<p>Aspiring Biology/Neuro/Medical Science grad student here. Still early in my undergraduate career and want specific tips besides do research, get involved, get good grades and other generalized vague things. I think CC could really use an advice thread and people would really benefit from this. Specific things I would really appreciate knowing include:</p>
<p>1.) How to properly email a professor for the first time and maximize your chances of getting a reply back. What to say, what not to say in the first email.
2.) What little things earn you extra big points. Ex: One of my friends did a TEDx presentation on a specific topic in physics and got into Stanford. They told her later they really enjoyed looking up and seeing her presentation. She was an overall great applicant, but that presentation definitely earned bonus points.
3.) Anything that you think undergraduates would miss in their time as undergrads but should really know. </p>
<p>If there are any of you admitted/alum/got interviews to top 10 programs (Harvard, Columbia, UCB, Stanford, Princeton, UCSF, JHU, UPenn, UCLA etc) I would really appreciate some feedback on what you think really clinched your ticket in. Even non-top 10 admittees, feedback is valuable to me. </p>
<p>Thank you!! That is exactly what I’m talking about. Much appreciated, and keep them coming guys. Hopefully this thread can get really big and valuable for people looking for help as undergrads aspiring to get into bioscience programs.</p>
A professor at your school (for a research position, e.g.) or a professor at a program to which you’d like to be accepted? For either, you should keep the email short and to-the-point, briefly explaining why you’re contacting him/her and asking to set up an in-person meeting to discuss further. You should include your resume or CV as a PDF. </p>
<p>If you have a reason to contact a professor in a program to which you’d like to be admitted (and “I’d like to be admitted to that program” is not a reason), the best way to do this is to have your current research advisor send him/her an email introducing you. </p>
<p>
Specifically, do research. Do research as long, and as intensely, as is possible for you – if you’re aiming for top programs, just doing research during the summers isn’t going to be impressive. Many of your fellow applicants will have done research full-time during the summer starting after freshman year, and will have additionally continued their research 10-15 hours a week during the semester. </p>
<p>The ideal situation is to find a great lab early on and stick with that lab until you graduate. You don’t want to lab-hop if you can help it, and you want to be somewhere long enough that you can make a real contribution to a handful of projects. When you’re in lab, be serious about learning techniques and contributing intellectually to projects – ask questions and do your own reading. You don’t need to be published, although being published is great. But if you walk into your new lab on day 1 and ask if you’ll be published, the grad students and postdocs may strangle you in your sleep.</p>
<p>As an incoming graduate student, I’ll chime in.</p>
<p>Network network network! I’m probably preaching at this point but I think one of the most important things you can do is establish meaningful relationships with your advisor/PI and professors in your department. This is not necessarily easy since undergraduates are usually not given much attention by professors at large research universities so you may have to really work at establishing these relationships. Your letters of rec (arguably one of the most important aspect of your application) is going to benefit tremendously if you actually have some kind of working relationship with your PI and not just the postdoc that is mentoring you. Meaning, they will actually vouch for your abilities themselves instead of having a postdoc or graduate student write the letter only for them to simply sign it. Aside from your lab, go out and network as best as you can. One way I did this was by TAing. It’s a great way to get to know a professor on a more informal level and gain another advisor outside of your lab. Seminars are also another great way to network and meet professors outside of the classroom setting. </p>
<p>I’m pretty sure the strongest area of my application were my letters. My numbers were okay but it really helps when you go to an interview and every professor you interview with starts off with something like “Oh, so you’ve worked with Dr. X, she’s/he’s a big name in this field.” I came out of my interviews with a whole new-found appreciation for my PI and my letter writers. It’s great when they know and respect the person who is vouching for your abilities and capability.</p>
<p>Also, when you are actually in the thick of the application process, it’s going to a wild rollercoaster ride. Grad school admissions are as ambiguous as they come. You’ll get rejections you never expected and sometimes your acceptances and rejections won’t make sense. Usually though (from my experience from meeting people at interviews), if you get an interview at a top 5 uni, you’re likely to (key word here being likely not that you will) get another interview at a top 5 uni. There were A LOT of overlaps of Harvard, MIT, Stanford, UCSF, and Berkeley interviewees during my interviews. </p>
<p>And on a final note, make sure you take fit into consideration. Remember, you will be at this university for the next 5-7 years of your life and you want to make sure it’s a place you will want to be at (in terms of your classmates, faculty, research interests, etc…) Don’t be blinded by prestige. Best of luck!</p>
<p>no just eyeopening. the midwest is a very desolate place, you know.</p>
<p>And I believe only 12 people each year get the Hertz in the whole US, where as Rhodes and Churchill have much more winners. In his blog, he mentioned that he knew he wasn’t going to get it, but applied anyway because he wanted to experience the interviews. so fancy.</p>