<p>I don’t see why it would be a hindrance at all (especially as you’re double majoring). Spend the extra time to get lots of research experience.</p>
<p>Thanks sarbruis, I’m definitely going to try to gain as much research experience and hands on experience as possible!</p>
<p>Hi Mollie,</p>
<p>I am beginning the process of applying to schools for Fall 2010. Is it ok if I post my stats here?</p>
<p>Interest: PhD in Cancer Biology or Genomics (particularly for targeted therapies and epigenetics)
GPA: 3.66/4.0 (class of 2008) from a small liberal arts college with honors
Major: B.S. Biology minor in Jewish studies
GRE: will take them Sept 8 <em>gulp</em>
Publications: 8 publications (mostly 1st or 2nd author), 3 abstracts, 1 chapter in a book
Work experience: Currently working at a cancer center doing lung cancer research on EGFR targeted therapy since June 2008
Other work experience: 3 years of undergrad research (2 of which were funded by an internal college grant that I received). TA for 2 years in general biology, human physiology, and evolutionary biology
LORs: 1 from undergrad research mentor, 1 from biology professor whom I took many classes with and TA-ed for, 1 from current boss – hopefully all will be great
Citizenship: indian</p>
<p>And here are the questions:
- Where should I apply?
- How much does my GRE score matter?
- Should I take the subject test?
- How much does my lack of American Citizenship matter?
- My first semester in college was really bad due to adjustment/family issues. Is it possible to discuss this in my application?</p>
<p>Thank you so much in advance!</p>
<p>8 publications!?!? Are these Indian journals? FWIW I think that you have a great shot at any school you apply for. To address your questions- </p>
<ol>
<li> apply to programs with multiple PIs who you could imagine yourself working with</li>
<li> not at all</li>
<li> if you went to an American college, don’t bother</li>
<li> this is a huge deal, it will severely limit your competitiveness, but you can’t really do anything about this</li>
<li> with an overall gpa of 3.66, i wouldn’t bring up a poor grade in first semester of college</li>
</ol>
<p>I like that you minored in Jewish studies. I double majored in Hebrew and though it turned out to be worthless in my career, it was a great experience in my life. I suggest you apply to Duke, it has an incredible genetics/genomics program and isn’t shy about taking on internationals.</p>
<p>Some of them are in Indian journals, but I have one in JCI, one in Clinical Cancer Research, one in PNAS, and one in J. Chemotherapy
My abstracts are in the proceedings of the Pennsylvania Academy of Science conferences (2006-2008) that I presented my research at (small conference, I know, but it should still matter, right?)
Are there any schools that I absolutely should not apply to based on my citizenship status ?(I know the UC schools are out…but what about other schools?)</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>You have publications in PNAS and Journal of Clinical Investigation as an undergrad? Really? Apply wherever you like, that would be competitive anywhere.</p>
<p>wait! PNAS and JCI paper as a primary author or as a co author?</p>
<p>PNAS and JCI as a research tech. Third author on both.</p>
<p>I suspect it doesn’t matter which author you are. You have obviously have been involved in solid research, with publishable results.</p>
<p>Research schools (and yes, top schools) that have ongoing research in your area(s) of interest. This will be the final piece of the puzzle for you. Once you’ve matched your research interests with those of specific programs, you should have excellent admissions results. Don’t bother applying to universities that aren’t a good match, no matter how prestigious there are. It will be a waste of application fees.</p>
<p>Hi all,</p>
<p>I am new here. Anyone knows what are the acceptance rates for graduate studies at some of the Canadian universities? I am also interested in Purdue University in the US. </p>
<p>I graduated from Singapore with a degree in Chemistry. Have not taken the GRE yet.</p>
<p>Do indepdent studies classes look bad on a transcript?</p>
<p>I ask because I have the option to</p>
<p>A. Take three poli sci classes
B. Take 3 indepdent studies classes as a internship/research internship.</p>
<p>I prefer option B. Will an admission committee frown on this? BTW: I’m aiming for a Masters in Public Policy (Education Policy).</p>
<p>hello…</p>
<p>Alright, I know that people will probably be angered when I say this but I am aiming to go to Harvard for my MS in physics. My reasoning is that I’ve always wanted to go there but I was unable to get admitted into the undergrad program due to my mediocre performance in high school. Secondly, according to US rankings (which are not always reliable, I know) they are ranked third in the nation for their physics program which to me, is really impressive. Currently, I am a freshman at UC Berkeley and I plan on majoring in Chemistry. Now, in order to achieve my goal I am aiming to start research either next semester or at the beginning of my sophomore year. Right now, I am studying an insane amount in order to keep my GPA up. In addition, I’ve been doing research on some graduate programs and according to these sources, I’m on the right track for grad school. Anyone have any suggestions as to what else I could do to improve my chances? Much appreciated. ;)</p>
<p>Why are you majoring in chemistry but planning an MS in physics? It would probably improve your chances to major in something that you intend to study in graduate school. Also, plan on not getting in to Harvard. Seriously; even with great stats/research/etc. your chances are low. Find some other schools you like just as well. And go where the research is, not where the “prestige” is, though those two do tend to be highly correlated.</p>
<p>Oh, and why just an MS? In a field like physics, a PhD goes a long way. That’s what most of the interesting positions require.</p>
<p>Oh, well… I’ve heard that variety is good in graduate admissions. Of course, that could just be true for med/law schools. And I know that the chances are low. I’m not going to apply exclusively to Harvard. Also, what’s wrong with going for the prestige? I always thought that that was a good thing.</p>
<p>As for the MS, I doubt I could afford a PhD… Unless there’s some full ride scholarship for first generation PhD students it’s out of the question.</p>
<p>At all high-tier schools, you GET paid to do PhD studies…</p>
<p>I’m not saying prestige is bad; but to go for prestige alone at the expense of research isn’t a good idea. Graduate school is (virtually) exclusively about research. As I said, prestige and good research usually go together, so it’s probably nothing to worry about; I’m just throwing the notion out there.</p>
<p>^^You don’t just need to go to a “high-tier” school to get through a PhD without using your own money. But yeah, you don’t pay for a PhD; you DO, however, pay for an MS.</p>
<p>Oh, and regarding variety: if you’re mainly interested in physics but have a side-interest in chemistry, try a chemistry minor or something. But you should definitely major in whatever it is you want to pursue in graduate school.</p>
<p>@ kryptonsa36: 1st generation remember? Everything I know about higher education has been self taught/researched.</p>
<p>@ sarbruis: So that applies for any school right? I’m a bit confused because my dad had to pay for his Masters in Education. Of course, that was some roundabout private christian university so I doubt its legitimacy. </p>
<p>Also, I enjoy both chemistry and physics. Since I’ll be taking classes pertaining to both in either major, I’ll wait until I’ve had a few classes in each to make the decision.</p>
<p>I highly doubt most current, non-first generation PhD students learned how graduate school works from their parents. I certainly didn’t.</p>
<p>chaolin: Are you referring to not paying for a PhD? If so, then yes, any school worth going to will provide you with some way of not having to take out loans to pay for your PhD. Programs in the hard sciences tend to have more money, so often you’ll get tuition remission and a pretty nice stipend (20+ thousand/year; these are often dependent on the city) and maybe medical insurance and subsidized housing. Humanities/soft science programs and schools with less money will probably require you to TA or something (ie, more than just once or twice that’s typically required at a top-tier hard science program). Also, some labs can fund you on their own. And there are also things like NSF fellowships that will fund your PhD years.</p>
<p>Those are just generalizations. These things vary a lot. I don’t know the state of things in physics.</p>