Carefully consider the Duke MD curriculum, and the prospect of doing MS3 (for them, MS2) prior to your PhD. IMO this has major drawbacks.
word to this. also, their phd rotations seem like a whirlwind... since their compressed curriculum means limited summer rotation opportunities (from what i remember at the interview), you do 4 weeks per rotation in the fall of your third year with the expectation that you pick a thesis lab in the spring. This can be good or bad i guess, but i think it merits consideration either way. Administration-wise, I thought Andrea was approachable, helpful, and efficient, and overall fantastic. Dr. Kontos was extremely personable, and he is a straight-shooter. In terms of student atmosphere, I only know what you know as my only exposure was through interview, but the students seemed like great people. they were down-to-earth and excited about their science. I think very highly of Duke MSTP despite my reservations on the curriculum.
In terms of institutional philosophy and impressions from faculty interviews, Yale wasn't as strong on guidance/mentorship as some other institutions, but that probably reflects more on my personality/attitude than on yale. Administration-wise, they seemed more hands-off than other places, but the program administrator (i don't remember her name!
) was an extremely sweet lady--very warm and maternal. I didn't get a chance to see her flex her administrative muscles, but she was willing to go above and beyond for whatever miniscule request you had. The director was also very cordial, but like I said, I got a serious hands-off vibe from him. It's been stated on the thread already--If you have super-strong initiative and discipline and there are multiple PIs you can see being great mentors, Yale seems like a place where you can absolutely kick ass. I wasn't turned off by the students I met, but I didn't get the best impression either. again probably more me than them.
