Application | UMASS PREP

University of Massachusetts Amherst PREP is a one-year internship program designed to provide recent college graduates the opportunity to strengthen research skills and academic competitiveness in pursuit of a graduate degree. Applicants must be a US citizen or permanent resident. Successful applicants would have completed their under-graduate degree within the last 36 months, and are planning to pursue a Ph.D. in biomedical sciences. UMass PREP is supported by a grant from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences.

Applications will begin to be reviewed on February 15, 2023. The review process will continue until all 6 slots for the 2023–24 cohort have been filled.
I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Name*
First Last
Birth Date:*
MM slash DD slash YYYY
Race (select all that apply)*
- American Indian or Alaska Native
- Asian
- Black or African American
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
- White
- Other race
- American Indian or Alaska Native. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains tribal affiliation or community attachment.
- Asian. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
- Black or African American. A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. Terms such as "Haitian" can be used in addition to "Black or African American."
- Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
- White. A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.
- Other. A person having origins other than those listed above.
Other race
Ethnicity*
- Hispanic or Latino
- Not Hispanic or Latino
- Hispanic or Latino. A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. The term, "Spanish origin," can be used in addition to "Hispanic or Latino."
Disability
Having a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activities, as described in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, as amended. See NSF data
- Disability
Economically Disadvantaged
Individuals from disadvantaged backgrounds, defined as those who meet two or more of the following criteria (please check all that apply):
- Were or currently are homeless, as defined by the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act (Definition: https://nche.ed.gov/mckinney-vento/);
- Were or currently are in the foster care system, as defined by the Administration for Children and Families (Definition: https://www.acf.hhs.gov/cb/focus-areas/foster-care);
- Were eligible for the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program for two or more years (Definition: https://www.fns.usda.gov/school-meals/income-eligibility-guidelines);
- Have/had no parents or legal guardians who completed a bachelor’s degree (see https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2018/2018009.pdf);
- Were or currently are eligible for Federal Pell grants (Definition: https://www2.ed.gov/programs/fpg/eligibility.html);
- Received support from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) as a parent or child (Definition: https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/wic-eligibility-requirements).
- Grew up in one of the following areas: a) a U.S. rural area, as designated by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Rural Health Grants Eligibility Analyzer (https://data.hrsa.gov/tools/rural-health), or b) a Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services-designated Low-Income and Health Professional Shortage Areas (qualifying zipcodes are included in the file). Only one of the two possibilities in #7 can be used as a criterion for the disadvantaged background definition.
Are you a first generation college student?*
- Yes
- No
Please select your status*
- US Citizen
- Permanent Resident
Gender Identity*
- Female
- Male
- Transmale
- Transfemale
- Gender non-conforming
- Decline to answer
Are you a US citizen?*
- Yes
- No
If you are not a US Citizen, are you a permanent resident?
- Yes
- No
Current Mailing Address*
Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Territory ZIP Code
Permanent Mailing Address (if different)
Street Address Address Line 2 City State / Territory ZIP Code
Telephone Number (daytime)*
Telephone Number (evening):*
E-mail:*
Enter Email Confirm Email
II. ACADEMIC INFORMATION
Undergraduate Institution:*
Graduation Date*
Major:*
Minor:
Overall GPA:*
Major GPA:*
Minor GPA:
Degree Objective(s)*
- Master’s Degree
- M.S. & Ph.D.
- M.D. & Ph.D.
- Ph.D. Degree
- M.D.
Select all that apply
Have you ever applied to graduate school?*
- Yes
- No
Institution
Year Applied
When applying to a graduate school, which program(s) would you apply for? (i.e. Microbiology, etc):*
Have you ever been enrolled as a graduate student?*
- Yes
- No
Institution
Year(s) Enrolled
Please indicate any UMass Amherst faculty or staff member(s) with whom you have corresponded about your plans for PREP or graduate study.*
Please indicate any UMass Amherst faculty with whom you are interested in working.*
Safeguard your submission. Because online forms are subject to transmission errors, we strongly recommend composing and saving your narrative elsewhere prior to submitting it below.
Your narrative: Background*
Note: Before beginning the narrative section, please read all of the following questions related to your story to avoid repeating information in each section. State your general reasons for applying to PREP and your specific career interest. You should include career objectives, interest in science, research interest and experience, skills and your intended area of specialization. Please be sure to answer the following questions in this section of the narrative:
1. What went well for you in college and of what accomplishment are you most proud?
2. What would you consider to be your most successful research experience, either in class or the laboratory? What did you learn most from this experience?
3. What do you want to do long-term?
4. What concerns do you have about your career choice?
5. What will be your biggest challenge?
6. Who is your biggest supporter and how do they support you?
7. What area of biomedical or biobehavioral research interests you most?
(300 words max)
Your narrative: Ph.D.*
What is compelling you to pursue a Ph.D. rather than an MD or a professional master's degree? (This is a critical question be sure to include detail here--200 words max)
Your narrative: Strengths & Weaknesses*
What do you honestly perceive to be your strengths and weaknesses that will impact your success in graduate school? (200 words max)
Your narrative: Persistence & Resilience*
Describe a life experience that required you to be persistent and/or resilient. (200 words max)
Your narrative: Multi-tasking & Strategizing*
Describe a recent period in which you managed multiple activities simultaneously: What strategies were most successful for you? (200 words max)
Your narrative: Benefits of Failure*
Describe a life experience in which you learned from a failure (200 words max)
Your narrative: Intellectual Curiosity & Problem Solving*
Describe a situation where you were intensely interested in solving a scientific problem? (200 words max)
TO COMPLETE YOUR APPLICATION
Have two faculty who are familiar with your interest and abilities in science upload letters of recommendation directly to this platform, as well as your Registrar's Office.

Please provide them with the following link to register in order to upload documents:
http://umassprep.org/letters-of-recommendation-and-transcripts/

If you have participated in laboratory research, one or all letters should be from your mentor(s). Provide the names of your reference below.

You should ask the letter-writers to address the following:
1. Do you think this student is committed to earning a PhD degree, rather than a MD or professional MS degree? Why or why not?
2. Provide evidence of the student’s ability to overcome challenges.
3. Describe the student’s greatest strengths and weaknesses.
4. What do you think the student’s greatest challenge will be in pursuing a doctoral degree?
Reference #1
Name*
First
Title*
Phone*
Email*
Reference #2
Name*
First
Title*
Phone*
Email*
C) Upload a PDF of your current curriculum vitae or resume that includes any academic or other honors that you have received*
Accepted file types: pdf, Max. file size: 256 MB.
D) List any courses you are currently taking that will not show up on your transcript*
Share my application?
Please check this box if you give us permission to share your application with other PREP programs that may be a good fit for your professional goals.
- Share my application with other PREP programs
Before submitting, please double check to ensure you have filled out all required fields (denoted with an asterisk).
I hereby apply for admissions to the Post Baccalaureate Research Education Program at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst and certify that to the best of my knowledge all of the above statements are true and complete. I understand that submitted records and letters of recommendation will not be returned.
If you are unable to obtain or request official transcripts from your undergraduate institution, please upload an unofficial or unofficial version here.
Unofficial Transcript Upload
Drop files here or

Accepted file types: pdf, Max. file size: 3 MB, Max. files: 3.
Digital Signature*
First

Save and Continue Later

I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

II. ACADEMIC INFORMATION

TO COMPLETE YOUR APPLICATION

Reference #1

Reference #2