Being Prepared for Open House for Admitted Students

[ZeeMore21]

Those attending open houses soon, how are you preparing yourself for the open house? Are you planning on reading the work of your potential advisors before meeting them? Are you going to peruse the schools' websites ad nauseum? Are you going to rehearse how to discuss your fields of interest? I guess I am getting kind of nervous about not being as "together" as I should be for an incoming PhD when open house comes around.

[coffeem8]

Those attending open houses soon, how are you preparing yourself for the open house? Are you planning on reading the work of your potential advisors before meeting them? Are you going to peruse the schools' websites ad nauseum? Are you going to rehearse how to discuss your fields of interest? I guess I am getting kind of nervous about not being as "together" as I should be for an incoming PhD when open house comes around.

Oh my gosh I am so worried about all of these things, and even about how to dress. I am excited but also terrified of having to be "on" all the time. I'm thinking of re-reading my SOP and application materials in order to get a handle on how to briefly but clearly talk about my research interests... because when I get nervous I get tongue-tied.

Edited February 27, 2011 by coffeem8

[ZeeMore21]

Oh my gosh I am so worried about all of these things, and even about how to dress. I am excited but also terrified of having to be "on" all the time. I'm thinking of re-reading my SOP and application materials in order to get a handle on how to briefly but clearly talk about my research interests... because when I get nervous I get tongue-tied.

Ah, never thought about rereading the statement of purpose! Great idea coffeem8! I also can get tongue-tied when I am nervous, and I am pretty scared about this. Glad that someone is nervous too btw lol.

Edited February 27, 2011 by ZeeMore21

[ZeeMore21]

Thanks for bringing the dress situation up too coffeem8. I am a female and am wondering what would be appropriate to wear. Given that I probably will be walking around a lot, I want to be comfortable too. Too much to think about!

[newms]

Those attending open houses soon, how are you preparing yourself for the open house? Are you planning on reading the work of your potential advisors before meeting them? Are you going to peruse the schools' websites ad nauseum? Are you going to rehearse how to discuss your fields of interest? I guess I am getting kind of nervous about not being as "together" as I should be for an incoming PhD when open house comes around.

I hadn't thought a lot about this before reading your post just now. I've been reading a lot of my primary POI's work for a while now and especially in preparation for when he spoke with me before I got accepted, but now that you mention it, I will definitely read up on the work of other profs who I'm interested in. It's always a good idea to be prepared to talk about your research or your interests at any point, so rehearsing is definitely a good idea.

I definitely am wondering about the dress code though - my invitation said that casual was fine for all events, but how casual is casual? What if I do go in a jeans and jacket and other people dress more business casual than casual casual? And what if it's the reverse? I've been in contact with a grad student at this school since I've been admitted so I'll ask.

[ZeeMore21]

I hadn't thought a lot about this before reading your post just now. I've been reading a lot of my primary POI's work for a while now and especially in preparation for when he spoke with me before I got accepted, but now that you mention it, I will definitely read up on the work of other profs who I'm interested in. It's always a good idea to be prepared to talk about your research or your interests at any point, so rehearsing is definitely a good idea.

I definitely am wondering about the dress code though - my invitation said that casual was fine for all events, but how casual is casual? What if I do go in a jeans and jacket and other people dress more business casual than casual casual? And what if it's the reverse? I've been in contact with a grad student at this school since I've been admitted so I'll ask.

Thanks for the input! I will start reading asap. Never thought to contact a grad student, sounds like a good idea.