CactusWoman

Somehow, though, I feel they want an answer with a bit more substance to it. Anyone can say that biology excites them, I'm pretty sure interviewers want to hear why. Like, you have to prove this is really what you want to do for the rest of your life.

I've got an interview for an ecology and evolution project coming up, and the number one thing I'm worried about is answering this big, open-ended, and very important question. If I were to answer this, I would say that the topic I'm most interested in is species interactions. I'm interested in species interactions because of how they can influence the evolution and diversification of both interactors. However, I feel like that answer is just a pile of word mush and basically boils down to "I want to do this 'cause it's cool". How do you eloquently answer this kind of question? I do have a passion for these topics, I just can't explain why. It would help me to know what other people's answers are to this question, so my question to you all is: why do you want to study what it is that you're studying?

Show off fun things you've discovered in your research (or just random things you found on the internet) Here's a cool bird that mimics a caterpillar when it's young http://www.sciencealert.com/watch-this-baby-bird-perfectly-mimics-a-toxic-caterpillar And I bet you didn't know arborescent cacti were a thing! http://www.geol.umd.edu/~jmerck/gal02/life/images/o.megas.jpg

I know a couple who's been doing for... I think a few years so far? They're both in PhD programs across the world from each other. They manage to visit each other on a semi-frequent basis and they're still together so I guess it is possible!

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Yes, I guess all I can do is prepare for the interview. How similar would an interview for a biology program at grad school be to other, more standard business-world interviews? My mom's an expert at businessy interviews, but I don't know how much overlap there is/ what kinds of questions I should expect.

My advisor says my qualifications are good enough for Northwestern, but the fit is not good. I had a phone interview with them that didn't go great and I haven't heard from them since. On the other hand, U Chicago would be a great fit, but it's U Chicago! Only a third of people interviewed get in! And while I do have an interview scheduled for later this month, I'm worried I'm going to blow it Well, it's too late to do anything now, I guess. Someone hold me and tell me everything will be ok?