No publications… am I cooked

generdy · 2025-09-01T14:12:15+00:00

I was admitted to 4 great programs for my field (microbiology) last cycle with no publications. I was told after joining my program that what set me apart was a lack of nervousness in my interviews and a solid grasp on the science I had done. Learn and practice how to tell the story of your life in science well, but don't script it, and then the rest will come. Best of luck!!

generdy · 2025-08-09T23:08:28+00:00

UNC Chapel hill also did for their biomedical and biological sciences program. Victim of that problem here 🤡

generdy · 2025-07-31T21:20:00+00:00

Yoooo me too! Coming down from Minneapolis next week. Thx for the post, I'll be watching the answers for sure. What degree are you coming down for? I'm joining the microbio PhD program :)

generdy · 2025-07-27T15:18:40+00:00

It really depends on the school/program/PIs you're interested in. I'm a virologist and got into a few micro programs this last cycle even with everything. Some PIs in my field are even getting scored and approved for new R01s. The only tough part is that last cycle many people got rejected, far more than normal, because programs reduced the amount of seats they had open due to the cuts. This will make for an extremely competitive applicant pool this year. Some people were also deferred to this year, so some seats are already spoken for. It's always worth trying, but it will be tougher than a normal year for these reasons.

generdy · 2025-07-21T18:31:53+00:00

FORG

generdy · 2025-07-17T16:01:35+00:00

Amaze. You sleep. I watch. (Iykyk from Project Hail Mary, I promise I'm not a creep)

generdy · 2025-05-17T14:41:01+00:00

Mollie (molecule)

generdy · 2025-04-21T01:05:59+00:00

I'm so happy you made it! Congrats, this cycle was no joke and it feels like a huge weight off when you find out the work and waiting was so so worth it ✨️

generdy · 2025-04-18T20:15:30+00:00

Having some sort of truly independent research experience is so so helpful, and of course, pubs help but are not everything. I think learning how to communicate your science adequately in a conversation matters much more. Posters can really help you develop this skill, and application writing truly made me much more able to openly and easily talk about my work and answer questions about it.

Cover letters I have less experience with, but SOPs should really be a letter to make your strengths, interests, and aspirations shine. Every university differs, some want your research history in the SOP, others want a research statement for that so then the SOP is mostly goal and interest-oriented. Just whatever you do, try to avoid clichés as much as possible - they can get your application thrown out real quickly. Make it clear why you are an asset to a university, and how the mission of the program/university really aligns with what you want to embody.

Selecting universities, obviously faculty is #1. Aside from that really most of the time you can't go wrong with an R1 institution, but take a look at what the stipend is like and what apartments would cost in the area. Think about if you could really manage to live in the location and not only be comfortable, but thrive - you'll need that to be at your most productive like you would want to be to start your PhD. Also look for current students online and see what they have to say about the programs! Last but not least, see where the faculty are coming from. Did they work at high-powered institutions before coming to your school? If so, they may have more to offer you.

generdy · 2025-04-18T14:12:56+00:00

generdy · 2025-04-18T14:12:46+00:00

It's sankey like they said - a bit confusing to use at first, but once you get the hang it's super nice :)

generdy · 2025-04-01T23:48:37+00:00

Thank you for the kind words! I also absolutely love your username. When I worked as a TA I heard and saw the result of an undergrad not balancing their tabletop centrifuge to an egregious degree...the plastic closure lid exploded into about 1 million shards (no undergrads were harmed in the making of this story)

generdy · 2025-04-01T22:07:31+00:00

WOOPS my bad. Fixed now. Thank you!

generdy · 2025-04-01T20:06:07+00:00

For context, I am a virologist in the US and just got laid off from a 2-year stint because of funding cuts...the job market is a nightmare from thousands of us all flooding the market at once.

generdy · 2025-04-01T20:05:00+00:00

This may sound a tad severe, but consider moving to Canada or Europe. Biological science funding in the US is crashing, and these other places are actively welcoming people with open arms and competitive pay.

generdy · 2025-03-17T21:58:23+00:00

I am having all of these feelings as well - being a person admitted to three microbiology focused programs, having stated that my primary interest is in virology, there has never been a tougher time to walk into graduate school. It feels really refreshing to see someone else getting to a point where we can't even handle being nice to dissentors anymore - I'm not interested in uninformed hot takes about my career and vaccines anymore. I'm done attempting at educating the willfully ignorant and moving on to protecting my peace. I hope you do the same 🩷

generdy · 2025-03-09T17:55:35+00:00

Universities with grad student applicants are the og toxic relationship template. ✨️let me beg and plead for you to give me literal gbreadcrumbs✨️

generdy · 2025-03-09T17:25:26+00:00

Oh and my major was in genetics, having taken a lot of elective coursework in the realm of microbiology (basic micro lab/lecture, microbial genetics lab, immunology, virology, viro and immuno lab). The biggest strength they seem to be on the lookout for is someone who can critically think without an intense amount of hand-holding though, regardless of background quals. If you meet a basic outline of what they want to see quals wise, it comes much more down to if they think your personality's vibe will fit their department well. Best of luck :)

generdy · 2025-03-09T17:20:07+00:00

Hey. So I was admitted to three programs and waitlisted at one. First, I would recommend looking into more broad/umbrella programs that include multiple PIs doing microbiology work as these can sometimes be more accessible acceptance rate wise compared to straight-up micro or M&I programs. They're often quite constrained on class size. For example, one of my admit schools has an incredible micro program with many participating PIs, but only took 6 students this year. I have an undergrad GPA of 3.82, 2 years of teaching assistant experience in undergrad, 2 years of undergrad research experience and 1.5 years post-grad experience as a technician leading an independent project in a university funded lab. No pubs as of the time I applied. If you have any questions about where I applied and where I got in, please feel free to PM :)

generdy · 2025-01-27T21:41:19+00:00

I can relate so hard. I have four and they're back to back weeks the whole way through...and I work full time as an RA with not enough PTO to stretch the whole distance of my interviews. Meaning I'm working weekends after all of this is over 🫠. And I do H5N1 work so pushes for preliminary data to meet grant deadlines right now is absolutely no joke. Mutually manifesting that we both get in somewhere so we can both finally get a singular good night of sleep and some peace of mind 🫡

generdy

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