The Next 5 Years (6 If I'm Lazy)
I have been mulling over graduate school options for awhile. I got into UW, Penn, and Emory and am trying to consider the pros and cons for each.
After visiting Emory, I believe I would be the happiest in this environment. I loved the faculty and all the grad students seemed like a big group of friends. The city of Atlanta was amazing and the weather would be nice and warm for nearly two thirds of the year. However, it's almost as far away from Seattle as you can get and in terms of prestige/reputation it is the lowest out of the three.
Visiting Penn made me realize all the hype surrounding Ivy League schools. They have all the best faculty, tons of money, and world famous people visiting on a weekly basis. This would make networking a lot easier and in these days of economic downturn, financial security can never be underrated (read: they pay the most and would most likely be able to pay my stipend for the extent of my time at the school). I liked Philadelphia, although not as much as Atlanta. The weather would be somewhat comparable to Seattle but overall atmosphere wouldn't. The faculty were friendly, but again, Atlanta takes the cake in that area. I have been in contact with a professor who is "kind of a big deal" in the realm of biomedical research. He even has a portrait hanging in the main lobby of the biomedical building alongside other past great researchers at Penn. Getting a doctorate from his lab would really open doors. Again, their would be a great distance between family, friends, and the familiar. As well, and I don't know if most people would understand me on this point, but I don't like how a large percentage of the faculty at Penn use mice as their model systems. From what I have seen and heard, I want to avoid using mice (or any mammal) in the lab at all costs.
This leaves UW. I like and dislike how close to home the school is. On the one hand it would be nice to stay close to family, but on ther other it would be an adventure to relocate across the country. In terms of animal models, I don't believe a single professor in the department I applied to uses mice as their model system; mostly flies, yeast, and zebrafish. I have been in contact with a faculty member at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center whose research I have been interested in. Although he doesn't have the notoriety that the aforementioned professor has, there is a good chance he may earn it in the future. In terms of reputation, most people don't realize that UW is very prestigious in terms of genomics. US News and World Report has it tied for ninth with Yale in this biological discipline. Reputation is a factor that must be considered when applying to postdoctorate research positions. In terms of funding, I'm not too worried. The Genome Sciences department is the only one hiring at UW while everyone else is cutting back. This gives me a little confidence that my stipend won't be revoked should the Washington Legislature cut additional funds to the school. One con about UW is that I felt the least connection between myself and other prospective students at this interview. This may be because I am from the city and didn't getting the bonding time that you get when you stay in the hotels on these trips.
Right now I think I'm leaning toward UW, although turning down the other two is going to be very hard to do. Anybody have a three sided coin I can flip to take the decision out of my hands?