So I jumped straight into university out of highschool, biology undergraduate. Realized last year I’m better at chemistry but this shit is expensive and it’s a bit too late for that. Also didn’t realize until this year I should’ve been networking this whole time, well shit now I’m going into third year with no idea how to find a thesis advisor. My grades are meh because one of my parents died during exam season first year and I still had to write the exams. I think I have a 71.3 average right now and I can bump it up to the mandatory 75 by the end of this semester to write a thesis, but once again… I need an advisor T_T. I have a small field course at the end of this summer planned with 15 students and one prof so hopefully I can network a bit there. Am I totally cooked or is there a way to come back from my two year slump and squeeze into a masters. I know there’s absolutely dogshit I can do with an undergraduate in the current career climate so I’m praying. If any anons here are in science or anything like that please give me tips help anything I’m dying.
>>31682668WhT do you want to do with a masters in straight biology? Lab? Field work? Teach? what’s your end goal here
I have a bachelor's in biology and a pretty decent job. I didn't really network much either. But if you don't want to do biology why do you want to get a master's?
I am totally committed to locking the fuck in this year as I can achieve great grades when I’m actually fully committed I was a straight A student in highschool with like a 95 average and last year I was able to bump my average up by like 15 percent with minimal effort (actually none at all I just actually handed in all my assignments and studied more than one hour for exams) so if I full send it this year do I have any hope? Will future schools ignore my first and second year flop?
Protip: if you can't immediately career track yourself or network while taking classes you can get a second chance by working for your nearest state university as a program assistant or similar clerk type role ideally in the department you have a degree in and that can buy you time and pay some bills at least along with the start to a retirement fund/pension if you play the long game in a state job. Good luck out there.
>>31682674Lab preferably but field work is fine too. I haven’t taken enough courses to know exactly what I want to go into yet but I feel like something molecular or along the lines and I am partial to chemistry and that’s as close as I can get in bio.
>>31682683I do want to do biology I just don’t know where to go with only an undergraduate. What do you do with your undergrad?
>>31682701I started working for local gov heath and human services. Got some certifications and moved to industrial health and safety.
>>31682701I work as an assistant to an ophthalmic surgeon before i go to grad skewl >>31682733Where do you get cool biology certificates it’s time for me to move on tho
>>31682758When I have working for the state they got me some as an environment health specialist, pest controller, and some sewer planning thing. They will usually get you what you need in those jobs since local government is generally understaffed (and underpaid but you are just here for certifications and experience). After that I got an OSHA 30 from the DoL and went on from there.
>>31682808Love it, keep up the good work anon. Will look into gov jobs and see wat happens.
>>31682668You can probably squeeze into a masters program and get a job. I'm from Europe and have a bachelor in biology now finishing a masters in bioinformatics and going for a phd. Most of the people I know have similar grades like you and they managed to pull through. Just be determined and find a worthwhile field. Grades aren't the most important thing in academia, hands-on experience is.
>>31683057this. grades are absolutely nothing compared to an internship, research, a lab job, field work, etc.
I was an unimpressive undergrad in Biology as well. I was really into biomimetics, but broke AF. I was a B- student in many of my major classes because I was a zombie between classes, work-study jobs, and shit jobs like pumping gas, roofing, concrete form work and bouncing at local bars. I published my first paper at the end of junior year, which saved my ass. It was meatball science, basic, but with a secondary discovery that had implications for neurophysiology. I got to present at 4 conferences and was as social and friendly as possible. Plus having solid work and knowing the material cold while being 20 years younger than everyone, the pity factor worked. My senior year I published again based on the earlier study, and refined the results of my earlier work to create search algorithms for autonomous robots based on how animals form searching behaviors based on neural input. That was enough to get me into grad school. Barely. I burnt out not long after my Masters was done. I was working for a company making autonomous underwater vehicles. I had been assembling Home Depot kitchen cabinet kits for my buddy, a builder, and started making my own custom cabinets. I have over 30 employees now, 20 years later. I actually still keep my hand in as a scientist, for fun; the past few years I've been developing a strain of Tilapia that are born sterile in the F2 generation- this reduces waste energy in gonadal development, making them grow faster and bigger without hormonal intervention. When I get to 99% consistent results I'll go commercial. Point being, OP, biology is a VERY versatile degree, and you're just an undergrad. You have time, and you don't HAVE to go right into grad school. You canntake the time to develop yourself where needed.
did an undergrad and masters in Ecology, sort part of biology in the UK. I'm currently doing the labwork for my dissertation but what country are you in?to find an advisor we just submit our rough field of interest and a list of potential lecturers then visit them and hash out a project idea, some have preset projects they need doing and I did one of them. I'm looking into the water table and its effect on a bunch of soil properties, vegetation community and microbial respiration at a coastal nature reserve as they need that work continuing from a few years ago.Surely your uni makes it ez to find advisors? your lecturers should probably be that as in the UK lecturers have to. I did the masters because like you I thought a 2:1 undergrad degree wasn't really worth fuck all so needed the masters. I feel fucking done with it and cannot wait until september 24th (when I officially finish this bullshit).In terms of bumping your shit up youre just gonna have to lock in, no two ways about it, it sucks but it is what it is. For your future career prospects you can either go into research which would be the masters, phd route then become a lecturer because otherwise its hard to get funding when youre not part of a uni or you can go work in a lab as a lab tech for a uni or company doing whatever the fuck which isn't so bad if you hate the idea of teaching or you can go work in the field, but I only know the ecological side of that idk about general biology. For example I can go work for consultancies, work as a ranger/ wildlife officer, work for the government or get some lab job. Labwork is fairly comfy and fieldwork be it consultancy or conservation based is decent. I'd rather kill myself than become a lecturer.
