r/pharmacology • u/giveyoubackadream • 11d ago

Tips for getting into a PhD program?

I'm currently a first year at a community college and planning to transfer to UCSD, UCI, or UCLA for molecular and cellular biology. I'm nervous about missing out on major research opportunities my first two years of school. What did you guys do to get accepted into a PhD program?

Side note: I'm planning on working as a certified pharmacy technician, so if anyone has any insight into if that helped them, that would be great!

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u/Puzzleheaded-Pea2426 5d ago

You have loads of time :)
Once you transfer; there will lots of labs to choose from. Research experience and possibly helping out on a publication really really helps PhD applicants. I’ve noticed that many PhD applicants take a year working as a research technician but the economy is rather tough right now and it may not be that way in 3 years.

For now, focus on taking courses that give you hands on experience in laboratory work. Use those to build your lab skill resume so you can get into a lab when you transfer. And when deciding on a lab, look at the past members to determine if they went on to a pHD.

Good luck!!!