Gram Positive

Just confirmed Emory MMG (+ fellowship)! Definitely the best fit for my research interests (bacteriology and antibiotic resistance). Good luck to everyone making decisions!

So glad to have completed all these wonderful interviews! Getting pretty close to a decision here. Now on to waiting for the GRFP  

I'm pretty sure it usually goes down a couple of times in the beginning of March (maybe to enter in all the scores and then have the top ones selected). But yeah, look for a 3-8 am announcement sometime in a couple of weeks, and that will be it! My prediction is March 31 for the emails to go out.

Just got my first acceptance to the Case BSTP!! These interviews are indeed less stressful than I expected - more discussion about science than grilling. Best of luck to everyone!

Just got my first acceptance to the Case BSTP!! These interviews are indeed less stressful than I expected - more discussion about science than grilling. Best of luck to everyone!

Just got my first acceptance to the Case BSTP!! These interviews are indeed less stressful than I expected - more discussion about science than grilling. Best of luck to everyone!

First acceptance!!! UW biochemistry! Exhale....

Just got my first acceptance to the Case BSTP!! These interviews are indeed less stressful than I expected - more discussion about science than grilling. Best of luck to everyone!

These are all great answers!  Thanks so much!

I will add one more question that is important to ask grad students.  My friend in grad school said that this question was the one that helped her actually pick her program last year.  

Make sure to ask the grad students what they like to do for fun when they are not in the lab (or classes or whatever).

She said she asked this at some schools and the students would not be able to answer right away.  They would actually have to think about it and they wouldn't come up with good answers.  She said that at other schools it would be an easy answer for the students.  They already knew what they liked to do once they left the lab.  And, there was a sense of community in doing those activities together.

The program is great and important and everything, but if you end up at a school where the grad students cannot enjoy themselves outside of the lab and classes, it may not be the best program.  Ultimately she picked a program that she knew she would like both in and out of the lab.

To prof of interest: 
How many graduate students do you have?
What is the biggest strength of the program?
Where do you see your work heading in the next ~years?
Hands-on or hand-off mentor? Relationship with students?
How is your lab organized?
How are students funded?
Academic community/faculty collaboration
Mentoring style/advising philosophy/teaching
How do students develop their research projects? How does your research relate to your 
students’?
Lab organization—how does everyone’s research connect?
Field/lab work balance?
What do students do after graduating?
Where do you see your research interests going in the next 5 years?
What does the 1st year look like?

I'm not in biology, but these are some example questions that I asked when I visited schools:
To individual professors:
1. General questions about the research that the lab performs. I'd ask about what the current projects are.
2. I would also ask them about future directions for the lab? What projects are they thinking about in the future? 
3. Are you thinking of growing the lab or keeping it the same size?
     3a. If growing the lab, are there plans to go in new directions for research, or increase work on current paths?
4. How often do you send students to conferences?
5. (for lab fields where there are rotations): How many students rotate in your lab? How many stay?
6. Is [the project you want to work on with this professor] funded? For how long?
7. What are your expectations for a graduate student in your lab/group? (I'd keep it general at first to see what they say, but if they ask for more specific, I usually ask to find out if they would be okay with people working from home, or would they want you in the lab from certain hours etc.)
8. What is the typical time to graduation for your students?
9. What do your students do after graduation?
10. Specific questions about success rate of their students in your chosen post-graduate career path

To department heads or other administrator: (most of my visits involved at least 1 meeting with someone from "departmental administration")
(Although you can ask some of these Qs to faculty as well)
1. How many students join the department each year?
2. What is the typical graduation rate / how many finish? (Also ask: how many pass quals? candidacy? etc.)
3. Ask about the funding structure---if it's TA based then how are they assigned? Does everyone who wants one gets one?
4. What are the department's future hiring plans? Are you planning to grow? What subfields will you be hiring in?
5. Ask about course requirements and other degree requirements (especially if you have prior coursework or a Masters, find out what changes, if any)
6. Ask what happens if you win external fellowships---does your TA requirement go down? do you get more money?
7. Ask about things you're interested in pursuing while you're in grad school, for example: elective courses outside of department? extra opportunities to teach? outreach opportunities? varsity sports (in Canada, grad students are part of varsity athletics too)
To current graduate students:
1. Pretty much all of the same questions as above---you want to see the student's point of view of things and see how they line up with the faculty's point of view.
2. Ask about the quality of classes
3. Ask about the workload of a TAship---how many hours do you really work?
4. Ask about the typical work expectations of the department and especially of the professors you want to work with
5. Ask about where people live
6. Is the stipend enough? 
7. Ask about programs in the department and on campus that support you and whatever you need (e.g. diversity center, parents, cultural clubs, international student office, etc.)

I don't know about Infinito, but the grad students at Vandy were very open and helpful so I have some knowledge I accrued about how to decide.
Obviously you look at the science.  Core facilities, funding, type of research.  Then the grad students said that for them, the attitude of the program was important.  Did the professors, grad students, and admin seem excited to talk to you?  Did they believe in the program?  And finally, they all told me that it becomes obvious after you interview everywhere.  That you have to see yourself in the community and the university.  One girl said that interviewing students seem confused because they have like 7 - 10 interviews, but that if you are honest with yourself about the type of person you are, the right offer will feel like a fit.  

I actually do like development! But I'm neuroscience, I really like the visual system a lot but I enjoy sensory systems generally. 

Me three!!! 
What research areas are you guys looking at?

AHHHHHH I can't wait to see you there!  Hopefully they'll get back quickly with the weekend assignments so I can book the flights.

CONGRATS!! Me too

Make a new topic / search the forum. There are a few topics already. Also http://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?Live=9809&bhcp=1
Damn, looks like you got all your interview acceptances. Nice!
Grats. And they use snail mail?
I'm just waiting from my rejection letter from them. *Yawn*

CONGRATS!! Me too

I JUST GOT AN INVITE TO ROCKEFELLER

OMG!!! Pitt IBGP and NIH OxCam on the same day!!! Just have to figure out how to coordinate these interviews

OMG!!! Pitt IBGP and NIH OxCam on the same day!!! Just have to figure out how to coordinate these interviews

Congrats! Oxcam is awesome!!

Congrats on the interview! UIUC is a hidden gem imo. Great to see someone else on the forum other than myself also apply to that school  

Done! Took me a while to figure out how to do it, It's been a good 7-8 years since I've used forums like this one. 

Can't tell if typo or if you just really love nematodes