Bio PhD, non-relevent employment?

Graduate School
1

<p>Need some help here...</p>

<p>Looking at Gene Therapy/Virology/Microbio Programs at UHouston, UT-Health Science, Texas A&M, etc. </p>

<p>Graduated 2010 from prestigious SLAC. 3.3 GPA. </p>

<p>Major: Bio, Minor: Span. and PoliSci. </p>

<p>Curriculum Notes: I had to retake OChem (1st time: D, 2nd: B+), so no Biochem. Most Bio classes A/B Work. One C in Cell my freshman year. Lots of math classes also- Bs there. </p>

<p>GRE (Oct 2011): Embarassing. See employment. Retaking Jul. 2012 to reflect reality.
V: 163, (7th%), Q: 151(48th%), W: 4.0</p>

<p>Research: 3 Years, incl. 1 Independent year and a summer of research in Organismal EvoBio. I did took on the epidem. aspects, but discovered my passion for all things Viro appeared too late to switch. I wrote a senior thesis and presented a poster at my college's 'conference' but no publications. </p>

<p>Employment: 2 years teaching HS Bio at low-income school, entering 3rd. This is desperation, not desire. Don't tell my employer.</p>

<p>LoR: These should glow from inside the envelope from research advisors, professors and employer, radiating about my work ethic, passion for Biology and intellect.</p>

<p>Other stuff: Taking next GRE Bio. I am hitting the Cell/Mol. very hard, hoping the subscore will make up the gap. </p>

<p>Bottom line: Can I aim for a PhD this fall, or should I suck it up and take on the debt for a Master's? Is there anything else I can do to increase my chances between now and then? </p>

<p>I would also love to hear from any other teachers about how this experience impacted their admissions process/grad experience.</p>

2

<p>Sorry I don’t have an answer for you, only another question since I am an undergrad. Why would you “suck it up and take on the debt” for a master’s degree? Shouldn’t Masters and Ph.Ds have similar stipend and fellowship opportunities? Why would you go into more debt if you pursue a masters vs. a Ph.D?</p>

3

<p>@g0ld3n</p>

<p>Many, if not most, transitional or terminal MS bio degrees-- which is what the OP is talking about taking debt on for-- are un-funded. Generally only PhD students received funding. (PhD students usually receive a MS along the way as they complete requirements for their PhD, but apply to grad school and are accepted as PhD candidates, not as MS-only candidates.)</p>

<p>The OP thinks he may not be be a competitive candidate for a direct PhD admission and needs to improve his CV and GPA since his UG grades are weak.</p>

4

<p>I see. Thank you for the clarification. I guess I know I won’t be applying for an MS then and try my luck at direct Ph.D after undergrad.</p>

5

<p>“Can I aim for a PhD this fall?”
not unless you can also achieve a HUGE increase in your GRE’s over these scores…</p>

<p>V: 163, (7th%), Q: 151(48th%), W: 4.0</p>

6

<p>You’re on the border, mostly because you have 3 years of research experience and glowing recs. My advice would be to apply to a range. Apply to your dream PhD programs, but also apply to some great MS programs where you can get some more research and get better grades (your 3.3 is good, but not super-competitive). You may be surprised and gain admission to some of those PhD programs, which would be awesome! If not, then go to a great MS program and beef yourself up.</p>

<p>Your GRE scores are not <em>that</em> bad. A 163 is actually in the 93rd percentile, according to the ETS website, for verbal. I would retake because in STEM, quant is usually more important and a 48th percentile quant score won’t really impress anyone. You’d want it to be at least around 80th percentile, I’d wager.</p>

<p>The recommendation from your employer should be like a fourth recommendation showing your broader impacts in the field of biology and your passion for teaching it, but I think you should get three solid recommendations from people with PhDs who can speak about your potential for success in a PhD program.</p>

7

<p>I took the GRE the first time with very little preparation and a clueless substitute who thought she needed to call me every time a child asked to go to the bathroom. So it goes. Standardizing testing is usually a walk in the park for me, so I’m unconcerned about producing a huge increase now that I can take the time to dust off those parts of my brain again. </p>

<p>Regardless, I appreciate the feedback. Much to my relief, I am not as wayward in my perception about my position as I expected. You have all confirmed what I already knew. </p>

<p>My unasked for advice to any college student who stumbles upon this post: Take the GRE while you’re still in school, even if you wait to apply for whatever reason.</p>