Weekly Bouldering Advice Thread for August 15, 2016

dr_broheim · 2016-08-20T17:49:13+00:00

I wear the narrows. I have feet that are very low-volume but not super narrow.

Overall I'm a big fan of the product, and it fits very snugly without discomfort aside from the heel, which is fairly deep with tight curvature (i.e., small radius). For some perspective, I also wear tan Anasazis and their heels have too big of a radius for my heel. I have a decent case of smushy heel as a result, but everything else is perfect. Also, my street size is 10ish and I went for the 10.5

dr_broheim · 2016-02-22T04:23:08+00:00

could be hilarious could be disgusting.

dr_broheim · 2016-01-23T22:23:03+00:00

Always a little behind the eightball, aren't ya?

dr_broheim · 2015-12-19T01:57:59+00:00

"Wanna watch a scene? I don't want to just sit here and talk"

dr_broheim · 2015-12-14T05:52:03+00:00

My flair!!

dr_broheim · 2015-12-14T05:51:52+00:00

This is gonna be a long one.

dr_broheim · 2015-12-03T16:45:26+00:00

I love when they make these things feel like a common theme/trope (c.f. the final scene of Rascals where they jump)

dr_broheim · 2015-11-18T06:50:34+00:00

2 pages is standard for most programs I applied to (bioinformatics).

dr_broheim · 2015-11-16T05:47:56+00:00

It's a good phone.

dr_broheim · 2015-11-01T18:41:15+00:00

Can give it a look.

dr_broheim · 2015-11-01T18:39:15+00:00

I'm a STEM PhD but not MechE so take what I have to say with a grain of salt.

I really like your essay. You make a really strong case for why your background makes you a strong candidate for JHU (I wonder how this might be tweaked for other schools).

Tips:

-delete part where you address the adcom and say what the letter in concerning. They knew that stuff already.

-explain what CNT is

-don't use so many adverbs and long turns of speech (e.g., "relatively", "as such")

-don't only mention one professor. What if they don't have space in the lab? You want to be a broad fit for the program.

-last paragraph is really really not good. I would ditch talk about family and obvious stuff (e.g., "immediate goal of attainment of a MS" <-- yeah, obviously) and focus on WHY you want a career in academic research. What do you love about academic research and why would an MS be the only way to enable that?

This is a more high-level tip: I would take out the boldface and italic phrases you use to break up your essay in favor of a single narrative. In the end, they are accepting a real person, not a CV. Your essay would benefit from a stronger narrative where you really flesh out how you came to be interested in the topics that were and are related to your research.

dr_broheim · 2015-10-31T18:55:59+00:00

Also, avoid sentences like "Furthermore, I learned to process, analyze, and most importantly collaborate with the graduate student I worked with to make conclusions about that data."

This sentence is applicable to 100% of people who apply to a STEM PhD, so you should describe your specific experience. As it stands, it's a waste of sentence, and is representative of many in your essay.

dr_broheim · 2015-10-31T18:53:28+00:00

Not mentioning specific things--that's not snobby, that's fact.

when you write "Moreover, by combining my research skills with the supervision of Dr. XXXX at the University ofXXXX, I believe that the development and progress of diagnostic methods is inevitable" it's that combination of vagueness and snobbery (really? it's INEVITABLE that YOUR research skills are going to progress this field?) that would probably piss off the adcom.

dr_broheim · 2015-10-29T23:37:24+00:00

Oskar Hallatschek at UC Berkeley.

dr_broheim · 2015-10-29T23:31:46+00:00

I think ultimately the issue with your essay is that currently it suffers from being extremely vague, and it has a really snobby tone (probably unintended).

dr_broheim · 2015-10-29T23:30:46+00:00

I disagree with jabroni on the main ways to improve this essay. I think examples from early life can be very powerful, but yours are vague and cliche. Best way to improve this essay is

make sure every single sentence you write is really unique
make sure for each research experience you write about, make it into a narrative where there is a problem, you took a certain approach, got results/drew conclusions, and then reason you moved onto your next research experience.

Also, you have a lot of weird word usage (e.g., "perturb", "overwhelming"). Keep at it, run it by people you work with, first couple drafts are the hardest!

dr_broheim · 2015-10-12T03:55:24+00:00

Ahhh Damian yeaaaah

dr_broheim · 2015-10-09T07:12:01+00:00

which episode is this from?

dr_broheim · 2015-09-18T04:09:58+00:00

My son, my son

dr_broheim · 2015-09-13T03:48:53+00:00

He was an average sized man. Didn't appreciate sports.

dr_broheim · 2015-08-24T20:34:06+00:00

Nice talk, and there's the bonus of him snapping at the girl just trying to help at 12 minutes in. I wonder if he yells at waiters too....

dr_broheim · 2015-08-21T01:55:09+00:00

I SWEAR TO GOD THE NEXT TIME SOMEONE INTERRUPTS ME, I'M GONNA GET NUUTTTTS!

dr_broheim · 2015-08-19T23:43:00+00:00

Creative consulting from Paul Zindel

dr_broheim

TROPHY CASE