Interviews and early applications

[tyktkt]

I was talking to a friend of mine who is going to apply to molecular biology programs for a PhD in the US. She told me that interviews are a part of the application process. Is this true for Chemistry programs too? I am not really mentally prepared for an interview!

Also, does applying early help in any way?

 

 

Edited October 9, 2017 by shreyasvm

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

Saw this on the recent posts. Someone in your area may be able to offer more targeted advice, but the general answer to your questions is, "it depends." Some programs do interviews, others don't. Some may only do interviews if they feel they need more info while others use it as the final step of the application process. The point is that this is program specific so the best way to find out if a program does interviews is to 1) check their website or contact their DGS with questions you have about the app process or 2) check on the results page since people will also post getting interviews on there.

Your second question also depends. Some programs have rolling admissions and others may have an internal early deadline for specific fellowships. 1 program I'm applying to only gives research fellowships to top applicants who apply by Nov. 1st (other admitted students usually get TAships). Because of this, I've focused on finishing that application first, even though its posted deadline isn't until the end of December. But again, this is program specific and not something others on here can tell you (unless they're familiar enough with the programs to which you're applying).

[tyktkt]

5 hours ago, GreenEyedTrombonist said:

Saw this on the recent posts. Someone in your area may be able to offer more targeted advice, but the general answer to your questions is, "it depends." Some programs do interviews, others don't. Some may only do interviews if they feel they need more info while others use it as the final step of the application process. The point is that this is program specific so the best way to find out if a program does interviews is to 1) check their website or contact their DGS with questions you have about the app process or 2) check on the results page since people will also post getting interviews on there.

Your second question also depends. Some programs have rolling admissions and others may have an internal early deadline for specific fellowships. 1 program I'm applying to only gives research fellowships to top applicants who apply by Nov. 1st (other admitted students usually get TAships). Because of this, I've focused on finishing that application first, even though its posted deadline isn't until the end of December. But again, this is program specific and not something others on here can tell you (unless they're familiar enough with the programs to which you're applying).

Thank you very much for your reply. I will check older posts to see if people had to go through interviews. Apart from fellowships and TAs, is there any other advantage of applying early?

[GreenEyedTrombonist]

@shreyasvm If a school has rolling deadlines it can sometimes be a benefit to apply early. I know at least one person on this forum is applying for a program with rolling deadlines (all for a summer 2019 start). If a school has rolling deadlines and a set number of allowed admitted students, it makes sense that it's better to get your app in early instead of fighting with a ton more people for the last open slot. 

Most schools, however, will tell you if they have such deadlines or if it's a benefit to apply early. At least for my programs, they have a FAQ section for applicants. There is almost always a question about benefits of applying early (and for most of my programs, the answer is that there is no benefit; they look at all the apps at the same time).

[tyktkt]

Makes sense. Thanks a ton!