Ok you’ve applied to many grad schools, gotten some offers (congrats!), what happens next? Often a PhD program will invite you to visit the campus, meet faculty and grad students, and see the town before you accept the offer. I went on four grad school visits in order to help me make the decision of which offer to accept. It’s an exciting time – the dynamics have switched. Instead of you begging them to let you in, now they are begging you to accept their offer!
The decision of which offer to accept is challenging, and there are many factors to consider. For me, the most important factors where the advisor I would work with, the presence of multiple people in the program I wanted to learn from, and the cost of living (especially important to me as I am too old to have a ton of roommates!). Those were the major factors, but there are lot more things to consider and questions to ask!
I recently came across this excellent tweet thread by Alexis Garretson of questions the she wished she had asked when visiting grad school or talking with grad students at a program.
The comments are also full of more great advice and things to consider. Worth a click if you’re searching for grad school programs.
And here’s another thread from Mia de los Reyes:
And another from Dra. Nicole Cabrera Salazar
Student Veterans Research Network Blog 