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Post by Vene on Mar 26, 2009 22:07:00 GMT -5
Basically, I'm in my junior year of college and am starting to look for graduate schools. Since I don't necessarily feel like staying in Michigan I've done a little bit of research on schools out of state. I've gotten way overwhelmed and come to the only logical conclusion: ask an online forum what to do.
This is where you guys come in. Recommend some universities for me to look into.
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Post by Aqualung on Mar 26, 2009 22:34:54 GMT -5
You're in biology right? I have a friend who was a biology-chemistry double major who now goes to the University of Iowa in Ames for her graduate studies.
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Post by m52nickerson on Mar 26, 2009 23:07:16 GMT -5
The University of Florida baby, it not cold!
.......New York State University at Fredoina, yes it is a state school but thay have a very good biology program.
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Post by HarleyThomas1002 on Mar 26, 2009 23:15:50 GMT -5
University of Regina. 30-45 minute drive from where I am. 15 if you're doing 180. Hope you have a thick winter jacket and know the metric system.
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Post by Vene on Mar 26, 2009 23:19:20 GMT -5
University of Regina. 30-45 minute drive from where I am. 15 if you're doing 180. Hope you have a thick winter jacket and know the metric system. I'm a science student in Michigan, I am very used to winter and I use the metric system daily. |
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Post by Oriet on Mar 26, 2009 23:48:49 GMT -5
Or try the UofMN. Then you're only an hour and a half drive away!
Actually, I have no clue which universities would be best for your studies. At first I thought this was gonna be something I could respond to with "try masturbating more," but alas I don't think that would even remotely help in your choice. Well, unless you did it over a list of universities you're contemplating and decide to pick the one you splooge on the most.
[ETA] I have editing Fail, it would seem.
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Post by HarleyThomas1002 on Mar 26, 2009 23:52:30 GMT -5
I should make that my new way of choosing things. Although clothes and food might have to be something else.
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Post by renaissanceblonde on Mar 26, 2009 23:59:18 GMT -5
All I can suggest is stay away from the Bible Belt!
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Post by Vene on Mar 27, 2009 9:14:14 GMT -5
Actually, I have no clue which universities would be best for your studies. In all actuality most any place that offers a doctorate in a biological science would work just fine. I just want to know a few places to look into. It's not like I'd pick one based on a forum. [/color][/quote] I like it. Although, it's not like I'd only apply at one. Advice I've gotten from people who have gone through graduate school is to apply for 7 to 10 schools. Part of my thought process is that there are sometimes good schools that are on the smaller side. The university I'm currently at is one of those. It's not very well known out of state. Not that the university is bad, it's just not a big school. The only real issue with it is that it doesn't have a grad program in biology. Sure, it offers a MBA and professional degrees, but not anything in my field. |
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Post by canadian mojo on Mar 27, 2009 9:45:31 GMT -5
There are nicer places than Regina if you are contemplating studies abroad.  |
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Post by dantesvirgil on Mar 27, 2009 9:59:13 GMT -5
You need 7-10 schools, for sure. You also want to think about a few other things like HOW MUCH ARE THEY GOING TO FUND YOU AND WHAT FOR!  That is probably one of the most important questions, equal with or second to who works there (working with PZ Myers would be awesome). You need to find out what each school does for their grad students. Do they give most of them a stipend? Do they have research positions for grad students, or are you going to be a grader for another prof? Your stipend won't be much, but it needs to be designed so that you don't get into too much debt trying to get your grad degree. The next thing you need to know is the track record of their grads once they're finished. So, ask somebody there who their grad placement director is. Find out how many PhDs (which is what you're doing, right?) go on to get jobs and what kind of jobs they get. Ask the profs you have and like now what schools are hot for research right now. They have all the inside dope anyway. And they can tell you whether some school that has the big name prof really doesn't do jack for their grad students. Until you know the answers to the above questions, you might as well just throw a tack on a map and see where it lands. |
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Post by dantesvirgil on Mar 27, 2009 10:00:50 GMT -5
And then, I totally forgot to mention that you need to take into account the aesthetics of where you're going to spend the next 4-6 years as well. Do you want to be in a place that has a lot of culture, for a change, for example? You said you didn't mind the cold. But what sort of creature comforts appeal to you. Then we can figure out which big schools fit that profile, and then you can start asking questions about the tuition remission and grad student packages they offer.
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Post by Julian on Mar 27, 2009 10:12:27 GMT -5
How's Berkeley stack up?
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Post by Vene on Mar 27, 2009 10:51:52 GMT -5
Ask the profs you have and like now what schools are hot for research right now. They have all the inside dope anyway. And they can tell you whether some school that has the big name prof really doesn't do jack for their grad students. Oh goody, a legitimate reason to bother my advisor. To be honest, that's about the amount of direction I currently have. As for funding, I know that I'll have to apply for some fellowships. The schools I have looked at all say they help students with a stipend, somewhere between $20k and $30k. For example, I looked at the University of Michigan and they provide a stipend of $24k for students in their molecular pathology program and $26k for their cellular biology program. There are a few advantages of being in a hard science. You mentioned aesthetics, I do have a few preferences. I am fucking sick of living in the middle of nowhere. I don't necessarily have to be in a big city, but I'd like to live someplace where I don't get stuck behind a tractor. Fuck the Bible Belt. I don't really know what to say about stuff like the cold. I've lived in Michigan all my life, I know snow, I know cold. I know how to handle it better than I do heat. I'd probably die in someplace like Florida for example. So far I've mostly looked at places in New England and the Great Lakes states. |
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Post by Sandafluffoid on Mar 27, 2009 12:59:18 GMT -5
There are nicer places than Regina if you are contemplating studies abroad. I agree, live a little and study in forrun parts, worst case scenario it turns out to be a scam and you end up broke in a country whose language you do nto speak with no way of contacting anyone. |
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That is probably one of the most important questions, equal with or second to who works there (working with PZ Myers would be awesome). You need to find out what each school does for their grad students. Do they give most of them a stipend? Do they have research positions for grad students, or are you going to be a grader for another prof? Your stipend won't be much, but it needs to be designed so that you don't get into too much debt trying to get your grad degree. The next thing you need to know is the track record of their grads once they're finished. So, ask somebody there who their grad placement director is. Find out how many PhDs (which is what you're doing, right?) go on to get jobs and what kind of jobs they get. 
