TrashPanda

Yeah, I felt much more comfortable and supported when visiting school A, but maybe that's because I was so intimidated when visiting school B. I think support is crucial for grad school, but I also don't want to go to a program where I get the support but lack the excitement for my project! Program A does have a few PI's that I would want to work with, but if those don't work out, I might not find a home lab! And I don't want to miss out of opportunities that I would get working with the PI's I look up to at program B. Grad school will be tough no matter where I end up, but if I go to with the program that intimidates me more, and can make it then I think I'll be able to push myself out of my comfort zone and come out a better scientist too. Congrats on getting acceptances, and good luck with making your decision!

Thanks for the advice everybody. I'm going to try reaching out to current students (again), and hopefully figure out exactly how supportive of students the program is. Still unsure which program I'm leaning towards, but thankfully I have some time figure that out!

Congrats to everybody who received offers! I've narrowed down my choices to two programs. If anybody wants to weigh in, please feel free! Program A) Great community, really supportive faculty and students. Incredibly flexible program structure, so students can really tailor their training to fit their needs. However, I'm scared that I won't find a home lab, which may be a silly fear since there's ~190 faculty members I can choose from. Loved my visit there, but just didn't find a lot of labs that really excited me. Program B) Also seems like a great program structure, with flexibility for classes. Includes class that all 1st years take together that expand all disciplines within the program, which seems to level the playing field and bring each cohort together. Incredible PI's and labs, with projects that REALLY excite me. I'm totally in awe of some of the PIs there. The problem is, I'm really intimidated by the other interviewees and the PI's who I really look up to, and am worried I'll disappoint them. Because of this, I was too nervous and insecure to really relax and enjoy my recruitment event. Program B is also in a much more expensive place to live, but money isn't really weighing heavily in my decision. Essentially, I'm torn between a program I really liked, but didn't have labs that really excite me, and another program that does have labs which I think are incredible, but am scared of.

Just got a call from UC Berkeley MCB today!!!! SO happy and relieved! Interviewed at UCSD, UWisconsin, UMichigan, and UCBerkeley and got into all four! Time to make some decisions, but for now I'm SO HAPPY!!!

Congrats!!! That's super exciting and I hope you're feeling on top of the world! I don't think it's a bad idea to still go to the rest of your interviews. They probably expect/already know that you have interviews with other programs, so I wouldn't worry about it!

& @Otinogonnyo I looked at the results posted here, and it seems like one person posted they got an interview as of yesterday for biological sciences. I emailed them since I hadn't heard anything from them, and received this "Ph.D. decisions will be sent out by the end of March, with M.A. decisions following later in the spring. When a decision has been made, you will receive an email notification instructing you to log in to your application to view the decision" Edit: their website says interviews take place in late January and early March, so I'm guessing the email was referring to final decisions following interviews. Since I haven't heard anything else from them, I'm assuming I didn't get in!

Hope interviews are going well for everybody! Those who have had interviews- did you reach out to faculty afterwards to thank them? I had some really good interviews with some of my faculty meetings and would like to thank them/talk more about some of the things that came up, but I'm not sure if this is standard or would be out of place.

Thanks everybody for your input! I'll be sure to be up front about not having experience in his field and ask him questions. I've definitely been reading up on faculty members that I'm meeting with and even though this particular PI's work is a bit outside my field, There is a little bit of overlap on collaborations he's done and I'm really into the techniques he's used in his research. I think I'll try talking about my current research, and ask him what he thinks about applying some of the techniques or approaches he's used to the research I'm working on now. Does this seem like a good direction to take?

I have an upcoming interview and the program has provided me with the names of faculty I'll be meeting with. I'm SUPER stoked about some of them, or at least interested in their research, but one of them does research in sometime I'm not so sure I'll be able to have a conversation about. We have some similar interests, applying molecular biology to neuroscience, but only at a really broad level. I don't really find myself interested in the types of questions he's asking in his research. How can I make the conversation go smoothly?

I'm interviewing with CMB and it's my first one too! Maybe I'll see you there!

Also waiting to hear back from Columbia. Their website says that interviews are conducted in late January and early March. Does anybody know if they'll send out more interview offers after the first interview weekend?

Thanks! I was starting to get worried about whether I'd have time to briefly read up for the faculty interviews!

I'm not an international student, but I heard from Berkeley mid December, interview dates are February 4-6 and February 25-27.

It sounds like they're stressing the casual and weather appropriate attire over business casual. You could probably wear some nice jeans (no rips or tears), boots (I like leather ankle boots, but you'll need to keep in mind the salt), and a collared shirt under a sweater if you still want to look a bit put together. Definitely wear a warm coat and scarf, New England can feel especially cold on a windy day! If you're really worried, ask them!

I'm still waiting to hear back from a few programs. Has anybody received rejections from UPenn CAMB, Columbia MCB, or UChicago CMB? For those interested, I've gotten rejections from WUSTL and UCSF Tetrad, and interviews for UCBerkeley MCB, UCSD, UWisconsin and UMichigan so far.