[New Grad Students, A Short Thread] Although @ucdavis won't start for another month, most universities have started back up. As a new trainee, you are entering your discipline at a strange time that comes with tremendous uncertainty. How, then, should you pick an advisor?

You might feel like the decision space is rather small. Your grad program has only so many possible mentors. Not all faculty are taking on new students, not all faculty have funding for you, not all faculty's interests match your own. It can seem like the choice is made for you.

I picked my advisor, René Weber ( @MediaNeuro) because his research was interesting, he was accepting students, and because Santa Barbara sounded nicer than Bloomington. That's it. By incredible luck, I selected a wonderful advisor! I would pick René again in a heart beat!

And now, here comes the "do as I say not as I do" part of this thread. The three criteria I used to pick my advisor are not irrelevant, but it is quite possible that they were not the best criteria for making such an important decision.

How, then, should you pick an advisor? Glad you asked! Barres has an absolutely wonderful article detailing the things you should look for (and look out for). The article is a short and easy read. And it is chock-full of great advice! https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuron.2013.10.005

Barres argues you should look for evidence of: mentoring success, scientific rigor and success, a positive lab culture, exciting and important questions. To summarize, Barres says to pick an advisor who is not only a good scientist, but also a good mentor. How do you do this?

Barres has great advice! Talk with trainees in the lab. Talk to trusted mentors. Read your potential advisor's research. Sit in on lab meetings. Look for active labs where everyone gets considerable attention and training (but not micromanagement). Look for a love of science.

Good advisors will instill in you a love for science, a passion for rigorous and important work, and a fearlessness and independence that will make you successful once you've completed your training. A good advisor will stick with and mentor you long after you've left the lab.

René Weber ( @MediaNeuro) did (and continues to do) these things for me. I am so lucky! This is the sort of advisor I am trying to grow into myself. And this is the sort of advisor I wish for all of you, too.