ion_exchanger

Have to agree with you there. If they were the school who had already shelled out the money to fly someone out, only to have them cancel for another school, they would be pissed.

Hey, were you at the UPenn interview weekend this past weekend?

We are holding out hope for you!

Oh no, immuneuroxx, is that your last one? :-(

February 22, as part of the joint program I applied to. I find it funny that Georgetown was one of my first apps, but I heard from them last. Better last than not at all!

Congratulations! When are you are going? Looks like Georgetown and UPenn were good to us, but JHU was much kinder to you than me! Lol.

I doubt that you will get rejected from five schools based on your stats. If it is your 3rd choice, and you have the financial means to fly yourself there, then go for it.

I agree with Jubilee. What if they truly were your first choice, and then them saying that they wouldn't reimburse you changed your mind? If there is this much trouble before you even get there...If it's not my first choice I'd think I'd say thanks, but no thanks.

Received email from dream school this morning hoping that I had enjoyed the interview, and that they will be in touch. Commence freak out!

Whp09, I usually say my name is ion exchanger. I'm originally from city and state. I received my bs degree in subject from x university in this year. My research background is in structural biology and I am currently working as a whatever.

The scanned transcripts were by far my biggest annoyance this application season. I thought that I could just sit down, scan on my printer, and keep it moving. The limit would be 1000 KB, and I would be at 1019 KB. So frustrating! I kept having to change little settings on my printer, still keeping the resolution the same so that they were clear. After about 2 hours, I finally edited it down to a readable copy at 947 KB.

This will vary depending on how much the interviewer has read up on you. Only one of my interviewers read my file extensively and knew the work I did in undergrad. The others seemed to have only read my research statement, where I did not list the undergrad experience, and only asked about that. Some knew nothing at all about me. Some people will say that they know nothing so that they won't have any preconceived notions about you. In the case of them not knowing about your research, it is up to you which experience you want to focus on. The extent to how much I was asked was where I was from, was it country, suburban, rural, etc. There wasn't anything deeper than this. I'm surprised to hear otherwise. For the actual interviews, I wore a suit set with slacks and a matching suit jacket, with a sweater underneath (I'm a female). A couple of people had on skirts suits or nice shirts and skirts, and some had slacks and a non matching suit jacket. I believe the majority of women had on slacks. For the men, i saw nice slacks with a sweater, slacks with a button down, and a couple had on slacks with a nice suit jacket. A few had on ties, but the majority didn't. I personally brought a small bag that had a small notebook in it, but you didn't have to, I didn't end up taking any notes. They actually gave us a folder with information, so it was at least nice to put the folder in the bag.

As promised, here is my interview experience. I must say that as nervous and anxious as I was, the overall experience wasn’t nearly as nerve-wracking as I had anticipated. In fact, I actually had a lot of fun! My interview day consisted of five 35 minute interviews with faculty. Each interviewer was very different. I didn’t once feel as if I was being grilled, in fact, a couple even let me know that they were pretty bad at grilling! One interview was with someone who was working on a topic that I am, so they knew a bit about my project, and asked about specific details, the overall goal of the project, and where it was going. They then asked about what I specifically wanted to focus on in graduate school. Then they gave me an overview on their research, and goals and expectations. I asked questions regarding the nature of the lab, who was in it, how much interaction that PI had in the lab, and they explained the nature of their lab, and we spent the rest of the time discussing the city, comparing it to my hometown, and he made a lot of suggestions on ways to get around and places to go. Was very low key, was actually like having a conversation with another person who just happened to be a scientist. Another interviewer seemed like they read my file extensively, and knew what I did in undergrad and grad school. She asked me to give a brief overview of what I have been working on lately, and asked general questions along the way. [Make sure you know how to explain what you are doing, and WHY you are doing it!] She asked a lot of questions, but it wasn’t grilling, it was just an honest curiosity of what I have been doing, because she hadn’t heard of it before. She also asked what I wanted to focus on in graduate school. I asked about the nature of the lab, and the rest of the time was spent discussing her research. Another interviewer was pretty quiet, but I was warned by the graduate students that he would be. He asked about my research, and I gave him a brief summary, and he asked a few general questions about what techniques I use. He gave a summary of his own research, and then we spent the rest of the time discussing where we were from and the advantages of the program and city. I had a similar interview after, it was just me explaining my research, and him explanining his, standard meeting. My last interviewer was a tough nut to crack. I was used to the format of being asked about my research, them telling me about theirs, and then us going back and forth with my questions. This professor asked for questions first, and after asking a few he opened up the conversation. Then he asked about my research. The rest of the interview felt sort of like a job interview. He asked me my biggest strength, my biggest weakness (which he actually liked and agreed with me! Score!) He asked where I saw myself 15 years after earning a PhD. After more talking, we definitely warmed up to each other, and it ended up being one of my favorite interviews. We just went back and forth about grad school life, lab specifics, and such. Then he gave me a short tour of the lab and the people in it. Interviews for other students: I asked some of my fellow prospective grad students how their interviews were, and they said that they were a lot like mine. One actually said that one of her interviewers asked, “Why does this matter?” This goes back to knowing what you are doing and WHY. Just discuss the implications for the findings of your research. Questions I was asked by everyone: Is this your first interview? Be honest. For me, the answer was yes. They just want to gauge where they are in your app process. What other schools did you apply to? Again, be honest. You don’t have to run off the entire list that you applied to. I said something about applying to a state school because it was close to home, but I really want to get away. What are you working on? This was asked by faculty and grad students both in passing and during interviews. Try to have a short succinct summary prepared. It doesn’t have to be overly rehearsed, so that it doesn’t come off as robotic. What do you want to study in graduate school? They want to see what your interests are, but you aren’t held to that. One of the great things I loved about this school was that there was a wide variety of research going on which was great for collaborations or if I wanted to move in a different direction. General advice: There are graduate students helping throughout your interviews. TALK TO THEM! They are there to answer all the questions that the professors can’t: grad school life, courses, where to live, which labs to join, which to avoid. They are an amazing resource, and all of the graduate students at my weekend were friendly, helpful, and willing to answer all of my questions. Also, don’t get down on yourself because an interviewer isn’t as talkative or seems passive in your interview. Sometimes, that’s just peoples’ personality. I had an amazing interview experience, the bar was set pretty high! The time flew by, and it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be. Bottom line, schools are looking to impress you just as much as you are trying to impress them, so relax, enjoy the free delicious food, and be yourself. You are an amazing potential graduate student. Show them why they chose to interview you! If anyone has any additional questions, feel free to ask!

Wish I could type my experience but it would be near impossible to do on my phone. Can't wait to share tomorrow. Biotechie, I'm glad to hear that you had a positive experience!

Hey people, I am wrapping up my first interview and will share my experience tomorrow afternoon after I get home, ok friends?!

For those with Maryland College Park applications, which program did you apply to? I was BISI, and I submitted the general app just do I could have the supplemental open to look at, and every week that I did not submit it, I received an email every Sunday morning that I needed to submit it.

Ak1921, I usually tell them that I am such age years old from my city and state. I graduated from x university in 20-whatever and my major/minor was... And then pause. If they dont speak, ask is there anything else you would like to know?

Interview invite for the NIH/Georgetown graduate partnership program. Thank goodness!

I would love to! I'm so anxious for this first interview experience, and hopefully after the first, I will ease my nerves and maybe other peoples' nerves as well. Yay! I'm packing now, will head to the train station in a couple of hours. It's getting real! Ladies, did you carry a purse or bag with you to your interviews? Do people usually take copies of their CV or any other relevant papers?

ME! My first interview I'm feeling everything at once as well. I just hope to get through without incident. Good luck to everyone leaving tomorrow! Can't wait to regroup over the weekend and compare notes.

Understand this statement 1000000%. I cring everytime I hear my mentor tell someone else that I'm exceptional. I'm thinking, have you met me? That said, we trust and look up to our mentors for guidance. We trust their judgment on other matters, we have to trust that they are telling the truth in what they see in us, no matter how hard.

THIS!!!!!! I probably jumped about ten feet in the air when I received my first interview invite, and the only thing I kept hearing was "told you so". Um, OK.

Did anyone here apply to the NIH/GPP? According to grad cafe, invites should go out tomorrow. They seem to send their invites and rejections at the same time, which could be good or bad, depending on which side you are on.

Congrats to all the new interview invites!

Thanks to everyone for replying to my question. I'm just anxious to get the interviews started and do well.