Mayo Clinic in Scottsdale offers a great graduate training experience. Some of the main areas of focus are metabolic and vascular biology, multiple myeloma, receptor signaling, molecular modeling, and cancer research. The smaller campus offers a close-knit feeling in which you interact with post-docs, technologists, and students from the other labs on a daily basis. You also get to know the principal investigators very well and can ask them for advice. Everyone is very friendly and willing to offer their expertise when trouble-shooting.

As for living in Scottsdale, I could not have made a better choice. I enjoy the beautiful sunsets and the surrounding mountains for hiking after a long day in the lab. Arizona is a beautiful state that has the Grand Canyon and is just a short trip to San Diego or Las Vegas. Mayo Graduate School offers a three-day visit to Jacksonville or Scottsdale to meet the students and investigators and to see if it is a possible fit for one of your rotations. This visit and rotation option is unique to Mayo Graduate School. All living accommodations are taken care of which include a furnished apartment and rental car. Jenny Ho, Arizona Education Manager of Operations, is friendly, knowledgeable, and easy to talk to if you have any questions. So if you get the chance, do not miss out on the opportunity to visit Mayo in Scottsdale!

-Danielle Miranda
Arizona Student Representative
Clinical and Translational Science PhD Candidate

Alright, experiment is almost up, timer is running low, and you only have time to read one more sentence. Give a Mayo Clinic Florida rotation a chance. Now, those of you still reading are obviously procrastinating, so take this well deserved opportunity to hear me out. At the expense of sounding like a broken record/car salesperson, I just want to let you know that you have nothing to lose. I can attest. I’m a born and raised Minnesotan, and man, I do love that Midwest comfort. But there is also a thing called Southern comfort (and no, I am not referring to the alcohol). I went to my Mayo interview knowing very little about Mayo Clinic Florida. But as an aspiring scientist, three things can really convince me (in no particular order): impressive top-tier research, passionate people, and free stuff (i.e. flight, housing, transportation, sun). So I gave it a chance (this is the rotation part). Many new friends, trips to the beach, hours in the lab, diverse restaurants, successful/unsuccessful experiments, weekday night trivia victories, insightful seminars, and empowering talks with faculty later, I’m still loving it. And the best part is, I still have 3 more years to go.

-Kevin Bieniek
Florida Student Representative
Neurobiology of Disease PhD Student

For the Herasevich’s of the world this may not be an issue, but for the Harrison’s it is. In a world of increasingly sophisticated electronic medical records, unmanned drones, and shopping prediction software, why does the foundation of biomedical science authorship continue to operate on the premise that the non-random combination of letters we were assigned at birth might be unique? This premise would be hilarious, were it not true.

In addition to the generalized inconvenience, confusion, and frustration this problem causes, it poses increasingly significant challenges within the growing realm of biomedical sciences. For example, the computation of scientific ranking systems, such as the h-index, is riddled with inaccuracies [1]. For the uninitiated, the h-index is a recent, but widely accepted metric for measuring the productivity and impact of individual scientists [2]. Conceptually, this differs from citation indexing and impact factor, which, historically, were developed for measuring impact at the journal level [3]. As another example, the biomedical literature is plagued with irregularities that extend beyond the manipulation of data [4, 5]. Examples include duplicate publishing, improper citation, lack of co-author consent to publish, and inappropriate omissions in authorship. Presumably, these issues extend into the realms of the resume, grant application, and tenure process.

Based on these observations, I propose PubMed allow biomedical authors to register for unique numerical identifiers, which would be linked to our non-random combination of letters, affectionately know as names. This system could function behind the scenes and thus need not be obtrusive. It would solve many of the problems I have outlined above, as well as the interesting phenomenon of the author name-change. We have unique identifiers for genes. Why not humans? Furthermore, there is already precedent for a similar system through Scopus. But who uses Scopus?

Unsurprisingly, my post-hoc analysis has revealed that I am by no means the first person to conceive of this simple-minded idea [6, 7]. In fact, this subject extends beyond the scope of biomedical research [8, 9]. However, for some reason, the idea has yet to take hold. Why is this? I believe it is simply the result of a lack of widespread dissemination and discussion of this idea. Thus, I write this essay with the specific readership of the Education in Diversity Blog in mind. It seems an appropriate forum to raise such an obvious and important issue that deeply affects us all.

In conclusion, due to a “clerical” error, I lament the loss of my prized, first-ever authorship to the sea that is Harrison A.

Andrew M. Harrison is a third-year M.D.-Ph.D. student in the Mayo Medical / Mayo Graduate Schools. He is originally from New Jersey and graduated from Rutgers University in 2010. Andrew works in Dr. Vitaly Herasevich’s lab and his research focus is in the area of clinical informatics.

References:

1. Phillip Broadwith. 2012. End of the road for h-index rankings. RCS’s Chemistry World: http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2012/11/h-index-rankings-stop-chemist-chemistry

2. Hirsch JE. 2005. An index to quantify an individual’s scientific research output. PNAS: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16275915

3. Garfield E. 1955. Citation indexes for science; a new dimension in documentation through association of ideas. Science: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14385826

4. Coats AJ. 2009. Ethical authorship and publishing. Int J Cardiol:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19046787

5. Retraction Watch blog “authorship issues” category: http://retractionwatch.wordpress.com/category/by-reason-for-retraction/authorship-issues/

6. Richard Cave. 2006. Unique Author Identification. PLOS BLOGS: http://blogs.plos.org/plos/2006/11/unique-author-identification/

7. Enserink M. 2009. Scientific publishing. Are you ready to become a number? Science: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19325094

8. Madigan D, Genkin A, Lewis DD, Argamon S, Fradkin D, Ye L. 2005. Author identification on the large scale. Proc of the Meeting of the Classification Society of North America: http://dimacs.rutgers.edu/Research/MMS/PAPERS/authorid-csna05.pdf

9. De Vel O, Anderson A, Corney M, Mohay G. 2001. Mining e-mail content for author identification forensics. ACM Sigmod Record: http://eprints.qut.edu.au/8019/1/8019.pdf

Acknowledgement: Gustafson CT for helpful revisions.

Medical students are in the process of a professional transformation, and it can be cathartic to express those transformations artistically. One’s conceptions of medicine, self, and one’s professional identity may cycle through a myriad of forms The Mayo Clinic College of Medicine student interest groups in the humanities and in neurology partnered with the local art museum to host an evening entitled “Paint the Brain” in February 2011. This event consisted of an open invitation to medical students to paint their creative interpretations of the nervous system and the way it creates our human experience. The painting session was preceded by a brief presentation on art theory given by the art center’s resident educator, Jason Pearson. Medical student, Lauren Jansons, then spoke on artists whose work has been affected by neurological conditions. Nearly forty paintings were generated.

 The majority of the pieces were acrylic on canvas, some were mixed media using fabric, photography, duct tape, or water color. Examples of the artwork include: Andy Warhol-like portrayals of the midbrain, traditional Hmong art as neural gyro, trees of neurons, butterflies emerging from a woman’s gut, abstract brains, the landscape of bare caldarium, and one’s self portrait in the context of an aura. The paintings were shown on campus for National Brain Awareness Week and at the American Society of Bioethics and Humanities in October 2011. We repeated the painting session in January 2012 with a new topic: global health. Similarly, students were instructed to portray their own representation on the topic. Examples of the artwork from this session included: cervical dysplasia cells as an African mountain range, the earth upheld by many different hands, a closed water bottle hovering in a desert landscape, a woman’s portrait overlaid with an anatomical heart, a hospital among gravestones, and a woman looking from a mountain top onto a sea of fog.

Feedback from both sessions was positive. From the first, Lauren Jansons reflected, “My painting was inspired by the awe and wonder that filled me as I examined the anatomy of the skull for the first time. The bony cavity that cradles our brains is literally the seat of our conscious human experience and I find the architecture itself very dynamic. The vibrant colors and clear brush-strokes in this painting pay tribute to the constant pulse and flow of vitality through our minds, allowing us to appreciate each new thing.”

 Another student, Christine Tran, had this to say: “The painting session allowed me to carve time out of my busy schedule to mindfully focus on something other than the pathophysiology of disease processes or how one cell communicated with another. I didn’t realize it when I signed up to paint but this was a much-needed escape to refresh my mind. I needed to remind myself that… it was possible – and even necessary — to slow down and spend two hours finding just the right shade of beige to paint the contours of a woman’s face, and then to spend another hour giving her hair, highlights, and delicate tendrils. In fact, I enjoyed the exercise so much that when I didn’t complete my painting during the first three allotted hours, I walked back to the museum later in the week in snowy, ten degree weather to spend more time with my painting.”

Physicians were invited to both sessions. From the second session, Dr. James Newman commented, “A blank canvas, an unlimited supply of acrylic paint, brushes, and a convivial crew of fellow artists-to-be. The topic was World Health… For me, having painted for many years, but not having touched a brush for too long to contemplate, this was a reawakening. I can’t wait for next time.”

Shakespeare once penned, “My nature is subdued to what it works in, like the dyer’s hand.” So our minds are colored by the mediums with which we work. It is refreshing, for a change, to allow color to do what thoughts do.

The next “Painting the Brain” event is scheduled at the Rochester Art Center on May 2, 2013 from 6:00pm – 9:30pm. Contact Rachel Hammer for more information. Happy painting!

Every student has been here. We have all known the solution, to some question, at some point, and failed to respond. Instead of shouting it out with confidence we hide in the back, clutching a shred of doubt – afraid to attempt a response for fear of being incorrect. In this case, the answer was a carbon atom double-bonded to an oxygen atom (represented as “c=o”). Mentally cowering in the back of my class, I realized that I didn’t think it was acceptable for me to be wrong, and I certainly didn’t think that the risk of perceived failure was worth the reward of being right. I am convinced that these situations are evidence of a poor learning environment that our culture of academic science has developed.

I recently have heard two interesting opinions on a couple issues relating to science learning. One was from Martin A. Schwartz, a professor at the University of Virginia. His essay in the Journal of Cell Science emphasized the importance of stupidity in science, pointing out that many students entering Ph.D. programs aren’t used to feeling stupid, but “productive stupidity” is simply the nature of science research. The second opinion was from Tyler DeWitt, a graduate student at MIT who gave a TED talk about science education. He highlighted the crusty dry and loathsomely boring nature of many science-related texts and encouraged science teachers to “make it fun!” I believe that both Schwartz and DeWitt are right; that accepting our inherent stupidity when it comes to science makes research much less intimidating, and learning much more engaging.

During my high school and undergraduate education, I had never been taught to be stupid. No one was rewarded for the wrong answer. Right answers pass, wrong answers fail. Ph.D. students, as Schwartz deftly explains, are used to being right. We were all the A+, aced-the-class-without-trying kids. We dreamed of being faced with the (final) frontiers of science, on our five year mission to boldly go where no scientist has gone before… but I digress. In a Ph.D. program, we all feel stupid. Our time of acing tests and knowing the solutions to problems has gone the way of Zubaz and bowl cuts…okay, Zubaz are still cool, but you get the point. And that is the nature of science. Research is simply testing our best guesses, with the understanding that we can only guess, probably fail, learn from the failure and try again. We must accept our stupidity and relish in the impossibility of immediately knowing the answers to all questions that our research project might throw at us. This is a quality that I was never taught, in fact, it is a quality that I avoided. I was afraid of looking stupid.

Why weren’t a dozen hands raised when my professor asked his question? I don’t know, but fitting with the context of this post, I am going to guess. There must have been several other people who knew the right answer, and several more who thought they did. If other students thought like I did, our professor was a guy who knew all the right answers, not someone who was willing to make a wise guess when he really didn’t know. In reality, he probably would have been more satisfied with us if we had ventured twenty incorrect guesses instead of one correct solution. I had yet to understand how much was not known about science and how acceptable it was to simply attempt a solution based on what I already knew. Being wrong, to me, was an absolute failure. What I did not fully grasp was that my professor was a research scientist. He had certainly come up with more wrong answers than right ones in his career. Unfortunately, that’s not how I understood learning.

Most of the science learning that I had been immersed in up until that point was drilling explicit knowledge into my head (know these parts of a cell, know the names of these chemicals, etc…). This is rigorous, straight-forward, boring learning. Tyler DeWitt, a Ph.D. candidate at MIT and also a former high school science teacher, made some interesting suggestions to science teachers. He encouraged them to focus less on the serious, precise nature of science, particularly when speaking to non-experts. Science learning can be made more relevant by teaching it so that students have a point of reference to attach the new information to “real” things that they already understand. His example: telling horror stories about secret agent viruses sneaking into bacteria, or comparing viral hijacking of bacterial replication machinery to swapping the blueprints at a car manufacturer so the plant suddenly churns out killer robots. In those contexts, unnecessary details are lost, and concepts are made to be memorable and engaging. The seriousness of the raw science should be left behind, and students can be freed to simply mess around with the ideas. This kind of learning encourages creativity and questions, while making the information more “sticky.”

In the first lecture of my graduate level Regenerative Medicine class, our professor referred to M1 and M2 macrophages as “The Dark Side” and “The Jedi Order” in reference to the famous conflict of Star Wars legend. Guess which part of the lecture I remembered in detail and will never forget? That information suddenly became sticky. It was fun; the seriousness of macrophage roles in inflammation was gone and the excitement of the inflammatory response came blasting through like Luke Skywalker flying an X-Wing. Somehow, talking about macrophages like they were characters from Star Wars made inflammation less daunting. In that context, if I looked stupid for not knowing something, it seemed more acceptable. The facade that made me think I needed to know everything was dissolved along with the aura of seriousness surrounding the science. Which was great, because I knew next to nothing about inflammation. In the land of Jedi macrophages, it was okay for me to be stupid.

Whether it takes secret agents or the balance of the force, science should be fun. It’s really exciting stuff, but too often we communicate it in a very intimidating way. We shroud it’s wonder in a false pretense of ultimate knowledge and unflinching sobriety, causing many students to never grasp the thrill of discovery. Instead, they fear being stupid. It’s true, there is a place for specific, exact scientific communication, but, as DeWitt clarifies, this should be “between experts.” We should not be afraid of a research question making us feel dumb. As humbling as it may be, those moments are when we realize that we are really testing the boundaries of our knowledge and are venturing “where no man has gone before.”

Take some time to read the article by Schwartz (http://jcs.biologists.org/content/121/11/1771.full) and watch the TED talk by DeWitt! (http://www.ted.com/talks/tyler_dewitt_hey_science_teachers_make_it_fun.html)

- Carl

Listed here are some paths you can take and comments from fellow Mayo Grad School Alumni………..

P.S. If you would like to add your name to this list please email us and let us know (s_jessicam@hotmail.com or Miranda.Danielle@mayo.edu)

2011 graduates

Postdoctoral Fellows

Post-Doc in Academia
Name: Leah Colvin Wanshura
Mayo graduation date: May 2011
Type of Degree: PhD
Degree field: Biochemistry and Molecular biology-Cancer Biology
Current position, location, city, state: Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis MN
Years at position: 1 yr, 8 mths
Comments: I am currently a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Cancer Center at the University of Minnesota. I am studying molecular mechanisms of chemoresistance in the treatment of malignant melanoma, but I think a postdoctoral position is so much more than bench science. I am using it as a tool to develop an independent research program, grantsmanship and manuscript preparation skills, leadership opportunities and instruction training. Along with a robust scientific record, these skills will help me to be a successful tenure-track faculty member in the future.

Post-Doc in Academia
Name: Andrea Henle
Mayo graduation date: August 2012
Type of Degree: PhD
Degree field: Immunology
Current position, location, city, state: Postdoctoral Associate, MIT-SUTD Collaboration, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA
Years at position: 4 months
Comments: For my current research project, I am developing a zebrafish model of uveal melanoma. I ultimately would like to use this model to determine how uveal melanoma arises, progresses, and how the immune system recognizes (or fails to recognize) this tumor type. At MIT, I also spend about 50% of my time teaching the introductory biology course. During my postdoctoral fellowship I will also spend several months in Singapore, where I will help teach introductory biology at MIT’s new partner institution – Singapore University of Technology and Design. My research project in Singapore will involve isolating natural factors from plants and investigating their anti-cancer properties.

Post-Doc in Industry
Name: Alyson Smith
Mayo graduation date: May 2011
Type of Degree: PhD
Degree field: Molecular Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
Current position, location, city, state: Postdoctoral Scientist, GalxoSmithKline Vaccines, Hamilton MT Year(s) at position: 6 months (post doc at Mayo for 1.25 y)
Comments: Currently I am working as a postdoctoral scientist at GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), one of the world’s largest pharmaceutical companies, in the Vaccines/Biologicals division. The position is funded by a research and development contract to GSK from the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. It has been an interesting and insightful transition from doing research at Mayo to research in industry. First, I feel very lucky to have gotten this position. It seems “postdocs” in industry are few and far between and since the Hamilton GSK Vaccines site has external funding, they are able to create these positions. It is a great way to venture into industry to see how the research compares, without fully committing to a career here. Having said that, I have found that doing research in industry very similar to doing research at Mayo, with the big caveat that since the postdocs are funded by NIH we have much more flexibility than permanent employees in what we work on. I’d say the biggest difference between research at Mayo or an academic institution is the culture. Here things are very 8-5.There is very little work on the weekends or ‘afterhours’, however, the hours are generally not ‘flexible”: people are in at 8 and leave at 5. Also, there is a much bigger emphasis here on training (safety and corporate) and company goals and bottom lines. I have enjoyed my industry post doc so far. I’ve enjoyed learning a new field, immunology, (although I feel like I’m a first year again sometimes and have gained a lot of insight about how things are done at companies, the personnel structure, the driving forces behind corporate research decisions and met a lot of great people!

Staff Scientist

Scientist/Lecturer in Academia
Name: Jessica Silva-Fisher
Mayo graduation date: May 2011
Type of Degree: PhD
Degree field: Biochemistry and Molecular biology-Cancer Biology
Current position, location, city, state: Staff Scientist/Lecturer, The Genome Institute at Washington University, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO (http://genome.wustl.edu/people/groups/detail/mardis-wilson-lab/)
Years at position: 1 yr, 6mths
Comments: Currently, I work under Dr. Elaine Mardis on a Normal Tissue Sequencing project and various other cancer projects utilizing and analyzing Next Generation Sequencing platforms including RNA sequencing, cDNA sequencing capture, and small RNA sequencing.  In addition, I utilize methylation arrays and other methylation techniques for identifying methylation signatures. My responsibilities include but are not limited to writing IRBs, creating project ideas, analyzing datasets, and collaborating with other Principle Investigators at Wash U. One risk I did take was to obtain a Staff Scientist job and not a postdoctoral fellowship, which has its positives (higher pay, higher position than postdoc, more independence) and its negatives (less mentoring, more responsibilities, harder to publish and apply to grants-at Wash U). The majority of experts I work with are computer scientist or bioinformaticist; as a biologist I learn something new everyday!

I also continue to participate in Diversity education teaching a graduate student preparation course to the Undergraduate Scholars program students here at TGI (http://genome.wustl.edu/outreach/) in the summer months.

2009 Graduates

Instructors
Name: Steve Mooney
Mayo graduation date: June 2009
Type of Degree: PhD
Degree field: Biochemistry and Structural Biology
Current position, location, city, state: Instructor, Department of Urology, Johns Hopkins University College of Medicine
Years at position: 3 yr, 6mths
Comments: I work on a groups of genes known as Cancer Testis Antigens (CTAs). They are important since they are usually immune privileged and so are potentially highly immunogenic when they are re-expressed in cancer. These genes have an excellent chance of becoming therapeutic targets and biomarkers.

We’ll be planting 200 “Right Trees in the Right Place” starting at Adventure Playground (part of Silver Lake Park). There is no pre-registration needed and all ages are welcome. On the day of the planting, just look for the RNeighborWoods table and people with orange safety vests. There will be free refreshments and t-shirts for volunteers thanks to our sponsors. More information can be found here: http://www.rneighbors.org/?p=7715

Together we can make a lasting impact on greening Rochester’s neighborhoods.

                                                 Do your part!

For more info contact Mike Kraszewski
Rochester Public Works
Direct 507-328-2431
Mkraszewski@rochestermn.gov

Now that I have finally caught up on some sleep, gotten back in the swing of things in the lab, and addressed the mountain of emails that has been my inbox, I would like to take the time to extend my gratitude to all who helped mak
e the 2013 MGS Interview Weekends possible!

First, to the applicants: We are thrilled that you have selected Mayo Graduate School as one of your top choices for graduate training and wish that you could all be admitted as members of our program. We know you all have many choices but, let’s be honest…at what other institution will the dean of the graduate school serenade you with the bass guitar during dinner? So, whether we see you here in the fall, or whether our paths cross later on at a conference, study section, or academic institution, we wish you all the best of luck!

To the GSA members and all students who participated in the events: I cannot thank you all enough for the hard work you put in to make these weekends possible. I truly would not have survived without you! While the free food was probably the best incentive we could offer, I know your time is valuable, and your efforts did not go unnoticed. You even broke records for the number of poster presentations Saturday morning, despite the 9AM start to the day (an otherwise unprecedented time for a group of grad students). As Dr. Maher likes to say, “Our students are our greatest asset,” and you are all excellent examples of the truth behind his statement.

To the faculty and administration: Whether you interviewed potential students, attended dinner at the Foundation House, talked a little science with students at the poster session, or all of the above, we would like to thank you for your continued commitment to keeping MGS at the forefront of graduate education! A special thanks to Kim and Rose Marie for their herculean efforts behind the scenes. I would venture a guess that Rose Marie has never previously received a call at home after 9PM from a frantic GSA president trying to help applicants arrive safely in Rochester, but she handled it with all of the grace we have come to expect from her. Also, thanks to Dr. Roberto Cattaneo and Dr. Kendall Lee for sharing their work with prospective students during each of the Distinguished Lectures.

Finally, we are all looking forward to welcoming the new students to MGS this fall…we can’t wait to see what exciting scientific contributions you are all capable of!!!

Danielle Renner
Mayo Graduate School Association President

Before the Interview

• Know thyself

The interview is the time for you to sell yourself, and in order for you to do that well, you have to know yourself first. Take the time to consider what your long term goals are (academia vs. industry, what research area you would like to specialize in, where you see yourself in five to ten years, etc). Another exercise I found beneficial is to create a self-inventory. Make a list of what makes you a great candidate, and then think of a story that illustrates each point on your list.

• Review your application

It’s probably been a while since you last read your application, your personal statement, or your transcript. As most of your interviewers will be using these documents as starting points, you should take the time to review them. Be prepared to explain any “glitches” in your transcripts and make sure your explanation does not contradict is what you have stated in your personal statement. Prepare copies of your CV, abstract of your project, and a mini-version of your most recent presentation and bring them with you on your interview.

• Do your homework!

There was a reason you applied to this school and chose this field, and you need to convey that during the interview. This is the time for you to use your web research skills and get to know the school and the program where you will be interviewing. Check out the faculty; especially those that you want to work with. Use your networking skills and talk to the current graduate students (in person or via email) to get the real scoop on the school and the faculty.

• PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE

There’s a reason why people say “practice makes perfect.” Use resources such as Advising Services or ask your faculty mentor or your PI to give you a mock interview. Anticipate questions related to your field of research and questions about challenges you face in school / research / life in general. Come up with lists of questions commonly asked during interviews and ask anyone who is willing to sit with you to  pepper you with these questions randomly so you are used to answering questions. You can even record yourself during these practices to see if you appear nervous or confident. 

I am sure we all think this way sometimes….

During the Interview

• Dress to impress

This does not mean you have to wear the most expensive Italian suit you can afford and pile on the bling. Still, first impressions are meaningful. You need to convey self-confidence, so make sure you look neat, professional, and comfortable. Do not wear clothes that make you fidget as you might end up looking nervous.

• Be on time (if not early)

At Mayo, the current students will escort you from one interview to another but other schools might just give you a schedule with a campus map before sending you on your own. If that is the case, make sure that you give yourself plenty of time to get to where you need to go.

• Follow the cues from the interviewer

Be professional and courteous. Address the interviewers with respect and use their title unless they invite you to address them otherwise. Watch the timing of introductions and conclusions; never try to cut off or extend the interview. Ask the interviewer to repeat or clarify the question if you’re unsure of what’s being asked or if you need some extra time to process and respond. Never interrupt or cut the interviewer short.  

• Have questions prepared for the end of the interview.

At the end of the interview, you usually will be given a chance to ask your own questions. Use this opportunity to ask meaningful questions that demonstrate that you have checked out the department and field carefully, as well as ones that show you’ve been listening to the interviewer.
After the Interview

• Write a thank you note or e-mail

Send a letter or e-mail thanking each interviewer for the visit and interview. Also, do this for the administrative staff that helped you with your interview arrangements. Use this opportunity to again stress how well you fit with their program. Just remember to be brief.

• Follow up

The admissions office usually gives you a period of time during which you can expect to hear from them. It is ok to call the admissions office if you do not hear from them by the date originally given to you. Just don’t pester them!

That’s all I have. Here are some great tips and suggestions from our current MGS Students:

“Just relax, be yourself. You are there to sell yourself and show that how awesome you portrayed yourself to be in your application is really true. Don’t be afraid to let them see you be excited about a career in science and/or medicine. You are applying for these positions because you have obviously come to the conclusion that this is your career choice and no other option will do, let them know that! It may all seem trivial and you may be wondering what to say in order to show that, just be yourself and all that will come flowing out! Honesty is the best route to go…always.” – Robin C. Willenbring (Virology and Gene Therapy).

 “Actions: Smile, wear appropriate business – casual apparel (you will be on a tight schedule), portray your confidence and enthusiasm with appropriate body language, offer a solid hand shake and appreciation for meeting at the beginning and the end.

Words: Be honest and concise (if they want to know more they will ask); think of this as a meeting with a friend you have not seen or heard from in years, so do a quick recap on your past, and focus on your best experiences and qualities. Always emphasize why you are so very interested in/ have a desire to be at that specific university/program, try and convey your interest in their work EQUALLY as much as you explain your experience! And ask questions about the program, university, current student’s success, their opinions … etc. Remember this interview is not just about what the university can do for you, but what you can do for them.

 Intent: Even if it isn’t a school you initially were interested in – treat it as your #1, because this isn’t only about your PhD; it is about portraying your best qualities and learning from this experience. You may end up collaborating with them, attending their lab for your post-doc, or changing your mind in the course of your interviews. 

 - Be proud that you have been chosen to interview, get a good night’s sleep, eat healthy meals, and remember you are always under the microscope by students and faculty alike, even if you have already finished your interview!

 - Be relaxed (remember to breath and drink water – you will be talking a lot) and don’t force yourself to be someone you are not.” – Danielle Hernandez (Biochemistry and Molecular Biology).

 For more tips and suggestions from other current MGS students, post-docs, professors and deans, click here. Good luck and enjoy your interview season!

There was a variety of entertainment. Musical performances were provided by Elizabeth Hillebrand and Jessica Saw who performed classical songs from Europe, The Contributions who performed easy listening/American pop songs, Kerry Kittleson who played traditional Celtic music on the fiddle, and Carson and Elspeth Wright who performed traditional American Folk songs. Special guest performers included Quincy Nang who recited French and African Poetry as well as Vwaire Orhurhu who performed various piano and vocal performances.

Elizabeth Hillebrand and Jessica Saw

The Contributions (Sarah Pohlman and Lynn Bockenhauer)

 
The evening ended with a fashion show featuring cultural dress from all over the world and an impromptu dance to PSY’s sensational song, “Gangnam Style”.      

Fashion Show (L-R)- Muna Mohamed, Loribeth Evertz, Kirsten Coffman, Karim Mustafa, Essa Mohamed, Alem Abebe, Ian Mwangi, Bisrat Fekadu, Vwaire Orhuru

Gangnam Style!

Ex-girlfriend: Jorge, so you really want to trade up going to med school and go to grad school instead?
J (Me): Yup.
Ex-girlfriend: Why?
J: Because I want to and I know I’m damn good at research.
Ex-girlfriend: Why really?
J: That’s all it is. What more do you really want me to say?
Ex-girlfriend: Do you feel like you gave up and just quit?
J: Hello no!

The above conversation between an ex and me took place my junior year of undergrad. I was dead set on medical school up to that point and then my plans were essentially snap front kicked out the window. One thing I learned is that grad school is an entirely different beast when compared to med school. But while one has big pointy claws, the other has big pointy teeth. So as they say, “Take your pick, the devil or the deep blue sea.”

So why did I choose the teeth instead of claws and as a result, throw all my plans, premed curriculum, an AMCAS in progress (plus however much money I blew which for sanity reasons I refuse to count), and many more things out the window? Because I a) wanted to, b) wanted to, and c) I knew I was good at research.
I’ve already gone into what you should expect your first year (you will find that here) so I won’t kick that dead horse anymore. Instead, this article will go into what you should expect with the grad school admissions process.

Figure 1. “I hear a new professor position opened up…”Grad students according to the Simpsons. Not true at all so get that out of your head. If you don’t get it then look up the clip on Youtube.

Part 1: The Application process

The Application Proper

So let’s see, right now it’s about midway through November, give or take a few days. If I recall exactly, that means you seniors out there will be moving through the sludge (or insert more colorful adjective here) of graduate school applications. Now I will not over embellish the process. Outside of interview weekends/weeks, the whole graduate school application process with its essays, personal statements, deadlines, etc. is not very fun at all. Just yesterday, a close friend said that it felt like applying to undergrad all over again. At first I didn’t want to believe it but in all reality she was right to a degree. The more I think about it, the stakes are higher, the paperwork stack is taller, and more is already expected of you. Just bite down, strap on your helmet, start the coffee pot, and go!

The GRE (aka The Purple Cobras of Standardized Tests)

Figure 2. We are the ETS GRE. And WE WILL ROCK YOU!

First thing’s first. The GRE is important but it is not the be all and end all of your existence. It is not an accurate measure of who you are or what you are capable of (that’s right ETS, I went there!). Despite that, you do need to take it because at the end of the day, you have to. As Richard Marcinko wrote in Rogue Warrior, “You may not like it but you have to do it.” On the issue of GRE prep I cannot emphasize enough that you need to prepare. If you are one of those who can just one day wake up with no preparation go in and rock it…good for you, stop reading this blog because you obviously don’t need it and are probably laughing at my hackneyed advice when I say you need to prepare for such an exam. I bought the books, the flash cards, and ultimately took the class. I don’t care what your opinion is on taking GRE classes but if anything it forced me to sit down, practice, and set out a program of study that was doable in a summer. What’s the best way to prepare for an exam like this? Practice, practice, practice, and more patience (I meant to write patience). You need to see it as a game (albeit a pointless one). As with any game or sport, practice makes perfect. Take as many practice tests you can under realistic testing conditions. This boils down to training under complete isolation really. Is your girlfriend/boyfriend going to be in the room with you? NO! So he/she shouldn’t be there with you either when you take practice exams. Are you going to hear the beep of your phone when you get a text? NO! So turn that off or put it on airplane mode and keep it out of sight. Are you going to have the luxury of listening to you “relax mix” or whatever playlist? NO! Time yourself and be strict. As test time got closer I actually decreased my time per section just to train myself to pick up the pace. How did I do? I’ll deal with that in my next post. But at the end of the day I made it in and this system worked for me.

One last note. A strength coach whose programs I have followed with great success once said, “Never chase fatigue, chase performance,” (10 points to whomever tells me who this is). How does this translate to studying? Don’t study when you are tired; don’t study when you are frustrated. Make each session productive and have a goal for each session. If you feel fatigue or frustration (and believe me, you will), then put everything down, get some rest/air or whatever you do and if you feel better and level headed get back to it. If not? Close the book; walk away because you’ll only do more harm than good.

Part Zwei: The Interview

Good, you made it this far. If you make it to the interview then this is a positive indicator that your grad program likes your grades and who you present yourself to be on paper. Now they want to meet you to see if you really fit into the program. Anyone can make themselves fit into anything via essay but the truth comes out sooner or later in person. This is pretty common sense so I won’t drill too much in. Wear a suite, be polite, limit the coffee (TRUST ME ON THIS ONE!).

Part Tres.
Cuatro DCM comment: This is Spanish for the number 4. The number 3 is tres.
A: YAY You Made it in!
Why are you reading this? Get outside and have fun! I’ll have another post for you later.

Part Quatre (That’s French for 4)
B: “Though you are very qualified…” You know where this is going so just crumple up the letter and do something else for the time being.

Feel free to go through the three stages of grief

Anger: WHAT THE HELL?! I was made for that program. They are ridiculous! THEY DON’T KNOW ME!
Denial: No, this can’t be right…maybe I should call them. (FOR THE SAKE OF EVERYTHING PUT THE PHONE DOWN!)
And finally…Acceptance: Well guess that’s just how it goes.

Now for the sake of your family, friends, and the general populous of people around you….try to condense all this in 24-30 hours then after that move on. Shower and shave if you need to. Formulate a plan, regroup mentally and see how you can present yourself as a stronger candidate next year.

Well that’s all for now. Any questions spill them in the comments below.

A bit about the author:
Jorge is a second year graduate student in the Mayo Clinic Biomedical Engineering Program studying the use of nanoparticles as drug transporters to treat airway disease. He comes to MN from the warm Texas southwest supposedly for the cold.
When not in lab he can be found climbing something high, lifting something very heavy, cooking up some good old school American beef, or may not even be found at all.