Ingratiation vs. candor: They can't all be my top choice

[agrizz]

I fielded an email the other day from a PI who asked me how interested was I in working in his/her lab and how much did I prefer his/her institution relative to the others to which I applied.  

 

Neither this PI nor the two programs he/she is associated with have sent out their invitations for interviews yet, so I know that these questions were being asked in order to vet my application during his/her decision-making on the matter.  

 

So my question is this:

 

We all have at least one "top choice", right?  But how open should we be during this recruitment/application phase?  These professors and adcom members are not idiots nor can we expect them to be very gullible... so if asked directly how open should we be?  

 

"Honesty is the best policy", sure... but if I've got 2 or more schools higher on my list of preference than the one that Professor X is teaching at when he/she asks, should I risk telling him/her the truth?  

 

Moreover, it seems risky to go around telling everyone (even those to which this is true) that their school is my number 1 choice.  If untrue, you run the risk of being discovered as a BS-er. 

 

Thoughts?

[SymmetryOfImperfection]

BS pays in the real world until you get caught. Trust. Now this depends on how top these profs are. If they are all top profs (top 10 institutions) then be careful. If they have alot of differences in ranking then you can learn how to get really interested in their topic.

[GeoDUDE!]

I would say that I do not have a top choice, and that my evaluations will be made after programs interview/accept me.

[blinchik]

I would say that you find this program to be a great research fit, and you would be very happy to matriculate at the program if you are accepted - that way, you're not explicitly ranking them, but maintaining your interest in the program. If asked explicitly about rank, I would say that the program is one of your top choices (if this is true!)

[MathCat]

I would say that I do not have a top choice, and that my evaluations will be made after programs interview/accept me.

I like this, although I would say something more like I'd like to visit before making any final decisions, but I am seriously interested in their program (if true!).

[Crucial BBQ]

I fielded an email the other day from a PI who asked me how interested was I in working in his/her lab and how much did I prefer his/her institution relative to the others to which I applied.  

 

Based solely on what you wrote, I would begin to second guess this PI/lab/program if I had received an email such as this.    For starters, what does the PI expect to hear?  Oh, yeah, now that you ask I suppose I have stronger interests in my other programs.  I am sorry to have wasted your time. Perhaps this PI is just trying to vet out those who changed their minds or never fully researched the program in the first place, who knows.  The intentions could very well be benign, but seems as if the PI is asking you to bark like a dog and beg for the position.  The question is egotistical, immature, and to be frank, none of the PIs business.  You applied to the program.  To the PI that should indicate interest enough. 

 

So if I had received this email I would respond with something similar to what GeoDUDE! suggests.  

[TakeruK]

I don't think they are asking for a quantitative/specific ranking. Like you said, they are not idiots and they went through the exact same process themselves many many times (grad school, postdocs, tenure track job interviews). They will be able to spot BS right away so be honest. 

 

It's okay to say that you don't have a single top choice or that you can't assign a rank to their school. How can you, when you have not yet visited them?? When schools asked me this question, I was honest.

 

If the school was in the top half of my list, I would say something like:

"Your school, school X and school Y are my top choices and I really hope for a chance to visit these schools and find the best fit for me."

 

Or, for the schools that were in the bottom half of my list, I would say something like:

"I've also applied to X, Y, Z [top half schools] and I hope to get the opportunity to find the best fit for me after I visit your school and these other schools." (If X,Y,Z are higher ranked schools than the school I'm talking to, then by implication, you are saying that you would slightly prefer those other places).

 

Or, another way to approach it is to say what you like about the program you're talking to and what you like about other programs you've looked into (don't say negative things though).

 

In my field, I would say this question is common and also fair (as long as they don't expect you to say that you love their program no matter what). They want to know how many of their top choices consider them a backup choice (perhaps they have 5 spots and they will fill it with 3 people that said "top choice" and 4 people that said "backup choice" etc.). I think it would be stupid of any program to reject a great candidate because they feel that candidate will reject them.

[rising_star]

Crucial BBQ, that's not how I understood the PI's email to me at all. To me, it seems like the PI might be considering a small number of people but can't bring them all in for interviews or is being told by the adcom that they only get to admit 1-2 people out of that group. In that scenario (which happens plenty of times), the PI may be trying to get more info from that group of applicants so they can see who is interested and likely to enroll. It would suck for the PI to be forced to decide on 1-2 people out of that group, only to have them both say "You're my sixth choice. I'm not coming," you know? 

 

OP, be honest but not too honest. Say that you're interested, that it's a good research fit, etc. Don't lie but also don't say it's your top choice if it's not. Like TakeruK, I was always honest about where else I had applied (on applications, in conversations, etc.).

[agrizz]

I would say that I do not have a top choice, and that my evaluations will be made after programs interview/accept me.

I like this, although I would say something more like I'd like to visit before making any final decisions, but I am seriously interested in their program (if true!).

 

I agree entirely.

 

Based solely on what you wrote, I would begin to second guess this PI/lab/program if I had received an email such as this. For starters, what does the PI expect to hear?  

 

I wondered this myself.  It seemed completely unorthodox to ask such a question prior to having interviewed.  However, I think that may have been the point.

 

Perhaps this PI is just trying to vet out those who changed their minds or never fully researched the program in the first place, who knows. 

 

I think you're on to something here.

 

 

The intentions could very well be benign, but seems as if the PI is asking you to bark like a dog and beg for the position.  The question is egotistical, immature, and to be frank, none of the PIs business.  You applied to the program.  To the PI that should indicate interest enough. 

 

Perhaps, but I think this was less about the PI's ego and more about judging my genuineness on the basis of my response for the sake of extending an interview.  Who knows though... I guess I'll find out.

 

I don't think they are asking for a quantitative/specific ranking. 

 

That was the impression I got from the verbiage of the email itself.

 

To me, it seems like the PI might be considering a small number of people but can't bring them all in for interviews or is being told by the adcom that they only get to admit 1-2 people out of that group. In that scenario (which happens plenty of times), the PI may be trying to get more info from that group of applicants so they can see who is interested and likely to enroll. It would suck for the PI to be forced to decide on 1-2 people out of that group, only to have them both say "You're my sixth choice. I'm not coming," you know? 

 

IMO, this probably hits the nail on the head.

 

 

OP, be honest but not too honest. Say that you're interested, that it's a good research fit, etc. Don't lie but also don't say it's your top choice if it's not. Like TakeruK, I was always honest about where else I had applied (on applications, in conversations, etc.).

 

 

For those interested, I emailed the PI prior to writing this post.  In my response, I basically told him that what was most important to me when choosing a program and PI was a good research fit, and that I had selected what I believed to represent potentially good fits by my application submissions. I went on to say that having done so (selecting good-fit scenarios), I then charged myself to keep an open mind. Furthermore, I stated outright that I could not answer his question with regard to how his institution compared to the others on my list because I had not yet interviewed anywhere but was eager to do so to answer his question, for my sake and his.  I did avoid ingratiation, even specifically saying it was my intention to do so.  That said, I followed by stating all of the components of his laboratory and university that I thought were the strongest arguments for my acceptance if offered admission.  

 

My initial interpretation of his email was along the lines of what CrucialBBQ said. Essentially, "WTH.  Who does he think he is?"  With thought, I came to the conclusion that he could likely be looking for me to, well, ingratiate myself but filling him with all kinds of fluff about how badly I wanted to work with him and how his was the best fit.  How could I know all of things without first interviewing?  I wonder if he wasn't dropping the noose for me to tie it around my own neck.  

 

I suppose we'll see how this all plays out.  Thanks to all for the feedback.  

Edited January 17, 2015 by agrizz