morassa

1. North Carolina State Univ -Raleigh 2. Iowa State University - Ames 3. Univ of North Carolina - Chapel Hill 4. UIC 5. SUNY, Buffalo 6. Boston University, Mass 7. North Eastern University 8. George Mason Univ 9. Duke Univ 10. UC Santa Cruz 11. U Minnesota i have highlighted the schools with decent programs. I would suggest MIT, University of Michigan and University of Washington also. The other schools in your list are ok i suppose... George Mason is a rather random school and so is Iowa State University. I would aim a little higher...

1.That contacting the departments/ prof./ schools even before you start your application process will make your application stand out among others? actually unlikey lots of students are as eager and anxious as you. important thing is who you are on paper. 2. If you apply to universities before the deadline but your scores reach them much later;lets say, I write my sub GRE around April but deadline to the schools I apply are Jan 1st; will my application still be processed keeping in consideration my sub GRE scores ? I would suggest talking with the school and the department u are applying to. Most assume you have thought ahead about your decision to attend graduate school and thus should have taken it earlier. there are deadlines for a reason. 3. Having your sub GRE scores even though its optional for the schools u apply carry any weight? I am not sure about this...if its optional then it usually is not looked at unless u are a borderline student with average grades

Hey...well i guess once u get into grad school its kinda lame to revisit these forums..but hey...im here just to spread a little hope and give out some advise. Im a 1st year PhD student at Hopkins in a biological science...and spent an adequate amount of time on this forum talking with everyone and feeling the ups and downs of acceptances and interviews and Lots and LOTS AND LOTS of waiting....!!! But, just so you know...in the end, the ultimate thing to remember when choosing a program is to make sure u can handle the courses and have more than one faculty member u want to work with. Other than that, scores are important, GPA is important and above all of this is your letters of recommendation and your interview are the MOST important. Personal statement really means crap. Any questions feel free to email me at morassa at jhmi dot edu and ill be happy to respond. actually...ill only respond if u are in biological sciences or medicine...i have no clue about engineering or econ. sorry. peace. morassa

Hmm...econ stipends are really low! My stipend is 25,200 for the year plus full tuition and health insurance. Hopefully taxes arent that bad! Has anyone looked into housing yet? Im assuming most internationals will be dorming? right? and you are all located at the Homewood campus? Ill be at the medical school so Im thinking of living in Charles Village or Mount Vernon as there is a JHU shuttle that runs through these districts. Rent for a one bedroom seems to run between 500-750 a month which is really cheap compared to what Im paying now here in Chicago! Any science nerds like me going to JHU? :)

I figured everyone else was creating their own little groups so I should probably do the same. lol I'll be getting my PhD in Human Genetics...I plan on moving out to Baltimore 2nd week of August. Anyone else headed to Hopkins this Fall?

My advise is to apply early and apply to a variety of schools. Also...and this is HUGE...try to establish a good relationship with at least one of your recommenders. I cannot stress enough how important connections are in graduate school admissions. Also, when the applications are in....do not STRESS and check your emails a billion times a day. Checking your email is not going to help you get in and if anything it will give you an ulcer and only lower your confidence if you dont get anything right away. Also remember: You cant get accepted into EVERY school you apply to. This is unrealistic. I got rejections from my safety school and got acceptances from my far reach schools so dont fret...in the end things will work itself out. I am available by email if you have any questions :) Ciao Morassa

This is my advise. I will be attending Hopkins this fall which is located in Baltimore, MD...Eastcoast. My Fiance is in a PhD program at UCLA, Los Angeles, CA...Westcoast. We are potentially going to be living apart for about 5 years or so...but I dont see it as something that will end our relationship..we dont even see that as an option. Now...IF she loves you and you love her then your move shouldn't be a problem. Grad school is just a chapter in your life that you need to do to ensure the success of your future and the future of your family. I would suggest long distance and see what she says. Alot can be said about a relationship that makes it through a tough situation. If she is unwilling to do this for you, then she is not the girl for you. If she is willing to try...then that is great news and at that point I would take it one day at a time. Good Luck! ~m

I think Ill join you in this retirement thread...I feel like i need a pacemaker after all the minor strokes and heart attacks Ive had over the last few months... I remember back in the day when testmagic was on the other site....back when I was just thinking about the GRE and applying to grad school....and now...my hair has turned grey, Ive developed OCD, and Ive become best friends with about 12 different graduate secretaries.... Applying for post-docs in 5 years is gonna be fun fun fun hahaha...

Well I have had the same sorta problem with UCLA and BU as well... I applied to both schools WAY before the deadline and have yet to hear back from either. I interviewed at BU sometime in Feb and have not heard anything with regards to an acceptance or rejection...and UCLA..well I havent even heard from them since I sent in my application. Eh...well I used to think that if i didnt get into UCLA my life would be over...but honestly....I would hate to go to a school that is this inefficient and inconsiderate to its applicants. I see it as their loss really as they have taken WAY to long to give me a response and thus I have accepted another offer. I did my undergrad at UCIrvine and so I know how beaurocratic the system is....to get ANYTHING done requires 20 forms and 30 signatures and takes weeks if not MONTHS to get an approval for something...so i can only imagine what UCLA is going through hahaha.. Peace~ m

Tell her congrats!! Thats a great admit! My fiance and I are doing the long distance thing...none of our programs overlapped...but he is almost done with classes so when he is done he will move out to Baltimore with me and write his thesis at home with me :) (He is a PhD student in Sociology at UCLA) I hope things work out!!!! Good Luck! ~M

Hey...is it a possibility you will join me at Hopkins ?? :D :D :D Im on the Medical Campus though...you are probably on the Homewood campus right? If you decide to go...hit me up with a PM or message me on AIM :) Congrats on your admits!!!! ~Morassa

Dear Dr. XXXX, Thank you for the offer! I had a wonderful time up in beautiful New Hampshire, and was extrememly impressed by the research the faculty were doing..as well as the caliber of research the students were conducting. However, I have been offered a position at the Johns Hopkins McKusick-Nathans Institute of Genetic Medicine, and I have chosen to get my PhD in Human Genetics at this school. Again, thank you and the amazing students and faculty for giving all of us recruits a good time up at Dartmouth. Best wishes, Morassa Mohseni This is my "rejection" letter

Hey Suja....Did you decide where you are going yet? :D Also...what is everyone up to? Us Bio people seem to be MIA for a while... lol.. ~M Hey Suja....have you decided where you are going yet? What about everyone else? ~m

I have decided to attend Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and get my PhD in Human Genetics. I have written my letter of acceptance and have spoken to them over the phone...so yeah all the agony...the waiting....the ups and downs of this whole process have filled my life with lots to talk about...and now...WOOOHOOOOO Im so glad its over..honestly...it feels great. Ill try not to be a stranger to the forum so please PM if you want any advise or anything like that :) Best of luck to all of you! :tup: Morassa

nurulz...where in chicago are you :)? im in chicago too lol PM me