Comp bio outside of class at CMU
Things you can do outside of class
- Clubs! For CB majors/minors/concentrators, you can attend events by the Comp Bio Society or join the board. There are so many other awesome clubs that I won’t try to list them here. Intramural sports and free exercise classes at the gym are great for getting exercise in between homework sessions.
- Research at CMU (school year or summer). See this guide to getting involved in research. You can schedule an appointment with the Undergraduate Research Office to get advice. In addition, some students have joined labs at the University of Pittsburgh (a much bigger school with many more labs than CMU).
- Research at another institution (typically summer). The NSF (National Science Foundation) funds summer research programs for undergrads! This means you can get paid. Find an opportunity on the NSF REU website or Google “REU” + your topic of interest. Applications open around January.
- Do an internship (typically summer). Whether in computational biology, software engineering, data science, or something else, many companies offer internships during the summer. Recruiting season for some tech jobs is as early as September the year before, but many jobs at biotech and other companies don’t appear until January or so. Don’t be discouraged if you don’t get something right away. The job search can depend on things out of your control, like the economy and random chance. You can practice doing coding interview questions to prepare. You can also schedule an appointment with the Career and Professional Development Center for specialized career advice, interview practice, resume tips, and other resources. You can also reserve these really nice rooms in the Cohon University Center basement if you have a Zoom interview (email recruit@andrew.cmu.edu and ask for a room at the scheduled date and time).
- Spend the summer/winter break relaxing. CMU is tough and it can be really beneficial to take some time to recharge.
- Study abroad! Check out the CMU study abroad website. You can schedule an appointment with the Office of International Education to get advice. There are also study-away programs in the U.S. (two BSCB students, including myself, have spent a semester at Williams-Mystic, the Coastal and Ocean Studies Program of Williams College and Mystic Seaport Museum).
- Become a TA (teaching assistant). One awesome thing about CMU SCS is that it’s very common for undergrad students to become TAs! Having undergrad TAs is great because they’ve been in your shoes (possibly just a semester before) and know how to help you in recitation and office hours. If you think you’d enjoy teaching and there’s a class you really liked, apply to be a TA!
- Not outside of class, but just wanted to note here that you can take courses at CMU during the summer. The tuition (charged per-unit) is only 60% of the fall/spring per-unit tuition rates. The summer semester is faster-paced and you take fewer classes. Some people like being able to focus on one or two classes, or do summer research at the same time. You can also graduate earlier or lessen the number of difficult classes you have to take during the school year. Many required courses are offered during the summer. You can check Stellic or the CMU Schedule of Classes to see what was offered in past summers.
- Explore Pittsburgh! It’s got museums, parks, restaurants, the National Aviary, and a bunch of other stuff. Sometimes CMU arranges subsidized trips (there’s a great program called Pittsburgh Connections that takes groups to various fun activities on the weekends).
- Ask other students about cool things they’ve done! To start, here is a student spotlight page on the CMU CB website.