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I know that a lot of people on this forum have used funding from one program to get another program to increase its funding offer. Does anyone have any experience using non-funding aspects (particularly the convenience of going to a program in a city in which you already live as opposed to moving to go to another) of one program to get another to increase its financial aid offer? My list is down to a few schools, and one of them, where I currently live, is not offering money, while a couple in other areas are offering small amounts. I like all the programs but would like to see if I can get the small-amount schools to increase their offers by discussing the temptation of staying where I currently am instead of moving and that sort of thing. Does anyone have any experience with this?

Hi guys, I recently changed job titles, but I've already turned in my grad school apps. Do you think it's worth saying something to the schools I applied to, or is it probably too late to get them to care?

Hi guys, I'd prefer that my current workplace not know that I've applied to grad school until I'm ready to leave. However, I'd imagine that most schools would run an employment verification...does this mean that, if or when I accept a place at a school in April or so, my place of work will get a call from the school shortly after? Has anyone dealt with this before? I'd really rather not have this conversation with my bosses until a few months down the line... Does anyone have any experience with this?

I just spoke to one of my recommenders, who informed me that the reason that he put for my leaving the job at which I worked with him differs from the one that I put on the applications that I have turned in so far. It seems to have just been an honest mistake, and the two versions are reconcilable (just sort of told from different angles of the company, and neither is bad; I left the job on good terms), but I'm worried that it might present problems to an ad com who notices she says one thing and I say another. Is it worth it to write to the ad coms to modify my own explanations for leaving this job even though their deadlines have already passed, or should I just let this be. I'm worried that the inconsistency, if noticed, could lead to them thinking that I'm not telling the truth.

I'm applying for dual degree programs where each degree is taken at a different college. Do my goals have to match for both SOPs, or is it OK if they are slightly different? I'm talking about a tiny semantic change or two that I realized I wanted to make after I submitted one, but I haven't yet submitted the other. Would there be any chance that the schools will compare the two statements to make sure that I was consistent with what I said I wanted to do, or should I not worry about this?

I got my current position through a staffing agency, but I'm applying to schools right now. If I spent a few weeks working for them through the agency but will soon be made a full-time, regular employee, should I put the staffing agency and the company on my resume (since originally I am employed and paid by the agency, though I do my work at the company), or should I just put the company? I was thinking that I could put the company on my resume and leave a note in my optional essay that I got the job and was technically employed by the staffing agency before being made a full-time employee. Does anyone have any thoughts on or experience with this?

I audited a couple of courses in undergrad. They weren't related to my major, but of course I did get the credits for graduation. The reason is sort of embarrassing: I needed to take a couple of classes from these areas to graduate, but was a bit intimidated by the subject matter and didn't want low grades to drag down my GPA. Is it worth explaining this in an app's optional essay, or should I just let my transcript speak for itself and not mention it?

I'm applying to a couple of schools that ask for me to give reasons why I left jobs. At one of my jobs, I was given the option of resigning or being fired. I chose to resign. The job wasn't a good fit anyway, but would it be a stretch of the truth to list "not a good professional fit" as the reason I chose to resign? I mean, I resigned because I had to do that or be fired, but it really wasn't a good fit and I wanted to resign anyway. What's the best thing to put for this?

Hi all, Sorry if this is a question that comes up a lot. I was unable to find a satisfactory answer on here. I'm applying to MBA programs, and most of them want a resume (or CV for non-American applicants). I have a nice-looking two-page resume, but a lot of the second page is volunteer work, awards, scholarships, etc. It seems that a lot of the applications ask for those things in the app itself, so should I try to pare my resume down to one page and eliminate them? Or should I just keep it as two pages and just have a lot of the other stuff listed during the application, as well.

Interesting, thanks for the perspective. I should probably clarify that I'm a contract worker right now but will probably be taken on as a regular employee right around the time my first applications will be going in in a couple more weeks. Does that make any difference with any of my considerations?

I just started a new position, but I'm also applying for grad schools out of the city I live in. Am I paranoid to think that my current boss could contact any program I get accepted to (when/if I tell him I have to leave) and tell them that I wasn't up-front about applying to programs, which might result in concern about my character, etc. from programs and thus a possible revocation of an offer of admission? Is that crazy? I just don't want to have to deal with anything in a few months if/when I get into any of my chosen programs, have put down a deposit, and have to tell my boss. Has anyone dealt with this before?

I've spoken to quite a few people affiliated with each of the schools I"m applying to, including alums and current students. Should I make reference to my conversations with these students in my essays if I gained any important insight from them? It seems a bit brown-nose-y, but I'd like for schools to see that I have done my research.

I'm preparing grad school apps for a few different programs, and I'm wondering if I should include part-time work that I did this past summer on it. I left my other job, got a gig for the summer (fixed, seven-week job), part-time, in my field. I recently started a new job. Is this summer job something that I should put down on my resume/CV? Also, the schools ask for my four most recent professional experiences, full- or part-time. I'm worried that, if I include this part-time work, it will obscure a relatively prestigious fellowship that I did a while back, as that is over four jobs ago. Of course, that fellowship is on my resume, but I'm worried that this initial list is meant to filter out students, and could cause my app to be cast aside before they see anything else. Does anyone have any thoughts on this?

Hi all, I'm applying for International Affairs programs, and although all of the sites of the schools I'm applying to say they will take either a CV or a resume, I'm concerned about submitting the right one. Does anyone have any experience with this, particularly for IA/IR programs? Is there a certain CV or resume format I should consider? Any other advice?

Thanks for the advice. I should mention that I'm not applying to research-based academic programs, but to MBA programs and the like. Does that make a difference at all?