<p>exactly how much will publishing research on respectable scientific journals/magazines help? will it be very advantageous since it's probably considered a hook?</p>
<p>No one really knows... I do know that on my acceptance letter there was a handwritten note saying that they hoped I'd keep up my research at Stanford. It shows that you are passionate about something and have had some success. Then again, it's probably more common than you might think. It helps (maybe even a lot), but that alone is unlikely to get you in.</p>
<p>ok thanks, anyone else?</p>
<p>"Exactly how much" it helps would depend on many factors - what was your level of involvement in the project? Are you the first author, or just one of many? What was your contribution? Was it your original idea, or were you just a student that did some of the experiments, so they were nice and added your name to the list? Do you have a letter of recommendation from your mentor?</p>