How to decide on a PhD program in chemical engineering?

lukerhym
Thu, 26 Mar 2015 05:03:09 +0000

Hi! So I was recently granted admission into the chemical engineering PhD programs at MIT, Berkeley, and Northwestern, and a few weeks after visiting all of them, I have yet to make a decision. I was wondering if anyone here is working on or completed a PhD in any of these programs. I’m specifically looking for information on where alumni end up (industry, academia, etc.), how your relationship with your PI is/was and how your classmates’ relationships with their PI’s are/were, the work-life balance of PhD candidates, and the general atmosphere in the department. A lot of these questions were answered during the visit weekends, but I’m sure there is information that current graduate students would be hesitant in saying to prospectives in front of their classmates or their professors. Are there any regrets in your decision to attend your program, or anything you wish you had known? I’m not asking you to badmouth your program or your PI, I’d just like to know if there was anything left out during these visit weekends that would help me in making a decision.

Thank you!