Forum:Given my background, what are my chances of being accepted into a PhD program at Harvard/MIT?

Question

[bioinformaticsstudent]

I am a Filip/ino. I really want to study at Harvard (first choice) or MIT (2nd choice) for my PhD. What are my chances of being accepted at Harvard or MIT for a PhD program related to Compu/tational Prot/eomics given my credentials?

• First-generation college student
• Graduated with honors at the number 1 university in the Philip/pines, with 2 full scholarships
• Currently an M.S. in Pharma/ceutical Sciences at Kyoto University with a full scholarship (under MEXT) and studying under a very well-known principal investigator in the field of Com/putational Pro/teomics
• Have 2 publications in high-impact journals.

Aside from the question above, what can I do to hedge my chances of getting accepted into Harvard? Can someone provide more insight on what the committee will be looking for in their international/foreign PhD applicants? Thank you!

[Ram]

Do not delete posts that have received feedback (comments/answers).

[Ram]

bioinformaticsstudent I see that you've been warned about this already. I'll be suspending your account if this happens again.

Answer 1

[prasundutta87]

I think this is a very subjective question and Biostars may not be the best place to ask this question. The Admins may correct me if they think otherwise.

Getting and starting a PhD program finally depends on your previous experience and what skills you bring to the lab. Your credentials can just help you get shortlisted for an interview. A motivation letter or statement of purpose is also extremely important for selection. If the later is weak but you have strong credentials, you may not get shortlisted. But sometimes, if you have average credentials but the professor/potential supervisor likes your motivation letter, s/he/they may still select you for an interview if they think you may be a good fit for their lab. You should remember that Harvard and MIT are mere institutes. You should try to shortlist your potential supervisors and judge if they are good rather than the institute itself (like you wrote as the third point in your post). An extremely popular scientist may still be present in a different institute who may have better credentials and publication history in your area of interest.