<p>Hi I'm a junior at a top10 university majoring in biology/physics.
So I'm planning to apply to grad school and I have interests in bioelectronics and developing "artificial" memory in cells.
And the problem is that I don't know what department I should apply to.
Shall I apply to physics/applied physics, biology, BME?
Because another problem is that I have a mediocre cumulative gpa (3.5ish) due to some biology courses(done really bad C's :/) but have decent gpa w/ physics and math courses.
Will it help me if I apply to physics or BME rather than biology?
Or will I still have the same chances regardless?</p>
<ol>
<li>Apply to physics and BME (if school allows 2 applications)</li>
<li>Apply to BME</li>
<li>Apply to physics</li>
<li>Apply to biology</li>
</ol>
<p>The significance of the program is generally in the core courses that you take and the exams that you have to pass to demonstrate competency. The diploma will say what your degree is in but it won’t say what your research is. There are faculty in my school’s (Illinois Tech) physics department who have degrees in physical chemistry or biophysics. Conversely, there are physicists who are in engineering departments. The key is what courses are they expected to teach.</p>
<p>If you have done better in your physics courses, you might be better off in an applied physics program where you are pretty sure that you will succeed in the core curriculum. However, the bottom line is what @skruzchkns said. If you know you wish to work with a faculty member who is in a BME department, then apply to that department. That won’t guarantee that you will get in his/her lab but it gives you a better chance. That being said, two graduate students in our department are working in engineering research groups, one in BME and the other in CHEME.</p>