Just had two interviews this week. Asking good questions can really help make yourself stand out.
General Questions:
What interactions do 1st year students have with 2nd years and 3rd years? Does the program have its own cadaver lab and if so are the cadavers only used by the PT students or shared with other programs? Are there any scholarship/tuition assistance/work study opportunities available? What type of community service programs are the students involved with? What are the options for on-campus/off campus housing? Are there any discounted fare options for commuters? Are there any electives students can choose? How are clinical rotations/internships selected? Is the program affiliated with any hospitals/clinical institutions? How many of the professors still practice PT? What types of specialists are on the faculty (OCS, PCS, NCS)? Are the students involved with the APTA?
To interviewer:
What classes do you teach? What do students here often struggle with in terms of adjusting to graduate level education. (If researcher) What type of research do you conduct? My interviewer was a PhD biomechanics researcher - What type of equipment do you use? What qualities do excellent student researchers exhibit? What obstacles have you encountered as a researcher? How does being a researcher alter your perspective of PT? Are the research projects here interdisciplinary?
Another interviewer was a pediatric PT -If you had to work in a different field of PT, what would it be? How has the profession of PT changed since you were a PT student? What role do you think these next generations of PT students will have in terms of progressing the profession as a whole?
To current students:
What was the hardest class? What class did you most enjoy? How do you study (group, by yourself, mix)? Are there any resources (classrooms, labs, facilities) with 24/7 access for studying? What are the class schedules like? How much personal time do you have? How do you retain information like anatomy for future classes?
I probably left out a few more that I've heard other people ask. Also, even if you know the answers because you've researched the school thoroughly, still ask questions because it shows you're interested in learning more.
Best of luck!
