UW–Madison Graduate Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences
With faculty whose research stretch the bounds of the pharmaceutical sciences, identifying three research rotations can be an exciting, yet overwhelming process. To assist you in this process, we encourage you to arrange a time to meet with each professor of interest to discuss your questions and obtain more information about his/her lab.
Appropriate questions to ask professors during a meeting might include the following:
- How many permanent positions are available in your lab and what is the typical make-up/size of the lab (e.g. typically how many scientists, postdocs, graduate students and/or undergraduate students)?
- Do you have funding for new graduate students? Do you expect students to TA, or do you support them with RAs?
- How accessible will you (the major professor) be during the rotation period (i.e., will the major professor have significant responsibilities/travel that will keep them out of the lab for the majority of the rotation period?) Who is available in the lab to mentor me during my rotation/thesis work?
- Is student independence encouraged in the lab? If so, to what extent?
- Do students collaborate with other members of the lab, or other labs? How do you handle authorship on collaborative projects?
- What thesis projects would be available to me if I were to join your lab? Would these projects expose me to a variety of experimental approaches?
- Do you encourage your students to attend seminars and/or journal clubs, including those that may be outside of their narrow field of research?
- Do you include your graduate students in professional activities that will familiarize them with their field of research, such as reviewing manuscripts and meeting with visiting speakers?
- How often do your students attend conferences, and do you financially support that attendance?
- How do you handle student requests for vacation or other needed time off?
- How long on average do your students take to graduate? What have recent students in your lab done after graduation or leaving the lab?
- What are your overall expectations for students in the lab- these can include things like lab duties outside of thesis work, hours spent physically present in lab, ability to work from home when appropriate, mentoring undergraduates, manuscripts needed for graduation, etc?
- What kind of career development opportunities do students in your lab usually pursue? Do your students ever do summer internships?