With the knowledge that I could change focuses on a dime, I applied to 6 unique programs for graduate school this past October (well before their January deadline). I've been anxiously awaiting the reply since application, and as of today I have officially heard back from all but one. Below are the schools to which I applied and the status of each.
Rejected From
The University of Florida
Program to which I applied: Interdisciplinary Program in Biomedical Sciences
PI intending to work for: Dr. Michelle Gumz, Renal and Sleep Physiology
Expecting to be: Accepted
Actual Status: Rejected (1/24/13)
Reason for rejection: Oh, this turns out to be a good story. Dr. Gumz and I stayed in very close contact via email prior to my application decision, which not only increased the possibility of ultimately ending up in her lab, but also made me excited about her research. I read her papers...which I understood very little about... but it was something I could see myself learning. Of the 6 schools I applied to, this was a top 3 choice. Of course, my Aunt (Dr. Cooper-Dehoff) is a professor (and kick ass researcher) of Pharmacology at the UF, and she as well Dr. Gumz were both very encouraging about my application and the opportunity to be there. So, to my surprise, not only was I rejected from the program, but I wasn't even invited out to interview. A quick slap to the face, and that was that. Let it be known that admissions committee rejected me, not the PI that I wanted to work for. I told Dr. Gumz of my rejection, to which she responded that she was shocked to hear that, and went to the dean of education/admissions to talk about my application and why I was rejected, to which he responded that there were three reasons.
1) GPA (mine was a 3.3 in undergrad, a mediocrely competitive number for graduate school).
2) I never took a biochem class (which is true, but I did get a minor in chemistry. It's not too hard to take a class while being a graduate student either).
And 3) "That I had professional experience in a lab." Apparently, the program hired a former tech on as a grad student, and he's been sort of a flop in the program. So, they're generalizing to everyone that has professional experience. You read that correctly: I was rejected because I have experience in a lab.
This is, quite possibly, the stupidest thing I have ever heard regarding graduate school. The main reason I took my job as a technician was to beef up my CV prior to applying to graduate school. I have my now have my name on 4 abstracts and 4 papers in preparation, I've budgeted a 1.3 million dollar grant, I've dealt with the IRB dozens of times, I've dabbed in/ran my own biochemical analysis project, I've presented at seminars in front of the entire department... and the UF admissions committee saw all of this as a bad thing. Unlike most undergrads who apply to grad school, I know this is what I want to do solely because I have experience. I know what a good grad student looks like, and what an unsuccessful students look like as well. This isn't me delaying working in the real world, this is me taking a step to accomplish my goals. And again, UF saw that experience and that knowledge of what I want to do, and saw it as the opposite of its intended purpose because their history with technicians has been poor. As researchers, shouldn't they know that you can't run statistics on an n of 1? The sample size isn't large enough.
UF has a very well respected, well funded program, but this in all honesty is the stupidest reason ever. Reject me for my GPA... reject me for my lack of Biochem, but do not say it's because I have too much experience. (I'm still a little sore on the subject, my rant is over now).
Dartmouth College
Program to which I applied: Experimental and Molecular Medicine
PI intending to work for: Dr. Robert Darnall, researching SIDS in the pig model
Expecting to be: Rejected
Actual Status: Rejected (1/31/13)
Reason for rejection: I was expecting this. The program doesn't have much overlap than the one I'm coming from, and the competition is stiff. I had very little email exchange with faculty there, and applied on a whim. Rejected without an interview, but in all honesty I saw this coming.
Accepted To
The University of Texas, Austin
Program to which I applied: Kinesiology
PI intending to work for: Dr. Matthew Brothers, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular physiology
Expecting to be: Accepted
Actual Status: Accepted (1/28/13)
Reason to go there: Well, I'm not going here. I've been accepted to schools that I've ranked higher on my list (see below). UT is competitive for not only Research Assistantships, but also Graduate Teaching Assistantships as well. So not only would I be competing against my fellow graduate students for funds that I'm not guaranteed to get, but I may actually be paying to attend graduate school, and there is no chance in hell that I'm going to do that. I will be sending in my intention to decline acceptance within the next 2 weeks.
The University of Utah
Program to which I applied: Bioengineering
PI intending to work for: Dr. Markus Amann, Central Nervous System Fatigue
Expecting to be: Accepted
Actual Status: Accepted (officially 2/20/13)
Reason to go there: Dr. Amann is the only PI that I applied to that I also knew personally. He borrowed my car for 2 weeks while the Bolivia Crew was here, and he's great guy. He studies something that is different than I'm used to, and I would only have to focus on research and not teaching. I've heard that Salt Lake City isn't too bad of a place to be, and it's not all the way across the country either. After speaking with a graduate student in the program, it sounds like the University itself isn't the best, however the lab isn't actually on campus (and I wouldn't need to really associate with the school). This lab also has money. A lot of money. Funding to get me through 5 years of research without a problem, and very few labs can do that. Right now, there's a strong chance that I could end up at Utah, and I'm working to schedule a visiting date. Utah is currently a top choice.
Still waiting to hear back from
Pennsylvania State University
Program to which I applied: Kinesiology
PI intending to work for: Dr. David Proctor, cardiovascular & exercise physiology
Expecting to be: 50% chance accepted, 50% rejected
Actual Status: Finished interviewing in person, waiting on word from PI.
Reason to go there: Both Dr's. Minson and Halliwill here at the UofO are who I consider to be great professors and mentors. They're both very well respected in their fields, and do some pretty cool stuff. Early in my search of programs, they both advised me to look at Dr. David Proctor's program; who they both have held in very high regard. We've stayed in close contact via phone and email since December, and he seems like a pretty cool guy. I listed this school was my #1 favorite choice since the beginning of the application process for a number of reasons, but principally because of the history of researchers this program has produced. Penn State has the #1 ranked Kinesiology program in the nation, and an excellent history of funding. The combination of funding with a professor who I've heard nothing but positive things about, AND research I find interesting all adds up to a perfect concoction for a school that I would love to attend. However, after visiting, it seems as if the professor has been in a bit of a rough patch funding wise for the past 2 years... and if this continues it will make both research as well as graduate school in general difficult to complete. However, with Dr. Proctor's name being so well respected in his field, I am confident that he will be able to get funding in the near future.
Brown University
Program to which I applied: Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology
PI intending to work for: Dr. Chi-Ming Hai, upper airway restriction at the molecular level
Expecting to be: 50% chance accepted, 50% rejected
Actual Status: Still waiting to hear back
Reason to (possibly?) go there: Brown had one of the earliest application deadlines (January 7th) for the program, and I was told I would hear back about the decision 2-3 weeks from (now) over 3 weeks ago... but no word as of yet. I'm not sure about how well I'd fit in to molecular physio, so even if I get accepted (which is a 50/50 I'd say), there's still no guarantee I'd go there. It's a top 3 choice alongside Penn St and Utah, but slim chances I actually end up there.
This is where I stand and my thoughts on all 6 schools. My next plan is to visit Utah and hopefully hear back from Brown, and make a decision soon after. I will keep you updated. Currently as I see it, Utah's dept. of Bioengineering and Penn State's dept. of Kinesiology are the 2 most likely schools I may end up at.
