It's possible that the people in field A other than the 2 that you were able to get weren't taking students or didn't think it was a good fit. It's also possible that the people in the totally unrelated fields see something in your application that draws them to you - since you didn't say what fields they are it's hard to say, but (just as an example) I've heard of developmental and social psychologists with a neuroscience focus in their labs being interested in students that are interested in neuroscience more generally. I would say make the most out of the interviews in the area you wanted (and hey, congratulations on being called!) and don't automatically discard the other two, since they could prove to be eye opening and more interesting that you thought.
As someone who has recently interviewed for science PhD programs (yikes, scary, omg!), I would caution you that interviews aren't all about listening to the faculty recite on their research. In most of my interviews, I have been asked to discuss particulars of my past research projects, what brought me to the school, where I see myself in twenty years, etc. While there have been opportunities to discuss their research, the amount of time dedicated to this has really varied from faculty member to faculty member
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Well thank God. Because don't get me wrong, I love neuro as a discipline and it took me a super long time to even think of narrowing down to Field A. Just, through my past internship and whatnot I've met my fair share of people who've sort of turned up their noses when I go "I like Field A, but fields B, C and D are awesome". I'm glad to know not everybody is like that! ;_;
Anyway, thank you for the advice. I wrote down a couple more names and emailed them to the grad coordinator "as extra suggestions for the To Be Decideds". Hopefully I'll get somebody interesting!
You will probably be pleasantly surprised. I'm currently waiting impatiently for some more of these lists to come to me, and I feel like I have to believe that!
I'm not in a field that has pre-acceptance interviews, so I don't know if these comments are worth anything at all, but remember that choosing a grad program can be as much about finding a social/locational fit as it is about finding an intellectual fit. Maybe some of the professors in fields B, C, and D can, as mdxxxvi suggested, answer some of your questions about the program culture; maybe they can answer some of your questions about the place. Maybe you were paired with them because they have something else in common with you--such as having an undergrad institution in common or being close to you in age or something like that--and/or maybe you can use the conversation with them to ask questions that wouldn't come up as readily or that you wouldn't have time to ask during the chat with the professors in your field.
At my neuro PhD program, everyone interviews with some of their faculty of interest as well as some faculty from the admissions committee and/or the DGS. So, it's possible that the profs from the fields outside of your stated interest area are the ones responsible for making the admissions decisions, thus they want to talk to you
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Pretty much my comment too, especially after talking with one of my current professors. Of the 6 people I interviewed with here, a few were people I was actually interested in, at least one was on the admissions committee, and one was a professor from the training grant I'm now on. None expected me to know their research inside and out. It's a good idea to go into each interview at least having an idea of what each PI does, along with questions. Sometimes questions can be as simple as asking how people got into the type of research they do. This resulted in quite a few interesting conversations for me on my various interviews.
It happens, profs are busy, and even someone in an unrelated field can assess your abilities as a researcher. And the bonus is that someone outside your field of experience may not be able to grill you on the details! Also, dont worry about not getting to meet with your preferred profs, there are always social lunches and dinners @ interviews that should include professors, so you'll have other opportunities to meet those in whose work you are interested.
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Anyway, thank you for the advice. I wrote down a couple more names and emailed them to the grad coordinator "as extra suggestions for the To Be Decideds". Hopefully I'll get somebody interesting!
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I'm not in a field that has pre-acceptance interviews, so I don't know if these comments are worth anything at all, but remember that choosing a grad program can be as much about finding a social/locational fit as it is about finding an intellectual fit. Maybe some of the professors in fields B, C, and D can, as mdxxxvi suggested, answer some of your questions about the program culture; maybe they can answer some of your questions about the place. Maybe you were paired with them because they have something else in common with you--such as having an undergrad institution in common or being close to you in age or something like that--and/or maybe you can use the conversation with them to ask questions that wouldn't come up as readily or that you wouldn't have time to ask during the chat with the professors in your field.
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Thanks!!
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It's a good idea to go into each interview at least having an idea of what each PI does, along with questions. Sometimes questions can be as simple as asking how people got into the type of research they do. This resulted in quite a few interesting conversations for me on my various interviews.
Good luck!
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G'luck!
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