Why I Didn't Apply to Graduate School at Yale...Jul 27 '02 Write an essay on this topic.
Popular Products in Sport and Outdoor
The Bottom Line There is more to picking a graduate school than, "Hey, that place sounds cool." Here are some things you may not have considered.
Ok, so part of my reason was I couldn't get in...probably. I didn't try, so I wouldn't know. I got rejected by a couple of really lame schools despite beating their average GRE and GPAs by a "lot" (there is not that much room to be that much better). For instance, Iowa State University didn't accept me when my first choice, much better school did. Was it because I'm some kind of genius and Iowa State doesn't know what they are talking about? Nope...it is because I didn't fit there and shouldn't have applied in the first place. The people they picked were better suited for them and will do much better for Iowa State than I would have ever done. This applies to many fields. Maybe not an MBA or something, but a lot of fields besides my own (psychology). However, I am not an expert on most other fields (or psychology even). So consider that this "general rule" may not apply in every single case, but for the most part here is what you need to do: Look at your scores and past... Now most schools will order you to take that dreaded GRE. You can study for this, but that is not what the editorial is about. Just do the best you can and get your score. Now find a guide in your field comparing graduate schools. This will give you a rough idea of your chances. Like I said above, it is not fool-proof, but I knew that applying to Yale would be a very big long-shot for me. Your scores and GPA could be your first criteria. Make a list of several schools (I think I applied to 9). List two or three "dream schools." My long-shot that I applied to was Saint Louis University. It was basically a long-shot because I told them point-blank that I wouldn't go unless they paid my tuition in full. I assume they laughed at me. My other "dream school," though not my first choice (see below) was the University of Colorado...man, I'd love to live in Boulder. Then find some schools where you meet or beat the average as your "middle choice" then have two schools that you blow away the GRE/GPA averages. Hopefully your scores are high enough. If not, don't be totally discouraged, but consider that it may be a bit harder to get into school. But this is surely not the only factor to consider. The average GRE at the schools that accepted me were higher than 3 that didn't accept me. So that was surely not their only factor. Consider your past experience: work experience, research experience, extracurricular stuff, etc. Schools look at this too. I know that in psychology, the APA Guide to Graduate School in Psychology lists the importance of each of these things (and letters of rec, etc.) for each school. For the most part, scores will give you a rough estimate of where you stand. It may help you to "weed out" schools that you don't seem to have a chance at getting accepted to, and you may second-guess some schools when your score really outshines there averages. For the rest of this editorial, I'm going to assume that you have been accepted to a couple of schools and are trying to pick the best, or you know you will be accepted to a couple and are trying to pick the best. Look at sub-areas of study... A bunch of schools around the nation offer "Biology Programs" or Psychology or Sociology or English. So do you want to just learn about "General Biology?" or would you rather "Ornithology..." Ohhh, now we are getting somewhere. If your interest is in a sub-area, try to find a school that actually offers that as a program. For instance, some schools offer Public Policy programs instead of a more general political science program. Some psychology schools actually have sports psychology programs. You may actually find a legitimate molecular chemistry program somewhere. Universities that advertise the specialty you are into are probably better than those who have something that you could adapt into what you are into. However, they may be more competitive. My main choice was between two schools that accepted me. One was closer to my family and the professor was extremely nice. But they just didn't have the program I wanted. I could have done it as the professor was willing to work with me and let me work on my research interest despite it not being in the school. However, the other school actually had and was known for the program of study I was interested in doing. So that scored big points for the school with the program. Consider reputation... Which means you have to not only consider that they have your area of interest, but that they are reputable in it. For instance, the University of Colorado and say Billy Bob's University both have social psychology programs. So do tons of universities. University of Colorado is the one that has the reputation in it, though. Ask professors at your current school or do some web searches to find out which schools are known for your particular interests. And balance this with overall reputation. The school I picked has a much better reputation than Harvard for my particular program, but I would much rather graduate with a PhD from Yale. I guess this really would become important when the overall reputation of a school you are considering is very high while the overall reputation of the school known for your particular interest is moderate. If it were between an Ivy League school and something, I'd probably go with the Ivy League...but other than that I'd be hard pressed to go with anything besides the school known for my particular interests. After all, that means I'll enjoy school more (theoretically). Look at professors... The work of the professors is very important, especially their work in your particular interest area. For instance, if you want to learn about ornithology and you find a school with a great aviary, try to find the professor who published the most work in ornithology. Taking it even farther, maybe you will find a professor who has published exclusively in the attraction of Peruvian birds to llamas. If you say, "Hey, that is what I want to do," then you got your man or woman. Unless they are really mean, it is a really bad school or it is somewhere if BFE, this probably should give the school priority. Also consider the time the professor will have to spend with you. Ask other graduate students and the professor himself. I applied to one place where the professor was very well known in my field. He is considered a huge expert and has been on Dateline, Oprah and other shows (no, it isn't Dr. Phil...). Unfortunately, I was critical of how much time he would have with ME if he is going around all the time. Now the reputation of working with the guy would have been cool, but how much would I have really worked with him? Finally, this is a small factor, but you should consider the professor's tenure status and faculty position. By faculty position, I mean how involved is the professor in politics and how much does he or she get along with others on the staff. Has the professors been in trouble? An untenured or "in trouble" professor may move in a year or two. This could either leave you stranded with no major professor or force you to move again, possibly to a "worse" program. Also just ask the professor if he or she is planning on leaving any time soon. But remember, non-tenured professors can stay around for years and tenured professors can suddenly get a better deal. Knowing ahead of time helps a lot, though. Look at geography... Where you live should not matter, but it does. While you probably won't have much time to enjoy life anyway, it is good to be in a place you can tolerate. I applied to school in North Dakota...don't remember what I was thinking. It is too cold...I'd never survive. So consider the weather and habitat (mountains, etc.). Also consider people. Do they speak funny? Are the friendly? Will you be discriminated against? Will you suffer from culture-shock? It is hard to know ahead of time, but consider it. A different geography also may be a blessing. Graduate school is the perfect time to jump into new experiences. It will last 2 to 7 years depending on your research and how fast you do that thesis and dissertation. That is not a long time to experience a new habitat. I'm moving up north (not North Dakota north). I will live in snow for the first time and suffer an average high temperature in January that is almost as low as the record low where I'm from. This will be a good time to learn what is better--hot and humid or cold and dry. Finally, how often will you want to visit home? How far is the drive? Is there an airport? Will friends actually want to come to visit? What is there to do in your town, and how do you describe it to people back home? What will you do if you have to pick between two equal schools and one is closer to home than the other? You need to know if you want to "get away" or not. I had people in my class use staying near home as their number one reason to pick a school, so I guess it is important. Several changed their entire majors just to stay near home. Ask about research, length of study Most schools will take you the same amount of time, but it is important to ask how the judge things. One school I looked at called for about 30 hours less than another. Wow, that is a big difference. However, some how they both estimated they would take the same amount of time. You may be able to carry 12 hours a semester at one school and only 9 at another. So ask, but don't focus too much. When you are done, you are done. Research and funds are also important. Will you have to use vials from the 1940s and only have access to sodium choloride and dihydrogen monoxide? (Ok, salt and water). Or will you be in a state of the art labratory with plenty of funding? This is another thing that has to be juggled and is probably correlated with school and professor reputation. But I'd rather work with Mickey Mouse at a great animal lab at Comptom University than work with Jean Houston at Harvard in a portable building with no electricity. Consider cost and financial aid... As I said above, I asked a private school to pay my $28,000 a year. I also asked them for $1000 a month... I'm sure they laughed hysterically. But I was serious. I wanted enough money to live comfortably in St. Louis. Cost and financial aid are big factors, especially if you want be making major bucks. I may not be at Yale, but my school is paid for and I get enough money to live off of. No more loans for me. Again, this is not the most important factor. If you can afford any school then it is not an issue. However, I would go to a school that paid me ANYTHING before one that paid nothing, espeically if tuition was paid. This shouldn't be taken overboard, though. A school that has a really good assistantship may be doing so to pull people to a subpar program. If both schools offer enough to live and offer tuition and insurance, then ignore the money and use the other criteria. And remember cost of living. One school offered me $12,000 a year and another offered me $9,000. Both would pay my tuition. That extra $3000 would have been great, but the cost of living was higher (not $3000 higher) and the program just was not as tailored to me. Money is not everything. Heck, what the hell are you going to do with $9000 a year...that is way below the poverty line. It is good, though, when you don't leave school owing $90,000 or something. And sometimes strong financial aid is a sign of strong funds instead of an "incentive plan" to help a bad program. Consider friends, family, etc... Do you think you can make friends easily? Do you want to leave your friends that far behind? What does your family (especially if you are married) think? Better to be happy at a pretty good program than have a miserable spouse at a great program. And in this, you will also have to consider your sig. other's education...can they get the education they need? Consider your goals... Did you have a goal to get into a certain school even if you didn't have a clear reason? Go through your lists of career goals and see if they match with that school goal. If they do, even a little bit, then apply even if you never think you can make it. Summary This review is not all-inclusive. I am not you and don't know your personal tastes. However, I hope that I at least got you to see that there is more to picking a graduate school than, "Hey, that place sounds cool." Take the things I wrote and use them to form your own questions about any school you consider.  |
| Read all comments (2)|Write your own comment |
- Top 500|
Ads by Google
|
