Admissions PSA -- Contact PI's before applying to graduate school in the US

[QuarkyMeson]

Given the current funding situation, you should contact potential departments or research groups before you apply and pay any application fees. Many programs are not taking new graduate students at all this cycle because of funding uncertainty, unless a specific advisor can show they already have money to support you for five years. This is what I’ve heard directly from 20–30 programs.


Do not waste money applying blindly.

 

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[Choppy]

It's always been a good strategy to do some deep research into the programs you're applying to and the people you're interested in working with.

Even if funding is technically available, there are lots of reasons why an otherwise highly competitive candidate might get a no. A PI might be heading off on sabbatical or retiring. A PI might already have a saturated research group and be more concerned with graduating existing students. The research group could be pursing other avenues. They might have an opening, but be happy with a current student who has been very productive with a summer project or senior thesis work. Etc.

There is also a strong case for making sure (to the extent that anyone can) that the person you're likely to end up working with is a good match for you in terms of personality, mentoring style, etc.