Now late in my PhD, there is a lot I know about engineering PhD programs that I didn't know when I was an incoming PhD student. There are a lot of things that I wish someone had told me during admit weekend or during my first year in the PhD program. And there are a lot of things I simply wish I knew or understood about how to work, how to live, how to think, and how to learn the realities of the societies in which you are involved (e.g., your PhD program and human nature in general). I have written this page in an attempt to save incoming PhD students a lot of time by sharing some things I have learned, so that they can spend their time on other things.
This page is not comprehensive, but I've tried to outline here some of the major things to expect in a PhD program, and list some things you can do to play the game right and spend your time wisely. The major things I describe here are: