This week, candidates for the epidemiology doctoral program are coming for a day of interviews, during which our department will try to impress them and they will try to wow us. It’s hard to believe that it has already been a year since I went through this. Now that I’m an expert in the art of applying to and interviewing for graduate schools, I thought I’d share some of what you can expect if you’re thinking of going through the process.

The Personal Statement

For me, this was by far the hardest part of the application process. Unlike when I applied to undergraduate schools, I could not use a blanket essay for the Common App and send it away to every college. For grad school, you get about 500 words to explain why this field is what you want to do for the rest of your life and, on top of that, explain to the school why it is clearly the best fit for you (whether or not you truly believe it). What worked best for me was to speak from the heart and to do some thorough research about all the schools to which I was applying. It helps to drop a couple of names of professors with whom you might want to work and mention special features of the school that are good for your research concentration.

Before the interview

After you submit all your applications, you’re forced to wait to hear back for an offer of an interview. Instead of sitting idly, I wish I had contacted a couple of professors from my schools of interest. It’s good to find someone who is involved in the sub-field in which you’re most interested and e-mail him or her. Let the professor know that you applied, that you’re really excited about the opportunities the school provides and that you look forward to the possibility of collaborating in the future.

The interview

For many people, this is the most nerve-wracking part of the application process. This is when a face finally gets placed next to the name on the application. The hardest part for me was the long day. Typically, it would start with a breakfast for all the candidates at 8:30 a.m. and would continue through with interviews, meetings and presentations until dinner was over at 7 p.m. My advice: work out your smile muscles beforehand and stay hydrated! Think about questions you have about the program before you get there and ask a lot, otherwise you’ll wind up with some very awkward silence. I found that, if you just be yourself, people tend to be happy.

Obviously these are just a few of the highlights. It’s a stressful process, but, in the end, very rewarding. Also, the Career Center is a great resource for mock interviews, resume writing and helping to perfect your personal statement; use it!