Mount Sinai and two-body problem: options (post-bacc, lab tech, Masters) for gf

[ScottishCellist]

Hi all,

I'm leaning towards Mount Sinai's MSTP program. Problem is, my girlfriend (wants to get her PhD in Microbio) only applied to one NYC school (Columbia) and got rejected. She's most likely getting into a Baltimore school, so long-distance is our back-up plan. We're fretting about our options and appreciate any advice, here are options we've thought of but have no idea if they are possible:

1) She withdraws all her applications (and acceptances), continues as a post-bacc at the FDA for another year, and applies next cycle to more NYC schools, hoping that she gets at least one acceptance. This seems risky since the schools that gave her acceptances this time won't want to give her another one next time.
2) She applies to Mount Sinai's post-bacc program or applies to be a lab tech or something, and use that as a stepping stone to Mount Sinai's PhD program. (Does Sinai give preferential admissions to people who've been in their post-bacc program or worked there as a lab tech?)
3) She applies to MS's Masters program, does it for one semester or year if there is a way to then join the PhD program. I doubt yet hope that there's such flexibility.
4) She accepts elsewhere, like UMB or JHU, and transfers. I imagine this is near impossible.

I'm going to ask the Mount Sinai MSTP leadership for their help and advice too. We're desperate! Thanks in advance

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[ValentinNarcisse]

Hi all,

I'm leaning towards Mount Sinai's MSTP program. Problem is, my girlfriend (wants to get her PhD in Microbio) only applied to one NYC school (Columbia) and got rejected. She's most likely getting into a Baltimore school, so long-distance is our back-up plan. We're fretting about our options and appreciate any advice, here are options we've thought of but have no idea if they are possible:

1) She withdraws all her applications (and acceptances), continues as a post-bacc at the FDA for another year, and applies next cycle to more NYC schools, hoping that she gets at least one acceptance. This seems risky since the schools that gave her acceptances this time won't want to give her another one next time.
2) She applies to Mount Sinai's post-bacc program or applies to be a lab tech or something, and use that as a stepping stone to Mount Sinai's PhD program. (Does Sinai give preferential admissions to people who've been in their post-bacc program or worked there as a lab tech?)
3) She applies to MS's Masters program, does it for one semester or year if there is a way to then join the PhD program. I doubt yet hope that there's such flexibility.
4) She accepts elsewhere, like UMB or JHU, and transfers. I imagine this is near impossible.

I'm going to ask the Mount Sinai MSTP leadership for their help and advice too. We're desperate! Thanks in advance

Why would she only apply to one program with Cornell, Rockefeller, Sinai, NYU, and Einstein all available? Seems like the choice was already made out the gate.

 

[ScottishCellist]

Why would she only apply to one program with Cornell, Rockefeller, Sinai, NYU, and Einstein all available? Seems like the choice was already made out the gate.

@ValentinNarcisse thanks for your response. To clarify, I only applied to Sinai in NYC, so she applied to Columbia. We applied to many of the same schools outside NYC, it just worked out that we aren't getting acceptances from the same schools (she got into Pitt and I didn't, for example). Now we're trying to figure out how to get us both to NYC, preferably Sinai. Thoughts?

 

[Fencer]

It will be considerably easier for her to get into a PhD in NYC next year, than for you to get into a MD/PhD next year after withdrawing at the location that she gets in this cycle.

 

[Biorad706]

Did you interview at or get accepted at other MSTP programs closer to Baltimore? If so then maybe you should consider attending one of them.