spew

I have no academic research experience but 2.5 years of industry experience and I got 6 interviews and 3 offers out of 11 schools I applied to. Every school asked me about it but wasn't a problem for those 3 schools, I was their top pick. I'm nervous as **** though. Do you guys have any advice for me? I'm certainly *not* familiar with a "standard academic lab setting." Hell, at my last job our scientists hardly even used lab notebooks.

These are all top-tier schools and you will be able to find any academic job coming out of any of these schools. The only obvious difference is location, which might matter if you're looking for an industry job (eg. a boss at a company in LA may prefer to higher CalTech grads...). But here are the general differences in location, as I understand them: CalTech - LA - California has a great track record for making millionaires and dreams come true. It's an opportunistic place, and Pasadena, CA is no different. It is one of the richest towns per square foot. How does a tiny town like that host the Rose Parade every year? $$$. But even though you'll probably find students with the best work-life balance here, CalTech is extremely competitive. UChicago - Chicago - You'd think a school in the midwest would be very friendly, but UChicago is in a league of its own. Often labeled as an "honorary Ivy," UChicago is the most desired school in the mid-west. For that reason, it's very competitive and you won't see much collaboration. But Chicago is one of the most vibrant cities in the world. Yale - The northeast region of the U.S. has the highest density of intellectuals. For that reason, expect the most competitive environment and be prepared to fend for yourself. Collaboration is virtually inexistant. Many Ivy Leaguers describe an extremely unwelcoming, isolating, and socially exclusive community that is most common at Harvard and Yale.

Interviews: School #1 - Thank You's sent - ACCEPTED School #2 - No Thank You's sent - ACCEPTED School #3 - No Thank You's sent - REJECTED School #4 - Thank You's sent - REJECTED School #5 - No Thank You's sent - ????? As you can see, profs don't care about Thank You letters.

You had the exact same problem I did (see my post above). I don't know why they take negatively to asking questions about what it's like to live someplace else. Jesus, I'm so p*ssed. That's why at my very last interview, when the Chair asked me what I thought [of the interview weekend], instead of talking about how much I liked the city, I mainly highlighted the research and faculty.

Did you do anything differently at these interviews than the places you got accepted to? I got acceptances from my first 2 places and post-interview rejections from my last 2 schools I visited. It sucks. I'm super angry and I'm trying to run my mind through why. Few possibilities; 1) I did not wear suits to these last 2 places. 2) They were both out-of-state schools and I talked a lot about "moving" or "having to move." 3) I talked a lot about my other schools/interviews with current students and 4) I asked a lot of "how does this place differ from other institutions?" so I might have come off as arrogant with the demeanor of what could your school offer me? Maybe these were all bad ideas. So on my last interview, I tried doing everything opposite of my last 2 interviews: I stepped up my game again and tried to channel whatever magic I worked during the first 2 interviews. I packed the suit, kept my mouth shut about other schools/interviews, and acted like I HAD to be there. Crossing my fingers and I'll let you know how it turns out.

When I told my LoR writer/professor that I was planning to apply to UCR for biochemistry he said "they have a program?"

What school is this? We'll storm their administrative office with pitchforks and torches. You're exactly right - it's essentially a rejection and any respectable program wouldn't offer admission w/o allocating appropriate financial resources to incoming students. Don't fall trap. This school is dead to you.

BTW, why are you asking us? Shouldn't you have gone to the interviews to figure this out? Or why not direct your questions to the programs. Lol....

Idk who the f*** would rather live in Dallas over NYC. Does that answer your question?

The reason you got rejected is because you didn't send the thank you in time! Just imagine if you had!!

1. You're an environmental/marine biologist. 2. You're a girl. So your idea of "how appropriate is a suit" is probably really messed up, lol. If you go to somewhere in the middle of this thread I clearly say you should just follow whatever instructions they say...

Why can't people just call and ask the programs themselves? What good is it getting guesses from us?

Don't forget, most of these posters are in the humanities. So we already know they're not the sharpest tools in the shed.

Definitely go to those interviews. At the very least, the conversations you have with professors there may enlighten you and give you a better idea of what you intend to research. If you actually reapply next year, focus on making your personal statement GREAT and maybe even find new letter writers who could write you solid letters - hint: this is NOT always from your PI or supervisor. Anyways, a great personal statement will stand out to ALL tiers of schools.

Sorry, but I thought you said a while back that you wrote cards to all of them? I just bought a pack of thank you cards and plan on packing them with my luggage.

You're going to have to visit each program's website and see if they mention anything about average stats for previous incoming classes. Very often they do, especially in the FAQ sections. However, if not, don't be afraid to call the program and ask. There is no "place" that outright reports these statistics in a nice list for you. It's best to get this information straight from the source.

How soon after by mail did you send it? I imagine it could take a couple days to receive + a day or 2 to write. What if they made up their mind by the time they get your card?

You definitely don't have to. If your main interviews are only with 2 professors, it's not a bad idea. However, if you have a schedule with 5 of more professors, I wouldn't bother. The idea here is that when you interview with only 2 professors "all of your eggs are in 1 (or 2) basket." In other words, their opinion is heavily weighted so it's important to leave the best impression, plus it's doable to write 2 emails. But oppositely, when you interview with a lot of professors, your chances are spread out (assuming you didn't blow it with each of them), plus it's simply harder to write so many emails and still appear sincere.

Haha, well played. "Business casual to business" is ambiguous indeed. In that case I'd go with whatever you're most comfortable in. There probably is but it's a moot point. Either you take their advice or if they don't specify, then suit it up. There should be no guesswork either way.

Follow whatever dress code they tell you. My post was not directed towards the OP or anyone in particular - in fact, don't wear the suit because they told you it's business casual. But somewhere in the middle of this thread someone said: and then everybody seemed to start to agree suits would be unnecessary. Who cares what's "prevalent." They said "Business dress" and we should be fortunate that they told us anything. Take their advice and move on. Generally... Business attire = suit and tie Business casual attire = dress pants/khaki's and dress shirt or blouse and nice shoes with optional sweater/blazer/sportscoat (no tie necessary) This stuff is all over the web. I'm not making any of it up.

I'm a guy but I may be able to offer some advice: Very immature thinking here. Of course the faculty won't be dressed up in fancy suits but that's not the point at all. The point is that you need to show them that you want to impress them and that you cared enough to put on your best. Dressing down only shows the opposite - even if you didn't mean it at all. You can never be too overdressed for an interview. Everybody knows that when you walk in on the first day of the job you won't actually be dressed like that. Think it's trying too hard? Think again. There are hundreds of applicants who want to be in your spot. Show it. I'm guessing you don't have a lot of experience with interviews. I always wear a suit and there are only 2 interviews (out of maybe 8) in my whole life that I've had where I didn't get the job. In fact on my tour/interview of my last research job, I casually met another supervisor in the hallway and she gave me a thumbs up and said "that's good interview attire." My point: The appropriateness of formal business attire for an interview should not depend on what field you are in. If you are interviewing for a janitor position, I would still recommend a suit. It's just 100% tactful - It always has been and always will be! Now in the end, it probably doesn't matter: in no way is it a deal breaker. But for purposes of this discussion, to belittle a suit and say it's overkill is absolutely ridiculous.