University of Pittsburgh Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences
Pittsburgh, PA
Psychology Schools | Public Non-Profit
How did the interview impress you?
What was the stress level of the interview?
How you think you did?
How do you rank this school among ALL other schools?
How do you rank this school among other schools to which you've applied?
What is one of the specific questions they asked you?
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Describe your research interests. (I was asked this 6 different times in 6 different interviews).
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Do you have any questions for me?
What was the most interesting question?
What was the most difficult question?
How long was the interview?
How many people interviewed you?
What was the style of the interview?
What type of interview was it?
Was this interview in-person or virtual?
Where did the interview take place?
Who was the tour given by?
How did the tour guide seem?
How do you rank the facilities?
What is your in-state status?
What were your total hours spent traveling?
What was your primary mode of travel?
About how much did you spend on room, food, and travel?
What airport did you fly into?
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PIT
Where did you stay?
What is the name of the hotel you stayed in?
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Holiday Inn
How would you rate the hotel?
Would you recommend the hotel?
What is your ranking of this school's location?
What is your ranking of this area's cultural life?
What are your comments on where you stayed?
How is the friendliness of the admissions office?
How is the responsiveness of the admissions office?
How did you prepare for the interview?
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Read some of the faculty's articles, re-read my statement, studied the website.
What impressed you positively?
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All of the grad students were super available and kind, and the faculty were very well-informed and enthusiastic.
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Before my visit, I had lengthy phone ''interviews'' with several faculty & admin staff; they were all very warm and professional. Nice facilities, faculty & students were friendly, students seemed relatively happy (albeit tired & stressed). Students are fully funded for however long they're in the program. Pitt's campus is very convenient, med school & local hospitals are within a couple blocks. Pittsburgh is much nicer than I expected. Living expenses in the area are low enough that students can live off of their stipends.
What impressed you negatively?
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The students appeared simply exhausted...there is more coursework than average in their curriculum and they all seemed kind of defeated. Also, the days were extremely long and it was difficult to enjoy any social functions at the end of the day, even though they were supposed to be for "fun."
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NO breaks between interviews - not even time to walk from one to the next. Barely had time to eat lunch. Formal interviews with grad students felt contrived/awkward & I didn't really get to ask them questions. The whole day felt like a cattle-call audition; tons of applicants and a very rushed schedule made me feel like I should have been wearing a number instead of a name tag. Had to share a hotel room with another applicant. (Not Pitt's fault: flight was delayed the night before and I got in so late that I only got about 5 hours of sleep).
What did you wish you had known ahead of time?
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The program takes *at least* 6 years on campus, plus the internship. There is a lot more clinical training than I expected (more than other programs where I interviewed).
What are your general comments?
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My experience at Pitt didn't feel nearly as personal or welcoming as my pre-visit communications with faculty/staff. I was disappointed by the all-around impersonal feel. I didn't feel like I got a good feel for the program because we were so rushed all day long. But, everyone was friendly and it seems like a strong program.
What are your suggestions for the admissions office?
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