Applying to grad school: what I learned

[starlady]

Having just sent in my graduate fellowship acceptance (and having just reactivated my FAFSA pin, joy), it seemed like a good time to post my accumulated wisdom on the graduate school application process. I know I would have appreciated someone laying this information out for me at this time last year; particularly at the beginning I felt rather isolated, especially compared with the fellowship application process I went through my senior year of college. I know some people who read this journal are thinking of graduate school in the near future, and I hope you find this helpful. ETA: I forgot to say, this applies to schools in the States only. /eta

General comments
Based on the experiences of myself and many of my friends who applied this year to various programs at various levels, I think the best acceptance rate you can expect is 50%, and really a better number would be 25%--I applied to 8 programs for a Ph.D. and got two Ph.D. acceptances and two M.A.-only acceptances. Realistically speaking, if there are enough good programs in your field you should apply to at least six to eight schools. But if you're going for something ridiculously popular, like English literature or a creative writing M.A. (in which case I admire your determination in the face of all reason and odds), eight programs would be the absolute minimum. At the same time, if you're only going for an M.A. your odds are probably a bit better, since you're not likely to get much financial aid and therefore schools can be freer with their invitations. Try to have at least one safety school, to which you're sure you'll be accepted; usually that will be a second-tier program or your undergrad university.

Letters
Whether you're currently in school or not, don't wait until September to nail down who will write you a letter of recommendation (and if you are in school, ask people in June or so, after the graduation madness has died down). One should definitely come from your undergrad advisor, but other than that, try to find people who can speak to different aspects of your strengths. Also, while three letters is the minimum, many schools allow you to submit a fourth or even fifth letter. Five is probably excessive, but four won't hurt if you have four people who can make a strong case for you without repeating themselves. If you're not going to apply immediately, make sure to keep in touch with your recommenders, just so they can say that they've kept in touch with you since you graduated. Also make sure to offer recommenders your resume, CV, and/or writing samples or college papers to refresh their memories.

The GRE
If you're not going to apply to grad school this year, my advice is not to take the GRE this year either--the $150 test fee includes four score reports (an $80 value), but schools only keep those reports on file for one year, so you'll wind up paying for those reports twice if you take the test in a different year than in which you apply. But whenever you take it, do buy the Princeton Review GRE Book and if necessary the verbal skills book so that you're not taking the test cold. And schedule your first test with enough of a time-cushion so that you can retake the test the next month if you're not happy with your scores.

The writing sample
Unless you were a phenomenal writer in your underclassman years, you're probably going to want to use a paper written in your junior or senior years. Make sure your citations are correct and included, and don't be afraid to do a little revision; I incorporated my prof's comments on my senior seminar paper into the version that I submitted to grad schools in 2009, and also revised certain sections to reflect updates to the topic in question (human rights trials in Cambodia, to be specific) that had occurred since I wrote the paper in 2007.

Personal statement(s)
DON'T leave writing these until a week and a half before your first application is due (like I did); DO find someone else to beta and/or trade essays with (like I did). In retrospect, these would have been so much easier if I had been able to articulate my scholarly interests more clearly, but I've been told that application committees are looking for a sense that you understand that grad school isn't like undergrad and are prepared to make a serious go of it. Other than that, try to give a sense of who you are as a scholar and as a person.

Emailing profs
I did a very little bit of this, and I think if I'd done more I could possibly have gotten even more acceptances: an acceptance is partly a function of the profs at the department to which you're applying thinking that your interests mesh well enough with theirs that they can supervise your work in a productive way. Emailing profs is a good way to get a sense of this, beyond looking at department websites, as well as getting a sense of the program in general, and its allied departments.

Logistics
The application process is as much a game of dotting the I and crossing the T at the right time as it is of dazzling schools with your brilliance. Do keep track of what schools want what transcripts, score reports, and papers where and when--the best way to do this is to create an electronic application account at each school early on in the process, and then email the department administrative assistants if you don't understand the website directions, and then write down the deadline information somewhere else. Also keep track of postmark versus receipt deadlines and which schools want which transcripts--request your transcripts from your undergrad institution with plenty of time to spare for unforeseen events. I'm harping on the transcripts because I mindlessly sent two extra copies of mine to Stanford and had to pay a lot extra to have my college FedEx a transcript to UChicago: I had the correct information written down on my legal pad, but I didn't look at it. Don't do that. Also don't do what I did, which is have to pay lots of money to FedEx my applications to McGill and to Chicago two days before the deadlines, which were receipt and not postmark. In other words, turn in your application early and properly.

Comments

[recessional]

It's always interesting to me where the US and Canadian universities differ. For example:

One should definitely come from your undergrad advisor

The idea that one might, as an undergrad, HAVE an advisor who so much as remembered your name is . . . interesting.

[starlady]

Well, it depends on what kind of college one attends in the States. My friends in the Ivy League definitely did not have close relationships with their advisors, whereas I at a private liberal arts school had personal relationships with most of my professors, as well as the dean and president of the college.

[recessional]

*nod* Our schools tend to run with "advising departments", where (I am told in story and song) you can get a mythical "appointment" if you show up early enough in the morning on the same day. (Not that I'm bitter.) This has been in my experience true even at smaller colleges, although there the appointments are less mythical; you can build up personal relationships with profs and stuff, but it's never going to be formal, as an undergrad, and you're way more likely to get close with a prof than with an advisor.

It's just interesting to watch differences. (Terminology is another one - I had to look up what "underclassman" meant!)

[starlady]

Well, as an incoming freshman I was assigned an advisor with whom I absolutely did not get along (and this was fairly clear within about 10 minutes of my first meeting with her; she was nice, but we were just completely different), and I never saw her outside of advising meetings (which were required once a semester, because advisors are required to sign off on advisees' course selections). In the second semester of my sophomore year she told us that she was going on sabbatical and we all had to jump ship, at which point I asked one of my current profs to be my advisor, who kindly consented, and with whom I have been close ever since. I ♥ my undergrad advisor; so much of what I've accomplished is completely thanks to her.

[naraht]

Very interesting. No doubt useful; definitely not applicable to my graduate applications experience. As recessional says (for different reasons), it's fascinating to see how these things diverge.

[starlady]

I totally forgot to add in the "States only" disclaimer up at the top; I did that now...

[juniperphoenix]

This is all great advice. I used to work in recruitment/admissions for a professional master's program, so I'll offer a few tips from the other side of the process:

* Visit the campus if you can, and let the department know in advance — they ought to may be willing to set up an itinerary of appointments for you. Make sure you get to meet with a current student as well as with faculty and staff members. Write thank-you notes to the people who meet with you. Take advantage of open house/mass visiting days if they're offered.

* This should go without saying, but: DO NOT bring your parents with you on a graduate school visit. (Or at least, don't bring them to appointments with you.) You would be surprised by the number of applicants who do this. It makes them look immature and makes the admissions staff really uncomfortable.

* This should also go without saying: Be nice to the admissions staff, and don't be afraid to show some personality in your interactions with them. They do have favorite applicants and will cheerlead for them (um, not in an improper way, although I realize it does sound a bit sketchy. It's just good to have an ally, y'know?)

* Find out which section of the GRE matters the most to the particular programs for which you're applying. (I think the GRE is about to change again, so this may be changing, too.)

* If you are offered funding, you will have until April 15 to decide whether or not to accept it. Sometimes schools try to pressure students into deciding more quickly (so they can offer the $ to someone else if you turn them down). Don't let them pressure you. They can get in big trouble for it, because April 15 is a nationally agreed-upon date that all schools are supposed to respect to ensure fairness.

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

Oh, good points. I didn't visit any of the schools I applied to (though, in retrospect, two were close enough that I should have--and if I had, I probably would have applied to different departments there). In retrospect I'm sort of surprised at the success I had, despite the things I didn't do.

[juniperphoenix]

In retrospect I'm sort of surprised at the success I had, despite the things I didn't do.

Well, it's not too surprising, since in the end one's academic qualifications really are the most important deciding factor — but especially in borderline cases, a personal connection can help. (Also, it bears mentioning that my experience was with a large, numbers-hungry professional program that was looking for reasons to admit students rather than the opposite.)

[outou.livejournal.com]

Thank you very much for the information, especially since my own college has been, um, subtly preparing us for grad school. (Every sophomore met with the Assistant Dean to discuss scholarship and grant opportunities, which--while appreciated--was a little harrowing.)

This is a broad question, but what do you think universities look for in potential students? I might be thinking about it too much in the lens of "high school student applying to four-year college," but do they take factors other than the ones outlined above into account?

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

Having talked with profs about it, both at schools I applied to and others to which I didn't, I think the big difference is that when you apply to undergrad there's no intrinsic reason you couldn't get a fistful of acceptances, but in grad school admissions, you're guaranteed not to get in everywhere because schools are judging you as a proven quantity and deciding whether you'll fit in with their departments for the next six years or so.

The thing that process really can't address is the most important, I'd say--namely, academic qualifications, which I think (in combination with whether profs think you'll work well with them) are absolutely the most important thing: what classes you took, GPA, GPA in your major, GPA in the field to which you are applying, scholarships, activities, years of language studied, etc.

The writing sample plays a role here too, in giving a sense of the applicant--or at least, my grad school advisor told me that my writing sample in combination with my background (classics and Asian studies) made them think they should give me admission. Judging from what people told me on my admitted student visits, I think admissions committees look for people who can thrive in their programs and do the program proud when they leave. (Side note: most definitely not GRE scores. Princeton's application doesn't even have a field to report them, which tells you something.)

[outou.livejournal.com]

I see--that definitely puts the application process in context. While I'm still on the fence about whether I'll join the Peace Corps before or after grad school, I'm glad to know that plugging away at my school work and keeping my GPA up is the right thing to do. (That much should have been obvious, but I haven't joined as many clubs as I could have due to the time I spend studying. I'm not a shut-in, per se, but I'm certainly not the class president/head editor/football team captain.) Thanks again for the help!

[starlady38.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was ridiculously busy in college, but I don't think that actually had much impact on my application; almost none of what I did is on my CV, and I'm not remembering reporting it on the forms, either.

The other thing I've heard consistently is that grad schools appreciate applicants who aren't going straight in from undergrad; I don't think it's precisely a strike against you if you do (one of my friends who just became ABD went straight in, and she's brilliant and has done brilliantly), but I know that having some time out is a plus. Speaking personally, I think I would have gone nuts if I'd gone straight in, and doing my fellowship was a huge boost to my application. I think the Peace Corps would look pretty good too--and if you're going for IR or polisci, I'm sure having that experience can only be a plus.