Number of UG Labs?

I will have worked in the same lab for 5 years. I do not think it will adversely affect me. At least I hope not .

The only issue is that you could potentially have only one letter evaluating your research abilities. Are there any junior faculty in your lab you could possibly get a letter from besides your PI? Or anyone else who knows about your research experience? It's not terrible if you only have one if you stayed in the same lab all UG (and the advantage is that hopefully you can independently carry out a project which is a big plus), but if you're putting down any other research experiences (maybe a summer thing) it would probably be better to get 2 letters.

I've been in the same (and only UG) lab almost 4 years (some of that is non-consecutive though).

I got a LOR from my PI and my grad student mentor who is now a post-doc.

As long as you're starting out, you should take my advice (and do what I didn't) and try to get to know your bosses boss. A letter from a PI and a department chair who knows about your research would look pretty good, I'm sure.

ecoli said:

As long as you're starting out, you should take my advice (and do what I didn't) and try to get to know your bosses boss. A letter from a PI and a department chair who knows about your research would look pretty good, I'm sure.

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I don't know about you, but It would be unlikely I could get to know the department chair that is my PI's boss.. and I would think this would be the case for most people who attend undergrads at large schools or just schools that have large amounts of research going on...

I called two different MD/PhD programs that "required" two letters from PI's. They both told me the pecking order goes like this, if you can't obtain two letters from two different PIs:

PI>post-doc>graduate student>lab manager/lab tech with post-doc and below being "looked down upon".

I reported experience in 4 different labs.

In one of those labs I did significant research (close to a year, received a grant, developed a poster, presented at a few conferences), and the other 3 were electives I took which basically involved working in a lab PT in a manner to develop my skills/education.

I got grilled pretty hard by an interviewer or two, but some of them were just more eager to talk about their own pursuits and gauge how intelligently I was able to have discourse with them regarding their own research.

Let's face it.. nothing interests a scientist more than talking about their own work (or even just listening to their sales pitch).

The most important thing is to be able to engage them in intelligent discussion, demonstrate that you have a rudimentary basis in research, and be cordial.

I don't think it really matters if you've been in 1 lab for 3 years, 2 labs for a year and something or the side, or just done a wiz-bang job in 5 labs for a semester.

As an undergraduate, you really have no idea about what it takes to be successful as a PhD candidate, and that is why you will spend several years in grad school.

Just engage them sincerely, intelligently, and competantly, and I don't think any particular combination is requisite for the opportunity.

Wylde said:

hello,

I hear a lot of people talking about how they worked in a number (2-3) labs while in undergrad. I joined a lab in April (I am going to be a sophomore in the fall) and my PI emphasized that he expects my participation to continue until I graduate. I also have no intentions of leaving this lab (I enjoy my lab partners, opportunities, autonomy, research focus, etc.) and almost all of the other undergraduates have only worked in this lab.

I originally though working in 1 lab would show commitment/dedication, but now it seems everyone has worked in multiple labs and thus diversified their experiences and expanded their number of good LORs.

-Assuming an equal time commitment, is only working in 1 lab (and only getting 1 solid PI LOR) going to look bad or be a disadvantage?

-How many labs did you work in and how long did you stay in each lab?

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It really doesn't matter at all either way. Just do what you would enjoy most and where you think you can learn the most and be most productive. The only issue, which someone else discussed, is getting enough LORs (3). Other than that, no one cares.

Lets say that one is doing cancer research, but in the future that person may want to pursue his/her MD in cardiology. Would it be bad to spend the remainder of that person's undergrad at the cancer lab or should they think about switching really soon? Or would it be best for that applicant to work in 2 labs-- 1 during the summer while the other one during the year if their current school does not possess adequate cardiology research? Will that applicant look bad to adcoms though?

not if you're well versed in cardiology as well.

In that case, I wonder what would be better to demonstrate interest in at interviews... what you've done your research in or what you think you might want to do.

I know for me, I've done work in microbiology, but I'm also interested in molecular evolution of pathogens. I wonder what I will do.

ecoli said:

I know for me, I've done work in microbiology, but I'm also interested in molecular evolution of pathogens. I wonder what I will do.

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There is a lot of overlap between the two subjects, right? Wouldn't both fall under immunology?

tiedyeddog said:

There is a lot of overlap between the two subjects, right? Wouldn't both fall under immunology?

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there is but, in my uni at least, microbiology labs are in the department of molecular genetics and microbiology (the work I do is in a multidepartment subclass known as Center for Infectious Diseases, we work mostly on bacterial diseases).
The molecular evolution of pathogens is under the department of Ecology and Evolution.

I'm not sure that this would fall under immunology since, well, the work I've done so far (at least) hasn't dealt with the immune system directly. I've been interested in discovering virulence mechanisms of bacteria themselves. I'm interested in host interactions on an evolutionary basis (not my research, but a personal interest).

I guess the department would depend on the place where I'd study it.

ecoli said:

I guess the department would depend on the place where I'd study it.

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That is exactly what I was thinking.