Questions questions questions...

[Louiselab]

So now that it's my turn to judge the department, I am not really sure what I'm supposed to be asking. I'm reasonably sure that they will be the only department I'm accepted to, so there won't be much in terms of comparison shopping but I just wanted to know what kind of questions should I be asking them? I just want to make sure I know what I am getting into, because I definitely did not foresee an acceptance...

[socialpsych]

Well first of all, congrats!!

Here are some questions you can ask:

- What makes this dept/program different from other depts/programs?

- What kind of student does best here?

- To what extent are students expected to collaborate with other profs vs. just work with their primary advisor? (this might not make sense given your field)

- To your advisor: how would you describe your mentoring style? (make sure to ask some current students this, too)

- What kinds of jobs/placements do graduates get?

[slothy]

I came across this link a while back; although I'm primarily applying to soc programs, I thought the questions seemed very relevant to any non-"hard" science disicipline.

http://www.apsanet.org/content_6925.cfm

And it looks like there's another useful link at the bottom of the page.

Hope this gives you a starting point!

[miratrix]

Thanks, that's a pretty good list.

[synthla]

http://www.historians.org/projects/cge/PhD/Questions.cfm

You might find this helpful as well... geared more toward history. There are suggested questions about half way down the page.

[purplepepper]

- What makes this dept/program different from other depts/programs?

Why is this night different from all other nights?

Sounds like Passover. I like it! Passover with a practical application.

[psycholinguist]

* laughs *

[ewurgler]

Wow, thank you so much for those questions and the links! I have an interview in the coming days and was really struggling with what to ask.