Graduate Research Productivity

[jero123]

Hi Everyone, 

I am planning to apply to U of T this year, and as a graduate (master’s) student, I wonder if anyone knows about how research productivity is evaluated? And whether or not it is used competitively or just as a cut off for the grad applicant pool? 

I’m currently in my second year of a thesis based science masters program, and will likely have 2 first author publication by the summer (1 accepted and 1 still in progress as of now). Also does the impact factor of the journal matter?  I attended only one conference but otherwise don’t have any poster presentations. With an undergrad wGPA of 3.72, and slightly above average ECs, do you think I have a fair chance for U of T? If not would you recommend I do a fifth year just to raise my GPA? 

Thank you all in advance.

 

[robclem21]

7 hours ago, jero123 said:

Hi Everyone, 

I am planning to apply to U of T this year, and as a graduate (master’s) student, I wonder if anyone knows about how research productivity is evaluated? And whether or not it is used competitively or just as a cut off for the grad applicant pool? 

I’m currently in my second year of a thesis based science masters program, and will likely have 2 first author publication by the summer (1 accepted and 1 still in progress as of now). Also does the impact factor of the journal matter?  I attended only one conference but otherwise don’t have any poster presentations. With an undergrad wGPA of 3.72, and slightly above average ECs, do you think I have a fair chance for U of T? If not would you recommend I do a fifth year just to raise my GPA? 

Thank you all in advance.

 

It is assessed competitively, but subjectively. Nobody truly knows how it is evaluated, but likely it is done in a matter similar to the ABS/Personal Essays. Several people will examine your CV and rank it on a numerical scale. The average of which will determine your score. There are usually some laid out "guidelines" for evaluating components of the application, but more often it's the reviewers judgement.

Regarding journal IF, everything is field relevant. I don't think it matters too much at the end of the day unless it is a big name journal recognizable across specialties. Some fields don't have journals with IF much above 3-4, while others go much higher. Similarly, some fields even publish much more than others so even productivity on the whole is research dependent. Based on the fact you have two first authored papers, I am assuming you are in some sort of clinical/epidemiological research department. I would try to get that second paper in before the deadline in the fall and try to attend another conference or two in the summer (even if local). The more you are able to talk about on your CV the better.

Your GPA is low, but at this point not sure I would recommend going backwards to undergrad. Would be better of spending your time contingency planning and setting yourself up for another career if medicine doesn't work out.

[jero123]

On 2/22/2019 at 6:48 AM, robclem21 said:

It is assessed competitively, but subjectively. Nobody truly knows how it is evaluated, but likely it is done in a matter similar to the ABS/Personal Essays. Several people will examine your CV and rank it on a numerical scale. The average of which will determine your score. There are usually some laid out "guidelines" for evaluating components of the application, but more often it's the reviewers judgement.

Regarding journal IF, everything is field relevant. I don't think it matters too much at the end of the day unless it is a big name journal recognizable across specialties. Some fields don't have journals with IF much above 3-4, while others go much higher. Similarly, some fields even publish much more than others so even productivity on the whole is research dependent. Based on the fact you have two first authored papers, I am assuming you are in some sort of clinical/epidemiological research department. I would try to get that second paper in before the deadline in the fall and try to attend another conference or two in the summer (even if local). The more you are able to talk about on your CV the better.

Your GPA is low, but at this point not sure I would recommend going backwards to undergrad. Would be better of spending your time contingency planning and setting yourself up for another career if medicine doesn't w

[Meridian]

..  ignore -  you answered FCL 

[Edict]

22 hours ago, jero123 said:

Hi Everyone, 

I am planning to apply to U of T this year, and as a graduate (master’s) student, I wonder if anyone knows about how research productivity is evaluated? And whether or not it is used competitively or just as a cut off for the grad applicant pool? 

I’m currently in my second year of a thesis based science masters program, and will likely have 2 first author publication by the summer (1 accepted and 1 still in progress as of now). Also does the impact factor of the journal matter?  I attended only one conference but otherwise don’t have any poster presentations. With an undergrad wGPA of 3.72, and slightly above average ECs, do you think I have a fair chance for U of T? If not would you recommend I do a fifth year just to raise my GPA? 

Thank you all in advance.

 

I think your chance is somewhat below average given your GPA. The issue is there are more people like you than they can accept each year, but you never know. 

 

[jero123]

On 2/22/2019 at 9:53 PM, Edict said:

I think your chance is somewhat below average given your GPA. The issue is there are more people like you than they can accept each year, but you never know. 

 

Thank you for your reply. I am actually thinking to do 5 full year courses next year, and could potentially bring my wGPA up to a low 3.8 given that U of T would take off 5 lowest full year courses. Do you think a 3.8 is still below average for the grad applicant pool? 

[Edict]

43 minutes ago, jero123 said:

Thank you for your reply. I am actually thinking to do 5 full year courses at York next year, and could potentially bring my wGPA up to a low 3.8s given that U of T would take off 5 lowest full year courses. Do you think a 3.8s is still below average for the grad applicant pool? thanks a lot 

It probably is closer to the average, 3.8 would probably increase your chances.

[robclem21]

10 hours ago, Edict said:

It probably is closer to the average, 3.8 would probably increase your chances.

I agree, though only mildly, and so I'm not sure the risk-reward is there, given that year will do nothing to further your life in any other area.

[Edict]

10 hours ago, robclem21 said:

I agree, though only mildly, and so I'm not sure the risk-reward is there, given that year will do nothing to further your life in any other area.

Yeah, its actually unbelievable how important the few years between essentially 17 and 21 are to your career. One bad semester can take years to repair. I can't tell you how many people's lives are different from a few decisions made between those years. Sometimes I feel like it shouldn't be this way, but it is what it is.