Resume working with former PI or go to more prestigious school for BME PhD

[lightcrx]

So I've finally gotten through interviews for bio(medical) engineering PhD. I've narrowed my choices down to 3 schools: Vanderbilt, Duke, and Berkeley, but I'm having a really tough time choosing one.

There's a professor that I've worked with before at Vanderbilt. I really enjoyed working with him and his students. Incredibly smart PI, great work ethic, very driven, good sense of humor, very accessible and hands on. Just a really personable guy that was (generally) fun to be around and that reflected in the lab culture. I was able to do some pretty good work in my time with him. He's fairly young and not super established yet, but honestly I don't think I would've gotten into any of those schools without the work I did in his lab and his recommendation. Don't really have any strong feelings about the school itself or the city.

Duke though...is Duke. Didn't really get to see too much of Durham, but I think it'll be fine. Plus their campus is really nice. The professor I'd be working with is a leader in his field, well funded, and has a fairly large lab and so is generally pretty hands off. His students seem like people that I'd be able to work with, but it's hard to know for sure from seeing them for a few hours.

As for Berkeley, it's just a very prestigious school. However honestly, I wasn't a huge fan of their campus and the cost of living is pretty off putting. Plus the professor I'd be working with has his primary appointment outside of bioengineering. He does interesting work, and is fairly well established, but I just got a weird vibe when I was visiting the lab.

I'm leaning towards Duke right now, but I feel like I'm standing at the top of a cliff trying to decide if I should jump or not. Vanderbilt is at the top of the cliff and holds a sense of familiarity and comfort. I know exactly what I'd be getting myself into and would likely be able to continue doing good work there. Then at the bottom of the cliff is Duke and Berkeley. Their prestige is appealing, yet it's pretty murky down there. Jumping off could be a great experience, but I have no idea what I'll find once I've gotten there. I've met the Duke group once before my interview at a conference, but honestly I have no idea how it would be like to work in a lab with such a drastically different mentoring style.

Has anyone else found themselves in a similar situation? If so, how'd you decide where to go?

[rising_star]

Berkeley sounds like it's out from what you've written. It doesn't sound like you want to be there so just scratch it off your list.

Then it comes down to two things: 1) what mentoring style will allow you to flourish? and 2) which PI has the better track record for publications and your intended future career?