Finding a POI

[neuropsych76]

Hello all,

glad i found this forum

I was wondering if any of you have tips for finding a POI you want to work with.

Other than networking, is there a better way than to pick out specific schools and look at what research the professors do?

Thank you for any input.

[Anita]

I wrote a looooong post describing my strategy for finding POIs Yes, it's every bit as painstaking as it sounds, but on the plus side, I'm now familiar with the work of many, many people and has an idea of what's going on in the field right now. Whenever someone tells me their interest and their school list, I can be like, "Oh, did you apply to work with so-and-so?"

That said, I now think it was still not as good a strategy as it could have been. I think a much, much better way to go about things is to become really, really familiar with past research in your topic of interest and figure out what you want to explore that isn't already explored. You're going to immerse yourself in it for at least 5 years anyway, so you might as well do the reading now. It'll only help. What I'm trying to get at is that, after you become very conversant in your research interests, you'll be able to name lots of important researchers in your field. Now your job is just to look them up, see where they are, decide if you want to go there, and email them to see if they're taking students.

There's also a shortcut, which is to get a scholarly book (with a References section) on your research interest and look up everyone who's cited 3x or more. Honestly though (and I have no idea why I'm getting on a soapbox here; I'm just an applicant like everybody else), I do think if you can't name at least a few names whose research you're really passionate about, then maybe, just maybe, you're not ready to apply yet. I was the same way while I was filling out applications, and to be perfectly honest, I think I deserved to be rejected from some of the schools I applied to - I just wasn't knowledgeable and committed enough to my POIs' research.

Just my 2c - hope that helped somewhat

[neuropsych76]

I wrote a looooong post describing my strategy for finding POIs Yes, it's every bit as painstaking as it sounds, but on the plus side, I'm now familiar with the work of many, many people and has an idea of what's going on in the field right now. Whenever someone tells me their interest and their school list, I can be like, "Oh, did you apply to work with so-and-so?"

That said, I now think it was still not as good a strategy as it could have been. I think a much, much better way to go about things is to become really, really familiar with past research in your topic of interest and figure out what you want to explore that isn't already explored. You're going to immerse yourself in it for at least 5 years anyway, so you might as well do the reading now. It'll only help. What I'm trying to get at is that, after you become very conversant in your research interests, you'll be able to name lots of important researchers in your field. Now your job is just to look them up, see where they are, decide if you want to go there, and email them to see if they're taking students.

There's also a shortcut, which is to get a scholarly book (with a References section) on your research interest and look up everyone who's cited 3x or more. Honestly though (and I have no idea why I'm getting on a soapbox here; I'm just an applicant like everybody else), I do think if you can't name at least a few names whose research you're really passionate about, then maybe, just maybe, you're not ready to apply yet. I was the same way while I was filling out applications, and to be perfectly honest, I think I deserved to be rejected from some of the schools I applied to - I just wasn't knowledgeable and committed enough to my POIs' research.

Just my 2c - hope that helped somewhat

Thank you very much for the reply, that was helpful

I will definitely keep all that in mind as I start my search. I'm a junior and I hope to start making my own big spreadsheet soon so hopefully that's enough time

That is a good point about if you don't know names in your research area, you might not be ready to apply yet. I will continue reading and luckily my honors thesis is somewhat related into the kind of research I want to go into so I am familiarizing myself with the literature.

One final question for now, when is a good time to email POI's if they are taking students? Maybe like August or so?

Thanks!

[Psych316]

It all starts with the program you want! For me it was developmental and educational psych. I started by looking up schools in my state and then reading through all the profiles on their websites. It's also a good idea to either buy the APA's book or to to their website http://psycinfo.apa.org/gradstudy. That website was very helpful as you can get the stats of how many people apply/get in and it's helpful in finding other schools you hadn't thought of.

I started to contact a few of my POIs late spring/early fall before applying. You want to be fresh in their memory if you do connect!

[JSocial86]

Thank you very much for the reply, that was helpful

I will definitely keep all that in mind as I start my search. I'm a junior and I hope to start making my own big spreadsheet soon so hopefully that's enough time

That is a good point about if you don't know names in your research area, you might not be ready to apply yet. I will continue reading and luckily my honors thesis is somewhat related into the kind of research I want to go into so I am familiarizing myself with the literature.

One final question for now, when is a good time to email POI's if they are taking students? Maybe like August or so?

Thanks!

I agree with Anita in that the best way to find prospective POIs is to read the literature (and look at the citations too), identify whose work is in sync with the direction you are hoping to go in, and contact them. Your list of POIs/schools will evolve over time, so I would start somewhat early (the summer before your final undergrad year will do nicely). Initially, I would recommend that you shouldn't put too much emphasis on which schools these people are faculty members at, though you should make sure the school has a Ph.D. or M.A. program (whatevery your goal is). That is, if you just apply to schools for their name/reputation, then you will more than likely be disappointmented with the outcome of your applications - if your not a good "FIT", then out goes your application! I have personally found that the extent of your fit with a program will become apparent when writing your statement of purpose/admissions essay. Typically the easier it is to write, the better fit you have with that particular program.

Now to get to your question about when to email POIs. This is trickier than it sounds because many faculty will have no clue if they will be able to admit a new grad student during the summer. I would say Septemeber or October is a fairly good time. It is amazing how fast your fairly large list of POIs/schools will diminish from faculty informing you that they are not taking students. Also, some faculty may be deciding to take their research into another direction, so it is important to ask about this when contacting POIs. Professors at your undergrad institution may have some great inside info as well.

[pizzapie]

My method actually was somewhat similar to Anita, which is a nice, grueling process. It was difficult for me because I'm interested in animal behavior and there really isn't a set animal behavior program anywhere. I googled and found some animal behavior programs (and a very huge listing of graduate schools on the AB website), but mostly realized I had to be looking for biopsyc programs, so I searched any biopsyc program I could find and looked at the faculty research interests. I noted those names down, starting last winter/early spring probably. I began to realize that faculty could be in any program though, so I really had to look at everyone. I started looking through research as well at that point and noted any faculty with research I was interested in and went right to that school's site. Unfortunately, much of the research I'm really interested in is being conducted out of the country.

I started contacting POIs in the summer, probably in July. I think the last one I contacted was in September and by then I had narrowed my over 30 schools down to 10. I still think I missed some. Good luck in your search. Excell spreadsheets are very helpful!

Edited February 11, 2010 by pizzapie

[pewtered]

Who I chose as a POI resulted from a couple different things. Primarily, POIs were names I had come across while working on my current research, research that I plan to continue. My current adviser also suggested a couple people, all of whom I looked into and some of whom I decided to contact. The general overview of the lab (direction of research, narrow or wide; how many people in the lab; how senior/junior the PI) also played an important part in who I thought would be the best fit for me and my interests.

I contacted my POIs in late August/early September (i.e. the start of the semester during which I applied). Contacting PIs during summer can be tricky given that is a traditional vacation time.