isilya Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 I just had my first interview weekend and it was so fun!!! The faculty were great, the grad students were great, the other prospective students were great....everything was so awesome!! I don't know if this deserves its own thread, but I figured I would start it anyway Has anyone else had interview weekends yet? How were they? Was the department like you expected it to be? What things did you notice about the school that you hadn't thought of before going there? Discuss!!
mb712 Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 I haven't had any interview or visitation weekends yet but your post made me excited for them! Haha. Glad you had such a good time
student896 Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 Mine was an interview day (7hrs) not a weekend, but I totally agree. I had such a fun time! I enjoyed the other applicants and grad students. We all got on well. Great food too! excited for the next ones for sure.
MathCat Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 Mine were visitation days, since there's almost never interviews in math, but I had a great time at one and the other felt like a huge waste of time. I knew really quickly that I wasn't going to attend there, and wished I wasn't missing so much class to attend.
TheMercySeat Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 (edited) I can't curse, have more than one beer at the bar (I want extra beer after a high pressure situation!), smoke, or be (too) sarcastic. Plus I'm awful when it comes to getting a good night's rest at somebody else's house. They're hard Edited February 8, 2015 by TheMercySeat MyDogHasAPhD and Munashi 2
cw01 Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 Totally agree with Isilya, I really really enjoyed mine too
Taeyers Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 I'm not an applicant any more, but when I was, I had only applied to one institution. Recruitment (that's what we call our interview event) that year was the first one the program had ever done in lieu of just bringing in individual applicants for interviews. It was one full day (9 am to 10 pm) that was pretty fun. This year, as a current student, I got to be pretty involved in the organization of a more elaborate 2 day recruitment event and spent lots of time with the applicants in a handful of social settings. Truthfully, it was TONS of fun. My program is small and tight-knit, so getting together for drinks is fun any time, but especially when the department pays and we're making new friends. I'm already excited to do it again next year, and the icing on the cake is that my 3 favorite applicants from this year's event are the ones picked to receive offers. YAY!
EastCoasting Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 2 years ago I sort of enjoyed them, but I agree that I was mostly just stressed. What I liked about them was how quickly I could tell if I fit or not, and I am in the program where I felt I fit best.
TakeruK Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 I enjoyed them a ton as a visiting student and I look forward to them every year as a current graduate student. For all the reasons above. And it's even better as a current student because it's only the fun socializing/meeting with prospective students part (either at meals or one-on-one) and none of the 8 hour days with back to back meetings part
PsychandPhilo Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 What is the typical dress code for these interview days/weekends? I have one coming up (just a day) soon. If it was just an interview I know it would be coat and tie (I'm male) but I was unsure if it was different since there's social and professional aspects throughout the day.
isilya Posted February 8, 2015 Author Posted February 8, 2015 What is the typical dress code for these interview days/weekends? I have one coming up (just a day) soon. If it was just an interview I know it would be coat and tie (I'm male) but I was unsure if it was different since there's social and professional aspects throughout the day. Honestly, just what what makes you comfortable. I only saw one guy in a suit at my weekend, everyone else was just in slacks or even khakis with a button down shirt (no tie). It seemed like no one really cared what you dressed like, it was all very laid back. Also it was cold as shit so everyone needed to be wearing boots and coats anyway for when we were outside!
student896 Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 Everyone wore a suit at mine even though the invite said "business casual"
smbtuckma Posted February 8, 2015 Posted February 8, 2015 Oh man I only went to one, but it was so fun and convinced me to love my already top choice program. All the grad students were uber cool and passionate and freaking smart people - one couple even invited us over to their house after interview day for pizza and beer. And my two POIs (they're a married couple so the students interviewing for both their labs hung out all weekend) had us over to their house twice. The first night was takeout Persian food and we literally sat around the dinner table talking about movies and tv for two hours. The next time was brunch on the last day when they invited the whole department over. There were also lab tours, taking us out to lunch, a big sushi dinner with all the grad students, and a "research blitz" where all the professors tried to talk about their research in 10 minutes or less and failed horribly at making the time contraint so all the other professors and grad students were throwing jokes at them. It felt so much like a family, I can't wait to join them in the fall!
isilya Posted February 8, 2015 Author Posted February 8, 2015 Oh man I only went to one, but it was so fun and convinced me to love my already top choice program. All the grad students were uber cool and passionate and freaking smart people - one couple even invited us over to their house after interview day for pizza and beer. And my two POIs (they're a married couple so the students interviewing for both their labs hung out all weekend) had us over to their house twice. The first night was takeout Persian food and we literally sat around the dinner table talking about movies and tv for two hours. The next time was brunch on the last day when they invited the whole department over. There were also lab tours, taking us out to lunch, a big sushi dinner with all the grad students, and a "research blitz" where all the professors tried to talk about their research in 10 minutes or less and failed horribly at making the time contraint so all the other professors and grad students were throwing jokes at them. It felt so much like a family, I can't wait to join them in the fall! Yay that's awesome!!! Have fun at UCLA!!
VulpesZerda Posted February 9, 2015 Posted February 9, 2015 I seriously loved the interview visit I went to! I didn't know what to expect from the program and it turns out they are the coolest people ever, and really value their students' individuality and success over all else.
TheMercySeat Posted February 9, 2015 Posted February 9, 2015 I feel like there's always somebody that tries really hard to make me feel inadequate. I usually have more pubs than that person Aasera 1
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now