Phone Interview Experiences

[Stroop_There_It_Is]

Hey all.

 

I'm just curious. For those of you who have had phone interviews, were they structured or unstructured, and what sort of questions were you asked? Do you think you'd prefer structured or unstructured phone interviews?

 

I'm hoping this may give me some sort of idea what to expect when/if I get a phone interview.

 

Thanks!

 

[Socially Awkward]

I'm just curious. For those of you who have had phone interviews, were they structured or unstructured, and what sort of questions were you asked? Do you think you'd prefer structured or unstructured phone interviews?

 

I would also really appreciate anyone's input on this! I have a phone interview coming up and I'm wondering what the general flow of the interview is. 

 

Any information would be great, thank you. 

[clinpsych]

I would also really appreciate anyone's input on this! I have a phone interview coming up and I'm wondering what the general flow of the interview is.

Any information would be great, thank you.

[kpsych]

I had a phone interview the other day ...

Questions that they asked was to tell them a little bit about my academic/research background as one of the profs I was interviewing with wasn't on the admissions committe.

I was also asked why I want to obtain a PhD, why I applied to their program, what type of mentor do I see myself wanting, what potential barriers might I see in doing research in a cancer center (program I applied to has affiliations with a cancer center), what is an area for improvement and what my research interest are.

You want to be prepared with questions to ask them. Some things I asked were, how long it normally takes students to finish the program, where do they see their research going in the next 3-5 years, if students and faculty normally publish together, what their mentoring style is, and I think an important one is what hurdles they would want their students to acheive while in that program.

My interview lasted 35 minutes. The potential barriers question I couldn't think of an answer to being that I haven't experienced that, I honestly answered and said that I really don't know. The professor was really nice and gave me something to think about and I thanked him for that.

I received an offer of admissions about an hour after the call.

Good luck!!!

[Stroop_There_It_Is]

Thanks!

[Guest joshw4288]

I also had a phone interview with my POI prior to being invited to an in person interview. It was very informal-more of a conversation. We discussed how our research interests fit, I asked questions about his current students, his mentoring style, his connection to certain mutual organizations, how that organization led him to his current position, how much freedom he gives to his students to conduct  research projects in whatever direction their interests take them etc. Ask things that are important to you. Use this as a time to make sure the fit is good for you. You have already been chosen to interview because your academic qualifications make the cut. Now, it is about making sure the personality matches and the two of you can having an ongoing conversation. I didn't plan for my interview. I just let the conversation naturally flow and asked questions that interested me. 

[Socially Awkward]

Thank you all for the great advice! I set up some times I would be available for the phone interview, however they haven't emailed me with a specific time so I'm wondering if they'll just call me randomly at any given time during the time span I gave. That might just be nerves, though  

 

I've made sure to make a list of questions I'd like to ask them, as well as answers to some questions they may ask me. Overall, and from what you guys said, it should be a great and pleasurable experience.

 

Thanks again!

[ck926]

Mine was pretty casual and unstructured, but there were definitely a few standard questions he asked:

 

-He asked me to expand on my research interests based on what I said in my SOP

-If I've had any experience in an applied clinical setting/how that influenced me

-What I ultimately want to do with my PhD

 

The interview lasted about 30 minutes. The questions above were structured, but it became very conversational as I would answer those questions. To be honest, it didn't even feel like much of an interview, just more like a conversation!

[TheCheat_IsMyHero]

Just got done with my first one! For the most part, she was kind of selling her school to me, which I thought was really great. She made sure to tell me why she thought I was a good fit for her lab based on my SOP, and ended up answering most of my prepared questions about collaboration and expectations of graduate students in the program without me having to ask!

 

One thing she did ask that I wasn't necessarily prepared for was whether I had an idea/direction for a First Year Project, which is a part of their curriculum. I told her that I honestly didn't know at this point...

 

So be prepared for that just in case