What do you wish you knew about grad school before going?
Ask A Biologist Monday 10/9/23
Answers from Biologists:
That it can be really clique-y and dramatic at times.
How hard it can be having so much responsibility for your own deadlines/decisions.
Make a budget with expected income and expenses so you know if you can afford it.
A lot of people never publish their MS research. It’s harder than you think.
Predator-based projects often have really small sample sizes which make your analyses weak.
You can live pretty much anywhere for a few years. It goes by quickly.
The school that you go to doesn’t matter as much as the project and advisor.
You don’t need every skill for the project from the get-go. It’s a learning process.
I wish I’d known how mentally challenging it can be.
You’ll be making contacts that can influence the rest of your career.
Find out if there is funding to pay for you to go to conferences. Otherwise they get expensive.
Whether you advisor/dept partners with outside agencies. Huge for networking and finding a job after.
Make sure you’re excited about your project. Grad school is hard and loving your project makes a difference.
Don’t accept a position for a project you don’t like because it’s all you’ll do for years.
Ask about a supervisor’s managerial style. Make sure it works for you.
Many professors don’t use stats or programming in their daily work. You’ll learn that stuff from other students.
Ask about things like tuition remission/living stipend up front. Don’t save that detail for last.
Two years seems like a huge commitment, but it really isn’t. It goes by so fast.
If you can visit and gain a feel for the department culture, do it. Choose like you would a job.
Contact grad students outside of those with your potential advisor and ask them what the advisor is like. They’ll be more honest than current/former students can be.
Your advisor can make or break your experience. Choose carefully and do your background research.
