Tip: Don't RSVP to interview requests immediately!

[TakeruK]

This is the time where many schools are sending out interview invitations and a common (un?)fortunate situation is having accidentally double-booked themselves for interviews**. So, I hope you'll indulge some unsolicited advice:

Resist the urge to respond to interview requests immediately! Consider potential conflicts first.

If you get notification via email, that's great, you can take some time to think about your options before sending that RSVP. If you are notified on the phone, then try not to commit to anything immediately (hopefully the caller will be considerate enough to not even ask you to make a decision on the spot). However, I would rehearse a line to ask for more time to decide in case you get that unexpected phone call. It doesn't matter if you are 99% sure you are free on that date, unless you already know the school in question is your top choice, practice saying something like "I am very excited for the opportunity to interview. I just need to double check my calendar." Then ask if how they would like you to confirm (call back? email?) and ask for a deadline.

While waiting for interview invites, you should think about how you feel about each school and get a rough sense of how you would prioritize one over another. It may also help to know when schools typically notify you of an interview invite and also of their typical interview dates. TheGradCafe's "Results Survey" database is a great tool, and so is searching the forums if people in your field post their dates here. 

The point of this advice is that accepting an interview date and then asking to change it later can reflect poorly on you and cause you extra stress. Instead, make sure you are aware of possible conflicts ahead of time. If you get an invite from School A today but know that School B generally sends invites 2 days from now, and that in the past the A and B interview dates have overlapped, then I would wait a couple of days to see if School B responds before committing to any date with School A. If it would be too awkward to simply wait in (email) silence, it's okay to reply to "School A" a day after the invitation and say that you think the proposed date could work but you just need a little bit of time to ensure there are no conflicts. Then you can ask about a deadline (if one was not already imposed).

(** To clarify, this is not meant to "out" anyone already in this situation! Just hoping to help out others).

[hopefulPhD2017]

Awesome advice! Hoping I get a chance to use it. 

[Psych_Law]

 

On 12/18/2016 at 11:08 PM, TakeruK said:

This is the time where many schools are sending out interview invitations and a common (un?)fortunate situation is having accidentally double-booked themselves for interviews**. So, I hope you'll indulge some unsolicited advice:

Resist the urge to respond to interview requests immediately! Consider potential conflicts first.

If you get notification via email, that's great, you can take some time to think about your options before sending that RSVP. If you are notified on the phone, then try not to commit to anything immediately (hopefully the caller will be considerate enough to not even ask you to make a decision on the spot). However, I would rehearse a line to ask for more time to decide in case you get that unexpected phone call. It doesn't matter if you are 99% sure you are free on that date, unless you already know the school in question is your top choice, practice saying something like "I am very excited for the opportunity to interview. I just need to double check my calendar." Then ask if how they would like you to confirm (call back? email?) and ask for a deadline.

While waiting for interview invites, you should think about how you feel about each school and get a rough sense of how you would prioritize one over another. It may also help to know when schools typically notify you of an interview invite and also of their typical interview dates. TheGradCafe's "Results Survey" database is a great tool, and so is searching the forums if people in your field post their dates here. 

The point of this advice is that accepting an interview date and then asking to change it later can reflect poorly on you and cause you extra stress. Instead, make sure you are aware of possible conflicts ahead of time. If you get an invite from School A today but know that School B generally sends invites 2 days from now, and that in the past the A and B interview dates have overlapped, then I would wait a couple of days to see if School B responds before committing to any date with School A. If it would be too awkward to simply wait in (email) silence, it's okay to reply to "School A" a day after the invitation and say that you think the proposed date could work but you just need a little bit of time to ensure there are no conflicts. Then you can ask about a deadline (if one was not already imposed).

(** To clarify, this is not meant to "out" anyone already in this situation! Just hoping to help out others).

I have a potential conflict that I'm not sure how to approach if it becomes reality. I have an interview invitation for school A that was extended on Friday. I have 2 schools, B and C, that I am about 99% sure will hold interviews that same weekend. School B usually notifies applicants this week, so I'm waiting for that. But school C usually doesn't get back to applicants until mid-January. Obviously I can't wait a whole month to get back to school A if I am accepting the interview invitation. But school C is better aligned with my research interests than school A, and I'm worried about that potential conflict if it arises--I'm not as confident about getting an interview invitation from school C though than I was with school A. So I'm guessing I accept school A's interview invitation (I do really want to go and get to know the PI and program better), and wait and see what happens? I feel like that's all I can do, but I just wanted a second person's perspective.

[TakeruK]

46 minutes ago, Becks_Psych said:

 

I have a potential conflict that I'm not sure how to approach if it becomes reality. I have an interview invitation for school A that was extended on Friday. I have 2 schools, B and C, that I am about 99% sure will hold interviews that same weekend. School B usually notifies applicants this week, so I'm waiting for that. But school C usually doesn't get back to applicants until mid-January. Obviously I can't wait a whole month to get back to school A if I am accepting the interview invitation. But school C is better aligned with my research interests than school A, and I'm worried about that potential conflict if it arises--I'm not as confident about getting an interview invitation from school C though than I was with school A. So I'm guessing I accept school A's interview invitation (I do really want to go and get to know the PI and program better), and wait and see what happens? I feel like that's all I can do, but I just wanted a second person's perspective.

Yeah, I think you cannot wait an entire month for C. If you do get an invite for C and it's the same time as A, since they notified you an entire month later, they will probably understand if you need to book an alternate date (or if you really do prefer C a lot more than A, then you could try to move A since what else can you do!) 

[Quantitative_Psychology]

@TakeruK I am so glad I read this post. I just got an interview invitation, and I'm feeling awfully impulsive. You're absolutely right. It's a better idea to sit on it for a bit and see if any conflicts arise. I wish schools would just post when their interview dates are so we can plan accordingly.

[GCBrittany]

Great advice! I've heard my program works together to plan alternating dates to avoid such things. Wish every school/program did this!

My first interview offer was over the phone and I was so excited and caught off guard I accepted the first date without even thinking about when it was. Next time, I will stop and consider if it works!