Reasons for Joining the Free Radical and Radiation Biology Program

I had been interested in pursuing a graduate education in the biological sciences for sometime, and looked at many different schools.  However, when I discovered the FRRBP, the choice was easy for me.  I could tell immediately that it was a program with a focus on graduate students and a passion for doing original science.  It is a smaller program, so it is hard to get lost as a student.  People tend to hang together and work with each other, rather than against each other, which I had seen before in so many programs.  There is a strong atmosphere of collaboration and professionalism in this program, which I also found to be quite rare among other programs.  The people in this program are also great, willing to lend a hand, their input, and their time to their students and fellow workers.  
In addition to a great social atmosphere, the other reason I joined this program was because I believed they are doing strong, creative, and original science.  The field of free radical biology is at the forefront of modern biological research, and represents among the best opportunities for growth and development, among other related biological science fields.  There is an opportunity to be innovate and creative with your science in this program... for your ideas to be original and meaningful.  We also collaborate strongly with people in the clinic, which allowing for the translation of our research from bench to bedside, where we can see the fruits of our laboratory efforts.  
In addition to having great people and great science, I also found the administrative goals at the FRRBP to be top notch.  The average graduation rate in our program is only 4.5 years to get a PhD, on average, which is several years shorter than most PhD programs, even at the University of Iowa.  Also, the job placement rates from our program are ridiculously high... owing to the growth and opportunities in the field of free radical biology as well as the strength of the training and development of the students within the program.  
All together, these traits illustrated to me a strong program of excellence within the biological sciences.  One that promoted good people, encouraged excellence in science, and that takes care of their graduate students.  I have been proud to be a part of this program for three years, and I strongly recommend this program to any student interested in the biology sciences. –Peter Scarbrough