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[turtl977]

Hi Everyone,
I have a question about taking a job candidate to lunch. I have never done this before and am not really sure about what to talk about? Does anyone have any suggestions?
Thanks.

[pembleton]

The great thing about doing the candidate lunch as a grad student is that it's really no stress. Think of it as a chance to prepare for when you are the one interviewing.

You probably have questions about what the candidate will or won't do to help you get a job (what she or he will teach, approach to mentoring grad students, what advice they have for people who are not too far from going on the market). All that's fair game.

Because interviews are full-tilt all day affairs, candidates probably also relish the chance to ease it back a notch and just talk about stuff unrelated to work.

What I would not do is intentionally offer dirt on your department. You would not want anything untoward that you say to get back to your faculty.

[polly_mer]

Pembleton is right about not dishing any dirt on your department.

Talking about non-job things are fine, but remember that this is part of the interview.  Check over on the interview process board and find out what other people are being asked.  In particular, learn the "Thou shalt not ask these inappropriate questions" topics.  Hint: unlike any social situation, do not ask any personal "tell me about the family" questions.

You will also need to figure out what kind of report the search committee expects.  Do they really want your opinion about how the candidate views students?  I know of a couple of candidates who were rude to the graduate students and basically treated that part of the interview as fluff.  That immediately killed them as a serious candidate because one of the points of pride of our school is engaging students of all levels in research.  On the other hand, a couple candidates really shone because they did engage the students.

Pembleton is right that candidates may relax with graduate students, but it's not necessarily in their favor to do so.  I still remember the candidate for library director who said "I'm really interested in your school because it's low ranked enough that I won't have to get a doctorate, which I'm too lazy to get, anyway."  That killed his candidacy right there because even graduate students want someone who wants to be at our school.

What are the hot topics around your school and department?  What kind of person do you want to see hired?  This is your opportunity to grill (for lack of a better term) the candidate on things that you think are important.  What about the library?  What about the proposed change in curriculum?  What new, exciting things does the candidate offer the department?

This is an interview.  Find out about what kind of professor this candidate is likely to be.

[profesoracr]

Heh.  If you have a choice, do it *before* the job talk so if they tank they don't ask you how it went. 

Other than that, I usually just talked about the University & town from a grad student perspective, and asked candidates about their research.  Pretty low stress, and a free lunch, to boot.

[imawakenow]

I agree with polly that it's good to know ahead of time whether or not the SC wants a report from you. One clue is whether feedback is already solicited in some form or another from grad students. (In my department, a grad student serves on every faculty SC and actively seeks feedback from other students.)

Also, remember that a campus interview is a two-way street. The candidate is (or at least should be) interviewing you while the department is interviewing the candidate.

So, common questions to ask are how the candidate characterizes the grad student/faculty relationship, whether and how the candidate plans to involve grad students in his or her research agenda, why he or she wants to join your department, etc.

I'd also leave time to allow the candidate to ask questions about your experience in the program. It's also a nice transition, if you feel a burden carrying the conversation: So, I'm sure you have some questions about our program...

Finally, I always like having a couple of grad students when I've had lunch with a candidate, as it takes the pressure off of you and the candidate. I'd get permission to invite at least two friends. A free meal is a free meal.

[vardahilwen]

I've done a few of these.  The candidate will usually ask you about your research interests.  I like to ask the candidate her/his approach to working with grad students.

Vardahilwen

[dr_prephd]

Or you could take him to the local undergrad. bar and get smashed together.

Oh, wait, I meant to post this on the "What NOT to do" thread.

Seriously, this is, in all likelihood (though you don't say so explicitly) someone who is just a few years ahead of you in his / her professional path. Use it as an opportunity to find out about life on the other side of those three little letters.