netenfaispas

I'm trying to decide between one of these and having a hard time...I was wondering whether there are any current graduate students at one of these schools who could shed light on how happy students are and what the program is like (sink or swim? nurturing? close-knit community?). I would really appreciate it! Also if anyone else decided between these programs previously and could tell me what made them choose the program they ended up at, that would be really hepful too!

Thanks for your advice! I'm just worried that that's not the case for grad students who are further away from main campus and have to take a shuttle to get from place to place (one of the labs I'm interested in is a 30 minute shuttle ride from main campus). I'm also wondering how happy the grad students are at these different programs and how supportive/nurturing the different programs are. I'm not sure how to find that out. Did you get a chance to talk to any older graduate students at these schools? Any graduate students out there who could answer this too? Congrats neuronaut!!

I'm having a hard time deciding between UCSD, UCSF and Johns Hopkins. I'd love to hear any and all advice you guys might have! I'm interested in doing research on psychiatric illnesses, which all of them have to some extent. Here are my thoughts: Hopkins: The faculty I met with were incrediby friendly and approachable. I could see myself rotating with a few of them and the grad students there and the other candidates were nice. However not a fan of Baltimore...I want to feel safe and be able to walk around at night (I'm sure I'll have some late nights at lab) at least from lab to my car/method of transportation. I also found it surprisingly expensive. UCSF: I like the city (don't have to drive! diverse!) and I love that it's a small program and I felt like the community was close-knit. I'm worried that it might be a tough setting academically/not very nurturing, though. Also the faculty I interviewed with were aloof/professional, which really bummed me out. However the grad students seemed nice, as did the other candidates. UCSD: So spread out!! I'm worried I'll not have a sense of community and rarely see my classmates because there are so many buildings we could be working in that are not exactly nearby. I also didn't meet anyone I would really want to work with, though I'm pretty sure I could find someone since there are so many faculty members. The grad students seemed happy and were friendly, as were the other candidates. And I did like La Jolla/San Diego. But such a big program... Thoughts? Comments? Anyone else with a similar decision to make?