Rotating in the Lab

Big Picture

Rotations are a two-way street – you want to know if our lab is a good fit for you, and we want to know if you are a good fit for our lab. Here’s what we’re evaluating:

  1. Your demonstrated interest and aptitude for the research and field. Show us your independent perspective on how your project fits into other work in the lab and in the field. What would you do next? If you want to join the lab for your thesis, what question would you like to answer for your project? Independently reading is the most important way to gain this insight and can be honed by actively participating in lab meetings and seminars, informal discussions in the lab, and one-on-one meetings with Mike.
  2. Your independent drive to get the work done. We want to see your individual efforts to take ownership over your project and drive it through i) researching the field, ii) designing rigorous experiments and analyses, iii) exploring alternative methods to answer your question, and iv) looking for ways to troubleshoot stalled experiments. You’re being evaluated on how you push a project and your work, not on if your specific experiment works right away. Troubleshooting is 99% of science, so embrace the frustration and work to figure out what needs to be changed before you try again. We’re here to troubleshoot with you, so ask someone for help if you get stuck. This will help you learn what kind of support you’ll get from the rest of our team going forward.
  3. Your ability to integrate with the team. You are responsible for your project but also contributing positively to the lab environment. Treat others in the lab with respect and integrity. Communicate early and often to avoid confusion and conflict. Ask for help when you need it and offer help to others. Be the kind of person you want to work with.

Rotation Expectations

  1. A few weeks before your rotation, please provide Mike with the anticipated start and end dates of your rotation, your current schedule outside of lab (classes, etc), any forms that need to be completed for your program, and any deadlines for submission of end-of-rotation grades/presentations/reports/etc.
  2. We ask you to follow our lab Code of Conduct, and to uphold our listed expectations of Everyone and Graduate Students on the Welcome, Expectations & Conduct page.
  3. During your rotation, you will have one-on-one meetings with Mike every two weeks (or more frequently), which we will schedule as a standing time once you start – see the Individual MWMs section of the handbook. You may also be directly supervised by a more senior lab member, with whom you should also be communicating frequently.
  4. During your rotation, you will attend lab meetings, and near the end of your rotation, you will present briefly (20-30 min) about what you tried to accomplish during your rotation.