AMGEN Scholars Program - Summer 2009!

[Bioengr]

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on the UCSD amgen website, it states that they've made their final selections and picked alternates for this year, and if we haven't heard anything from them, then we're dunzo.
>> http://aep.ucsd.edu/amgen/

 

[wagonwheel23]

Stanford AMGEN - Accepted.

Uhh... Berkeley or Stanford? Crap.

 

[musik2468]

Would any of you guys mind sharing your basic stats, as well as which programs you applied to/were accepted to/were rejected from? (GPA, research experience, etc)
I'm thinking of applying next year and I'm trying to get a feel for where I stand.

 

[251724]

on the UCSD amgen website, it states that they've made their final selections and picked alternates for this year, and if we haven't heard anything from them, then we're dunzo.
>> http://aep.ucsd.edu/amgen/

wow, not even an email to let you know that you've been rejected? lame.

 

[ponybreeder4]

Damn UCSD, thats kinda cold. I spent money to get my transcripts sent to you ($8 a pop times 2 shools), ran around looking for letters of rec, and wasted my time writing those essays...and they dont even have the deceny to email me a rejection letter? ouch

unfortunately somethign tells me the medical school application process will be similar

 

[mdo]

heyy any word on UW or stanford yet?

i got an email from ucla saying i was on the waitlist, but i went in and talked to them today and they said theyre all filled up. rejection letters should be sent today. fml.

 

[NeuroChaos]

Dear Stanford,
Give me my rejection. I deserve it!

Yours truly,

 

[tkp]

heyy any word on UW or stanford yet?

i got an email from ucla saying i was on the waitlist, but i went in and talked to them today and they said theyre all filled up. rejection letters should be sent today. fml.

They were sent about 30 minutes ago. I checked my email.

 

[Aim45S]

Berkeley and Stanford- no news yet 🙁

Berkeley emailed last week saying their final decisions will be emailed by the end of this week (for those who were not selected in the first round)

I guess tomorrow is going to be the day of rejections for me!!

 

[batch5000]

Congrats to all the Amgeners this upcoming semester!

 

[wagonwheel23]

Hey all. I'll be at Berkeley this summer (worked out much better for my schedule/logistics) and could not be more excited. Good luck to those that are still waiting to hear back and I hope to run into the UCSF and Stanford Amgen students while in the bay area!

 

[Michalite04]

whos gonna be at UCSD?

 

[Bioengr]

Berkeley Amgen!!! 🙂 Good luck to those still waiting...I know how it feels

 

[TraderDoc]

Hey Guys, I just thought about this. But are we at a disadvantage in the application process because of being an AMGEN scholar since most of us won't receive our secondaries since we are not at home? I'm a little worried since I probably wont be able to complete my secondaries until I get home around August 8! Does AMCAS allow schools to send secondaries to an address other than the home address. Heck, I don't even know if I will get a mail box at UCSF while I'm there.

 

[madamebovary]

Hey Guys, I just thought about this. But are we at a disadvantage in the application process because of being an AMGEN scholar since most of us won't receive our secondaries since we are not at home? I'm a little worried since I probably wont be able to complete my secondaries until I get home around August 8! Does AMCAS allow schools to send secondaries to an address other than the home address. Heck, I don't even know if I will get a mail box at UCSF while I'm there.

I remember last year at the REU, there was one guy doing his med school apps and i think most of his secondaries were online. I cant be for sure, but i believe he may have used the mailbox given by the place we researched at. I almost want to say with certainty that you will get an mailbox at UCSF. The only disadvantage i would think is that you have to work full time while worrying about what to write for the essays.

 

[Bioengr]

Anyone else hear any more news?

 

[panskysants]

Hey Guys, I just thought about this. But are we at a disadvantage in the application process because of being an AMGEN scholar since most of us won't receive our secondaries since we are not at home? I'm a little worried since I probably wont be able to complete my secondaries until I get home around August 8! Does AMCAS allow schools to send secondaries to an address other than the home address. Heck, I don't even know if I will get a mail box at UCSF while I'm there.

I just started thinking the same thing the other day. I spoke with a student who went through the application process last year and she said that because you can change your address on AMCAS at anytime that I should update it with my new address for the summer. She also said that many of her secondaries were via e-mail.

I've been accepted to the UW Amgen program this summer. Is anyone else doing this/has done it in the past? How much free time do you end up having? What is the living situation like?

 

[muja786]

Howard Scholars, please stand up. Just got accepted off the wait-list and I am ecstatic about the opportunity. It is gonna be a great summer 2009! PM me if you're gonna be going there.

 

[Bioengr]

Congrats muja! gotta love the feeling of finally getting off the dreaded wait list!

 

[betalg09]

Is anyone going to the UCSF Amgen program this summer? We should have a thread and talk before the program start.

 

[kygirl2141]

yeah or a facebook group or something. also, does anyone know when we are supposed to find out about our research matches, roommates, plane tickets, etc?

 

[betalg09]

I read from a previous e-mail from Don, the guy that work for UCSF, or some other site that we will know our mentor today, May 1. But i have been checking my e-mail all day and i haven't heard anything yet. Has anyone heard anything?

 

[crzy4psych]

Hey Everyone!

I just joined this thing, and was wondering if anyone got accepted to the UCSD program??

 

[crzy4psych]

Hi there, I'm guessing you got accepted and so did I...so I'll be seeing you there soon!!!!

 

[TarHeel97]

I am applying for the Amgen program for Summer 2010. I am currently an undergraduate in South Carolina in Biomedical Engineering. I know they want people with experience with research. The only problem is do they have specific preferential research? I work with heme sites on Cytochrome P450 and was wondering if a very comprehensive explanation would be enough.

Also, how do people apply for a mentor? I tried to apply for 2009, but I could NOT get in contact with any professors. My GPA is pretty good, but what i was wondering is what exactly do they want with the personal statement. I emailed faculty at MIT UROP and she replied all that was necessary was a glowing GPA and two letters of recommendation (if only that were the case, seeing as MIT is the one I really want for AMGEN 2010).

If anybody has any advice, I would sincerely appreciate it.

 

[redlight]

i was really put-off by the apparent phd focus of this program so i didnt apply :/... but all the people i know who have done this were premed, so i think i'll apply next summer and see what happens...

i really hope you guys who were accepted will summarize your experiences... that would be awesome. if you could give a brief statement on your application, that would be much appreciated as well (gpa range, amount of prior research experience, major, and what types of labs you applied for, sites where you were accepted, etc.)

thanks,

 

[hopslam]

I did this program one summer ago. My University GPA was ~3.9. Overall it is much lower. I'm non-trad and have some poor grades from many moons ago. I had very little research experience before this (just a small bioinformatics project.) What you have to understand about this program is that its mission is to get people excited about becoming future investigators. It also aims to give people who have limited access to research opportunities a chance to research at a research powerhouse. That being said, about half of the people in my program had little to no research. The other half had a wide range of research projects under their belt. Almost all of the people in my program were PhD bound.

I would suggest applying if you are curious about making research a part of your future career. Perhaps you are interested in MD/PhD? I went in being very curious about research and came out absolutely in love with scientific investigation. I would not suggest applying if you are looking for research on your resume. That would do a great disservice to the mission of the program.

In all, it was the best summer of my life. My peers were the best part of the experience. Mentorship was unbelievable as well. I learned how to make a poster, give presentations, and do a podium presentation - and do them very well (a big deal for someone with no prior experience.) Do it if you love research.

As for applying, I cannot stress the importance of essays. These make or break you. Show enthusiasium for learning about being a future investigator. Explain why their program in particular might help you achieve your career goals. But don't BS. It is absolutely important to be genuine. Also remember that the goal of the program is to get people excited about becoming future investigators. So appeal to that in your essays. Don't convey that you are looking for an EC to help you get into med school.

I was accepted into the UCLA program and into the UWash program. This summer program was the most significant experience that I have had in terms of scientific development. Also I had a lot of time to hang with a great group of peers, explore the bars, culture and beauty of the west coast.

My peers have gone one to do awesome things. One is now a Rhodes Scholar, one a Marshall Scholar, one is in an MSTP at WashU, and I am doing a year-long research fellowship (special NIH program - not the post bacc IRTA) that is very competive (>500 apps for 12 seats.)

In all I would rate this program as highly as I can. Best of luck. Put time into essays. Address the mission of the program and of the individual schools.

Hope this helps!

 

[redlight]

yes, that helps! thanks for the swift response; it's helped me get a clearer picture of what kinds of students they are looking for.

i was wondering if you could comment on the work you were doing? how involved were you in the research process in terms of hammering out ideas for projects and carrying them out? how involved were the mentors in guiding you along the process? was it more of an interactive mentor-student relation or were you given a ton of responsibilty and just had the option of seeking advice when you wanted it?

i know that i am not interested in a phd.. that's why i didn't apply for this summer in the first place. i am interested in research, though. i am trying it for the first time this summer and it's pretty fun. im learning a lot and being exposed to things i wouldnt get to do in a class setting, which is awesome. on the other hand, it can get very stressful.. things obviously dont always go as planned, and producing great results has not always been possible.. i definitely think i'd like to do some kind of research down the line, but im not sure how much. i guess im looking for a program that would help me figure some of that out that out.

 

[TraderDoc]

Hey Guys,

- I just returned home from my summer being an AMGEN scholar at UCSF. The biggest thing that this program did for me was that it made me a much better researcher than when I came in.

- Like hopslam said, the essays do make or break you. Your letters of recs play a crucial role in the selection process. Be genuine! Blow away the slection commitee with your passion for research. Always, and I mean always tell them how you can contribute to the diversity at the specific program.

- At UCSF this summer there was actually about a 50/50 split between pre-med and pre-grad students. ADVICE!!! Do not study for the MCAT if you are an AMGEN scholar, you want to do research and have fun, not turn into a robot for the summer (if you are already one, then nevermind)!!

- As far as statistics goes, I think the AMGEN director said that the average GPA of all AMGEN scholars was 3.72. UCSF's program had the highest average GPA of all the programs, but don't let that deter you from applying (always take a shot) to this phenomenal site.

- Research: I worked at the gladstone institute of virology and Immunology under an MD/Phd who was so supportive and encouraging. My Post-doc was so helpful and taught me so much regarding HIV research. At first my post-doc was there with me a lot, but as the summer progressed I was able to become more independent and eventually designed my own experiments.

- I would also have to say that this was the best summer of my life and I was grateful to have met so many amazing individuals. You will truly meet and spend a summer with people who will go on to be amazing doctors, researchers, or physician scientists.

 

[Var_Surfin23]

do you guys remember what the essay prompt for the application is?