Orgo for days Posted February 15, 2016 Posted February 15, 2016 (edited) Hey all, it seems that it would be a good idea to compile a list of of good questions to ask profs/grad students on visit weekends. If anyone has any insightful questions, I invite you to share in this thread! I will edit this post sporadically to include your suggested questions. I've started by including the questions I've thought up after working as an undergrad researcher in a competitive, sometimes brutal R1 lab, and I know there are a lot more things to ask--so help us all out by sharing your own questions! To ask profs: About lab life/students: -What does an average day in the life of your grad students look like? -How do projects get initiated? -How many hours a week do your students tend to work? Who sets the expectations for work hours? -Do your students hang out outside of lab? -How many days do your grad students tend to take off from work on an annual basis? About the prof: -How do you correct your students when they make mistakes? -How do you encourage your students when their chemistry is going poorly? How do you keep your students motivated? -What motivates you about the chemistry of your lab? About the training/chemistry: -How do research projects get initiated? -How long does it take for the average student to get their PhD? What generally is required for a PhD from a research standpoint? -What kinds of problems do you think the lab will be working on in five years? -How does your lab prepare students for successful careers in industry or academia? -Does the lab have established collaborations with any groups? To ask grad students: To get the hindsight opinion on joining the school/lab: -What do you like most about your PI? Least? -What do you like most about your school? Least? -If you could make the choice again, would you attend the same uni/join the same lab? To get a sense for lab environment: -Do you feel like you're friends with the other graduate students in the program and/or lab? -Do you and the other grad students hang out outside of lab? -Do you feel like your lab members rely on you and vice versa? -What do you and the other grad students do for fun? Edited February 15, 2016 by Orgo for days Say No To Entropy and St Andrews Lynx 2
crystalettuce Posted February 15, 2016 Posted February 15, 2016 To ask graduate students: -Is the stipend received enough for the cost of living in that area? -Any apartment complexes/neighborhoods to avoid? Is there an area of town where more graduate students typically live? Grad students and/or profs: -Typically how long are you expected to TA? Thanks for your list @Orgo for days some of the questions you have I didn't think of! So this was helpful! Good luck and have fun on your visiting weekends!
Orgo for days Posted February 15, 2016 Author Posted February 15, 2016 (edited) Thanks, @crystalettuce! Im gonna create a new list in this post, since I realized I can't edit my first post: To ask grad students: -Is the stipend received enough for the cost of living in that area? And if not, where do you have to live to account for this? -Are there any apartment complexes/neighborhoods to avoid? Is there an area of town where more graduate students typically live? To ask profs/grad students: -Typically how long are you expected to TA? Edited February 15, 2016 by Orgo for days
ConcertedMechanism Posted March 4, 2016 Posted March 4, 2016 Beyond just questions to ask, do you guys (or anyone else for that matter), have any advice to offer for visit weekends? I will be going on my first visit soon and am getting a bit nervous, and all I could find in the "interviews and visits" forum seemed targeted towards interviews in which the environment is much more formal.
Orgo for days Posted March 5, 2016 Author Posted March 5, 2016 7 hours ago, ConcertedMechanism said: Beyond just questions to ask, do you guys (or anyone else for that matter), have any advice to offer for visit weekends? I will be going on my first visit soon and am getting a bit nervous, and all I could find in the "interviews and visits" forum seemed targeted towards interviews in which the environment is much more formal. I've been on two visits now, and I think the biggest thing is enthusiasm and knowledge about the prof's research! If you're ever in doubt about getting a spot in the prof's lab, you can impress him/her by having a knowledge about what papers they've already published and by being generally high energy about what they do.
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