status 

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

Applying to Where:

Applying to pharmacology, molecular medicine, or drug therapeutic programs (or whatever umbrella way I can do these)

Mount Sinai

Harvard

Yale

Rockefeller

Michigan State

Duke

Emory 

Mayo Clinic

•  

You have extremely similar stats to me when I applied last year. I applied to over 15 schools in all different ranks and plotting those against where I was invited to interviews and later gained acceptances, I think paints a pretty distinct picture of where I ranked nationally. That being said, I think Harvard, Yale, etc. may be a bit of a stretch. You should definitely still apply to those schools however if you think there is a good research fit because if the experience told me anything it is that anything can happen with grad school admissions. 

I would recommend looking at schools in the 30-45 and on rank that would interest your research goals as well and throw a few of them onto your list as safety schools. Do not apply to a program if you do not plan on attending should you gain admission, this could be one of the first questions you get asked during a phone or Skype interview. Let me know if you have any more questions. Also, I have no idea how much it may affect your results but I did not apply with minority status.

[SysEvo]

On 9/20/2017 at 11:02 PM, OwlTree said:

I'm applying to computational neuroscience programs, would love some feedback on my chances. I don't have any direct research experience in the field, (I've been working on some related industry stuff for two years). The research problems I'm interested in aren't the traditional domain of CS programs, so I'm trying to see if it's possible for me to make a move.

Undergrad Institution: Top 5 Computer Science School
Major(s): Computer Science
Overall GPA: 3.41 (Took over 20+ hrs/semester + grad classes)
Position in Class: Tough to know
Type of Student: Domestic Latino Male

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 169
V: 170
W: 5.0

Research Experience: See job experience - nothing directly related to computational neuroscience

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: I was employee of the month for my 100-person division once.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

I've been working as a software engineer at a Silicon Valley startup for the past two years. In that time, I've been promoted twice, (as fast as possible), and was a founding engineer on a team. I work a lot with AI, and our team focuses on an applied psychological research problem (we have relationships with prominent academic psychologists). I want to explore research questions related to the intersection of AI and neuroscience. My rec letters are extremely enthusiastic , 1 from a former manager, 1 from the head of a research division in the company, and 1 from a professor I work with in industry (different field).

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: Latino, relatively high-profile work (written about in NYT)

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

I took a grad computational biology class in college and got an A. I guess that means I have a little bit of track record in demonstrating interest on the biology side, which I hear is the limiting factor for computational people getting into the field. I've also read a couple of computational neuroscience textbooks in my free time.

Applying to Where:

Probably applying to:

Stanford

Berkeley

WashU

Caltech

NYU

Columbia

Might apply to:

MIT (? looks like they don't take GRE into account which might sink my chances)

Harvard (?)

UT-Austin (?)

safer schools (?)

To my knowledge, Harvard doesn't seem to  have many comp. neuroscientists. MIT CSBi(comp and sys bio) is a good comp bio program but I'm not sure about the neuroscience part.

[fishinabowl]

Hi everybody,
I'd like your advice on filtering down my potential list to ~5 institutions for which I would have a real chance as all of the applications will become quite expensive. Would like some insight, if I have a chance at US schools as an international or if I should focus on my Canadian applications instead.

Undergrad Institution: Top 3 Canadian University
Major(s): Biomedical Science
Minor(s): 
GPA in Major: 3.00
Overall GPA: 3.00 (3.2 last 2 years)
Position in Class: Most likely struggling?
Type of Student: International

GRE Scores (Taking at the end of September):
Q:
V:
W:

Masters University: Top 3 Canadian University (different from undergrad)
Masters GPA: 4.0
Masters Field: Bioinformatics

Research Experience ~4 years: 
1) Undergraduate research assistant (2 years). Developed novel bioinformatics approaches for drug discovery. 
2) Masters R.A. (2 years). Research on evolutionary algorithms. 4 papers (1 published, 1 submitted, and 2 in preparation). 1 first author, 2 second author, and 1 middle author.
3) 1 poster presentation at international conference

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: (Both awards within the school)
Graduate Student Research Award
Graduate Academic Excellence Award 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)
TA for undergraduate biochemistry class
TA for graduate bioinformatics class

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:
Did well in graduate courses at undergraduate university, and aced all my classes at my masters institution. Hopefully, it might compensate for my poor undergraduate performance. The change of environment was highly beneficial. 

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)
Should hopefully get a good letter from a famous professor for which I did a summer project,  my current supervisor, and another letter from the professor for the class I'm TA'ing. 

Applying to Where: All PhD in bioinformatics or computational biology

University of Toronto - Molecular Genetics and Computational Biology
University of British Colombia - Bioinformatics
McGill University -  Bioinformatics 
Boston University - Bioinformatics
UCSD - Bioinformatics and Systems Biology
UCSF - Biological and Medical Informatics
Berkeley - Computational Biology, Bioinformatics, Genomics
University of Michigan - DCMB
Carnegie Mellon University/University of Pittsburgh- Computational Biology
Yale - Computational Biology and Bioinformatics
Stanford - Biomedical Informatics

 

Edited September 24, 2017 by fishinabowl

[AD]

hey how is univerisity of alberta graduate program in neuroscience or biochemistry??

[Structuralbioguy]

No response on my last post so I’ll go again...

Undergrad Institution: University of Missouri - R1 AAU 

Graduate Institution: University of Southern California - R1 AAU

Major(s): U - Biochemistry

G - Biochemistry & Molecular Medicine 

Minor(s): U - Biology
GPA in Major: N/A
Overall GPA: uGPA 3.46 - gGPA 3.77
Position in Class: as per recommenders/mentors 

u - top 10%

g - top 15%

Type of Student: (Domestic/International, male/female, minority? - Domestic / m / LD minority

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 161 (78%)
V: 161 (88%)
W: 5.0 (93%)
B: did horribly on the last biochemistry one they offered, cannot retake (28%) only USC has the score. Will not send to others.


TOEFL Total: (if applicable, otherwise delete this)

Research Experience: (At your school or elsewhere? What field? How much time? Any publications (Mth author out of N?) or conference talks etc...)

3 pubs (2nd/5, 2nd/6, 3rd/6 from grad)

earliest - most recent

1. 3.5 yrs in a large well known plant biochemistry lab at MU. Plant/symbiome project & irradiated plans development project. 

2. 2-3yrs in analytical/biophysical lab. 2 pubs (2nd author), Binding, stability and structural studies yielded exciting results. 

3. Graduate - site directed mutagenesis study of TM peptides and their lipid interactions. This uses ITC and Liquid state NMR, developed mutant peptide population from plasmid to peptide in sample. 3rd pub (3rd author/6)

4. Graduate (thesis) - I sought to develop a more physiologically and contextually relevant sample platform for membrane anchoring structural studies in liquid-state NMR. As my thesis committee mentioned this actually is 2 projects rolled into one in just over a year. Developed viable Nanodiscs for study, developed and successfully captured target peptide in the ND for structural study. 

5. Professional / Industry (<6 months, ~1.5yr at time of enrollment into intended PhD program in 2018). I work for a wonderful company (top-5 in Biotech in world), this is like google, lots of younger driven researchers. I really would like to stay here however I was advised to seek a PhD by my previous mentors, and I always wanted to ask/address and answer larger scientific questions. I develop proteins and purification methods for academic, government and industry research.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: (Such as tutor, TA, SPS officer etc...)

I train newcomers in our Biotech company on routine methods/techniques. 

I was a TA at MU for 7 semesters - newcoming/struggling science majors in record-enrollment years at MU. I led class discussion, developed lessons/activities. Provided support and advise for more rigorous STEM courses. 15-35 students/semester.

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...) LD student a minority?

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: My grandfather passed away one late undergraduate semester, one course I was taking did not allow me to relschedule a midterm. I sat early for it so I could goto his funeral, I got a C in this course. Otherwise I would have Latin honors. 

I loved USC's program and connected really well with my advisor. I'm worried my subject GRE in Biochem (28%) screwed me. I took this while in grad school (bad idea, no time).

Applying to Where:

Biochemistry/Mol Bio/Strucural Bio

1. USC - continuing same vein of structural research.

2. Baylor College of Medicine - I've contacted two researchers and was scouted for membrane/structural research.

3. UCSD - with our old collaborator (I've been in contact) 

4. Scripps (SD) - A postdoctoral friend at UCLA went here, he provided advise and inspiration for using PD nanodiscs in my MS thesis.

5. UCLA - Working in my postdoctoral friend's dept/lab group using structural and allied techniques to resolve large peptide structures. 

Biomedical Sci

1. UCSD - similar lab group to my collaborator

Neuroscience

1. UCSD - another similar lab in the med school where my old collaborator is located.
 

 

[samman1994]

@Structuralbioguy putting huge font will gather attention, but the negative kind. If you're looking to do structural work, I'd reccomend John Hopkins and Harvard on that list as well, they do some great structural bio/biophysical work on proteins (especially if you're looking into solid-state work for TM proteins+nano disks). Out of curiosity, who did you do research with at USC? If you're looking to move to Canada, I'd highly recommend University of Toronto. They would've been my first choice (I'm going into structural bio/biophysics), but GPA was too low to apply. 

In regards to your application, it's pretty solid. GPA is nice, GRE scores good, subjects sucks but who cares most people schools don't even look at that (just don't send it to them). Plenty of research experience in the field you'll be looking at. Also out of curiosity, you wouldn't happen to work at Amgen would you?

[cheMATical]

On 9/22/2017 at 6:45 PM, hopefulgradstudent999 said:

You have extremely similar stats to me when I applied last year. I applied to over 15 schools in all different ranks and plotting those against where I was invited to interviews and later gained acceptances, I think paints a pretty distinct picture of where I ranked nationally. That being said, I think Harvard, Yale, etc. may be a bit of a stretch. You should definitely still apply to those schools however if you think there is a good research fit because if the experience told me anything it is that anything can happen with grad school admissions. 

I would recommend looking at schools in the 30-45 and on rank that would interest your research goals as well and throw a few of them onto your list as safety schools. Do not apply to a program if you do not plan on attending should you gain admission, this could be one of the first questions you get asked during a phone or Skype interview. Let me know if you have any more questions. Also, I have no idea how much it may affect your results but I did not apply with minority status.

@hopefulgradstudent999 Thank you so much for your response! Yeah, I agree, It is difficult to figure out how I'll do in my admissions because my resume is so weird haha. Okay, I'll consider it, but I think if anything i may just take out schools then apply to more. The schools I have listed are schools I would love to go to, and I can't really find others that I would really like to apply to. Besides, if I don't get in this cycle to anywhere, then I'm perfectly fine with doing a gap year. I would rather do something I love then settle for anything haha. Thanks again! 

[Anchovie]

I'm an international student with NO idea about how the grad admissions system works in the US. Any input will be greatly appreciated!

Undergrad Institution: research oriented university in India, not very well known
Major(s): Biotechnology
Minor(s): English Literature
GPA in Major: no separate major gpa
Overall GPA: 8.66 on a 10 point scale (not sure what it corresponds to on the 4 point scale)
Position in Class:  3rd rank so near top I guess
Type of Student: International, female, indian(minority?)

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 163 (84th percentile)
V: 167 (98th percentile)
W: 4.5
B: taking end of october


TOEFL Total: gave IELTS instead = score 8 (out of 9)

Research Experience:  3 years of lab ex. total

1 year at cancer bio lab, 2 years in neuroplasticity and breast cancer research - 3 papers published (1/6th author, 2/4th author, 3/5th author), 2 reviews published (1/2nd author, 2/1st author)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: President - Life Sciences Society. started an undergraduate talk series, and established a biannual departmental newsletter (we published 2 editions during my term)

Enrolled for two terms in the Undergrad research program at my uni, received grants both times for my projects.

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:  Internship - microbiology lab for 2 months (its so unrelated to what i'm pursuing that I might not even mention it in my SOP)

Student coordinator - career development centre (involved management and coordination during placement season)

Student Council member - elected representative from the biotech department

Academic Affairs Committee member - committee within the student council specifically responsible for academic grievances or misconduct

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: none

Special Bonus Points: the Prof I worked with for the last two years is visiting faculty at MIT and has connections at Washington University in St. Louis and Boston University.

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

Applying to Where:
Still working on a final list. Any inputs on which places are good for international students in terms of funding with my background is greatly appreciated. I'm looking for phd programs in molecular and cell biology

[tntnus]

Would love to hear about my chance of being accepted. 

Undergrad Institution: Internationally accredited university in Singapore
Major(s): Life Science with specialisation in Biomedical Science
Minor(s): No
GPA in Major:
Overall GPA: 3.86 (4.8/5)
Position in Class: Not sure
Type of Student: International, Female

GRE Scores (revised/old version): (Expected)
Q: 168
V: 160
W: 4.5
B:


Research Experience: 

Amgen scholar program in Kyoto University, prof said he might include my name in the publication. 

2 projects in my home university, both are about cancer. 

                        One project was 11-month-long, gave me no publication.

                        The other I started 2 months ago and am still doing, not sure about the chance of publication.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

Full scholarship for undergraduate study

2 International Biology Olympiad medals in high school - not sure if it helps because I got them quite long time ago. 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

Attended several summer science camps

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: 

The prof from Kyoto University seems to be well-known in his field.

I have sent my CV and transcript to a prof in Rockefeller and he said it looks promising, not sure if he really thought so or he just tried to be polite and encouraging.

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

I took one PhD module about cancer biology in my university and got highest score. I'm taking one more. Going to mention them to somehow show that I'm preparing myself for PhD, though not sure if it helps.

Applying to Where:
Havard Medical School - Biological and Biomedical Sciences
EPFL - Molecular Life Science
Rockefeller
UC Berkeley - Molecular and Cell Biology
UCSF - Biomedical Science

[biomol]

On 9/14/2017 at 4:47 PM, biomol said:

Any thoughts or advice, please?

Undergrad Institution: foreign, the top school for science in Peru

Major(s): Biology
Minor(s): none
Overall GPA: 15/20 aprox 3.85
Position in Class: Top 10
Type of Student: International, female

GRE Scores (revised/old version): (Practice scores)
Q: 155-160
V: 155-160
W: 4.0

TOEFL Total: (I haven't taken it yet)

Research Experience: 

1 year undergraduate thesis on protein activity 

3 month internship in plant genetics, in a research institute

3 months as a research assistant in biophysics Lab at a school 

2 month internship in nematode genetics abroad

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: none

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

Biochemistry tutor

Biology workshops for High school students

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

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

Applying to Where:

NYU - Biology - Genomics and Systems Biology
U of Chicago - BioSciences - Genetics, Genomics and Systems Biology
U of Wisconsin-Madison - Cellular and Molecular Biology

I got My GRE results 

Q: 158 (69%)
V: 165 (96%)
W: 3.5 (42%) I am thinking about asking for a score review

I have been looking at a few more places but I think I am aiming too high

Boston University- MBCBB

Tuffs

City of Hope’s Irell & Manella Graduate School of Biological Sciences 

Any recomendations on safer schools or am I ok?

 

[TheScienceHoney]

Just recently learned about/joined GradCafe, hey everyone! Comments/criticisms welcome.

Undergrad Institution: Missouri University of Science and Technology (small, science-focused engineering school in the Midwest, growing reputation but largely unknown for Bio outside the Midwest)
Major(s): Biological Sciences (BS, not BA)
Minor(s): Chemistry, Psychology
GPA in Major: 3.8
Overall GPA: 3.45
Position in Class: Not entirely sure, Cum Laude so somewhat in the top something percent
Type of Student: Domestic, female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 149 (yikes)
V: 160
W: 5.0

Research Experience: 3 summers/winter breaks worth of undergrad research at Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) School of Medicine 4 papers published, 2 first author. Some undergraduate research done at my home institution. Graduated semester early and have been doing a gap year of finishing research at WashU in the lab where I did my summer research, with two more first author papers on the way. Experience mostly in microbiology and biochemistry with other skills here and there

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Cum Laude, Vice Provost's Academic Scholars List, Dean's List, multiple scholarships both from my university and third-party 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Research technician, secretary at my school's chapter of Phi Sigma Biological Honors Society??, Editor in Chief of school newspaper (not super relevant to science but I have great communication/writing skills thanks to that), hosted a Science News talk show at my college radio station 

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 

Special Bonus Points: Female? LGBT? I've talked about that in diversity statements, kinda

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Pretty awful math/chemistry grades- started off with all Cs until I hit calculus and Orgo 2, then I got Bs, then an A in Biochem, so I guess the upward trend helps? But it definitely lowered my overall GPA. Also, graduated early

Applying to Where:

The million dollar question lol

Oregon State University - Microbiology

UC San Diego - Biological Sciences

CU Boulder - EBIO

Vanderbilt - Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences

U of Washington - Biological Sciences

Not sure if I'm gonna apply anywhere else yet. Thinking about it though. Recommendations are highly appreciated! My main research interests are in microbiology and especially microbial communities/microbiomes, so I have sought out faculty at each of these departments that are studying something I'm interested in, even though I'm not applying to the micro departments at each school. 

[StemCellFan]

On 10/4/2017 at 2:51 PM, TheScienceHoney said:

Just recently learned about/joined GradCafe, hey everyone! Comments/criticisms welcome.

Undergrad Institution: Missouri University of Science and Technology (small, science-focused engineering school in the Midwest, growing reputation but largely unknown for Bio outside the Midwest)
Major(s): Biological Sciences (BS, not BA)
Minor(s): Chemistry, Psychology
GPA in Major: 3.8
Overall GPA: 3.45
Position in Class: Not entirely sure, Cum Laude so somewhat in the top something percent
Type of Student: Domestic, female

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 149 (yikes)
V: 160
W: 5.0

Research Experience: 3 summers/winter breaks worth of undergrad research at Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) School of Medicine 4 papers published, 2 first author. Some undergraduate research done at my home institution. Graduated semester early and have been doing a gap year of finishing research at Wash U in the lab where I did my summer research, with two more first author papers on the way. Experience mostly in microbiology and biochemistry with other skills here and there

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: Cum Laude, Vice Provost's Academic Scholars List, Dean's List, multiple scholarships both from my university and third-party 

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: Research technician, secretary at my school's chapter of Phi Sigma Biological Honors Society??, Editor in Chief of school newspaper (not super relevant to science but I have great communication/writing skills thanks to that), hosted a Science News talk show at my college radio station 

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: 

Special Bonus Points: Female? LGBT? I've talked about that in diversity statements, kinda

Any Other Info That Shows Up On Your App and Might Matter: Pretty awful math/chemistry grades- started off with all Cs until I hit calculus and Orgo 2, then I got Bs, then an A in Biochem, so I guess the upward trend helps? But it definitely lowered my overall GPA. Also, graduated early

Applying to Where:

The million dollar question lol

Oregon State University - Microbiology

UC San Diego - Biological Sciences

CU Boulder - EBIO

Vanderbilt - Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Biomedical Sciences

U of Washington - Biological Sciences

Not sure if I'm gonna apply anywhere else yet. Thinking about it though. Recommendations are highly appreciated! My main research interests are in microbiology and especially microbial communities/microbiomes, so I have sought out faculty at each of these departments that are studying something I'm interested in, even though I'm not applying to the micro departments at each school. 

Hi!  Your stats almost look similar to mine, although you have a few more pubs (and first authors!).  I almost want to point out not to stress about your score too much, but if you can retake the GRE to bump your quant to 50% or higher, that would help.  I'm in a similar boat, but I could only get my quant to 47%.  But you may not need to retake it since it sounds like your research experience is awesome and I'm assuming letters will look great.  And committees like to see upward trends in GPA.  Given this, though, I would consider maybe applying to a couple lower-tiered schools if you can find any with research that interests you.  Good luck!

[Neuro15]

Your app looks fine overall, but I would suggest retaking that GRE if you can. While I don’t think the GRE is a very good predictor of graduate school success, many programs look at the qGRE and it may hurt you to have a sub 40 percentile.

You might have a very successful app with your current score, but I always err on the side of caution, especially when there are a plethora of very qualified applicants.  

[nt1996]

Hello! I would love some feedback on my current list of schools. It feels pretty top heavy right now since I'm not too confident about my GRE scores and I'm not sure if my PI will be able to get the papers with my name on them out in time. I am interested in cellular and molecular biology so if anyone has suggestions for programs that will make my list more well rounded that would be awesome. Thanks!

Undergrad Institution: UC San Diego
Major(s): General Biology
GPA in Major: 3.87
Overall GPA: 3.87
Position in Class: Near top
Type of Student: Domestic female

GRE Scores:
Q: 161
V: 156
W: 4.5

Research Experience: 

2 years as undergraduate researcher in stem cell biology/signal transduction pathways (2 publications will hopefully be under review if all goes well, one first or second author and one middle author)

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 
College honors program for 8/9 quarters

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 

TA for lower division biology lab for 4 quarters

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

Special Bonus Points: 

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

1 great LOR from PI 

1 LOR from professor I have TA'ed for and taken classes with multiple times 

1 LOR from  biology lab professor

Applying to Where:

UCSF - TETRAD

Johns Hopkins - BCMB

Duke 

U Washington

U Penn - CAMB

BU - PiBS

OHSU - BCMB

NYU Sackler

Tufts Sackler - CMDB

[Pleiades94]

I'm finished my undergraduate degree in March 2017, and I started the MS portion of my contiguous BS/MS Biology program thereafter. I'm currently interested in pursuing translational research of neurodegenerative diseases through Biomedical Sciences and Neuroscience PhD programs. For schools that offer them, I'm also interested in medical training programs that can be concurrently pursued (e.g. Yale's MRSP). I'm currently deciding whether to apply to my programs of interest or commit early to a lab through Sanford Burnham Prebys BMS.* This commitment would involve NOT applying to any other programs, so I would like to gain a better idea of where I stand as a candidate. Thank you for your help, and good luck to everyone!

Undergrad Institution: University of California, San Diego
Major(s): Physiology & Neuroscience
Minor(s): None
GPA in Major: 3.85
Overall GPA: 3.36
Position in Class: None
Type of Student: Domestic Asian Male

GRE Scores (Revised):
Q: 160 (76%)
V: 167 (98%)
W: 4.5 (82%)

Research Experience:

• UCSF (4 months): Pharmacological research of cancer cell lines (primarily glioblastoma) in mouse models.
  • Completed a growth curve experiment for a cancer cell line of interest.
• UCSD (10 months): Insulin sensitivity and signaling research in the orthopedics department.
• UCSD (2 years 3 months/ongoing): BDNF vector gene therapy research for treating neurodegenerative diseases such as AD.
  • Participated in an annual Division of Biological Sciences research showcase.
  • Should have a manuscript submitted prior to application deadlines (11/30 or 12/1). My position in the author list has not been confirmed, but my post doc has been giving me as many opportunities as possible to bump my name up the list.
  • Should have a first author paper following the completion of my MS thesis in Winter/Spring 2018.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions:

• None

Pertinent Activities or Jobs:

• Undergraduate IA for 1 quarter (Endocrinology)
• Graduate TA for 2 quarters and 2 summer sessions (Endocrinology, Mammalian Physiology, and Molecular Biology)

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help:

• None

Special Bonus Points:

• Graduate courses in ongoing MS portion of my BS/MS program (GPA: 4.0)
  • Antibiotics
  • Professional Development for Biologists (seminar)
  • Advanced Topics in Cancer Research and Therapy (seminar)

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

• Primarily low grades in my Humanities GEs, physics courses for NanoE, and math courses for NanoE (e.g. linear algebra)
• Countless electives primarily due to (e.g. British Literature, Biology Seminars, Introduction to Matlab):
  • Originally pursuing a degree in Nanoengineering as a pre-med
  • Originally interested in a minor in English/Literature
• Letters of Recommendation
  • UCSF PI
  • UCSD PI (current lab)
  • UCSD Assistant Professor (research)
  • UCSD Professor (academic)

Applying to Where:

• Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute - BMS*
• UCSF - BMS
• UCSD - Neurograd/BMS
• UPenn - BGS (NGG) + GTMS
• Yale - BBS + MRSP
• UW - Neuroscience
• UMich - PIBS
• Baylor - Neuroscience
• Rockefeller - Neurosciences and Behavior
• UChicago - Neurobiology
• University of CO, Boulder - MCDB

Edited October 7, 2017 by Jerry_Neuro

[Nick1452]

On 9/13/2017 at 8:46 PM, CaliforniaRunnerKid said:

Applying for F2018. Please be VERY honest with me in whether I stand a chance at these schools or if I should lower my expectations. 

Undergrad Institution: NYU College of Arts and Science
Major(s): Biochemistry
GPA in Major: 3.60 
Overall GPA: 3.66
Position in Class: Top 10-15%
Type of Student: Domestic, Male, Whiter than Wonder Bread

GRE Scores (revised/old version):
Q: 163 (84%)
V: 162 (91%)
W: 5.0 (93%)

Research Experience: 

Over 2 years in a lab at NYU School of Medicine that works on drugs for neurodegenerative diseases. 1 Publication as 3rd author of 10 published in Scientific Reports.

Summer internship at a biotech firm where I worked on antibody-drug conjugates for cancer therapeutics. 

3 poster presentations at minor conferences and one industry presentation for ~200 people, after I won an industry award.

Awards/Honors/Recognitions: 

3 years deans list, NCAA Academic All American, Presidential Honors Scholar, Intellectual Property Contributor Award (Award from the company I worked for for developing a method for antibody expression and purification which had higher yield and purity than what they were previously using.) Senior Honors Thesis in Biochemistry

Pertinent Activities or Jobs: 4 year NCAA varsity athlete in track and cross country, Over 1500 hours of community service

Any Miscellaneous Accomplishments that Might Help: NCAA cross country conference champion?

Special Bonus Points: (Such as connections, grad classes, famous recommenders, female or minority status etc...)

One LoR writer, the PI of the lab I have worked at for 2 years at Langone, is 'famous' in the world of neurodegenerative diseases and pharmacology (~400 publications and 19 patents) 

Another LoR writer is an alumni of both Icahn School of Medicine and Rockefeller

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

Applying to Where:

School	Program
UC Berkeley	Molecular and Cellular Biology - Molecular Mechanisms of Disease
UCSF	Pharmaceutical Sciences and Pharmacogenomics - Molecular Pharmacology
NYU Langone	Mechanisms of Disease - Molecular Pharmacology
Columbia	Molecular Basis of Health and Disease - Pathobiology and Molecular Medicine
Johns Hopkins	Pharmacology and Molecular Sciences
Weill Cornell	Pharmacology
Icahn	Biomedical Sciences - Biophysics and Systems Pharmacology
Rockefeller	Mechanisms of Human Disease
Yale	Molecular Medicine, Pharmacology, and Physiology
Brown	Molecular Pharmacology, Physiology
UCSD	Biomedical Sciences - Molecular Pharmacology
UWashington	Pathology - Molecular Medicine and Mechanisms of Disease
Harvard	Biological Chemistry and Molecular Pharmacology

Why not consider duke for pharm also ?