Research Interview

[love_md]

I have a research interview tomorrow. What should I wear? And how do I prepare for it? What types of questions will be asked? Thanks in advance

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[Dr. Retractor]

An interview for what exactly? Are you meeting with a PI at your school to get a research position or interviewing for a research program?

 

[Aerus]

You should be business casual. Tie and dress shirt at least. You might be asked a variety of questions, depending on how intense your interviewer wants to be. It generally will be "Why do you want to do research?" If this is a basic science lab, you want to avoid mentioning that you're "premed". Being interested in the sciences is enough. Some interviewers might ask what you know about the research that the lab is doing and might test to see if you've done your homework. Read up on what the lab does in preparation. I like to read a couple papers published by the lab to get a feel for the type of research that they are doing.

 

[looncat]

Research interview? If this is a meeting with a grad student/post doc or the PI, I would say dress in a nice pair of jeans and a button down. These meetings aren't that formal, unless this is some sort of program you actually applied to? That being said, it's always better to be over-dressed than under-dressed.

They will just want to gauge your interest in the subject and make sure you're fully aware of what goes on in the lab.

 

[Holmwood]

I have a research interview tomorrow. What should I wear? And how do I prepare for it? What types of questions will be asked? Thanks in advance

Be very familiar with the PI's past publications. Research methods and all.

Also be prepared to provide CV/resume and an unofficial transcript.

 

[nOchemallday]

You should be business casual. Tie and dress shirt at least. You might be asked a variety of questions, depending on how intense your interviewer wants to be. It generally will be "Why do you want to do research?" If this is a basic science lab, you want to avoid mentioning that you're "premed". Being interested in the sciences is enough. Some interviewers might ask what you know about the research that the lab is doing and might test to see if you've done your homework. Read up on what the lab does in preparation. I like to read a couple papers published by the lab to get a feel for the type of research that they are doing.

Bolded +1000000000000000

 

[hoihaie]

business casual. ties are a bit too much.

 

[looncat]

You should be business casual. Tie and dress shirt at least. You might be asked a variety of questions, depending on how intense your interviewer wants to be. It generally will be "Why do you want to do research?" If this is a basic science lab, you want to avoid mentioning that you're "premed". Being interested in the sciences is enough. Some interviewers might ask what you know about the research that the lab is doing and might test to see if you've done your homework. Read up on what the lab does in preparation. I like to read a couple papers published by the lab to get a feel for the type of research that they are doing.

Ooooh yes. Sometimes I have to speak to underclassmen when they're interested in joining the lab I'm in and even though I'm pre-med, I still roll my eyes and think they're not actually into the research.

 

[molecularlyfe]

You should be business casual. Tie and dress shirt at least. You might be asked a variety of questions, depending on how intense your interviewer wants to be. It generally will be "Why do you want to do research?" If this is a basic science lab, you want to avoid mentioning that you're "premed". Being interested in the sciences is enough. Some interviewers might ask what you know about the research that the lab is doing and might test to see if you've done your homework. Read up on what the lab does in preparation. I like to read a couple papers published by the lab to get a feel for the type of research that they are doing.

Totally agree, for the past 1.5 year I've worked in a lab and while I am doing it for a stronger application I feel as though most come into an interview with the first word out of their mouths being "I want to go to medical school and this is why I want to be in this lab, X, Y and Z". Some are totally not fit for labs nor are even interested in what they are doing and that is extremely saddening to know this is all done solely to look good on paper.

 

[brokenjaw]

1) A nice pair of jeans and a button down would be enough and great.

2) Read about the lab, it's objectives, published paper and any news related to the subject being investigated .

3) Some questions will be :

a. Give me a brief introduction about yourself?
b. What are your career goals here?
c. What do you know about this lab and the research conducted here?
d. Past labs experience