Will Extracurriculars Alone Impact My Chances for a PhD Program at Rutgers?

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Discussion Overview

The discussion revolves around the impact of extracurricular activities and field experience on the chances of being accepted into a PhD program at Rutgers, specifically in the context of a student studying chemistry with a physics concentration and a math minor. Participants explore the balance between maintaining extracurriculars and gaining research experience.

Discussion Character

  • Debate/contested
  • Conceptual clarification

Main Points Raised

  • One participant expresses concern that lacking real field experience may hurt their chances of PhD acceptance and questions whether to prioritize gaining experience over extracurriculars.
  • Another participant seeks clarification on what is meant by "experience," specifically asking if it refers to research experience.
  • A participant suggests that extracurricular activities, such as student government and clubs, may not significantly impact a professor's decision when selecting graduate students, implying that discipline-related experience is more valuable.
  • One participant mentions their involvement in starting programs, participating in sports and clubs, and holding jobs, indicating a diverse range of extracurricular activities.

Areas of Agreement / Disagreement

Participants do not reach a consensus on the importance of extracurriculars versus research experience, with differing views on how much weight each holds in the context of PhD program applications.

Contextual Notes

There is uncertainty regarding the specific weight given to extracurricular activities versus research experience in graduate admissions, and the discussion does not resolve how to balance these aspects effectively.

intrepid_nerd
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I am at Rutgers in New Jersey. My grades are good, my extracurriculars are good but I have no real field experience and probably won't have anything before I graduate. Will this severely hurt my chances in being accepted into a pHD program? Is it recommended to drop other extracurriculars and force experience into my schedule?
 
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What are you studying? By experience do you mean research experience?
 
Flat said:
What are you studying? By experience do you mean research experience?

I'm studying chemistry (physics concentration) and a math minor. sorry I didn't make that clear - yes, I was referring to research experience.
 
intrepid_nerd said:
I am at Rutgers in New Jersey. My grades are good, my extracurriculars are good but I have no real field experience and probably won't have anything before I graduate. Will this severely hurt my chances in being accepted into a pHD program? Is it recommended to drop other extracurriculars and force experience into my schedule?

Not severely. I can imagine by extra-curricular activities you mean things like student governments and clubs and so on and so forth? If i were a department/professor looking for grad students that are going to spend the next several years working with (for) you, I think i could give a hoot about stuff the student does that doesn't relate to their discipline.
 
Pengwuino said:
Not severely. I can imagine by extra-curricular activities you mean things like student governments and clubs and so on and so forth?

exactly...started a couple programs, participated in sports and clubs, and have 2 jobs.
 

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