<p>First of all, I just found this site today; I've poked around a bit, but haven't gotten to know the community well yet. I'm trying not to stumble onto any cliches (well, minus one burning question), but hopefully I won't be "that jerk" who just registered.</p>
<p>So, where to begin...</p>
<p>In Fall 2004, I started as an English major. Two years later, followed by a year studying abroad in Japan, and I followed my original dream of going into biology and will be graduating in March with a BS in cellular/molecular biology (since my school doesn't offer bioengineering). I live in the SF Bay Area, and plan on going for my PhD in bioengineering soon; Berkeley's my top choice (cliche, I know), but after reading some articles about grad schools cutting back on admissions due to the economy, I'm stressing out a bit and would like to know where I stand.</p>
<p>So, the stats:
-Overall GPA of 3.2, closer to 3.4-3.5 since I switched my major (had a bad quarter one year when I decided going to school/work seven days a week wouldn't kill me for two months...). I've got this quarter, then three more to work on it, and--after cutting back from 30 hours a week at work to 10--I'm poised to get straight A's this quarter. </p>
<p>-Coming from a fairly unknown school (CSU East Bay), just thought I'd throw that in there.</p>
<p>-Haven't taken the GRE yet, but will be in the next couple months (have scored fairly high on the practice exams, and writing (go former English major!) and math are my strong suits. I taught myself first-quarter calculus so I didn't have to wait to take it, and also speak Japanese competently due to self-motivation.</p>
<p>-Am currently doing research with two professors at school; one with C. elegans genetics, another with stem cell research. I want to try and do my PhD in either gene vector engineering (adenovirus-assisted gene vectors) or stem cell differentiation factors. I'm also planning on trying to talk to a couple professors specializing in these fields there within the next couple months.</p>
<p>-I'll have six months between the end of school and (hopefully) starting grad school, so I'm going to try to get a temp job for work experience.</p>
<p>My questions:</p>
<p>-Given something as competitive as Berkeley, is my GPA going to be a detriment? (and also, what are the acceptance percentages to their bioengineering program? I can't find statistics anywhere online)</p>
<p>-They ask to describe any bad quarters you had due to outside influences (heavy workloads, etc). I worked 20-30 hours a week the entire time I've gone to school, carrying between 17-22 units since switching to cell/molec; how much of a break do admissions panels cut on these?</p>
<p>-I've already found the list of the top 20 bioengineering schools in the country; any hidden gems that you guys could direct me to?</p>
<p>-And, of course, is there anything else I could do to try and improve my chances?</p>
<p>Sorry for the length, and thanks for the help!!</p>