<p>Is it easy to get in a lab in UGA? How are opportunities to get involved in research at UGA?
I'm trying to decide between UGA's bio and GaTech's BME/bio. Can anybody here shed some light in this topic?</p>
<p>UGA research funding: $150 million with 35,000 students
GT research funding: $500 million with 17,000 students</p>
<p>UGA Bio: 10 faculty members
GT BME: 45 faculty members at GT, 32 faculty members at Emory, 15 faculty members in the Georgia Tech - Peking University joint program</p>
<p>UGA Bio: 7 listed active research opportunities, most of which are not at UGA
GT BME: 36 active labs seeking undergraduate research assistants </p>
<p>UGA Bio: 3rd Tier
GT BME: #2 in the world</p>
<p>On the other hand, since most of UGA’s student body is not majoring in biology or chemistry, you might find it easier to get involved in research here.</p>
<p>What is your ultimate career goal? For research, I’d say Tech. For med school, probably UGA.</p>
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<p>UGA Bio = 1746 students
GT BME = 970 students</p>
<p>So UGA has more students for less research positions, less funding, and less faculty.</p>
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<p>I wouldn’t necessarily say that. It’s a myth that UGA students have higher GPA’s than GT students. When comparing apples-to-apples, GT majors have the same averages at the UGA majors. The difference is that UGA also has some right-skewed majors like Forestry Sciences and Education that increase the university GPA while GT has some left skewed majors like Electrical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering that lower the university GPA. But in the same major, the two schools have very similar GPA averages.</p>
<p>When comparing schools, I think it’s also good to look at each schools’ comparable set (the schools to which it compares itself). UGA’s comparable set include Iowa, Kentucky, NC State, and UC-Davis. UGA’s “aspirational” set includes Penn State and Minnesota.</p>
<p>GT’s comparable set includes Caltech, Carnegie Mellon, Johns Hopkins, MIT, Northwestern, and UC-Berkeley. There is no “aspirational” set for GT.</p>
<p>Do you have a source for the number of UGA bio majors? Never seen a breakdown by major before… that’s pretty informative.</p>
<p><a href=“https://facts.oir.uga.edu/enrollment/[/url]”>https://facts.oir.uga.edu/enrollment/</a></p>
<p>Specifically, I did a search for total enrollment by major:</p>
<p><a href=“https://facts.oir.uga.edu/enrollment/schxx01.cfm[/url]”>https://facts.oir.uga.edu/enrollment/schxx01.cfm</a></p>
<p>then searched on Drop Day in Spring 2011 for School 01 - Arts and Sciences Major 0115 - Biology</p>
<p>Banjo: Did you only look at the UGA biology major, or did you look at all of the biological sciences at UGA? For a list of the departments, go to [Franklin</a> College of Arts and Sciences - Departments](<a href=“http://www.franklin.uga.edu/academics/departments.php]Franklin”>Departments & Schools | Franklin College of Arts and Sciences), as I am guessing that if you include cell bio, biochem and mol. bio, etc., the faculty numbers change a little, as well as the student numbers.</p>
<p>Banjo: and as far as certain majors skewing the GPA, did you actually look and see how many forestry undergrads UGA has? Do you really think that many alters the GPA? And did you look at their GPA averages?</p>
<p>Banjohitter: Interesting links. Is there a link for the average gpa by major?</p>
<p>I think he’s just saying that unlike Tech, UGA is likely to have more majors that would by nature have a higher average gpa than those in STEM majors. The same would go to if you were comparing us to them. UGA having like a 3.18-3.2 overall versus Tech’s 3.07-3.1 doesn’t tell much. Some would say, oh it must mean UGA is easier (or conversely, one could claim that UGA is not that much easier than Tech), without them even getting a chance to compare coursework or gpas within a particular major. You have to compare bio/any of the biological sciences to Tech’s BME directly. For the above numbers to be really useful, I’m guessing that like 65-70% (I’m just throwing around some random estimate for how many Tech students are STEM majors) of UGA students also have to be STEM. I don’t know if that is the case or not.</p>
<p>My brother is a graduate of tech’s BME program. it is a VERY good program. I am going to UGA and I love the college, but for your case, please go to Tech. You will have to work your butt off, but it will be a better education.</p>
<p>OP, you’re not comparing the same things. A bio major at UGA is vastly different from a biomedical engineering major at GT. The job prospects for each are different. The difficulty level for each are different. The opportunities for each at each school is different. If you’re on the border of not knowing if you want bio or BME, go to GT and that way both of them are available to you. GT is overall the more science-focused school. </p>
<p>If you want to find a lab to work in at UGA, you will find a lab. They’re not really hard to find, but it will take some asking around (many open lab positions are unlisted) and you have to ask at the right time. If you have CURO backing, it makes it even easier (CURO is under the honors program). Now, I will say that the quality of your research just depends on who you’re working with. You can get lucky and be under the main PI or another top scientist in the lab or you could be under the grad student. If you have multiple lab offers, these are things you should be looking at when comparing labs. </p>
<p>There a lot of great labs at UGA that produce some great material that gets into Science and Cell. I wouldn’t pay too much attention the numbers that Banjo put up. More faculty=more money. </p>
<p>If your future is in research and engineering, I would go with GT. I won’t argue that they are higher ranked than UGA in these areas (especially engineering considering UGA really doesn’t have an engineering school, but the engineering school at GT originated at UGA…whatevs…off topic). GT will probably get you contacts that you need for grad school in these areas. However, this isn’t to say that UGA is a bad place (though it is if you want to do engineering). There are plenty of opportunities here for those who look for it. </p>
<p>By the way, bio isn’t the only science major that isn’t physics or chemistry. We have cell bio, genetics, and biochem/molecular biology. These majors offer great classes and great research opportunities (I believe biochem requires research for their major).</p>
<p>Jenmarie: I think that’s exactly what I was saying when the topic was Tech BME vs. UGA bio. It’s like apples to oranges.<br>
I really wish we had molecular bio or biochem, or genetics (then again, our bio dept. is heavily biased toward genetics based biology coursework). So jealous that Tech and y’all have such UG depts. But I’m pretty sure they’d be pretty darn hard (not that I mind). Seems we only care about things that most pre-meds would be into/not afraid of (most are already afraid to be chem. majors and I don’t blame them). They tend to do neuroscience (jury is certainly out on rather this is truly as hard a major as they say), biology, anthropology, or psyche. There doesn’t seem to be any effort to expand bio course offering and/or integrate the undergrad. chem dept. into it so that it could benefit those interested in a career in academia. But then again, I guess that’s why there is a bigger emphasis on creating more interdisciplinary majors. Still, more diverse science=good. However, despite lackings in undergrad. course offerings, it is so darned easy to take courses in the grad. school. I love it 
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<p>It’s the comparison that the OP wanted to make. Unless you have a very specific interest only offered at one school (say, Marine Biology), there doesn’t seem to be any issue. </p>
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<p>5000 Education majors, 2000 Agriculture majors, 1400 Farm and Consumer Science majors, 1000 Communications majors, 350 Forestry Science majors, etc. That’s a very large fraction of the school in majors with right skewed GPAs.</p>
<p>UGA has an average GPA of 3.32 while GT has an average GPA of 3.05. That doesn’t mean you can assume that going to UGA results in a 10% higher GPA because of the different majors that compose those GPAs. I’m willing to bet that in the same major, the two schools give similar GPAs.</p>
<p>UGA is 3.32? Since when? Where did you find that? How and when the heck did they catch up? Also, you’re right. Science gpas will probably be similar across most schools. Unlike Tech though, I don’t think many UGA science classes curve (or at least claim not to), mainly because they don’t have to. Most have a normal scale (where some harder ones will adjust it downward). Since they don’t curve (we do it for many), I don’t see how the average GPA can be that close.<br>
Also, note that science majors at UGA will have more buffer classes to choose from. So they can at least inflate their overall GPA.</p>
<p>Banjo: You may want to take a look at those numbers again, as you are including grad. school numbers when comparing things, not undergrad. For instance, almost half of your 5,000 education students are in grad school (<a href=“http://irhst40.irp.uga.edu/html/eFactbook/2010/S04Enroll.pdf[/url]”>http://irhst40.irp.uga.edu/html/eFactbook/2010/S04Enroll.pdf</a>), and a number of other areas have big differences in total vs. undergrad %. As well, unless you have specific data that these students, let’s take Ag. students, have a higher GPA and inflate the overall GPA, I do not think you can actually say that this is the case. Facts are great, and I am glad you are referring to them, but please make sure they are facts that apply, and that if you do not have facts, do not make assumptions.</p>
<p>Banjo: Minor correction. That is family and Consumer Science, not Farm. I will agree that it is not likely the most challenging major at UGA.</p>
<p>The Ag majors that you list include such majors as Biological Sciences, Agricultural Engineering, Animal Sciences (common pre-vet major), Biological Sciences, Bio Engineering,. As far as dissing the Biological Science major of which I only see 424 undergrads in, it looks like a pretty standard science major. It requires calc, chem, o-chem, biology, biochem, genetics, etc.</p>
<p>The Communications major is part of Journalism & Mass Communications. At many schools that is a limited enrollment program and highly competitive.</p>
<p>Everyone has different strengths, let’s just say I am glad I was not a philosophy major.</p>
<p>Again, I’d love to know where you are finding the data for gpa’s?</p>