Summer Research Application Thread (REU, SURF, SURP, SIP, etc.) 2012

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CherrySmog said:
Accepted to the UTMB Summer Undergraduate Research Program! :)
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Congrats, just remember while you're there to not "mess with Texas" :smuggrin:
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wolfie77 said:
I did Michigan's Pre-MSTP last year and have a lot of good things to say about it. Update?
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Literally JUST got the rejection email. No statistics given. It was my top choice. But a director of an MSTP program recently told me one of the top things they look for is being able to take a ridiculous amount of rejection and not skip a stride, since most experiments will fail and we need to be prepared for that and able to handle it.

Rejected: NYU SURP, MIT Amgen, and UMich.

Still waiting on 5! Keeping hope alive :luck:
 
QuiteAConundrum said:
But a director of an MSTP program recently told me one of the top things they look for is being able to take a ridiculous amount of rejection and not skip a stride, since most experiments will fail and we need to be prepared for that and able to handle it.

Rejected: NYU SURP, MIT Amgen, and UMich.
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Then I am a great candidate for that MSTP.
What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger :laugh:

I wonder if we can put that on our resume. Does "rejected by every summer program" look better than "worked at the NIH"?
 
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Just for kicks, I applied to summer programs for 3 years and was rejected every year. I proceeded to apply for the Goldwater Scholarship and won that; go figure.

Keep your heads up, you never know what happens!
 
thanks guys! i'm just glad to be accepted somewhere. i was feeling pretty down after being waitlisted at NYU Sackler and then rejected.

good luck to everyone still waiting, i hope you get in somewhere great :)
 
forsparta said:
Just for kicks, I applied to summer programs for 3 years and was rejected every year. I proceeded to apply for the Goldwater Scholarship and won that; go figure.
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Speaking very sincerely, I admire your resolve. I'm not sure I would have had the confidence to apply for the AuHtwoO. Kudos to you.
 
QuiteAConundrum said:
Literally JUST got the rejection email. No statistics given. It was my top choice. But a director of an MSTP program recently told me one of the top things they look for is being able to take a ridiculous amount of rejection and not skip a stride, since most experiments will fail and we need to be prepared for that and able to handle it.

Rejected: NYU SURP, MIT Amgen, and UMich.

Still waiting on 5! Keeping hope alive :luck:
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UMich SROP?
 
plumazul said:
I love Italian food. I love St. Louis! I have a lot of family there. I like how the cost of living is low ( I spent last summer in Manhattan :eek:) I came very close to selecting WashU as my undergrad. I am considering applying to several midwest MSTPs, so this summer will be helpful for me to know if a big city kid will be happy there.

Are you going to accept?
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Sent in my acceptance today. Yeah I grew up in the midwest and I think it would be a lot better place to start and raise a family (considering my 20s will be spent in school), but thats probably not something you are really concerned about if you are 17. :)
 
I'm not sure if you guys are applying to just research programs, but I applied to the Duke Mechanisms of Behavior Program - Just found out that last year 10/400 were accepted. I thought it would be less competitive considering there's no MD aspect. :(
 
Whomp said:
Anyone hear anything from Albert Einstein SURP?
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I called them today and they just finished processing all of the applications and will now begin reviewing them and will be making decisions in the next couple weeks.
 
From Leadership Alliance, if it says "Closed with No Offer," that's just a kinder way of saying.rejected right?
 
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geeyouknit said:
Then I am a great candidate for that MSTP.
What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger :laugh:

I wonder if we can put that on our resume. Does "rejected by every summer program" look better than "worked at the NIH"?
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I say go for it! If you reapplied and got rejected again, even better :p
 
Is a letter of intent for a program that hasn't released any decisions either way yet taking this too far? :oops:

Haha this is training for applying to med school...
 
gettheleadout said:
Is a letter of intent for a program that hasn't released any decisions either way yet taking this too far? :oops:

Haha this is training for applying to med school...
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I don't understand. What do you mean by letter of intent?
 
Coltsbcs said:
I don't understand. What do you mean by letter of intent?
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"If you extend and offer to me I guarantee I will accept it forthwith and attend the program."

Same principle as med admissions, it saves the program the hassle of dealing with declined offers and sending out further invites, etc... Probably not as big of a deal with these programs though. :p
 
gettheleadout said:
"If you extend and offer to me I guarantee I will accept it forthwith and attend the program."

Same principle as med admissions, it saves the program the hassle of dealing with declined offers and sending out further invites, etc... Probably not as big of a deal with these programs though. :p
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HAHAHAHA I get you. If the applications are still open for the second wave of admissions then it would not hurt to try.
 
Hey everyone,

I have yet to post, but I've avidly read through all the prior messages after I stumbled upon this wonderful site today. I thought I'd offer some information on which programs I've heard from to help anyone in a similar situation.

Rejected:
AMGEN MIT
Watson School of Biological Sciences - Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (25/880)
Sloan Kettering

Still Waiting:
AMGEN Columbia
Rockefeller SURF
Cincinnati SURF
Summer Scholars University of Rochester
LSSURP Minnesota
REU Wadsworth

Accepted:
CPRIT MD Anderson
NEPRC - Harvard Med.

If anyone has heard anything about the two programs listed immediately above I'd love to hear it. Feel free to message me or post on these forums.
 
gabadaba said:
I'm not sure if you guys are applying to just research programs, but I applied to the Duke Mechanisms of Behavior Program - Just found out that last year 10/400 were accepted. I thought it would be less competitive considering there's no MD aspect. :(
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I applied to the MoB program as well. I didn't know how competitive it was. It seems like the perfect program for me, but looking back, it looks like I shouldn't have wasted a letter/money on it.
It pretty clearly wants people who don't have a lot of research/research opportunities. And I have had sufficient experience to think that I'm wasting my time.

Good luck to both of us. Based on submission deadline, that'll probably be the last one I hear back from.
 
geeyouknit said:
I applied to the MoB program as well. I didn't know how competitive it was. It seems like the perfect program for me, but looking back, it looks like I shouldn't have wasted a letter/money on it.
It pretty clearly wants people who don't have a lot of research/research opportunities. And I have had sufficient experience to think that I'm wasting my time.

Good luck to both of us. Based on submission deadline, that'll probably be the last one I hear back from.
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MOB. Haha. That made me happy. I can see it now... "Congrats! You've been accepted to the MOB program!"

Yeah, I thought it wouldn't be very competitive so I applied anyways with experience too.

They said they send out letters in early April. Rejection notices from other places come in May so maybe not. Nonetheless, Good luck! :luck:
 
has anyone heard back from yale biostep?
 
Have there been any new acceptance letters for Rockefeller this week? I feel like all the acceptances have already one out...
 
Just heard back from Princeton, Didn't get in :( And I had applied last year too! I'm so Upset
 
^ What?!?! I haven't gotten an email yet...
 
I got in the waitlist:( What are my chances of being accepted?
 
I got waitlisted at Princeton too. Ugh. I guess I'm going to UTSW... How come I keep on getting waitlisted!?!?
 
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Did not many people apply to UW Amgen? I haven't heard anything about them from other people on other forums either...
 
Coltsbcs said:
most of these programs favor juniors because this is their last undergraduate summer.
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Yeah, at least Mayo does. When the guy called me, he asked if I got any other offers. When I said no, he said it was probably b/c I'm a sophomore, b/c other than that, I was a strong applicant.

OH! And GTLO, I found a pencil with that saying. Yay for puns! :)
 
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Coltsbcs said:
most of these programs favor juniors because this is their last undergraduate summer.
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gabadaba said:
Yeah, at least Mayo does. When the guy called me, he asked if I got any other offers. When I said no, he said it was probably b/c I'm a sophomore, b/c other than that, I was a strong applicant.
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I'm definitely feeling the sophomore disadvantage here as well...
OH! And GTLO, I found a pencil with that saying. Yay for puns! :)
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Haha awesome!
 
Anybody else officially attending vanderbilt's vssa? Is there a facebook group?
 
rnic2528 said:
Anybody else officially attending vanderbilt's vssa? Is there a facebook group?
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Which program did you apply to? I applied to the Undergraduate Clinical Research Internship, but I still haven't heard anything. :(
 
^ Yeah I applied to the same one as rnic, but I still haven't heard anything from them.
 
If any of you guys applied to BRAIN, they're sending out decisions this coming week. I don't even care that it doesn't have a medical aspect. One acceptance would make me happy.

UM SROP is coming out soon, too.

Still waiting for Baylor, UTHealth, Rochester SSP, UPenn, UCinn, & Duke.

Assuming a silent rejection Rockefeller & Mayo; denied from NYU.
 
My story so far:

Rejected:
Sloan-Kettering
Hopkins SIP
NYU

Waitlisted:
Princeton

Accpeted
Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HIP)

Waiting to hear back from Rockefeller (though Im reading that they may have sent out most of their acceptances), Mount Sinai and Mayo Clinic.

So I'm pretty sure I'm going ahead with the HSCI program. Anyone here who was part of the HSCI program in past years willing to share their experiences?
 
charles14 said:
My story so far:

Rejected:
Sloan-Kettering
Hopkins SIP
NYU

Waitlisted:
Princeton

Accpeted
Harvard Stem Cell Institute (HIP)

Waiting to hear back from Rockefeller (though Im reading that they may have sent out most of their acceptances), Mount Sinai and Mayo Clinic.

So I'm pretty sure I'm going ahead with the HSCI program. Anyone here who was part of the HSCI program in past years willing to share their experiences?
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Yea, I did it last year, and I loved it.

They tend to pair you with a mentor based on your interests, but other than that you won't have a say in the matter, which can be a good or bad thing. The research locations are spread out on Longwood (children's, brigham, and beth israel)/ MGH (which means you'll have to use boston public transit)/ main harvard campus. The majority of people are on Longwood, but all the lectures (tuesdays and wednesdays) are on the main Harvard campus, which means a rather long commute on those days on the Harvard busing system (30 minutes ish, from Longwood --> Harvard) at an inconvenient time, especially if you have to commute back to finish experiments. Other than this, the research experience is simply amazing, and the daily workshops/seminars/lectures on Longwood will definitely immerse you in research.

Not sure about this year, but one of the weekly lectures is run by Willy Lensch, who is the best lecturer I have ever had, and a just a great person in general. You'll love him by the end. The other weekly lecture is from HSCI faculty, and most of them are superstars in their field. Among others, Doug Melton (np, only on the Nobel Shortlist), Len Zon, Stuart Orkin and some really good lecturers came by, and some went really in-depth into their research, while others talked more about their experiences/motivation. The Willy lectures tend to run the gamut from hardcore science to ethics to philosophy, and some of the things you'll hear/learn from him is simply incredible (i.e, we talked to a paraplegic stem cell activist through skype). My PI also let me shadow him on morning rounds, which makes you appreciate how talented/bright the residents and med students at Harvard are.

One thing I wouldn't recommend is taking the housing they offer, which, if you are savvy with Craigslist or have other people from your school attending that you can room with, is a terrible deal. Housing around the Harvard campus is plentiful, and find a sublet that's substantially better than their housing is fairly easy (make sure you find one with AC...). HSCI doesn't organize that many events for you, besides a picnic and the end-of-summer presentation, but my cohort was really outgoing and we had self-organized activities on a weekly basis. Other than that, the majority of kids will be from Harvard undergrad, with a mix of people from all types of undergraduate institutions. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions :)
 
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Hi!

I applied to this program as well. Did you get an email notifying you were accepted? I was wondering because I haven't received an email or anything regarding the decision. Do you by chance know whether they only notify students who were accepted? Thanks for your help!
 
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