r/gradadmissions • u/Earth_ground_ • 2d ago
Biological Sciences Advice from someone who was accepted to every school last cycle
Edit: if you are in the type of program where you have to find a PI/mentor prior to applying then you have to do that. The programs I applied to were not direct admit. So if you NEED to reach out to PIs to find a mentor first, then you need to reach out. Like I said in the original post, I was biosciences. Some programs do things differently, and I believe even UCSC has a bioscience program that is direct admit
Hi yall. I have been lurking here a while and I have seen a lot of people making the same mistakes I made last year. “Am I qualified for this school” “is my GPA enough” “how to cold email” etc
I was accepted to every school I applied to, including multiple top5/top10 programs. My honest advice is to stop trying to compete with everyone and focus on what you have. You can’t change what you’ve done, so own it and apply. Stop worrying about things you cannot control. There’s no point asking Reddit if your transcript is good enough, because Reddit doesn’t know. I never took any upper division biology and actually zero chemistry, and I applied to only biosciences programs (and it was fine). Talk to the people who know you. I know the relationship with this subreddit all too well- simultaneously waiting for someone to build you up while you are breaking yourself down.
Just be a sincere and likable person (ie not competitive/pretentious/ ungrateful). Show your passion and why you are a good investment for the program.
I did not have perfect transcripts nor did I cold email profs before interviews (AND I WAS FINE!)
Also, look for schools that connect with your interests and values, not just because you like the name or the weight it carries. If you want to do a PhD, you want to do something you love. And that is the kind of passion that matters.
So stop sweating the small stuff, stop comparing to strangers on the internet, touch some grass or hug a tree, and remember you’ve got this <3
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u/SmolaniAshki 1d ago edited 1d ago
Even in programs with single digit acceptance rates, don't underestimate how many qualified (and overqualified) applicants get rejected because their essays make them seem rude/pretentious or just, you know, like a bad fit. And then you see all these posts on reddit or gradcafe etc like "I have a million papers and a 3.9x, how did I get rejected, how did someone with no papers (or in progress) get in over me?" well that's why.
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u/Earth_ground_ 1d ago
EXACTLY!!! and at interviews it’s very obvious
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u/D-Cup-Appreciator 1d ago
How were you able to tailor your applications to all of those schools? Was your interest area very broad or did you choose different interest areas to demonstrate fit?
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u/hoppergirl85 1d ago edited 1d ago
Prof here. And THIS IS GOLD. Literally be yourself. By the time you interview with me I don't care about your GPA or GRE scores. I want you, not how you're better than everyone else. Be yourself life is not all about research and you don't know everything, be humble, the reason we are researchers and humans is because we are fallible.
Email me. I don't know what words the kids are using these days but in my day we'd say "be chill".
As far as applications are concerned no one knows, not even the PIs you reach out to, what your odds of being admitted are.
Also while I'm at one of those "fancy name" universities it's not about that, you will not get a better job from a fancy university if you don't network, sorry, that's just how it works. I know people at other universities and they know me. If they reach out to me or one of their students reaches out to me, I'm going to try and support them the best I can.
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u/Muscles666 2d ago
Nontrad, first gen mom student here applying to grad schools for the first time ever as I’m about to graduate with my first ever BA. Thank you for this. I’ve been spiraling for days lol
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u/PorcelainJesus 2d ago
Agreed. Too many people are focused on trying to make themselves look like something they are not instead of selling what they are good at.
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u/RightCake1 2d ago
Would appreciate some advice regarding the SOP!
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u/jordantellsstories Quality Contributor 1d ago
What problems do you want to investigate?
Why do you want to investigate them?
Why do you want to investigate them at this specific school?
How are you qualified to investigate them?
Answer all four questions in your SOP and you'll be way ahead of the game. You can even use them as a 4-point structure for the whole essay.
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u/Academic-Tumbleweed9 1d ago
This website has a wealth of very helpful resources - https://www.cientificolatino.com/writing-center :)
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u/Glass-Theme-8739 1d ago
nice posts. I have had some panic attacks thinking about my chances. this reassured me to some extent
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u/TimmyElectron 1d ago
Mind me asking a bit about your background? GPA, research experience, publications etc., the things admissions officials consistently say they look at?
The advice is appreciated but the "just sell what you have" points would be stronger if we knew what you were selling last year
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u/ttwun22 1d ago
Congrats! Did you identify PIs in your SOP? You didn’t reach out to them before interview?
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u/Earth_ground_ 1d ago
No I did not reach out to them. I named at least 3 per school and it was literally like “I’m a good fit for this lab because of my experience in X. Similarly this lab because Y. I’m interested in this lab because this connects to my experience with Z.”
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u/Actual-Commission-93 1d ago
Is there anyway to know if a program is direct admit… almost everyone I’ve talked to in my field says there’s no point in cold emailing before
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u/Perfect_Spinach_7664 14h ago
This is so so helpful! Would you be willing to share your SOP or even tips?
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u/Tiny_Walk6852 1d ago
Hi! I was lead to believe you HAVE you reach out to profs in order to send an application to them! I didn’t know you could just apply and mention them in the application. Follow up to that, what did you do if you applied to ABC university and there was Two professors ( prof x at lab x and prof y at lab y) and you feel your experience would make you a fit for either and your research interest are occurring at both lab. How did you decide to handle that in your application? Did you mention both in the application, or did you decide only on one?
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u/Earth_ground_ 1d ago
So that depends on your program. My program doesn’t do direct admit. And this is in the US. It really varies by program so if you have to for your program, then do what your program says
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u/frownofadennyswaiter 2d ago
Is this for masters and are you paying full price? That’ll be the real truth, not this tone deaf post
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2d ago
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u/DumbassPhysicist 2d ago
There’s nothing tone deaf about the post. I sent 0 cold emails applied to 6 schools (all top 15 in my respective field of interest in biosciences) and got into 3 (2 being top 10) of them. While I may not have had 100% success, I’m just starting my PhD at a top 3 school. I agree that it’s completely about fit and people need to really focus on fit, research interest and how their background without a shadow of a doubt makes it an incredible case for them.
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u/Earth_ground_ 1d ago
I’m doing a PhD at Stanford hbu
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u/frownofadennyswaiter 1d ago
Cambridge PhD
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u/Earth_ground_ 1d ago
Admissions are super different in the US vs other countries, so your advice may be relevant in UK :)
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u/twix22red 2d ago
Great post. There is always a tone of anxiety when it comes to applications. You are absolutely right this post should be pinned!