When you interview with schools, make sure to find out where the funding comes from. how much funding there is. how long the funding is guaranteed. whether you need to teach, do reach or neither to get funding. how much travel support there is. whether you will receive funding over the summer. how many classes are required. what the average completion time is for graduate students. how easy it is to switch between advisors in case you don t get along with your advisor. what other potential advisors there are in the department. what the requirements of the degree are.
Hmmm. I think that s it for now. I m sure I ll think of more questions later. You basically want to have as much freedom as you can. That means: few classes, a degree path that has few requirements, unlimited funding independent of having to teach, sufficient summer and travel funding, and the ability to switch advisors if necessary. You want to be able to concentrate on your research without having to worry about a frustrating advisor, money issues, or classes. (Classes don t really teach you anything at the graduate level.) These things will end up being more important than the reputation of the advisor or the school. have any complaints, how many women there are in the department, whether female students are treated equal to male students, whether they have sufficient funds, whether there are any dark secrets about the department, …